If you rip anything electrical out of your car, label everything. It will save you time on re-install and ensure no mistakes

 

Dont use them cheap taiwan made tools. It will round off the bolt's head and stuff.

Now when you're in a bind, WALK AWAY!!!! Grab a cold heine and rest for a few minutes. That will give you time to think things over.

 

Don't buy any 20+ year old car and expect it to be a dependable DD until a lot of time and money have been sunk into it.

 

^+1
Once owning this car, be prepared to commit to a Love-Hate relationship. Take care of her, she'll take care of you.

 

Amen & pass the plate!

 

Put a 4 foot piece of electrical wire in the car for when the trailing ignitor goes bad.

 

[Put a 4 foot piece of electrical wire in the car for when the trailing ignitor goes bad.]

Ray- to do what with? hang yerself??

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

1.) just do it.

 

No no Stu, that's not necessary. You use it as a jumper to power the fuel pump when it's circuit gets cut off by the trailing ignitor failure. Run it from the hot side of the rear hatch light to the hot side of the fuel pump under the driver's side storage compartment. The car will run pretty well on just the leading spark until you can get around to replacing the ignitor.

Other ways that have been suggested for this problem, which can occur at any time but usually happens when you are at least one hour away from home, are:

1. Carry a spare ignitor, which is a great idea, but a little harder to install while sitting on the side of the road. In the rain. In the dark.

2. Someone said you can just jump the hot wire at the pump somehow, but I don't think this will work because the entire circuit is cut off, not just the pump.

I've needed it twice over the last five years.

Ray

 

"You use it as a jumper to power the fuel pump when it's circuit gets cut off by the trailing ignitor failure."
Ah. Clever!
Thanks Ray -
Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

 

Hmm, couldn't you just move the blue plug from the trailing coil to the leading?

 

BEER, it makes all your work look a little nicer.

 

That's what I would do. Possibly carry a short wire, to bypass the relay under the dash, but that still takes longer than moving one wire under the hood......
Of course, I drive an '83, so no worries about the trailing ignitor causing the fuel pump to shut off.

 

"Hmm, couldn't you just move the blue plug from the trailing coil to the leading?"

OK, so I tried this when I got home today it works (nice warm sunny one here in NEGA). You twist up the wires and the car runs rough, but it would get you home.

Nice tip Kentetsu!

 

You lost me Ray. Twist up what wires? I only meant to move the blue plug (to keep fuel pump working) to the lead coil. Should run the same either way. What were you twisting together to make it run rough?

 

I swapped them at the distributor, not the coils, and my wiring harness is a little tight right in there so they were a little twisted. We scientists always do everything the hard way just to make it interesting. But yeh, if swapping at the coils works that's an even better tip.

Any ideas about what to use the four foot wire for? I've been in the habit of carrying one of these around ever since my MG days.

 

after a long day of drinking and working ont he 7 remember to pee before you go to bed nothing will mess up your night like waking up at 2 with a bladder thats ready to explode

seriously though, just take care of the seven and she will take care of you. oh yeah and if you are at the junkyeard and you see some sevens, call a local 7 guy and tell him. there may be parts in there that you can both use and usually at least one 7 owner in the area will be able to pull the parts for you if not the whole car ( assuming you dont have the $$/time) and work a deal with you.

always give the thumbs up and shout "first gen **** yeah" when passing another first gen on the city streets where you live (assuming they are not commonplace in your area)

 

Ha ha! That's funny. A solution in search of a problem. I think that's worth starting a new thread!

Any ideas about what to use the four foot wire for?
- Help someone out looking for two 2ft pieces.
- Tie that piece of plywood you just bought at Home Depot down to the top of the car.
- Tie both ends to the inop windshield wiper (wire loops through driver & passenger window...may get a little wet though).
- Connect two tin cans together and use as a short telephone. Hand one can to friendly RX-7 owner driving next to you on highway (cars need to be dangerously close).
- After crashing into car in prior tip, use wire to hold door closed.

DD

 

Since the title of this thread is "Nifty Tips", how bout this one.
79-83 clutch/brake pedal pads, black dragon wants $7 plus shipping each. Dealer can get them, but seldom has them in stock, requiring 2 trips to purchase.
Run down to your local auto parts store, and get a motormite (AKA help) #20730. Fits perfect, and since it is listed as fitting a FORD, it's usually hanging on the shelf.

 

Some lessons that I learned over time....some the hard way:

1. Never take a wrench or socket off of a nut/bolt BEFORE tightening it properly when working on a race car. Loose nuts and bolts kill

2. "Bolt-On" is a four letter word. Parts made for racecars do not bolt on

3. Organize your tool box so it is easy to make sure that all of your tools have been removed from the car and are where they belong when a job is done. Try not to get out more tools than you need for a job. Keep your tools clean.

4. Zip Lock bags - freezer bags are the best - make it easy to keep fasterners togther by assembly

5. Racecars with pistons cost more to race

6. Beer and tools do not mix. Besides, a cold one tastes better when the jobs is done

7. New racing tires are like adding 50HP to your car. Nothing provides as much performance per dollar spent as new rubber.

8. Quality Tools are investment in time - both in the time you save and the amount of time they will last

9. Don't skimp on safety. Dead people don't get to race

10. Synthetic lubes are worth the money

 

Record every little trivial dumb thing you discover in your PDA so you don't have to remember it yourself. Mere people mis-remember things all the time, but PDAs don't.

My Palm has things like the wiring changes for a new power antenna, which fuse is for the ventilation fan, which fuse for the fuel pump, how to unflood an SE, etc.

When you have an idle moment and the hood is up because you're admiring your fine running rotary, get out your voltmeter and record the precise voltages in the 12volt primary circuits. Even the coil primaries. Measure before cranking, while cranking, and while running. Then you will know what to look for when you have a problem. record it on your PDA.

Now i record even trivial stuff, like buying a new air filter, and just jot it in the chron file because that comes up easy with a single tap. Chron files are good for you.

 

Oil line fittings -- since the bungs on the FB oil coolers crack easily, it's a delicate balance between sealing and cracking. The fitting is supposed to seal against the crush washer, but a little RTV on the threads and both sides crush washer adds insurance and allows you to seal with confidence (and lower torque). Allow at least a couple of days for this to cure before using. This does gum up the fittings, so future removal will be a PITA.

Also, if your fittings are cracked, welding plus the RTV trick above works fairly well.

 

i thought beer and tools were the staple of a healthy relationship between a seven and its owner. i know a busted knuckle isnt so bad if you have a cold beer it sooth it with!

 

[QUOTE=elwood]I thought I'd start a thread about nifty tips the forum has to make life easier, whether for daily operation or for mods.



Here are the Mother of all tips.
Before starting a new thread, refer to the following.
Read the FAQ section.
Browse thru the Archives
Become familar with the search function and the advanced search function.
Keep the link to the FSM accessable and learn how to use them.

Before starting your thread think about the title.
Use words that describe what type of help or information that you are looking for.
Example. Looking for info on how to upgrade my alternator.
Need help diagnosing backfiring problem
Need help on how to determine cause of electrical problem
I have stated just a few examples here.
Please feel free to post up other examples that would help when starting a new thread.
Remember the better the title, the more efficent the search function will become.