The Dragon's Keep

Lizze's Car -or- What I Consider to be my First Practical Automotive Exam

I went over to my friend's apartment yesterday to wish her Happy Holidays and such before she went home for Christmas break. Turns out she's got a car now; an '82 RX-7! (And me without my camera...) Anyway, when I got there, she had the battery hooked up to a charger because it's been having a hard time holding a charge. The hood was up and the poor car is such a dirty, dusty mess, but not in bad shape overall. I mean, the thing's older than me!

Anyway, I got to put my knowledge to the test as I helped her figure out why it wasn't starting, because it's got a brand-new alternator and the battery fluid levels had just been checked recently. Turns out that the problem was just that it doesn't like the cold and it's nearly 25 years old, so that would do it. We pulled out the choke, pumped the gas, and got it to start, then let it idle for a bit to let the alternator charge the battery.

Next, there was blue smoke coming out of the tailpipe, so I checked her oil, and while it was still a good color, she was pretty low. But apparently that's just the way it happens so her dad had sent her an extra bottle of oil, and we put that in.

But then, as she tried to back out, it wouldn't go into gear and it made this horrible noise when she tried to put it in reverse. I got in, and turns out there was only about a quarter of an inch of non-free play! The clutch wasn't disengaging at all. So we went and got some brake fluid, filled up the little reservoir at the very top right of the engine bay, and pumped the clutch pedal for about 20 minutes, let it rest, and lo and behold, there was resistance again when we went back out about 15-20 minutes later. w00t! I'm so proud of myself. I passed the test!

It's such a neat little car and it's really in pretty good shape for an '82. I'll have to take a pic or two of it after we get back from break. (And I'll be asking to take it for a test drive as well. :D )

posted by Erin Duncan @ 11:00 AM