What did you do to your X1/9 today ?

Well, it fired up! And came up to temp which is unusual for this car. The temp gauge would barely move until it got hot in traffic. Well, back to family visits so a road test will have to wait. Good to see it come to life again though!

I have been putting this

Into my car's.. cheap soal panel that keeps the battery topped off.
 
Every once in a while I still get to work on my X. Kind of tough when it's on the other side of the country...

Today's fun was injector hoses. Probably the third time I've done them since I've owned it. Not a favorite job but at least I know what I'm in for. It was a lovely ~65F today so at least the old rubber was somewhat pliable and new stuff went on without too much of a fight. The perpetually dead battery is on charge so hopefully the old girl fires up tomorrow.

Last December the X received a gear reduction starter, and the December prior was an aluminum radiator and other cooling system maintenance. That stemmed from an overheat in 2018. Compression test was good so I'm hoping no head gasket issues.
How often are the injector hoses failing?
 
The hoses get hard with age. I just replaced mine on an 87. How long they will last probably depends upon how many miles are put on the car, whether the fuel has ethanol, whether the hoses are rated for the pressure/chemical makeup of the fuel, weather exposure, etc.
 
New seat upholstery for the 86 from Henk. Turned out pretty good. I have several cuts on my fingers now. The edges punch thrus for the tensioning ribbons are very sharp. :(
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How often are the injector hoses failing?
Not very often. I've owned the car for probably 20 years now. It was rescued from a Sacramento junkyard so I think the first time I replaced them was within the first year of ownership. Second time (over 10 years ago) was when I swapped injectors since one was plugged. The X has sat a lot over the last 10 years as well. I use the correct diameter high pressure hose.
 
I have been putting this

Into my car's.. cheap soal panel that keeps the battery topped off.
Hmm, interesting solution. Not sure the car would get enough sun where it's parked but it's worth considering. I think the clock was just draining it and the car seldom got driven once I moved to the east coast and Mom had another car to daily drive. Pretty tired of throwing new Optimas at it all the time though. For now, I'm just removing the ground cable.
 
Hmm, interesting solution. Not sure the car would get enough sun where it's parked but it's worth considering. I think the clock was just draining it and the car seldom got driven once I moved to the east coast and Mom had another car to daily drive. Pretty tired of throwing new Optimas at it all the time though. For now, I'm just removing the ground cable.
Depending on the climate there the battery may lose its charge rather quickly even with the ground disconnected. A battery tender is always a good idea to help get a good life from any battery in a hobby car. :)
 
Depending on the climate there the battery may lose its charge rather quickly even with the ground disconnected. A battery tender is always a good idea to help get a good life from any battery in a hobby car. :)
I have my HFT battery tender connected to a cable with a cigarette lighter plug on the end. When I am done driving the car, I plug the cable into the cigarette lighter socket and leave it for long periods without having to deal with battery issues.
 
Can’t get this fu…..k head off have l missed something 1500 x19 motor 🤦🏻‍♂️😭🤓🤷🏻‍♂️View attachment 67877View attachment 67878
Mine came off easy enough, but I was warned it could be ugly. Was given the suggestion to get a length of rope with a diameter thin enough to be introduced into the spark plug holes. Feed a bunch into each cylinder and then crank the starter briefly. The pistons should help break it free. Glad I didn't have to attempt!
 
New seat upholstery for the 86 from Henk. Turned out pretty good. I have several cuts on my fingers now. The edges punch thrus for the tensioning ribbons are very sharp. :(
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My observation is that the two (or three--was there another besides burgundy and gray?) shades of fabric that Bertone used on their cars are very disappointing in their colorfastness. The gray shade seems to turn a horrible greenish color and the burgundy (which my car has had twice [first OEM and then second a set from Henk as Jim just installed]) turns into a reddish brown that gets browner and browner as the red dissipates.

