10 year ownership. Time to do a major going over. What all would you do? LONG POST!!!

[JIMJAM]

1597 has been mine for 10 yrs this month. Pretty much everything gas or electricity touches has been replaced at one time or another. A very experienced mech and owner is the only reason she runs as well as she does. If you had the time and money what all would you have done? The below are estimated times and work done. At the BOTTOM are things IMO which need to be done. I also included SUGGESTIONS that I want to know if they are worth it.
:shock:

iNITIAL WORK DONE 2007.
Ac serviced
oil change/filter every spring. Drive approx 200 miles a month if that.
Replaced steering bushing
New front calipers
Tail lights replaced with PJs
Replaced heater valve
New starter-
Replaced all water hoses
Replaced fuses,relays
Cleaned all grounds.
New plugs
Replaced WUR
Replaed rv mirror with wider one. Rv mirrors replaced with convex
Airbox cover,cold air induction.
Removed Exhaust manifolds
Removed Exhaust manifold studs
Drilled out broken manifold studs
Installed new manifold studs
Installed new exhaust manifold gaskets
Installed exhaust manifolds
Installed new SS starter heat shield
Installed crossover pipe with new gaskets
Replaced Oxygen sensor
Installed CAT with new gaskets
Straightened muffler brackets
Exhales.....Takes breath
Installed Muffler
Installed new otterstat
Repaired otterstat wiring
Installed third brake light
Tested fuel injector spray
Installed new fuel injectors
Installed SS fuel injector lines
Installed new fuel filter
Installed new supply line from filter to distributor
Inspected fuel pump compartment
Installed ignition cap & rotor
Installed 8mm ignition wires
Installed SS braided coil wire
Installed new coil
Installed slave cylinder
Bled clutch hydraulics
Adjusted clutch linkage, reverse now works
Cleaned out valley
Installed new vacuum solenoid
Installed new vacuum hoses
Installed new water pump
Installed new water pump hoses
Installed new Alternator
Installed new alternator belt
Installed new A/C belt
Pressure tested coolant system
Installed new emergency brake pads
Installed new springs in rear, after Hervey shocks failed
Installed new springs and shocks in the front
Installed new tie rod ends
Installed front end recall kit
Removed rear foam.Dynamated rear wall,rear floor.
New fuel pump kit. Johns kit
Tabs replaced
All new tires,balanced.
New headliner kit from DMC. Waiting-DONE
SS Throttle shield. SS door step outline full-DONE
SS louver support
Shift isolator installel. Also added dynamat.
New Dmc GAS CAP
15 POUND ss coolant cap.
Spring
Accumulator w/new flexible lines
Gear oil change -
replaced missing exhaust bolts, checked/tightened exhaust hangers, upper coolant hose bracket, otterstat, fill and bleed - 2hrs
lower coolant bracket
idler pulley bearings

SUMMER 09
A/C Compressor replaced.Hgh/low lines replaced. Accululator replaced.New orfice tube.Evacuated,recharged R134A.
Fuel filter K&N filter Bosche Plat 4+ plugs. Cold start valve. Freq Valve.
BF Goodrich Radial T/A 235/60/15 for the rears and 195/60/14 for the fronts.Rot/balance.
Front tie rod ends. Front end align. Hood weather stripping.Fuel pump cover resealed/painted.

Ron Fall 09 10/20

INSTALLED KYB rear shocks with aluminum collars by Marty Maier - [email protected]
Emergency brake fixed. Cable replaced,l&r pads checked and adjusted.Bulb replaced in dash.
Angle drive "speedometer" replaced.
Fuel distributor replaced with NEW rebuilt form SpecialT.
Engine was tuned with fluke meter. Fuel pressures tested. Resting pressure testing performed.F injectors tested for spray pattern.
Cold start valve tested ok.Timing tested.
Fall - Door lights replaced with DMC LED lights.
Front trunk wood floor added. Cut to size and painted with rubberised underbody paint "Lowes".
DMC cold air induction hose added.

12/9/09-Replaced Master cylinder. Hooked up antenna wire to windshield antenna which had been cut. Right front speaker wires were crimped down. They easily come loose so check if speaker does not work.
12/28/09- Replaced front 2 speakers,unplugged rear 2 and wired up 2 box speakers.Unplugged non working windsheild antenna and hooked up "tune trapper" antenna.

Rebuilt a/c mode switch. Replaced rubber seal. Used screw instead of plastic tack. NOTE- Any loss of vent air,hissing,check mode switch which may be unplugg

THIS IS NOT A FULL LISTING BUT A IDEA.

