sparrow801

My apologies but this post will be a little bit different. I’m a 38 year-old husband and Dad and recently I discovered that I really like working on cars in my spare time. I recently bought an RX8 and I love it and it runs perfect. I’d like to become competent when it comes to working on cars and eventually I want to be able to work on my own car without having the fear of not being able to reassemble things correctly (or at all). I’m tired of sitting on my *** most nights after work and just watching Netflix and drinking Guinness and I’d prefer to do something productive that actually teaches me a useful skill. I was wondering if there’s anyone near me who is currently rebuilding an RX8 or doing any project that’s rotary-related who could use a hand? To be clear, I don’t want money. I’m not looking for a job or a future opportunity for a job. I’m just looking for a way to gain some hands-on experience so I can eventually do an engine swap in my own RX8 and by that point I’ll have a more educated idea of what I’m doing. Being 38 is weird because I already have an established day job that I love and I have no desire to enroll in classes at a tech school for auto repair because I’m not trying to become a mechanic. I’m just trying to find someone near me who also likes working on cars and is not too annoying to be around and could use some help. I’d prefer to help with projects related to a rotary engine or an RX8 specifically. Let me know if there could be a fit here. Thanks guys.

BigCajun

iTrader: (1)

Welcome.
You can do a lot of maintenance and little projects yourself.
Between this forum and RX8help.com you'll find everything you need to know.

In the meantime you can peruse the forum for topics that pique your interest and begin accumulating the common tools and equipment you'll need to do your own work.
There are a couple of threads about tools, jackstands and stuff.

Jackstands are a must.
Idk about your budget, but if you can afford a QuickJack, I'd recommend it.
Jacking up a car at 38 is easy, but it'll gradually become more difficult.
Trust me.


Enjoy the addiction!

sparrow801

Thanks BigCajun! Does the QuickJack allow the same access to the vehicle as a two-post jack?

BigCajun

iTrader: (1)

Not if you're talking about a fixed position 2 post lift, but they're a lot cheaper and easier to store and move to the car as opposed to being in a fixed location.




Like if your starter fails on your driveway you wouldn't have to push or pull the car to the 2 post lift.

A 2 post lift is far superior because you don't work on the ground with a creeper, but you have that permanent big footprint taking up space you have to work around when your car's not on it.

If budget and space are not an issue, then a lift is great.

Laminar

If I had the space, I'd do a 2-post lift in a heartbeat. As it is, the Quickjacks work for me. They get the car juuust high enough to work under it - I've done engines, transmissions, subframes, exhaust, everything. But of course, all of it is from a creeper with the car 3 inches from my face.







I worked under jackstands for years, and I'll say the QuickJack is a lot more convenient and a lot more secure-feeling when I need all four wheels up. It's also semi-portable so I can use it in any stall of the garage or just stash it against the wall if I don't need it at the moment.

thatguy308

Nice setup Laminar.