0R10N
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Posts posted by 0R10N
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On 14/01/2017 at 12:44, xsspeed said:
Quite a long list from compliance
Mostly around rust but also possibly some chassis rail work - they have some dents on underside. The guy who runs the yard (not compliance officer) put the shits up me talking about chassis alignment but he wasnt sure if required. Wont know until the repair certifier says exactly whats needed which will start monday
Not unexpected just had fingers crossed for plain sailing. Just got to get on with it and spend more coin
If you have any questions or need clarity around your list of work, feel free to give the contact whose details I supplied a call.
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Merry Xmas! The latest Stacked/Moonlight container arrived just in time for the festive season, and so did my shiny new AW11 Recaro seat rails.
When Xmas morning dawned bright and early I busied myself in the shed, and eventually ended up with this:
Not many people realize that you can swap the centre fabrics around on just about any Recaro L-series seat as long as the bases match - I cobbled these together from a pair of good Lancer GSR LX-B seats that I bought off Dirk about six or seven years ago, and a pair of munted BF Familia Infini LS-Bs that still had relatively good centres. It's a pretty time consuming process if you're being careful to re-attach all the hog rings and trying not to rip or damage anything. Thinking back to when I originally assembled them it probably took a good hour and a half per side.
As you can see, the effort was worth it. They're surprisingly comfortable, have just the right amount of firmness in the padding, and are much more supportive than the factory AW11 seats. Plus as an added bonus - the eye-watering red stripes are totally '80s spec and stay in line with the character of the car.
Next I'll probably have to give them a good scrub to make the red fabric really pop against the blue exterior.
N.B. if anyone is wondering what the Recaro LX and LS guff is all about, I direct your attention to the following image:
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Some foamer-spec info about all the different Japanese variations of the Z31 Fairlady Z, it even talks about the arched and flared fenders:
http://www.xenonzcar.com/z31/modeldifferences.html
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will i get negative compliance points by driving it there or bonus boss points?
Most compliance places don't care how the car gets there. Drove the AW11 back from the panelbeater without plates and they didn't even bat an eyelid.
Also, good jerb, glad you stuck to your guns and listened to my shitty advice, now you can tell people that importing your own car isn't a myth. Holla if you have any more questions/need help/want a friendly man to do your inspection etc.
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Speaking of temperature, I'm after an unobtrusive aftermarket water temp gauge for the Starion that I can tuck out of the way but still be immediately visible when required, and a digital LED readout with small footprint seems like a more elegant solution than a round 52mm gauge.
Something like this, but ouch at the price:
https://www.dynotunenitrous.com/store/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=221
I guess if there's no other decent option available I could go ahead and purchase that, but has anyone come across a similar product that they would recommend?
Aliexpress seems to return a lot of hits for bulky round gauges, and a surprising number of fishtank ones, lol. That could work perhaps?
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Update: Seller doesn't seem to do email or text.
I will try and call tonight to let them know you're likely to inspect on my behalf this weekend, but if you manage to schedule your own viewing that would be most appreciated.
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It's sort of ironic that people complained when C/H/M left, then complained about the new Top Gear presenters, and now they're complaining about the new show.
They should probably just stick to making epic specials, like Bolivia and Vietnam and stuff.
I recently sat down and watched the commentary for the Bolivia special from start to finish, that was actually very cool. Gives you some insight into which scenes were less scripted and what sort of direction took place during filming.
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Oh lush. If you could tee something up Richy that would be super!
I've emailed the seller to open up a line of communication and to request some photos of things they mentioned in the ad, just waiting on a reply now.
Neal, you would be most welcome to. Ant was also keen for a roadtrip. What a merry trio that would make.
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Any kind Otago folks able to take a look at a car for me please? It's a 1982 Ford Laser Sport.
http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/ford/auction-1211965982.htm
The seller is probably asking more than it's realistically worth, but it might be worth a hustle. These things rust like the plague, so a keen eye for tinworm will come in handy. And it might be best to make sure it doesn't rattle, smoke, knock or make any hideous mechanical noises, as I'll have to drive the poor thing back to Auckland if I buy it.
Cheers ears, will wire you money for beers if you can help.
Ed
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Just to update you (if you didn't already have an inkling) - huge thanks for the offer of help but the sale fell through in the end
To put it diplomatically, the seller was on meth or something. He mysteriously stopped answering his email/phone for three weeks and when my friend finally did get hold of him he claimed that he didn't remember agreeing to sell him the car, and proceeded to quote a price four times the original amount.
