CeeKay Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 (edited) So there I was, spitting on a fish to keep it alive.... >.> <.< Anyway... I was looking for a vehicle to drive back and forth to work... I work at a body shop, and the roads around the area are TERRIBLE!!! (great for diagnosing undercarriage noise, though! ) I found a '94 Rodeo for sale nearby, and flipped s**t, since I'm an Isuzu fanboy... The Impulse RS was the very first vehicle I fell head-over-heels for... 1.6l AWD turbo... It's what inspired the WRX, but Subaru (then a subsidiary of Isuzu/GM) will never admit it today. However, the Rodeo's engine was SMOKED! No oil pressure, blue smoke everywhere, and a tick from the top end that sounded like all hell was going to come crashing down on you any time soon... Owner was firm at 1100, and that's far too much for a fixer-upper... So, I'm cruising my kidney-shattering mini-truck through the parking lot of a small dealership one day, and BAM!!! '94 Smashfinder, sitting right there. Automatic almost killed the deal, but I kept thinking about it for a week, and finally stopped in and asked... "She's tagged at $3999, but I'll take 3 cash..." So, I went and test-drove it later that day... I come back with "What about that clunk in the front end? The tach doesn't work either. Just sorta bounces and seems to top out at 2500, unless it's in a mood to spike over redline while the truck is idling? Also, I noticed a bit of rust behind the door, that's right in the seam too. That @!*% ain't fun or easy to fix... Trust me, I work at a body shop..." Turns out the body shop I work for also owns the lot they rent! YAY FOR EMPLOYEE DISCOUNT!!! They knew about the tach and never had it diagnosed... Doesn't really have a negative effect... The clunk, however, I fixed for free at work today at lunch, along with a free blinker bulb, free dealer sticker scrub, and free removal/undercoating of the rusted area in the rear bottom corner of the passenger door. Thinking I'll scuff the rest of the bottom jambs down tomorrow and undercoat them as well... The problem with the front end was: A bolt fell out of the shock mount... So, I tossed the correct sized bolt in, felt a nut up front and hammered down with the air ratchet. Never flinched while spinning, so I just tossed a new nut on the end and tightened the hell out of it. Probably gonna loosen it and tack it tomorrow, maybe Thursday... GOD I love working in a shop! Also, since I was down on the ground looking over the undercarriage (I HATE rust, and am VERY picky about my vehicle selections), I noticed the bolt was missing... Fate blatantly handed me an Ace to tuck up my sleeve right then... So far, I've invested a grand total of $2,500.00 in this vehicle.... That is including (and limited to) the price of the vehicle. Bolt, blinker, headlight, rust treatment, and sticker removal: FREE! However, there are still a few gremlins in the system... 1. Horn and cruise control (button cluster on steering wheel) doesn't work, I'm thinking (hoping) just a fuse, seems about right... 2. It gets a bit tired when stopped... If I take off from a stop light, it will chug a bit. Thinking (hoping) it's up in the ignition, somewhere between the plugs and the distro cap/blocks (haven't checked yet). 3. Oil light comes on occasionally, usually at a stop... I think I just need to change it, since I've only had it for a little over 24hrs, and I haven't seen any territory markings yet... No idea when/where/how the oil was changed last, so hopefully a fresh few quarts will help... So yeah, any input on these (if they're common problems) would be nice, but I'll hopefully eventually weed them out... Oh btw.... THIS TRUCK IS SICK!!! Four 5x7's, four tweeters, and PLENTY of space for a decent little subwoofer... Don't want anything extreme, just something that sounds nice... Further plans: 3" Calmini, or other that's cheaper but of good quality... Lift... 31" tires. Yeah, I'm a poser. Bite me... If I can fit 33's, I might just go that route... Tint the windows... That's about it for now... K, enough jibba jabba.... ON TO THE PICS!!!! Not 1 hour after driving it off the lot, I'm out in the dirt flexing the suspension... X) Pathfinder: Finding paths to treacherous @!*%, within 1 mile of city limits!!! (That's a Wal-Mart Supercenter in the background...) Up on a hill I climbed. 4-low works GREAT! Nissan on the rocks, please... Yes that's random coverage, and YES that picture is awesome as hell. So, within the first four hours of owning it, I found out that 4-hi and 4-low work flawlessly, she handles slimy watery sand-mud like nobody's business, and she can climb on stuff (with standard radials) like a squirrel up a tree! Up here in North Dakota, we test our vehicles out very thoroughly. - CK P.s. the above-mentioned sand-mud is what happens up here when river bottom sand (fine fine FINE stuff), super-rich topsoil, and lots and lots of water mix... The sand that most of ND's land along the river is made of is about 1500-grit (sandpaper)... When it gets wet, it gets slimy on top and sticky underneath because of the rich topsoil this state is blessed with. It's hell on windows, which is why you DON'T touch that button to drop the windows until you're home and they're rinsed off, because you'll have one very foggy (permanently) window after just one pass... Edited July 29, 2009 by CeeKay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 Welcome, you can fit 31"s now ,some came fact. with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yamahawg Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 Wow, welcome aboard! LOL, you put my introduction post to shame....but nice find and again welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fukinitupagain Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 Welcome aboard big guy. Nice introduction BTW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Precise1 Posted July 29, 2009 Share Posted July 29, 2009 So there I was, spitting on a fish to keep it alive.... Ok, that made me laugh!! You'll fit in just fine. Not only do you intro with a rambling, Dowserish (you will soon understand what that means) monologue, but you also seem to be a suitably rabid Nissan fan. Congrats on your new toy and welcome aboard!! Oh, the 'wheeling at Walmart' is classic!! B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeeKay Posted July 30, 2009 Author Share Posted July 30, 2009 Well tell ya the truth, I was never really that big of a Nissan fan..... Until I bought this thing, which is just awesome. Always hated those Nissan kids... "OMG I got a 240sx! It's just like a SILVIA! *fapfapfapfap*" Or those kids who absolutely adore Skylines, and yet have never been within 100 miles of one. >:\ Don't get me wrong, I'd TOTALLY take a GTR R32... But, I'm not gonna go mental over someone else's car and wish to the heavens that I had one just like it... Maybe an Impulse RS or Lotus Elan M100.... But then again, I had an RS (Elan M100 had the same exact powerhouse and drivetrain as the RS).... X) But, this truck is awesome! Now to find out why my horn doesn't work! >:\ - CK P.s. Yes, :\ I totally :o use too many smileys... It's a bad habit. :S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jadm4x4 Posted July 30, 2009 Share Posted July 30, 2009 g'day welcome for aussie land. nice intro. good to see you got youre pathy dirty aleady. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedPath88 Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Hello.. welcome to the forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Haha welcome to the fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balmer Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Wow, serious intro! Welcome and enjoy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9sar Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 Welcome to NPORA (and feel free to help in our cause to get our founder's truck back to him) ok... a shameless plug but not everyone finds that thread on their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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