threading and fuel filling

Some odd's and ends had to be taken care of after removing all of the rear suspension components. One tool that has proven most useful in unplanned situations has been an m1o x 1.25 threader attached to a 1/2" drive handle. The front cradle that supports the differential and RLCA's was very tight last time - not that it wasn't difficult to install this time either, but for a completely different reason which I'll cover in a future entry. I left the front upper differential strap installed and because of where the differential was accidentally positioned laterally, again - we'll get to more about that later, it was hard to get all of the bolts to line up without a good amount of force.

Sometimes older threads have galling, fretting, or corrosion - any number of ailments that would prevent their re-use. This particular bolt hole needed a bit of attention after removal of a damaged bolt.

One thread, in one of the 4 bolt holes, was slightly damaged, causing damage more to the bolt itself (or vice-verse). It was odd because the car side threads were fine until about 7o % of the way up but near the back part of the hole one was bad. Just one. The threads looked fine beyond it. Thankfully it was easy to repair, as I was able to thread the hole almost entirely by hand.

Once removed, however, the bolt itself was not re-usable. It's like one of the bolt's threads decided it liked the bolt hole better and detached itself, staying behind. I tested the theory by threading one of the other good bolts up to the back in the affected hole before repair, with damaging results to the second bolt as well. They probably needed to be replaced anyways.

Sorry for the blurry pictures, sometimes I have to take 5 for every good one that I use. The camera is a standard point and shoot and sometimes the auto settings work, sometimes not. Manual settings can be even more touch and go. 

I then removed the oem upper differential strap that was no longer needed to hold the diff in place. It's used from factory to prevent/control the motion of the differential which is mounted below to a very flexible rubber isolator. This is no longer needed because 1. it is in the wrong place for the r2oo differential in a 24o z, and 2. the differential is no longer mounted to a very flexible rubber isolator.

Note the nice oem e-brake connections still in good condition. Also took some shots of the fuel filler hose from out to in. I may replace it depending on condition once I get motivated enough to remove it. Under initial inspection it seems to be very stiff, but that may be due to it still being installed and held securely in place by it's flanges.

I'm trying to catch up on entry's to current progress, so bear with me, but I'm also trying get the car to minimally-running in about 1o days in order to show her off at a work show. More than likely I'll be working in the garage attempting to take pictures and post the entries later.

Go Team.