Resurrected X90 (allow for little bragging) :-)

[kaplar]

Dear everyone,

Couple of months back I purchased a 1996 Suzuki X90 4WD/auto in a fair shape. The original plan was to resell it after the summer. However, I fell in love with her and decided to bring her back to a full glory!

The last 9 weekends were packed with hard labor (I did everything by myself).

- Engine -

The complete ignition is new (cables, ignition rotor, distributor, plugs). New starter,and battery. Cleaned injectors. New cam/crank/head seals. New cam shaft bearings. Ultra-sound bath cleaned EGR valve. New timing belt and tensioner. New A/C and serpentine belt. New belt cover. 192F thermostat (thanks for the tip Jerry!)

-Transmission-

Replaced transmission and gearbox oil. Tested vacuum pump. Replaced hoses.

- Breaks -

Complete service (new rotors, pads and shoes). Tested and cleaned calipers.

- Tires/Wheels -

16'' 7,5J American Racing rims
235/60/16 tires (55 would have been a better fit, but 60 works too)

- Electronics -

Excalibur remote start
Excalibur alarm system (sound, vibration and forceful entry sensors)
In dash DVD, TV, MP3, GPS, Radio, USB, SD 7'' LCD screen system 4x80W with 4 JBL high power speakers
CB radio with glass long range antenna
Blue led dash/instrumment backlight that matches the DVD/GPS system

- Lights -

5000K Xenon HID kit
White high-intensity fog lights
Halogen backup light

- Body -

Rust free after an extensive body prep. process was completed
The car was painted back to the original color on 06/25/09
The undercarriage is protected with thick rubberized coat
Water strips cleaned and refitted


The list is actually longer, but these are the most important items.

I would like to thank you all for a tremendous support. My special gratitude goes to jtgh for providing the most valuable hands-on advices.

Cheers !
Milo.

PS. I welcome your comments (as always)

[grc1]

Hi, Well I'd say you difenatly earned some bragging rights.

Nice looking ride and you did the work yourself. Congrats...

[kaplar]

Thank you grc1, I appreciate your comment.

I did everything except for painting it, and I sure enjoyed it a lot


Best,
Milo.

[deeznutts77]

i was going to get one of those and put a sidekick front clip on it. yours turned out awsome

[lumpylarry]

is it just me or is it also lowered? seem to sit lower than most x90s i remember..
could be the tires too.

very nice BTW...

[kaplar]

Thanks guys. It's not lowered, at least not that I know of. In fact there is more ground clearance due to 16' rims with the original profile on it (60).

For anybody who was wondering about the max. tire size that can be put on - that's 235/16/55 or 235/16/60 (rubs a tiny bit when turned full left/right, but the rear tires completely clear)

Cheers,
Milo.

[jtgh]

Ultra-sound bath cleaned EGR valve

now your talking, have one at work, but want one for home.

what fluid did you use in it.?

cheers.

that car looks new, what a great job.
rair, too , bet ppl ask what is that?, a sports 4wd?

sharp !

[Ole-Boy]

That's a sharp lookin rig. I can understand you wanting to keep it. I had some tourists stop by my place asking directions one day. That's what they were driving. If it weren't that it was just a two-seater, I'd consider one myself. Then again, I am still watching for a good deal on one...lol. Sounds like your labors of love pays off......and, it's stylin' too.

[kaplar]

Thanks Ole-Boy, I had the same concern myself, but my other car is a full size sedan Audi A6, and I (still) have no kids.

Jerry, an ultra sound bath is the way to go. I do research in bioinformatics, and I'm surrounded with wet-labs at work, so finding a mid size bath was not a problem. As per the solution, you pretty much have two options:
1) Use distilled water, but make sure that you keep it dipped in alcohol for couple of minutes, after about 15 minutes of ultra sound in water. This way you're getting rid of all the water.
2) Use 99.9% alcohol (can only be found in labs) because the water content is so low. Be careful to keep it dipped for not longer than 2-3 minutes. This is enough time to clean the valve, and prevent the membrane from dissolving.

I did 2) because I had access to a rather expensive pure alcohol.
My friend did 1) achieving the same result.

People are curious about the car. The other day I was offered 7K for it from a guy who wanted to tow something small behind his RV. Needless to say, I happily declined it

[grc1]

Hi I used to have a large ultra sound tank , took about two gallons of liquid. We used WD40 for cleaning antiqe guns before dissasmbly. We kept them in over night and it used to do a good job. Never tryed to use it for cleaning carbon such as egr valve. It might work without any danger to the egr menbrane.

Just a thought.