Rust Through and Steering Wheel question

[Doyt W. Echelberger]

I've had my steering wheel off twice, and used the same fasteners to put it 
back on, without any problems yet.

With regard to the rust inspection: Under the car on the passenger side, 
about the level of the rear passenger door, there is a skid plate that 
shields the gas tank.

Remove the two fasteners at the forward end of the plate and pull the plate 
down at that point. This exposes part of the gas tank for your rust 
inspection. The two fasteners that you took off are candidates for serious 
rust repair. The one toward the center line may be rusted all the way 
through at the point that it is anchored to the underbody. The underbody 
itself is probably holed around the inserting point of this stud.

The gas tank probably has blisters of rust all along the seam between the 
upper and lower halves of the tank. Don't disturb the blisters until you 
are prepared to drop the rear drive components an pull the tank for 
repair/replacement.

You will probably have to replace the fuel and brake lines and the fuel 
pressure accumulator, along with the unit that automatically adjusts the 
delivery of brake fluid pressure to the rear brakes (on driver side rear).

The fender liners and rear quarter panels have trapped dirt/rust on other 
lister cars. Here is what Harrison wrote on February 6, 2001:

"Poking around the right, rear wheel well in search of an elusive
gas smell source, I pulled the plastic liner. I found about a
half pound of road dirt trapped between the liner and the
sheet metal, just above the attachment points fore and aft.
No rust but I can imagine that on a particularly salt rich
part of the US road system, the undercoating could
be compromised in those spots by now. I haven't looked
up front yet but I bet I find the same. Next time you rotate
the tires, pop off those liners.
DeWitt Harrison
Boulder, CO
88 5kcstq"

Doyt Echelberger
Ohio USA salt belt 87 5kcstq

 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
At 02:10 PM 1/31/2005 +0000, you wrote:
>Once this snow melts and the temps. are in the 40's on a weekend (this 
>upcoming weekend looks like a candidate) one of my projects is a full 
>over/under body panel rust survey and ground point inspection.  The '87 I 
>have looks to have been an Illinois car all its life, but has relatively 
>low miles and seems not to have had any bodywork done. ...snip.......  Is 
>it OK to reinstall the wheel with the original hardware or should I get a 
>new nut/washer?
>
>Cheers,
>Alex Kowalski
>'87 5KCSTQ