Worldly Scions,
I am currently working on the rear end of my 71 TR6 (pinion oil seal, diff.
mounts, and poly bushings for the trailing arms). As I have (too) little
fear of shipwright's, I'm wondering what else I should do while in here.
A few specific questions follow, but I also solicit general advice.
* rear hubs---the right rear brakes were fouled, apparently with grease.
The hydraulic
cylinder isn't leaking (it's only 1 year old and I've been using silicone
since then). Could the hub have been leaking grease? Seems unlikely, but
....
* hub grease fitting---an article in 6 Tech suggests adding a grease
fitting to the hubs to increase their life span. Anyone have good/bad
experience with this "improvement?"
* how do I tell if the differential is in good shape. The car has only
70,000 miles on the clock, but that is spread over lots of years and some
of the driving was pretty hard :-)
* sealing the gas tank---I've seen no leaks but do smell fuel for a day or
so after a fill-up. I've owned this beast for 18 years (and "stored" it in
my garage for about 8), so I know the tank has had no maintenance/repair.
Is it on borrowed time?
* the rubber boots on the hand brake cable have disintegrated. Any
suggestions on making a serviceable boot without replacing the cables?
* should I have the half shafts and drive shafts balanced? This is just a
driver/beater but I don't mind spending a little money to improve the ride.
* should I bother painting the frame? There are no rust holes in the frame
(some over the headlight, of course), but surface rust is widespread.
However, I assume the real rust danger is inside the box beams. I don't
currently drive on wet days due to a leak around the windshield, but I hope
to in future (only optimists should own LBC's!)
TIA
Cregg Cowan
71 TR6 CC63192L
Mountain View, California
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