Site Projects

After many months of doing nothing on it, I’ve made room in the garage for her. Sorted some electrical issues. A melted headlight wiring was the issue. Also installed an Alpine tape deck, and fixed the wipers and blower fan.. We now have a… more

The replacement transmission is in the 500E, and I was able to put some miles on the car this weekend. The good news is, we've resolved the biggest issues the car had, which was a near non-existent reverse gear and very lazy forward shifting. One… more

The D. Moris hardtop is effectively done on the 964, with all major hardware installed and the interior back together. 

The fitment is excellent. The kit itself was pretty minimal on hardware, which is a backhanded compliment because… more

I installed a new catback exhaust that is slightly louder than stock but not too loud. 

In the days after deciding to plunk down a bunch of cash on a hardtop for my 1990 911 Cabriolet, I saw a picture of the same hardtop on a later 993. I will admit: I didn't love how it looked. There was something about it that just looked "off,"… more

I had a sneaking suspicion when the 500E arrived that I was due for transmission trouble. The seller was an honest guy, but it seemed he was in the camp of being able to live with some flaws that I wouldn't be able to abide.

The 722.365… more

I replaced the worn OEM shift knob with one found on eBay with the same color scheme as the recaro driver seat. 

The progress on the 500E has been slow, but I'm not terribly worried; there's been no ugly discoveries at the moment, and it seems like my fears about transmission issues are unfounded. Most of the issues with regards to slow shifting and noises… more

The BMW K1 has been a distant memory for the past year; a project I had no immediate need to use but still wanted to have in good working order. I sent it to my friend and longtime Isuzu mechanic, Jay, in Rhode Island, who has a fair amount of… more

Installed a Recaro Sportster CS driver seat with a planeted seat bracket. 

I have been enjoying my time with the '02 G500 I bought back in July. It's a treat to drive; the color is gorgeous; and it is far better as a daily driver than any ex-military vehicle has a right to be. It's also been surprisingly reliable, with… more

I got word today that the hardtop I spent the past year obsessing over - should I, shouldn't I - was leaving the workshop in France, headed for JFK and then onto Baltimore. This is a big gamble on my end, as it cost a fair bit of money and I… more

My 1992 500E arrived this week, and I have some thoughts. First, I bought this car on the basis of the honesty of the presentation and the seller. The seller, who I believe is a legitimate rocket scientist, had clearly been proactive on some big… more

The oil change is easy at this point, nothing to really say here.  The transmission service, while not specifically easy, is time-consuming and requires you to run the car and then top it up.  It seems like the BMW-authorized procedure… more

Since I purchased a 1990 911 C4 Cabriolet, I've barely racked up 50 miles on it. Driving has been limited; this is due to a few things, including the fact that I owe a little bit on it and don't want to risk an accident or other adverse event… more

It has been years since I had a hobby car I made an excuse to drive. Despite having an ongoing rotation of vehicles stretching back about a decade now, it hasn't been since my departed 1995 M3 that I tried to find excuses to… more

After selling my 996-chassis Porsche 911, I was pretty relieved to be done with the looming threat of bore scoring and a replacement IMS replacement to my existing IMS replacement. The fear mongering was pretty intense, from both fellow owners to… more

The M Coupe went to the shop this week for the long-awaited rod bearing servicing. As part of this, the engine mounts and oil pan gasket will also be replaced. Since I was waiting for both the title paperwork to come through and to avoid driving… more

You may recall I bought my "dream" bike a few months back, a 1991 BMW K1 motorcycle. Yes, I still cannot ride, and yes, I have bought a second bike since then (that I also cannot ride). The K1 went up to Rhode Island to my long-term mechanic Jay… more

When I moved to Maryland, I had to leave a few cars behind due to being "in progress" once the moving van arrived. The Isuzu Trooper RS and the Lexus Land Cruiser were among them but had clear expectations of being down south before too long; the… more

It has been a long while since any updates have been posted here, and for that, I apologize. Like everyone else, there's 10 pounds of crap in a 5 pound bag, and that's my one and only excuse for the lack of posting. The most… more

The LX450 has been a long project, with the biggest curve ball being the unforeseen headgasket leak that prompted an engine rebuild. I had my patience tested with wanting to see this truck through, and I'm still a bit shocked I kept with it. The… more

I'll keep this one short as this is unplanned project work...  A little boo boo has pushed in the fender.  Luckily, a white 2014 X1 was at a local pick-n-pull, and it donated it's no-dings fender to our cause.  

… more

Not sure if someone who wasn't familiar with this device would think it was a piece of coal with a partially rounded-off bolt threaded into it--  If they did that would be a good guess.

