new here 90 festiva

[ChuckII]

hi all my name is charles im 37,

so last friday i bought a 1990 red festiva, its in sad shape but it was cheap $450 bucks running ..it had no brakes .. lots of dents the drivers windows goes up and down but only half way down the passenger window has to be pulled back to go up the passenger seat will not move forwards or backwards its all the way forward right now it has a brand new cd player and 4 schoche speakers in it but none of it works ... the heater core leaks into the car all over the floor ... lol it has 1 headlight .. and a busted windshield

the good:
brand new wheel bearings and tie rods
new struts all 4 corners
bypassed the heater core to stop the leak
i spent 75 bucks and repaired the break system new pads/shoes and wheel cylinders fluid and newer rubber hose on the front .. it had broken bleeders on both rears brand new drums on it with old shoes.. who knows why someone would do that ..
front left rubber brake line was clogged the only festiva at the junk yard donated some parts im going to get more off it this weekend ...

i bought this car because the old ladys car blew up shes getting my subaru outback ... and i had to have something to drive
im in gainesville florida need to get the ac and heat going lol and fix the windows

anyhow thats my story if i can figure out how to add pics off my phone i will add another comment below this one

[ChuckII]

[Eaglefreek]

Welcome, you'll fall in love with the Festiva and it probably won't be your last one.

[TominMO]

Looks like you're pretty handy with tools. The window track issue is easy. I'm sure you can find repair advice for them.

It would be worth your while when you get the time to make a day trip to the Palm Bay area and look up Eurotiva for repair advice and general hanging out with Festiva guys. PM him for hookup coordination.

[ChuckII]

im decent with tools this is seriously like car number 35 or 40 ive had a bunch .. family says its an addiction... i think it might need a new vacuum modulator on the auto trans shifts pretty late in my opinion .. may just be a vacuum leak or old fluid or both who knows the only car at the junkers is a 5 speed .. i need it driving like asap dont have time to do a auto to manual swap but i might buy it just to have it for later all the imports i've had other than my subaru were manuals it feels weird not shifting gears in a little car to me .. at teh moment i can only work on it on weekends so saturday ill figure out more whats going on with it .. got to hit the junkyard first thought they have a 93 with really straight fenders and i need rear window latches and some other bits like a door card etc etc

[UglyEd]

Have fun and welcome and yes these little cars r addictive i wouldnt trade mine for anything, not even one nicer than mine!

[1990new]

Welcome ChuckII.
Speaking from experience, If you can get that 5 speed transmission and the other stuff needed to do the conversion for later at a reasonable price, I would strongly advise that you do. Had the same issue with the ATX in Rosie but a new modulator did not fix the problem, neither did the junk yard ATX I installed next (got my money refunded on that one), but the 5 speed conversion did.

Your window roll up issue can usually be fixed easily by replacing the rubber window channel and the nylon grommets that the window bolts go thru. In the meantime, have you sprayed silicone lubricant into the channels. New channels can be ordered from FourGreen in Korea for about $10 each plus shipping. You will find info about them by doing a search of the forum. I have extras and will sell you a left and right channel and new grommets for $35 shipped to you if you don't want to wait for a shipment from Korea.

AC Repair info can be found here too.. If you plan to do that yourself, invest in a manifold set and vacuum pump soon unless you have a friend who has these. Heater core replacement will require you to remove the dash, so be prepared to spend a weekend on that project. Not really difficult, just takes time and patience.
Also invest in a Service manual, you can get original FoMoCo ones on ebay at a good price.

[jfd64]

Sounds like an abused Festiva found a good home.Strip as many good parts off the 93 you can get before they crush it.Welcome and enjoy the journey.You have now entered the Festiva zone.

[Team Lightning]

Get ready for the Madness!!

[TominMO]

Have fun and welcome and yes these little cars r addictive i wouldnt trade mine for anything, not even one nicer than mine!

Weirdly enough, I can't get Mustang or Vette owners to do a straight trade with me. The fools! Not that I would, just wanted to see.....

[ChuckII]

Yeah Im strongly considering getting the 5spd this weekend if I can .. The one at the junkyard is pretty well stripped other than the fenders and engine bay it does have the door cards and window latches etc but most of the interior is gone I got the tail light covers (they are mint) and a few other bits this past weekend all of the parts for the transmission are still there shifter axles pedal etc should I get the cluster too ? It's different than mine it's got white lettering has a modern style fuel gauge on the left etc ..

[Advancedynamix]

Welcome to the community Chuck! It looks like you've got a fun little project there. Like others have said, these cars can be addictive.

[1990new]

new here 90 festiva

Not sure what you mean by modern fuel gauge. But if yours doesn't have a tachometer and the 93 does Get it otherwise take it or leave it. I have two non tach clusters collecting dust on the shelf as there is not much demand for them. See the ATX to MTX threads for lots of info on that but her is a list of things you will need:
Transmission with supports
Flywheel backplate (remember to remove the 2 10 mm bolts attached to it at bottom before trying to separate trans from engine.)
Cross member
CV axles (New or rebuilt if boots bad)
Trans to engine braces (front & back)
Flywheel (can get new for $60 though)
Clutch/pressure plate (new is best)
Clutch cable. (With firewall grommet)
Speedometer cable and grommet
Shifter assembly with boot
Pedal assembly
Starter with all braces
Rear engine harness (not absolutely necessary by helpful)
Keep all the nuts and bolts as you remove things.

[firebush357]

Sweet, finally someone near me! What junk yard is that 93 in? I have only been searching a couple in Jacksonville and there are never any Festiva's. I have some extra random parts, maybe even a headlight that I might be willing to sale if you need them.

I know nothing about the Auto Trans but if you need some help on anything else let me know and I can see if the wife will loosen my chain a little and let me run down to Gainesville.

[ChuckII]

It's in LKQ 8910 nw 13th street Gainesville fl. I'm going Saturday morning if there's anything you need off it firebush357 let me know