Winter Projects 2009-2010

[Richard Madison]

About this time of the year, Winter To-Do Lists start to pop up with jobs best done when we have more time and the Call of the Road is a little quieter.

Here's my list for this Winter:

1.
2.
3.

I walked around the car, lifted the hood, took her for a "Listen and Feel" drive and found that nothing needs to be done to Ole Beige. No, she's not a National Concours Winner but she is at the place I'm comfortable with according to my modest standards.

I've owned Pagodas for over 10 years and every Winter I've worked my way through a list of items that needed attention...some were a bit costly and serious but most were casual touch ups and small improvements.

Not having a list this Winter gives me mixed feelings: I'm pleased that the car is looking good and running good but I kind of miss the focus and energy I got from making sure the list was completed by Spring.

I guess I should be happy and just get out the cross country skis, go look at Central Park after a snow, or maybe head down to Miami to bask in the sun for a while.

Hope you all have good Holiday Season and a Great Winter (working on your projects.) 

Richard M, NYC

[Witt]

....may I join the club ?.......No list for me either this winter. I spent last winter and the better part of this year restoring the body and interior of my Pagoda. Pictures to follow.
This winter I will concentrate on our Garage Band and practise more....that's the plan anyway...

CHEERS !
WITT !

PS: It seems that the less I fiddle with the car the better it runs.....to much of a good thing ?       

[peterm]

All covered an up on its lift for a long winters nap.  I am ready to put on my new hubcaps and address the generator light once the cover comes off in the spring.

BTW my Benz Barn story- Dan went out of his way to find me some caps and even further out of his way to paint them.  Ultimately they were shipped but 3 weeks later the never arrived.  Dan's immediate response was to refund my purchase and eat the loss.  A few days later they were returned to him and he contacted me.  Fortunately they arrived after the second attempt at the US/canadian postal system.  They are much better than he described and I couldn't be happier with his product. 

All this goes to prove his dedication and ethics as many other vendors would have stuck the purchaser, much less going to the effort of producing the product.

[Mike Hughes]

No doubt your Garage Band will sound better if performing for a Pagoda!  My winter project is to remove my CSV and send it to Pacific for a rebuild, per Gernold's suggestion at the Chili Meet at Tom's in October.

[Witt]

......this may be also helpfull:

For insurance purposes I had to take some very specific photos of my Pagoda. One of the pictures had to be of the luggage compartment ( boot / trunk...) with the carpet or other liner removed....guess what ? It seems that the original rubber mat is trapping moisture between the floor and the matte. That explains why so many Pagodas have rusted floors in that area.
 My floor was redone just a couple of month ago, can you imagining what years and years of this condition will do ?

So, I recommend to remove the matte entirely and leave the trunk lid open a crack during winter storage.

Since I am driving my car during the winter quite a bit, weather permitting, I will remove said matte also for the duration.
Pagodas in milder climates and / or stored in heated garages may not have this problem.

CHEERS !
WITT !

PS: This post may be in the wrong place and should be under " Winter Storage Tips " or..........?

[gimp]

I just wanted to say that removing the rubber mat saved my trunk floor from rusting.
I noticed in the early 7D's that my trunk was showing signs of service rust, so I removed
the rubber mat sprayed some rust check and covered the trunk floor with black trunk carpeting.
No rust as of yet.

[J. Huber]

I am planning one of those "light winters" myself. Nothing to speak of on the list (small stuff done -- big stuff way too major)...

 -- so just an oil and filter change, a quick wax, and some brisk drives whenever the sun beckons. The hardtop will probably go on in January for a couple months of that look. Of course, I said this last year and ended up spending the season sprucing up the engine bay and replacing all sorts of little wires and rubber parts under the hood...

[Richard Madison]

Rubber mat rust:

The original style two piece rubber mat is still available from various parts dealers at modest cost.

I kind of like the original look but an very aware ofd the reust -under the mat probvlem.
I suuesgt checking the seal allr ound the runk lid to ame sure the trunl saysa as dry as apiibnle.

The, at leastbonce evry few eeks I atek apeek uindethe mat to make sure LL

[Witt]

....the moisture under the the mat is caused by condensation due to changes in temperature. Faulty weather stripping would not help either but then you would have water on top of the mat as well.
I for one will not reinstall that mat. The PO had a very nice carpet mat, matching the interior, installed which seems to be better "breathing" then the rubber mat.

CHEERS !
WITT !