1992 Festiva Project Car

[i218127]

Had to take the White Tach Cluster out. Frankly, it crapped out!! No ones fault. But it gave me time to go over my old cluster and clean it up. Took out all the lights and cleaned them. Got some plastic cleaner and worked on the face. It cleaned up to an almost acceptable standard. But the real work went in on the dash light bar. Inside, there are four (4) tiny lights behind a green plastic bar. I took off the bar, cleaned it and cleaned each light and the white backing. Returned the completed unit to the car. What a difference!! Clear and bright, almost. About 45 minutes work. Well worth it.

The Tach Cluster looks better, but my old cluster is more accurate with bigger faces and wider dial swings. Will go to a traditional tach unit on the dash. Plenty of room for it. This is my experience and is provided for information only !!

"Drive On...ARMY"

[i218127]

New Ignition Coil

Bought a Master Blaster II coil. Bought the MSD bracket also. The only place to put the new one is on the Firewall between the Fuel Purge Controller, not sure if that is the right name, and it's mounting studs. (Somewhere on this site is a picture of one installed in that location.) Had to cut down both ears on the mounting bracket, but it slides right in. Just take off the stud bolts and slip it under. That's probably the hardest part.

I left the old coil in place so I wouldn't have to relocate all that other stuff connected to it. I used #16-18 guage stranded wire to make the connection between the old connector and the MSD coil. (I like the heavier wire with better insulation. But it's a personnel choice.)

Recommendation: Cut nothing until you test the coil. Move the tower wire to the new coil. Then install temporary jumper wire from the OLD COIL to the NEW. Pay close attention to polarity!!! If it starts and runs, begin cutting, splicing and dressing your permanent wires. Save the old connector !!! It may come in handy.

I started by NOT regapping my plugs. Just wanted to make sure it all worked properly. I know, I know..this is the Granny approach, but it does give you fall back space.

Lastly, I pulled, regapped to .046, and replaced my plugs. Used NGK Platinums this time ($2.99 each). Did a little INDEXING, installing each plug while trying to get the tips to point to the center of the engine. I was not too successfull, but did get two (2) fairly good, one (1) a right angles, and one hopelessly out.

Results: Very smooth!! Stronger overall. Will check milage later. For about $50.00, worth the effort.


"Drive On...ARMY"

[i218127]

Front Sway Bar Bushings

Like some of you, I wanted to replace my front sway bar bushings. That's the ones that connect the front of the sway bar to the front of the car. I searched the site and someone posted about an Australian company that makes new ones. Contacted their LA based distributor. Had a long talk.

They make'um, and they are available!! These are exact form and fit replacements for the FORD ones. No more grinding other brands to fit. Their POLY whatever it's called, and seem to be top quality. They make'um in three (3) sizes: 22mm. 24mm and 26mm.

Since I have 92 5-speed, I got the 22mm. It may be that Festiva Automatics use 24mm, and Aspires use 26mm bushings. But you should measure yours first. The LA distributor keeps a limited stock, but they were in stock and fit perfectly. (They don't bend easily, so putting them on the bar could take some effort!!)

Results: The old ones were worn. They new ones are TIGHT !!!! The grease that comes with'um is really needed.

"Drive On...ARMY"

[i218127]

Manual Tranmission Service

Flushed the 5-speed. Drained all the old fluid and replaced it with new MERCRON. The book calles for 2.6L. (Hard to get that last 0.1L from 2.5 to 2.6, but I gave it a stab.) The old oil was not in too bad a shape. Not burned. Still had it's RED color and seemed to flow fairly well. As this was just maintenance, I didn't expect much of a change.


Results: Still shifts smothly, but gears feel more solid. I know it's hard to explain, but it just feels like the gears fit better. It's not a hard feel, but you know the gears are in place. Not slippery....but solid. No guessing when you let the clutch out. It's in !!


"Drive On...ARMY"

[i218127]

Coil Update

Been watching my performance since I put in the new Master Blaster Coil and opened up the plugs. The car seems to be slightly stronger pulling hills. I still have to shift on tough ones, but I seem to shift later. I didn't notice it before, but my mid-range is smoother. I use less pedal for the same rate of pick-up. It's hard to tell how much is the new coil and what part is different plugs, but there seems to be a difference for the better. As I said, I used NGK Platinum plugs ($2.99 each), gapped to .046. On the 10 Freeway, got it to 90 and played with the big boys for a while. Stayed behind the BMWs and Mercedes. (Police tend to get them first. They got money!!) The engine is Rock Solid !!! Got out of the way after a short hop. Ticket are too expensive to play with.

