Ole Blue

[mudkicker715]

Rivets are not natural from what I have seen

[El Matador]

That bit of plastic trim above the rear bumper is held on with rivets.  Do these come off easily?  Also, I found a surprise in the hatch.  Is that a hatch release solenoid?  And how does that normally get activated?  What is the box next to the solenoid?

I always just drill those rivets out.  You can find a suitably sized set of nuts and bolts to use in their place when reassembly time comes.

As for the solenoid, that's an interesting find.  Is there a button in the glove box for activation?

[DaemonForce]

I know it's a late wagon but you're getting rust in rather unusual places compared to my early Eagle. Where has this car been sitting and for how long? I'm having trouble believing some parts are rusted that bad.

[Alcology]

Sounds good about drilling those rivets out.  I didn't know if there was an easier way.  I just checked the glove box and it's been drilled out with a dremel in the spot where the the glove box light sits.  I must have missed it when I was pulling everything apart (most likely!) or the switch was either not there or just fell in.  It looks like the metal around the solenoid was cut out with a wheel or something. 

As for the location Daemonforce, I live in massachusetts.  This car has been kicking around mass for awhile.  The PO I bought it from used and abused it for a year.  The previous PO apparently did a lot of work to the car according to the tow truck driver who I got as he had made the previous delivery.  He was a bit sad about the condition it was in compared to how it was when he dropped it off.  When I pulled out the back seat there was safety glass all under the seat.  Cars underbodies tend to suffer a lot around here.  Too much salt on the roads.

[Alcology]

So I'd like to start with: I'm a goober.  What I thought was the hatch pop solenoid, is the rear wiper motor!  Woops.  Rather funny since I was so excited.  I really don't know why the glove compartment has a hole cut out now.  Maybe there are machine guns or a smoke screen or a secret cash generator.  I won't hold my breath.  I got a little more done with removing the drivers seat.  The front right corner was super rusty and jammed up.  Its location up above the transfer case looked like it made it more likely to get covered in crap and rust on.  It took about 4 hours to get unstuck!  I stripped the bolt a little bit, unfortunately.  I ended up using a combination of a metric size 12 and a bolt splitter.  My bolt splitter is a POS and is trash, but it was enough to create some grooves to hammer on the size 12 metric socket to remove the bolt.  Also, a good dose of ATF/acetone to try to loosen things up a little bit.  So crazy, but there was more than farts buried under that seat (I couldn't resist, apologies) there was solid floor pan and more change!  I really expected this to be messed up since it was collecting water even before I removed the roof rack, creating more holes.  Here is what the front floor looks like.





I also removed the transmission (automatic), transfer case, and radiator.  I am extremely tired of carrying transmissions and transfer cases down stairs.  I think I have to invest in a dolly.  The radiator had some trouble as one of the trans fluid cooling lines was super rusty and while I was trying to unscrew it, bent the radiator and made a hole in it!  Rather irritating, as it was fine to start with.  Lesson learned I suppose.  The radiator, messed up as it is, and the fuel tank (no holes, but not that nice) will be for sale soon.  I've started removing what I can from the engine bay.  Should I bother trying to contain the R12 from the air conditioning or just vent it?  It worries me because it's so nasty, but then again, I'm pretty cheap so it could be really expensive to try to remove it correctly.  Based on what I've read, most members have just vented it. 

Next up is to finish removing the extraneous bits from the engine bay and get some sort of lift to get the engine out.  I'm aiming to get everything out before the weather gets too nasty.  It's already snowed once, but I think it will hold off for awhile.  All the steering and suspension is incredibly nasty.  I don't know how much I can salvage, but hopefully the large pieces can be salvaged. 

[eagleman]

Hang in there,you'll get it!

[priya]

The front floorboards look pretty good. 

Just keep at it, focus on short term goals and ignore the big picture and you'll get it done.

[Alcology]

Heh, thanks eagleman and priya.  I just read your reply in your thread priya about shirt term goals, and that's what it's all about.

[Alcology]

I don't know if anyone has a solution, but hopefully some advice is floating around!  I've got 3 stuck seatbelt bolts, torx 50.  I've ruined 2 torx bits trying to get them out.  I've tried an impact driver too.  I've used a whole bunch of penetrants including the ATF/acetone mix to no avail.  Anyone have any idea on how to get these out?

[shaggimo]

Heat will be your freind, carefully of course. Don't heat the bolt, heat where it threads in. If you don't have a rugular torch, a mapgass type will do, just takes a bit longer, might want a spotter handy watching under the car.

[Alcology]

I'll give that a shot, thanks.  Is it ok to heat the sheet metal from the bottom?  The seat belts and trim are in the way from the top

[mudkicker715]

I would say your better off from the bottom. You still need a fire watch. Maybe soak the carpet first, better yet pull it back.

[jim]

I too have a stuck seat belt bolt.  I have been reluctant to apply heat, but I suppose I'll have to.  Someone suggested a wet towel on the carpet to protect it.

[juhap]

I used a special drill bit to make small hole in the middle of the bolt. Then I drilled with bigger bit. Didn´t care about that welded bolt under the floor. Use a new bolt with new nut when put things back. No heat needed, no fire, just TLC...

Here it is...

http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l590/jpihkanen/eagle/003-1.jpg

[HappyPappy]

I'll give that a shot, thanks.  Is it ok to heat the sheet metal from the bottom?  The seat belts and trim are in the way from the top

  After you heat it, beat on it with a hammer, mite help to loosen it. Good luck