Cars Start But Battery is Weak

Yesterday I drove to my parent's house to figure out what was wrong with my car. If you can recall when I left the house last week I disconnected the negative to make sure that the battery wouldn't be drained. When I got back to the house and tried to connect the negative terminal, the car still wouldn't start. So I decided that I would take the battery to Kragen and see if they can recharge it... I handed over the battery to the employee and he told me that they cannot charge Optima batteries. The Optima batteries will overload the quick charger. He recommended that I purchase a slow charge battery charger. Although it will take longer than normal it will charge the battery. So I purchased the charger since it was fairly inexpensive.

Before I hooked up the battery and I wanted to see if i can fire up the car. So I jump started the Supra with the Echo. It fired up with no problem. I let the car warm for a while since it was sitting for a while. After a few minutes I turned off the car to see if I can start it up again... But it didn't start. So I'm assuming the battery is really low.

I hooked up the battery charger... It'll take about a day to charge half the battery. So hopefully it will work next time I start it up.

Car Won't Start?

Last week I went to Washington for vacation and the Supra was also on vacation. When I was about to head home from my vacation the Supra wouldn't start... I think the battery might have discharged while I was away. My Optima Yellow Top battery is about a year and half old and I can't figure out why it's already dead. It was late in the evening and didn't have time to diagnose the issue, so I had to take the Corolla up with me to Mira Mesa. I hope a jump start will fix it.

Purchased an Airbag Adapter for TRD Steering wheel

Yesterday I purchased an airbag adapter for my TRD steering wheel. The steering wheel is originally for an MR2 Spyder and Celica (7th Gen). To have the steering wheel work with my car I would need this air bag adapter. This adapter has been discontiuned for a while but I was able to find it at L-Tuned Parts.

Valve Covers sent to Chromer

On Monday I was able to send off my valve covers to Cal Tron Plating in Santa Fe Springs. Luckily the shipping wasn't as bad as I thought. I made sure to pack it really well with bubble wrap and foam peanuts.

The following day I was able to get a hold of Carl, the owner of the company. He received the valve covers and questioned me about the polished finish. He mentioned that his guy could've have down a better job at a lower cost. At that time I didn't know how much it would have cost. However, the black nickel plating doesn't show imperfections compared to chrome plating. I just hope it doesn't look too bad.

According to Carl they should have everything down in a few days.

The First Step of Chroming Parts

I've doing some research and the first step to chroming a part is to have it polished. When you take something to chrome shop they usually prep it up making sure its clean to dip in the acid then dip it in the chrome. Polishing is the hardest part of the whole process. Chroming is easiest. To save some money I decided to get it polished here before sending it out. After making several calls I decided to go with Romero's Custom Chrome in El Cajon. I picked up the valve covers and they looked great. You should've seen the the valve covers before. They were really dirty and were begging to be cleaned.

Now I will need to ship the valve covers to Cal-Tron Plating to get black chromed!

I Finally WON a TRD Steering Wheel

After months of scouring Yahoo Auctions Japan I've finally WON a TRD Steering Wheel. I can't wait to get it.

Yahoo Japan TRD Steering Wheel?

It's 4:53 in the morning on a Sunday. It's a bit early in the morning but I have a good reason. I'm keeping and eye on this TRD steering wheel from Japan. I've been eyeing this steering wheel for some time now. The auction ends in about 30 minutes and I'm hoping that I will win it. In Japan its 5 minutes to 9 in the evening. I just hope the person who bidded on this item before me isn't going to snatch it in the last minute. I've been disappointed a couple times already trying to bid on TRD steering wheel. We'll see if I win this bad boy! Wish me luck!

Supra Following?

On occasion I would get a comment regarding my car from different people. I get a couple of saying that the Supra is there dream car. Last night was a rare occurrence. I was driving around Mira Mesa and at a stop light a BMW rolls next to me and just comments me on my car. He liked my car and asked if it were turbo and how much I paid for it. They were really cool.

Then I was at the Jack N Box drive thru the guy working there also commented my car. He also asked how much I picked it up for and if it were turbo... I think those are the most common questions. It's funny that I had two people commented about the car one after another...

Although my car isn't the fastest Supra out there its just cool knowing that I own a Supra :)

Hot days are upon us.

My air conditioning works great now! Thank goodness it wasn't as bad. They had to replace the expansion valve and refill the freon. Today was hot and the air condition came in really handy!

