I can't believe it, but the Javelin may be toast...

I drove the Javelin to work today since it was decent out and it started making some funny noises from the back. It always makes funny noises and everything seemed okay, so I didn't think about it. I drove home tonight and when I pulled off of the exit on the interstate, my rear wheels were billowing smoke. I only live right off of the exit, so I nursed it home and used the garden hose on it for a solid 15 minutes while it just bellowed smoke. I think the driver's side axle bearing went, or the 2-piece axle broke and smoked the bearing as well, and it caught the grease on fire. The shell is okay, but at a minimum the rear axle is toast, rear brakes, brake lines, probably have to deal with the gas tank and fuel lines, that wheel is probably done for, and the leaf springs, too. It's all replaceable, but I don't have the money for it at all. SO it doesn't really matter, I think I drove it for the last time today.

I'm going to go drown my sorrows in a double batch of chocolate chip cookies I just whipped up from scratch. Beer is probably a bad idea.

It can be fixed, mothball it and save up

patgizz is correct. Start watching local Craiglist and such for parts needed to make it better than it was before. Ford 8.8 sounds like an excellent path to rid yourself of the Model 20.

Wait until it's daylight and asses what all really happened to the car.

Picked up my ford 8.8 for 50$. 3.73 gears. A GOOD LSD. And plenty of cheap aftermarket support.

Don't give up yet! The Javelin is too cool a car to be brought down by a piddling little axle issue! Keep your chin up and let us know how we can help!

Nab the axle from the parts car?

Trust me, it's definitely not as bad as you think. It just looks like crap. Without seeing the car it's difficult to know for sure, but I bet everything on there can be cleaned and repaired. Basket cases like this have a way of finding me, and most of the time it's far easier to fix than it looks. Maybe it's time to go on https://www.gofundme.com/ or https://www.kickstarter.com/ and raise some funds. If 50 or so GRM'ers kicked in $20, you're car would be fixed in no time flat.

Don't give up!

Just let it sit parked until you're in a better frame of mind. I strongly suspect the damage isn't nearly as baf as you suspect, nor as difficult to repair.

You can't give up on the Javelin, one of my favorite builds, true GRM. Ford 8.8 is the right answer, P71, V8 Explorer, both are 5 lug, LSD options and great gear ratios.

Hey, if I've had my Trans Am since 2002 after many times of it trying to kill itself (and me with it), you can fix your Javelin! You like the car, you already have it, and you know what it needs, so why get something else? I am in the same boat as you with the money/time situation, but someday things will be better and you will regret selling it if you do. Trust me on that.

Time to make lemonade, do the 8.8 upgrade.

I find it's rarely as bad as I think it is. Especially when I really care about the car. Have faith.

You work for a parts store!

Did it actually catch on fire, or just smoke the wheel bearing? It's hard to imagine all those components being ruined.

is it an AMC model 20? Jeep guys used to give those away for free. Should be plenty around.

It is a model 20. I have a Ford 8.8 from an Explorer, it's been sitting in my yard for a year and a half. The problem is that I don't have the money to fix the car. The model 20 is totally shot, and yes, there were flames. I'm too sick to go outside in the daylight and see what got hurt.

Sucks. My dad bought a 72 Javlin when I was born. We kept it up to the early 80s. Always loved them. Had a chance to look at it yet?

Well, that's not too bad! No fire damage that I can see besides the undercoating underneath. I still need to check the rubber lines underneath it. The complete rear axle is shot. It turns, but barely. At least I can pull it in and out of the garage. The brakes are gone as well and pedal on the floor, so the center hose probably leaked.

So it's easily fixable. I just need to find two piles of money to afford it. This is how old cars end up sitting in garages for 30 years, isn't it?

And this is why guys with a little cash in their pockets can swoop in and basically steal a car.

Glad to hear it looks better on a new day! That car's waited a long time before; it's no fun waiting, but if you want it up and running again, you can get there...

Javelin wrote: This is how old cars end up sitting in garages for 30 years, isn't it?

That train of thought always results in panicked calculations about my age and the list of cars I haven't built...

Damn dude if you were not all the way across the country from me I would buy the car from you in a heartbeat. Or help you get it back on the road at least. I mean, your name is Javelin.. it's destiny.

Edit: Do a T-Bird IRS swap

In reply to t25torx:

Why T-Bird? He'd then need to change the hubs around so they're back to the larger bolt pattern already on the car.

I always figure my cars already paid for and so is the garage it Sits in. If I need to I can just let it sit until I have the money. Storage insurance is only 9 bucks a month.

pres589 wrote: In reply to t25torx: Why T-Bird? He'd then need to change the hubs around so they're back to the larger bolt pattern already on the car.

cobra hubs, yo.