What did you do to your Quantum today?

[mangeloe]

Last year at Summit at Snoqualmie respresenting Washington


mmhmm

[mangeloe]

http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/7990/imag0015t.jpg

http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/7236/imag0011j.jpg

[cuppie]

Ordered parts!
- 1-piece speedo cable (because broken)
- thermostat (because started acting stupid last weekend)
(AutohausAZ)
- various dash bulbs
(Auburn VW)

And, found out a few disappointing things from Zeb at Auburn, too....
NLA are the diff lock servos (my rear is cracked; not sure how well the epoxy job is sealing); the pull rod for the parking brake handle (this sucks - mine is rotted off!); and the ball socket for the shifter linkage.
That one, I'm not worried about - 034 Motorsport has repro ball sockets available, for $15.
The brake pull rod, though... unless someone has a non-rusted one they want to sell me, I may have to, ah, rebuild mine. I has teh skillz....

[cuppie]

I has parking brake!
Found an easy way to fix my corroded-off pull rod: a coupling nut! Attached a length of M6 threaded rod to the pull rod with it, installed the new (provided w/ car) brake cables, adjust. Profit!

Fixed two of its vacuum leaks:
Installed a couple of o-rings on the oil dipstick (because, well, it's a bit loose in the tube), and replaced that short hose that connects the crankcase breather pipe to the block.
Replaced spark plugs (installed NGK BP6ETs), and... it idles a lot better; throttle response is better, and that gawdawful off-idle buck-n-surge it had is quite improved.
Still need to fix more vac leaks (there be a lot of hose that still needs new); but, it's an improvement.


Oh, a question to all:
because I again found myself setting the car back on the ground, and annoyed at the cut front springs....
Anyone have a pair of stock QSW front springs they want to get rid of?

[cuppie]

It got some more love today:
- Pulled the cluster, and replaced:
-- speedo cable
-- cluster backlight bulbs.
Yays! I have a speedo again! And, a fully-lit cluster!
While it was out, looked at the tach-inop problem. I have a tach signal at the cluster, and there aren't any breaks in the cluster's flex circuit. Looks like the tach's dead.

Cleaned up the switch on the parking brake handle. And, I have a working warning lamp, to go with the working parking brake.

Took a little more of a look at the door locks - it would help, you know, if I could mechanially lock the LF door these days.... :|
Need to pull the door apart sometime....

Mostly-assed the cargo-bay trim and cargo cover rail back into place (right side.) And, rail now mounted, I installed the cargo cover.

[cuppie]

I've been busy!

Yesterday (Saturday), tore apart the LF door. Latch went in the parts washer, then properly greased (Wurth Tru Glide FTW!), and... yays! I can lock the LF door again!
It feels so nice, it makes me want to pull the other three door locks from it (and, the 'rocco's locks, too), and give them the same treatment.
And, central locking worked - for all of 5 minutes. Get home... car won't lock. Re-diagnose, and.. yep. Lock pump is quite frakked (I've been worried about the corrosion on the board.)

And, some parts ordered (when I ordered a few things for the 'rocco):
- belts
- oil pressure switches
- rear wiper blade
- a genuine VW(!) key blank

[Rah253]

I got to get mine back on the road, so we can have a few in Washington running around

[cuppie]

Parts wandered in this week.

Monday evening:
Replaced valve cover gasket.

Done Thursday evening:
- oil pressure switches; degrease engine (again)
- replace all of the small vacuum hoses in the bay, and the check valves
- tweak ignition timing
It's a completely different car to drive now. It idles nice (once warmed a bit), throttle response is great, the tip-in buck-n-surge that so abused the driveline (and my neck) is gone, and dayum does that engine pull now.

Today, it was treated to a thorough window cleaning, vacuum out, and interior wipedown (all were badly needed.)
Sealed the gap between front speakers & the door pockets. Yays! The 4x6's produce something resembling bass!
Needs a bath, and I want to clay/polish/wax it.

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Left the lights on all day and killed the battery. It's on the charger now with a crappy spare running her in the meantime.

[applen]

Summer mode!

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Cleaned it out an vacuumed it yesterday. Washed it 2 days ago. Needs some cosmetics and some rust repair, but she's looking good and will soon enough have a new heart. 10VT eventually.

[cuppie]

Has nobody seriously done anything in the last month?

Me today:
- New lift struts on the tailgate.
- Replace LF ball joint.
- Flush out nasty coolant, and install new thermostat.

Hopefully, the last item solves her funky almost-overheats-on-freeway issue...

[cuppie]

May bump.

