"Decay buys too many beaters" (decay)
08/10/2016 at 13:37 • Filed to: $200 miata, cheap miata, decay's beaters
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"Decay buys too many beaters" (decay)
08/10/2016 at 13:37 • Filed to: $200 miata, cheap miata, decay's beaters | 10
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Finally got around to doing some work on the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , so figured it was as good a time as any for an update (you know, before we go dark and all)
I started off the transmission removal only to be confronted right off the bat with two roadblocks. First off, my exhaust has been cheaply decatted and had a pipe welded in where the mid pipe once was. Basically where there was once three pieces attached with flanges (the downpipe, midpipe, and catback) there is now only one welded piece that is impossible to remove without a lift. This is problematic, removal of the down pipe makes transmission removal far easier (some on the forums say it makes transmission removal “possible”) having nothing to lose I decided to press on anyway.
What it should look like
The second problem I ran into was with the PPF (power plant frame), a long aluminum truss that connects the trans to the diff and strengthens the chassis. All the transmission removal procedures I found either call for PPF removal, or at least loosening at the diff and sliding it out of the way.
The PPF
Well, the transmission side bolts came out just fine, but the two connected to the diff were totally seized in place. I tried everything I could (in roughly the following order) hitting it with my 3/8" drive air impact, soaking in PB blaster, hitting it with my 700 ft-lb 1/2" drive air impact, waiting a day, soaking with pb blaster again, hitting it with the impact again, using a breaker bar, using a breaker bar with a cheater pipe, fire, back to the air impact, more pb blaster...etc. I finally decided that it wasn’t going to come out and I really didn’t feel like dropping the whole rear sub-frame, so I pressed on.
After removing all the bell-housing bolts, I ran a ratchet strap from the passenger seat rail over the door and to the PPF. I briefly bent it out of the way (it didn’t bend, all the movement came from the diff bushings) and started to pull the trans out. Now, with the exhaust and PPF in place, and me being alone, it was not quick work, but I eventually found an angle that made removal possible. I did manage to scratch the hell out of the trans tunnel and the exhaust, but whatever, $200 car and at that point trans was coming out no matter what.
Victory!
I proceeded to remove the rest of the clutch and quickly found what my issue had been.
Yep that spring should be in the clutch, instead it was grinding itself into oblivion against the pressure plate. It also appears as if this clutch has seen some shit. Every other spring looks close to popping out as well...
You can clearly see where the spring was rubbing on the pressure plate, though the damage was not nearly as bad as I expected.
The next surprise was the pilot bearing
The flywheel looks pretty good overall, but the pilot bearing is missing its cover and at least 5 ball bearings. I never found them, they didn’t fall out when I took off the trans and they were not in the clutch basket. I honestly believe they were already missing when the clutch was last changed.
I also noticed that my rear main seal was leaking a bit, so decided to change it while I had easy access along with the rear oil pan gasket that was showing signs of seepage (not my picture)
After removal I realized that, despite the relative ease of disassembly, reinstalling that half moon oil pan gasket requires dropping the oil pan... which requires pulling the engine.
So that is where it stands right now, I’m borrowing a lift and engine stand from a friend and I’ll be pulling that out the next time I’m feeling particularly motivated and have a decent number of hours to kill (probably this weekend). More to come.
Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
> Decay buys too many beaters
08/10/2016 at 14:32 |
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Just to note, PB blaster is terrible. Not much better than WD40 really. There are certainly better options out there but I have not tried any yet. I want to try Liquid Wrench but all I know is PB blaster doesn’t do much.
Anyways, that seems awesome that you got a $200 Miata that just needs a clutch job really. Make sure you deal with the likely neglected cooling system as well. Don’t want to fix all of this and then have a bad coolant hose blow up your motor. Or the radiator fail at an inopportune time!
I still don’t understand why anyone would put 18s on an NA... But if you are still searching for wheels, don’t get the 14 inch daisies because tires will be more difficult to find. Any set of 15s will be much easier and cheaper to deal with if you ever want actual tires on there.
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Decay buys too many beaters
> Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
08/10/2016 at 14:45 |
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Yeah, that’s the same feedback on PB blaster I got from a few friends. I’ll probably use this as a chance to test out one of their shop recipes (50% ATF 50% acetone) and see if that does better.
I already noticed some leaks around the rear of the engine at the heater hoses and have them bypassed for the time being. The tubes going in to the heater core are pretty bunged up unfortunately.
And as for the 18s, yeah... gross. I unfortunately already picked up a set of daisy’s (they were free), but my general favorite hoon tire (federal 595) comes in the right size so looks like it’ll work out fine. It will become a problem though if I want to move to a better more track oriented tire though.
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Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
> Decay buys too many beaters
08/10/2016 at 15:02 |
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Well free is the best kind of wheel! You might as well keep those for a daily and if you want to use a track tire, just get an extra set of wheels for that. Then you can buy slicks or low treadwear tires without having to compromise on regular street usage. Ive already got 3 sets of wheels (daily, snow, and autox).
Welcome to the Miata madness!
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Decay buys too many beaters
> Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
08/10/2016 at 15:52 |
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We shall see, the possible long term plan for this is chumpcar. A group of friends and I have an Acura Integra that we were planning to race in the series but then this fell into my lap. If that’s the case we’ll have several sets of wheels I’m sure!
daender
> Decay buys too many beaters
08/10/2016 at 20:26 |
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I feel like I’ve seen this on Miata.net somewhere. Time to convert to a Racing Beat, Cobalt, or Roadster Sport exhaust system? At the very least, you might as well chop-up the current exhaust and get a proper cat’d system, be it an OEM-spec replacement from another Miata or an aftermarket high-flowing cat. How much time/money were you planning on putting into this Miata again?
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Decay buys too many beaters
> daender
08/10/2016 at 20:39 |
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If you have, it wasn’t posted by me. I have too many forums between the FR-S, SV650, DR-Z, and E39 to devote time to actively participating in another.
Budget here is a moving target. Right now, I want to spend no more than about $300 getting it roadworthy. So far that includes $110 in clutch and about $20 in gaskets and seals. Needs tires, so that’ll have to be added in as well. For me to own as many vehicles as I do, I need to be able to break even (or preferably gain a small profit) on most at any given time. So for this, once the clutch is installed and everything buttoned back up, I know it’s worth at least $800. Now, once I actually take it for a hard drive (and actually get it above 35MPH) and feel out what kind of condition it’s really in I’ll adjust the budget accordingly.
My intended exhaust solution going forward is to cut the current system and weld in a flex joint, a single flange, and probably a cat (we have emissions testing here), but that all happens after the initial round of fixes to get it derivable.
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daender
> Decay buys too many beaters
08/10/2016 at 20:52 |
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I just remember seeing a post with that exact image of your failed clutch plate. Scarily, I have an Exedy replacement unit in my Miata for the past 30k miles.
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Decay buys too many beaters
> daender
08/10/2016 at 20:56 |
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Weird, I borrowed a couple images but that was one of my own. I spoke to a few friends with some experience on the platform and none were surprised at the failure point.
...also guess which brand is going back in! Bought it before I took anything apart.
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daender
> Decay buys too many beaters
08/10/2016 at 21:26 |
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Nevermind, it was just jumbled memories mixing in with what I was reading from your post.
Here’s the link to that clutch failure that isn’t an Exedy unit.
http://forum.miata.net/vb/showthread.…