Huey hates me...., ....but then again, I DID wreck him at Targa..so I guess.... Options

[naro914]

Huey is still getting back at me for wrecking him at Targa Newfoundland back in 2007. The day of the wreck, the car was running PERFECT. Engine perfect, electricals - even in the rain - perfect, handling perfect, etc. You could not ask for a better 914.

Then came the well publicised and documented 'Wet Bridge' end-over-end wreck.

We then rebuilt him. But since the rebuild, nothing has ever been right and he constantly keeps getting back at me.

Cronology of what has transpired: (or at least the highlights I can remember...)

1. We put the 2.5 liter engine in Huey, from the black 914 race car that I bought just for the engine. Last I drove the black car, the engine was perfect. In Huey? Nothing but problems. No power, coughs, back fires, stalls, very tempermental. I get frustrated after 6 months of chasing problems and put in a 2.7 engine. 2.5 goes back into the black car and RUNS PERFECT again. Turns out the coil in Huey was cracked - who knew??? This after MONTHS of frustration...

2. At Parade in Charlotte last year, Bob Chapman, a writer for Excellence, wants to finish the story on Huey and take him out for a drive. At the time, we are dealing with the engine issues (in fact, had just put the engine in 2 days earlier and didn't hook everything up) and I recommend against it. But, Bob insists and off we go.... About as far away as we can get on our drive, the pivot on the pedal cluster for the throttle breaks and we are on the side of the road trying to make repairs enough to get home. Car still runs terrible, and now you can only go 1/4 throttle for our 20 return trip.... Oh, and it turns out we did not have the alternator wired correctly and it was not charging the battery. So just as we get back, it dies and we need to jump start it and charge the battery...

3. The brakes we have on him have squealed since day one. No matter what pad we use, it squeals so bad you can probably hear it for miles. No idea why - Papa Smurf has the same brakes and calipers with no squeal....

4. Suspension squeaks and creaks all the time, no clue why.

5. One day, out of the blue, the transmission decided to take a leak all over the garage floor.

6. And along the lines of transmission and fluid: I went to take the tranny out because the console around where the shifter linkage enters the tranny was cracked (another long story for another time). I had just put Swepco in it, so I figured I would drain it and save it all. So I take a clean 2 gallon jug and funnel, and rest it up on my oil drain drum, and take off the trans drain plug. The plug slips from my hand, and lodges directly in the funnel mouth, stopping flow out the funnel into the jug. As the funnel fills (I can't stop the fluid from pouring out the trans), I'm reaching into it to grab the plug. Just as I get it, I knock over the whole thing and ALL the tranny fluid dumps all over the garage floor, as the tranny is STILL draining....all over the floor.....

7. Again, out of the blue, the BRAND NEW clutch decided to start slipping.. for no reason other than to annoy me.

8. The 2.7 engine in it now has never run right, we just can't get the carbs sorted out. First, it was popping non-stop out the exhaust....more on this below....

9. We take him to Rennfest back over Labor Day Weekend. I decide to treat Huey to a full wax job, the first time since the new paint. During my cleaning of the engine, I drew blood in about 5 places. I then proceed to take off a window net bracket to replace the falling apart door panels and slice open my finger so bad I really should have gotten stitches.

10. At Rennfest, I go to move him into a spot at night, and somwhere along the line gash up my knee. Didn't even notice it until Nadine saw me walking up to dinner and asked why I had blood running down my leg, and all over my socks & sneakers. 7 gashes on my knee!!

11. I loan Huey to Manny Alban for the Rennfest autocross. He beats me in my own car, then breaks the throttle linkage and I only get 1 run. after screwing up fixing it, i realize I now messed up part of the linkage that needs to be replaced.

(the engine is STILL running like crap from #8 above, and brakes still squeal)

12. Last week, I bring the car to my mechanic and tell him once and for all to fix the carbs, stop the clutch from slipping, and stop the breaks from squealing. He brings it back to me saying all is good..... I proceed to drive to Petit LeMans last Thursday and: the clutch slips, the brakes squeal, and now the engine doesn't pop out the exhaust, it pops out of the carbs.

13. So...I call my mechanic today saying I am bring the car up, he is getting in and we are taking a ride in it. "Bring your tools, and all your carb goodies, because we are driving around and pulling over to adjust things until it's fixed" I tell him. So I drive Huey up there.... and he runs PERFECTLY the whole way!!! No popping, no slipping clutch...even the damn brakes are silent!! I tell him to get in the car and we drive around...nothing. Works better than ever. Couldn't be happier. So I drop him off and head home...

14. On the way home, it starts popping out the carbs, the clutch slips slightly, and the brakes squeal as I pull in my driveway...

Huey HATES me.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/hissyfit.gif)