Kizmit99

Hmm... Am I reading that right, the left and right front springs are different? How did I miss that??? The parts catalog also lists them with two different part numbers... sigh...
I was trying to make sure that I kept Driver and Passenger side parts segregated from each other, but I'm pretty sure I lost track of which was which on the springs when I was painting them...
Oh well, one more thing to go back and check when I get done with the rear end.
Much thanks for pointing that out!!!

Kizmit99

I measured the current ride height for the front, and both sides are within 1/8" of each other (from center of wheel to fender lip). So hopefully that indicates I managed to put the springs back on the correct sides...

I've got most of the rear suspension parts cleaned up at this point, just need to prep and paint them. So, turning my attention to the rear axle, it appears to me that I've got a leaky pinion seal:


I'm aware that replacing that seal requires pulling the pinion gear, and that "in theory" I could mark the pinion retainer nut position and retighten to exactly that position - but, that seems a bit suspect to me... I'm worried that my pinion bearing preload wouldn't be to spec after a procedure like that and could lead to the diff failing prematurely. I would *really* prefer not rebuilding the differential if it doesn't need it. So, I'm looking for opinions --
Does that look like a pinion seal leak? Does it look serious enough to warrant seal replacement?
If so, what are opinions on the quick-and-dirty way of replacing it, versus doing a complete teardown and rebuild?

I would really appreciate some thoughts/advice on this one - thanks in advance!

Kizmit99

It took a while, but I'm finally done with the cleanup of the rear end and ready to begin the reinstall...


It's going fairly smoothly so far. The 4 links are all in position, however the Watts Link assembly is giving me some grief...
I started with it preassembled to the axle housing. I was able to get the passenger end link in position, but the driver side is giving me issues. Right now everything is assembled but loose, I think I'm probably going to have to take apart the center assembly, get the two ends mounted, then try to reassemble the center section with the far ends of the links already in position...

cmnork

Don't forget that the watts links have a white mark on them that is supposed to face the front of the vehicle I think.

I also found it much easier to connect the 4 links first, then the upper watts link last.

Kizmit99

I scribed the body end all the links (and passenger vs driver on the 4 links) as they came off the car so I would be sure to put them back in the correct positions...
Any original markings are long gone...

cmnork

Just scribing the body end won't necessarily guarantee you are putting together in the correct orientation, as the Watts links have a fore-aft bend to them.

Kizmit99

Yep - I've figured that one out... I thought I had marked the top body end of the two watt links, but it seems I actually managed to mark the bottom body ends. I've spent the last 2 hours trying to get those damn links lined up to get some bolts through them - to no avail...
I'm fairly confident I've got the links oriented correctly at this point - the holes in each end seem reasonably oriented to the mounting tabs on the body.
But I can't seem to get all four ends connected at the same time - I can get 3, so that's probably good enough, yes?

The 4 main links are all in place with bolts through them (nothing is tightened down at this point).
Drive shaft is not connected to the diff pinion flange (maybe that matters?)
The watt links are attached to the watt link bracket, the bracket is on the axle housing (again, not tightened down).
The driver side link is in the body bracket (bolt, no nut).
The passenger side link is about 3 inches out of position in relation to its bracket:


I've tried raising the axle housing (almost to the point it lifts the car off the jackstands).
I've tried lowering the axle housing. I've tried tilting the housing both left and right.
None of these antics seem to have much effect on getting the end of the link close enough to the proper position for me to get it into the bracket.
Any hints are *greatly* appreciated!!!

cmnork

Any pictures of the watts pivot bracket? It could be upside down, I think the longer arm points down? Adjusting the pinion angle of the diff would only help with fore/aft alignment, which yours looks good in that direction.

Sorry you're having so much trouble! I did this in July and everything lined back up with minimal fuss, once I got all the links approximately in the right place.

Toruki

Here's a bunch on my 83 before removal and on the ground. Sorry mods if this is too spammy posting a ton of them.

Kizmit99

Thanks guys! I think those pics made something click for me... I think I have the bracket rotated 180-degrees - I have the link pivots (which are offset from the center pivot) towards the passenger side, but I think they should be towards the driver side. Toruki, it was your 9th pic that made the connection for me. In that pic the link pivots appear to be towards the passenger side, but the shorter link is on the left (which should be on the passenger side (at least it was when I took mine apart) - so I think in your pic the whole assembly is upside down. This is what made me realize my bracket is oriented like yours is in the pic (so I'm pretty sure it's backwards).