I know O2 sensors can be a pain in the ass to… more

My 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth has left the body shop after being there for over a year. To say the owners of the shop were glad to see it go is an understatement; there is still some finish work left to do but hopefully, if it does… more

Not a lot to say other than this project is actually on the road.  Need to get a few weeks worth of shakedown miles so that we can figure out what are best next steps.  Observation #1 - The suspension is shot.  This was not… more

I'm going to keep asking myself how this happens, but I already know the answer - BMW shop rates, that's how.  Original shocks obviously, so dead that they don't do anything other than let you pull the piston in or out with ease.  Every… more

Rear wheel bearing on a 10 year old car with a bit of corrosion.  Maybe my biggest DIY challenge so far--  This job is no joke.  We had access to a lift, air tools, impact gun, etc., and we needed all of those things in addition to… more

The 190E Cosworth, which arrived in my garage as a soggy, rotten, trash-filled mess from a Pennsylvania scrap yard five years ago last month, is near the finish line. I've lived in three houses since I bought this car, and I'm hopeful it will be… more

Initial reassembly complete.  Not much to say other than we were able to sort a bunch of stuff out, replace a bunch of broken plastics, size up what we need to do to re-mount the radiator (coat hanger support still hanging tough...), and… more

Going forward and focusing on the positive--  The inside stakeholders on this project are in love with this thing.  My first car was a 1980 Monte Carlo that was two-tone Dark Claret metallic and Claret Metallic red.  The Dark… more

Nothing crazy to note here. Putting the car away for the winter in a week or so here - Whenever we get our first snow fall is usually the appropriate time. I also took an oil sample to send off to Black Stone Labs. Its a pretty cheap service, and… more

Initial upper engine disassembly and seeing what we have to deal with is starting.  First observations - Leaks oil heavily.  BMWs are notorious for valve cover gasket leaks, and this thing looks like it's a candidate for the leaking… more

This mod ended up being a little pricier than I anticipiated, but man was it worth it - The stock shifter in the E30 was coming up on 300,000 miles and 40 years old - Though I love the OEM setup, the way I drive this car calls for a slightly… more

OK so kicking off this project; hoping it's going to be a fun one, and also hoping it doesn't cause too much pain.  The ingredients are as follows - BMW with a clean CarFax but zero maintenance history; appears that it fell into the… more

My mechanic Jay called with the good news recently that the long-standing (and unintentionally long) Lexus LX450 / Toyota Land Cruiser project has finally hit its point of substantial completion - from the mechanical side, anyway.

The… more

When you see a car finally wearing a consistent shade of paint after years of being naked or otherwise clad in shoddy paintwork, it's a big moment. It's as close to being reborn as a car can be. For the 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth project, this… more

A few days ago, the SRS light popped on the E55. When I purchased the car, this light was illuminated for unknown reasons, but it was cleared and off for the better part of four months after it spent a week at my shop in Rhode Island. … more

One of the final projects completed before I left Rhode Island was to fix some small rust spots on the frame of the Audi S6's windshield. The idea here is that the S6 may very well live outside at times, and any rust currently on the car is… more

One of the better updates I've gotten lately from Jay is that the engine is back in the LX450. Which means we're:

- a few days closer to it being fully tethered to the car and getting its first start (right now, the bellhousing is loosely… more

We pushed through an incredible amount of work before moving to Maryland, with the Audi S6, BMW 325is, and Mercedes-Benz E55 all getting long-simmering projects wrapped up before leaving town. 

The E55 was a pretty solid car overall… more

I swung by Jay's 4WD today to leave my beloved Trooper RS with him while we move on down to Maryland. Jay will fix the leaking headgasket and button up a few other details while it's there, which hopefully won't be for an extended stay.

… more

While I hadn't intended to put any more money into the Trooper RS before relocating - especially with the news that the headgasket had started leaking - logistics demanded that I do something with the truck before moving it… more

One of the lingering details about the E30 - the 1987 BMW 325is - that has always bothered me is the lack of an OEM windshield. Or, for that matter, even a windshield from a respected aftermarket manufacturer. About five years ago, when the bulk… more

As mentioned previously, we've got this big move coming up where I'll be leaving my trusted shop of 10+ years. Accordingly, there are some ugly jobs I've been avoiding that now have to be fast-tracked for fear of not being able to find a… more

The Lexus LX450 project is one of those unfortunate scenarios where things have definitely gotten out of hand. As mentioned previously, a long-festering headgasket leak left unabated by the previous owner resulted in the inline-six going from a… more

I recently had an engine oil analysis done by Blackstone Laboratories on my 1999 911. As you may know, Blackstone has earned a name for itself as being a sort of fortune teller with Porsche engines, especially as it relates to helping to… more

