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14K views 102 replies 46 participants last post by  McQ 
#1 · (Edited)
I Picked up the 86 from storage last weekend. We broke up for a while last summer, but now we had a talk and things are looking better.

I stored this car last summer in a rage, after not being able to track down a random charging/no start/battery drain thing.

I still don't know what it is, but I'm going to figure it out if it kills me. The tested the battery tonight, and it's fine, it just needs a charge. This weekend I hope to pull the alternator and get it tested as well.

Here is how it looks now:


List for the summer:
-test/replace alternator DONE
-tweak IC fitment DONE
-replace wheel bearing
-install battery tray from 9000 (started this already) DONE
-touch up radiator support DONE
-clutch (not needed)
-clean grounds DONE
-re-install center console DONE
-boost gauge
-set base boost
-re-fit/re-paint SPG kit/wheels/plasti-dip
-stop the damn louvers from rattling DONE
-satin black the louvers, fix plastic fade
-whaletail
-tweak airdam fit DONE
-adjust front bumper DONE
-paint valve cover
-fix heater controls
-repair washer jets
-wrap downpipe
-tweak exhaust fitment DONE
-attend to small rust spots
-re-paint wiper arms
-dye plastic trim (maybe plastidip)

Hmm, looks like I have some work ahead of me.

Oh, and I'm hoping to drive it here and there as well. Stay tuned to this thread for bitching, and pic-whoring.

:saab
 
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#5 ·
That was 2005, and it looked like this:

:)

Got a multimeter? They are indispensable when it comes to finding things like battery draining accessories.
I do. I'm going to start with that monkey business when the battery is fully charged, and the grounds are clean.

The dash clock stopped working a while ago, I hope it's not something dumb like that sucking the battery down.
 
#9 ·
Looks nice, connect an amp meter between the battery terminals and the + cable, then you will see draw, hopefully only a few MV's. Start removing fuses till you see the draw go away. Then you know what's drinking your electricity when you are away, and can replace that component. Should in theory only take a few minutes to diagnose the issue. If you pull all the fuses, but still see draw you could have some sort of alternator issue, you would be able to see that go away on the meter too by disconnecting the power lead to the alternator.
 
#22 ·
I like the orange. It "pops". One color is going away soon. All will make sense.

How about that alternator ground? Is it even there? Just put a new ground wire on the alt, The alt is isolated by the bushings. Even if the gound looks fine it might not be carying the load it needs to anymore.
Good call, I'll check that. I do have a digital dash gauge thing with a volt meter on it, and it's showing 13.6 or so when I'm driving around...
 
#27 ·
I Picked up the 86 from storage last weekend. We broke up for a while last summer, but now we had a talk and things are looking better.

I stored this car last summer in a rage, after not being able to track down a random charging/no start/battery drain thing.

I still don't know what it is, but I'm going to figure it out if it kills me. The tested the battery tonight, and it's fine, it just needs a charge. This weekend I hope to pull the alternator and get it tested as well.

Here is how it looks now:
Try replacing the battery to starter cable to see if that's where your particular gremlin lies. Nice looking C900 BTW! I'm scoping that front end IC install modification.
 
#32 ·
Love this car! Glad to see you giving it another whirl.

If you're going to wrinkle finish the valve cover, use an aircraft stripper on the old coating and then have the thing lightly sandblasted. The reason that the old finish cracks off is that there is no tooth on the aluminum. Smooth aluminum doesn't hold paint worth shit. You can try to use a bonding agent, but I've never gone that route because I don't know how it holds up under heat or how it may effect the wrinkle paint. When doing wrinkle finish, heat is your friend. Do it on a sunny day and let the sun cook it. I did one last fall and stuck it on top of my boiler when it was drying and I got a nice even tight wrinkle finish.
 
#33 ·
Good info!

I did the valve gover on my Miata with the same stuff, and it came out pretty well...however, now that I think about it, it had the casting texture still showing. I also used a torpedo heater to wrinkle the paint. It was kinda funny.

I'm going to grab a heat gun on the way hom tonight to "help" things along on the support.
 
#35 ·
I'll check those out today.

Got a little bit done last night:

Found this too:

Good thing I have a couple of them, I have no idea how that would get all corroded like that. Weird.

It's too humid and shitty out to do any more painting, so I'm going to work on the battery tray today, and get that all fit up hopefully. Then I can get the intake mounted more securely, and tie up a few other loose ends.
 
#36 · (Edited)
Well, that was a fun day, I Got quite a bit done. Updated the first post.

I also found 3 vac leaks. It idles great now, and the random stalling issue is gone...hopefully. I feel like such a n00b. All the issues were super obvious once I dug into it a little. Ugh.

Next up is messing with the exhaust, and the wheel bearing. I'm shooting to drive it to work one day a week as well, so focus is on all the stupid little BS that makes it stop running.

I used the battery tray out of a 9000, and cut the sides off. Here is the test fit:

It fits pretty well in there!

Ignore the grime, and brown, oily dirt. It's gone now.
I degreased and scrubbed everything in the vicinity, painted the battery tray, sanded, primed, and touched up the few rusty spots I found.

To mount it, I drilled holes in the tray, positioned it where I wanted it, then used self-tapping screws. To prevent rust, I took the screws back out, and put a nice big gob of silicone caulk in the holes, and on the screws, then put it together. It looks ok, and the battery is secure.

 
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