Well, it still has the almost-overheat on the freeway issue. Looking closer at the car, I don't quite believe the PPO's claim of "new TB & water pump" (the pump looks almost as old as the engine... )

Done today:
- put the "new" instrument cluster (but, with my existing speedo) in the car. I has tach!
- ran a new alternator exciter wire, from the terminal by the battery, to the alternator. And, I has working charge lamp.

And, there's a MkIII front wiper motor sitting in a box, waiting to be adapted into the car.
And, I still need to pull the cat, to replace the O2 sensor ('tis quite stuck....)
The rest of the list... it'll get done. Eventually.

[cuppie]

(other things done over the last two weeks....)
- So, the MkIII motor didn't work out so well - blows the wiper fuse when it parks. :|
Apart came the original motor. Clean out the nasty, dried-up grease from the contact plate & worm gear. Regrease & assemble. Bam! Wipers work on both Lo & Hi speeds. And, they park, too!
- Found the wires for the rear speakers (they were, ah, lost in the dash.) Hooked those up to the radio. Unsurprisingly, the rear speakers are blown.
- Replaced the bulb for the HVAC control panel (damn, that was a pain in the ass!)

Last week:
- Got me a "290" chime relay, and installed it. Goodbye, Mexican hat dance chime. And, hello, lights-on warning! (Seatbelt warning not functional. Need to look at that, still.)
- Tore the sunroof apart. Clean & grease the moving parts. Strategically apply some felt pads to the headliner panel (to make up for the, ah, lack of cloth on it.) Sunroof tilts and slides now - and, is rattle-free.
- Fixed the floppy gas pedal. Someone installed one of the bushings backwards...
- Finally pulled the cat & replaced the O2 sensor. Finally, it runs *right.*

And, I've now (finally!) hit the 50% point on its Things Broken list. Yay!

[Snarkle]

Cuppie you are a manimal!
Sooner or later you will shame us all into working on our quantums too

[cuppie]

What can I say? I hate broken isht. Especially stupid, piddly little broken isht (which was a lot of my list.)
I don't think I've spent even $150 on parts for it yet (and, I bought it in February) - a lot of my Things Broken were actual repairable things.

Someone I work with (my shop foreman, actually) asked me a while ago "why you and old VWs?" (I'm a BMW tech, BTW.) My answer:
"because they're simple; they're Legos; parts are reasonably cheap; and, half of the time, you can actually repair something that doesn't work right."

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Very little done recently. Swapped new 15" Borbets on the red and silver QSW for now with old but good tread Dunlops. Swapped in a functional ISV this morning after the old one crapped out on the way to work (I had an extra one in the back seat...score!). I need to get after the rear brakes and then get the rust on the doors taken care of (finally). Been neglecting her but I have been working a lot and stripping an Audi 200 Turbo Quattro...and yes, driveline is going in the QSW. I need to go pick up a package form the post office and find out why they wouldn't ship it to Poland...about three weeks after I paid them to do so. Then finally get Thomas' package out to him in Germany (with added parts for being a lazy American arse...). So I will be busy but I have to also find time to work on the Quantum Coupe project and I'm moving this week, so there.
More to come.

[eurowner]

New vacuum pod, white/black, for the diff lock system which works perfectly now. New rear pads & rotors. New Kuhmo AST 205-50-15 on $80/set off CL Borbet RH with new hub centric rings and black tapered seat bolts. Newer Santana lights that are not pitted nor have dull reflectors.

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Borbet RH...and black tapered seat bolts. Newer Santana lights that are not pitted nor have dull reflectors.

Pics or it didn't happen.
I wanna see the 15s!
I put Borbet CBs on mine...pics soon.

[DubbinChris]

Very little done recently. Swapped new 15" Borbets on the red and silver QSW for now with old but good tread Dunlops. Swapped in a functional ISV this morning after the old one crapped out on the way to work (I had an extra one in the back seat...score!). I need to get after the rear brakes and then get the rust on the doors taken care of (finally). Been neglecting her but I have been working a lot and stripping an Audi 200 Turbo Quattro...and yes, driveline is going in the QSW. I need to go pick up a package form the post office and find out why they wouldn't ship it to Poland...about three weeks after I paid them to do so. Then finally get Thomas' package out to him in Germany (with added parts for being a lazy American arse...). So I will be busy but I have to also find time to work on the Quantum Coupe project and I'm moving this week, so there.
More to come.

What are you doing shipping stuff overseas? They need to be shipping stuff in this direction...lol

[bimrpwr]

I am getting ready to pull my engine and tranny. Bearing going out on engine so i am rebuilding a spare Fox engine and tranny to put it. Maybe even with a bigger cam..

