The GTS4 IS NOW MINE
05-23-2012, 04:43 PM
#31
Not the sharpest tool in the shed
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Congratulations Jerry. There is nothing wrong with getting into a project once you have had an opportunity to fully assess a car fully. You have done that. Looking forward to updates.
05-23-2012, 08:18 PM
#32
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Speaking of front seats, if you have looked at this car in the Registry you will see that the front seats are not the original comfort seats it came with, but they are not the kind of seats we usually think of as sport seats either. What I think they are maybe are the kind of sport seats that you would have received in the 928 if ordered specially in about 84 or 85.Jerry Feather
Good luck on the project, and keep us updated with lots of pics.
Eddie
05-24-2012, 02:48 AM
#34
Captain Obvious
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Very rarely they drill out the spot welds and swap out the structure. In most cases, they jsut cut the entire front off, at a convinient and measurable location, and then simply weld on the replacement front clip. Before or after the shock towers is the most commont location for the graft on most cars.
05-24-2012, 12:25 PM
#35
Story was they caught the original carpet on fire as they were welding on the clip ??? But as was stated lots of missinformation about this car. Jerry is going to know a lot more once he puts it up on a lift.
06-02-2012, 01:32 PM
#37
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Thread Starter
Needed different ramps
I had thought I would have the car out of the trailer last week, but I was held up by two things--one, my son's wedding on Sunday, which took up the whole holiday weekend with out-of-town friends and family, and, two, the need to develop different ramps to get the car out.
What I discovered was the the grinding and crunching noise I heard at the end of the loading of the GTS4 into the trailer in Illinois was the tail end of the car dragging across the front top of the fixed ramps I was using. The ramps were not connected to the trailer.
If I had thought it through a little more I could have figured out that when the weight of the car shifted from the ramps, fixed at a certain height on the ground, to the tail of the trailer the trailer would settle some in its suspension and drop a little, and then when the rear wheels found the tail of the trailer it would drop some more. When it did the tail of the car had to drag across the top of the ramps. The damage is only slight and just in the paint on the underside of the rear bumper cover, so that will be taken care of when I paint the entire car.
Here is a picture of the new ramps I am making that will hang on the tail of the trailer rather then have the front of them on the ground. I should be able to finish them up today or by in the morning and then I can get the car out and take some pictures of the things I think will need some kinds of attention to get this car in shape.
Jerry Feather
What I discovered was the the grinding and crunching noise I heard at the end of the loading of the GTS4 into the trailer in Illinois was the tail end of the car dragging across the front top of the fixed ramps I was using. The ramps were not connected to the trailer.
If I had thought it through a little more I could have figured out that when the weight of the car shifted from the ramps, fixed at a certain height on the ground, to the tail of the trailer the trailer would settle some in its suspension and drop a little, and then when the rear wheels found the tail of the trailer it would drop some more. When it did the tail of the car had to drag across the top of the ramps. The damage is only slight and just in the paint on the underside of the rear bumper cover, so that will be taken care of when I paint the entire car.
Here is a picture of the new ramps I am making that will hang on the tail of the trailer rather then have the front of them on the ground. I should be able to finish them up today or by in the morning and then I can get the car out and take some pictures of the things I think will need some kinds of attention to get this car in shape.
Jerry Feather
06-09-2012, 03:44 PM
#40
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Thread Starter
Unloaded at last
I finished up the new ramps and finally today got the GTS4 unloaded so I can start looking it over more closely. The battery is dead, as it was when I picked the car up in Illinois, so I am charging it. There is a battery tender installed, but I can't tell if it is even hooked up. It didn't seem to be putting any charge in the battery for the fairly short time I had it plugged in, so I unhooked the battery and put my regular charger on it.
Here are some pictures of where I am with the car today. Some of the preliminary issues I see with the car are shown in a couple of the pictures, such as the multitude of different red colors on various parts of the car. So, of course, it is going to be repainted in ther near future.
From earlier pictures of the car on the 928 Registry and in person I can see that the hood gaps are not even. They are, however, the same width fore and aft, just different widths from one side to the other.
I haven't taken a picture of the hatch issue yet, but I find that it is not mounted very well being a little low in front. I think that can be shimmed up and moved a little foreward to solve that issue. Too, I think the hatch came from another car, for some reason, because it is really different in color.
There is no evidence (other than the hatch, perhaps) that the car has had any rear end damage, certainly nothing that would have totaled it. All the sheet metal in and around the rear cargo area is in original condition.
There are alot of interior cosmetic issues that I will take pictures of later and suggest what I intend to do about them. One of them is the removal of the old style sport seats and replacing them with my own redesigned version of the later style sport seats. I'll be doing a seperate thread about what Doug and I are going to do to them in the next few weeks.
Finally fior now, I have included a couple of pictures of the gaps at the front of each of the doors. These gaps are about a sixteenth of an inch off from being even top to bottom and I suspect that is the result of how the graft of the 88 S4front clip was done. I am hoping that the gaps may be cured with fender mounting adjustment, but if not I can feel OK about it since they are the same on each side and the discrepancy is not too great. They, like the hood gaps are at least consistent so as to preclude the idea of the car going sideways down the road, but maybe with just a tiny bit of positive "angle of attack."
