PT Cruiser broken motor mount bolt

I started getting a scrapping noise from the right front of the car when I was making a left turn.  It started out just a little bit every now and then but within a week or so it was happening all the time.   I thought it was a wheel bearing until it happened while the car was not moving. 
Took it to the shop and they said that the left axle was bad and it caused the engine to shift to the right causing a motor mount bolt to break.  $1,500 to fix!
Since I didn't think 1,500 was reasonable I told him to fix the axle only for $300.  When I took it home and looked at it I could see that the engine dropped about 3 inches on the passenger side.  Looking through the mount from the fenderwell I could see the bolt was gone and only the broken piece was left in the engine bracket.  Damn.
After researching what it would take to do it, I set out to get it done myself.
I put the car on jack stands and got the floor jack under the engine.  Removed the power steering pump, disconnected the AC line, loosened the alternator, removed the upper and lower torque arms, jacked the engine up, then down a million times until I realized I couldn't get it up high enough to remove the engine bracket unless I removed the crank pulley, for which I needed an impact wrench and a special Chrysler puller.  All of this is necessary because it is an extremely tight fit between the engine and the frame where the mount is located and you need to make room to have any chance of getting the engine bracket off.  Fortunately Pep Boys lends tools and had the puller I needed.     
Once the pulley was off I was able to raise the engine about 4 inches which gave me just barely enough room to reach behind the now loosened engine bracket to extract the broken bolt.   
Then it was just a matter of  'installation is the reverse of the removal' except I had to add the step of  installing the new mounting bolt which I got from Chrysler for $4, and I need to recharge the AC.  I also put in new torque arms because they were damaged from supporting all the additional engine weight when the bolt broke. 
After a few days work, lots of swearing, lots of scrapes and bruises I'm happy and satisfied that I got this approx $1,200 job done for $4 plus $66 for the torque arms.  I love a happy ending...

Here's the culprit:

No heat in the 67

The 67 has an automatic climate control system...a maze of vacuum lines, sensors, valves, and electrical switches.  Many years ago it all worked as designed.  Set the temperature and the system was smart enough to give me heat or air to maintain the temp.  But over time it got finicky and only worked if i set it on defrost to make the fan go on, and then moved it to auto to regulate the heat. 
Last weekend that trick didnt work and i couldnt turn the heat on at all.  I first checked the fuses and found all to be ok so i set out to check the vacuum system.  I lit a fat cigar and started blowing smoke in various lines until i found that smoke was pouring out everywhere on the vacuum valve that controls most of this mess.   I took it apart and cleaned up and lubed the little rotary valve in there. 
That sealed it up and now the heat is regulating again as it should.    :-)

Clogged drain

Not your typical clogged drain.  The driveway at the beach house has 4 drains which are supposed to handle the water when it rains.  But one of them was completely clogged and the water was accumulating and running under the house.  So i took the power washer to it and blasted the crap out of it.  Didn't work.  I then tried an old solid curtain rod kind of thing and poked and prodded until i opened it up.   Good to go now  :-)

Honda Engineers

These Honda engineers think of everything.  They even provide space to hide your nuts.

 

 

 

A New Toy

It's not mine but I get to play with it...

2005 Honda Rebel my daughter just purchased.  Actually I found it for her, called the guy, checked it out, negotiated the price, and did everything except pay for it...;-)   
I don't know much about these bikes but I will learn.   I know it's a good starter bike for someone who is just learning to ride.  It weighs 300 lbs,  and packs a whopping 14 hp!   

It seems to be in reasonably good shape but has been sitting for a while and needs to be cleaned up.  oil change, clean the carb, oil the chain... basic maintenance.  It also has some surface rust which I tried cleaning in some spots and it looks like it will clean up nicely.  But it runs, everything works more or less as it should, has a new battery, good tires, seems like its never been dropped.  It also has engine guards which seem like a good idea if my daughter ever drops it.   