These days we can be spoiled by our favorite search engines being able to find online sellers of some of the most obscure items known to man, or online sellers who specialize in offering hundreds or thousands of varieties/flavors/styles of that thing we've been looking for. But, despite some Googling, I have not found an online source that one could call "Auto Upholstery Fabric Depot," which would be a seller of all manner, style, and variety of automotive cloth. I would love to be able to find a source for an upholstery fabric similar to what Bertone used in their cars but of modern manufacture that presumably would be of better colorfastness.
 
seller of all manner, style, and variety of automotive cloth. I would love to be able to find a source for an upholstery fabric similar to what Bertone used in their cars but of modern manufacture that presumably would be of better colorfastness.
You are right, there aren't many really good online upholstery sellers that carry a lot of unusual fabrics. Most only carry the common stuff, for obvious reasons. There are some "specialists" that offer hard to find stuff for one or two of the more popular old cars, even to the point of having certain NLA prints remade to the original factory specs (for a price). And you can find acceptable replacements - even if not identical - for some other old vehicles, like houndstooth designs, etc. But I do not think we will ever find a good quality replacement for the original prints used in the X....unless you want to pay to have it made (which can be done but you do not want to hear what that costs). I think your best bet is to go with a generic cloth that is already available and looks good for your interior, despite not being like the original fabric. We've seen some great examples of that posted before.
 
You are right, there aren't many really good online upholstery sellers that carry a lot of unusual fabrics. Most only carry the common stuff, for obvious reasons. There are some "specialists" that offer hard to find stuff for one or two of the more popular old cars, even to the point of having certain NLA prints remade to the original factory specs (for a price). And you can find acceptable replacements - even if not identical - for some other old vehicles, like houndstooth designs, etc. But I do not think we will ever find a good quality replacement for the original prints used in the X....unless you want to pay to have it made (which can be done but you do not want to hear what that costs). I think your best bet is to go with a generic cloth that is already available and looks good for your interior, despite not being like the original fabric. We've seen some great examples of that posted before.
I have transformed my 85's ratty grey/green/black interior to all black over the last couple of years. I got a set of Vick's black vinyl seat upholstery and spray dyed the grey fabric in the door cards as a starting point. The door cards were very rough and uncomfortable on your forearms while riding in the car. This summer I dyed a set of red leather cards I got from MWB. They turned out really well and are nice and soft.


Note one greyish seat and one greenish seat. These were replacements for shredded greyish set originally in the car, so not too surprising they were not matching.
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New Vick's upholstery with the sprayed out fabric door cards.
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Red leather cards dyed black.
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All together now.
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I bought my 86 in 89 & the seats were already faded. I did come from TX, but less than 3 years? I found a used set of seats cheap. Although a little faded, still quite a difference...
 

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Finally put the X and the Miata away in their winter cocoons which declutters the driveway for snow removal and easier parking.

We had an early-ish winter storm which dumped over 2’ of snow (and therefore heavy salt on the roadways which stops all fun car driving) in my locale before Thanksgiving adjusting my normal time table. It isn’t unusual for me to drive into December but not this year. Unfortunately my cars don’t have an indoor winter home so they are stored alongside the garage, outside.

The process is:
  • Add Sta-Bil to the gas tanks and then fill them.
  • Choose a nice dry day and airing out the cars
  • Wash the cars and open all doors/hoods to air the cars out
  • Apply a variety of anti mouse applications (peppermint oil and sachels with a variety of herbs) which does sort of work.
  • Close the HVAC cowl intakes.
  • Drive the car onto a large tarp (I use a quality tarp they used to sell at Costco) minimum of 12 x 16
  • Put a soft indoor car cover on followed by an outdoor breathable car cover)
  • Put three shipping blankets over the car such that all upward facing surfaces are covered.
  • Put interlocking foam workout floor tiles over the top surfaces of the car.
  • Using nylon or similar rope, tie the tarp up onto the sides of the car and up over the front and rear bumpers.
  • Using a brand new 12 x 16 tarp, put it over the car gathering the front and rear and tying off with rope through the eyelets. In my case it isn’t windy where the cars sit so I don’t have to secure the sides very much.

This creates a reasonably well isolated set of surfaces so fabric is always against the paint and there are impact absorbing materials lest a branch be blown onto the cars. They are close to the side of the garage so protected for the most part against most of the blown weather.

I am sure my neighbors love me…my wife certainly does.
 
My wife let me buy a place with a 50 X 100 barn and said I could fill it with junky cars. I think she is regretting it! 😂

My winter storage routing is similar, except for the extra padding. Sta-bil or Seafoam, fill the tank and run it to temperature. Clean the inside and outside well. I have had decent luck with Fresh Cab (pine scent bags) to keep mice at bay. Plus a couple of cats that cruise through occasionally. I have a couple of cars that came with covers, so those go on. I bought canvas painters tarps at Menards to cover the others.

