Steering Rack Party! (Finally)

[azrael]

So, after much deliberation, and part sourcing, and general procrastination, I find myself unemployed, with an ample amount of time to remedy the result of the unfortunate accident I had a while back in my Celica.

The rack Bob donated to the cause (compensation to be calculated at a later date) is going into the car tomorrow, and you're all invited to stand around and laugh while I swear and curse and probably hurt myself badly trying to get it in.

The festivities will commence sometime after noon, and take place at the residence of my black 82, Violet, at 16 Hogarth CR SW. I can be reached for information or directions at (403) 880-0851.

Map:

http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&safe=off&q=16+Hogarth+Crescent+SW,+Calgary,+AB,+Canada&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=nl (http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&q=16+hogarth+cr+sw,+Calgary,+AB&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl)

[Tara]

See you tomorrow!

[azrael]

Okaaaaaay, soooo...

Yeah, it's like, -15 out, and working in the driveway is no fun. If anyone would like to donate garage space for a day on the weekend next week, we could totally get this done in like, three hours, and then I would be a happy panda.

Note especially here that your efforts and generousity would be directly responsible for helping me not die by keeping me from driving the Gas Chamber around any more! I want to get the engine out of it, and into my black 82, and then everybody will be happy!

Especially me! And you. Because you helped me.

[Funkycheeze]

we can do it here, but you would need to drive your car all the way back up to this end of the city with the busted steering rack

up to you

[azrael]

I drive a 17psi, violently smoking 7M-GTE mk2 with a bum ISCV on studded 19s in the winter.

I live for danger!

[Supra_Newfie]

Did you get it fixed or are we looking at this coming weekend? I'll be out of town, otherwise I'd be game to get dirty. If I could make room you could always pull in my tight garage. Just a single garage...but it has a heater so who's complaining.

Cheers,
Grant

[azrael]

I think this weekend is the current plan. Ryan's offered to let us use his garage for this, providing I can drive the thing with the buggered rack to his place in the north.

I've done the trip the other way once already.

[Funkycheeze]

sunday, then.

noon.

[Supra_Newfie]

Cool. I'll be in BC (Kicking Horse ski trip to be exact) this weekend. Good luck on the fix.

Cheers,
Grant

[azrael]

This fix is the pivotal event that determines how quickly my Supra gets finished.

I need to stop driving my donor car before it can, you know. Donate.

[Supra_Newfie]

This is true. Hope all goes well.

Grant

[annoyingrob]

I could do next sunday. Just give me a location.

[celica83_gts]

Git 'er done, Keegan!

[azrael]

Mission compreet!

The Second Regular Alberta Supra Club RA65 Steering Rack Party
or, "A bunch of guys and a girl standing around watching Rob work on a car"

The secondary title is probably more accurate. Got started around 1:30, when the old Celica rolled into Ryan's garage with a bum rack, yet again. This marks the third steering rack this car has ever had. Balls. Anyways, got the thing jacked up and on stands, busted out the air gun to zip the lugnuts off, and again, I found myself with yet ANOTHER wheel on that car that is now holding on with only three lugs. Double balls! After that, out came the pickle fork, and one of the few jobs Ryan would actually agree to do himself in this project -- hitting stuff with a hammer until the tie rods came loose.

While we were working on that, Rob crawled his ass under the car to take the power steering lines out. (This would become a common theme for the afternoon.) I tried to get in under there to pull the straps off the rack, but being a little sissy girl, I failed miserably because they were at an awkward angle and stuck on there pretty good. Over the course of this time, and only after I ended up with my hair covered in power steering fluid and melted snow and dirt, it was pointed out to me that I could just put the hood on my sweatshirt up, stuff the ponytail down the back of that, and tie it off. I would spend the rest of the afternoon this way.

The rack finally loose, we realized then that we probably should have taken the steering column U-joint off while it was still bolted down. No matter, it wasn't too bad after that. Out with the old rack, after wrangling it around the crossmember it sits on. Man is that ever a tight fit.

Turns out the tie rods on Bob's rack were actually in better shape than the tie rods on my old rack, even though mine only had ~5000kms on them. Funny how that works. Ryan switched those over to the new rack, as well as the boots, and we were ready to put it back in. None of us were really too thrilled with this prospect, as it was, by then, after 4:00. This would prove to be a disastrous state of mind.

Okay, rack in, after a bunch more swearing and Rob getting fed up with me trying to get the stupid thing back in place and doing it himself. (See? Common theme.) Slap the tie rods back in, bolt the straps back down...and then we realized, of course, that the retarded power steering cooler that sits behind the rack was uh...well...not on the right side of it. And there was a hard line attached to it that didn't really want to move. Commence more swearing.

Cue a bunch of guys sitting around, watching Rob try to get the hard line off. It took a while, and a lot of swearing. Eventually, it came off okay, though, and so then it was time to switch it around to the other side of the rack and tighten it back on...except that now there was a tie rod in the way. D'oh. Get the pickle fork again, Ryan. That minor mishap solved, we managed to get it back around, and re-tighten the hard line. Okay, fine. Now just the steering column...