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Ever since I bought the Starion, my love/hate relationship with '80s turbo Mitsubishis has grown stronger. If you feel the same way, congratulations!
Anyway... this could be good for parts or a reshell?
http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/mitsubishi/auction-1211274969.htm
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Yup I'll be there, hopefully the weather plays ball. Want to meet somewhere west-ish before cruising out Alistair?
Ant (who came to the last few monthly meets) is also bringing his V3000, since the Merc is now sold.
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Ha, this is true.
May not be out of the woods just yet though, temp needle went to about 3/4 of the way up the gauge yesterday in traffic, didn't help that it was also a stinkingly warm day.
Browsing Yahoo Japan for a suitable aftermarket water temp gauge to install, I agree with all the conjecture so far that it'll be a far more accurate measure of coolant temperature than a factory gauge with no real units of scale on it, but haven't had a chance to adapt anything until now.
Maybe the A/C fan is also meant to come on for that extra little bit of air circulation? I should really investigate this weekend. If you have a bit of spare loom with a plug Ranter I'd be keen to see what it looks like.
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Temperature sit-rep: I can report that after a few days of daily driving - including one stint of horrific evening gridlock from Albany to Parnell (followed by a bunch of low-speed manoeuvring trying to find a park on one of the side streets) - I haven't noticed the temperature needle go over halfway, nor any BHG/steam escaping/coolant loss issues with the replacement radiator and cooling fans fitted.
I'll give it until the end of the week before making a call but things are looking pretty good so far.
Discuss: http://oldschool.co....uhishi-starion/-
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Interdasting... I'd never heard of Tridon products being decidedly flaky before. Now you guys have me all worried about the Tridon sensors I had to buy for my Skyline because genuine ones are NLA.
Speaking of genuine, nope I don't have a contact for genuine Mitsi but I'm sure I'd make a great return customer
Tori, yup there is a small difference in core size even though the tanks are the same dimensions - Starion one is slightly wider.
Oh, and as for wiring both cooling fans to come on at the same time - it's possible that they both come on by design. Unfortunately the A/C fan isn't plugged in, because as I already mentioned the plug on the fan doesn't match the plug on the wiring loom.
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Nope, no stock shrouds, I've noticed that on a lot of '80s cars with electric fans. Pretty much everything I own has at least one fan with a housing that sort of acts like a shroud to draw air through but doesn't cover the entire radiator.
The A/C condenser does have a foam strip along its edges to seal the gaps around it though.
Similarly, the second fan only comes on when the A/C is going, which again seems to be a standard '80s design. It's got its own trigger circuit and wiring.
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Right, time to dirty up that nice clean engine bay by pulling out that poor excuse of a L200 radiator.
But first, in lieu of having a proper engine flushing machine, let us chuck some snake oil into the cooling system and drive around for a bit.
I'm expecting to cop a bit of flak for doing this, but to be fair I've heard nothing but good things about Philm-Off, and I guess every little bit helps when you're dealing with a 28 year old cooling system (and you're not entirely sure of its history). It's a bit unsettling that it has the consistency and appearance of iodine though. That's a brand new radiator cap, by the way.
Fast forward a couple of weeks. ~800 miles of driving later the Philm-Off's done its thing, and the radiator is ready to be drained.
Begone.
With the L200 radiator out, the task of constructing the breakout loom for the standard radiator fan begins. What's happened here is that the standard loom's been chopped and unceremoniously crimped to fit an aftermarket plug. Fortunately the GSR-V radiator I bought came with the original plug and a bit of wire, so I'll be able to make it work and still maintain some semblance of "factory-ness".
Apparently it's already been done, but I might as well replace the thermostat and coolant temp sender again, since it only takes 5 minutes to do on the RWD G63B. Now if only it was that simple on my other cars...
I searched around Aliexpress for another male plug to make the breakout loom with, and mjrstar managed to point me in the right direction, but I really couldn't be bothered waiting six weeks for the part to turn up (not to mention there was still the chance it wouldn't have the correct keying). So I did the slightly ghetto thing, and chopped the plug off the existing wiring for the aftermarket fans.
Breakout loom, done. Made easier by the fact the GSR-V plug wire colours matched the factory loom.
With the old radiator gone, time to roll the car out and run the hose through the engine to get rid of all the old excess coolant and other gross things the Philm-Off may have reacted with, like bits of headgasket.
Haha, only kidding.