A/C Service Time

I just dropped off the Supra to get the air conditioning checked out at Miramar H&A. I've been running with no air conditioning since August or September of last year. There were some days that I wished that I had air conditioning. My friend who is a Toyota mechanic told me that my freon is completely empty. So since summer is almost upon us I think it would be a good time to service it. I just hope it's something minor.

New Greddy Pulley Set

I bought a used set of Greddy Pulley's from a Supraforum's member last month and was disappointed by the shape it was in. It had a couple nicks that bugged me. Since I'm somewhat picky about a few things I decided to sale it on ebay Usually that's the risk when purchasing used parts from people. I ordered a new set of Greddy pulleys from Pann. Now I don't have to worry about any nicks or cosmetic things.

Bumper Repainted Complete

I stopped by last Friday to check the progress of my front bumper at SDCS. They had removed my bumper off the car. Everything was already painted and was drying up in the booth. Jacie, owner of SDCS told me that everything should be good to go on Monday. He also recommended a guy to fix the dent on the passenger fender. I've had that dent for the longest time. It was there when I bought the car over four years ago.

I decided to get that dent fixed as well. I originally was scheduled to pick the car up on Monday but the guy who was suppose to fix my dent informed me that a special tool is required. He didn't have that tool at the time and will have everything done on Tuesday. I didn't mind as long as I'm satisfied. On Tuesday I pick up the car and everything looks great. They did a few touch ups to the bumper and I was good. SDCS did an incredible job. It looks way better than the previous job they did last year. And as for the dent. It's completely gone!

I'm one satisfied customer!

Repainting Front Bumper Again

About a year and four months ago I got my repainted my front bumper and passenger fender at SDCS. At that time I messed up fender backing out of a parking garage and hit the pillar in the convention center parking lot. I got the fender replaced and repainted it. At the same time I decided to get my bumper repainted as well. It had the license plate holes and a few little dents. Everything looked great when I picked it up... About 5 months later I noticed that the paint on the bumper was bubbling. Weeks later the bubble burst leaving an ugly gash. I think it was due to the exposure UV light from the sun.

Last week I showed Jacie, the owner of SDCS the bubble area. He said he will take care of it. Since the paint is covered by warranty I wouldn't have to pay anything... Today I'll be dropping the car off at SDCS in National City. I really hope everything looks better than before.

JDM Steering Wheel Resold.

After a few failed attempts trying to sell my JDM Supra Steering Wheel on Supraforums, socalsupras, and even on craigslist. I had one guy who was totally sold on it. And when I informed him that the steering wheel had no airbag or cruise control he backed out. He didn't respond back to my email or my phone call after that. LAME. My last resort was posting it up on eBay. I was able to make some of my money back on the wheel but wasn't able to gain any profit. I was really hoping to sell it for more than I got it since it's a JDM steering wheel. I suppose the item wasn't as hot as I originally thought.

Clutch Master Cylinder and Cylinder Slave Replaced

With the amount of mileage my car has its only necessary to replace a lot of things. I was informed when I got my starter rebuilt that my cylinder slave was leaking. I purchased all the parts before hand from my roommate and had Mike (Toyota Tech) replace them. I also installed a stainless steel clutch line to replace the old rubber line. It took about 2 or so hours to get everything installed. Everything feels really good now. I'm good for another 100k. Hopefully that won't be anytime soon.

Good bye NA Front Brakes

I finally sold my NA front brakes to Robert from 935 Motorsports. He wanted to mount them onto his SC300. Originally i thought the SC300 brakes were the same as the NA Supra but in actuality the NA Supra brakes are slight larger... I wouldn't say it's a big difference but he got a good deal on them :) Now I can finally free up room in the garage. Now I have to sell those rear brakes.

ati super damper arrived!

The ati super damper that ordered from summit racing arrived! It's a nice little upgrade for my motor swap. Since I'm planning some decent horsepower this crank pulley damper will add that extra level of safety. I'm slowly making progress on my project. I just hope to finish up sometime this year.

Ticket Signed Off

I was able to get my fix-a-ticket signed off without taking off my tint and the license plate. ;) So I go to the court house to take care of this issue and low and behold after waiting in a long line that the ticket has been inputted in the system. The lady told I would need to wait for a letter to come in the mail... So pretty much I wasted my time. I wanted to get this taken care of right away so I won't have to worry about it. But I guess I have to wait.