[cuppie]

Oil change today.
"New" central lock pump (out of a 95-ish Jetta) yesterday (only $58 on eBay.) Yay! Working power locks again!

A couple of weeks ago..
treated the rust on the LR wheel arch, and glued (because it was the only way to secure it) the wheel arch moulding back on. I can wash the car at work (automatic wash) now.

And, ordered today, from 034Motorsport:
- ball socket for the shift linkage (yesterday, the linkage was having a really, really bad day...)
- driveshaft bearing
- rear mount for rear diff.

[cuppie]

One thing done today.

Since the shift linkage has been right pissing me off lately... (and, my shop foreman offered me used cars, but then said "bring this crappy 'hot' car in before used cars"... ),
into the shop she came.
Out came the shift rod. In went my new ball socket. (WOW, was the old one beyond worn out!)
In went the shift rod. A good amount of trial-n-error for adjustment later, and...
Far, far less silly-putty-like. Still a little slop (need to look at it closer, now that the main slop is gone); but, it's a lot more liveable now.
And, I'm secure in the thought that it's no longer going to pop apart mid-shift now.

[JohnBarleyCorn]

You said you ordered the rear mount for the rear diff from 034? They don't carry that...did you order the 4KQ version? I sent Javad a whole bracket and mount last month to see if he can have new ones made up for us. Haven't heard anything back yet. Poly would be nice...

[cuppie]

That is exactly what I ordered - 4KQ parts.
Please, please don't tell me that the QSW mount is different.....

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Sorry, totally different. Theirs mounts sideways and is way smaller. You could probably have someone machine a bushing/reducer, but the only place I know to get a new one is from VW for about $120 or there's a place in Germany you can get a poly one in a few weeks for about $75, but I don't know the quality...

[cuppie]

Damn, that sucks....
I even went off of 034's own posts on it (from the product page), where Javad says "Yep, same for QSW."


Poly I'll pass on - I just want a new rubber mount!
(And, damn, I so wish that the "get a copy of ETKA" thing had worked out at Cincy this year......
It would be so, so nice to be able to easily cross-reference parts.)

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Well, I did the same thing and just sold it on motor geek for a little loss. If you wait a bit, Javad might be able to make some new rubber ones. Otherwise I can give you a lead on the new OEM ones.

[cuppie]

Thanks for that.
Probably not going to be getting to that repair anytime soon, anyways. Mainly, I ordered when I did to save on shipping...
(I'd really, really rather not spend $120 on a rubber mount....)

[turbinepowered]

Washed it, and two days ago picked up the new keys. I now have incentive to get it running again.

[Chimpy2330]

had some serious over heating last night, it was odd because my fan kicks in for just the slight bit of thermostat movement, if it even warms up the fan cuts on. So me being the noob i am with this 1.6L engine, I wigged out but this morning i check water levels and connectors and turned the car on.....Still no signal so I used my test light and checked connections and no light .....so i check the fuse and boom there it was it was busted....lol now im heading to the auto parts store and picking one up!

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Be sure to keep an eye on that radiator fan and temp. The fuse doesn't blow for no reason. The fans will wear out the shaft bearing and eventually start to seize up. Lots of interchangeable ones at junkyards, but do yourself a favor and just buy a new one for peace of mind. Overheat=new engine. And replace your hoses when you can too. Been there, done that. No fun.

[Chimpy2330]

the car was sitting for two years....changed the battery and also have a new water pump and radiator, the fan always kicked in when it felt hot... and looked today and found the fuse blown. But i think youre right ima keep a look out on the fan motor....i might have to change it soon. it does spin freely so we will see, thank you for the heads up

[JohnBarleyCorn]

Yesterday I pulled the rear 'bumper' off my 87 QSW. Cover was just bolted directly to the brackets with no rebar in there due to a past accident, I assume. There were tabs welded onto the brackets and that's it. I pulled the brackets and tossed them as they were rotted. Looking for a good rebar and brackets now...scrapped one not too long back...
Will be headed to a yard this coming weekend, I hope. Also cleaned out a mouse nest on the rear shock tower. Pulled all the trim off and cleaned it all out and washed and dried the whole are. Filthy rodents. There is the rust spot above the filler tube that I'll have to patch, but it's clean otherwise under there. Easy fix and I'll seal it up nice to avoid it happening again.
I'm guessing I'm going to end up buying a good bumper from eurowner. I'm gonna try to yard first, but I don't hold out much hope.

My buddy snapped a pic while I was ripping the bumper bracket out...

[zollie]

Gave my '81 wagon a nice gift



Look how happy she is



Still working on it