quicksilvr's 2001 R/T

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 11:16 am

DetergentCandy wrote:Define crunchy? >.>

I don't notice anything odd under 3500...
Mine's low...deep and mellow under 3500.

Was yours brand new?
I think they need 5000 miles to break 'em in.
And mine always sounds crappy(crunchy maybe?) when the engine is cold. Only starts sounding nice after a bit of driving.

You're right. The engine wasn't all the way warm when I heard this sound. It was really hot outside, and I'd been driving for several minutes so I kind of forgot that the engine wasn't hot yet. It doesn't do it when the engine is fully warm.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Fri Jun 10, 2011 11:19 am

Alex Kurdian wrote:

Mate...nice pick up...

can I ask though what do you think of the bulb shield on these fog lights? I'm about to replace my old set for a new pair and the bulb shield I think reduces the light output?? my old MOPAR ones had no bulb shield and it was nice and bright ..the new ones kinda SUCK light output is reduced...

Also whats the best way of replacing the fog lights? through the head light?

ps SICK GUN!!!!!!!!

I haven't really driven the car enough at night to have an opinion on the foglights. They do seem to have plenty of light output...but I don't have much to compare to either.

I need to aim them and then I'll see what I think. ALso, they just have the crappy stock bulbs in them...I'll upgrade the fog bulbs when I upgrade my headlight bulbs.

Replacing them means removing the lower chin spoiler/air deflector thing that the wires are attached to. And you could probably get to the screws from below, but since I had my headlights out, it was VERY easy to take the foglight attachment screws out from up top, reaching through the empty headlight hole. You could try to do it without taking the headlights out, and it might work.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Sun Jun 12, 2011 1:30 am

Dang front wheel hubs......

more later....

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Mon Jun 13, 2011 1:39 pm

I took the entire right front suspension apart. It needed a new tie rod end, the wheel bearing had some excessive play in it and the ball joint was fine, but I'm replacing it as preventative maintenance since I'm already in there.

New wheel bearing $50. New ball joint $36. Total - $86. If I take the knuckle/hub and the lower control arm to the shop and have someone else install them - $120. So.....I think I'll be doing them myself, and hopefully it all goes fine.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Tue Jun 14, 2011 8:26 pm

Slight change in plans. Thursday morning, I'm meeting my dad and we're going up to the farm where I grew up to use the press. I'm NOT installing a new balljoint though. I'd forgotten that I could put a zerk in the original one and grease it. Plus I bought a new OEM ball joint seal. So ~$12 for the seal and zerk, compared to $36 for a new, but maybe crappy quality aftermarket balljoint. And I don't have to press anything out.

I'll take my camera and hopefully take some good pictures of the hub/knuckle seperation, and the wheel bearing removal and installation. A properly written How-To when not using any special tools is probably in order.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Thu Jun 16, 2011 5:05 pm

While the suspension is apart, he got to hang out with big brother. Those horrible rear drums are almost gone, I started doing the swap a while back...

All done....

And there's a new How-To in the Chassis section of HT.

LowNSlow · Post by **LowNSlow** » Thu Jun 16, 2011 8:27 pm

Pics of the other goods?

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Thu Jun 16, 2011 9:31 pm

LowNSlow wrote:Pics of the other goods?

I just realized I haven't taken one yet. The car is actually in my dad's garage right now until I put the suspension back together. Then I'll bring it home and install the pretty new valve cover.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 12:23 pm

And the new hotness....

LowNSlow · Post by **LowNSlow** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 12:56 pm

So wet looking

SC62391 · Post by **SC62391** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 1:23 pm

Oooooh i like it

Post by **Diablo0** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 3:45 pm

LowNSlow wrote:So wet looking

I take it TxPowderCoating did the work? lol

heydockyle · Post by **heydockyle** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 3:47 pm

I better the picture doesn't do it justice either

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 4:24 pm

Diablo0 wrote:
LowNSlow wrote:So wet looking
I take it TxPowderCoating did the work? lol

lol, yes. Tim did a great job. The turn-around time was bad, but thankfully it didn't really matter that much. And he sent me some money back since it took so long, so that's solid customer service. I'd use him again in a heartbeat.

heydockyle wrote:I better the picture doesn't do it justice either

Actually, the picture is pretty accurate. In person it looks pretty much exactly like that. Which is damn good in my opinion.

MyNeonSaysHi · Post by **MyNeonSaysHi** » Fri Jun 17, 2011 11:33 pm

Cam cover looks nice.

I have had to replace wheel bearings 3 times. 2 on the drivers side and one on the passenger. Had a local shop press it out and a new one in for $20 cash.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Mon Jun 20, 2011 11:36 pm

Well, I washed the car real quick today. Figured I better take pictures while it was clean. And it's raining already.........lol

Edited ones...

Non-edited

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Mon Jun 20, 2011 11:39 pm

I was able to drive the car today because dad and I finally got the suspension put back together, as well as all new ARP wheel studs and some custom 12mm spacers at all 4 corners.

Pictures of the work....

This corner got a new tie rod end, and a new wheel bearing

Rear

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You can use "ARP Wheel Studs Dodge Neon Front, M12 X 1.5 W/.585 Seat", which is part number 100-7721 from ARP at all four corners. However, you'll have to drill the rear hubs out with a 9/16 drill bit. The front wheel studs are indeed a little bit bigger from the factory. Drilling the rear stud holes out is really easy though, and then the studs fit perfect. Also, the only picture I snapped where you can see the ARP studs (the one of the rear hub), you might notice that there is no nose on the studs. They do NOT come like that. We trimmed all of them, because with the nose, they won't fit in the front. They're too long to slide past the knuckle. The rears would have gone in just fine, because you take the whole hub off anyway. But they all got trimmed so they'd be the same. We did not have to trim off any threads. Just the nose.

