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

[Terry in Australia]

Yep, I’m constantly amazed at what great cars are still being pulled out of barns, finding a really nice rust free example would be fantastic.

[dave500]

yeah i checked em out aswell,sort of studebaker division?didnt check out the motors,wonder if they were sleeve valve weirdo motors?

[RAFster122s]

yeah i checked em out aswell,sort of studebaker division?didnt check out the motors,wonder if they were sleeve valve weirdo motors?

Lots of Studebaker motors were similar to Chevy designs and I think if I recall correctly at the end they used some Chevy motors.They were not odd designs.

[dave500]

Odd designs we can handle man,its them weirdo ones that worry us?

[Terry in Australia]

One of the times I occasionally kick myself are when I think of the Studebaker I bought, then sold. It was an ex-NSW 1963 cop car with a 259 V8. Beautiful car, went really well, and had the loudest horn on any car I owned. I’d have another one tomorrow if I could find one.

[ofreen]

One of the times I occasionally kick myself are when I think of the Studebaker I bought, then sold.

My first car was a '54 Studebaker Champion 4 door I bought from my uncle for $25 when I was 14.  It had the flathead six and the body was very straight, but it ran poorly. It started OK, but we could tell there was a lot of pressure in the crankcase.  So my buddy and I pulled the head to see what we could find out.  Turned out that one of the pistons had lost a chunk off the side. All I could afford was a new head gasket, so we put it back together and drove it around the back roads avoiding cops because I was too young to get a drivers license.  When I didn't have money for gas, I'd sit in it and listen to the radio.  It was a tube radio, so took a while to warm up and play.  It also drew the juice, so I had to keep the battery charged.  Because everyone told me it wasn't worth fixing, I eventually sold it to a young couple whose Chevy 6 cylinder ventilated its block with an errant rod.  A common occurrence with those engines back in those days.  I got $35 for it.  I knew where they lived and would see them driving it.  Then I noticed it just sat in their driveway, never moving.  Eventually, it was gone.  It was a good car, went down the road very well, cruised right along with the 3 speed and overdrive.  I later found out that a guy named Kirby a couple of miles down the road had several of those engines in a barn he was selling for $25 a piece. I could have fixed it cheaply after all.  Oh well.

The car looked like this, except it was green.

[scottly]

When I was in high school, one of my buddies had a '37 Plymouth coupe, with a flat-head six, which smoked badly. When he pulled the oil pan, he found chunks of metal with a knurled surface, which turned out to be chunks of piston skirts.(Knurling was a process than raised some small amount of metal on the worn pistons to tighten up the gap with the worn cylinders, which was effective for about 50 miles. ) Since a complete rebuild with a bore and new pistons was out of the question, and the car still moved reasonably well going down the road, Wes found that if he removed two of the spark plug wires it didn't smoke as bad and had a negligible loss of power.
Hey Greg, how about a '47?
https://prescott.craigslist.org/cto/d/benson-1947-studebaker-champion-reduce/7645184023.html
 

[RAFster122s]

There are a lot of Studebakers in southern AZ, been to a club gathering several years back with my buddy Tim who has a 65 Cruiser. They are most all nice cars, not a rusted hulk like that one you showed the link to Scott. Other than Hawk and Avanti they generally are pretty inexpensive too. The Studebaker factory shut its doors and stuff wasn't sold off and liquidated, so it is surprising what you can get from the group that owns that collection. Really amazing really. The catalog of inventory was extensive my buddy Tim showed me. Tim has turned his Cruiser into a street rod with hipo 350 motor, more modern Corvette front suspension, changed steering system and rear springs. Had hot rod shop in E LA do suspension work about 10 years or so back... The car is incredible, it squats and hooks up with little to no tire sound and just goes! It is really quick. It is entertaining.

[ofreen]

Hey Greg, how about a '47?
https://prescott.craigslist.org/cto/d/benson-1947-studebaker-champion-reduce/7645184023.html

Glad I'm not down there as I'd probably go look at it.  There were a lot of Studebakers owned by family and friends when growing up.  We had a '53 pickup for many years.  My dad would load one of his Harleys in the back of it in the summer for a trip to Salt Lake where his family lived.  We lived in western Washington at the time, and that trip was nothing like it is these days, being pre-interstate.  Two lane all the way, frequently unpaved.  The little truck handled the trip fine.  It would cruise easily at 70 in overdrive even with an FLH in the back. Some favorite memories of it involved riding around in the back of it in the summer when I was a kid.  I drove it for a couple of years, hauling dirt bikes, taking it on logging roads and camping out of it.  Then it passed to my sister, whose drunken friends had no respect for it and broke stuff inside.  It ended up in a pasture, rusting away until my brother had it hauled off.  A sad end to a faithful vehicle.  I wasn't happy when I found out it was gone, but I was in Alaska at the time and couldn't do anything with it.  I have a lot of stories around that truck, including coming close to losing an eye.  That one still makes me cringe when I think of it.

