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Is the bra and oem Mazda bra? I have a Mazda one that is still in the box that I haven't installed yet and was saving it for trips and such.
Also.... BOBA FETT FTMFW!!!!!!!!!!!
I have no idea... a local friend of mine sold his 8 and had it sitting around (never installed) so he sold it to me for cheap. It sure fits the way I would expect OEM to fit.
I have a growing Boba Fett collection... including a replica helm among many others.
Here is my latest addition, a gift from a friend. Haha! It's quite funny when I am complimented on it, from guys "Nice purse!!!" Im like, "I bet you havent said that before!!!"
So the other day I noticed a very weird sound that only lasted briefly, like 15 seconds tops. It came back one other time lasting only 5 seconds or so, and then never came back... Personally I would relate it to the sound a turbo makes when a charge pipe is disconnected. A RPM dependent high pitch whistling/whine sound... as revvs increased the pitch increased. The first time it happened it was a little deeper in sound, but still behaved/sounded quite similar to that. The closest thing I could find to explain it is an alternator bearing (if you were to look up alternator whining). Now my voltage via my OBD gauge never dropped, and I never had any typical alternator problems, but still suspect the alternator. I couldnt get the car to do this again after putting another 40+ miles on it and idling in my garage for awhile as well.
I also have noticed ever since I got my car the slightest sound under the hood that I thought was just a bit too noisey. Not quite a chirp, and not quite a grind, just the echo of a noise that seems out of place. I began to wonder if it were the alternator bearing beginning to become unhappy.. now able to relate it to that other sound.
Normally I would have waited til it became more symptomatic (I have AAA and scootin around town would have been no big deal had it needed a tow)... but because I have a road trip coming up Im not messing around so I put in the new alternator. (It sure looks better which is nice, LOL)... well that ever so slight extra noise I was hearing under the hood, is gone. I swear the engine bay sounds healthier/quieter (could be just in my head but I think this is the case, haha)... and although I havent put many miles on it, that weird whining hasnt come back.
The old alternator pulley stilll spun freely, but if you listened it made more noise than the new one. Didnt really sound awful or anything, but it was definitely putting out more noise, so I definitely suspect the bearing was beginning a downward spiral.
Also to note, on the old alternator the power feed eyelet was completely loose. The nut was onle 2-3 threads from coming right off the post, so that was interesting... Im surprised I didn't have any issues with that.
Nice & shiney...<br/><br/>Once I am settled in at the new house, I am going to correct the strut bar and bracket hue...
So 2 days ago I arrived at my new location, after a 9+ road hour trip in the 8. She was weighted down (literally tucking tire in the rear), the gas mileage was pretty bad with the extra weight/roof rack, but overall the car handled it like a champ. No problems on the way down.
About to head out.
Check out that rear wheel...
The bra was a test run for me, I have never used one before so I was curious.. My front bumper is next on the list for body repairs (it has spidering in various areas if you look close, rock chips/etc, and definitely needs to be completely stripped/repainted at some point). The bumper was definitely kept clean and free of rock chips (with all the semis on the road I definitely got hit with a lot of sand/rocks, etc).. my windshield got a few good hits, as im sure my front end did as well. The bumper was definitely protected from that, and still looked freshly washed/waxed as I did that before putting the bra on where the bra is covered with bugs and grime as well. However there is one very small section (below the pass side headlight where the bumper line sticks out furthest) where it appears the paint was rubbed away. It's very small, and hardly noticeable, and I haven't buffed it (possible it's just a lil rub in the clear coat).. I would NOT recommend using a bra on a bumper that is in good condition (as most would recommend anyways). Like I said, this was a test for me since this bumper is very beat anyways. It's possible the sand/rocks would have caused more damage, but possibly not. I probably would not use this again either way. There was no other damage, scratches, or anything else from the bra, anywhere else.
There were however 2 clips that I could not secure properly because I have the lip, and it's possible that that slight amount of freedom that allowed, gave it just enough space to move in that one area. Had it been attached to a base model bumper I bet there would gave been zero movement to rub anything away because otherwise fitment is tight and perfect.