Tint Illegal?

I was running errands in Kearny Mesa the other day following the rules of the road. I noticed a police car pass by me at the incoming lane while I waited for my light to turn green... I didn't really thing nothing of it. I didn't break any laws or anything... All of a sudden I noticed a police car in my rear view mirror. I wasn't sure if it was the same car that passed by or just another random one. So I made my left turn and all of a sudden he his lights go on. In my mind I was thinking I didn't do anything wrong. I wasn't speeding or doing anything crazy. The police offer walks up to me and tells me that he noticed my tint on my windows. I told him that my windows were rolled down but for some reason he saw it? He asked me to roll it up and tells me that its illegal to have them. He then asks for my license, registration and proof of insurance. His partner was complimenting me about the car and asking all these questions...

The police offer complimented me on my Recaro Red Seats. He wanted to know how much I got them for. Then he goes about asking whether my rear spoiler is factory. And who does my work on my car. The funny thing is that he was asking if I tricked out my car by adding headers and other performance mods. I had a suspicion that he was trying to integrate me to the point where he might have to pop open my hood. I told him my car is stock and I didn't mod anything. And he then tells this one story about his girlfriend in high school had a supra... BLAH BLAH BLAH.

After that weird conversation was all done they handed me a ticket for the tint and not having my front license plate. Bummer!

Car Leaking Oil!

I found out my car has been leaking oil these past few days... After first I thought it would've been an incorrect oil change. In the weekend I went back and redid my oil change. I added a brand new drain plug washer and put the oil back in. I found that today the oil leak isn't coming from the oil drain plug. It looks like it's coming from the transmission... Possibly the rear main seal? I hope that's not the case. I wouldn't want to remove the entire tranny to get it fixed! That would S*CK big time. Removing the transmission when doing that clutch job was a pain. I'm going to have it looked at tomorrow and hopefully it can be resolved without removing the transmission.

Car Cover Search

I usually visit my parent's during the weekends. My car is parked outside most of the time while my mom's Miata and dad's Van are parked in the garage. Lately it's been cold and rainy. So I've been contemplating getting a good car cover that protects the Supra from moisture and rain! A lot of the supraforums members have stated that California Car Cover has the best warranty and the best covers. So I have to decide which of the three covers to select.

Superweave
Providing the premium in outdoor, all-weather storage protection. The versatile Superweave material features unsurpassed moisture, dust and pollutant protection. The encapsulation technology goes INSIDE the fabric, around the fibers, resulting in a silky smooth finish that glides over fine paint finishes. Superweave is also dust-proof so it will keep your vehicle clean whether it is stored indoors or out. It still remains exceptionally breathable, allowing moisture and heat to escape. When rain hits the cover it simply runs right off and any moisture left on the cover will usually dry in about 10 minutes.

Noah
Kimberly Clark's NOAH material stops virtually all dust, dirt and pollution. Highly water resistant and dust resistant (even more than Stormweave!), the NOAH fabric performs excellently whether it is for indoor or very lengthy outdoor use. This space age material provides superior protection in all weather conditions. Made with "breathable film" technology, NOAH gives the vehicle the ultimate barrier of protection, but still allows for moisture and condensation to evaporate away from your vehicle's finish.

Stormweave
Stormweave's dense construction cushions against parking lot dings and is resistant to tears and punctures. Stormweave is highly water resistant and blocks 99% of ultraviolet rays from the sun and has a 180 UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor); while other cheap imitation fabrics may have a UPF rating of only 40. This is important because UV rays are what damage both the interior and exterior of your vehicle; block the UV rays…protect the vehicle! Stormweave can help protect your vehicle's interior and finish from sun, rain, snow, dew, industrial pollutants, tree sap and animal droppings

JDM Steering and C's Shifter

I've been searching on Yahoo Japan Auctions to find good deals on some Supra parts. I found a couple of cool items I could get cheaper in Japan than on Supraforums. A year and half ago I purchased my TRD tachometer for $150 shipped, which is an amazing price. The items I'm currently monitoring are a JDM Toyota Supra steering wheel and a C's 6-Speed short shifter. I intend to resale these items and possibly make some money to use on my swap.

Let's hope I win!

boo condensation!

