02 Pontiac Sunfire Build.

[backpacker3]

Exactly and if I'm going to go through the the extra work and money to paint them I won't end up any better than fixing what I have. So I probably won't get them but it is kind of tempting.

[backpacker3]

This was my project for today in between some other stuff I've been waiting for a good day to paint and it was hot and not too muggy we don't get that often in MI. We do get a lot of rain but I digress. Anyway PICS!!!







I've repainted all my trim minus the door handles since those were fine. It looks a lot better now but I didn't get before pictures to prove it but there was stuff peeling off the plastic trim and the wipers were faded to almost grey and starting to rust in spots.

The other thing I did today was start working on my drum brakes currently they're stuck on so I need to get them off so I can do the brakes. they are much less rusty now though. Sorry no pics of that either.

[Daox]

Looks good!

I could definitely do that on my Sunfire... after fixing the evap leak, and the leaking trans pan, and adjusting the parking brake, and the loose wiper stalk. Ah, for love of a 17 year old car.

[Daox]

How did you go about painting the wiper arms? On/off car?

[backpacker3]

If you end up trying it out I really recommend the rustoleum trim and bumper paint I used. It's really good stuff I had to paint some stuff outside so it got a ton of dust in the paint while it dried but when it dried completely the dust brushed right off and the paint still looked fine. It was super easy to make it look good it is a bit thin so do 2 light coats for the best results.

Edit: the wiper arms I left on and just used some newspaper and painters tape took about 5 minutes to tape and cover it off but way easier that taking the arms off

[backpacker3]

Ok I used a bit more than a quarter tank and got 29.1 mpg! Considering it's all city driving and very short trips for the most part I'm quite happy with it! Driving techniques were P&G, gentle acceleration, coasting to all stops and using the least throttle possible at all times to maintain speed (when I'm not doing P&G)

[backpacker3]

I found this muffler on amazon and it has some good reviews I'm considering it for my car
Amazon.com: DC Sport EX-5015 Stainless Steel Round Muffler and Slant Cut Exhaust Tip: Automotive

It's supposed to sound pretty good but my idea is that since it's smaller than my stock muffler it could make a belly pan easier and I could possibly get rid of some of the heat shielding. I'm going to look for a video on it just to actually hear it but since it's so cheap I don't have much to lose but the reduced weight and backpressure will mean a small hp gain and fuel economy improvement as well and since it's only ~$40 it should pay off pretty quickly. Finally it will be one more step in my battle against rust too lol.

[backpacker3]

Well I ended up doing a bit more painting this weekend there were a few spots I didn't think needed paint but after everything else was done look out of place. Also I'm going to be going on a trip in July so I want to wait until that's over to get the grille block installed. That way I can get a good baseline on the way to and from KY

[Daox]

What else did you paint up? Where are the pics?!?!

[backpacker3]

It's just the trim under the windows and around the rear quarter glass. Sorry no pics right now I'll try to snag some when the rain stops. The other reason I'm putting the grille block off at the moment is because I've been thinking about a few arduino options for a way to control and monitor it so I know what's closed or open plus will be able to open or close it with the push of a button. But that will require a few changes to the wiring I'll have to adjust for.