Brickmiata

Ok, I lied. On the way to Home Depot this morning, I had quite a bit of oil vapor come through the vents so I took the time to replace the valve cover gasket and mod the vent pickup tubes while I was at it. Also for those interested, here is one of the wrx seats waiting to go in.

I picked up a pair of very nice 03 wrx seats for $200 at the local lkq. Now I just have to get the saggy old buckets out and fabricate something to attach them to the mj sliders.

So, I know this project is a little far off the beaten path around here but I thought I'd do some sharing anyway. A few years ago I picked up a seldom used '91 miata with low miles and quite a few electrical problems. I fixed the electrical problems, drove it for the summer and then sold the hardtop for $1200 and bought a ford ranger to take winter duty (also for $1200). I actually just sold the ranger to a friend to buy my money sucking comanche! Before putting it away that year, I participated in one autox and got completely hooked. Over the winter, the car lost a few hundred lbs in the form of power steering, a/c, lightweight battery, lighter wheels, sticky tires, all new poly bushings and a few other small suspension items. I then drove it like that all of this last season with little change. I also competed in around 10 autox events this year.

Next on the list is a pair of WRX seats, a headlight upgrade and metric ton springs out back because, in addition to plowing, this truck will be a parts and firewood hauler. Oh and a set of turbines because I love them.

Thought I'd start a thread for my latest acquisition and first ever jeep. An 87 lwb 4.0 5spd base. The goal of this build is to have a winter truck to plow a few driveways and have some fun with in between. It was a hell of a ride from Worcester, MA to Buffalo,NY but it was originally a Virginia truck and the only rot is a all spot on the drivers floor so I'd say the ride was worth it. At this point, I thought I had gotten a pretty good deal on a largely rust free 27yr old piece of history. I new it needed some brake attention as they were spongy on the test drive so I started by looking into that. I replaced all rear components down to the lines, and then found the master was leaking. Instead of replacing it with the same 80s style, I put in a 96 cherokee booster/master. While working on that, the clutch went out and I poked my head around until I found the leaking master. I replaced that and then bled and bled but the clutch never came back. Ok, I thought, I have to pull the transmission but why put back the same 200k French crap with internal slave? So in went a new HD clutch for plowing and a low mileage ax15 as well as new ujoints, new exhaust/intake gaskets, and a larger battery. When I got to the battery, I decided I didn't need a/c for my winter vehicle and I hated the location of the alternator, so out came the entire ac system and up went the alternator. I also deleted a good half of the vac lines in the bay and replaced the hood at this point. Next came the Fischer MM1, BDS 2"lift coils and timbrens up front (remember, it's a plow truck). Also installed at this time were four skyjacker shocks bought at a great sale price. This round of changes completely changed the way the truck rides. Goes down the road like its on rails now. Very impressed. Here she is as I brought her home And a few days later when I found a front bumper for it Here it is in the middle of bed-lining the lower strip and installing the plow, springs and shocks.

The day I brought it home

I also have those mirrors. I like them when I'm not in the truck because they are different. I secretly hate them, however. Constantly adjusting them and the view is terrible.

I'm not looking at my truck so I don't know if it's possible but it sounds like the spacer probably extended the accelerator cable.

It may be different gears. Depends on what motor and options each vehicle has I believe.

done the drive from MA to Orlando quite a few times. A Honda odyssey, a single cab bench seat Tacoma with manual everything (lap of luxury), and a 2013 wrx. The wrx was the worst because there were four of us and no leg room. We were supposed to each drive 6hrs but I took two shifts because the drivers seat was the only place I could extend my legs. Ate a lot of candy on that ride.

I do not need the tires and I'm not to excited to pay shipping but I am having a difficult time finding them locally at a reasonable price. How much would you be looking for?

Looking for a set of Turbine wheels close to Worcester, MA. Thanks!

There really isn't anything too complex about the renix system. I've always found OBD codes to be inaccurate and annoying anyway. For a daily driver with no mods, I'd rather have a well cared for renix.

Its a pretty easy swap once you find a good angle to get under there. extensions and maybe a swivel are your friends

I won't be removing my drop in liner until spring even though it doesn't fit right (I think its from a Dakota). The PO cut off the wheel tubs from inside the bed to fit his camper :doh: so anything I put in the bed without the liner in place is liable to fall right out onto my rear tires!

BTW, curb weight of a stock vw bug is about the same as a stock Comanche (3k)... If you wanted to make an actual difference, tell them its a triumph or a Miata (2k)

Two months ago, I rented a uhaul car trailer to tow my lwb from buffalo to MA. The tow vehicle was a gmc 1500 with a class 4 hitch and they were perfectly happy with that. I always bring some straps and tools of my own when using their trailers. Never had a problem with the trailers but I'd rather have what I need for a roadside fix than sit on the side of I-90 for 3hrs waiting for some uhaul certified goof to come fix something.

Funny, I sold my 4.0 5spd rwd ranger to buy my 4.0 5sp 4wd Comanche. The ranger was a great truck for reliability and low end grunt (4L would tow its own weight very happily) and had zero of the electrical issues I'm repairing on the jeep but it was the epitome of boring in my mind. I wouldn't trade back in a million years

I do have a full set of uprated cables on order from jon at kelleyswip but I'm not sure if I'm going to actually see those. I ordered a month ago and have not gotten any shipment notices or even replies to my emails since I sent payment via paypal... I was trying to avoid opening a dispute because he does have an auto response email that says he may take a while to respond due to his living situation but its getting into ridiculous territory at this point.

If the original was a ba10 like mine, take the bracket the bolted to the transmission, remove it from the rod that pivots in it, turn it around so the side that used to face the transmission, now faces the tunnel, install the entire ba10 linkage. It's not quite a perfect fit lining things up but once the bolts go in and a minor adjustment is made to the adjustment rod in the assembly, it works very well. You may have to widen the bolt hole in the bracket you reverse as well. My ax15 had a larger unused hole that worked perfectly.

Subscribed. Would also like to know for my plow setup.

possible for the timing chain to have slipped?

Its a Virginia truck. spent a year or two and mostly sat in buffalo. still had the Virginia plates and sticker when I picked it up :banana: I just noticed you said you got yours from Virginia! this is truly an odd coincidence

This is funny, I'm in MA and irionically drove all the way to buffalo to pick up an 87 4.0/ba10/longbed a few weeks before that storm. :yes: even more interesting is it now also has an ax15 and a new hood!! (old one was a bit crumpled in one corner.

Definitely start by checking over and refreshing the entire fuel pump circuit. Based on what I found when I did this, I was surprised mine ever started and ran.