'86 Tornado Gray NA Luxury Pkg. "The Rat"
03-22-15, 09:56 PM
#126
I was able to get two widgets from the dealership that's withkn walking distance of the house. They're installed, everything is greased, sealed, etc. I managed to pull the broken lock cylinder apart, removed the broken guard, pull the one you gave me apart, and put the guard into my original lock. I also burped the cooling system (video coming in the morning), topped off and flushed the washer reservoir, and reinstalled the interior. I need to do something about the aftermarket alarm system... It makes muted alarm noises if I leave the doors open while I work on it. The alarm speaker thing was disconnected, so I pulled it out, the noises are weird and I think they drain my battery... I also found another loose wire while I was cleaning things up. I'll have to take a photo to see if anyone recognizes it...
Quick question for those in the know: the subzero starting fluid thing... What's the deal? It sounds like it gets a 90% solution of antifreeze?
Quick question for those in the know: the subzero starting fluid thing... What's the deal? It sounds like it gets a 90% solution of antifreeze?
03-22-15, 11:06 PM
#129
As you suspected, the "sub-zero assist" injected a antifreeze/water mix into the intake during start.
It sounds like a cockamamie idea now and apparently it did back then as well because it did not appear in S5's (AFAIK) and Mazda issued a factory bulletin advising its removal.
No idea what the underlying theory was but it didn't seem to work in practice.
It sounds like a cockamamie idea now and apparently it did back then as well because it did not appear in S5's (AFAIK) and Mazda issued a factory bulletin advising its removal.
No idea what the underlying theory was but it didn't seem to work in practice.
03-23-15, 12:05 PM
#135
Two things from yesterday's adventure. One, between photos and the cars I've seen in person, mine seems to be uniquely lacking in certain things (save "luxury"). One of which is the cubbies behind the seats. Instead of the typical storage compartments or the less typical seats, I have... nothing. Just plain carpet. The whole back of the car is just flat and essentially featureless.
Underneath the carpet is what I imagine is the same fiberglass bulkhead as the more typical cubby hole arrangement, only instead of lids and such I have two 1/4" plywood covers (one of which is broken) screwed in place.
Of all the options I've seen, this seems decidedly the least desirable. Just wasted space. The cubbies at least have some functionality. Seats would be ideal since I'm pretty short and they would actually be usable, but I haven't seen any yet save in photographs.
Finally, here's a video of a cooling system device I think is pretty neat and useful.
Underneath the carpet is what I imagine is the same fiberglass bulkhead as the more typical cubby hole arrangement, only instead of lids and such I have two 1/4" plywood covers (one of which is broken) screwed in place.
Of all the options I've seen, this seems decidedly the least desirable. Just wasted space. The cubbies at least have some functionality. Seats would be ideal since I'm pretty short and they would actually be usable, but I haven't seen any yet save in photographs.
Finally, here's a video of a cooling system device I think is pretty neat and useful.
03-23-15, 12:44 PM
#136
Lisle funnels are da bomb (as kids would say today).
That bin set up looks non-factory to me, I'm thinking Mazda would have at least rounded the corners on the wood panels had they cheaped out like that.
Have you removed the wood to see the fiberglass panel beneath?
That bin set up looks non-factory to me, I'm thinking Mazda would have at least rounded the corners on the wood panels had they cheaped out like that.
Have you removed the wood to see the fiberglass panel beneath?
03-23-15, 01:05 PM
#137
If you'll recall, I had the whole interior out behind the seats until yesterday. The corners are rounded and match the profile of the opening in the box. It does appear to be factory down to the cad screws, and the carpet matches. In fact, I just looked through the Specifications thread, and the dual lockable compartments were only standard on GXL in '86 when rear seats were not optioned. '87 saw them on turbos, and in '87.5 they were standard on everything but the base models, and finally in '88 they were in everything but the convertibles.
03-23-15, 01:47 PM
#138
Well, I'll be danged, you learn something new every day.
The bins are quite deceptive and weirdly built, IMO.
The "bags" that actually comprise the bin are flimsy and seem oddly cheap in a halo sports car.
I could see them in a FD, where weight reduction was Job #1 but they seem odd in the luxo-barge FC.
And it irritates me that the whole rear deck isn't flat...the bin lids stick up and the fiberglass structure doesn't lay even with the padded section behind. I'd like to see a one piece, flat panel with the bin covers recessed flush.
Hasn't bugged me enough to do anything about it though.
The bins are quite deceptive and weirdly built, IMO.
The "bags" that actually comprise the bin are flimsy and seem oddly cheap in a halo sports car.
I could see them in a FD, where weight reduction was Job #1 but they seem odd in the luxo-barge FC.
And it irritates me that the whole rear deck isn't flat...the bin lids stick up and the fiberglass structure doesn't lay even with the padded section behind. I'd like to see a one piece, flat panel with the bin covers recessed flush.
Hasn't bugged me enough to do anything about it though.
03-23-15, 01:56 PM
#139
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i had a binless 86 FC, and it too had the wood covers, its a bit weird to see wood in an 80's car, from japan too, but its there.
i do agree the bins are pretty lame, there just isn't much you'd put in em, maybe a rag?
i do agree the bins are pretty lame, there just isn't much you'd put in em, maybe a rag?
03-23-15, 02:13 PM
#141
The bin bag is a pressed felt material held to the bin rim with pushpins.
Put in anything heavy that moves around and you risk ripping the bag.
There is a useful amount of space down there, too bad the bins weren't solid molded plastic instead of that weird, almost British, amalgamation of materials.
