So I have an 89 coupe. It's a piece. SOHC with 135k, rusted spare tire well, rusted rad support, and rust spots on the roof. The motor needs spark plugs, oil, and an intake for starters. The old spark plugs are frozen in there and I've damn near stripped my spark plug wrench trying to get them out(got one of four). To make matters worse the hood popper in the cabin(Whatever the hell you call it) now doesn't open the hood, the line is still there but whatever it's tugging on wont budge or isn't attached anymore.

Also the Digital speedometer didn't work when the car did run. When I opened up the dash to see what the problem was I found that a previous owner somehow managed to undo every wiring harness and cut half the wires while only affecting the speedometer.

So what the hell do I do? I'm on a seriously tight budget and I got ultra screwed by the people who sold me this car.


Slight edit... When I started this post I was going to ask something about the chassis then I ended up typing this. So could a mod excuse my incredibly off topic post and please move this to the proper section? Thanks and sorry for the fail.

 

Ouch...Major Ouch man.

First things first is to get some rust inhibiting primer on the rust spots ASAP. As in Do not pass go, Do not collect $200, NOW!! Rust is a PITA and you need to stop it in its tracks now or fight it later. If you keep the car you can always weld in replacement pieces but that will require body work which may or may not be in your budget.

My tip for removing the spark plugs may work or it may **** you over more but try using a LITTLE ammount of PB Blaster, or any other pennetrating lubricant, down in the plug holes and let it sit for a while before trying to remove them. Use a VERY small ammount because you really want to avoid getting it into the engine. After the blaster has sat for a few hours, shove a rag in to soak up the excess before pulling the plugs.

For the hood release, if the hood is closed, I have no clue how to help ya there. If it is open however, take the time and effort to remove/dissassemble/lubricate the latch and cable as well assure the cable isnt broken.

I hope this helps and I am by NO means a professional mechanic so my advice is kind of a use at your own risk sort of things. Sorry to hear that you got a bad car.

 

The hood is stuck closed sadly. And I'm 20 minutes away from having a scrap yard come pick this thing up. Lol it's gotten to my last nerve it seems the more I try to fix the more that breaks.

 

welcome to the site.........

for the plugs.. like stated above, just spray a little bit of lube on them.

for the rust, sand it all down to the bare metal and seal it with a rust primer

 

Thanks man, I'd be doing that right now if I could get the damn hood open. /cry

 

Try this, it worked on my friend's honda. Put on some gloves and have a friend/relative pull the cable in the cabin and HOLD it out. Grab the edge of the hood and pull up HARD. One of 3 things will happen. A: The hood will pop. B: The latch on either the hood or grill will break. C: Nothing happens and you attack the whole car with a hammer. 2/3 chance you get the hood open.

Anyone tell I slept through Statistics?

 

Thanks, I'll let you know what breaks first. :P

 

Where in MD are you located?

 

Got it open, pulled my wrist and bent a screwdriver in the process. lol

Eastern shore. St. Michaels surrounded by water and farms.

 

Wrap your wrist and then post some pics of this little demon machine. Its usually the most frustrating cars that become the best show cars after time.

 

Well, today I replaced the spark plugs. WD40 and a 2' breaker bar did the trick. This time I put a good bit of anti-sieze on each one. So now I have to suck it up and go buy a few parts when I get the cash. So that it can be a worthwhile back-up car for drift events incase my 1JZ SC is down.

That's what the spark plugs I pulled out looked like... Ouch



And that of course is the culprit.

 

damn..... good stuff on getting them out

 

Thanks, now all I need for a street worthy(not quite track worthy) car; is an air intake and headers all the way to the muffler. Come to think of it does anyone around here have any of that stuff laying around in their garage? Maybe a cold air from the SOHC you swapped out for an SR or something? I'll give you good money for it.

 

I have a stock and aftermarket intake from a DOHC, if the thing hooks up I'll either send it or maybe even meet ya to deliver it. Ill be in MD (College Park area) right after Xmas.

Glad you got those parts out, and got the car to learn the pecking order. Also glad my advice worked. Is it just me or is that thing smirking in the one pic?

 

Actually I'd put money on the DOHC intake not fitting. But thanks for the offer. I may take you up on it just to be sure.

As for the smirking, yeah the car is evil.