1988 GTX Restoration - Going To Be Fun!

[NoBoDy_nz]

Wow! Beautiful Nobody.

Nice rear vented rotors too!

Cheers, the rear vented rotors were actually front rotors on the back with mr2 calipers, but they are sold now and i have a full gtr 5 stud setup on the back, so back to a solid rotor tho alot bigger in diameter.

[slownrusty]

Cheers, the rear vented rotors were actually front rotors on the back with mr2 calipers, but they are sold now and i have a full gtr 5 stud setup on the back, so back to a solid rotor tho alot bigger in diameter.

Your car is amazing and an inspirational build.

[Pashka0788]

Your build is beautiful!!! Awesome work dude, In the end all the work will be well worth it. :-)

[slownrusty]

Your build is beautiful!!! Awesome work dude, In the end all the work will be well worth it. :-)

Thank-you!

Well I finally finished replacing all worn wheel bearings today. Not particularly hard, just time consuming more than anything.
I couldn't find a decent set of pictures to help other owners, so I snapped a few in sequence from removal of the Knuckle and Hub assembly. I am under the impression that most owners know how to remove this assembly.

Knuckle and Hub assembly removed from the car and the oil seal removed using a flat edge screwdriver:


Cue in the handy dandy 12 ton Hydraulic Press from Harbor Freight tools and I also bought some 3/4" sockets and a bearing separator. In the picture below, I am getting ready to press the hub out of the Knuckle using a 27mm socket:




And voila! the hub is out!


Here is the Hub removed with the bearing visible:


The outer part of the bearing removed using a puller, leaving:


This where the bearing separator comes into play, and was probably the most time consuming part of this job as it it a tight fit (you can see the deflection in the bearing separator!) :


Ok its out and I polished the shaft of the hub, new bearing getting ready to be pressed in, new oil seal goes in first:


Bearing pressed in:


What I should have photographed and forgot to, was the old bearing races, I removed them using a round punch and a 8lb sledge, which worked great.
I used a sledge and a piece of wood to fit the hub to the knuckle.

Everything back together and a new seal in place:


My strut bearings were also worn and so ordered a pair from the dealer and installed them today:


And finally fitted the Cusco strut brace:

[FE3-323]

clever press rigging system!! next time however DO NOT polish the hub surface unless you've nicked/damaged it & then only in that area in particular.
polishing the whole surface greatly increases the chances of spinning the inner bearing race (which is obviously not the part you want to spin)

keep up the good work!

[slownrusty]

clever press rigging system!! next time however DO NOT polish the hub surface unless you've nicked/damaged it & then only in that area in particular.
polishing the whole surface greatly increases the chances of spinning the inner bearing race (which is obviously not the part you want to spin)

keep up the good work!

Thanks, the hub shaft had some imperfections and a few grooves from previous bearing replacements that I wanted to address. I didn't actually polish it but used 120 grit.

Back to this bearing replacement post and discussing further with a well respected forum member, I decided to remove everything yesterday and start all over again. Apparently I was missing the bearing spacer that is sandwiched between the inner and outer bearings, furthermore the assembly of the bearings supposed to be on the knuckle and the hub pressed into it....no hammers

[slownrusty]

Took the the car in for an alignment and put a little camber on all four (4).
It was in great company at my buddy's shop.

[BFMRGTX]

Looking very good! Are you going to put the decals back on (if the AWD decals can be repro'd)?

[slownrusty]

Thanks.

I am going to reproduce the AWD decals shortly. I have a really large brand new set from a Mazda Bongo that is identical to the GTX (just larger).

I've already placed the new 16V DOHC Turbo decals on the rear quarters.

[Mr Rotary]

She's looking good Rusty!


'88 GT
'88 GTX
'85 Toyota Cressida 5-Speed

[slownrusty]

Not much new as I've been busy with work and home commitments, but I was able to install the carpet I bought from Piotr and remove the old and worn original carpet this weekend, which looks like had suffered from spilled cokes or coffee over the years.

The carpet from Piotr cleaned up nicely although it has a few spots on it that I'll work on to see if they can come out. The Euro carpet pile is also fluffier and softer than the US spec, which is more of a tougher mat / berber pile.

The old carpet, which had seen better days:


The old carpet removed:


The "new" European carpet from Piotr after steam cleaning:


Completely cleaned the floor of the car, I am pleased how clean this car is:


Carpet installed:


Cheers,
Yasin

[azgtx]

Geez you didn't have to go to Poland..I have a spare carpet in the storage.

[BFMRGTX]

I have the urge to rub my toes into the carpet.

[slownrusty]

Geez you didn't have to go to Poland..I have a spare carpet in the storage.

Dang..wish I had known that! Is it new?

I have the urge to rub my toes into the carpet.

Funny, I actually drove the car yesterday without shoes on, the carpet feels great.

[BFMRGTX]

Funny, I actually drove the car yesterday without shoes on, the carpet feels great.

Goddamnit, I've done three track days bare footed. The thought of a freshly steam cleaned carpet under my toes is giving me the oddest boner... I feel shame, yet I feel vindicated.