Progress, The 2011 Hershey show gave me another shot of motivation Options

[saigon71]

Time to address my auxiliary heat fan in the engine bay. Wires were simply electrical taped together in my haste to get the car on the road. I could not find a better solution to the factory plug, but one of the connectors was broken. Used a dremel tool to remove the rest of the old connector and soldered a new one to the remainder of the old one. "Bench" tested the fan and found it to work...I may have a problem in the wiring or switch:

[saigon71]

I've been getting some small projects done on the car. Started the car to test the new VDO oil temp sender...couldn't get the needle to move. It didn't even twitch when I turned the ignition on. Went back and checked the wiring. I had to swap two wires in the connection at the back of the gauge. Ran a ground to the light using a dual spade connector. Took it out for a drive between snowstorms - it is working well now:





Addressed some carpet coming loose in the front trunk:



Replaced the 3/8 drive socket on the clutch cable adjustment with a section of copper tubing & a recessed washer so it would stay centered in the tube:

[saigon71]

The front & rear holes on the passenger side rocker panel cover had pulled through the fiberglass. The covers are otherwise in good shape. Pulled off the rocker cover and went to work. I enlarged the holes a little to make sure the fiberglass patch would fill it properly. Cut small strips of cloth for both sides. Applied semi-gloss Rustoleum with a brush to the repaired area. The finish had a little more gloss than the rest of the cover, so I went over the painted area with some fine steel wool to get a closer color match:

[saigon71]

Installed a new set of inner door seals from 914rubber - well made and easy to install (first picture is the old one):

[saigon71]

The snowstorm on Tuesday gave me a great shop day. Tackled a project I have been dreading. There was some rust starting in the area under the passenger side headlight bucket. Man, it's tight working in there! Went to work with an assortment of dremel wire brush attachments, screwdrivers & small hand wire brushes to clean the area. Brushed on two coats of Rust Bullet, new seam sealer and a topcoat:

[saigon71]

It doesn't take long for the garage to get cluttered when working on a few car projects at the same time:

[type47]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/smilie_pokal.gif)

[turk22]

Love these projects, gives me lots of stuff to check on mine...

great work as always....

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[saigon71]

On my way home from Zach's Saturday, I realized I still had a few 914 projects of my own to tackle before Spring. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

I wanted some decent tunes in the car, but didn't want anything to flashy. I bought a Blaupunkt head unit and some 6 1/2" Polk Audio speakers from Crutchfield.

Ordered the speaker pods and dash vinyl from Appearance & Performance.

Pulled out the factory stereo that received exactly one AM station - no FM. Removed the old foam tape. I fabricated a mounting plate out of 20 GA sheet metal. I was able to trace the factory backing plate to get the precise layout of the glove box key cutout. Temporarily installed the plate with masking tape so I could trace the cutout from behind the dash.

[saigon71]

I had to file the corners of the factory opening alittle bit to get the sleeve to fit. Ran up to Ace for some wire. I was able to match the color coding on most of them. I wanted some support at the back of the head unit, so I took some measurements. Fabricated an adjustable bracket from 1/8" steel to support the rear of stereo. Attached a piece of thick mastic electrical tape do dampen any vibrations.

Ran the wiring and tied it into the fuse block with dual spade connectors. Cut the vinyl for the dash plate and installed it with heavy duty double sided tape.

[saigon71]

Screwed the speaker box on and used the supplied template held on with masking tape to figure out where to drill & cut. Ran a straight edge along the sill to take measurements for the speaker mounting holes so both sides would match.

Installed the face plate with double sided foam tape. I left the vinyl a little long in one area to cover a spot where the old vinyl has shrunk slightly.

I am running without speaker grills. The supplied grills just didn't look right.

Everything came together nicely and it sounds good. The system won't be vibrating any spot welds loose, (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) but I think it will do the job for me.

[3d914]

Bob, that looks like a nice install. The 20g plate was a nice touch. The speaker boxes look to be something custom-made for round speakers. Did you make or buy, or perhaps I missed an earlier posting?

[saigon71]

Bob, that looks like a nice install. The 20g plate was a nice touch. The speaker boxes look to be something custom-made for round speakers. Did you make or buy, or perhaps I missed an earlier posting?

Thanks, it took longer than expected as most projects go. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

The speaker boxes are fiberglass & hold 6 1/2" speakers. A very nice product. I bought them a member vendor here:

http://www.914ap.com/

[Kirmizi]

Looks great, but I'd suggest getting some grills installed on the new Polks. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)

[hot_shoe914]

If you wanted great sound to listen to, you should drop a 3.2L in that engine bay. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif)

[type47]

Joe would be proud

Ummmm, when are you available to come down and get my car on the road? Didn't you finish w/ Zach's car last weekend? ;>)

[saigon71]

If you wanted great sound to listen to, you should drop a 3.2L in that engine bay. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif)

No way! Spring is right around the corner...9 months of driving in my future. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

[VaccaRabite]

If you wanted great sound to listen to, you should drop a 3.2L in that engine bay. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/poke.gif)

No way! Spring is right around the corner...9 months of driving in my future. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/driving.gif)

Correct answer.
Zach

[saigon71]

Joe would be proud

Ummmm, when are you available to come down and get my car on the road? Didn't you finish w/ Zach's car last weekend? ;>)

Are you sure? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) This stereo only needs one battery and uses the stock alternator. Joe's stereo system is off the hook!

Drove the car to the casino last night for a poker tournament. This audio setup works well for me, even at highway speeds.

We didn't quite get there with Zach's car, but the engine is in.

[saigon71]

I didn't get nearly as much done over the winter as I expected, but was able to tackle a few more projects.

Took the advice of a world member and installed the grills on the speakers. I don't like the look as much, but decided some protection would be good:



Pilot drilled the holes with a 1/8 drill for the repaired rocker panels. As soon as the larger drill hit one of the holes, it ripped the fiberglass out. I went through it again making sure the area around the hole was completely saturated with resin: