I investigated high rolling resistance in the front wheels that I've mentioned before. I took the brake calipers off the wheel and found the resistance still high, the brakes were not contributing. (Anyways as I've said before I can't hear the brakes scraping.) Since the resistance feels symmetric in the front wheels, and I did this in neutral, I feel pretty sure it's coming from the transmission or clutch. Now, I know that a retaining ring from the passenger side axle is AWOL which combined with high transmission resistance makes me nervous, but I didn't find any detectable level of metal shavings in the transmission oil when I drained it (twice) this year.
Curiously, I notice a temperature correlation, this is a cold weather thing. This morning rolling out of my driveway after running my block heater for two hours, I noticed that the resistance was absent, it felt like summer.
Maybe I should pose this question on the mechanics board?
(EDIT: never-mind about the clutch; transmission in neutral rules that out, right?)
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I also sanded out the rust around the windshield, primed painted and sealed up the gap with outdoor caulk. I was going to post pictures, but decided that the electricians tape, while it looks just like the OEM weatherstrip at a distance, seemed too redneck to post online, even for this car. Redneck or no, I'm sure it'll last longer this way, and I feel better knowing the rust wasn't yet deep enough to be structural (and that it's now sealed properly against rain entering the cab
).
(I guess this is more of a eco-repair than a eco-mod. Any repair is a eco-repair, for that matter. I've got 2 tons of steel I'm trying to save from the crusher.)