[Terry in Australia]

It’s a shame that Studebaker went under, in a way they were streets ahead of their opposition in technical innovations, but ironically it was their oddly futuristic styling that killed them off.

[C317414]

I spent a few hours fixing an outboard motor today. 

The steering bracket on my outboard motor was super rusty.  A few days ago I decided to take it off, so I could treat the rust, prime and paint it.  The bolts that attach it to the steering arm were stuck and broke off in the steering arm.  It's not a very good design: stainless bolts in an aluminum casting, in a salt water environment, with no marine anti-seize.

The steering arm costs almost $400 new, and the power head needs to be removed from the upper unit to replace it, so I decided to try to fix it in-situ.  I carefully drilled out the broken, 10mm stainless bolts.  Then I drilled and tapped the casting for 7/16-14 bolts.  This cleaned-up the damaged metric threads.  The only special tool I needed was a size-U drill, that is used with a 7/14-14 tap on aluminum.  My local Grainger store had it in stock for $9.

The Steering arm is #7 in the diagram, and the bolts are #25.  Originally I was trying to remove the bracket #23.  The assembly is circled in red on the photo of the boat.

[RAFster122s]

Hope your fix is going to see many years of use and no issues. Marine environment is a tough place to live...

[Stev-o]

I spent a few hours fixing an outboard motor today. 

How did that break?  I had a Merc 200 on a 21' Checkmate years ago, was a great motor, never an issue.

Boston Whaler boats have a great reputation - unsinkable?!

[C317414]

I spent a few hours fixing an outboard motor today. 

How did that break?  I had a Merc 200 on a 21' Checkmate years ago, was a great motor, never an issue.

Boston Whaler boats have a great reputation - unsinkable?!

The bolts broke when I was trying to take them off, I used heat and penetrating oil, but neither worked. 

[dave500]

well not mine but a mates mate!i helped today getting this 67 mustang back to life,my mate Warren got the 351W running last week,today was get the brakes at least working somewhat,long story short this was imported from florida 18 years ago and sat in a shed since,never registered here,never started since it came of the truck,its not a real shelby incase anyone wets their pants!turns out the front flex hoses are blocked with crud,the rears(9 inch with discs no E brake fitted?) had fluid bleed out but not sure if the pistons are locked up,the guy just wants it running and stopping enough to sell it on hes older than us and just stood back and watched as we #$%*ed around in a systematic manner,ive never heard it run but Warren says its not lopy or lumpy idle,it has victor junior manifold and edelbrock carb,plus msd ignition with all the full house race gauges,i think more show?also has some sort of B+M mega shifter on the auto(i didnt look what it is?)anyway itll be a money pit for someone having sat for so long?the thermostat housing was leaking and once it was removed its just a grey muck heaven inside,id be hot tanking that block etc,the auto will have dry seals ill bet?if it was right hand drive id have offered the fella some money for it,it has power steer and a half fitted new aircon,the under dash unit is installed but the rest is in the trunk as the truck came to pick it up before it was done,interiour is ok,with a wash itll show the crappy respray it had years ago,thing is its not rusty!can anyone help us with what the rear discs are?these cars aint common here,the 9 inch and clevelands and windsors are though,just not 9 inch with disc,is it a conversion or another ford axle?the calipers are ford logo,the E brake looks to be needing a lever on the rear of the piston working of a course thread cork screw?

[Stev-o]

can anyone help us with what the rear discs are?

No telling Dave, that car has had so many modifications over the years! The 351 Windsor was not available in a Mustang 'til 1969 [the Cleveland in '70].  I didnt think Mustangs were very common in OZ. 
The Coupes dont bring big money here, seems everyone wants a SportsRoof [Fastback] or convertible.
My Dad had a '67 back in the day for his daily driver, I was too young and it went to my older sister when she turned 16.

[dave500]

thanks Stevo,yeah not common,this was imported its left hand drive.

[Terry in Australia]

I got cleaned up by a big "Linfox" truck @ 60 MPH by a d1ickhead driving a big truck at 5.30 am yesterday, who was overtaking cars and other trucks like he was playing a computer game. I was in the far left (slow) lane minding my own business when he decided that he needed to have my lane more than I did. Seen the US cops doing a "Pit manouvre"? That's what he did to me, hit me in the back door area and spun me at right angles to the on-coming traffic, then pushed me back cross my lane, and into the emergency lane.

My poor old Subaru is a right off, and I've got a sore neck and think I bumped my head. (no airbags in my model Subaru) The tow truck is taking it away tomorrow, so I'm only down to my twin turbo Subaru and my little truck. The insurance company is giving me $5000 for the little car I paid $500 for 8 years ago, so it's time to invest in another sh1tbox. Might buy something with a V8 in it, the twin turbo Subaru eats V8's for breakfast, but I do like that V8 burble......

