A Few Small Things

I've dealt with a few small things in recent weeks.

OBD Code: System Lean

I was getting a P0171 code and fearing a bad rear O2 sensor. Other things on the check list included a fuel filter and checking for intake leaks. After I'd bought the fuel filter, I noticed a loose vacuum hose and put a hose clamp on it.

Battery Cable:

Driving home the other day I noticed the radio cutting out and then coming back on in a second or two. The check engine light (see P0171 above) was blinking in a ghostly way. I kept driving. On the freeway. At 70mph. For some reason, rain clouds darkening the sky perhaps. I turned the lights on. Immediately, both the tachometer and the speedometer dropped to zero. No lights. No throttle. Still moving. I pullled over, knowing I could get home and be safe easily. Almost instinctively, I pulled the trunk release and jumped out (I was a lane's width from the side of an exit ramp) to check the battery. The ground strap had sheared cleanly off. Thinking for a moment, I noticed the jumper cables in the truck, I put one clamp on the ground post of the batter and then gingerly used the other to clamp what was left coming out of the insulated ground strap. Started the car, drove home. Turns out the battery slides fore and aft, stretching the cable, straining the cable where the battery connector is.

It was a bit of adventure getting the right size for the battery post, but it was fixed within a few days. Stopping the sliding was a little more interesting, as the bolt that tightens the bar across the battey would only tighten so much before spinning. I haven't mustered the patience to get a socket extension through a structural member on the other side to try and hold a nut steady. I put a 2x4 scrap in the battery tray next to the battery. That keeps it from moving for now.

Break In:

I left the Miata out front for a single night while the Subie was in the garage with a load of IKEA. I'd learned long ago not to lock the car. I learned you shouldn't lock the storage compartment when it's lid was trashed about three years ago while we lived in an apartment waiting for our house to be built. I just learned not to lock the glove compartment. At least it's a cheaper fix. The handle is only $15, however I bought tan not beige... I still need a replacement compartment door and hinge.

Window Clunk:

Long story short:

ebay repair kit

Tank Cover

The shelf behind the seats has a cover under which lie the fuel hoses and electrical connections to the fuel pump. My car didn't have a cover over that area after obvious work (replacing the fuel pump was one of the first jobs done on this car). So I replaced it after buying a new shelf that included this cover: $100. There seems to be less gasoline smell on hot days.