Topic: What did you do to your non-motorcycle vehicle today?

[Bankerdanny]

my alpine head unit has a small fuse in it , might be worth checking if yours is the same .

Yes, fuse on the unit and an inline fuse both tested good.
Thanks

Take advantage and swap out to a media only unit. No CD, just radio, Bluetooth and USB connections. They are only about 3 inches deep and are much easier to install in an old car.

[Stev-o]

my alpine head unit has a small fuse in it , might be worth checking if yours is the same .

Yes, fuse on the unit and an inline fuse both tested good.
Thanks

Take advantage and swap out to a media only unit. No CD, just radio, Bluetooth and USB connections. They are only about 3 inches deep and are much easier to install in an old car.

Continued to pull the unit, confirm it has a good ground and the unit lit up and is playing fine now. 
Turns out there is a wiring issue but not the ground as I might have assumed since the car has a fiberglass body.
Searching for the wiring diagram as I have two unidentified loose wires.
Thanks

[Gurp]

Ran my truck out of gas...
No working fuel gauge. Got it started on some ether.
Got to the gas station filled it up. Still cranking hard. Went home changed the fuel filter inside the carb. Doing great now. Love the old tech. It's so much easier to mess with.
Just 2 tools and no laying on my back either.
A 1 inch wrench and a 1/2 line wrench.

Love my old truck, most of the time.

[BenelliSEI]

Pulled my 1980 FORD F350 plow truck out of the barn. L.R. drum brake was seized, then broke loose with a bang! Brake pedal is going to the floor. R.R. Brake line (from the axle mounted T to the wheel cylinder) rotted and spraying. It’s all so crusty this will be ugly.........

Love my old truck, most of the time (not so much today!).

Managed to remove the totally rotten brake line (which I replaced 20 years ago), without damaging the tee or the wheel cylinder. All the fittings and hoses end in little piles of rusty fittings, so lucky so far...... The bleed nipples are unrecognizable, so I’ll be using the last new fitting as the “bleeder”. Truck never leaves the property so not looking for a 100 point solution! While lying under the truck, clamped and wired up the “ see through “ tailpipe. Also noticed fuel tank I replaced in 2001 is suspiciously damp. Not dripping, but that will be next.

[BenelliSEI]

Left the FORD alone and finished the Echo. Fresh front brakes, oil/filter change, topped up the trans and loaded cooling system with enough glycol for the winter. Good scrub and put the door windows back in for storage. Rear shoes are paper thin (4 X 8 hour races, so no complaints), ordered a set. After that, it will be ready for the barn and 2023 rental.

[BenelliSEI]

Replaced the RR solid brake line on the rear axle (Tee to the RR wheel cylinder). Bled it out using the fitting on the wheel cylinder as the bleed nipple is just a little pyramid of rust.....

As soon as it built pressure, the LEFT side LET GO! Arghhhhh!!!  Guess what will happen when I replace that one?? Is brake fluid flammable? Too bad it’s not insured.

[RAFster122s]

Pretty sure you were joking, yes brake fluid is often flammable and difficult to extinguish.
Push it outside the barn first if you are gonna bbq it...
Time to replace all the hard lines and cylinders if the vehicle is gonna be kept.
My brother had brake line fail on an old Chevy Avalanche while towing a trailer and he was away from home. They raped him on the repairs...he was at the mercy of the shop doing the work as my brother is a doctor, not a mechanic...

[Stev-o]

Drove the "ol' Chevy" to a car show two weeks ago and the stereo would not turn on.  Pulled the Alpine head unit and hooked it up to alterative power source and still nothin'.  Very disappointed, the head unit is only four years old, and not cheap, paid around $300 for it. Now same system is $119 but do I want to go that route?

After fiddling with the wiring a bit, I did get the Alpine to power up but then would cut off after a few seconds, and then it would go on and off even when I wasnt touching it, just turning the ignition on.

Said screw it and ordered a Pioneer...an hour after FedEx delivers I am "rockin' down the highway" again!

