Project Garage: Making it Messy
By Sarah Forst
There are seven cars in Project Garage – one for each day of the week. Well, four in it and three outside of it. At any rate, it's a constant stream of car projects, from simple fluid changes and suspension upgrades to engine swaps and cam installations. The Garage is a well-oiled machine. Having sufficient lighting and electrical outlets (Part 2) to efficient tool storage (Part 4 and Part 7) has made working on cars much easier. Even large scale projects are less daunting with this much organization. However, Project Garage was about to be faced with its biggest job yet.
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| All those years of salt and winters have taken a toll on this NX! |
The prognosis wasn't good – cancer; and it was terminal! I've shared many memories with my beloved Nissan NX, from cruising with the t-tops off on hot summer days (race car A/C) to breaking my road racing cherry at a Friday Funday event at Nelson Ledges. And now she was dying. A screwdriver could quickly penetrate the A-pillar and put her out of her misery. The henna colored tumors were bubbling up everywhere from the fenders to the wheel wells to the sideskirts and trunk lid. No amount of sheet metal work or bondo coverup was worth getting this car to pass inspection. She wasn't going to be easy to be replaced.
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| This engine hoist has seen better days and tends to leak hydraulic fluid, making it much easier to drop the engine rather than hoist it. |
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| 150k + miles and still going. If my VE dreams don't materialize, this baby is going in the red NX. |
