Hello Everyone
I just got done with my fourth change to my "new" (well, new to me) camaro (Ahhh.. yes, the fun begin's :^)
I have been cruising eBay for the past few weeks
The first thing was that stupid power tailgate latch. The rear tailgate was not closing properly (water leak) and upon closer inspection I discovered that the motor has "lost" (sheared off) one of the mounts. There are three bolts that hold the motor on, and two of those bolts are rather close together. The farthest one was the one that sheared off and the motor could "rotate" which kept it from pulling the rear hatch down all the way. I tried to tighten the remaining two bolts (and bias the motor to what I thought was the correct position) but then the motor stripped out the drive screw when trying to close the door. A quick trip to a local junkyard and $45 (WOW they want a LOT of $$ for those things new) and a little R&R and I was all set.
The second thing was the gas struts that hold the rear hatch open were FUBAR, so they needed replacing. Off to Autozone and $54 later, I had a set, which was an easy install (once I found a pole that was the right length, that could hold open the rear hatch while I worked on it :^)
The third thing I changed was no big deal, just the door handles (I wanted them black to match the door opener, not the interior, which is gray) and I don't know why it didn't come that way, because it just "looks" better.
The forth thing, I just finished changing out the 85 mph speedo/idiot lights for the 100mph speedo w/gages and tach. This was a PITA (pain in the a**). It took me a little while to figure out how to get in there and get it all apart. Then it was dropping the fuse box to get my hand in to were the speedo cable was (to re-insert it) and dropping the steering column to get the clearance to get the "pod" in and out. I am happy to say that everything went back together (no left over screws/parts) and starting the car shows that the gages/tach are active.
Humm.. if you are still reading this and have not dozed off, I do need some help/advice. The Oil pressure gage is "pegged" at the high end of the scale and I did not let the car run long enough to see the temp gage rise (The Tach, Voltmeter, and Fuel gage seem to be correct).
Will I need to switch out the sending units for the Water Temp and Oil Pressure ?? Anything else I should watch out for (I know, I know.. its a fine time to ask that now :^)
Also, my next "adventure" is to fix the headliner, which has fallen down (currently held up with some staples in various locations). My plan is to remove it from the car, and use a spray adhesive, then a roller brush to push it into place. While the headliner is out, I would like to install the overhead console that I got off eBay. Has anyone ever installed an overhead console ?? Tip's and suggestions are most welcome.
NonFat
87 Camaro LT 90 Harley FXRT