Update: it's back! It was down almost 7 months but I got it back 1 week ago. God I missed driving it.
Washed it, washed the engine. And I finally took the advice of literally everyone who has ever talked to me (including a couple people on here) and didn't bother prepping the engine for 10 minutes like I usually do, covering sensitive electronics and filters and such. And guess what? I flooded my spark plug wells. This is why I don't listen to people
Going back to my method.
I've spent the last week fixing various things, and I'm so close to having a gauge cluster free of warning lights. I have an appointment tomorrow morning to clear the airbag code:
Bonus funny coincidence in my emails:
It's also strange that only one of those had been opened
Now, I've got updates on a few different subjects here:
New Parts
Got some parts, but really only two "new" parts:
- Fluidampr dampener
- windshield
- (repaired) DV
- Euro plate
- (warrantied) battery
Inspection
Well, it might finally pass inspection! Here's what was/is stopping it:
- replaced the cracked windshield
- if y'all remember, my Turbosmart 50/50 BOV/DV changed personalities throughout my trip, and eventually stopped all BOV characteristics and acted like a DV, and after some time started throwing a p0033 code. Well, a day after getting it back, it started making whooshy noises again, and since then the code hasn't returned
- rear brakes are a concern. My rotors are used ones from my parts car until I can afford upgraded slotted rotors, but I might have to bite the bullet
- front steering gear is iffy, and I've got spare inner/outer tie rods, plus ball joints if necessary
- as always, it's a gamble if they'll notice the cat (or lack thereof, rather). My first inspection it passed, and my previous failed inspections from the same shop have never noted it as the reason for failure. I have had two shops fail me, though. No, I'm not spilling the beans on who is passing me lol I got a good thing going
- tires will absolutely fail, there's only a little tread left. But hey, that's what winters are for and speaking of tires...
Wheels
Finally biting the bullet on new rims. I need new summer tires and I've been wanting to go wider which requires rims. 235/40 fronts, but I'm potentially looking at 255/35 in the rear if (and only if!) I can find a set of staggered 18x8/8.5 rims I like.
As it stands, though, it looks like I'll probably go with a full set of Konig Tandem 18x8 et43 dressed in Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. I'll wrap the fronts in 235/40 and rears a cool 245/40. This will cut 8 pounds from each wheel
I might even have them order and mount the rears first, and try to fit them to the front before I order the 235. If I can get a 245 up front, it'll not only be much sticker, but also closer to the stock tire size. I don't mind rolling my fenders if I need; I'm never selling this car (not to mention with so much being DIY, it reads like a death trap).
I also looked at the Work D9R, and I'm in love, but I seriously can't reason twice the money on it. Plus, they'd have to redrill the pattern, though from what I was told that shouldn't be a safety issue with the D9R.
Problems in the future:
All this said, there are still a couple problems that need to be fixed:
- my FL suspension still rattles from that pothole in Montana
- one of my engine mount bolts broke. Threads on the mount are ruined, might try to reacquire it off my old block
- my left axle is clicking under full lock (hopefully just a leaky boot, but I think the axle is shot)
- a lot of paint chipping. I might do a DIY wrap for this year and deal with that next year (or the year after, depending on the wrap condition)
- most importantly, I'm misfiring at WOT. It doesn't seem to be any one cylinder. My thought was old gas, and I've filed up once at half tank so far, with no change in misfires. While it's obviously bad, I'm just gonna go easy on it for a couple months until I can afford to diagnose the problem, unless it gets worse.
Lastly
I've pretty much decided I'm not gonna continue any performance mods until I have a different daily. As it is, I'm considering tuning it down to Stage 1. I'm either going to kill myself or lose my license, and neither of those are ideal. And if I can't control myself, I guess I'll just limit myself instead.
But if I do decide on a daily, this guy is getting stripped and caged.
Mods going forward are going to be cosmetic (ie rims, wrap, etc), safety (bucket seats?
), luxuries (back up cam, rear facing dash cam, remote starter), or reliability (Fluidampr).