Although, to be fair, if the Brits had made bins like that they'd have used leather, not felt. Or canvas.
Or wicker, maybe.
03-23-15, 02:16 PM
#142
I didn't know that. Come to think of it, I guess I've never actually seen what's under the lids... Mine just goes down to the painted metal floor; of course it's inaccessible without partially dismantling the interior. Seems like an easy fix for the aftermarket... Fiberglass is cheap after all.
03-23-15, 02:28 PM
#143
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Weight is an issue here.
The bin bag is a pressed felt material held to the bin rim with pushpins.
Put in anything heavy that moves around and you risk ripping the bag.
There is a useful amount of space down there, too bad the bins weren't solid molded plastic instead of that weird, almost British, amalgamation of materials.
Although, to be fair, if the Brits had made bins like that they'd have used leather, not felt. Or canvas.
Or wicker, maybe.
The bin bag is a pressed felt material held to the bin rim with pushpins.
Put in anything heavy that moves around and you risk ripping the bag.
There is a useful amount of space down there, too bad the bins weren't solid molded plastic instead of that weird, almost British, amalgamation of materials.
Although, to be fair, if the Brits had made bins like that they'd have used leather, not felt. Or canvas.
Or wicker, maybe.
i think the example that illustrates the essential British dichotomy, is that they make convertibles with no weather protection in a country where it rains, a lot.
the closest parallel is the BMW X5, where the Americans demanded an SUV, and they made one, but you have the feeling they really didn't understand the core concept
03-23-15, 05:16 PM
#146
Like I said, I've apparently never seen the "real" bins, but it does appear to be the case. Mayhap it's worth some sheet metal stock to make something. There are holes present for what looks like attaching the bins. Wouldn't take more than a few hours to fab up something that looks pretty decent. The only downside would be the carpet and my lack of upholstery skills. Maybe I can get Felix to design and print me a nice cover/bezel, and I can just see how square I can cut a hole in the carpet...
03-23-15, 05:37 PM
#147
Oh hey! By the way, I just got back from grocery getting (needed a break from a frustrating work project), and something has started beeping at me... It never beeped before today, but at some point in my fiddlings I did notice a faint high pitched squelching sort of sound when either door was open. It eventually evolved into what I imagine the car alarm would have sounded like... It seems that it's been getting more and more vocal as I fix things (despite none of them being electrical in nature). The closest I've come to electrical fiddling were trying to break the MAF and putting the fuse cover back on.
I read in the '88 owners manual something about an optional alarm and various ways and means of activating/deactivating it, but I don't seem to have the majority of those things. What was the deal with the optional alarm system in '86 (assuming such a thing exists)? Anyone have an owners manual to excerpt on the subject? There are remnants of what might be an aftermarket alarm system (or factory/dealer option), and I have no idea what or how much remains or what even comprises such a thing. I pulled out the speaker and its severed wire yesterday (it went through the firewall into the cab, and just terminated there in frayed ends). I also found another severed wire (light brown by the fuse box that seems to go up into the firewall), and there's a more or less loose light brown wire outside the harness and essentially just lying under the carpet that seems to be associated with the hatch open switch...
I think I'm going to have to add a project to my list... Pull out all the crap electrical accessories that don't work. I need to fix the sunroof (after the injectors and putting the fuel system back to stock), so maybe when I have the interior all ripped to shreds at that point I'll pull out all the weird broken crap.
Finally, and this may be well down the road for budgetary reasons depending on what the word is, but what's involved in diagnosing an AC system? I haven't had a car with AC for a long time and have never had a car with broken AC. Alls I knows is I have a compressor, some hoses, and a switch that claims to make cold air, yet the air is merely ambient temperature. There are probably other associated parts, but I couldn't tell you what was there and what wasn't part of the emissions system. Thus ends my treatise on the subject.
I read in the '88 owners manual something about an optional alarm and various ways and means of activating/deactivating it, but I don't seem to have the majority of those things. What was the deal with the optional alarm system in '86 (assuming such a thing exists)? Anyone have an owners manual to excerpt on the subject? There are remnants of what might be an aftermarket alarm system (or factory/dealer option), and I have no idea what or how much remains or what even comprises such a thing. I pulled out the speaker and its severed wire yesterday (it went through the firewall into the cab, and just terminated there in frayed ends). I also found another severed wire (light brown by the fuse box that seems to go up into the firewall), and there's a more or less loose light brown wire outside the harness and essentially just lying under the carpet that seems to be associated with the hatch open switch...
I think I'm going to have to add a project to my list... Pull out all the crap electrical accessories that don't work. I need to fix the sunroof (after the injectors and putting the fuel system back to stock), so maybe when I have the interior all ripped to shreds at that point I'll pull out all the weird broken crap.
Finally, and this may be well down the road for budgetary reasons depending on what the word is, but what's involved in diagnosing an AC system? I haven't had a car with AC for a long time and have never had a car with broken AC. Alls I knows is I have a compressor, some hoses, and a switch that claims to make cold air, yet the air is merely ambient temperature. There are probably other associated parts, but I couldn't tell you what was there and what wasn't part of the emissions system. Thus ends my treatise on the subject.
03-23-15, 08:21 PM
#149
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no no. Should be the standard plastic tote beneath the wood. Little cubby thing. Least mine was, hence why I thought the wood was a redneck fix or something, but others have reported have the same wood. I should take a picture or 2 of my actual bins. Has a matching color plastic trim ring and carpet in the middle on a typical 80s hinge to cover the bin itself. Mine are also lighted activated by a switch if memory serves. I just keep oil and rags/ gas station stuff in them so hardly ever in there.