Shame

Why would they hide such a beauty?

Why? Just why?

M

Lucky Fellow

Four days ago the Camry's "check engine" light went on. Cause: unknown. My brother and I was headed up to Beverly Hills to pick up his gf and on the way there the engine felt a little funky driving on the freeway. The engine felt like it was resisting a little bit when I tried to keep it on constant speed. Then one hour later, four blocks away from the pick-up house, the accelaration was completely gone unless I pushed the pedal all the way down. It was pretty scary driving at idle speed when the pedal was half way down.

My plan that day was to return to Hesperia to work on the MR2, but my brother said the Camry wouldn't make it. He took the wheel and we somehow made it back to OC. His solution was just to run a diagnostics test and see where it goes from there. Luckily, last monday, I asked Mr, Clyde (AT inst.) allowed me to bring the car in this morning as a test vehicle (we were working on sensors, good timing huh) for the class and run a diagnosis at the same time. His scanner is pretty cool, $1000+ peice of equipment.

Solution: A broken hose on the Mapping system leading to the intake.
It was pretty obvious, but to my eyes it was hidden treasure.

The diagnosis itself would've cost me $100 plus the new hose, which equals up to $110. Mr. Clyde was nice enough to throw the whole thing in for free, except he said that I would have to take his class next semester to make up for it. I smiled.

M

Week 1: She Needs A Name

History: My cousin, Jed, bought the car online from San Diego about 4 years ago with it already being a little beaten up. Im guessing the previous owner treated her like a civic and thought he'd add 1000hp with bolt on parts. My brother, Noliver, predicted the car would last only a few months in Jed's hands due to his lack of knowledge in cars; he was right. After a few dents to the body, lost bumpers, and a crashed front, soon enough Jed got frustrated and sold the car to Noli, hoping he could save it and prolong its life. Noli worked on the poor thing in his spare time and managed to keep it in "quarantined" status with a few added body parts and (very) little engine work. After a few restoration attempts, he too grew frustrated and decided to leave the car alone. I, on the other hand, grew affectionate with her from the moment I felt her supercharged twin cam engine going 60 in a residential zone. I asked my brother what kind of future will come about for the MR2, and, to my surprise, he said "not a bad one". He added that the MR2 still has potential and can be revived, only if it's placed in the right hands. So on that day he placed her in mine. It was tough watching her rust under the scortching, hot sun in the high desert of Hesperia. But more heartbreaking it was to have felt nothing when I cranked her ignition switch. This, I thought, will take a lot of work and sacrifice. This, I felt, was love. I don't blame you calling me crazy or even stupid to fall for a scrap metal, junk. But just like in Diarios de motocicleta, Alberto Granado with his barely functioning Norton 500, I and my '88 MR2 AW11 SC had a moment. I found myself speaking to her in a more reassuring voice and looked at her in a way as though she was in some sort of coma, added with "it's going to be ok" and "I'll take care of you".

Official start: 7/3

Objective: Start her up
Result: Failed

Parts replaced: alternator, spark plugs



With only a keen eye diagnosis by Noli, his solution to the start up was to replace the alternator. My work station was right where she was sitting and just a bed of cardboard inbetween me and the rocky dirt below plus unwanted heat waves, which made the alt. removal harder than usual. Loosening the belts alone was difficult because her engine bay was really small and required (almost) a 2 foot extension for the socket. Dirt and dried up oil would get in my eyes when I went under. It was frustrating, but I got the job done. During the reinstallation process, my bro threw in new spark plugs, which I really appreciated.



After everything was in place, the ultimate test came, but failed. My brother's keen eye diagnosis only help turn gears, but didn't get her to start. That night I went home tired and deeply moroseful, but deep in the back of my mind, I was hopeful.



Est. time: 1 Day
Real time: 1 week

This morning I spoke with my AT instructor and helped me find a possible solution to the start up problem.
1) Check if I have spark
"If you replaced the plugs with new ones, check if you have actual spark"
2)Buy throttle body cleaner (if I have spark)

For those wondering (if there are any :p) why I took so long to get this blog back up, consider this the official "excuse for coming back" post :)


Thanks for reading,
M