I take a ton of pics while taking everything apart too, but somehow I never seem to get a good shot of exactly what I need later
This seems to be my best shot of the Watt Links prior to disassembly:


And this is how the bracket is currently installed:


I'm pretty sure it's flipped (top to bottom) from what it should be.
I won't be able to give that a try until Friday, but I'm confident that's the issue.
Thanks again guys for the hints and pics!!!

Kizmit99

Yep - that was the problem, I had the center bracket for the Watt Link rotated 180-degrees from where it needed to be. Once I corrected that all 4 ends of the links could be mounted. Yay!
At this point the whole rear end is basically reinstalled and everything is tightened down (done with car's full weight on the suspension).
Rear axle seals and bearings replaced, axles reinstalled, new rotors, refurbished calipers mostly installed.
Getting close to being able to get it back on its wheels.



I've placed an order for the Racing Beat Street Port Exhaust system. Website shows they hope to have them back in stock on the 15th, so hopefully that will arrive relatively quickly.

Kizmit99

Got it back on all four wheels today and bled the brakes.
Also got the rest of the exhaust off - now it only has the stock exhaust manifold attached. Original air pump is also still there, with the air line that used to run to the cat just hanging (wired up actually) under the car.
Started it, just to see how it sounds without any exhaust system -- very, very loud!

One thing I noticed is that it really didn't sound like it was running very smoothly. When I had it running prior to the suspension refurb it seemed to run a lot smoother.
Should running without any exhaust at all introduce issues? I wouldn't think so, wouldn't think it required any back pressure for normal operation - but it definitely seemed to be running kinda 'off'.

I haven't reinstalled the fan yet, so I didn't want to run it long enough to warm up, so all my observations are basically on it running cold...

Spetz

Great job so far! Beautiful work. Really making me jealous as we are in the process of building a shop on our property, and I wont be able to work on mine until the weather starts getting warmer outside

Love your build so far, check mine out if you'd like!

Kizmit99

Pulled the air pump, air control valve assembly and the air pipe getting ready for the Racing Beat exhaust. Unfortunately the RB website is now showing out of stock until Jan -- sigh...
I've also broken all the exhaust manifold bolts free - luckily they all started fairly easily, so no drama there
I'm planning to just fab up my own cover plates for the ACV and Air Pipe mounts. I'm assuming for the ACV plate that the check-valve (visible below) is also removed? And that I could just make a gasket using gasket material and not worry about any of the openings in the factory gasket?


I've got a double-pulley for the alternator on order, but looking at the belt engagement on the fan pulley it really looks like some kind of idler pulley to just replace the air pump pulley would be more effective. Has anyone done this on the 1st gens (I've seen them for the FCs and FDs, but haven't stumbled on any for the FBs)?

Kizmit99

Still waiting on the Racing Beat exhaust to ship...
I did fab up plates to cover the AVC and Air Pipe. Plugged the two pipes in the air cleaner assy that went to the pump and air valve.
Also installed the alternator dual pulley, replaced all the belts and put the fan back on.

Since today was so nice I decided to give it another small test drive (only about a mile) -- still just running an open exhaust manifold, so didn't want to take it out onto the street.
While the engine seemed to be running fairly smoothly it had a lot of trouble taking off from a start. Often the engine would just die. Acted a lot like it wasn't getting enough gas as I tried to let the clutch out. Obviously this could have been me not giving it enough gas... but I suspect it's more than that (I have been driving stick since '86). Also noticed that if at idle I give it a decent rev (guessing maybe 4K RPM) then let off the gas that it would sometimes just die as well.

The Tach had always been a bit 'sticky' and it's currently stuck at 1K, so any RPM estimates are just that, estimates.

Do those symptoms sound like a carb problem? I'm getting the definite impression it's getting starved of gas when it dies. Fuel filter was replaced when I had the rear end out. Fuel pump is running (I can hear it) and the engine starts back up after a couple pumps on the pedal and a quick key turn...

Carb hasn't been rebuilt since I've had it, but I'm a bit leery to jump right into a rebuild of it. Getting a carb properly readjusted after I've messed with them has always been a headache for me.

cmnork

I had a similar problem when I removed my cat. After blipping the throttle and transitioning back to idle, the engine would almost die. Fixed it by adjusting the idle mixture screw more counterclockwise. Basically I had to back off more from the stumble point than the FSM recommends.

