So I recently picked this ole girl up for about $1.7k ($1k price, $740 in back fees, yikes).

So I've already done the following:
New spark plugs
Spark plug wires
Gas, oil, and their filters
Taped up a vacuum leak (have a replacement on the way thanks to ray)
Filled up the coolant (was empty when bought)
Did a compression test (at least half decent compression on all rotors, no exact numbers)
New battery terminals and battery
Cleaned it relatively, and cleaned the windows

Now the things I have left to do so far:
Carb rebuild (already have a Hygrade kit)
Intake manifold gasket (Only other vac leak that I can find)
Vac lines (none leaking except for the one, so this'll be done in time)
Flush and fill transmission and diff, coolant, brake, and clutch fluid
Find an unknown fluid leak (Want to say coolant due to greenish color, but lack of sweet smell is making me doubt)
Put in drivers side window (Was smashed before I bought it, replacement on the way as well)
Properly wash it
Install AC
Properly tune the carb after rebuild
Fix the choke (Cable pulls and holds, but butterfly doesn't move unless pressed on while cable is pulled out)
Fix the interior lighting (non of the overhead lights work)
See if there's a way to tighten up the sunroof mechanism as it doesn't seem to really hold it down or push it up without assistance
Fix the gas gauge (not sure if gauge or sender that's broken, it stays stuck in the middle of the gauge no matter how much gas is in it)

Here's some pictures of when I first bought the car last month.



And here's a little video I got the other night before my grace period wore off, and I can no longer drive it till I get it smogged.

 

And here are some that I took earlier today.

 

 

Looking good Saminya, that one's got potential! And it's an LE!

If the liquid leak is pooling on top of the engine underneath the carburetor it's probably the coolant O rings that seal the coolant channel to the intake manifold. If you're replacing the intake manifold gasket the O rings will be easy to do at the same time, you can get both the intake gasket and O rings from RockAuto for $7.17:

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ket+/+set,5424

You can do a quick check to confirm if it's coolant by taking a few drops of the leaked fluid and mixing with a little water - if it mixes it's coolant, if it doesn't it's oil.

 

So, things done now:
Replaced Intake manifold gasket and O rings
Replaced some vac lines that I thought were cracked
Found out one of the PO had hooked up the choke cable to the AC actuator
Removed the HU and found that the speakers are hooked up via 2 RCA cables. Currently using phone for sound as seen in picture (rigged, but works till a new HU is acquired.) Next step here is to find out where the amp these RCAs are connected to is.

Things to check off as not currently needed, but will do down the road:
Carb Rebuild
Speedometer fix (currently not moving at all, possibly disconnected?)

And now things that are on my target list next:
Find the last vac leak (suspected to be the plastic spacer beneath the carb)
Tranny and diff fluids


The hookup to the RCAs with a spare adapter I had.

And of course, videos for your viewing pleasure.

What I got it to idle like today after replacing all the above.

How I got the speakers to sound way better. It looks janky, and is rather rigged, but the fact it sounds as good as it does is hilarious. (See pic above for full image)

The smoke show after fixing the choke cable to be in the right spot. This is the first time it's started with the choke properly in at least 5 years, as the owner before the PO had it hooked up the same way... to the AC.

 

 

So been a little bit, and the following has happened.
Passed smog! (Old cat was nothing but an empty pipe, see pic)
Half figured out why the heater controls won't go over to vent. (Video shows me switching it to vent from under the passenger side, and then trying to change it without presing on it)
Got my old head unit installed and color matched.
Speedo fixed (was unplugged by about a quarter of an inch behind the dash)
Tranny and diff fluids changed out.

Currently have the following planned to be done within the next week.
Thermostat replacement + coolant flush
Somewhat rig the rear defroster with regular stranded wire until a proper wire can be gotten.
Play around with the power antenna, see if it even works. (Then finally wash the car proper if I can get it to go down)
Replace the windshield wiper fluid pump.

And things to be done within the near future.
Tires (If anyone has any recommendations for the stock 14" wheels, I'd love to hear them, otherwise I'm just gunna get these)
Convert the electric windows back to manual cranks.
Mess around with the sun roof mechanism to see if there's something stripped out in it that makes it not want to work on its own.

My biggest concern at the moment however is that when I leave it idling for more than a minute, it does start to heat up. It never has gone more than about 3/4th of the gauge, but it does worry me a little regardless. I'm not sure if this is because the tune is off, or if the stock clutch fan just isn't cutting it. Hoping the new coolant and thermo will solve it, otherwise I may consider going e-fan despite wanting to try and keep this as stock as possible (within reason).

 

How're ya gonna pass smog with that gutted-out cat? Is it just visual inspection where you live?

 

So today I had a look at the power antenna, the rear defroster, and the rear hatch light. I wired up (albeit, a bit rigged) the rear defroster, and will get to see if it actually works (I know it's getting the voltage, but the strips in the rear window being intact is a whole nother issue) in the morning.
The light WAS working for a few seconds. But it seems it keeps flucuating between 12V and 1.5v. So new wires all together may be in order.
And I managed to confirm that the power antenna motor works. So I likely need a new mast, and then I need to figure out some way to get a new control wire back to it, as the front radio harness was chopped up beyond belief.

That was the old cat that I had to replace.

 

Very nice.

 

That is nice work....

How long that fb was parked for??

 

It was sitting for 2 years.

So it's been a while since I've updated, but I had it on the road and daily driving for about a month and a half, and then a front apex seal decided to give out. It gave out a couple weeks back now, and has been sitting since. Either looking to rebuild which will be quite some time due to my financial situation, or find a cheap donor 12a.