101 Projects: Your opinions please

[RoninLB]

Haynes is cheap and worth having around

[rbuswell]

Originally Posted by aminter0

rbuswell: Yea, the Haynes we have is pretty weak. I am going to do a search and see what I can find on the home made tool you speak of, heck, I think we will try anything to save a few hundies.

Harry: the color is supposed to be Bahama Yellow, but the PO did not do a very good job getting the colors together, and it is just a question of $$ until we are able to get a correct paint job for her. We are shooting for next year, but we will see. Saving grace on this car is we have found VERY little rust, and it was not in any major spot at all (pass. side turn signal frame 1" wide)

Originally Posted by milt

Haynes is not weak. For the money, it's good side kick to 101 Projects. AFA Haynes goes, there's enough info in there to rebuild your 901 tranny. Ain't that tough enough?

Originally Posted by aminter0

Milt: I must admit, the Haynes is not weak, it has actually guided us though a few different projects. I would just not say it is as detailed as the Bentley we have for the 83.

Glenn: I plan on reading TONS! Also on the list where ball joints, and tie rod ends (the mech suggested we upgrade to the turbo tie rod). I know our list is quite extensive, but patience is the key here. We plan on the alignment and corner balance deal when we get everything said and done.

Originally Posted by crater64

With all that in mind, I suppose I shouldn't dismiss the Haynes outright.

Yes the Haynes book is reasonably priced. My biggest issue with Haynes is by association. I've used Haynes books to repair other car brands and the books got me into trouble with incomplete info. Internet forums for those brands helped me out. I've had the same problem with the 101 book. Bentley, Pelican and Rennlist bailed me out on the 101 snafus as well. I just don't think I'd try the stuff I've done so far if I only had the Haynes, given my experience with other cars.

Milt's an expert and he really knows his stuff so a 901 probably melts in his hands. I'm not as gifted so missing steps really throws me off. Even the factory manuals aren't perfect but they seem more thorough, as they should be. Just my $.02.

[easelboy1]

I keep Haynes, Bentley and both Waynes books on my shelf. Have not run into to many things that are not covered by one or all. Usually follow up with a search on this forum for quick tips and workarounds. Worth the money!

[David E. Clark]

In addition to the books and manuals the others have recommended (Haynes, Bentley, Factory, this board), here are some more suggestions for the early cars. Each has it's own strengths and weaknesses but my view is that you can never have too much reference material. This board limits me to 10 images, but you get the idea!

[BReyes]

Yes it is a good book. Reading is one thing. Tearing into your suspension is another thing. It will require at a minimum experience and lots of elbow grease. Its fun. Do you enjoy DIY projects? If it not what you call fun ...

How does it drive. It is the techs job to find stuff wrong with the car. That is not the difficult part. Are you going to do a total restoration? Are you going to tear it all aprt at once. With suspension experience this is possible to do all at once.

Are you going to do things over the winter or one at a time? Do you have a priority list, eg dampers first, ball joints last etc. Little by little you can address the issues on the list, expecially with the advice from the forum.

At the shop you may have noticed you often find yourself spending in $1k increments. If you tell them to only do very specific things you have to watch that you ask them to do something or they will simply overlook things that should have had a higher priority.

Either way you can get it all buttoned up so YOU enjoy it .

Goodluck,

Regards,