Kizmit99

Thanks - I'll keep that in mind. I wont be adjusting anything until I get the new exhaust installed though (if it ever shows up...) So it may be a while...

I suspect at that point I'll probably have to break down and do the carb rebuild.

In the meantime I was thinking I'll do some checking for vacuum leaks and maybe just replace the vac lines pre-emptively -- they're original as well, so I suspect they've degraded at least some (although they're not noticeably cracking or failing).

I've also now started worrying about the compression - wish compression testers weren't $300. Although I do find that they can be rented for around $60 - might have to go that route.
(also just found some ways of hacking a piston compression tester - will have to check that out as well).

Kizmit99

Well it's been a while, but the Racing Beat exhaust finally arrived sometime in March (if I recall correctly). I finally got it installed towards the end of May. It looks great as far as I'm concerned, it fit and installed without any real issues. Sometime in May I also went through and replaced most of the vacuum lines with new silicon hoses, using clamps on both ends of each piece. I was careful to remove and replace only a few sections of hose at a time, so I'm confident that I didn't "miss wire" any of the hoses.

Now that I've got everything put back together I'm still having issues with the car not running well...
I've spent the last week trying to get a clear picture of what it's doing. In a nutshell, once it's warmed up it is refusing to run between about 1K and 2K RPM. A more detailed description of the symptoms I'm seeing is:

On Tuesday:

• Started fine, choke keeps running in high idle while cold
• After about 5 mins I could remove all choke - car idles about 950RPM fine (does hiccup every once in a while, but doesn't need throttle applied to recover)
• In this mode, if you apply throttle slowly it revs smoothly up to about 1300RPM, then falters and wants to die. Removing throttle it settles back to 850-950 RPM.
• The 1300RPM stall is repeatable.
• If you can get past 1300RPM quickly, it will rev to between 2K and 3K sounding reasonable.
• After about 25 mins of idling (and revving) the 1300RPM stumble is gone
• Now stumbles at about 1000RPM (but not as badly as the earlier 1300RPM stumble). It's more like a hesitate and stumble as it passes 1000RPM - it will move though it with a little throttle action though. Also hesitates a bit at about 2000RPM.
• Have now turned the car off, and will let it cool down completely to try again a few days, see if the same issues present.
• Through all of this (at idle) the car was in neutral, and fuel level in the front sight glass on the carb was just under half (could not see the rear sight glass)
• Did not try to drive it (didn't want to deal with trying to get it back into the garage)

On Friday:

• Suspecting the problem is with the carb I added a can of seafoam to the gastank
• From a cold start it started easily, idled (with choke) at about 1500RPM without issues. It did smoke quite a bit, but I think that's normal with seafoam.
• As it was warming up I tried removing the choke and that would basically lead it to just stall out.
• It would restart quickly without obvious issues.
• I could rev through the 1300 RPM range without it cutting out (choke is still on)
• I eventually let it finish warming up and it dropped the choke (as expected).
• The car was idling at around 700 to 800RPM and this seemed too low as it would stumble a bit.
• With a foot lightly on the gas it idled fine at about 850RPM.
• However, giving it more gas would lead to it starting to rev up, then stalling out.
• Between about 1000 and 2000 RPM it wouldn't run, if you tried to idle in the range it would cut out like it was turned off (not like it was running out of gas).
• If I got past the 1-2K range quickly it would run between 2 and 3K RPM without any obvious issues (still a ton of smoke - presumably from the seafoam).
• Letting off the gas it would still stall once it got under about 2k RPM, unless I worked the gas and got it under 1K, where it would idle ok again (still idling at about 700 RPM - which still seemed too low).

I haven't been able to get a visual on the rear bowl site glass, but the front one is running just under half full of fuel. I replaced the fuel filter when I had the back end out, and before starting it last fall I verified that the fuel pump was working.

I am open to any suggestions on what I should try or look at.

Also - if anyone can point me to how I can operate the throttle from under the hood, that would be appreciated. I know where the throttle cable connects to the carb, but all the linkages seem buried under the other bits hanging off the back side of the carb?

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

Incredible work thus far!!! I admire your love for the car and your dedication to its restoration! You've done an amazing job!

