Bertie the Bomber - 1983 X1/9

gumby said:

4x98, so hawt right now

Those are sexy.

Those wheels are sweet. In other news, I grabbed a few cheap parts from an RSX type S partout last night. 2 Seats, a flywheel and clutch, and a front crossmember. (and a slightly goofy 4 point 'harness'). 

Quick look at the seats shows they might be a bit too tall (seat bottom too far from floor), but I might still be able to make something fit. 

Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:

I grabbed a few cheap parts from an RSX type S partout last night. 2 Seats, a flywheel and clutch, and a front crossmember. 

Come again? 

I say that like I can't see the K-series writing on the wall.

I’m pretty sure that many of those Acura parts can fit if you do some cutting. Can’t wait for the documentation. 

Little bit of foreshadowing maybe. I am dreaming of k swaps, but they would be a long way off. Frankly I probably shouldn't have bought any of it, but I like buying parts, dammit!

In other news, the Jag just donated it's aftermarket head unit, and Bertie is currently missing one. So hopefully my son and I will be installing some tunes tomorrow. The fiat head unit harness has like 6 wires so shouldn't be too hard to figure out haha.

Success! One of the first true father son projects we've done. My son helped cut, strip, and crimp, and no those are not all just dances the young kids are doing.

Before:

During:

And after:

As a bonus, there happened to be a heart CD left in the head unit by the Jag's PO. And I somehow never even checked! Apparently this CD was once owned by Carol, so now I can say that Bertie has the Heart of Carol.

Only one of the two speakers works, and it is garbage at that. Also, while there is an antenna wire to plug into, I see no antenna on this car. And radio reception is non existent. So need to look into that.

Some X1/9s had antenae imbedded in the windshield. Didn't work very well. Replaced on mine with one on the right rear fender that went to scrap along with the rest of the sound system and the bumpers.

TurnerX19 said:

Some X1/9s had antenae imbedded in the windshield. Didn't work very well. Replaced on mine with one on the right rear fender that went to scrap along with the rest of the sound system and the bumpers.

ahh that makes sense. Since it looks like I can get one for like $7, I might spring for another 'tape it to the windshield' antenna to see if that helps. 

In other news, I found that the left speaker didn't work because it had been unplugged. I plugged it in and I found out why it had been unplugged - it sounds awful. What is odd though is it seems to be something other than the speaker, as I plugged in a different speaker that sounded the same. Maybe the wires are grounding somewhere? Who knows. The car is so tiny one speaker is really all that is needed, and I have a spare cheapo 5x7 that I might be able to build a quick box for and put either in the space between the driver and passenger shoulders, or maybe even into the spare tire well. I already can't put a spare tire in there because that's where the aftermarket ECU is mounted. 

In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :

wires are likely reversed.  Swap them around and see how that sounds.

Stefan (Forum Supporter) said:

In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :

wires are likely reversed.  Swap them around and see how that sounds.

I did try that, no difference. It's really odd, just staticy like the speaker is blown. 

Now, I should try a different CD too though, because the heart CD is scratched to hell and skips like crazy. So it could actually be an input problem, or it could be an issue with the head unit itself.

What do you think of the suspension in terms of rally cross capability? I’m asking for a friend. 

Are you sure you don't, against all odds, have two blown speakers?

GoLucky said:

What do you think of the suspension in terms of rally cross capability? I’m asking for a friend. 

Dunno yet but I will research that for you.

Dusterbd13-michael (Forum Supporter) said:

Are you sure you don't, against all odds, have two blown speakers?

Great question. I actually think it was the CD if you can believe that. Swapped in my trusty top gun sound track and now both right and left channels are better. However current plan is still just to run one 5*7 (or 6*9, I forget) in a custom enclosure in the spare tire area. I tested yesterday and it gives plenty of volume/clarity and I happen to have the speaker already.

Got the chance to put Bertie up in the air and poke around.

Noticed that both exhaust hangars are about this good:

Being up in the air quickly led to this:

Required dropping but thankfully not disconnecting the radiator.

The rear was MUCH easier - two bolts and a swift pull.

I also started chemical treatments (goo gone) to remove the old plasti. This is not a fun job.

Whoever did dip the car at least did me the favor of primering the whole thing first. So that was very nice of them. 

Hooray on adding lightness. Trouble with primer color is that the whole car is now the same color as pavement. Add bright color before using in traffic. You will need some form of front air dam too for highway use. I tried my car without. Seventy MPH near an 18 wheeler was akin to surfing Fifty pound toolbox in the frunk fixed it until I built the one pictured. I hold the lamps on with tie wraps. It has worked OK for 17 years.

Oh that looks nice! Did you cut your tow hooks off? I am thinking with mine (with potential rallyx in mind) that I really want a solid metal bar in front of the bottom of the radiator. 

So I'm planning to build something that bolts in the stock location of the plastic chin spoiler but is made of pretty stout metal.  I also have a plastic grill from the other x1/9 in the shop (which I just recently discovered is actually a 74) and its a bit broken already so I won't mind 'modifying'.  

In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :

Sorry to report I did cut the tow hooks. I wish I had not....Had to add one later. I agree 100% with adding some radiator protection. I have the same "Texas Cooler" as you, and it took some damage recently from a raccoon strike. Killed it, but it pushed a piece of air dam framework in far enough to pinch 2 tubes and separate a few fins, Thankfully no leak, but too close for comfort.

I had the saw out last night and the kids were playing in the driveway so I took a quick shot at a speaker enclosure.

(The space - no spare can fit here because haltec)

The template

The template in the space

The first few pieces cut glued and drying

Next will be making the front and back and some quick wiring, and I need to think about reinforcing the joints maybe with caulk or something. This is made with 1/4 inch ply I just had laying around. 

Well now it has started.... Thanks Robbie for planting the seed, mine arrives here in the next few days.... Will look good next to the MR2 in the driveway waiting my time......

In reply to dherr (Forum Supporter) :

I <3 brown cars. I've officially turned into my father. 

In reply to Robbie (Forum Supporter) :

That's so much better without the bumpers! 

+1 on bumper delete!  I love X1/9s.  I bet I'd recognize the "smell" of one to this day.

In reply to dherr (Forum Supporter) :

The wheels, oh my, I want those. they're supposedly less than 10 lbs.!

That bumperless look is a crazy improvement.