workin' on the new one

[goodwolf]

I just got a Festy 4 days ago (my first one) and have been playing around with it as much as possible. I replaced the valve cover gasket and the pcv valve last night and changed the oil. When I woke up this morning the front left tire was completely flat. Apparently the balled up piece of plastic that was wedged under the valve stem by the previous owner was the air stays in / air falls out device and taking this away from the car made the air fall out. I put air in the tire using the most efficient bicycle pump Schwinn has ever made and it only took 75 billion strokes to fill the massive 155r12 tire with enough air to get three blocks to the tire shop. I had tried to remove the tire instead of taking the entire car to the shop but the studs were very much set on staying in their holes. Tried PB Blaster and a BFH and even swore at them but they just stayed put. At the tire shop they couldn't break them free and were worried about breaking them off. I put the "air stays in device" back in place and returned home. Now I have to get these wheels off of this thing and have already got a line on some slightly larger rims that should fit nicely. They are a "universal" fit for 4x100 and 4x114.3 which sounds good as they will work with an Aspire brake swap as well as the stock setup. With the work involved to get the studs out an drill the remaining portions out of the hubs (all of the studs on all four wheels are extremely stubborn and I'm sure many will break) would I be better off to just do the Aspire swap now? I have searched and tried to find a definitive list of everything that is needed and have come up with:
-hub/spindle assemblies
-calipers
-tie-rod ends
-rotors
-trailing arm with drums/hubs and brake lines
-e-brake cables

Am I missing anything? I plan on replacing any of the bushings that I can find/make replacements for. Any suggestions on a good source for them? Unlike a few of the other cars that have passed through here it seems these things are fairly easy to work on and I would probably call it enjoyable if I didn't live in Florida and it wasn't summer.

-the good wolf

[batstiva]

Man, that's determination using a bicycle pump. I find a 3 or 4 foot cheater bar encourages the lug studs to come out. Course, the risk of breaking something is real. Snapped the steering knuckle on my Malibu in half with one.

http://www.clubprotege.com/wil/howto/aspirebrakes.htm

^^Here's a link on the Aspire swap. Good Luck!!

[lessersivad]

If you could park it where you planned on working on it to do the Aspire swap then if the bolts do break it's not going to be in the way or a PITA to move with the bolts broken. You might try heating the bolts then letting them cool slightly, spray with PB and walk away to let them soak. Hit the head of the bolt with a hammer a couple of times and use a cheater bar. Before doing this please refer to the first sentence. Good luck.

[batstiva]

What's the worst that could happen??

Good point tho, break it where it will be easy to work on.

[freshtiva]

Keep applying the blaster at regular intervals until you use the cheater bar. Even once you get the lug bolts off the rim may be stuck to the hub. Use antisieze when you put the wheel and lugs back on. Good luck !