No news is good news

I haven't posted in a while because nothing is broken, needs to be adjusted, removed, replaced or otherwise corrected.  At least nothing is bad enough that I have been motivated to do something about it.   the vette has developed a slight miss and the brakes are squealing.   The 67 exhaust is starting to develop a leak - I could hear it gettting a bit worse each time I drive it.  the 40 seems to be holding its own at this point.  I'll get back in the swing when the weather cools off a bit...or when something breaks needing more immediate attention. 

Vapor lock

I don't usually drive the '40 on really hot days so vapor lock isn't much of a problem for me.  But today I guess it was high 80's at least, with humidity, and it wouldn't start after running for a while.  The carb bowl was empty as was the pump.  Fortunately I have a siphon on the fuel line just before the fuel pump so I was able to get fuel in the pump and carb to get it started.  But it wasn't happy.  As I was driving home it started stumbling and coughing.  Got it home and had a heavy fuel smell from the gas that I guess was boiling out of the carb. 
I don't think a repair is needed except to clean up the carb and make sure i don't thave any more permanent leaks.  But it'll wait until the sun goes down for that. 
I also note that it was comforting to know I have a fire extinguisher in all my cars.  Glad I didn't need it but glad I had it just in case.

93 Saturn part 2

Not the MAP sensor, not the plug wires, no vacuum leaks, not the throttle position sensor, not the engine coolant sensor, not the EGR.  son of a bitch I went through every damn diagnostic the manual suggested.  Including testing the oxygen sensor for voltage.  It checked fine.  But apparently the SOB is bad because when I started the car with it disconnected the hesitation stopped.  I am cautiously optimistic this is the problem.  I didn't give it much thought initially because it was replaced last year to get through emissions.   Even thought I could probably run it without the sensor, I will replace it. 
Keep this one in the 'troubles' category until I see if it works with a new one. 

93 Saturn

I still own the first new car I ever bought (one of only 2).  93 saturn SL2 sedan.  The odometer broke about 8 years ago at 147000 miles.  It's a well built car.  Never needed any major repairs, just maintenance items. 
It is hesitating while accelerating, and seem to be worst under hard accelteration.  It smoothes out going down the road.  I checked the codes and it told me the throttle position sensor had low voltage.  I took the lazy way out and instead of trying to find out why, I just replaced it.  It didn't solve the problem.  So a dug into the manual and went through the diagnostic chart and found the MAP sensor voltage was less than one volt when it should be between 2.5 and 5.  New MAP sensor going in as soon as I can get back to it.  I ran out of time tonight and I have a full day at work tomorrow. 

40 Clutch Sticking

I went to start the 40 after about 3- 4 week sitting in the garage.  I primed it as I always do, jumped in and pressed the starter button.  The car was in second and I had the clutch in.  When I hit the starter it lurched forward, not too violently because its turns over real slow normally.  I tried to get it out of gear but it wouldn't budge.   
I shut the key off and was able to rock it forward and back with my arm in the window to move the gear shift.  Got it out of gear and started it again.   so far so good. until I tried to put it in gear.  With the clutch in all it would do is grind, as if the clutch was engaged.  This has happened before so I knew the clutch plate was sticking to the flywheel.  My rented garage is damp and the weather has been hot and cold for the last month.  with all of that i guess it added up to a stuck clutch disk.
I had to go back to the house, get my floor jack and misc tools and a flashlight to get the car up on a jack stand to get under it.  No small task since there is no room to work in the garage.  Not having any electricity for a shop light doesn't help either. 
At any rate I was able to remove the clutch linkage and the flywheel cover to get at the disc.  Since I was working alone I had to use a 2x3 wedged between the clutch pedal and the bottom of the dash to keep the pedal down while I used a small screw driver to free the disk.  Gently at first until I got tired and used the mallet on it.  the SOB came free after that.  Got it back together and rolling again about and hour later.
No pictures because I could barely fit under there and I didn't have much light. 
     

Harley ignition switch

Last time I took the Harley out, I went to lock the ignition switch and the key cylinder came out of the switch. 

