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Yes, yes, yes... going insane... quite so... There
are now a little over 7 days to go before we leave for Memphis. That's
at max 60 work-hours for me to finish the car.
Things are going fairly well, but not fantastically. The windshield is
now installed, the rear fascia is on, and overall the car looks complete
on the outside, albeit it still needs rebrushed.
I had scheduled an appointment for an alignment yesterday morning, so
rather hesitantly I drove the car down the extremely steep hill to the
closest mechanic. There was a loud rhythmic clunking from the back that
was new, but I couldn't identify it. Anyway, when the technician went to
pull the car in onto the rack, it would not start. There was no fuel
pressure. It turns out the culprit was the connector in the very front
corner near the windshield wiper fluid resevoir. Cleaned that up, and it
started just fine. Watching the technician drive away, I realized the
clunking was coming from the wobbling rear wheel (forgot to tighten the
lugs -- d'oh! -- too many long nights spent in the garage).
Okay... so the car is on the rack. The toe-out on the front was about 3"
total. Hmmm... So as usual, doing it "by eye" didn't work very well.
Good thing I scheduled an alignment, eh? The rear wasn't too bad, but
the camber was way off. I have the adjustable lower control arms, so he
was able to dial that in nicely. Oh, by the way... The DMC was in the
alignment system's computer -- it was a new model Hunter. It even had
the correct specs (in inches not mm though) and showed that front
caster/camber were not adjustable. Not too bad... somneone got it right
for a change.
The idle is smoothing out quite a bit, but I've found the frequency
valve has been cutting in and out steadily... about 3 seconds on, and 3
seconds off. Something in the lambda system methinks... but I'll work on
that.
I purchased a rearview mirror with the compass and temperature in it and
will wire that in tonight. I've been warned against gluing the DMC
mirror to the glass because of breakage. What about a GM-style mount
though? Any fears there? Should I mount the GM button with the mounting
pad Houston provided with my windshield? Any fears about cracking due to
the increased weight? Someone has warned me that was a possibility.
Anyway, most of the carpet is now in, and the majority of the interior
is installed. Still have to recover the headliner & install the new seat
skins, which I'll work on while it rains here tonight. As soon as the
weather dries up a bit, I have to hit the road as much as I can. I've
now put 2.1 miles on the car, and want to put on about 500 more before
we leave for Memphis... wish me luck!
"The engine rumbles smooth and deep, but I have promises to keep, and
miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep."
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