Little Duke Coupe

[TopNotch]

Paul, How much do you want for your Formula wheels?

[TopNotch]

Those aren't the center caps that go on the wheels.  What happened to the original Pacer caps?  I guess those will do until another original can be found.

We still only have 3 pacer center caps. I even tried here, with no luck.

[Fierofool]

Paul, I had sent you an email about the wheels about a month and a half ago, asking you to call me.  I was interested in them.  Later Ray got a new set of wheels for his car and gave us the Pacers for the coupe. 

[Tha Driver]

Paul, How much do you want for your Formula wheels?

I was going to donate them to the club for the coupe. But I'm still using them for fitment on my VW, trying to determine what size tires I need. I can pull them, though.
If the club doesn't want them I'll take $100 for just the wheels. The tires are good, but I don't know how old they are.
Charlie, I just checked & yahoo is sending "topic reply" emails to my spam folder, EVEN THOUGH I HAVE THAT OPTION TURNED OFF! Yours probably got sent there too, especially if you used the forum email to send it.
~ Paul
aka "Tha Driver"

Custom Fiberglass Parts

[Fierofool]

I don't remember how I sent it.  I don't see it in my sent PM's or in my personal email sent file.  I must have deleted it already, but I thought the 88 style lace wheels would look good on the coupe.  Pseudo-Formula.  Thank you for the offer, though. 

[aerodonamic]

Free for the asking one burgendy spoiler to put on the club car!!Charley let me know if you want it .                                                                                                             I can install it at the next meeting! Aerodon...

[Fierofool]

Thanks for the offer, but I, personally would like to keep the car as stock as possible.  I have another decklid with a luggage rack on it and I thought about having it painted at the same time as we get the car painted.  The we can swap back and forth.  I kind of like the looks of the naked rear end. 

[CowsPatoot]

OK....Front joints on the Little Duke Coupe.  I have it up on jack stands and am preparing to do the ball joints....but I think we need to go further.  In fact, I am not sure it needs ball joints at all, but I might as well do them while I have things apart.

First, the video:

As you can see, it seems that the problem is tie rods rather than ball joints.

Driver's side sway bar end link.  I think we know where the rattle in the front end was coming from.


Passenger side end link.  Same thing.


I have a spare set of poly end links from an 86...I can transfer the ends to the 88 bolt and spacer and we will be good here.

Tie rods...


The photo of the other side was too dark to see...but it is the same story over there.  I think we should replace these as well.  Although I haven't really determined that the inners are bad also, once we are replacing every other joint, do we really want to skip them?

Inner: $25 each - http://rodneydickman.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=26_43&products_id=156
Outer: $21 each - http://rodneydickman.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=26_43&products_id=155

[CowsPatoot]

Next question.  I am going deep enough into it that it would only take a few more minutes to replace the bushings with new rubber or poly.

Side note.  I measured the alignment before pulling things apart.  Camber was 0.9 degrees driver's side and 0.7 degrees on the passenger side.  I didn't measure the exact toe, but it was significantly more than the 0.3 degree desired on both sides.

[TopNotch]

I got rubber sway bar end-link bushings for my 88 at Napa. My original ones had disintegrated.

[CowsPatoot]

Inner tie rods are solid.  Steering rack bushing is far from it.  $28.50 - http://rodneydickman.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=26_43&products_id=101

[Fierofool]

I'm surprised at the amount of rust on it.  That's a southern car.  It's never been anywhere but Alabama and Georgia until Scott drove it up Lookout Mountain, Tn.  Then your trip to North Carolina. 

Where are the jack stands located?  Are they under the control arms or under the chassis?  I found on my 86 that ball joints won't show movement unless the suspension is loaded.  With it supported on the chassis, there wasn't any movement, but man, were they totally destroyed. 

When we talked earlier tonight, you said you were going to do a rough alignment.  Are you aware that you have to 'jounce' an 88 at least 3 times after unloading the suspension to get it to settle back down?  It's in the Tech Q & A under alignment. 

[CowsPatoot]

Yes, I am aware of the jouncing.  Jack stands are on the chassis, not the suspension.  I hadn't thought about that when checking..but now that it is mentioned, it makes perfect sense that the spring would hold the joints tight enough that I wouldn't feel any play.

[aerodonamic]

Greg I have two almost new outer tie rods for an 88 can send them back with Sharon. If you get this just let me know. I also have an new stg. rack also.

[Fierofool]

While Greg has had the car, he's done lots and lots of work on it.  All ball joints and tie rod ends have been replaced and the steering rack has been replaced.  Without putting it on an alignment rack, he did an admirable job of getting it back to the point that it stays straight in the roadway when you release the steering wheel.  Judging by the rear tires having thread showing on the outer edges, I'd say that either it needs an alignment or Greg and Darrel just ran the shoes off it when we did the last scouting run.

I just picked up a pair of Potenza 215/55-16 directionals and had them installed on the front and the front 225/55/16's moved to the rear. 

I'm now looking at the temperature gauge display, which reads very low.  The gauge reads about 155 but my IR temp gauge shows 220 when shot at the base of the sending unit.  At the same time the coolant temperature sensor base is showing about 155.  I'll delve into this a little further to find where the errors are.

I just noticed that the dash I installed now has a huge crack at the left speaker and the instrument cluster cover is also split.  Anyone have either, I'd be interested.  Gray in color.