The dang SC oil leak was caused by the rear fill plug. The o-ring was garbage. Grrrrrr....


With the belt popped off, the old AC compressor is much harder to turn than the new one. That'll get installed this week. Also in the works is replacing the OEM fan resistor with the Dorman unit. And to top it off, I believe the HK amp finally crapped the bed.

Good times.

 

Hang in there - you will eventually turn the corner. Admire your resilience.

 

Thank you.

The Mini Scoocher is back on the road. No pics because. . . lazy. New compressor in. Old unit had no charge, so that is somewhat concerning because the wife wants AC (next year). Replaced the SC duct and green gasket (again), so far so good. Replaced the fan resistor with the Dorman unit, works, so small victory so far. Picked up the Schawaben coolant refill tool, worked as expected. I was relieved the system held steady vacuum, so more peace of mind. Also popped the back of the SC off, cleaned up the mating surface, smeared a thin bit o' RTV in there, so hopefully no leaks. First test drive (pizza run) was good, no issues or odd sounds.

Up next. . . windshield replacement, then diagnose and determine plan for the radio system. Gotta have tunes. . .

 

So, it's been just over two thousand miles since my last post in this thread. The windshield has been replaced, and so has the factory amp. . . with a used factory amp. The car received a new shift ****, and that's about it.

A while ago, I picked up a Porter Cable DA and a variety of pads from Autogeek. It's been a few years since I polished and waxed a car. I had forgotten how therapeutic it can be. The process was wash, clay bar, DA with cutting pad and Meguires #1 cleaner wax, DA with polish pad and Meguires #2, hand apply Meguires #3 carnauba wax and remove with DA final pad. Then I sprayed off the car in between rain showers (got odd looks from the neighbors), used a glass scrub on the exterior windows. Finally, it was dry and buff, followed by liberal application of Mother's black trim restore and conservative application of tire shine. Overall, I'm satisfied with the result. . . which did reveal a lot of paint chips from 152,000+ road miles.

Making it shiny has initiated a couple more tasks. Install a cup holder, replace passenger headlight washer nozzle so I can install the cover piece, and an oil change are up next. On deck is replacing the sport stripes and painting the wheels.




no shine, flat dead water



shiny, beaded water!




dried, trim cleaned, and sorted.