Over the past few weeks, I've roped two of my friends into helping my
replace all the rear suspension bushes with uprated rubber, replacing the rear
shocks, the front rubber, and the ball joints (yecch. Those were ugly!).
Completion was this past Tuesday night, with the Carlisle (PA) Import show
looming ahead and the Richmond (VA) Show next Sunday.
Overall, the car is infinitely better than before. taking a hard turn
under acceleration would cause the axle to jump on one side or the other,
requiring multiple corrections to get the car pointed where I'd intended it to
go. Now it is _much_ more controlled. However, I'm really wishing I had enough
money to do the front struts and all 4 springs (I can't lower the car, my
driveway's on a 30 degree angle up from the street. I scrape the exhaust a bit
as it is.
First road test was Friday. Drove the car 10 miles to the next town for
morning work, then about 60 miles (over 2 mountains) to the DC area for the
afternoon's work. Since installation of the new summer temp. thermostat, I've
hoped the overheating problems would diminish. Sure enough, the ride was
uneventful. I still carry three gallons of coolant/water just to be safe.
Today my wife Daria and I went about 40 miles up to the Carlisle show.
She got lots of sun, I got a few bits & pieces, and the sky darkened. Crying,
"We'll outrun it!" we jumped into the car and headed for the interstate. The
Rain-X I'd applied that morning didn't keep the skies from opening though. At
the next to last stoplight, it started pouring. Daria said we should pull under
a bridge to put the top up. I was thinking, "The next bridge IS the interstate,
and we'll be turning right onto it... " So I nailed the accelerator, entered
I-81 almost blind... but the Rain-X sure helped visibility. Especially with the
sloooow windshield wipers. I tore off my T-shirt as we passed a semi truck and
wiped off the inside of the windshield, where it was wet & foggy from the rain
at the stoplight. We drove about 50 miles home, through the storm, WITHOUT
raising the top. We passed a Miata and an Alfa Romeo who weren't the fools we
were (tops up). Overall, a very fun day, and I'm returning tomorrow. Daria
hasn't complained yet... "It was an adventure."
NEW Questions:
My right side high beam was out, so I got new headlamp bulbs &
installed them. Same thing. After cleaning contacts, the brights & dim bulbs
work fine, but the driver's side headlamp always wants to stay up! Currently, I
just disconnected both from power and have both raised. Any ideas?
Greg Smith
1980 TR7 Convertible - 30th Anniversary Edition
Member Central Pennsylvania Triumph Club (Hosting the '97 VTR Regionals!)
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