Got the drum off the passenger rear! Took a 8 pound sledge, a giant 2 jaw puller attached to the cutouts on the wheel, and a ton of penatrant. I have most of the parts to repair it in hand. Not sure if I am going to work on the Samurai tomorrow or the Crown vic. Only time will tell. The weather is going to be super nice though.
By threat of psychological warfare from the previous owner here is an update WITH PICTURES.
My son got a scooter. It is faster than the Samurai
I hate drums. The wheel cylinder brake line nut is stuck so I need to go get a 10mm brake line wrench. Here is the new drum. $30 on rock auto.
Here is the new motorcycle AGM battery I got on clearance at Tractor Supply. I had to make new cable ends but it needed that anyway as they were screw on terminals and sketchy! I managed to pull both cables out of the engine bay in 5 minutes from above. I really like simple cars.
Replaced the door handle on the drivers side. I was able to buy a complete door handle kit with window cranks (that dont fit well) for $50 on amazon. It is weird having a "rare" car that is really easy and cheap to work on.
Parts awaiting install. It NEEDS at least a rear u-joint to move. I have a bunch of standard parts that need to go on too but those can wait.
When the flare nut wrench rounds off the flare nut also (like they often do in this sort of scenario in my experience), a set of vice-grips might do the trick (real vice-grips, not china-masher/grabbers). If that fails, a chunk of new hard line isn't too big a deal to splice in there.
Our local guy can put new u-joints in there pretty cheap if you want to save yourself the trouble.
In reply to ClemSparks :
If the ears of the driveshaft aren't ruined, I will see if I can sort it out.
Managed to get the wheel cylinder replaced and the new shoes installed. I think I did it right. I hate drum brakes.
I am trying to change the shoes on the side but that drum is MORE stuck than the leaky one.
I did snag a killer deal today on a Jeep aftermarket rear seat tumble and fold design. $100 and like new. These are generally $350 new. I will need to make a seat base bracket but it is all flat mounts so it should be really simple with some square tube.
Not much of an update. Got the title turned and she is legally mine.
Also, the driver's side brake drum even MORE stuck than the one that was leaking. berkeley drum brakes.
FINALLY got the other drum off after many penetrating soaks and much cursing. Decided to go ahead and order another wheel cylinder while I am in there.
I hate drum brakes too but it occurs to me that maybe we hate them because they work so well for so long that by the time something fails and/or they need maintenance/repair...it has been happily churning along working just fine for so long that everything is seized together.
Drums went back together yesterday. I had to use a damn hammer to get the drums to slide down over the shoes. I have drum brakes so much. After getting them bleed, the last immediate issue is the rear U-joint. I down think the yoke is messed up so it should be relatively straight forward.
Brakes bleed and driven around the yard and the gravel road a bit. It's getting there. It is now parked out bad under the most expensive lean to of all time (solar panels). Means the MR2 can come home from parents and back into its garage space.
Yay! Good to see this getting love so it can live on.
Did some shop cleaning and pulled in the Sammi. The little guy has been used to haul stuff around the property. It has been a solid Side by Side for broken dirt bike money. Now it is getting a replacement U Joint, new shocks (just using random stuff I have laying around), a bikini top installed, and the rear seat acutally mounted.
Excellent!
Is that a tow bar mount on the front? That could come in handy some day.
In reply to ClemSparks :
Yep, a very janky pull bar.
In reply to singleslammer :
Relative to the rest of the vehicle it's level of jank is neither noteworthy or extraordinary.
Got some leftover KYB Monomax shocks installed on the front. I think these are left over from a 93 4runner I had like 15 years ago. They are a fair bit longer than the stock shocks so that will maybe cause issues. Although, with the giant shackle lift I suspect that I will actually get a lot more travel. The stock units were holding the axle up like 2" higher so maybe it will work in my favor. Ordered some matching shocks for the rear as they were $46 on rock auto.
Obligatory photo that I just noticed is out of focus.
Got the u-joint changed. What a mess. The ears a ragged and that old joint was so trashed it had like 30 degrees of free rotation. I want to get the rear shocks and driveshaft installed so I can get it out of the way of the f150.
Got this pile back together and out of the shop. All the new shocks installed and you can definitely tell. Still rides terribly but I suspect that is the short leaf springs. It actually handles bumps now.
Bikini top "installed." Several minor issues because I got cheap parts. Oh well.
Rear seat installed with the folding mechanism functional. I used the stock latch turned 90 degrees and welded to the floor.
Well, this was possibility the shortest ownership of any car for me. I realized that I would basically have no where but my yard to drive the thing slowly and I can't put my kids in this death trap. So off it went. Posted to marketplace and sold it within a day, 50+ respondents. I hate selling stuff but it done and I made a little money.
Plot twist!
In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :
Now to find a blown BBF and transmission for the Galaxie!
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