minor tinkering to do on the viper over winter

[Darth Menace]

Hey guys, im bored sitting here just reading posts on this site about vipers. I want something to do on it. What are some minor/cheap things to do...even for preventative maintenance stuff. im not talkinga tear down/rebuild, but just something to do that will help the looks/aging/performance of the viper, and not break the bank (at the moment...the PS4 is coming out in a couple months)

 

[DrTaco]

Clean/lube up the door hinges for the upcoming year? Remove the "gills" on each side and check for any missing chunks/lots of metallic dust on the hinges before cleaning em up and givin' em a shot of white lithium grease.

 

[Darth Menace]

Clean/lube up the door hinges for the upcoming year? Remove the "gills" on each side and check for any missing chunks/lots of metallic dust on the hinges before cleaning em up and givin' em a shot of white lithium grease.

i just had the gills off to adjust the doors. unfortunately the top bolt of the gill on the driver's side was stripped. any solution to this?

 

[hemihead]

You could clay bar the paint, new air filters, plugs and wires. What's your battery situation? If your battery is four or five years old you may want to get a new one and while you're in there clean and repaint the battery tray.

 

[mad prof]

You could also check A arm bushings for perishing, if you still have the original ones. By the way, replacing my bushings are my next project. Any suggestions or recommendations as to what is available in polyurethane?

 

[Darth Menace]

You could clay bar the paint, new air filters, plugs and wires. What's your battery situation? If your battery is four or five years old you may want to get a new one and while you're in there clean and repaint the battery tray.

I clay barred the paint around last september. the problem with doing it again is we had an unexpected snowfall so the viper got put away abruptly, without a final wash. I'm not saying it's dirty, but there are some dirt/water spots on it.

I did new plugs last summer. i do plan on doing the wires too, but I need to get tranmission mount/motor mounts bought before i spend the coin on new wires.

The battery is about 2 years old...and I keep it on a battery tender in hopes to prolong it's life.

It did idle about 500rpm, so what would i have to clean/replace to get that fixed up.

also, the a/c does blow warm, so obviously there was some leakage there. I remember seeing a thread on here (or the alley?) that a guy fixed his leaky a/c for $4 (2 rings from autozone) but i cannot find that thread.

 

[Darth Menace]

You could also check A arm bushings for perishing, if you still have the original ones. By the way, replacing my bushings are my next project. Any suggestions or recommendations as to what is available in polyurethane?

uh oh...i dont know what A arm bushings are. :I

 

[mad prof]

sorry for being vague Darth Menace, I mean control arm and shock bushings. Any suggestions highly appreciated!

 

[KNG SNKE]

Ha you made me look it up, PS4 won't be out till a minimum of October. The Feb date is to showcase the system.

 

[DrTaco]

i just had the gills off to adjust the doors. unfortunately the top bolt of the gill on the driver's side was stripped. any solution to this?

Ya mean it was rounded off and you couldnt get a grip on it? Or the threads were stripped and you need to find a replacement screw? If the head was just rounded off you can pretty much treat it like any stripped bolt. Try and lil penetrating oil, tap on it a bit, try a pair a locking pliers on it/ us a small file to make a slot for a flat head screw driver/tap a small chisel into the top and then use the chisel to "unscrew" it/screw extractor as a last resort (in my opinion).

 

[Darth Menace]

Ya mean it was rounded off and you couldnt get a grip on it? Or the threads were stripped and you need to find a replacement screw? If the head was just rounded off you can pretty much treat it like any stripped bolt. Try and lil penetrating oil, tap on it a bit, try a pair a locking pliers on it/ us a small file to make a slot for a flat head screw driver/tap a small chisel into the top and then use the chisel to "unscrew" it/screw extractor as a last resort (in my opinion).

its more like it just wont bite enough to make the gill tight enough. once i get it as tight as it should be then it MIGHT holt, but if you move it, then it pops back out. as in the thread was stripped...just too big

 

[DrTaco]

Ohhh gotcha dude. Plumber's tape and call it a day!

