killerFatty

Is the battery charged all the way? After sittingg for a few months it might be a little weak. Take it to an autozone or o'reilly and have them test it. That is just a guess. Hope it helps.

I had it done by someone else. I dont think it would be easy or effective to repair a high pressure hose. I have decent mechanical ability, but I decided not to mess with it as it is messy and not something I want to take a chance on. BTW I bought an OEM hose for something like $250, but you should be fine with an aftermarket one.

I am having a similar issue with my PS. On a cold sart sometimes my PS doesn't seem to work at all, but after one or two turns it is perfectly normal. Sometimes it only works partialy, and yet sometimes it's perfect. My PS pump is starting to whine more and more though. No leaks, thank goodness. Knock on wood. Anyone have any answers?

has anyone ever used ebc bakes on the LS? what kind of results did you get?

I painted the trunk today. It turned out alright. It definetly doesn't match the 16 year old paint, but I was planning on blending it into the 1/4 panels any way. I am pretty happy with my first paint job all and all. I'll try to post pics tomorrow.

there is hope at least it's not this bad: :P busted_car.bmp

to late for that tip, I already used bondo brand body filler. I sanded it more today and got decent results. There is a few pen-holes left, but i don't feel like putting another coat of bondo on and I cant sand them out all the way. I am not going for a perfect 1/4 panel, I just want a decent paintable surface. I will probably still have to sand it down more even though I already primed it. I also still need to weet sand the trunk before I paint it thursday. Is it safe to drive around after I sand the shine out of the trunk? Also, will bondo stick to its self if I do put another coat on?

There are many things that contribute to auto safety: crumple zones, seat belts/shoulder harnesses, weight of the vehicle, steering wheel design, air bags, etc.

I am sure that air bags may help in certain situations. Is the cost justified? For the vast majority of situations, I remain doubtful. We could wear full-face helmets in our cars and that would probably save some lives. Where do you draw the line?

The insurance/legal issue brings up a good point. Our society is so 'sold' on the efficacy of airbags that w/o them a sin has been committed.

Very true. Nice points.

I sanded down the 1/4 panel and layed on some bondo today. I still have a lot of blocking left to do, but it's coming along. I will probably paint the trunk thursday, and hope to get a lot more done on friday because I have it off. For my first time ever doing body work, it came out pretty good.

how much will a full detail like that set you back?

yin-yang

Knowing what I know, I would never for a moment consider riding a motorcycle -- a Darwinian method of "culling the herd". So what if our government allows motorcycles with or without a helmet. I or any family member of mine isn't going to be riding one. Besides, it is rare for a motorcycle impacting a car to kill or even severely injure the occupant of a car. So what if the motorcyclist dies -- he made the choice to ride.

Talk about being closed minded and biased. I bet you have never rode a bike more than once or twice, if that. Expressing your opion is one thing, but being a jerk is another. Maybe thats not how you ment it, but when typing, as we all know, it's very hard to express tone. That is one thing we all need to be careful of. I'm not tring to be a jerk myself, but there is no need to be offensive and condescending. Thats all I have to say

thanks a bunch for all the info. I just bought the paint and painting supplies. I have access to a small booth at my school to paint my deck lid and maybe my bumper too, so the only thing that wont be painted in a booth will be the 1/4 panel. With all the paint and supplies supplies I'm only up to $1400. I plan on painting my trunk and maybe bumper this coming week. I just put the old tail light back on the trunk. I was sick of that taped up mess that came with the replacement trunk. I'll post when I do something else.

thanks for the tip, I tried to spray primer on every piece of bare metal showing, until I can sand them down and paint them. Is there some kind of coating or something that can return rust to usable metal? Also since I plan on painting my self, should I take the deck lid to bare metal, then prime, base, and clear it or should I just wet sand the surface until it's dull and not shiny and just lay base coat on top of that. Another question, if I take the 1/4 panel to bare metal, is there any kind of primer that I can put on before I put on some bondo, or will bondo only stick to bare metal? I thought I had heard somewhere that bondo will stick to epoxy primers. After I lay on the bondo, I still need to prime it before base coat right? Also is there any tricks to painting the bumper? Should I just scuff it up? Will I have to prime it? I don't want to mess anything up, but on the other hand if I do it wont look too much worse than it dose now. thats why I decided to learn on this car.

Soul

Here is the pics. With all my parts, frame work, and some small body work supplies I am up to $1300. I plan on spending another $100 on paint, so that will bring me to $1400. I am pretty excited about doing the body work, and can't wait for a nice day to get crackin on it. As you can see by the primer, I have already started. I also have that other tail light to replace that taped up one that came with the trunk.

did you look at any GS's. I figured that is what you would have got, but thats a very nice car. Good choice.

I got the car back on Monday. I have been too busy to takes pics and since its raining today I'll have to take them tomorrow. Anyway the car looks a lot better. Not perfect by anymeans, but much better. I have some dent work to do on the 1/4 panel, but nothing that I cant handle. I plan on doing all the paint and body work my self. The only thing I cant fix is the trunk gap where it meets the 1/4 panel. It is slightly bigger at the back corner of the car. I plan on adding some more weather stripping to seal it up. As far as drivability, the car drive just like it did before. No mechanical damge found. (knock on wood)

Mine lets the rpm climb slightly higher when at partial throttle, as well as slightly quicker shifts and more frequent down shifts.

UPSETTING

Just talked to the frame guy, and he should be able to get it to where the trunk closes and get a tail light in with the donor bumper on for $1K. With the parts I'm looking at $1250 in it so far. However he is booked unitll next week, so I have the car until then. He might be able to save the trunk flooring and the 1/4. I will have to wait till next week though to get any work done. The trunk floor was pretty mashed up, it really accordianed. I would like to save the car because I don't think I'll get anything more reliable for the money.

It's goin to the frame shop tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully the 1/4 panel can be saved. The trunk floor was pretty well crunched up I'll try to post pics tomorrow. I just pulled the trunk lid and bumper off the donor LS. Man those bumpers are a pain to get off.

Thanks, I am taking my car to the body guy I know after school today. He already told me that unless the car is smashed all the way past the A-piller, which its not, he can usually repair the 1/4 panel. He also said that it would save a lot of lbor if he dosn't have to. I post more info afterwords.

I have one that controls my lock/unlock beep volume.