'89 RT4WD Refurbish Project

Hi All, so I'm working on refurbishing my '89 RT4WD Wagon, and I'm excited to document as much of the process as I can.

I'm currently driving my '90 RT4WD (Blue Angel) on the daily, and the '89 RT4WD (Blue Thunder) has been parked for about a year and a half/two years. The Thunder has served me well for many years, but it eventually got broken down to the point where I just needed to do more work than I could afford financially. I decided to let it just hang out for a while until I could get my resources together, and in the meantime I got a call from a stranger telling me that I'd left a note on his wagon three years prior and asking if I'd like to buy his wagon because he had to sell it. For a great price. Yes. Bought it immediately and I've been driving it for the past couple years with very minimal work (valve cover gasket, front axle replace, tires, and spark plugs) [oh, and new fuel pump too, that was a bummer]. So, that's how I got the Blue Angel and why the Blue Thunder has been semi-retired.

The general idea is to get the car back to a reliable and slightly stronger version of stock. The only significant mod is to replace the top half of the d16a6 with VTEC for a little more 'umph!' on the mountain roads around here. Driving up steep hills with a car full of adult passengers is currently not a very fast endeavor. Other than that, just sprucing up the old parts with replacements! Suspension, brakes, bushings, etc. I will post greater part details as they're going in.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to documenting all of the work that's happening!
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*updated*

Okay, just had to snoop around a bit to figure out how to post pics, seems like this will work for now, been a long day...
attachment.php?attachmentid=3223&d=1453956774

Comments

  • 7___3___27___3___2 Band Wagon
    Rad man, love those lower option fog lights you guys get in the front bumpers
  • BloOp...BloOp... Band Wagon
    Thanks man! I love the fog lights too, that bumper is coming off of that car and going on the '89 getting built!
  • BloOp...BloOp... Band Wagon
    Alright y'all, here are a few pictures from yesterday. I'm going to try and keep up with all the pictures and progress that we're making here as it happens, so please excuse me if the posts seem brief or incomplete. I'll try and fill in the gaps as I'm able.

    We jump started the Blue Thunder ('89) and drove it down to my buddy's shop where it will be residing for the next little while. It was so haggard driving it down there! Ha, the rear right wheel bearing is grinding up a storm and sounded god-awful. I also forgot that one of the tires on it was basically just a 'place-holder' and is totally shot as well. It bulges out in one spot, so the whole car was shaking back and forth kind of like a salsa dancer. Fortunately, the shop where I was headed is basically in my neighborhood, so it was all good. very low speed...

    Got it into the garage:
    attachment.php?attachmentid=3225&d=1453993685

    My brother (pictured) is giving me a hand, so we did a little cleaning in the shop and then headed over to O'Reilly's to buy a few parts and cleaning supplies. I'm planning on doing the engine work a little later on, so right now we're just focusing on suspension, brakes, bushings, replacing old bolts, etc. I also need to switch the bumpers between the two cars so I have the fog lights on the Blue Thunder. Here's a somewhat recent pic of the two together:
    attachment.php?attachmentid=3224&d=1453956841

    So, I should also throw a disclaimer in at this point for all of the seriously knowledgable and dedicated mechanics out there; I'm not very much of a mechanic (the only knowledge I have is from keeping these wagons rolling) because, #2 I don't have very much money (so excessive paint, body, custom mods, expensive parts, etc. are out) That being said, I love the wagon so so much, humble as mine are, and I'm super stoked to keep them rolling.

    Anyway, we just got the car into place, cleaned up our workbench, and got 'er up on jackstands.

    attachment.php?attachmentid=3228&d=1453993762

    Not a lot of work done mechanically this first day, but we did some nice cleaning. Soaked some old bolts down in WD-40 and took the rear brakes apart; just getting prepped to do more work today!

    attachment.php?attachmentid=3227&d=1453993762

    Here's a final shot of the larger space that we're working in. There're a lot of motorcycles in various stages of becoming severely awesome, along with a bunch of other random projects. Fun!!

    attachment.php?attachmentid=3226&d=1453993726


    More pics and updates to come as they happen. This is just the beginning!
  • RevmaynardRevmaynard Council Member
    Passion will go along way without a lot of mechanical knowledge! Good luck with the progress and we look forward to updates! Just a tip, but if you've got a lot of seized bolts and such PB Blaster works much better, it's a penetrating oil and not a lubricant like WD40.
  • 7___3___27___3___2 Band Wagon
    Looks great, your motivating me to head into the shed. Would love some of those clear/orange corner lights! We don't get them in nz :(
  • BloOp...BloOp... Band Wagon
    Alright, so we spent a little more time in the shop today. Got all of the front suspension apart and getting cleaned up. Started cleanup on the interior as well, giving it a good deep clean. Decided to pull the seats out, and then I just couldn't stop. It was so gross inside the car; just deep down. Almost 30 years of gross, and then parked to sit and simmer for a couple years. So, I decided the carpet and vinyl could use a good clean.

    Here's one seat out, tiny dog assist:

    attachment.php?attachmentid=3229&d=1454044192

    The seats are from an Si, and I love them. Other than the one tear in this pic, they're pretty darn spiffy, and the foam is still really firm. Nice sporty buckets. I would highly recommend these in your wagon, but they do require a bit of mod work. I had to bolt them onto the lower half of the stock seat in order to bolt into the frame of the car. I kind of forgot that I even did that project, but seeing the seat out of the car reminded me of a pretty good time searching out wagon parts in the middle-of-nowhere of NC 2012-ish. Finding these seats, among other great parts and adventure, was a fortunate result. I like the overlapping vinyl on the sides:

    attachment.php?attachmentid=3231&d=1454044228

    Also continued the work on the suspension, getting everything apart and clean. We'll be doing new bushings all around, shocks, and brakes going in. Undercoating as necessary. But for now, just getting the front apart. Ball joints are a b!†
  • BloOp...BloOp... Band Wagon
    Stoked for the sweet sweet wagon...
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