Ernie The 2002 - A slow restoration

[jgerock]

3 hours ago, ErnieThe02 said:

Made a pilgrimage out to @Brandon today to grab some needed stuff plus a whole bunch of “just in case” stuff.

Great guy and his dad has some great racing stories.

Just thankful there are people out there helping keep these old cars on the road!

 

Lol- I bought my tii from @Brandon. He told me about the FAQ. 

[SydneyTii]

On 6/7/2023 at 10:44 AM, ErnieThe02 said:

Tint complete.

It’s a little less noticeable outside in daylight but the slight blue tint looks sharp.

 

Nice tint, what brand/make is it?

[ErnieThe02]

6 hours ago, SydneyTii said:

Nice tint, what brand/make is it?

Xpel ceramic

 

[ErnieThe02]

Well, after many unforeseen challenges I’ve finally finished replacing the heater box fan using @Chris_B’s tech article.   I didn’t realize until it was too late to return it but my replacement fan motor had a broken vinyl fan to shaft connector.   With a ton of effort snd a few different attempts to ensure that the reused vinyl piece held properly (ultimately used superglue)…..the box is now reinstalled and operational (with reverse polarity after installing it once where is spun backwards). 

Definitely know more about the car that I did before, learned how to use a rivet gun but definitely hoping never to do this job again  😀

 

Edited September 3, 2023 by ErnieThe02

[ErnieThe02]

Just catching up on a couple of repairs and upgrades as I use this thread to keep my project list organized.

1.  Used @John76’s wiring diagram to get my Momo steering wheel horn button to work.   Much better than the aftermarket buzzer button I screwed in under the dash to pass my safety inspection

2.  Found the source of oil/film in my center console was caused by a loose connection on the back of the mechanical oil pressure gauge.  
3.  Started work on my scratched up bumpers using a 5 inch orbital sander and 8 inch polishing tool.

 

 

 

[John76]

On 10/1/2023 at 1:37 PM, ErnieThe02 said:

 Started work on my scratched up bumpers using a 5 inch orbital sander and 8 inch polishing tool.

Wow! Bumper looks great.

What did you use with the 8" polishing tool?

Thanks,

John

[Charles in PA]

Seconding @John76's question on the bumpers.  They look amazing. What exactly did you do? thanks

[ErnieThe02]

13 hours ago, John76 said:

Wow! Bumper looks great.

What did you use with the 8" polishing tool?

Thanks,

John

I just went to Harbor Freight and got the foam pads.   
1. Compound cutting pad

2.  Polishing pad

3.  Finishing pad

$7 each

 

[ErnieThe02]

On 10/3/2023 at 9:26 PM, John76 said:

Wow! Bumper looks great.

What did you use with the 8" polishing tool?

Thanks,

John

 

On 10/4/2023 at 10:00 AM, Charles in PA said:

Seconding @John76's question on the bumpers.  They look amazing. What exactly did you do? thanks

And for clarity….300, 400, 600, 800 grit on orbital sander 

Hand sanded with 1,000, 1,500

McGuires polishing compound in coarse, medium and fine (theor bottles have the equivalent of a thermometer on the front showing how aggressive the compound is.

Used the Harbor freight cutting pad with coarse, Polishing pad with medium and Finishing with fine. 

[ECL]

On 2/27/2023 at 8:31 PM, ErnieThe02 said:

Well I finally pulled the trigger and bought a 1974 2002.   I grew up in Marin County and these were everywhere.  Having just finished my restoration on a 1988 FJ62 Land Cruiser (Burt), I needed a good stable mate…hence buying Ernie the 02.

This will be a weekly driver vs daily for cruising around.
Found this one up in the Bay Area and shipped it to Massachusetts.   It was in descent shape.

I’ll work on it in winter, driven Spring/Summer/Fall.

 

Work done thus far:

- New seat covers (World Upholstery), horsehair seat pads (BMW) and professional installation (Benefit Auto Services Corp Pawtucket RI)

- Brake booster refurbish and brake master (Ireland Engineering), bled brakes and clutch (yes, I fought through the b$@ch clip and brake booster bolts in only 4.5 hours)

- Bosch starter (FCP Euro)

- Headrest bezels and seat bracket bumper/cushions (2002ad)

- Kumho Solus 175/70 R13  all season tires (not a ton of choice in this size for all season daily driver use!)

 

Short term work on deck

- LED tail, brake, turn signal, side marker lights (SuberbrightLEDs.com)

- Replacement bumper bellows (front left is cracked)

- Replace right rear rail lamp lens (left and right both functional but don’t match color due to age)

- Add windshield sprayer tank/motor/tubing (not installed but found via ebay)

 

Long term work on deck

- Add A/C which I’m sourcing from ICE Air in CA

- Kooglewerks shifter and dash panels to accept A/C (already sourced)

 

 

 

She's a beauty and congrats!  I just took ownership of mine last week and now the fun begins to bring her back to all her glory.

 

I am glad I read your post, as I live 2 ,miles from Benefit Auto and I had NO idea they even existed?

 

Best of luck!

[ErnieThe02]

Well I finally got around to having the exhaust installed (sourced from @Brandon’s spare parts warehouse).   Pics to come soon but as an added bonus….the clunk in the rear end is gone.   The previous setup allowed the top of the muffler to impact the body (mostly on upshift but occasionally reversing over the curb in my driveway).  

 

The horn now operates with the “Momo” steering wheel setup without blowing the #6 fuse (memebers helped me out on another thread)

 

Hoping to start the ICE Auto A/C install over thanksgiving.

 

Getting closer…..just in time to put the rig away for the winter 👎

 

[JsnPpp]

Great progress!

[ErnieThe02]

Beauty shot of the "near new" exhaust.

Also turns out the diff input flange wasn't tightened to spec so there was some wiggle/looseness with the crush washer.   We'll get that dialed in.

On a sadder note, I just unboxed by ICE Auto Air A/C kit and it wasn't until today that I realized I needed a dual groove crank pulley vs the single that's on the car.   Have one inbound from @2002AD.     

 

[ErnieThe02]

@Mike Self saves the day again.   Read his writeup under the technical articles section and now have a working turn signal indicator lamp in my instrument cluster!   We just had to adjust one of the contacts in the turn signal relay.

 

 

[ErnieThe02]

More progress toward the A/C install.

Two groove pulley from @2002ADinstalled.

Ash tray/hazard assembly arrived from Germany, all cleaned up and ready to go.

A/C control bracket installed and ash tray mounted.