I went into the garage and noticed something in my front driver headlight... After the trend of cold and rainy weather condensation formed inside my headlight. I was really disappointed and bummed. I thought the headlights were sealed really well when I had my retrofit done. I txted a couple of friends and it seemed like a lot of work. I rather have someone do it for me instead of doing it myself. Since I don't have any experience in resealing headlights I'm bound to break something.

I finally txted the guy who did my retrofit. His response was to have me send it back so he can reseal them at no extra charge. The only expense is having them shipped to his location. I still have an extra set of Supra headlights I can run while they're out getting resealed. Now I have to find the time to send them.

I just hate seeing it that condensation!

finally finished with clutch

I went back to Brad's house to finish the remaining things on the clutch job. He first put back the plastic undertray beneath the car. Then he checked both the motor oil level and the gear oil. The motor oil level was spot on. He also double checked to see if the filter was tighten. Brad wanted to top off the transmission gear oil. I had some gear left over from last light so I took a clear hose and poured the gear oil in.

I mentioned to Brad that the clutch pedal felt a light on my way home last night. He recommended that I had my clutch bled. We both went to the local Wal-mart to pick up some brake fluid.

Brad did an awesome job with the install. Everything felt great and I'm good for another 150k miles. He was very professional and knew what to do. Hopefully by then I'll have my refreshed GTE motor swapped in.

clutch finally replaced

I finally got my clutch replaced by Brad, a mechanic that previously worked at a local performance shop in Mira Mesa. It was a long day before the both of us. He worked on several Supra clutch jobs, so he pretty much knew what to do.

I had everything set aside for the job.

• Aisin OEM Clutch


• Throw-out Bearing


• Release Bearing


• Rear Main Oil Seal

There were a few things that I needed to get done. I still had to pick up some gear oil and had to get flwheel resurfaced. It took about 2 to 3 hours to have the clutch removed. He first removed my undertray, then removed my exhaust out of the way to unbolt the drive-shaft, and then remove the transmission.

After the transmission was out we dropped the the flywheel off to get resurfaced at local Poway Machine shop. The machine shop did an awesome job. Luckily, Poway Toyota was nearby so i picked up 3 bottles of gear oil and an gasket for the transmission plug

When we got back Brad focused his attention to the rear main oil seal. He inspected my current rear main seal and told me it was still good. I already had purchased a new rear main oil seal, so I decided while the transmission is out to replace the oil seal. Removing the rear main oil required me to change my oil in the process... I remembered that I was due for an oil change. The timing was perfect.

I went out again to pick up 6 quarts of motor oil and a filter. When I got back from the store Brad had already drained the oil from the car and removed the part that holds the rear main seal. He then used a hammer to remove the seal from its enclosure.

The process of putting everything back together was a long. It took the rest of the afternoon and evening to get everything done. Putting back the transmission was tricky. Since we didn't have a lift Brad and his friend Kyle had to lift the transmission up. I was responsible of position the jack below the transmission and making sure its at an appropriate height so they can bolt it on.

... We finished at around 11pm. Brad told me to come back tomorrow to finish a few things but majority of the work was done. He was really tired and wanted to rest up. So we took the car for the test drive and everything went well. When I drove my car back home I noticed that the pedal felt light than before. It felt a little different from the stock clutch but still engaged at the same level.

So i realized that a clutch job on a Supra definitely takes a days worth of work. If we only had a lift the job would be easier. But we had to make due with what we had.

wet day in san diego

Yesterday was a good day to stay inside. Rain continued to pour but that didn't stop me from getting my new JL Audio C2-650x speakers installed. Originally I was going to have autofashion install them but i wanted to get quotes from other places. I didn't what the going rate to install rear speakers was.

I first called San Diego Car Stereo on Convoy. They quoted me $60+ to install. The guy recommended that I come in to get a more accurate quote. I also called two other places. However, the price to install was more than I wanted to spend. I decided to make the trip down to San Diego Car Stereo to get an accurate quote. The rain was pouring down like crazy when i left the house.

When I arrived at San Diego Car Audio one of the employees checked out the rear speaker setup. The Supra rear speakers are located on the rear panel and not in the back. To reach the speakers they would have to remove the panels, which would take some time. According to the guy it would probably take an hour or two to complete and would be $80. That price was comparable to autofashion. I decided just to find another place that would do it.