 

[Darth Menace]

Ohhh gotcha dude. Plumber's tape and call it a day!

ya there was some metal looking stuff keeping it on when i unscrewed it. Is plumbers tape the same as tephlon tape?

 

[Canadian Snake]

For about $1000 this winter so far I replaced all the fluids with fresh, greased lubed all moving parts, replaced plugs, inspected and cleaned under the car and around the wheel wells!
I also corrected the paint and replaced a few bulbs with LED's, covered a few interior pieces with DI-NOC vinyl. My plans for Feb/ March is getting my bonnet to the painter for a respray!
General maintenance over the down season is whats getting me through!
Come on Spring!

 

[Next Phase]

Power steering bracket, water pump, engine/ tranny mounts, fule pump, plugs/ wires, fluids (coolant, motor oil, diff, tranny, clutch, brake), clay bar, wax, detail, etc ....

Maybe throw a blower on it????

The list goes on and on.

 

[Darth Menace]

Ha you made me look it up, PS4 won't be out till a minimum of October. The Feb date is to showcase the system.

Hmmmm...when I read about it two days ago I read it said feb to showcase it and may for a sale. I would doubt it theyd get it done that fast

 

[slysnake]

Paint your hood pad. Nice winter project and it looks great. Lots of posts on here about how to do it.

 

[Darth Menace]

For about $1000 this winter so far I replaced all the fluids with fresh, greased lubed all moving parts, replaced plugs, inspected and cleaned under the car and around the wheel wells!
I also corrected the paint and replaced a few bulbs with LED's, covered a few interior pieces with DI-NOC vinyl. My plans for Feb/ March is getting my bonnet to the painter for a respray!
General maintenance over the down season is whats getting me through!
Come on Spring!

ya....ibam going to do led's too...slowly butbsurely. I see you are canadian too...is your garage heated or no? If not, what did you use to clean underneath and not have it freeze?

 

[Darth Menace]

Paint your hood pad. Nice winter project and it looks great. Lots of posts on here about how to do it.

I did that in the summer. Big pain in the ass, but well worth it and oh so ****

 

[Darth Menace]

Has anyone recharged their ac system themselves? That is something I would love to get fixed over the winter

 

[7TH_SIGN]

I would like to know what you all use to relube the points on the hood connects in order to make opening the hood smoother. I was thinking lithium grease.

 

[DrTaco]

7th,
Yes, I have always used white lithium grease on the rubber "connects". NOT on the hinges.

 

[Sybil TF]

Has anyone recharged their ac system themselves? That is something I would love to get fixed over the winter

No AC? OOf. You need to find the leak first.

 

[Canadian Snake]

ya....ibam going to do led's too...slowly butbsurely. I see you are canadian too...is your garage heated or no? If not, what did you use to clean underneath and not have it freeze?

Heated garage

 

[Darth Menace]

No AC? OOf. You need to find the leak first.

i wont say NO AC, but warm AC at best.

 

[Darth Menace]

Heated garage

damn you! thats always on my to do list, but I keep finding better things to spend my coin on

 

[Darth Menace]

Is the viper a/c R12 or R134A for a quick recharge

 

[Drew]

Most vehicles after 93 use R134a,
The leak really needs to be found before its recharged.
Compressor shaft seal, flare connections, damaged condenser coil, leaking access fitting cores most like likely points of leak issue.
Have you witnessed the clutch energizing the compressor and just short cycling without adequate cabin cooling?

 

[Darth Menace]

Have you witnessed the clutch energizing the compressor and just short cycling without adequate cabin cooling?

I have no idea what that means, so likely I haven't

 

[Darth Menace]

I have one more question. I am just about to put fresh oil in, but typically isn't it normal to start the car and let it heat up. Would it make more sense to start the car up with the old oil in it, and then drain it, or to not circulate the old oil around and just drain it cold? Or am I over-analysing?