I guess I'll introduce myself

[sv51macross]

sv51macross is my general internet handle. SV, sv51, macross, or my real name, Mike. All are fine with me. If you're wondering where the handle came from, at the time I created it my favorite anime was Macross Zero, and my favorite aircraft was the SV-51, the fighter jet of the antagonists.

IRL, I'm skeptical, a try-to-be-nice guy, and a net-moderate. I just turned 21, and am currently attending CC.

Onto my car. My first car, and the only stick I've driven to date. As my sig says, her name is Lucy, she's just slightly younger than I, and she breathes without the aid of a centrifugal respirator. The story of acquisition is long, and something I'd rather not explain very often, so I'll do it now and never again.
A few years back, my dad had been promising me a project car, something cheap, easily modifiable, and running for my first car. Well, luck (good or bad) coincided with an affinity for Mazda roataries. And thus, one night, my dad called me over to the household PC and showed me a won eBay auction for a black, 1990 RX7 GXL (still not sure of the exact trim, and honestly I don't care). The winning bid? $980. the listed condition? Good. The location? Tecate. California.
Where did our 'host' take my father and I, after picking us up from SanDiego International and touring the area?
Tecate.
Mexico.
The car had a California title. It was physically about 3mi south of the border crossing. Stored in our 'host's' outdoor, dilapidated 'garage'. And not in good condition. I wouldn't have called it fair. She would barely start, and ran horribly. Aside from that;
-The paint was fairly bad, it had flecks of white from when he had painted a couple of his rigs next to Lucy without covering her. -The glass had an unattractive light-purple tint. -There was a fuel leak. -There was an oil leak. -Several interior panels were cracked and/or broken. -The car had been broken-into and the speakers/head-unit were gone. -Most of the rubber trim had shrunk over the last two decades. -The driver's side automatic seatbelt was frozen 15% away from rearward-lock
Now, what about her issue running? Well, it seems that our 'host' had paid his 'guys' to swap a new engine in. (he likely blew it or somehow wrecked the seals I guess). He gave his 'guys' the car, a new engine, and a new harness, with the instruction to R&R. apparently, in Mexico, 'R&R' means 'cut and splice'. And apparently several green wires were soldered together or something. I don't know, and I really don't care.
Initially, I wanted my dad to just drop it. (we had to fly back so I could make the first day of my senior year in HS) But he was somewhat stubborn about it, and eventually, and $1000 more later, he flew back down and picked her up in drivable shape. And largely for a couple years she sat dormant. (mostly because I didn't have my driver's license for awhile (scared of parallel parking)(I have it now though) Alot of stuff is still wrong with her.
But god do I love her. Driving spiritedly down a couple fun roads we have locally...I can only describe the feeling as spiritual. The way she handles, and the pull of the engine...I'm hopelessly in love, with possibly the most fickle woman to love.

So the current projects on the list are:
-Fix the fuel leak. I have low-mileage fuel rails and injectors coming, and have a list of little rubber bits to get from Mazdatrix or the local dealer, whichever is cheaper.
-Buy and install an AEM UEGO. There are plans down the road for an RTek, so why not get the wideband now, an AFR gauge for the dash, and use the narrowband emulator to fix the O2 sensor not properly grounding? [been hashed over already]
-Shifter bushings! Sloppy feel, notchy action sometimes, and sticking to the right-side of the H. Self explanatory.
-Install the OBX exhaust my dad got me for my birthday. But I really want to get her running proper and strap her on the dyno for a project baseline first.

And that's all for the meantime. As to eventual plans? Hmm...imagine a black, streetable RX7-version of the Dent Sport Garage 240RS. And a streetable, 200whp NA. but like I said, eventual...

Anyway, glad to be here, hope to make a few friends. Auf Wiedersehen.