Subaru damage 31 Jul 2023 7 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr   

[Terry in Australia]

It was miserably ironic that I went around to Spotty's place to help him bleed the clutch on his Honda Valkyrie after he replaced the slave cylinder, only to discover that the MC was screwed, that when I left his place in bucketing rain in my twin turbo Subaru beastie, that I just got out of his street and turned into Cheddar Road, a very busy road, popped it in second gear and went for third, then the clutch lever hit the floor and wouldn't return? Fcuk!

I don't drive it often enough because my (now dead) 1995 Liberty (Legacy in the US) was so convenient, the little hotrod sat on my front yard for way too long. Having said that, it's been well maintained, and so I wasn't surprised that when I got out in the pouring rain to check the clutch fluid that it was full of nice clean blue fluid, and I remembered that Tim (my son) had the car serviced not long before he traded it in on my Ford Territory, which had included flushing both the brake and clutch fluid. Still, the MC was screwed, so I rang the auto club, ordered a tow truck, and sat in my car for an hour with the heater on, watching Netflix on my phone. ("The Sons of Sam, a fascinating documentary)

The tow truck driver was a nice guy, and I was quite worried about him working around the car in quite a narrow, busy road only 100 yards from a main intersection road in the dark, and in the rain, but he didn't seem fazed, and told me to jump in the cab of his truck and he'd give me a ride home. Great guy. The car is now parked out the front of my place in the street, and I've ordered a new MC, and a slave cylinder too, which I may as well install while I'm at it. Breaking down in pouring rain only 5 minutes from home pisses me off.    

Subaru breakdown 12 Aug 2023. by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

Subaru breakdown 12 Aug 2023. 1 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

[dave500]

mate gave me some new ngk ignition leads the other day,thought id chuck em on,they didnt fit his had wrong terminals,while i was at it thought id make some wire separators from nylon,i kept the old leads they aint made anymore and at 15 years old still ohm out in spec!these ngk aint made anymore either but measure less resistance than the old top gun ones.

[Terry in Australia]

So in the last two weeks, my old Subaru got slammed by a truck and written off.

Subaru damage 31 Jul 2023 7 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

Then on Saturday, ironically after spending some time with Spotty and discovering that his clutch master cylinder was screwed, I drove home in pouring rain and my twin turbo Subaru beasties clutch master cylinder sh1t itself and I had to sit 100 feet back from a busy intersection, in the rain, waiting for a tow truck.

Subaru breakdown 12 Aug 2023. 1 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

So on Sunday, I saw a nice 2006 Subaru "Outback" for a reasonable price (and importantly it came with a current "Roadworthy Certificate") so gave the seller a deposit, went to the bank on Monday and withdrew the cash, and picked it up. I took it to "VICROADS" today and did the transfer, and also flashed my VA Gold Card, which entitles me to half price annual registration and personal insurance, a savings of around $400 per year. The "new" car drives really nicely, is super comfy, and importantly an auto, as much as I love the twin turbo beastie, the heavy duty clutch kills my arthritic knees in peak hour traffic.

Subaru shenanigans 12-14 Aug 2023 4 by Terry Prendergast, on Flickr

There's a little bit of shudder in the front brakes, I pulled both front wheels off and the discs look good (but could do with a skim) and the pads look brand new, so it could just be early ABS pulsing, but I'm driving 200 miles to my home town on the weekend to help my Ma celebrate her 95th birthday, so just want to make sure it's good.

[BenelliSEI]

Terry…… that body style makes for a very handy car. My sister had one and then a few more! Before tearing into the brakes, find some deserted rod and get them hot and clean with a few hard stops. Every so often, I have to “clear” my wife’s car that way. They never really get a good burn and crap builds up…….

[Stev-o]

So on Sunday, I saw a nice 2006 Subaru "Outback"...

Terry...no offense intended but that looks what we in the States call a "Soccer Mom" car!
I get that a wagon is handy to have but dont you have a little truck for hauling?
Aren't "sporty" cars popular there? Or you have no interest?

[grcamna2]

Nice car Terry 

[Bankerdanny]

We bought a house a few months ago (I've shared pictures elsewhere) and so our camper has just been parked on the property. We have a 2009 Rockwood Roo hybrid. It looks like a regular camper, but the beds fold out, so our 24' camper has 3 queen size beds. We are using it over Labor Day and the weekend after to attend a music festival (Shoe Fest) and a beer festival (Hops and Coaster Drops at Indiana Beach in Monticello, IN). So it was time for a cleaning. Last year we just hauled up to the campground where it spent the summer parked and never did do a good cleaning.

Laura got after the inside and outside of the fold out bunks to get rid of years of water stains and dirt and I got up on the roof and gave it a good wash and pulled the cover off the AC unit and vacuumed out the coils. I had planned to repair one of the bunks that has an issue with rot from a leak, but won't be able to do it because the aluminum frame has significant corrosion and a very big crack. I had built a reinforcing support last year and will just use that. Replacement bunks are available for under $500, so that is on the agenda for next year.

Pictures 1 and 2 is an in-process outside bunk and a completed bunk. The next 2 is the damaged front bunk. Then a couple roof pictures and the before and after of the AC coil.