Every now and then I wander out when the snow is piled up and fire them up. Run them until the electric fans kick on. Probably not the best for the exhaust systems, but pushes the moisture out of the fuel system and engine.

I'm about 75% through the process for this year. The DD Milano and son's 944 still need to be bedded down.
 
This creates a reasonably well isolated set of surfaces so fabric is always against the paint and there are impact absorbing materials lest a branch be blown onto the cars. They are close to the side of the garage so protected for the most part against most of the blown weather.
That's way too much effort Karl. I just fill up the tanks, add Stabil, then pull the Fiats into the basement Fiat garage. ;)
 
Finally put the X and the Miata away in their winter cocoons which declutters the driveway for snow removal and easier parking.

We had an early-ish winter storm which dumped over 2’ of snow (and therefore heavy salt on the roadways which stops all fun car driving) in my locale before Thanksgiving adjusting my normal time table. It isn’t unusual for me to drive into December but not this year. Unfortunately my cars don’t have an indoor winter home so they are stored alongside the garage, outside.

The process is:
  • Add Sta-Bil to the gas tanks and then fill them.
  • Choose a nice dry day and airing out the cars
  • Wash the cars and open all doors/hoods to air the cars out
  • Apply a variety of anti mouse applications (peppermint oil and sachels with a variety of herbs) which does sort of work.
  • Close the HVAC cowl intakes.
  • Drive the car onto a large tarp (I use a quality tarp they used to sell at Costco) minimum of 12 x 16
  • Put a soft indoor car cover on followed by an outdoor breathable car cover)
  • Put three shipping blankets over the car such that all upward facing surfaces are covered.
  • Put interlocking foam workout floor tiles over the top surfaces of the car.
  • Using nylon or similar rope, tie the tarp up onto the sides of the car and up over the front and rear bumpers.
  • Using a brand new 12 x 16 tarp, put it over the car gathering the front and rear and tying off with rope through the eyelets. In my case it isn’t windy where the cars sit so I don’t have to secure the sides very much.

This creates a reasonably well isolated set of surfaces so fabric is always against the paint and there are impact absorbing materials lest a branch be blown onto the cars. They are close to the side of the garage so protected for the most part against most of the blown weather.

I am sure my neighbors love me…my wife certainly does.
Karl, I don't think NASA stored the space shuttle that well 😆

- I put in fuel stabilizer (moved to Star Tron Enzyme fuel Treatment)
- Disconnect ground wire and put on Battery tender
- Put top on the car

Done!
 
Finally put the X and the Miata away in their winter cocoons which declutters the driveway for snow removal and easier parking.

We had an early-ish winter storm which dumped over 2’ of snow (and therefore heavy salt on the roadways which stops all fun car driving) in my locale before Thanksgiving adjusting my normal time table. It isn’t unusual for me to drive into December but not this year. Unfortunately my cars don’t have an indoor winter home so they are stored alongside the garage, outside.

The process is:
  • Add Sta-Bil to the gas tanks and then fill them.
  • Choose a nice dry day and airing out the cars
  • Wash the cars and open all doors/hoods to air the cars out
  • Apply a variety of anti mouse applications (peppermint oil and sachels with a variety of herbs) which does sort of work.
  • Close the HVAC cowl intakes.
  • Drive the car onto a large tarp (I use a quality tarp they used to sell at Costco) minimum of 12 x 16
  • Put a soft indoor car cover on followed by an outdoor breathable car cover)
  • Put three shipping blankets over the car such that all upward facing surfaces are covered.
  • Put interlocking foam workout floor tiles over the top surfaces of the car.
  • Using nylon or similar rope, tie the tarp up onto the sides of the car and up over the front and rear bumpers.
  • Using a brand new 12 x 16 tarp, put it over the car gathering the front and rear and tying off with rope through the eyelets. In my case it isn’t windy where the cars sit so I don’t have to secure the sides very much.

This creates a reasonably well isolated set of surfaces so fabric is always against the paint and there are impact absorbing materials lest a branch be blown onto the cars. They are close to the side of the garage so protected for the most part against most of the blown weather.

I am sure my neighbors love me…my wife certainly does.
What’s the effect of not depressing the clutch or brakes for four months?
 
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