This was also the perfect opportunity to refit the original A/C condenser in its spot just in front of the radiator, because I'll eventually have the air conditioning overhauled and re-gassed. All of the factory bits were supplied with the purchase of the car, which was nice. But I can sense you all thinking, "you've already got cooling issues, you silly sausage... why the fuck would you block the passage of airflow to the radiator even more?"
Because I'm a grumpy old bugger who appreciates crisp, cool air on a humid summer's day, that's why.
Right, everything's back in place, there's fresh coolant in the system, and all the hose clamps are tightened back up... let's see if the factory cooling fan engages.
This is where I hope my calculations were correct in that the Japanese GSR-V has the same wiring as the NZ-new EX.
Bravo.
Went for a drive, the system seems to have bled up alright, the needle sits at a sensible point on the gauge, and the amount of fan hysteresis is much smaller, meaning that temperature is being regulated a lot better now (and dropping out of the "hot" zone quickly once it gets there). Whereas the aftermarket fans would previously flick on, then remain on indefinitely while the temperature continued to climb.
The real test will be driving it to work tomorrow in rush hour traffic. If everything comes up Milhouse, then I can proceed to the next challenge of getting the secondary A/C fan to work.
Discuss: //oldschool.co.nz/index.php?/topic/54171-ted-huangs-starorion-0r10ns-1988-mitsuhishi-starion/
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One of the more interesting things I learnt about that town is that no new buildings are allowed because of its location in a flood plain. So property prices tanked and the place has pretty much stagnated as you see it.
But if the cafe venture in the old ambulance station is allowed to go ahead maybe that'll inject a bit more life into the place.
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Yup the flood level lines are still on the wall. They got pretty high.
Both Ohura and Matiere Cossie Clubs seem to get quite busy. There's a cool decrepit old workshop in Matiere as well.
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Phone the New Lynn branch of BNT, ask for Ant, tell him you're from Oldschool and have a 2000 Laser you need some front shocks for. He may end up giving you the AMAZD (Mazda club) discount.
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2.3S maybe (it's a trim grade) but those are non-turbo. Proper turbo Atenzas and Axelas are between $12-18k.
Actually come to think of it there were some +T converted wagons imported and sold here, using off the shelf Japanese kits but the engines didn't seem to last very long.
I feel a pang of regret for passing up this gem yesterday, so maybe you should buy it instead Tai - http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/used-cars/suzuki/auction-1198552605.htm
(and sell it to me in a couple of years when you are sick of it)
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Corolla GT sedan? 20v blacktop 4A-GE and fairly uncommon compared to the coupes and wagons, so less prone to thrashed-ness. Or perhaps a supercharged AE92/AE101?
Hey, what about a Mitsubishi Colt Ralliart? Haha.
Not sure what turbocharged vehicles $6k will buy nowadays (except for perhaps the odd Legacy). Trademe is your friend.
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Stumbled upon these guys http://www.teccwa.com/ meet at the Quay in Perth today which was a nice automotive Oasis in the middle of a trip filled with shopping malls and Australians (I'm kidding(I'm not))
I sure do like that Tercel.
Spotted in Inglewood the other weekend, nana-spec 1.1 litre Laser Cameo.
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Importing from Japan
in General Car Chat
Posted
You forgot step 2a) Pay for the car plus any extras (recycle fee, shipping within Japan, paperwork, commission), step 6c) Pay for any repairs, and step 6d) Pay for MR2a and first registration (now reduced to a minimum of $175), all of which should be budget considerations
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Have always advised people to keep an extra $3000 aside for any repairs required during compliance. I've imported four old cars now... sometimes you get lucky and only pay a fraction of that, other times you get burnt and pay more. It all boils down to the fact that you never know what compliance will dredge up, even if you inspect the car in person, and the inspectors do tend to be stricter with old cars.
Also, step 4) will take the purchase price into consideration so a $10,000 car will attract a $1500 GST charge - remember to factor this in also.
Yes you only have 20 days to get things sorted for a recheck. My AW11 exceeded this deadline by about 40 days due to the repair certifier fucking around, but the compliance inspector found a loophole to avoid me having to pay for another one.
Also, listen to Steeb and pbaines when they mention Autohub. I am never making the mistake of handling my own shipping and customs clearance again, it's just so much easier to pay Autohub to handle everything for you start to finish. I think Stacked now also recommend using Autohub instead of the method I undertook.
Either way, good luck finding and importing your dream vehicle, I'm glad more people are taking the plunge and doing it.