Akula69

Who the hell would ever know? Hmmm. The rivets come out the bottom, don't'cha know.... :D

I got 1 extra ball and a blimp if you need one. Think the blimp only has a port on one side though.

Whew - that sounds like loads of fun. Along with the other suggestions, how long since a new set of injectiors? That could help as well.

Great Write-up!

Take a trip to a 3rd world county and you will see just how good we do have it :thumbsup: I've been to Tennessee............does that count :hmm: LOL! :D

My daughter had the same project, but she could only use toothpicks. My answer to that was to start about 1 week early and glue 4 toothpicks together in a bundle. Then, after they were dry I used the bundles to make a trestle type bridge (like for a railroad). it was a rectangle that was comprised of 4 sides with cross hatched support menbers on all 4. I made 'beams' of the bundles as well for support at the bottom, and put 'retaining plates' at each intersection. it weighted 6.8 oz. when done. The bridge was suspended between two desks and regular barbell weights were suspended from it's center. To get an 'A' the bridge had to hold up 3 times it's own weight...the version she submitted held up 18 pounds before one of the supports snapped. :D PM me if you want the pictures.

I'm not even gonna...aw damn...... Thats really gonna hurt! :help:

Great work so far!

Bump for me to track.

I don't particularly care for the exterior changes as well, but seems like if the 'commentary' only openly dings the gasoline mileage (even with the slight increase) you could reasonably say the change in styling was for reducing air resistance. Now the interior has some changes that remind me of the Mercedes styling, and that could be cool, especially if they have worked to reduce wind noise.

As I had indicated in my 'The price is right' thread, I don't believe the US Government really cares who buys them, they just want someone on the hook for the taxpayer dollars (so they can tell the taxpayers they are spending the money wisely). Fiat is just the ticket, because if they succeed the government looks like a hero for 'saving a failing company', and if they fail then the goverment can take over the company under the excuse they are taking care of the investment. That is when you'll really need to moan about Chryco's fate....

Yeah - I did exactly that. I positioned them so that at least three of the bolts went through a frame rail lip, and suprisingly enought two of the origional bolts were correctly positioned and the other two were only off by about 1/2 inch. I used hardened stainless bolts, washers and nuts.

Now I would never suggest anything illegal..... If I was faced with a situation like that I would check out the surrounding state's policy on salvage titles. If I needed to, I would establish a residence there (P.O. Box) and then apply for one saying that the origional title was lost and no record could be found. Mississippi does this really well :D

I modified the floor to accept the XJ 'rocker' seat brackets...it was not difficult but: 1) does make the seating position higher, and 2) positions the seats a little closer together, croweding the full length console a bit. it works for us as we are a tad bit shorter then ya'll (under 6 foot).

Yeah, I did. The model I had required a small pilot hole to be drilled, and then a special bit is inserted into the hole. Upon reversing the drill it is supposed to back it out, but the plastic of the grill was so brittle that it snapped under the stress. In retrospect I believe it would have worked if the material would have been stronger. I suppose I also could have tried a lube (Breakfree or PB Blaster) before attempting it...hindsight's 20-20 :roll: I handled the next corroded screw that stripped by taking a small die grinder with a 1/4 bit and flattening the head, then drilled the screw's shaft out and used a slightly larger SS screw in it's place. Good Luck !

Enter the Fiat http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29958784/?GT1=43001. I wonder if they'll make a Fiat Truggy? :brows:

I'm sorry to hear that....it really sucks that you are goin thru it but it will get better. I was out for 6 mths before finding something, but I finally did. Keep your head up!

K...I understand what you are saying, but where can you get the bearing and the keeper? all I ever see is the entire shaft for sale. And...how would I know it was bad? loosness? play? scoring? I guess I was thinking I'd need to use a micronmeter to check clearances or something....

I am experiencing a slight clicking sound from the rear axle as I turn a sharp left turn at slow speed. I have never replaced an axle shaft, but believe the process to be relatively straightforward. However, I wondered if someone here had any experience in identifying when the axle shaft should be replaced. Does the axle shaft have to be removed and checked for measurements to spec? (as I cannot find any bearing assembly in there to support it). If so, does anyone have a listing of the specs (i.e. Diameter of contact surfaces, etc.)? Thanks Jake

I'm sorry for your loss. I would have never believed how much a member of the family could be missed until I lost several myself. My wife and I have been able to feel better about it by getting a good photo of the pet and adding it to the wall of family photos (where it should have been to begin with :doh: )

Cool. So when you hit a bump the truck goes (wait for it) Mama ? :D

Daymn, I'm not thinking in complete thoughts today....top of the axle was the position I was referring to.

I'm probably not serching the posts correctly, but does anyone have a DIY thread on an easy way to replace the front axle control arm bushings? Thanks in advance. Jake

Oldrusty is correct - get a metal set. I had the same problem on the SHO and broke my first plastic set, and stubbornly bought another plastic set and broke it as well. The etal set did the trick.

I can't speak for the auctions in your area, but at ours the bidders are allowed a certain amount of time before the bidding begins to examine the vehicles. As we had some problems with folks intentionally disabling the vehicles they wanted (to discourage other bidders) most of them will not have a key or battery in the car (however, they will accompany you to the vehicle with a jump box and the key and stand there while you do your thing). No tools are allowed here but they usually write codes on the windshield like these: DL - Deadline. Usually has a date with it that shows when it was taken out of service. TR - Transmission is shot BE - Blown engine BDL - Bad drive line (but they don't know why) DNS - Do not start. Usually means no oil or bad oil leak that would cause engine to seize. Depending on the department, they might keep the maintenance records. Most howver take pretty good care of the vehicles. Good Luck!