Hey where u guys at in va? i am in strasburg little town close to winchester about 45 min from manassas My car has been sitting awhile also every time i walk past my garage i sigh lol

 

I live in Dale City, VA which is about 15 minutes away from Manassas.

 

Ok my brother use to live there im looking for some sc guys closer to my area lol

 

Well the car is coming back this weekend so maybe I'll meet up one of these days. Unfortunately the build didn't go as planned and the car has too many issues right now to think about performance. The cost started to add up to an uncomfortable number and my family and I made a decision to hold off. I just bought my wife a Honda Pilot and we have an infant at home, so the thought of using our savings money to make a car have 300hp is a bad idea at this time.

List of problems to date:

Several of the brake calipers are stuck.
Brake lines are old and crusty.
Rear e-brake shoes need to be replaced.
Front subframe is rusted thru. If I hit a big pot hole, it's going to crack in half
Power steering is leaking from everywhere including the pump, lines, and rack.
Oil is leaking from the valve covers and pan.
AC lines leak and won't hold freon.
I jumped the timing which is now set correctly, but the car is still misfiring.
Front LCA's are shot.
Shocks need to be replaced.
One rear tire is bald.
Airbag doesn't work.

So the car shakes, it won't stop, and leaks flammable fluid everywhere. I know I have life insurance but I'm only 34, and want to enjoy another 34 years on this planet.

I should change my plate to KAMIKAZE

 

With a engine swap you should be able to remedy alot of those problems......time for the old 2jzge to go....

Plus it is much easier to replace things like the rack, bushings, AC lines, PS lines etc.....the engine bay is huge in these cars with no engine in them...

Do you have another vehicle to drive while the SC is down?

 

I have a Honda Pilot, a Honda Fit, and a Ford Expedition. Having vehicles isn't a problem, it's finding the time and money to repair this one as I'll describe below. I have zero issues with the other cars. My '99 Expedition with 250k miles runs perfectly fine while my "luxury" car is a moving time bomb.

Time is never a good thing in my house. You know how it is, working the 9-5, get home, eat dinner, spend time with the baby, spend time with the wife, then I have a side business at home to pay for parts for the luxury time bomb, then the weekends are filled with grandparents wanting to see the baby, then going out of town to visit the other grandparents that want to see the baby, then taking the baby to see other people that have babies, then going to Walmart, then going to Target, then going to Home Depot, then Home Depot doesn't have what you're looking for so you go to Lowes, then Lowes doesn't have what you need so you head over to Ace Hardware, then you have to be at a BBQ at 4:00pm, then it's someones birthday, then it's mothers day, then it's fathers day, then it's some form of a holiday.

Money is never a good thing in my house. Working the 9-5 with one income so your wife can be a stay at home mom, paying for a mortgage that costs over 60% of your monthly income, then everyone else wants $100 of your money each and every month. You got the electric company, the gas company, you've got Verizon wanting $150 for cable and internet, you've got $222 for a family of cell phones cause the inlaws are on your plan, then you've got the pest control company, the grass fertilizer company, then you're paying $400 monthly for healthcare for the family, then the baby goes to the doctor every other week which costs you $100 cause you haven't met the annual family deductible of $1,500, then you got the dentist, the credit cards, the gas cards, you've got $150 for car insurance, and then the car payments.

 

Shane -

What needs to be done to remedy the rusted subframe?

I think you made a good choice though. Let your kid grow up a bit, enjoy those years and then worry about the SC, at least that's what I did.

 

The subframe needs to be replaced. It's bolted to the actual floor chassis. The lower control arms are bolted on either end as well. It's not a "hard job", it's just easier on a lift with penetrating fluid and air tools. At this point I should probably replace both LCA's. You're talking roughly $550 for both LCA's, $200 for the subframe, and possibly $400 for install. So over $1000+ dollars because of this problem alone.

Then I need a complete brake job including calipers, lines, e-break shoes, etc....then shocks, then the rack and pinion, then the PS lines, and finally the AC lines so I'm not like Lebron James in San Antonio.

 

Clutch post. I've been wondering why my build has taken so long. This is why.

 

It took almost an entire year for me to be able to do my build.....No reason to rush it man....

 

No doubt, it's just a struggle after four years. Season after season I miss car meets and I don't get to enjoy the sense of driving a sports car anymore. Keep in mind that my car is completely stock other than lowering springs, bolt on exhaust, wheels, and an updated body kit.

I came from an S2000 to this, what the hell was I thinking lol. I remember the days of just putting the top down and enjoying a fun and reliable experience. Now I have a car that shakes like an addict in rehab, steering looser than Veronica Rodriguez, and every fluid draining like the Brazilian sewage system into the Atlantic.

Oh, and to add insult to injury, my passenger floor was like a swamp after it sat for a while. I assume water collects in this area somehow. I must have had an inch of water just sitting there. And my awesome $200 cluster that Lextech "fixed" is flashing and one of the needles burned out.

 

Almost all of the turbo parts are sold and gone. It was sad to package every box, but I know others will enjoy the feel of boost. I'm about 75% certain that I'm going to sell the car now. I've only driven the car maybe a handful of times in 2014, and I just don't enjoy it anymore. I'll most likely replace it with a S2000 which is an ideal weekend car. The S2000 is fun, light, and reliable.

The only other car that's been on my radar is a RX7 FD. I owned a '94 Montego Blue when I was a teenager and crashed it heavily. I feel like I have some unfinished business with it like it's my Eleanor from Gone In 60 Seconds. I'm definitely more mature than I was 15 years ago and would respect the decent power and lightweight design. However, the rotary always gets a bad reputation of being unreliable.... but that's something I'm use too

Either of the cars above would fit into my smaller garage which is also a nice change. My budget is $10,000-13,000 which I think is ideal for either vehicle after doing some research.

If I fixed the brakes, power steering, and got the engine running smooth again, what should I ask for my manual '95 SC with 163k miles, 97 kit including tails, LS brakes, black and tan interior, and topspeed mufflers? I have loads of extra parts as I was basically hoarding a second car in our house.

 

PM me if you decide to part out anything from the car itself.

My good friend has an S2K (AP2) and he LOVES that thing. We always cruise in both our rides and make noise under bridges. If you can get your hands on a FD RX7 DAYYUUUUUM.

 

I see them going for 3-6k down here in Florida in similar condition. The 5 speeds are hard to find in good condition so you should be able to get rid of it pretty quick.

 

Sheeeeet 3k for that particular SC is a steal.