...you know, the one we were supposed to reattach before we tightened the rack down, because you have to rotate the rack to get it on. Fortunately, Rob saves the day yet again with a really big pry bar and some creative wiggling. Takes a bit of time, though. All of that down, time to get the last power steering fittings back on. That was a bit of a pain, but between Ryan and I, we managed to get them threaded. Somewhere in here, Tara, being the good Supra Club Mom, made us tea.

All finished, we threw the wheels back on, and I took it for a spin around the block. Much to my delight, it no longer jerks around and grinds furiously when you try to steer it. I now have my nice, reliable daily back.

I'm waiting on Tara for the pictures.

[Tara]

Oh gosh. You do know what you've asked, right?
Well, here you are, signed, sealed, and delivered.

Sometimes, air tools just won't cut it...
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/cooperating.jpg


... and you've got to break out the big guns.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/breakerbar.jpg


... okay, maybe not that big.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/breakin.jpg


The result:
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/stud.jpg


This car's best friend? (No, that wouldn't have helped the cross-threadded lug nut, I know. I'm speaking in general.)
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/bestfriend.jpg


Moving on. I learned a new name for a tie rod separator this day. Pickle fork.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/picklefork.jpg


Oh look! Almost everyone lends a hand.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/workin.jpg

[Tara]

Cookie monster. Born of not being able to use one's PS fluid covered hands. It's a hot look, I think. It'll be all the rage in Paris next year. Mmm, Ryan's mom's cookies.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/cookie.jpg


Swapping the boots. Apparently they didn't think that rags would make terribly good ones.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/threads.jpg


Boots and tie rods swapped...
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/racks.jpg


Things got weiiiiiiird. Maybe it was the cookie's fault? Or the tea. Oh, wait. I hadn't made the tea yet.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/stance.jpg


A duel!! Who will be the victor?!
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/duel.jpg


Time to put it all back together. Wait, only one set of feet working?
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/feet.jpg


Annnnnnnnnnd the reality of the steering rack party?
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/watchin.jpg


All in all, we had only one mishap and a few mixups. Success? I think so.
I use the word 'we' in the loosest sense of the term. I took pictures.

[Supra_Newfie]

Congrats on getting her done guys! I guess I know who to call when I haul mine later on. But I'll be going the easy route and just hauling the whole motor first! :)

Looks like a good time was had.

Cheers,
Grant

[Dan_Gyoba]

Looks like at least some fun times (and a few cookies) were had.

Does this mean that you're not going to be using "the gas chamber" as your DD anymore?

[Malagron]

Yeah. Wish I actually could have done something helpful. Although I did figure/find out that, yes indeed, your Celica does say Fujiwara Tofu Shop on the front lower parts of the doors. Wonder what kind of things that car would say if it could talk. Aside from "stop hitting things" and "stop taking so long to replace my vital organs" that is :p

I'm a relative newbie to cars, and have the upper arm strength of a turtle, so that kinda precluded me from doing something useful. I'm the one in the black for those that weren't there.

[Keros]

lol, poor Rob, he's got too much initiative for his own good :p

I've been all over the country for work the past few weeks, sorry I wasn't able to help out :(

[annoyingrob]

Annnnnnnnnnd the reality of the steering rack party?
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u28/tara_trigg/watchin.jpg

LOL.

Ryan was great. "Do you need ne to hit it with a hammer?"


I find it ironic that I was the one who took the old rack out of the junkyard car in the first place.

[azrael]

I find it ironic that you've done more work on my cars than I have.

[annoyingrob]

offtopic:
Supra owners: Selling their used parts to AE86 owners for inflated prices since 1983
Your quote's wrong. AE86s weren't around in 83.

[azrael]

Originally Posted by Wikipedia
The AE86 generation of the Toyota Corolla Levin and Toyota Sprinter Trueno is a small, lightweight coupe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coupe) introduced by Toyota (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota) in 1983 as part of the fifth generation Toyota Corolla (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Corolla) line-up


So there.

(Yes. This is for the Japanese version.)

[Keros]

haha, rule #1 about argueing on the internets: Never, ever, quote wikipedia as truth and expect to be taken seriously... wikipedia is known to be wrong... alot.

[Dan_Gyoba]

While I tend to agree, a quick google of "toyota ae86 1983" shows a number of aftermarket parts that are listed for th AE86 chassis that list 1983-1987 model years fit, plus a bunch of Levin and Trueno die-cast models listed as 1983/AE86.

Edit: Including a 1983 Trueno for sale on kijiji (http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-over-5K-1983-Toyota-Trueno-AE86-REAR-W0QQAdIdZ35994866) in Calgary.

[Supra_Soul]

Damn Toyota! Why do you have to make so many cars I want?

[annoyingrob]

I was under the impression that the GT-S model didn't come until 84. I could very well be wrong though.



Jeff Lange would know this!

[Keros]

I was under the impression that the GT-S model didn't come until 84. I could very well be wrong though.



Jeff Lange would know this!

I heard once that Jeff Lange's parents read him bed time stories from Toyota Service Department manuals.

Could this explain his super-human toyota skills?

We may never know :p

[Dan_Gyoba]

It is, of course, perfectly possible that hte GTS didn't come out in North America until the 1984 model year, though we all know that doesn't necessarily agree with what's available in Japan. (Otherwise, we might have got an export JZA70 here, right?)

[annoyingrob]

(Otherwise, we might have got an export JZA70 here, right?)
or the narrow body supra.....