After I got it home I could see that it was held in by a little pin which had fallen out from all the vibrations I guess.  So I ordered a replacement switch on eBay, put it in and put the dash back together and all worked fine.
But afterwards as I was looking at the old switch I found that the little pin that had fallen out was lodged in another part of the hinge.  I was able to retrieve it and put it back where it belongs holding the key cylinder. 
The new one is not a 'geniune' harley switch and I could tell the quality wasn't as good as the original so I decided to put the original back in.  If the pin falls out again I will go back to the replacement.

Solstice oil change

My daughters relatively new car came due for its first oil chage today.  2009 Pontiac Solstice with a cartridge filter.  The filter is tucked tightly at the back of the engine newr the firewall and just under the manifold.  Its under the yellow dipstick handle in the pic.  I had to get a suitable filter wrench and put a flex socket on the extension to get at it.   But I'm set now for future changes...

lawn maintenance

I have been bagging the grass clippings forever.  I just like the look of the neat lawn and thought it was better to take the clippings away.  But the main reason is that I have this old lawn mower which I bought used over 25 years ago that I can't seem to part with.  It starts every time and works great except it doesn't do such a good job mulching the clippings.  It was made to be a bagger and left large clumps of clippings on the lawn if the bag wasn't on...until I added this little piece of sheet metal...

It is so simple...it blocks the bag attachment and keeps the clippings swirling around to give the blade a better chance of cutting them up and spreading them evenly.  The lawn looks good and it takes a lot less effort to get it done.  Why didn't I think of this years ago? 

I guess I could have gotten a new mower to solve the problem but I kind of want to see how long this damn thing will keep on running.

Carbs pt 2

just another reminder that even though I have been messing with cars for a long time, I am still very much an amateur.  When I put the 67 carb back together a few weeks ago I apparently didn't seat the float and valve properly so the damn thing was just pouring gas out the bowl.  So I took it apart again and put in a new float valve (as long as I  had it that far apart).  This  time I think I seated it properly.  We'll see....

Ok. Carb is back in the car.  Started and ran good.  The gasket seems a little wet but I am hoping it was residual from my leak or maybe from pumping it to start it because it didn't get any worse as the car ran.  We'll see....

'67 power steering pump pt 2

the new pump is in.  No leaks.  Seems to work fine.  A happy ending....

Heading to the shore today to see what needs to be done to get the place ready for the first renters of the season.  They are coming on May17th...

Words of wisdom

"No, you can be ugly and get laid. You just gotta be willing to screw someone uglier than you."

Shit my Dad Says is not as popular as it was in the past but it is still entertaining.

'67 power steering pump

The squeaky belt turned out to be a failing power steering pump.  I very brilliantly figured it out when the squeak turned into a much louder, nastier, not-to-be-ignored screeching/grinding kind of noise.  So I got it out today with no problems and ordered a new one.  The car has to sit a few days til it gets here...
:-(

One thing leads to another

I jacked up the front of the 67 to look where my latest oil leak is coming from and noticed that the drivers wheel had some play.  So I tightened up the bearing and it seems fine now.
When I was adjusting the carb I also found a squeaky belt when I reved the engine so I replaced both belts.. These old cars always need something.  That's probably one of the reasons I enjoy them so much.  I like the tinkering...

Carbs

The '67 was a little hard to get started the last time I took it out, so I poked around a bit and found that the choke lever was a little sticky.  A little carb cleaner loosened it up.  The carb was rebuilt a long time ago and works fine.  But when I was messing with it a few weeks ago I noticed it is starting to leak just a bit around the accelerator pump and the gaskets so I decided to clean it up.  Not a full blown rebuild but new pump, new gaskets, general cleaning.   

Where is all happens>

1940's luxury doesn't come cheap

Drove the '40 for a week.  Two days to work and misc around town stuff.  The numbers are in:

Miles driven       - 170
Fuel used            - 19 gallons
MPG                   - tad less than 9
Oil used/leaked  - 1 quart

If I were to drive it to work every day for a year it would cost me about $6,000 in gas and oil.  :-)

'40 clutch linkage

I have been living with an annoying rattle/clicking/mild rumbling which seemed to be coming from under the dash.  Sort of like a speedometer or speedometer cable.  After driving the car to work for 2 days, 70miles round trip at highway speeds (well 55 mph with this car), it got noticably worse.  I also noticed that it mostly stopped when I had my foot on the brake and stopped completely if I pushing in the clutch.  Long story short, the clutch linkage has this part, don't know what it's called but its a pivot with a ball joint at one end and a heavy rubber bushing on the other.  Turns out the bushing mostly disintegrated and the ball joint was lubricated with dirt. 

