NO ARCHIVE
Joe, Dave, and everyone else,
Wow! Lots of advice! I can't thank you great people enough for your
suggestions and many words of encouragement! I have a lot to consider,
it seems. Ron Fowler brings up a good point. The TR7 might have some
traction problems on the steepish hills in the Athens, OH area, but this
*might* be overcome with a set of decent snowtires, perhaps studded
(they still allow those here in Ohio for a few months in the winter).
My biggest concern is the potential rust this could cause. The car was
Ziebarted when it was brand-new, and had many touch-ups through its
life, so subsequently has a nice, thick layer of rubberized
undercoating, which is all starting to peel off now (yuck!) I've been
peeling it off gradually over the winter, and will take it back to
Ziebart to have the touch-up done.
Mechanically, I don't have any concerns. The car is in good shape in
that respect, and the EFI would be a great aid in winter cold-starting.
It has four almost-new cheapie all-season tires on it (Accolade?) As
far as preparing the car for winter use, some great advice was given.
Many folks suggested that I invest in some serious rustproofing.
Ziebart has already drilled all the holes needed to inject the cavities,
but unfortunately rust has set in in the usual places, mostly in the
quarters and at the point where the floors meet the bulkhead.
A few of you have suggested that I get the Honda into working order,
and drive it in the winter. I wasn't clear in my initial message. The
Honda is in perfect working order, and is in like-new condition. It
only has 35,000 on the clock! It is the old, OLD style Civic with the
CVCC and, here's the bad part, a 3-speed auto. This makes it totally
unsuitable for any speeds over 55mph, and the state speed limit is 65
here, with traffic usually going 70-80.
If I decide to sell the Honda and use that cash to "winterize" the TR7,
I will a.) meet opposition from the "big cheese" (dad), because his
greatest fear with this scenario is RUST. If I could satisfactorily
protect the car from tin worm, I'd probably be crazy enough to try it.
Heck, you only live once, right?
I appreciate all of your support and ideas (That collection idea is
thoughtful, but I don't expect listers to donate money, though I
certainly wouldn't turn it down if it were offered! I'm not *that*
crazy!), and I welcome them. You can look at my webpage and see some
pictures of the car (members.xoom.com/bfurgalus). If anyone has any
ideas on who makes a high quality, affordable hardtop for the '7, I'd be
most interested in hearing from you!
I apologise for the very long message, but I'd rather respond to all of
your messages in one large one than many little ones.
Many, many thanks,
Brian
> Joe and the list:
>
> With grades like that I think Brian deserves a Scholarship! A TR7
> Mainenence
> scholarship. If we each tossed $5.00 in the pot we can raise enough money
> to keep his car on the road for the duration of his college education
> (unless
> he decides to become a "professional student.")
>
> Just a thought
>
> Dave
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