[RAFster122s]

StevO, handy with a soldering iron? Sounds like a cracked solder joint for the connector blocks in the chassis of the old Alpine or loose connectors whose crimps need tightened up. If the former you heat up the solder pads to fix the connections. The later requires some disassembly of the connector blocks and work to tighten those connectors, or replacing them...

[BenelliSEI]

Pretty sure you were joking, yes brake fluid is often flammable and difficult to extinguish.
Push it outside the barn first if you are gonna bbq it...
Time to replace all the hard lines and cylinders if the vehicle is gonna be kept.
My brother had brake line fail on an old Chevy Avalanche while towing a trailer and he was away from home. They raped him on the repairs...he was at the mercy of the shop doing the work as my brother is a doctor, not a mechanic...

Joking for sure! I need the plow for my driveway! Will just pick away at it. Made up a new 20” line, just too dark to crawl around anymore today.....

[RAFster122s]

You will get it sorted, hopefully without a lot of undue stress. Lived in rusty producing area of Ohio and dealt with lots of rusty fasteners and other bits. Enough to be sick of them. It is amazing how quickly things oxidize given good conditions for that..taking a car from California into Ohio for 1 winter and less than 6 months time it was astounding the damage that short time did to the car. Things that looked good before and didn’t appear to have issues were looking sketchy and presenting problems a year later.

You will sort it out John… guess you now will have to put together a plan for overhaul of those areas which will need attention and addressed in the coming spring and summer so your plow vehicle will continue to do its job in the years to come.

[70CB750]

Replaced the RR solid brake line on the rear axle (Tee to the RR wheel cylinder). Bled it out using the fitting on the wheel cylinder as the bleed nipple is just a little pyramid of rust.....

As soon as it built pressure, the LEFT side LET GO! Arghhhhh!!!  Guess what will happen when I replace that one?? Is brake fluid flammable? Too bad it’s not insured.

I feel your pain.  Few years back my daughter brought home 2001 Dodge pickup from Detroit and I had to get it inspected in Virginia.  Drivers floor was cardboard and carpet, the door bottom was piece of metal 2x4 and joints, exhaust and brakes were all michigened 

[grcamna2]

Replaced the RR solid brake line on the rear axle (Tee to the RR wheel cylinder). Bled it out using the fitting on the wheel cylinder as the bleed nipple is just a little pyramid of rust.....

As soon as it built pressure, the LEFT side LET GO! Arghhhhh!!!  Guess what will happen when I replace that one?? Is brake fluid flammable? Too bad it’s not insured.

I feel your pain.  Few years back my daughter brought home 2001 Dodge pickup from Detroit and I had to get it inspected in Virginia.  Drivers floor was cardboard and carpet, the door bottom was piece of metal 2x4 and joints, exhaust and brakes were all michigened 

Michigan must use Calcium Chloride or pure rock salt for their harsh Winter storms up there.

[Stev-o]

Replaced the RR solid brake line on the rear axle (Tee to the RR wheel cylinder). Bled it out using the fitting on the wheel cylinder as the bleed nipple is just a little pyramid of rust.....

As soon as it built pressure, the LEFT side LET GO! Arghhhhh!!!  Guess what will happen when I replace that one?? Is brake fluid flammable? Too bad it’s not insured.

I feel your pain.  Few years back my daughter brought home 2001 Dodge pickup from Detroit and I had to get it inspected in Virginia.  Drivers floor was cardboard and carpet, the door bottom was piece of metal 2x4 and joints, exhaust and brakes were all michigened 

Michigan must use Calcium Chloride or pure rock salt for their harsh Winter storms up there.

FYI - MI has huge deposits of salt and has been mining it since 1895...

http://detroitsalt.com/history

[BenelliSEI]

Replaced the RR solid brake line on the rear axle (Tee to the RR wheel cylinder). Bled it out using the fitting on the wheel cylinder as the bleed nipple is just a little pyramid of rust.....

As soon as it built pressure, the LEFT side LET GO! Arghhhhh!!!  Guess what will happen when I replace that one?? Is brake fluid flammable? Too bad it’s not insured.