More to follow after I get it running and set up for WW Liner fitting.
Jerry Feather
Here are some pictures of where I am with the car today. Some of the preliminary issues I see with the car are shown in a couple of the pictures, such as the multitude of different red colors on various parts of the car. So, of course, it is going to be repainted in ther near future.
From earlier pictures of the car on the 928 Registry and in person I can see that the hood gaps are not even. They are, however, the same width fore and aft, just different widths from one side to the other.
I haven't taken a picture of the hatch issue yet, but I find that it is not mounted very well being a little low in front. I think that can be shimmed up and moved a little foreward to solve that issue. Too, I think the hatch came from another car, for some reason, because it is really different in color.
There is no evidence (other than the hatch, perhaps) that the car has had any rear end damage, certainly nothing that would have totaled it. All the sheet metal in and around the rear cargo area is in original condition.
There are alot of interior cosmetic issues that I will take pictures of later and suggest what I intend to do about them. One of them is the removal of the old style sport seats and replacing them with my own redesigned version of the later style sport seats. I'll be doing a seperate thread about what Doug and I are going to do to them in the next few weeks.
Finally fior now, I have included a couple of pictures of the gaps at the front of each of the doors. These gaps are about a sixteenth of an inch off from being even top to bottom and I suspect that is the result of how the graft of the 88 S4front clip was done. I am hoping that the gaps may be cured with fender mounting adjustment, but if not I can feel OK about it since they are the same on each side and the discrepancy is not too great. They, like the hood gaps are at least consistent so as to preclude the idea of the car going sideways down the road, but maybe with just a tiny bit of positive "angle of attack."
More to follow after I get it running and set up for WW Liner fitting.
Jerry Feather
06-09-2012, 04:51 PM
#41
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Thread Starter
Small issues to solve
When I first picked the car up in IL I noticed that there was a strange fitment in regard to the top rear of the fenders in their relation to the metal cowl trim piece just below and foreward of the windshield. On closer inspectioin I discovered that the fender have been installed on top of the cowl trim piece rather than the other way. That is putting the surface edges of them in bad relation. I supose that will be cured when I take the fenders off for the repaint. Here are some pictures of what I am talking about, although I don't think you can see the error down where the components are misplaced with each other.
These pictures also show some butt-ugly material between the dash and the windshield that will have to be addressed at some point, and some kind of black goo that looks like it is glueing the end of the dash to something.
Jerry Feather
These pictures also show some butt-ugly material between the dash and the windshield that will have to be addressed at some point, and some kind of black goo that looks like it is glueing the end of the dash to something.
Jerry Feather
06-09-2012, 05:03 PM
#43
Rennlist Member
Jerry,
Having seen this car about 8 years ago, before the front "grafting" took place, I know there is going to be work to do in order for it to meet your standards. BUT, I also know you will take your time, and it WILL be right and VERY presentable when you get that work done.
Just keep letting us know the status of this restoration, and the WW fitting work. Most of us are anxious to follow both.
Best wishes in a your continuing great projects. See you at OCIC, we hope.
Gary Knox
Having seen this car about 8 years ago, before the front "grafting" took place, I know there is going to be work to do in order for it to meet your standards. BUT, I also know you will take your time, and it WILL be right and VERY presentable when you get that work done.
Just keep letting us know the status of this restoration, and the WW fitting work. Most of us are anxious to follow both.
Best wishes in a your continuing great projects. See you at OCIC, we hope.
Gary Knox
06-09-2012, 05:16 PM
#44
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Thread Starter
I'm registered for OCIC and have a room reserved. I'll probably be there thursday afternoon, if I get out of here wednesday afternoon. I'm planning to bring this car with me in the trailer and hope to have some of the WW Liner project with me as well as some of my other items. I also hope to have the seats done by then so I can show them off.
One thing I noticed when I picked up the car is that it is very difficult to shift the 5 speed into first and reverse, less difficult into 2 and 3 and not so hard 4 and 5. I had hoped that it might be in the linkage, but today when I was unloading the car I happened to test the shifting with the engine not running and it seems to shift just fine. So, I think I am going to have to deal with the dual disc clutch adjustment that we have have heard so much about.
Jerry Feather
One thing I noticed when I picked up the car is that it is very difficult to shift the 5 speed into first and reverse, less difficult into 2 and 3 and not so hard 4 and 5. I had hoped that it might be in the linkage, but today when I was unloading the car I happened to test the shifting with the engine not running and it seems to shift just fine. So, I think I am going to have to deal with the dual disc clutch adjustment that we have have heard so much about.
Jerry Feather
06-09-2012, 05:49 PM
#45
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Thread Starter
Well, it started right up and I drove it down to the airport and back, about 3 miles total. It doesn't shift as poorly as I weas expecting, but still needs some adjustment, probably the DD clutch. I have it backed into the shade of my deck where I am going to jack it up and get with the liners. It sure seems like it has an abundance of power.
Jerry Feather
Jerry Feather