perfect_circle

ok well i finally fixed the idle problem, with my carb, some of you may or may have not read.(it was a huge freaken leak from this tube that comes off the manifold that was shielded from view by the plastic thing(i know. tisk tisk))

then i got the car insured, and then the next day i replaced the brake master cylinder, because i had a soft pedal, but it was the kind where it gets soft after you hold it for a while. so then i went to bleed the brakes and install my ss lines. well i couldnt replace the rear line because it was so rusty, so i bled the rear. then when i tried to remove the bleeder screw from the pass. side caliper it snapped off. so i ran down to the napa, and got the bleeder valve that best matched my broken half. then got home and test fitted it in the rear bleeder valve and it didnt fit, so i took it back. then when i got home again, i realized that the rear is a different size than the front, but now they were closed...

so i tinkered with it trying to remove it. i used ground down scew driver to try and spin it out, and nothing worked. so i ever so gently hammered in a star patterend screw driver insert, and grabbed it with a pair of vise-grips, and guess what. i broke that off inside the caliper.

so at this point i tried removing the caliper and the haynes manual describes the removal for a totally different car( i found this out later) so i coulnt get the caliper off. at this point i was rather upset, so i put the wheels back on and put the car down, and called i a day.

within the next few days i decided i would pull the entire suspension off, swap in my tokico illuminas and my rb springs, along with the lsd rear, and new calipers from my parts car. so my buddy came over to help me remove the front suspension, we got the car in the air, removed the bolts on top of the strut tower, and then proceeded to take off the two bolts on the bottom that hold the strut assembly in place. i tried an impact, and the bolts didnt budge. so then i put the 1/2 inch drive socket on there with a huge freakin' cheater bar, and well you can probably guess that i sheared off both of the bolts.

so at this point i was pretty upset, and just called it a day. and since, i have almost purchased another fb, and i almost bought a TII. keep in mind that this is the car i plan to turbo, for which i have all of the necesary parts, just no place to do any work. i also have the full suspension, light weight flywheel, you know, all the goodies. also, i have to repair the rust in the wheel wells/shock tower/rockers/bins.

so gimme your best shot to try and convince me to keep the fb alive.

Cliff notes. i finally got it running, then went to do break work, it broke, went to fix that and broke more. ive got lots-o-parts, and a rusty chassis. make it all better.

GavinJuice

wow you broke both bolts off that connect the bottom of the strut tube to the control arm? i think i would cry if that happened. i know mine were a bitch when i took them off but gee golly.........

GavinJuice

oh gezzzz i almost forgot the inspiration part, read peles post about inspiration here and watch the movies. it makes me think i can do any kind of body work, you just gotta dive in.

FirebirdSlayer666

iTrader: (3)

You just need to take a day off and re-evaluate. The bottom strut bolts should be easy to get out, you just need to drill them out and get new bolts and nuts from Lowes. If you're swapping the whole rear end with all new lines I wouldn't even worry about fixing it on the old rear end. I know it get's frustrating but you just have to take a step back breath, and just imagine what it's going to be like when it's done.

No_Rotor_RX7

stop messing with the car and drive it as-is (or when you get it drivable) and keep an eye out for a good cheap NON-rusted shell.

perfect_circle

ahh, but this is the ever famous sunroofless gs woth no rear wiper motor as well. but your right, thats what ive been doing. there is a car for sale in the 1st gen section with a blown motor and all mods included, but i kinda wann do it myself, plus i dont really have the money for it.. i also forgot to mention i just picked up some 13" enkei meshies, and order some sumitomo 215/50/13 tires for the car.

blazer1313

^exactly! Im sure Michaelangelo had some hiccups while painting the roof of the sixteen (sp) chapel that took over 8 years! What a beautiful piece of work it is now though.

What are some strong points of this car? IF YOU HAVE TO scrap this project, ask yourself, "what are the strong points of this particular car?" If there isn't really any then let it sit and save up for a GSLSE or at least a GSL. The weight difference between the two shaves off some time at the 1/4 mile with a turbo

innertwist

iTrader: (3)

I'm no stranger to rust myself, my 80 came from upstate NY. I've snapped quite a few inconvenient bolts (such as on the rear sway clamp's). I've drilled, and in the end it was better than when I started. Hell just today I took the fender off, and when I was screwing it back on, crack!, one of the bolts snapped. So I grabbed an EZ-out, and drilled halfway down the thing with now give. Then, in impatience, I grabbed a tap and a slegehammer... but the drywall fastener is holding quite well. Despite this, my door, which has never closed completely, now seals perfectly! thanks to that same sledgehammer and a little manipulation of the chassi.

Like FirbirdSlayer said, take it in strive. This isn't catastrophic, you can recover. Just be patient, and learn to use penetrant on all critical components! Let it soak in... and lube the bolts before you put them back. In the end, you can take pride in that you made it work, and that you saved a car from death.

As a little tip, when a bolt breaks in a chassi (or otherwise) mounted nut, drill a hole through it, use a fine bladed saw (jewelers' saws work if you can wrap around) to cut a chunk of it off, then use a chisel to fold up the remains. Just don't hammer at it like I did today It's only thing that's worked for me, and can preserve the threads. Never have had luck with EZ-Outs anyway...