Among the final punch-list items I've been knocking out on the vehicles is a long-awaited basic suspension refresh on the Eurovan, the ride quality of which has generally been degrading over the last few years. I went with a set of Koni "Special… more

The list of projects I'm attempting to get done before we move to Maryland in a little over a month has me feeling overwhelmed, to say the least. Nothing is done to the level that I'd like it to be, and given I will be starting over with… more

I have been attempting to check off some long-standing to do's, and one of them was installing period-correct audio components in the 1989 Isuzu Trooper RS. I had snagged an old Blaupunkt and have long had a vintage K40 CB radio to install and… more

To say I am tired of seeing my Cosworth in primer is an understatement, but it is (sadly) par for the course with a complete respray of a car that has been painted poorly many times before. 

Right now, the hood is off for some detail… more

The maintenance book of my 1999 Porsche 911 has a handful of stamps in it from various service facilities. One of the more notable ones was Road Scholars, which is one of the foremost Porsche restoration facilities in the country, if not the… more

Great day in the morning: the block for the long-sidelined 1997 Lexus LX450 (fancy Land Cruiser) is done, and Jay Gaston of Jay's 4WD has already snagged it from R. Johnson & Sons Engine Repair in Warwick, RI. The head was previously cleaned… more

There's a point in every project where you begin to feel actual excitement that the end is approaching. For the 190E 2.3-16, I haven't felt anything approaching this in the last four years. From seeing it sitting outside my mechanic's shop for… more

The next phase of bodywork has begun on the 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth, and now we are truly counting down until we paint this long-term project. The bodywork phase has been arduous, with the rear quarters basically being rebuilt; the rockers being… more

Well, unfortunately my first maintenance log for the 2023 season comes on a negative note. Usually, changing your oil is a fun and therapeutic activity to engage in with your vehicle, and gives you a nice sense… more

If you're confused as to why a truck whose virtues I was just recently extolling is now for sale, let me explain. 

First, I have an out-of-state move coming up. There's a part of me that loves the Dakota, but there's also a part of… more

The 2003 VW Eurovan has been in my stable going on three years now, and it's one of the few in the U.S. that's been converted to the European-spec manual gearbox. We recently installed an ARB awning on it to perhaps drive us to use it more as… more

This is a milestone day for the 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth I harvested out of a junkyard in 2018: we have eliminated all rust from the body, save for some meaningless surface spots that will be eliminated during the sanding process… more

I can't tell you much about why or what drove me to ship my 1998 Dakota R/T to Alabama and whale on it for roughly 15 hours straight. You can fill in the blanks, but up until this weekend, I had driven the truck *maybe* 50 miles. And here I was… more

We are nearing the finish line on the bodywork phase of the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth. The rear bodywork was the most labor intensive; the next section are the rockers. 

The rocker issues are twofold: one, there's typical… more

Whenever you take a bone-stock virgin example of a car that's historically over-modified and began to modify it, a twinge of guilt may occur. After all, it's a privilege to find a car in stock form that typically represents a horrible buy on the… more

One aspect of the Dakota R/T project that came up as a priority far sooner than expected was gutting and re-freshening of the interior. It was tired, and the condition reflected what most domestic trucks look like after a few years in the Florida… more

Due to an invitation to a long-distance driving event in the coming weeks, I've decided to move the Dodge Dakota R/T pickup a bit further up in the lineup to get a final blast of improvements. I didn't intend to do this, but the truck is actually… more

I dropped off the 1995 Audi S6 Avant today for some upgrades, which I struggled to pull the trigger on. I bought this car for peanuts and it was completely stock. The smart thing to do would have been to sell it for a tidy profit; however, I've… more

A few days ago, Jay of Jay's 4WD called me with a query. He said after removing the head, he was surprised to see just how far the chain reached down into the oil pan. Jay recommended replacing the chain as a sensible "while you're in there"… more

Trying to keep the status on my 88iS mostly OEM+....I really like the factory 14" basketweave that came on the U.S. iS E30s, but sadly another thing the US market didn't get from BMW, the 15" 'Euroweave'. The… more

I drove the 1998 Dodge Dakota R/T home this weekend, and I hate to say it, but I may like it more than the 911 I bought recently. It has finally opened my eyes to the joy of a sport truck with lots of torque. 