As for the running condition, I would not hesitate to go through the carb and clean it out and put it back together with new gaskets. Have you checked the fuel filter for sediment? The gas tank could contain quite a bit from sitting with the tank not full. This in turn will cause the fuel filter to clog and introduce running issues. Any sediment that gets by the filter will end up in the carb. Once enough very fine particulates enter the float bowls, they will raise enough when the fuel is being drawn in by the jets to clog or partially clog the jets, resulting in stumbling.

With that said, in addition to rebuilding the carburetor, it may be time to remove the gas tank and have it professionally cleaned and replace the fuel filter of course. Something to consider. Compression is likely not an issue. It sounds like a fuel delivery problem to me.

Kizmit99

Thanks!

I do have a carb rebuild kit on order, but my past experience with carb rebuilds (on other vehicles) has generally been hit-and-miss. So I'm a bit hesitant to just pull the carb and jump into it. I may end up there (hence the kit on order) but we'll see.
When I drained the tank last fall the old fuel that came out looked to be in surprisingly good condition - so I'm hoping (and relatively confident) the tank doesn't need a refurb just yet.

rxtasy3

iTrader: (2)

the consensus on these kits is, don't use the needle and seats that come in the kit. keep the originals.

Kizmit99

All subsequent testing has lead to the same results as above -- after warming up it wants to die between 1K and 2K RPM... So, I've gone ahead and bit-the-bullet - I'm committed to the rebuild now:

Kizmit99

Well, I am quite bummed at the moment...
The carb rebuild went ok - I followed the FSM and the Carb Manual for the teardown and cleanup. Only real issues were getting the float needle seats out and one screw holding the #2 choke diaphragm bracket that I had to drill out. Everything cleaned up nicely and the only things of note were:
1) the float bowls did have a fair bit of crud in the bottoms of them
2) one of the primary main air bleeds (item #64 in the carb manual) had a bit of crud in it

Everything disassembled, bagged, labeled and cleaned:


Reassembly went surprisingly smoothly. I reused the original floats, needles and seats. Pretty confident that everything is back together correctly:


A buddy came over today and we put the carb back on the car - all vacuum lines have been replaced with new silicone hoses and have clamps on both ends.
The car started right up. While running with the choke on it ran ok. Once completely warmed up it had a few issues idling (it's idling at about 1300RPM, so a little too high, but we didn't spend much time fiddling with the idle adjustment)
1) The dead-zone from 1K to 2K RPM appears to be gone
2) Stepping on the brake causes the idle to slowly drop and will cause it to stall???
3) Decided to drive the car to the end of the driveway (about half a mile) - it ran ok to the end, then stalled (perhaps because I stepped on the brake?) Restarted fine, got it turned around and on the way back up the driveway it began stalling hard. Would restart fine, but then die, it seemed to get progressively worse, sometimes even pumping the throttle gave no response at all. Eventually we had to tow it back into my shop...

So, I'm unfortunately feeling like this sounds too much like crud in the gas - am I wrong? The tank was drained last fall and the old gas didn't look too bad, filter replaced, new gas, pumped new gas through the lines before reattaching to carb. But I think I'm going to have to go through that exercise again (and probably cleaning/sealing the tank)?

One think I can note from the rebuild - I did not touch the float adjustments, even though the measurements I got were not in spec with the manual. Manual said one of the measurements should be 0.63" +/- .02 -- I had 0.75". I was very careful during the rebuild not to tweak the floats in any way, so I figured I was probably better off leaving them at what the factory set them to, than trying to match the manual -- maybe that was a bad assumption?
I was also very careful to verify how many turns out the Mixture Adjust Screw was (from fully seated) and returned it to that setting when reassembling.

I did note that prior to taking the test drive, the front bowl siteglass showed fuel at just under half. I couldn't get a good visual on the rear site bowl. After towing back to the shop the front site bowl was well below the halfway mark, and the rear bowl looked to be almost empty (although it was admittedly very difficult to see well even with a mirror). These last visualization were with the fuel pump off so I don't know if they mean anything at all.

I'm open to any suggestions on things to try, or to look at.
Thanks for reading, and thanks for any input at all!

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

Time to drop the tank, clean and reseal.

Kizmit99

That's what I feared... I was researching this and saw links for the POR15 kits like this:

(doh - sorry for that HUGE pic)

Will a kit like this clean and prep the tank well enough, or does the tank need to be taken to a shop that can dip it? (I've never dealt with sealing a tank before)

Also - I would guess that I'm probably looking at another round of taking the carb off and cleaning it out?