TIRES- Need new ones 10 yrs old. Spark plugs are at least 8 yrs old. Car accelerates strong and NO stalling. Car has ALWAYS had hot start issues when it's 90-100+ when sitting on black top. Fuel DIST CHANGED 3X, ACCUMULATOR 2X, still a mystery.
Belts-5+ yrs old.
Trans level replaced and checked last year 2017.
a/c works normally.
Anything else to CHECK FEEL FREE TO ADD...

QUESTION.......... Is the dmc stage 1 or Josh's cosmetic or is it Worth the money. Realistic gains?? How about the EFI?

SO if you had some money to spend what would be the things you would concentrate on. Sure, performance gains and handling are nice but most important is the car being SAFE and reliable.
Sorry for the mini book but I have been recovering from major back surgeries and been putting this off WAY WAY to long. Thanks, Jim in SC.

[Bitsyncmaster]

iYour hot start issue sitting on the black top on 100 deg day would probably be fixed if you jumper the solid state RPM relay to "HOT START FIX". I had the same problem (three hours sitting and would not start). My RPM relay jumpered fixed that.

[Jonathan]

Things to do to keep it safe and reliable?

...well, what is the first thing to come to mind that you think might leave you stranded? What concerns you the most, either nuisance or otherwise?

Sounds like the hot start issue is the top of that list from what you've said.

If you don't have any lights, switches or features known to be broken, then you're looking for proactive stuff. I have mixed feelings about this as I've encountered more problems trying to replace something on my car proactively, then it would have been had I just left it alone.

You might consider going into the valley, not just for the heck of it, but to clean things up, inspect and assess. Look for coolant sitting in there potentially rotting the top of the block. Confirm the electrical connections are good and clean and tight. If you go so far as to remove everything for that access, you could then replace those spark plugs quite easily. Perhaps too a new set of fuel lines. Most of the ones on top of the engine are very straight forward to replace. The ones underneath going between the accumulator, filter and engine are a little trickier.

Trailing arm bolts (TABs) get lots of publicity for needing to inspect them and change them out. You might add those to your list of possible jobs for good car health and longevity.

Other than that, what comes to mind the same way for cosmetic stuff? Like at a show or when a friend sees your car? What do people see immediately that needs attention? Or maybe it only grabs your attention and no one else really notices? Tears in the leather? Worn out dash or knee pads? Stereo head unit needs updating? Dents or scratches in the stainless?

I just passed my ten year mark with the car too and have a similarly short list. Crucial stuff that is. Mostly the things I'm doing now are not terribly important and not safety related. Not directly anyway.

What about a portable frying pan that runs off a 12 volt adapter that you could make BLTs on while out and about?? :)

[Jonathan]

Dave S. shared this with me years ago and not long after I got my car. Probably asking questions like "what should I do to my car?"

I hope he won't mind me sharing it here with you.

YEAR 1
Rebuild the brakes including the master cylinder and the caliper hoses.
Rebuild the fuel system (pump, accumulator, filter) unless it actually runs OK, at least replace all the rubber tank parts, filter and accumulator
Rebuild the cooling system including clean out the valley. New radiator highly recommended. Metal coolant tank highly recommended. Water pump optional but recommended while you are in there.
Auto trans governor, flush everything, seal up all the leaks.
Clean all the grounds
Tires less than a decade old. Newer is better.
Clutch master/slave/SS line
Relay/Fuse Update Kit, clean fuse sockets
Alternator
Metal Door Handles

YEAR 2 - Anything else that is "deferred maintenance"
30K maintenance aka tune-up/valve adjustment
Transmission Leaks
Door adjustments/alignments etc.
Air Conditioner
All the little broken things that don't work, but don't keep you from driving the car.
Window Motors
Battery

YEAR 3 - Lower on the list but good to have
Shocks and Springs, sway bar bushings.
All the little appearance things that you see at car shows but nobody else notices
Headliners
Stereo
Power Door locks

WHENEVER - At the bottom of the list after you do everything else:
Door launchers
Thumping stereo
Thumping Engine
Lights under the car

[JIMJAM]

iYour hot start issue sitting on the black top on 100 deg day would probably be fixed if you jumper the solid state RPM relay to "HOT START FIX". I had the same problem (three hours sitting and would not start). My RPM relay jumpered fixed that.

I have had hot start issues from day one. You should know. How many countless hours have we spent. Vitons, 3 fuel dist, 2 of which were bad. All new f injectors, basically everything gas touched. Bottom line is the car HATES summer.

I am sure I got one of your rpm relays but that was very early on. I have no clue what version I have or what you have now. Guess I need to check and also don;t remember a jumper. That said I NEVER fool with the relays unless I have no choice. I simply avoid that area if nothing is wrong.

