These cars are dangerous!

That may be a bold statement, but I think its true.  Not in a sense where you may be injured by wheels flying off or brakes failing as you hurdle down the country lanes, but rather they consume time and money.

My car has been part of my family for just over a year now, and I am not ashamed to say that it consumes me.  I think about how much fun the day’s drive was as I drift off to sleep, and I wake up with new ideas of how to make the car more fun.  My wife sort of understands; she has a great time whenever we go somewhere in Hugo, but I don’t know if she comprehends the depth of the obsession.  When the weekend comes, I am torn between several options: laundry, wash and wax for the car, or a drive to the pub.

I have a very large stack of laundry.

When we bought the car, I wanted to keep it fairly original, there is a certain amount of joy in owning an ‘unmolested’ version of a timeless car like this.  It shows respect to the designer’s intentions and the realisation of dreams – I can only imagine how it must feel to have been on the design team for this classic motor.  But with every car I’ve ever owned, the more I look at it, the more I want to make it my own.  It certainly isn’t any disrespect – I don’t believe I can improve on the design – it’s more that if I do this, I will leave my mark.

I come from Canada originally, and the huge American culture of customisation has certainly leaked North – every car I’ve ever owned has had a bit of work done to it, as well as all the cars of any of my friends.  This culture has created some amazing and some absurd pieces of rolling art, but what is horrible to me is awesome to the owner.  And regardless of whether or not I think a modification is tasteless or not, I will always give respect to the owner – they are leaving their mark, making their ride their own.

I’ve attended a number of events with the Owners Club, and I am always in awe of the lengths some people go to, making their car unique.  Engines so polished you can eat off them; custom finishes that catch the eye, roll cages stuffed in and engines tweaked, stereos that pound the earth – they are all candy to my eyes, and demonstrate just how affectionate people can feel towards their car.  We’re in a club, after all!

So, I knew there was no way I could prevent myself from adding my own stamp of ownership and fondness.  The car was lowered.  Clear side marker lenses  and chrome mirrors show off the outside.  The stereo was replaced and a small amplifier installed, letting us hear the music as we drove with the top down.  And white clocks replaced the black, with the Momo steering wheel left to expose its yellow horn button.  A new air filter housing installed.

But more than the cosmetic things, I have enjoyed studying and working on the mechanical underpinnings.  An engine tune up, new brakes all around, ball joints replaced, and new bushings in the gear selector help make the car run and feel like new.  But as I’m sure other drivers with greasy thumbs know, once you start doing one thing, you keep finding more.  And this is where the danger comes in.

When I replaced the front wheel bearings, I noticed the need for new upper ball joints.  And I could imagine how the brakes would improve with braided lines installed.  And the control arm bushings look a bit rotten…

It doesn’t end.  There is no such thing as a ‘rolling restoration’, where you drive the car regularly and then fix the bits as they break and replace the bits you want to improve as you go.  This process will never end, and I’m sure you feel the same.  You can stand back and look at all you’ve done to your car, making it ready for the track or for the coolest MX 5 Competition, relishing in the way it pleases your eyes and your senses as you drive; but you are already imagining how much better the car would look if you did one more thing to it.  Just one more thing.  So as you drive along, with the top down and the wind in your hair and that instantly recognisable smile on your face that can only come from driving a 5, you realise that even after you consider how much money you have spent making your car yours, you don’t regret a penny of it.  Which allows you to justify spending more, and driving further.

You see?  These cars are dangerous.

Detango!