I should add too, that while I could tell it was weighted down (uneven as well, as the driver's side was worse) she really delt with it well. Never bottomed out the struts or made anything too squirrely on the highway. Going over bumps I could tell the uneven weight from left to right made it respond a bit abnormal. I traveled with caution, but was still very happy to see how well it handled the load, lol.. cause I was definitely asking a lot of it :P
Seems like the car did an AMAZING job on your trip. I love the pic with your daughter and that dog! Absolutely priceless!! Do you think the left side strut is weaker than the right or was the car loaded more on the left? How far was your trip? Is that roof rack made for the 8 or is it a universal one?
Seems like the car did an AMAZING job on your trip. I love the pic with your daughter and that dog! Absolutely priceless!! Do you think the left side strut is weaker than the right or was the car loaded more on the left? How far was your trip? Is that roof rack made for the 8 or is it a universal one?
Thank you! haha. The driver's side was definitely loaded more. I had it PACKED with some heavy stuff as well, behind my seat. Definitely more in weight than my daughter and her car seat.
The roof rack contains Yakima Q clips (Q60 - specific for the 8) with the Yakima Q towers and 48" cross bars. The basket itself is a universal I got from Walmart.com. It's very well made and much lower in price than the Yakima equivalent.
A little mini update (at this point)... About 2 months ago my exhaust developed a slight rattle. Mostly at lower speeds/increased throttle. It also started a new abnormal sound at idle, after a drive (not the typical exhaust clicking). If you tap the mufflers you hear rattling. While the actual tone was what I wanted ... the quality is clearly sub par. The piping/mufflers don't appear to have excessive life into them so I expect they aren't really old or anything... my guess is they are a cheap eBay cat back and the mufflers couldn't handle the rotary heat.
I contemplated lopping the mufflers off and basically having a new axle back welded up (since the piping itself is completely fine)... but figured I would just start fresh. Going to pull everything down from the header back and install new gaskets (I also have a slight exhaust leak, I believe is at the header to mid pipe joint). Inspect the cat again and if it looks fine I will reinstall, or I am contemplating trying out my catless midpipe again with the new mufflers and see if they can handle resonating the extra rasp, lol...
As for the catback, I ordered a new one from Randy Shane @ Reckless Motorsports. I am really looking forward to seeing it come together, as his weld work is phenomenal and the quality looks A+
Havent really driven the 8 since we arrived, so decided to stretch its legs yesterday. I washed and waxed it. Got a new wax it's nothing too fancy but a nice paste wax I could grab at the autoparts store. Meguires gold or something. Anyways it did a fantastic job enriching that BB... But then I take it out to the pumpkin farm and have to drive through a virtual dust pit. So much for that wax, lol.
It literally looks like a 2-tone fade back to front/gray to black.. In person. Lol.
That's the big drawback with black.Its dirty as soon as you hit the road after a wash. But oh man does it look amazing when its clean!! Drove my 8 to wok yesterday and its been raining for a couple days now and that poor car looks terrible. No sense in washing it until the rain stops. The good thing about your wax job is that when you do wash the car, the dirt will just roll off the car.
Yeah my biggest complaint with black is how obvious dirt becomes.... but I agree with you. There is no shine, like there is with a clean blackcar .. and particularly this paint code. I couldn't believe how much it wants to shine, even being a 12 year old car covered with swirls in the clear coat and what not from poor upkeep over the years. I have had a few black cars over the years and this one shines the most when it's clean.
Still very jealous of your BB, always wanted that OR the blue storm mica! I think mazda did a really good job with color options! Where are you now again??
Still very jealous of your BB, always wanted that OR the blue storm mica! I think mazda did a really good job with color options! Where are you now again??
What roof rack setup is that? As in what brand and where did you get it
Originally Posted by Jazer
The roof rack contains Yakima Q clips (Q60 - specific for the 8) with the Yakima Q towers and 48" cross bars. The basket itself is a universal I got from Walmart.com. It's very well made and much lower in price than the Yakima equivalent.
I answered that a few posts back so here you go ^^
09-25-2016, 08:00 AM