[Bitsyncmaster]

I have had hot start issues from day one. You should know. How many countless hours have we spent. Vitons, 3 fuel dist, 2 of which were bad. All new f injectors, basically everything gas touched. Bottom line is the car HATES summer.

I am sure I got one of your rpm relays but that was very early on. I have no clue what version I have or what you have now. Guess I need to check and also don;t remember a jumper. That said I NEVER fool with the relays unless I have no choice. I simply avoid that area if nothing is wrong.

I do remember you have my RPM relay. All versions had the "HOT START FIX". Just pop the case off it an look if the jumper is on the end terminal or moved in one pin.

[Henrik]

I can see that you replaced fuses and relays but have you taken a look at your fuse block itself? I didn't realize how bad mine was until I lost my headlights one evening.

[JIMJAM]

After 3 back surgeries my days of hunched over the engine much less that fuse area are over. Yes its a mess but leave well enough alone.

As of now I posted a thread recently about what tires are popular as mine are 10 yrs old so I need to make a decision and order those.
Brakes work well but hands off and hitting em hard the car does pull to the left.
After running hard and restarting its running rich. I hot and in the sun it stumbles and if really hot will not start. Must take of breather and hit it with start fluid.
The fuel pump is from Special T and at least 8 yrs old of not 10.
Headlights are 10 yrs old and I have new ones still unopened but heard replacing them is a major PITA.
Other than that I really just need to get under and make sure nothing is about to fall off, replace the belts, clean grounds,rotors are probably in bad shape.
But before I do anything I need to stop putting off ordering tires and deal with that. Thanks for the replies so far.

[iflights]

Keep us updated on which tires you finally choose. I need to get my swapped out this year as well.

[Rich]

Good lists so far. Here are some more items, a few of which need to be checked from time to time.
Sorry if any of these are dupes:

SAFETY
- Brake hoses (if original check for cracking, swelling, abrasion; if in doubt replace)
- Ball joints - inspect and replace as needed
- Throttle cable inspection at motor end - check for breaks in any of the cable strands because they only get worse and the broken strand kind of 'blossoms' until the throttle sticks open.

RELIABILITY
- Make sure that both of the rear door hinges do NOT touch their respective torsion bars. If there is contact then insert appropriate shim/spacer so as to avoid possible surface nicks in the bar which may lead to bar failure.
- Add a light switch relay kit, the upgrade that reduces the current thru the OE light switch so it can't melt/fail.

Left off maintenance items like angle drive lube, brake fluid flush/fill. Looks like you're on top of that.

[JIMJAM]

All very good responses and I appreciate it. My lower back is ruined so getting her up and sliding around underneath is something I can rarely do. Unlike most my driving season are spring,fall and winter. This car is NOT a summer car at least not SC summers. I think I found the tires and trying to decide if I want to replace the stock exhaust. I have learned especially with this car that if it's working "leave it alone." A simple job turns into broken bolts and next day air.

[Ron]

You should know. How many countless hours have we spent. Vitons, 3 fuel dist, 2 of which were bad. All new f injectors, basically everything gas touched. Bottom line is the car HATES summer.

I am sure I got one of your rpm relays but that was very early on. I have no clue what version I have or what you have now. Guess I need to check and also don;t remember a jumper.


I do remember you have my RPM relay. All versions had the "HOT START FIX". Just pop the case off it an look if the jumper is on the end terminal or moved in one pin.

I remember seeing a stockpile of RMP relays, but not one of Daves...

I'm guessing one of those and ditching its battery shutoff conglomeration would make it LOVE you instead... :deviltail:

[JIMJAM]

You are the magician.... You took off my battery shutoff remember? It proved to be more of a problem and source of issue than nit was worth. Now its wired directly and I just hook it up to a trickle charger every few days.
After driving it for a while I noticed it running a little rough after starting but clearing up and its not even hot out yet. Probably the usual suspects.. A leaky injector, a O ring wearing down, chipped....
Only time it had a classic hot start refuse to start was late last summer 90+, parked on blacktop after running almost 2 hrs. Took the air cleaner off, a hit of starter fluid and it fired right up.
Find my tires yet? Found the receipt.. Bought in 09 and probably 5-7 thousand miles on em.

[Ron]

Too many moons ago, but I want to say no, because I remember there was something you were going to pick up involving the switch when you left. Maybe a cable end and a standard length side terminal bolt...Anyway, it sounds like all you need now is to get Dave to play Cupid!

I already PMed you on the tires....
(Wrong thread for that anyway ;-)