new found frustration

[narfire]

Ok I thought crawling under the steering wheel to get at whatever is ailing the car was just about the worst evolution I have to deal with on my car. ( Brake booster change for example, clutch cable change etc. ) But I have found a NEW source of frustration.....
On the drivers door there is the plastic alignment block that is supposed to fit into the opening on the "B" post. Well this plastic thingy has broken so the door catch was not lining up just right and wearing the catch on the B post. Time to replace it. OK Got a replacement from a parts car I have here, a couple of taps with the impact screwdriver and that came off no problem.
Back to my car a couple of taps did not work. A vice grip application resulted in one screw coming out and one breaking, then the captive nut falling down inside the door.....
take the door card off.
Peel the tape aside and see the location of this particular issue does not have an inspection hole nor accessible from the top without removing the window mechanism. Not going to happen. Drill a couple of holes and cut a flap to peel back. Now there is all kinds of reinforcing at that location.
Installation fluid time....and maybe the fiat faries will have it fixed when I got back. Nope.
Ok back at it and will have this figured out before long I hope....or driving home with the door card sitting on the passenger seat.
Chris

[njspider]

And I thought this stuff only happened to me.

[davery]

And I thought this stuff only happened to me.

And me.

[courtenay]

Almost as frustrating as spending a month at a fishing destination, spending almost every day on the water and catching ONE FISH!!!

[Nitrate]

I think the top of the "cage" is open. I used a 3 prong pick up tool to grab the threaded bar and positioned it over the top of the cage, released the bar and it dropped into the cage and stayed there. Have to say I got a little bit lucky. 2 or 3 tries but not extremely difficult. RB

[narfire]

Got it sorted last night. 2 hours to do a 15 minute swap(inc. some installation fluid). I used a magnet to push the bar into position, bent nose pliers to hold while with my left hand try and screw a screw into the little hole on the captive bolt...... Now my brake light is evidently out on the rt side......
C

Bummer about the fishing Bruce. I have a friend that was in Milibank and came back with fish....Shearwater has everything you need..

[Broadsword]

I noticed a rear light was not working on my Lancia Montecarlo.
To access the bulb, you need to remove the lens from the outside which is fixed via two plastic headed screws.
Both were so brittle they cracked & snapped off, but not enough so the lens could be removed.
I had to carefully drill what was left & then remove the lens.
The metal portion of what was left of the screw then had to be removed using multi-grips.
After I finally sorted this all out I replaced the bulb with a new LED equivalent.
Tried the lights & it still didn't work.
Turns out it was just a loose connection!
Did the other side so the bulbs matched & had the same dramas.
All up, probably 3 hours when all I really needed to do was fix a loose connecting plug that would have taken 3 minutes.
You have to love old cars!

[narfire]

This has to stop....Crap

Out on Sat morning to take our dog to the vet. Turning left the same time a fellow was turning left facing me. I proceed. A wanker behind the fellow facing me pulls out on the left into a bike lane and rips through the intersection. Panic stop. Loud bang with a crunch to boot. Wanker passes while my front right side now has a noticeable sag to it. Crunch it to the side of the road out of harms way. Have a look. A stud that holds the lower a arm in place let go....weld on the back side released allowing the stud to come out and the sway bar popped out of the bracket.
A friend that dropped his wife off at the hospital after breaking her wrist from tripping over the dog came by and picked me and the dog up. Dropped off at the vet. Elsie went to sleep...not a good day. Wife picked me up and went home bawling our eyes out. Had the car towed to my shop in Summerland . Took wife's car to Summerland and got the car up on my hoist (love those things) Released the brackets on the sway bar and with a floor jack and length of pipe jacked the a arm into position and whacked it back. Welded the crap out of the back or the stud.. Car is heavier now. Put the sway bar back and while on the hoist had a look around under the car. Muffler is hanging, Welded that into a semblance of where it is supposed to go. Back home to Naramata. Drove the car home next day and it needs an alignment now.
Wait, not finished.....
Today had to get a jump to start the car, ok what now. Got it home and checked the battery...8.4 volts. Car running at 2500 rpm and a check at the alternator....9.4 volts. Ok I suppose that is now pooched. I have a few at work that I can swap with.

Is that 3 things.....all is going to be good now?
Time for a G&T...or two.
Chris

[So Cal Mark]

I can top that, but I won't. Hope you got it all fixed, better than having something break each time out

[courtenay]

Very sorry to hear about Elsie, Chris. Myra and I know how you and Janyce feel about your dogs. Somehow the car problems pale in comparison.
Cheers,
Bruce and Myra

[RRoller123]

Agreed, we love the cars, but that love pales in comparison to our pet companions. There is a quite right and proper reason that they are called Man's Best Friend. Sorry for your loss. I still tear up over my first Sheltie, who got cancer 8 years ago and had to be put down.

[DieselSpider]

My wife has a Saturn VUE and the clutch failed on it again. They went modern and replaced the $15 clutch cable on this design with $300+/- of hydraulics but weren't satisfied with that and had to remove the clutch fork from the design and make a unitized release bearing hollow slave cylinder that goes over the transmission shaft between the pressure plate and transmission. When it catastrophically fails without warning at 40,000 to 60,000 miles it sprays the hydraulic fluid (DOT3 Brake Fluid) all over the clutch which otherwise was good for another 50,000 to 70,000 miles ruining it so it also needs to be replaced. Being a front wheel drive the the lower ball joints have to be released from both front wheels along with the stabilizer links and struts and the engine suspended so the front drive transaxle can be removed. $1,200 to $1,500 to do what would cost less than $20 on our Spiders.

All sorts of frustration out there.