Can’t You Just Drive It?

The simple answer is no… The daily driver, which I swore I would leave alone, continues to receive little upgrades here and there. The most recent round of upgrades has come all the way from Japan and the Philippines.

The first item is none other than a genuine Suzuki Sport Shift knob in White Duracon Plastic. After waiting weeks for this item to be stocked in Japan, packaged and shipped to PA, it arrived. I was thrilled to see the knob show up at my door, but utterly disappointed to realize that the knob isn’t threaded and relies on a setscrew for mounting. Having installed many set-screw-style shift knobs in the past, I knew I was destined for disappointment with this knob. Not surprisingly the knob was installed and came loose by the third shift. Good thing I: a) Paid a premium for genuine part b) Paid a premium to have it shipped half way around the world c) Waited for weeks on end for it to arrive…The lesson learned here is to go with what you know! I knew from day one that I should have ordered the cheaper greddy knob, I knew the thread size and pattern for Suzuki, and finally I knew I would get burned! An update w/ replacement knob to follow !!

The state of affairs

Over the past week or so the sx4 has received a number of oem upgrades. The first of which is a Suzuki Works Techno carbon dash kit. These pieces were of excellent quality and fit perfect! Additionally I installed oem carbon dash sills for that extra touch when you open the doors. (Excuse the artsy night pic...)

More sx4 parts to come!

Got a new grill for the hatchback :P Undersized cooling system no more! I have decided to use the moroso can as a coolant reservoir rather than a oil catch can. The hunt for the oil catch can continues.

And finally some pics of the mess that is workshop. Drastic changes are pending. Before long all these parts will either be sold or installed, only to be replaced by new parts of a different flavor.

Farewell Whitey

So today is the day, whitey is sold. Since Winter 2007 it has been an excellent daily driver. Never leaving me stranded once, it was super reliable and provided a great introduction into the sport of autox. It was parted out (and still is being parted out). With a 190k on the clock, it still runs very well and it should serve its new owner very well. Rumor has it that something german this way comes, shhh....