Joe's NB8A

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Mon Dec 09, 2019 9:16 pm

Hi folks. Long time no see.

For those I haven't met, my first NA6 was back in 2008. Build thread has many more photos/details but the imported V Special II ended up as a weekend car which looked something like this by the time I sold it in 2015.

2011 saw my then girlfriend (now wife) and I pick up another NA6 to use as our daily. This time an Australian delivered LE which stayed with us until 2014.

Responsible adult me now has a house (with a garage), a two year old daughter, and as of last Friday, a pretty rough NB8A. Has a bajillion kms, a torn roof, ripped seats, dented panels, incredibly faded paintwork, but seems ok mechanically. Belts, water pump, etc were done not that long ago but I'll give it a full going over of all fluids shortly. Also currently has three different tyres, some of which are date coded 2013, so they'll need to go asap.

Plan is it leave it fairly stock (seat, harness, rollbar), keep an eye out for some suitable wheels, replace the worn out bushings and brakes, and possibly get some new springs and shocks. Mostly the plan is to beat the snot out of it though. Khanacross and motorkhana will be the most common events, but I'd like to hit up the odd track day as well from time to time.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Thu Dec 26, 2019 2:53 pm

Hooray for boxing day sales! New engine, gearbox, and diff oil, air filter, and plugs all acquired and with any luck will be changed before new years.

I've now put about 200kms on it as a mix of highway and commuting around town and about the only thing I can fault it with is a decent whine coming from the gearbox. Best guess so far is input shaft bearing as the noise is there when the car is moving or stationary, in gear or neutral, but goes away when the clutch is depressed. Current plan is hope that an oil change will sort it and reassess later if not. Also the stereo doesn't turn on. Not ideal but not something I'm bothered by enough to justify exploring further yet.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 1:13 pm

And new fluids through out. Didn't get to the plug as I ran out of time, but an uneventful afternoon otherwise. Engine oil looked ok, gearbox oil looked well dead, diff seemed good.

In the 5 minute drive around the block I'd say the fresh gear oil has improved the whine, but certainly not fixed it.

Custardtart · Postby **Custardtart** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 9:12 pm

Likely the input shaft bearing as you say. Best get it fixed asap, check the clutch while you’re in there.

Postby **NitroDann** » Fri Jan 03, 2020 9:47 pm

You're the best bloke on the forum Joe, Enjoy your new car mate.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Sat Jan 04, 2020 5:06 pm

Aww, thanks Dann. Great to see you're still around. I'd butter you up and say that I should get up to see you for some goodies but the entire point of the car is to keep it simple and drive it, so I won't lie to you.

Postby **NitroDann** » Sat Jan 04, 2020 9:26 pm

I'm not even involved anymore mate.

Been and gone.

PaulF · Postby **PaulF** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 2:26 pm

Good to see you're back in a roadster Joe. Don't even think about painting it; it's perfect!

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Wed Jan 22, 2020 11:08 pm

Still had my Recaro seat kicking around from my old NA and decided to swap it in yesterday. Completely forgot that while the seat rails may be interchangeable between NA6 and NA8/NB's, the seatbelt stalk isn't. Couldn't be bothered swapping rails and it was time to go back inside anyway so the stock seat went back in and I have something to look forward to for another day I guess.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Tue Jan 28, 2020 8:11 pm

Messing around in the garage unpacking, cleaning, organising, etc yesterday and decided to have a crack that the ye olde bunnings offset number plate bracket. Cue a few minutes with an aluminum bracket I found laying around, a drill, an angle grinder, a bolt, two washers, and a spanner and we went from this...

to this...

Also not specially car related but I also got a tv, laptop, and pc speakers mounted on the wall too. Huzzah for 10-15 year old electronics that have been kicking around the house for years waiting for this opportunity. And a special mention to $8 ebay bluetooth media PC keyboards! Now I can internet for walkthroughs and the like without getting my phone dirty.

Jeo · Postby **Jeo** » Sat Feb 01, 2020 9:38 pm

Only a month later than planned but got around to fitting the new plugs today. All of them we pretty black and while I wouldn't have said it was running poorly before, it's definitely better now.

Also took the opportunity to test the compression while I was at it. Dave had assured me that all was well before I purchased the car and while I had no reason to doubt him, seemed like a worthwhile use of my time. Readings were a little low but at least consistent, so not at all worried. Definitely willing to put that down to the gauge. All four cylinders were around the 165 mark for those playing at home.

And finally for something completely out of the ordinary, I also gave the car a wash this evening. Sacrilege, I know right.