MikeW

1,2,3,5, and 6 could have easily been changed at some point. #4 and #7 don't make sense to have been redone, especially #4. Is there any chance that this car is an one-off factory prototype of the later features? Could part of the shell been laying around the factory when someone later decided to go ahead and make it a production car? Perhaps a good way to determine the age would be to look for the type of hand made stitch welding that 26thZ pointed out earlier. Your theory of forging the VIN seems strange to me. By the looks of the car that would have been done quite some time ago, perhaps before there was a true appreciation for the historical nature of these cars.

The factory spec is for 20W oil. The purpose of the oil is not for lubrication but to dampen the piston thus preventing it from opening too quickly during acceleration. Others have claimed success using automatic transmission fluid (ATF) but I've always just used the 20W. The most convenient way to get it is in this form: http://www.wd40.com/PressRoom/StockImages/gifs_xl/3in1-p_3oz_motoroil.gif

It might be helpful if you let people know what parts are available and even provide some pictures.

I've had luck finding people using http://www.zabasearch.com who didn't show up in other people finding sites. Since you already have the address it should be easy to find a match.

Kansai airport itself is sinking faster than planned, just like New Orleans has over the last several hundred years.

I agree but as I posted earlier the levee was only designed for a category 3. Even had all the funding been provided it might not have made a bit of difference. Some of the projects are still over 10 years from completion anyhow.

I think that is out of line. It appears to me that the main group of people that the government is having to help are the "downtrodden". I can't imagine how you think voting is somehow tied to this. If you're somehow claiming that all of the victims stuck in the city couldn't vote then you're just plain wrong. Since you also seem to be claiming that this is tied to party politics please remember that the mayor of New Orleans and the Governor of Louisiana are both democrats and both have just as much responsibility to the citizens as federal officials. This is a massive natural disaster and there is much work to be done. There will be plenty of blame to spread around in the future.

I think it's important to get the facts about the levee system. It was only designed for a category 3 storm so even if the whole project was complete it might not have helped with a category 4 or 5. The levee projects being discussed as underfunded are scheduled for completion in the year 2015 even with a full budget. Here is the Army Corps of Engineers for New Orleans site with lots of reliable information: http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/response/index.asp Here is a project specific to the New Orleans vicinity. The other projects are up and down the river: http://www.mvn.usace.army.mil/pao/visitor/lkpon1.asp

No kidding. You can pretty much get by with a 10, 12, 14, and a 17. I seem to recall that some of the manifold nuts are 13 but there really aren't that many different sizes required. I've lately been using the newer ratcheting combination wrenches although I don't have the kinds with swivelling heads.

I'm not sure that any prices have gone down. I think that some stations aren't raising them as fast as others. The governor has said he's going to crack down on price gouging so we'll see. Here's a site that it providing up to the minute prices: http://www.atlantagasprices.com/ I suspect some of the "high" values shown are bogus and some of the low values shown might be already sold out. I saw one station earlier with no lines and reasonable prices (compared to others, anyhow) but when I pulled in I realized why there were no lines: that had bags on on the pumps. Other stations who've run out are simply taking down the prices from the sign which seems like a better approach. I passed a QT that only had a sign up for premium at $3.09 so perhaps they ran out of the low grade. My understanding is that the middle grade is actually mixed on the spot from the other two. However, just as I passed a tanker was pulling in.

My father had the same problem in Savannah. In his case I'm certain that it was due to a neighbor calling and complaining; I'm sure the police have better things to deal with. Someone apparently thought the car was abandoned, in his driveway, because it appeared as though hadn't moved in such a long time. I think he just cranked it up and backed it out of the driveway to prove that it wasn't derelict and that was good enough. It does still need a good paint job, however ...

Well, I just became part of the panic myself and went and filled up. Actually, it's for my wife's car which really was almost empty and I didn't want her having to deal with it in the morning. I went to the Shell station closest to my house and there were about 10 cars total waiting at 9:30pm for the 4 islands (8 pumps). It's kind of a tight space so it looked a bit chaotic but at least there wasn't a line down the street. I was fortunate in that even though cars were waiting at other pumps the one that I needed (for the right side of the car) was wide open so I quickly pulled in. It ended up being $2.99 for regular.

It's even well over $3.00 here in Atlanta. People here a panicking because of a looming crisis. It turns out that all of the gas in this area comes from the Gulf of Mexico in two pipelines. Both of them are out of commission due to loss of power in Mississippi. There is supposedly 8 days of fuel in storage here in the Atlanta area but everyone is freaking out and filling up right away. Some stations have run out and lines are forming at others. In a way it's funny that the people themselves are causing this problem. Apparently one of the pipelines is now partially operational using generators. Hopefully the other will be up soon. However, with all of the people making a run on the stations now the problem becomes much worse.

I agree with you there.

Unfortunately it's a question of supply and demand. Demand is way up; not just all the SUVs out there but the explosive growth in China. The supply hasn't changed to match the increased demand so the prices rise. Not only has the hurricane shut down much of the Gulf of Mexico oil production but it's also closed some refineries.

According to the member list information he hasn't been online since 8/19. What problem are you having? His harness went in easily for me other than mounting the relays securely and finding good places up front to ground the wires.

They look original but could be exact OEM replacements. The braiding on the hoses is the key. I don't know if those MSA sells are OEM or aftermarket.

There's a 280Z near me with that kind of paint. It kind of switches from green to purple depending on the viewing angle. I've seen it parked in the same spot with a "for sale" sign for a long time but have never bothered to stop and look at it up close. I'm not sure how well it would photograph.

If the coil is bad I think it will be "open", i.e., no reading across it with an ohm meter. At least that's what happened to me a while back when I accidentally left the ignition in the "on" position all night.

I didn't realize the pan was stock on all cars. Somehow I thought it was an optional item. I've never even seen one installed so I suppose a whole bunch of them got discarded.

Not everyone has them. I've personally never used IM. On the other hand, e-mail is instant enough for me. Just last week I was hiking in the Canadian Rockies when someone here sent me a PM which triggered an e-mail notification on my BlackBerry 7100t with a link to this site which I then used to web surf over here to read the message.

I case you hadn't noticed your profile here allows you to enter all of your instant messaging ids. You can even even click on the symbol beneath your avatar to send a message to someone.

I used SEM to go from black and tan panels to a light gray (both plastic and vinyl) with excellent results. Since it comes in white I'm sure it will work just as well. I have some interior shots in my gallery.

The compression ratio is the ratio between the volume of the cylinder + combustion chamber when the piston is at the bottom of the stroke and when the piston is at the top of the stroke. Higher compression ratios can generate more horsepower but make pre-detonation more likely. Unless your car has been modified (pistons, head, crankshaft, etc.) then your compression ratio should be whatever was standard for your model. I don't know of a way of measuring the compression ratio without removing the cylinder head.