I've PMed Greg, but haven't got a response back yet.
I've PMed Greg, but haven't got a response back yet.
Haven't driven it since this weekend, but yeah. Time to repeat & learn from my mistakes.
Thanks to all who saw this and tried to notify me. The perches did slide on (very stiff, but they did) and I installed them before removing the others from the car (which was my first mistake) so I didn't catch the difference in orientation.
Again - huge thanks to: DeadSkunk, karplus2, TurnerX19. I'm not sure what day this week I'll get to it, but I'll sideline Phoenix and go with a backup ride until it's fixed.
In reply to Greg Smith (Forum Supporter) :
Let me know if you need the ratchet wrench again.
I'm good on the ratchet wrench. Already have one side disassembled
In reply to Greg Smith (Forum Supporter) :
high quality custom perch adjustment tool.
There's some cosmetic damage to the paint, but the ride height should be correct now...
Once again we prove that man is a tool creator, not just a tool user...I am glad you saw all of our posts while you still posses the C clips!
In reply to TurnerX19 :
The spring perches are chamfered underneath and once they were under load, the c-clips could not have come loose which is good considering I autocrossed it this past weekend.
I got the first one disassembled and reassembled and it started getting dark while I was fighting reinstallation into the car so I called it a night a while ago.
In other news, it looks like the fender and nose will briefly be red while I borrow parts from another Miata and take the time to properly finish the ones currently on the car and get them back to competition yellow
Reassembly complete. The board snapped very early on the 2nd unit. So I grabbed another board, used the hole saw, and snapped the 2nd board almost immediately.
But, everything is functional, the rear is more predictable, and the car sits more level.
Looks great! Especially in that color
spandak said:Looks great! Especially in that color
Thanks!!
Paint acquired.
Includes white primer and hardener, yellow base and hardener, clear coat and catalyst.
Nose and fender removed. Wet sanding started.
Grille removed and metallic trim transferred to replacement. It was pretty much all that was holding the old one together.
I'm thinking about painting the front lower trim piece in a matte black rather than the current yellow because of the amount of road contact it gets.
On the ND, the front splitter is matte black.
Yes, I still have to take the Mazda emblem off as well.
I think I like it...
This is just automotive primer as a visual test.
Wet sanding.
I'm planning to use the techniques in (grm front airdam article link here) to repair the crack at the edge of the grill.
There will be very very minor fill with Bondo to level a couple tiny spots.
I used J-B weld on the back of the crack after gouging and scuffing the plastic enough for it to bond well. I put down a layer of JB weld and pushed it into the scuffs and gouges, then laid in a small bolt across the crack is an additional reinforcement, then another layer of JB weld.
It's not pretty, but it should be strong enough... and it will be reinforced by the intact grill.
Hopefully on to white primer tomorrow.
After that I have a 72 hour dry time before color coating.
In reply to Greg Smith (Forum Supporter) :
Now that I'm looking at this I wonder if the J-B weld and bolt is going to interfere with the reinstallation of the grill.
Or, more realistically, how much is it going to interfere?
Trying a few thin layers of Rust-Oleum automotive primer instead of mixing up Bondo. Hopefully it will be dry enough at the end of the day to get a good coat of the white primer on both the nose and fender.
I have a harbor freight 10 by 17 "garage" that would be playing the role of paint booth this week.
A week behind schedule, but it's in primer.
We have yellow!!
And so does the amazing 3m mask. I literally didn't smell any paint odor until I took it off just before stepping out of the "paint booth". If they could speak I'm sure my brain cells would be thanking me.
Yes, those filters used to be white. And I only did three fairly quick coats on two body panels.
And three coats of clear coat for the shiny. I got a little bit of saggy runniness on the nose that I'll probably have to use a nib file on and potentially scuff and recoat the entire nose.
I'll see how it looks in 24 hours.
Nice job keeping this one on the road.
Yellow went on GREAT.
Clearcoat had significant issues. I didn;'t coat either piece enough at the lowest right part (bottom of the fender, etc) and also missed the last coat over the drivers side headlight opening, so that part is still bumpy :(
Worse, I ended up having a LOT of runs lower in the pieces.
Good news - I do have enough supplies to file the runs, sand the clear, and... do it again.
Maybe one piece at a time next time. And I'm going to set up better lighting in the tent. I should have been able to see all of this, but wasn't looking closely enough.
Annual inspection this year - tires dated back to 2008 manufacture and were replaced with new 205/45ZR-17 Continental ExtremeContact Sport from Tire Rack. I've used these on my 2006 and have been very happy with their performance and lifespan as 3-season Pennsylvania tires.
However... all 4 rotors are pitted enough that they required replacement. So be it, no biggie. They're only at ~50,000 miles and I usually swap at around 80k, but they have more years than most of mine get. Pads will be replaced with my go-to - the Napa Adaptive Ones. Great overall performance for daily and very occasional Auto-x use.
And worst of all, the lower retaining nut on the driver's side front strut was MIA. Yikes! I have no idea how long that's been the case as it was present a year ago, but clearly worked its way off sometime in the past 12 months.
Can't wait for new shoes and improved braking.
And I got a 2020 rated helmet from Racequip. Planning to use the last of my yellow paint to color match the helmet to the car...
Just a caution, Ive come across info saying that painting helmets is potentially a problem if the paint reacts with the helmet plastic. Info is general and usually not helpful but its worth mentioning. It would be a shame to ruin a brand new helmet.
In reply to spandak :
I've seen the same. But sometimes (if you ask my wife, MOST of the time) I can be pretty stubborn. I'm going to do it :)
In reply to spandak :
I did check the Safequip documentation that came with the helmet and painting it is OK :)
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