Priya's SX/4 project

[priya]

What dissy cap are you using? i just fired up wifeys stroker to hear a small tick. she has the big cap however. not tfi'ed yet but close. i was thinking lifters need to fill. it got better but not gone.

I'm not sure what you mean by big cap.  Mine has the coil on top and four spring loaded screws to hold it in place.  Its a Delco Remy.

[priya]

I drove my Eagle today! 

We picked up a license plate earlier today and then Ward hooked the power brakes to the intake manifold.  We had to put a filter in the line because I don't think I plugged the line back when I sandblasted the engine compartment, or at least that's what it looked like in the pictures I took at that time.

The Eagle tach I got turned out to be a dud so I got an 87-91 F150 tach as Vangremlin suggested.  I made the modifications and mounted in the Eagle cluster and all we needed to do to get the car on the road was install it when Ward noticed the speedometer cable drive tang broken off in the speedometer.  I suppose its just as well as I haven't gotten the car appraised yet and until I do so the license plate insurance will only pay me $800 if the car gets destroyed in an accident.  So it'll sit until I can get a speedometer cable. 

After that disappointment Ward encouraged me to take the car up and down the back alley so I got in and took it around the block.  It may not have been much, but it certainly was a milestone.

In the meantime I have a 79 Spirit AMX grill I'm going to install.  I'm going to paint the mesh first as its peeling and then I have to make a couple extra brackets to install it as it has 4 on the top edge compared to the Eagle's two.
After that's done I'll probably slide the instrument cluster in place and get the appraiser out to do what he does.

[Baskinator]

That's excellent, congratulations!!! The first drive is certainly the greatest. I'm excited to see some pictures of the finished product in all its glory once it's shined up and ready for the road.

[priya]

Thanks Baskinator.

[shaggimo]

Smart move on having it appraised, and grats on the mini drive   .

[priya]

Thanks Shaggimo. 

Its covered in a thick layer of dust so I want to wash it as well before getting an appraisal.  I figure I'll just move it out of the garage and take a hose and bucket of soap to it.  I'm hoping for a warm rainy day to do it as I found when doing my Corvette back there the soapy water dries on qickly in the sun before I get a chance to rinse it off and then the soap doesn't rinse off very well.  Also, its dusty back in the back alley so if its windy or cars drive by the car gets dusty again right away.  Its supposed to be warm and wet Wednesday so that looks like the day.  I thought about driving it to the car wash, but I'm way too nervous to risk smashing it up and then getting only $800 for it.

We currently have it licensed as an antique so it can't be my primary driver.  We're going to get a safety inspection and then license it as a regular car so it can be my primary driver and my Corvette my secondary car.  We still have to inspect the steering, suspension, and brakes to make sure it'll pass so there may be some work to be done yet.  I know it needs strut rod bushings and we have those waiting to go in.  Other than that so far it seems to brake and steer nicely so maybe I'll get lucky and all it will need is the strut rod bushings.

[max98059]

Yea I wouldn't drive it to the carwash. I would also be afraid of someone hiting it. I don't know if they have the same laws as washington down there. But up here the insurance company has to pay for all the new parts. Did you keep all the reciepts for the apraisal.

[priya]

Yes Max, I kept most, if not all of the receipts, with the exception of the used parts I bought from other Eagle nest members.  Even so, I estimate I've got $6-8000 in receipts and likely a lot closer to the 8 than the 6.  We have insurance run by the provincial government here and sometimes they aren't always truthful about what the law says they can and cannot do, but I know they have a database of what used cars sell for and if a car is damaged they compare the cost of damages to the typical selling price of that used car.  So from what I got from the insurance agent they say the typical selling price of a used 81 Eagle is $800 so that's what they offer you if your car has more than $799 damage to it.  I have sued them twice in the past over this and won but I wouldn't want to depend on succeeding again, that was a long time ago and perhaps the law has changed since then.

[max98059]

i am sorry thats just wrong. every person who has restored a car has alot more money in to it then any plain jane used car out there!! thats just my feelings.

[eaglebeek]

Priya, I've watched this thread since Day One...June 1, 2008. As you near completion I'm in awe of how far it's come.

Congratulations!

[priya]

i am sorry thats just wrong. every person who has restored a car has alot more money in to it then any plain jane used car out there!! thats just my feelings.

Yes, they're pretty sleazy when they can get away with it.

Priya, I've watched this thread since Day One...June 1, 2008. As you near completion I'm in awe of how far it's come.

Congratulations!

Thanks for sticking with me all this time eaglebeek, nice to have someone here from the beginning.  Its been slow going, but I kept at it. 

[jim]

Several of us have been with you all the way and we still are.  Keep on keepin' on.  You are an inspiration to us.  I am really looking forward to pictures from that first long Eagle trip.

[vangremlin]

Congrats on your first drive!  What a great feeling to get behind the wheel and drive the car after all the work and love you've put into the car!  Enjoy it!

[rohnk]

Priya,
Your input and the info from your thread is what inspired me to buy my Eagle in Nebraska a couple of years ago. I remember you commenting that it was so rust free that it was worth the $2500 asking price just in the savings in rust repair. On that comment, I pulled the trigger and went for it. Not once have I been sorry for it!

Can we count on you and the hubby making it to Cordova this year and bring your SX4? If you have the time, I'm sure we can all come together to help you with the dime!

Keep it in mind. After all your hard work, it will be great for you to show it off.

[priya]

Several of us have been with you all the way and we still are.  Keep on keepin' on.  You are an inspiration to us.  I am really looking forward to pictures from that first long Eagle trip.

Thanks a lot Jim, I should have realized that there are many like you who've watched this from the start and given me so much encouragment and support that really helped keep me going until I could get this done.  I couldn't have done this without the Eagle nest.  

Congrats on your first drive!  What a great feeling to get behind the wheel and drive the car after all the work and love you've put into the car!  Enjoy it!

Thanks Vangremlin.  It felt pretty weird to actually be driving the car rather than just looking at it stationary and tinkering away on it - like "I can't believe I'm actually driving this thing!".

Priya,
Your input and the info from your thread is what inspired me to buy my Eagle in Nebraska a couple of years ago. I remember you commenting that it was so rust free that it was worth the $2500 asking price just in the savings in rust repair. On that comment, I pulled the trigger and went for it. Not once have I been sorry for it!

Can we count on you and the hubby making it to Cordova this year and bring your SX4? If you have the time, I'm sure we can all come together to help you with the dime!

Keep it in mind. After all your hard work, it will be great for you to show it off.

That's really nice to hear Rohnk, I'm glad you decided to pull the trigger and buy a sound eagle, there aren't that many left and as you can see from this project its way more expensive and time consuming to make rust repairs than it is to buy a solid body at a fair price to begin with.

I'll talk to the hubby about Cordova, some funding would make a difference but I'm not sure about this year as we want to put some significant miles on the eagle locally to make sure we shake out any bugs before we take it on a long trip.  I'm a pretty shy person in reality as well  so groups of people make me a little nervous.