SC62391 · Post by **SC62391** » Tue Jun 21, 2011 2:31 am

Car looks great Dave! Glad your taking good care of him

I like the sig

OB · Post by OB » Tue Jun 21, 2011 11:57 pm

What is the length difference between the ARP studs and stock? Looks like quite a bit.

LOVE how clean this car is. This build could stop now and I would be satisfied. Well, some serious suspension mods wouldn't hurt my feelings any...

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Wed Jun 22, 2011 10:49 am

OB wrote:What is the length difference between the ARP studs and stock? Looks like quite a bit.

LOVE how clean this car is. This build could stop now and I would be satisfied. Well, some serious suspension mods wouldn't hurt my feelings any...

The ARP studs are about 60mm I believe...including the nose. Stock is 41mm. Honestly, with the 12.7mm wheels spacers in play, the longer wheel studs were within one thread of the factory length. They worked perfect with those spacers.

And...the build is going to stop about now. lol. Not much more I have planned besides detailing the exterior and installing the new valve cover. Suspension is going to have to wait.

Car is at the shop right now, getting a front end alignment and the A/C fixed.

TurboVanDan · Post by **TurboVanDan** » Wed Jun 22, 2011 2:31 pm

I like this car more all the time... A few folks have already questioned if/when you might sell... Please don't sell it without giving me a chance at it. I could fold the back seat down, load the tools out of my Grand Cherokee into the Neon, and have a "new" flying toolshed... I could then sell one of the Jeep WJ's (probably the rustier one), and ride to town with Mama on snow days...

Of course you realize that I would then HAVE to install a trailer hitch on the car. But, of course, we already own a 2GN Neon trailer hitch...

TurboVanDan · Post by **TurboVanDan** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:40 pm

In case someone is wondering why there are TWO hex nuts on the wheel stud installation "tool" above... the inner nut is over-sized and slips easily over the threads. AND it slips over the unthreaded shoulder of the new stud. The unthreaded shoulder of the new studs extend through the hub flange about 3/8ths of an inch, meaning that a person needs some sort of spacer there allowing the stud to be drawn in completely.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:59 pm

^True

Whatever is rattling is getting more annoying. I think our diagnosis of the ebrake is probably correct. Which means, I need to adjust those ASAP and see if it fixes the rattle.

JeffM · Post by **JeffM** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 8:02 pm

Car looks really good, Dave. Really clean.

MyNeonSaysHi · Post by **MyNeonSaysHi** » Sat Jul 02, 2011 1:02 pm

JeffM wrote:Car looks really good, Dave. Really clean.

+1
Gorgeous.

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:06 pm

Forgot to update:

I adjusted both parking brake's, and it got rid of some of the rattle. However, when I was adjusting them, I could tell that one of the springs on the driver side wasn't there....or at least wasn't where it was supposed to be.

About 3 days after adjusting them, a horrible clunk/thud/screech along with a nice jerk snapped me to full attention....I thought my transmission bit the dust or something. Then I realized it was the e-brake, and I parked the car as quick as I could. After taking both brakes completely apart, the passenger rear was just fine. The driver side however, was a complete disaster. I should have taken a picture of the carnage. Everything was broken, and literally just banging around inside the backing plate. I'm lucky something didn't lock me up, and I wasn't going 70mph.

I removed every part of the ebrake apparatus on the driver side, and then had to zip tie the part that is clamped onto the cable up out of the way, since there was nothing to hold it in place. So right now I can't pull my ebrake lever or I'll snap my zip tie. It's just slightly annoying, because it's 105 degree's outside right now, and since the car is a manual...I can't leave it running and parked anywhere unless it's perfectly flat, or I bump up against a curb or something. I've been using good old fashioned wheel chocks in my driveway.

OB · Post by OB » Tue Aug 02, 2011 8:41 pm

It's too hot out to fix it! Weenie!

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Tue Aug 02, 2011 10:00 pm

OB wrote:It's too hot out to fix it! Weenie!

Hahaha, I never said that! I said it's annoying to not be able to park the car and leave it running with the A/C on.

I'll fix it whenever I get the time....no matter how hot it is outside.

MyNeonSaysHi · Post by **MyNeonSaysHi** » Sat Aug 06, 2011 10:45 pm

MEh I don't understand why people leave their car running with their AC on for 20 minutes waiting to go into work.. My car shakes quite badly with the AC on, due to solid torque struts and tranny mount. Not fun. I only use it on the interstate when I am cruising. IT is indeed hot, looks like its letting up early next week. I think we had over 20 days in a row over 90...

quicksilvr · Post by **quicksilvr** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 6:40 pm

Yeah, I never do that. My job requires me to drive around town and make a lot of quick stops. A lot of times I'm in and out in less than 5 minutes. Leaving the car running with the A/C on is a lifesaver in those situations. But with no parking brake, I have to get creative...or just turn the car off.

My idle speed is just barely high enough to keep it from shaking when the A/C is on. It didn't shake at all before I put the prothane MM inserts in. Now it only shakes if I bog it taking off, or occasionally when coming to a stop in neutral.