Right.  I've finally sobered up from New Years Eve, so I can post something new.
Actually, its been very difficult since November, when I last posted.  I haven't had any time to do fun stuff on the car; Christmas takes up a lot of time and energy.  I also have been very busy with school work - boring!
I have found myself thinking more and more about what I want to do to the car.  It's all generally minor stuff, with no real unique ideas taking shape.  I was trawling through the internet and came across a post on an American car audio forum, where a chap from Belgium was fabricating an install.  The bits were not really my cup of tea, but I was really struck by the attention to detail - this guy was completely no-holds-barred.  The detail is... incredible.  The devotion is... ridiculous.  But man, what a job!
Here is a link to the craziest build I have ever seen.
I will likely never reach this level of detail, as much as I want - life just gets in the way!
But the seed was planted.  I wanted to get out there and do something...
I decided to do a bit of de-tangoing.  This involves removing the orange reflector from inside the front marker lights, so the lens only sees clear, with no colour.  I've seen it done, and didn't look too difficult, so I thought I'd give it a go.
Here is a before picture, complete with orange lenses:

Not a bad look, but I think it could make a big difference when changed...
I started by removing the light assembly (duh!) and bringing the bits inside.  At this stage, I made sure the missus was alright with me using the oven; thankfully she was.  I put the oven on it's lowest heat setting (it's gas, so even that was pretty warm), and set the lamps in a tray and started cooking.

I left them in for about 5 minutes, and thought I'd have a look to see if there was any progress.  The point was to make the glue that held the clear plastic to the body of the assembly melt enough that they could be pried apart.  I had a quick tug, and realised I should have taken the screws out completely...
Realising that it might be a bit smoother if I took my time, I took one out and cooked just one.  I let it sit for a few more minutes, and had another go at pulling the lenses apart.

 After a few minutes of teasing and pulling, I got them apart - but not without paying a price.  Some of the tabs that hold the lens in place broke off, leaving large pieces of clear plastic in the housing.  Not a pretty sight.  The groove the lens sat in was also full of soft plastic, and the lens edging was covered in it as well.

Once I got one apart, I started cooking the other.  I let it get a bit warmer this time, which helped.  I took it slow, and returned it to the oven a few times to keep the glue malleable.  The second one went much easier, but I still managed to make a little crack in the lens.

When both assemblies were separated, I took out the offending orange reflector - much better already!  There was a metal shield around the bulb, and I contemplated leaving it out, but I thought it must be there for a reason.  If it prevents the plastic from overheating and melting, then that's a good reason.  To that end, I left them in place.
I then took on the arduous task of cleaning the lenses and the assembly of all the remaining glue.  It has gone hard by this time, but that was not a problem.  I just sat and watched a bit of telly, with a sharp utility knife in one hand and a lens in the other - I whittled away all the old adhesive.  After a while, I realised I wasn't going to get them any cleaner, so I gave them a quick wash, dried them off with paper towel, and used a tack cloth to make sure there was no dust on the interior of the housing.  I know it's not airtight, but I didn't want any fingerprints or smudges to show up.
So, here they are, ready to go back on.

Not perfect, but certainly good enough.  Please ignore the horrible dents I put in the mirror coated surface of the plastic assembly - this was my first attempt!
I had some translucent bathroom sealant/adhesive sitting around, so I filled the trenches with the stuff - lots and lots.  I figured any excess would be fairly easy to remove and would be better than having lights that got wet inside.

Very carefully, I placed the lens back into the assembly, taking care to fit around the two screw guides.  I squeezed them together until I heard the 'click' of the tabs going home, and had a look.  There was no adhesive squirting out anywhere that I could see, and it looked like it had sealed well.  I left them for about twenty minutes, and tried tugging - they weren't coming apart.
The adhesive stuff said two hours to dry, so I left them sitting on the worktop overnight, and went to bed, dreaming about how much faster the car will go after my weight reduction regime...  well not really.
The next day, slapped them in, and low and behold, they look good....

Here is a comparison of before and after for effect:

Cool, no?
Now, I have to think about the next level of mods.  There are some essential maintenance things I need to do (such as timing belt), so that may come first, but right now, I like to just let my mind wander as to what will happen next to this thing....
Oh, and what I said at the beginning about just sobering up now from new years?  That was a joke.
I'm still not sober.