Jan 05 - When you start to do one thing...

But then you wind up doing another.

I did that today.

I went out to the car to work on the steering.  I've really been wanting to put that to bed.  Just all of the physical mounting of the hardware.  It feels like it looms over me.  Been wanting it done!  :-D

So my son comes out to help me on the car.  I'm like I really want the steering done today.  He's like ok.  But there is only so much I can have him do while I'm there too on the front of the car.  So he goes to start working out the last of the shifter install.  Cables, adjustments, working out what needs to line up where so we can actually shift gears.  As it was, the cables were connected but we couldn't row through the gears.  There was too much out of spec on the alignment of things.  I hadn't had time to work it out yet and wasn't going to today.

Then I went to the store for more hardware (nuts/bolts/etc).  I come back and he has this idea of shifting the car into reverse to get the max travel required and then we'd see where things lines up to see what all we needed to do.  Made sense to me so I jumped in and helped out there a bit.  Then back to the steering.

Long story, short, I didn't get the steering all lined up and tacked in like I wanted, but we did get the shifting done.  To the point, that I lack a very minor adjustment to one of the cables throw, and need to source a couple of the clips that holds the cables to their mounts.

So I can neutral the car and shift most positively through most of the gears.  I think it'll try to jump out of gear in a couple of them, hence the slight adjust still needed.  But too, it may just be that once I get the proper clips on there, it may hold it well enough that taking the slop out of it will better engage the gear and I'll be done.

So I'm very glad I was able to pretty much check that one off now.  So I'm not so fussed that I went to do one thing and then it turned out to be another; as long as I (we) made progress and got another chapter down.  I'm happy!  :-)

Had to cut an 1 inch and  3/8th's out of it and then it was able to throw the levers like should.

 

Views of both sides of my weld.

It was easy to line the part up as there is a hump in the middle of the plate that allows you not to lose place.

I mounted the shifter back into the car after I cut it and took the grinder to both parts for a nice bevel.  I put a piece of thick sheet metal under the tab piece to keep it lifted from the top of the tunnel as I welded the two back together while it was in the car.

Then I removed it again and flipped it over to make a final weld across the bottom of it.  Ground it smooth and called it a day.

Installed back into the car for the last time and hooked all of the rods up to the shifter.

All the way into reverse from the lever.  Pretty nice.  It works like it should.

Here's how far I did get with the steering.  It won't be crooked as it is in the picture once done.  It wasn't being supported anymore in this shot.

I did mock up the new location pretty well.  I do have a beginning on some supports.  It's not a waste of time.  I got some things figured out that needed figured out.  I got some progress in there.  I did hose up my rack so I'll be going back to my buddy's place for another one.

If you're into 3rd Gen and newer F-body GM cars, then he's your man!
http://www.hawksthirdgenparts.com/

Check him out.  He's started from his garage out back of his house and has grown over the years to something pretty good sized.  :-)  I'll be hitting him up for some dyno time this coming spring I'm sure.

I just got a notice from eBay, I won the bid on the electric power steering pump!!!  I'm gonna go pay for that sucker and get it in here!!!  I'm doing the 2000-2005 MR2 Spyder one.  There's a very nice install write up on that from a guy with a Red Fiero.  I'll have to look him up again so I can give him props here.