I remember seeing another car audio place on Clairmont Mesa blvd. I drove to that area and there it was Car Audio Heaven. The guy was really friendly. He came and looked at my car and said that they can do it for $65. He asked me how I was going to pay for it, cash or credit. I told him that I was going to pay with credit. The credit card system was down at the time and that they can only accept cash at the moment. So he offered to do it for $60 cash. I was all for that.

They were able to complete the install while I waited. I was surprised they got the work done in about an hour. One of the employees told me that the Porche they are currently working on is getting everything done up. The owner is putting major money on it! When you own a car like a Porche you need to go all out. I wish I can go all out on my Supra. I'm more of a budget conscious person.

The speakers sounded good but not great. I talked to a couple of my friend's about my situation and they recommended that I get an amp. An amp would provide enough to increase the the power to the speakers while making things sound clear.

So my next upgrade to my audio system will be an amp! Time to figure out which one to get now.

New JL Audio Speakers C2-650x

I had the urge to purchase something for my car. So I had to think about what needs to be replaced. The car is about 12 years old and things need to be changed to something better. One thing that needs to be upgrade is my rear speakers. I was told that my rear driver speaker was blown when I had my Panasonic headunit installed a year and half ago.

So yesterday I was surfing the web to find out prices for JL Audio C2-650x speakers. These speakers are a new model of coaxiel for 2009. I finally settled and purchased them on ebay for a way better price than everybody else. I can't wait to get them :)



JL Audio C2-650X Info
JL Audio's Evolution C2 speakers bring precision sound to your vehicle. They'll reproduce subtle elements of your music like delicate woodwinds or soprano vocals, then turn on a dime to deliver the deep thrum of the bass or thunder of the drums.

The C2-650X 6-3/4" speakers feature rugged polypropylene cones that can handle high power without distortion, so you get full-bodied low tones you can really feel. The 3/4" silk dome tweeters serve up smooth-sounding high frequencies that won't tax your ears, adding a satisfying dose of realism to your soundstage. Built-in crossovers make sure your tunes play smoothly across the whole musical spectrum.

Details:

• 2-way 6-3/4" speakers (pair)


• injection-molded mica-filled polypropylene woofer with butyl rubber surround


• 3/4" silk dome tweeter


• built-in crossover network


• 4-ohm impedance


• power range: 15-60 watts RMS (100 watts peak power)


• frequency response: 59-22,000 Hz


• sensitivity: 91 dB


• depth: 2-9/16"

My Ex-Supra Seats in a Lexus SC

Last night I was able to meet up with Anthony, the new owner of my 97 Supra Seats. I got a glimpse of the seats. The Supra seats were a plug-in play application. They make the SC interior sportier. I had a chance to sit inside and they definitely feel low. Anthony told me its comparable to his Supra MKIII seats. All in all he was happy with the overall outcome. I'm glad my seats are in good hands!

BEFORE





AFTER

so long stock supra seats...

My stock supra seats have been collecting dust ever since i upgraded to Recaro SRD seats last year. i took the supra seats with me when i moved to mira mesa and they have been sitting in the loft area of the house since. i didn't intend to sell them till now. i was just recently laid off and decided it was time for them to go. i wondered how much i can get for them?

My friend suggested that $400 would be a good price. If he had the money right now he would get them. His budget is really tight because of a recent layoff. He recommend that I post them on ClubLexus. A lot of the SC owners are looking to upgrade there power tan seats to supra seats for weight savings and color.

I started a thread on the SC 300 section of ClubLexus. There were a couple people that were interested. One person from Washington state and another people from the San Francisco area. The Washington person wanted me to get a quote on packaging and shipping. It seemed like a lot of working getting a box, packaging and weighing it. The other guy from San Francisco said he would be willing to drive down. However, he wanted me to lower the price. I was pretty firm on my price.

I also posted the seats on Craigslist. Craigslist is amazing when looking for stuff new or used. I've sold and purchased things on there and the community seems legit. It's way better than going on eBay. I received 3 or 4 responses to the seats but finally found a personal locally who was serious. I responded to all his inquires immediately through email. Anthony (local buyer) asked me to hold the seats for him till the first week of February. He came by a few days ago to check out the seats and liked what he saw. He texted me this morning and decided to pick them up.

It was unbelievable that he was stuffed both seats into his SC. The driver seat was placed in the back seat and he stuffed the passenger seat in his truck... Simply Amazing. You can't do that with my supra.

so long stock supra seats...