 

Since I didn't have the bushing or seal for the ball joint I made some using a fuel hose wrapped in a piece of rubber from an inner tube for a bushing, and a piece of shower stall liner melted into shape for a seal for the ball joint.  Probably not a long lasting fix but it should be fine for a while.  It seems to work just fine right now...

 

A beautiful picture

because I took it after driving the '40 about 10 miles with my new seal.  no leaks.  not a drop.  :-)
I love it when a plan comes together. 

I got the wrong seal!

It took just a few minutes today to get the retainer and seal off with my new big ass channel locks.  There are 2 size seals for this car apparently and I got the wrong size.  You can't get them at Pep Boys so it will have to sit for a few days until I get the right one.  It's just as well, I could use the rest.

The godfathers taxes

A long time ago I used to do taxes on the side for play money.  Over the years I dropped everyone except one person...my godfather.  He has his own business, is Italian, could care less about keeping records, but is an all around good guy.  This time of year he sits down and gathers information and sort of paints a picture of what he is going to report.  Very creative.  After 20 odd years or so we are to the point where he knows what to not tell me.  Some things I just don't want to know.  After all I am a trained professional. ;-)
So this morning, with my morning coffee, I sat down and prepared his returns.  Another beautiful piece of financial engineering.

Pinion Seal on the '40, part 2

Frustration level = moderate.
Some serious swearing took place yesterday.  I tried a breaker bar on the nut, but that was worthless (I didn't expect it to work but was hoping).  I have a piece of shit impact wrench that is just shy of worthless so I ran to Sears and picked up a new one.  Nice...   710 ft/lbs of torque.  It twisted that nut off like butter. 
The flange was was easy enough with a small puller. 
Now I am dealing with a retainer holding the seal.  It's just pushed in like the seal but you can't get a  remover behind it.  I was able to loosen it with a 14 in pipe wrench I got for a homeowner type project a while ago.  I think I need to go get a big ass channel lock to take it all the way off.   

Pinion Seal on the '40

Shots of the rear of the '40.  I had just sprayed some engine cleaner on it to start getting the heavy shit off when I remembered I wanted to take some pictures.  So these have engine cleaner on them, but the mess under there is still easy to see.  New seal going on today, I hope.  

Slow week

Not much got done this week.  i spent a little time with the 67 adjusting the carb.  It had a little rough idle.  I couldn't adjust it to smooth it out so I thought I woudl check for any vacuum leaks.  Just browsing the internet I found this video.  It sounded hokey to me but I always have a few cigars laying around so I thought I would give it a try.  It actually worked...surprisingly. I found a leak going to the automatic emergency brake release, changed the hose and now....smooth as silk. :-) 

67 Cadillac

The 67 Cad needed valve cover gaskets.  I last replaced them about 20 years ago so I guess they were due.  Got it done pretty quickly with no problems.. I have been thinking about detailing the engine for a while now.  I think I'll add it to my list of winter projects.  I want to drive it this time of year.

Easy fix...

Today's issue was a shower faucet that wouldn't turn freely.  It was getting more and more difficult to turn every time I used the shower.  So I had to replace the little dripless valve.  10 minutes.  Works like a charm now.

71 Vette back on the road

After plugs, points, distributor cap, rotor, new exhaust manifold and a new oil pressure line, the 71 is back on the road.  Drove it to work today. 

I put the old vette next to a new Camaro and a Mustang.  It still holds it's own sitting pretty in the parking lot or out on the road...

1940 Cadillac 60 Special

Let the Games Begin....

So my daughter convinces me to start this blog.  She has one. ( http://www.dbocnj.blogspot.com/)
 It's sort of fun looking forward to her posts so I thought, what the hell, someone might enjoy mine.  At least I know she will...