The other thing is the… more

For me and most of us enthusiasts, hearing the car is an extremely obvious and exciting way to enhance the driving experience. But, like I said in my previous post, I want the car to remain relatively OEM+ without doing anything… more

I do not claim to be a smart guy, but over the years, I've learned a few lessons about which vehicles to buy and which ones to ignore (no matter how much they tickle my automotive funny bone.) When I bought the 1998 Dodge Dakota R/T out of a… more

One of the few bright spots of the surprisingly endless Lexus LX450 project is the mechanic I have working on this truck. Jay, of Jay's 4WD, first came into the picture when I searched for someone to revive the long-dormant Isuzu Trooper RS… more

When I first got the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth home, I reached out to the dealership in Pennsylvania that was listed on the service reminder sticker in the windshield. I asked if there were any records of repair available, to which the… more

I finally had the chance to flip through the service booklet that came with the 911. Now, the bulk of the records came in the form of invoices from specialist shops in North Carolina and Georgia, and those were certainly compelling reasons in my… more

One of the best feelings in the world is opening up a glovebox or looking under the seat and finding a treasure trove of records you didn't know existed. That's exactly what happened this week with the 1971 Volkswagen Super Beetle we've had… more

This BMW R90/6 project has been kicking around for a while. It actually belongs to my uncle, who has kept it stored indoors for years after beginning an initial tear-down and rebuild. 

One of the key issues is a previous owner hacked… more

For years, I have proclaimed my undying love for the 1986 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 Cosworth I rescued out of a junkyard in Pennsylvania. Let me explain why. 

It's the car I wanted since I was 16; it somehow corrects the emotional… more

It's been about three months - maybe four - since I last saw the Dakota R/T. I believe it will soon be home, and there are some new plans afoot that may make its arrival more relevant than ever. 

So, first of all, we have the LX450… more

I regret to inform you I did not escape the dreaded headgasket failure on my '97 LX450. 

Truthfully, I saw it coming. I had ignored some of the tell-tale signs and written them off as irrelevant. The entry in the history file… more

Just a quick update here: the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16 is coming along. We're chopping up the bodywork into phases so I don't go broke. First is the rear of the car, which is the worst and most complex. 

Fortunately, $160 worth of… more

I've been watching a set of BBS wheels for a few weeks on the Japanese parts importing website, Crooober. Despite being predominantly a haven of JDM parts, the site also stocks wheels and accessories for European makes - often for less money than… more

As you may recall, the Lexus LX450 - what should be the most reliable project in my fleet - has been sitting at Lexus of Warwick after an intermittent loss of heat and temperature gauge spike occurred one early winter night. The heat would cut in… more

I feel like I'm at the meeting in the church basement, admitting that this was not a good week for me. I gambled, I drank, and I ate too much. Some avoidable missteps where I failed my friends and family after a few solid months of avoiding what… more

When you begin any project, the potential for replacing other components "while you're in there" is always lurking. Suspension is one of those areas where it's very easy to find other opportunities for improvement, and while replacing the… more

Not much to say—  she’s headed to a space filled with other interesting cars for some winter R&R.  You have to drive them; she’s been sitting for too long.  So, going to go through everything and give her a clean bill of health… more

Most people would be excited to hear from their local service department that an update is ready on their vehicle. Not me. 

So, I've had this Mercedes 190E 2.3-16 since 2018. Since that time, it has been made into a runner. But… more

The LX450 was supposed to be my gateway into Porsche ownership. Why? Because if the LX450 proved reliable enough, I would sell my E91 - which, as I've noted, is growing long in the tooth - and use that money to buy a decent but cheap 996-chassis… more

The paint on the 1995 Audi UrS6 has been a major concern, largely due to it being dull and covered in swirl marks. Some of my buffing efforts have given it some of its shine back, but it still fell well short of where I wanted it to be.

… more

I really have reached my "peak" of how much more work I want done to any one car this year, but I am making an excuse for the S6. The bumpers were awful after years of being bashed around when the owner would leave Martha's Vineyard for his… more

There comes a time when a project is finally to the point that you can drive it - for an extended period - and you realize it was all worth it. 

More than other efforts, I struggled at times to understand if restoring this rare 1989… more

The long-term single owner of the 1995 Audi S6 Avant I bought in September is a well-maintained car. I received a stack of paperwork from the shop that looked after the Audi indicating as such. But like most "special" cars owned by someone who… more

Jay has moved the Dakota R/T inside and begun making the basic tune-up repairs, which consisted of the usual: plugs, wires, water pump, thermostat, fan clutch, and fluid changes. One gremlin I began chasing shortly after getting the truck was an… more

There's a little thing called "service position" on Audis of a certain age. You see, as cool as old Audis are, they did this kind of dumb thing where they jammed the engine bay so full of motor that there was no room left to… more

As we know by now, I've had some unfortunate surprises related to rust on the '89 Trooper RS. The first was the driver's side floor, which was effectively, gone. What I thought was floor turned out to be a very robust carpet pad and when lifted… more