I feel your pain.  Few years back my daughter brought home 2001 Dodge pickup from Detroit and I had to get it inspected in Virginia.  Drivers floor was cardboard and carpet, the door bottom was piece of metal 2x4 and joints, exhaust and brakes were all michigened 

“Michiganed?” Same in Ontario! Truck annoyed me so put new brakes in the back of the Echo today. It’s 100% ready for next event. Gas and go!

[70CB750]

Yesterday I broke the parking brake on 04 Grand Cherokee.  Just "pop" and the hand brake now goes very easy.   

[RAFster122s]

Yesterday I broke the parking brake on 04 Grand Cherokee.  Just "pop" and the hand brake now goes very easy.   

That belongs in the pissed off thread.
Had to replace ebrake cables on one of my cars many years ago...
Funny thing is many people don't use their ebrake and then they take it into a shop where they practice good safety and use the ebrake and bam it breaks or it sticks on. If the owner had been using their ebrake it wouldn't have happened...

[BenelliSEI]

Yesterday I broke the parking brake on 04 Grand Cherokee.  Just "pop" and the hand brake now goes very easy.   

On my 03 Grand Cherokee it was the end bracket on the first cable..... two years ago. Deleted Option!

[scottly]

I picked up a couple of "almost new" front brake rotors for my 2004 Chevy Silverado pickup today off Craig's list, for $65. The seller's 2005 Silverado's trim used a 13" rotor, and after he mounted them and fit the calipers, he realized they were only 12", like my truck uses. Best of all was that he was only a few miles away, and we met at a half-way point; he pulled into the parking lot at the Blue Ridge Market right behind me, and the whole transaction, including pleasantries, took about 8 minutes.

[RAFster122s]

Nice score Scott. Sometimes you make out ok...

[CycleRanger]

Replaced  the battery in my '02 Tundra.
The old battery failed kinda suddenly.
Texas summers are pretty rough on batteries.
It was 4.5 years old so I guess that's ok.
But that was a buck and a quarter I hadn't planned to spend.

[dave500]

yeah batteries do that,later model cars always have a drain when parked unlike chrome bumper cars,if you take the time to charge em lightly every 6 months youll get more out of em.

[70CB750]

Yesterday I broke the parking brake on 04 Grand Cherokee.  Just "pop" and the hand brake now goes very easy.   

That belongs in the pissed off thread.
Had to replace ebrake cables on one of my cars many years ago...
Funny thing is many people don't use their ebrake and then they take it into a shop where they practice good safety and use the ebrake and bam it breaks or it sticks on. If the owner had been using their ebrake it wouldn't have happened...

I learn to drive on a stick. Setting the parking brake is pure reflex for me - I still do it to the Cherokee these days

Benelli - that's what I suspect, the pop came from the handle. 

[Gurp]

Changed the PCV valve and dead starter button on my big truck.
Tried to change the fuel filter but it was too tight to unthread by hand. Will try tonight at work, I have big filter pliers there.

[Terry in Australia]

Drove the "ol' Chevy" to a car show two weeks ago and the stereo would not turn on.  Pulled the Alpine head unit and hooked it up to alterative power source and still nothin'.  Very disappointed, the head unit is only four years old, and not cheap, paid around $300 for it. Now same system is $119 but do I want to go that route?

After fiddling with the wiring a bit, I did get the Alpine to power up but then would cut off after a few seconds, and then it would go on and off even when I wasnt touching it, just turning the ignition on.

Said screw it and ordered a Pioneer...an hour after FedEx delivers I am "rockin' down the highway" again!

That Pioneer stereo looks the same as the one that I installed in my little Truck Steve, it's a good unit. Interestingly enough I have a NOS Alpine that I bought for one of my Subaru's years ago, not knowing that the wife and son's bought me the Pioneer at the same time for Fathers Day, and so they both sat in their boxes as I never got around to pulling out the Subaru's stereo and eventually gave the car to my older sister.