"Drive On...ARMY"

[TominMO]

I enjoyed reading what you're ding to the Festy. How about advancing the ignition timing about 5 degrees, and going to 89 octane? The advance should give you noticably more power, but 5 degrees won't be too radical. With 8 degrees I'd go to premum fuel.

What is the contact info for that Australian company's LA office?

[i218127]

Considered that. But before I do anything, I want to replace the "O" rings around my injectors and change the Pressure Regulator. After 200K miles, the "O" rings have to be deteriorated and the regulator has to be sloppy. Will begin this today, 1 Dec 2009. Not sure if i'll see any improvement, but considering all the miles and the terrible heat in the desert, I have to go for broke !! While I'm at it, will tighten the valve cover gasket.

All this could be busy work, but i'll start from a "known" before I go to the "unknown". Stable spark and predictable fuel delivery is critical before additional work is attempted. Advance after the engine is stable.

"Drive On...ARMY"

[TominMO]

If the valve cover gasket is only leaking slightly, try putting high-temp wheel bearing grease on it to stop the leaks. I do this whenever I'm putting on new valve cover gaskets. Also use it for oil filter gaskets, threads on oil drain plugs, etc. Never have a leak after that.

[i218127]

Front End Repair

In my zest to talk about the front sway bar to chassis bushings, I forgot to indicate I repaired the front end. Replaced ball joints, sway bar end bushings, installed new springs and struts. Installed new tie rods and tie rod ends. New boots, the works. This WAS, I'm glad to say in the past tense, a NASTY, time consuming job. I discussed my car loudly, often, and in several languages. Many times without much affection!! I questioned my sanity !!

Result: Like new money !! Worth all the work, especially the front sway bar to chassis bushings and the new springs. I run twisty roads like they're nothing. I thrive in the bumpy lanes !!

Bottom line: Ghastly, but worth it.

"Drive On...ARMY"

[25Horseplay]

^^Just did this myself!! Same thing, the car was called many things!

[i218127]

German is the only language I use to express disaffection. One can get really worked up in that language. And the little spit that comes out from time to time keeps me fron throwing things !!

Got a real problem with my injector "O" rings. Got one, the number one, that constantly throws the ring off. NOT FUN !! But on the bright side, I did find that my number three (3) runner was leaking. The steel gasket, a factory item I think, had poped long ago. The old fuel regulator, I tossed without comment.

Bottom line: Think number one (1) was a problem all the time. With slightly higher pressures, leaks will happen. Will continue to work on it. By the way, when running it was much stronger!! Much stronger!!

"Drive On...ARMY"

[i218127]

Think I've finally got an injector ring that works!! The problem seems to be the NAPA "O" ring. It's a great ring, but I think it's slightly bigger than OEM. When I put it on number one, it would slide to one side and split. I put on a new one and it split too!! I finally saw what was happening and pushed the ring up slightly with a small screwdriver. It seemed to snap into place. Tightened it up and fired it up. No leaks. YET!! Went around the block, everything A-OK. Trip down the street, got a chance to see the results of a fender bender, and came home. Still OK. Will drive around the city tomorrow and check for leaks frequently. In total, I used six (6) rings to get four (4) to work. At $3.20 a set, get extras and keep'em handy.

Bottom line: Inconclusive. Seems better, but I've not pushed it yet. Think I can feel the result of increased fuel pressure, no air leaks, and no fuel leaks. Will report more later.


"Drive On...ARMY"

[25Horseplay]

Sounds like your gonna have a good running car when your finished.

[i218127]

25Horseplay...think I'll never be finished !! As indicated, everything is broken or unusable. It's a challenge. But, since I'm retired and have nothing better to do, this project will do for now. When winter hits, will switch to family tree and family history.

It's getting better. I see results. And when I snap-up one of those lazy BMW drivers, like I did that BMW X3, it's worth it !! He won... but not by a lot !!! (I'd like to catch him now that I can pass more fuel!!! Think I'd get a real twist on him.)


"Drive On...ARMY"

[blkfordsedan]

i218127,

Can you please post the contact info for the company that sell the new sway-bar-to-chassis bushings? Mine are pretty shot and I would like to replace them.