Differences in Taillight Bulbs 1157, 2057, 2357 and Red colored Motorcycle

When replacing the typical taillight bulb, the 1157, 2057 & 2357 are the same dimensions but are a little bit different in performance. The main difference between the 1157 taillight bulb and the 2057 is that the 2057 draws about 30% less current when using the parking lights (and this is somewhat dimmer). The 2357 is the same as the 1157 when using the parking lights or run lights but much brighter when using the brake or stop light filament of the bulb. On a 1157 bulb the brake light filament last about 1500 hours and the much brighter 2357 brake light filament will last only about 120 hours. But this could be a good brake light bulb to use a old cars that have small taillight lenses, as log as you change the bulb out to a new one every so often. You could use LED taillights, but found many of them to be unreliable unless you buy the expensive stuff, plus it may require other modifications to work with the directional/ turn signals. The 2357 just plugs in and works fine. A car like a 1968 Chevelle may benefit by using a 2357 bulb in the stopping/brake lights due to the small taillight lenses. The problem, I had with the 1985 Suzuki Jimny 1300 (Japanese model JA51) is that the taillight lenses faded out, so they looked too white. Replacement lenses for this Suzuki would have to come from overseas, so the simple easy fix was to use red-colored 1157 bulbs which are easily available from a motorcycle shop. You will probably not find red colored 1157 taillight bulbs in a regular auto parts store, but a bike shop should have them. If you have an old car with faded out taillight lenses, this is an easy fix and will keep you legal and safe. I also have a special brake light flasher that is adjustable for how fast you want to make the brake lights flash. If you have an old car (e.g, 1930's, 1940's and early 1950's) having a brake light strobe under the dash may save you from getting rear-ended. It would not be your fault if you were hit from the rear, but old car parts are getting extremely hard to find, so better to prevent a rear end collision.

Suzuki Samurai SJ413 JA51 Fender Repair & Bodywork 5 of ?

Suzuki Samurai SJ413 JA51 Fender Repair & Bodywork 4 of

More rust killing of the 1985 Suzuki Samurai Jimny 1300 SJ413 JA51 (not sure what it is - probably a Japanese Jimny 1300 JA51). I am using 3M body panel adhesive to glue on a new patch panel and also to fix very minor rust pinholes on the front valance. The 3M panel adhesive is not like Bondo at all and 3M panel adhesive is totally impervious to water. Most new cars today have quarter-panels and rocker panels glued on with panel adhesive versus the old method of welding. So the panel adhesive is almost as good as welding but is also much less prone to rusting at the seam or joint. For some fast but good prep work I used compressed air to clean the surfaces, then some light sand-blasting and more compressed air. Then I followed that up with brake-clean and then compressed air. You do want to leave some rust when using the Chassis Saver because it grips a lot better. If you prep the area a lot and make it too smooth, the Chassis Saver could fail. So actually if you do less work the Chassis Saver will grip better on clean rust. These Suzuki Samurai Jimny 1300 SJ413 JA51 often have rust by the battery tray. Even though this Jeep was maintained, dirt and leaves will accumulate in the battery tray area and cause a rust out. The solution is to clean it out and use Chassis Saver. And then I made a heavy duty 12 gauge plate for the battery tray. I will be using an over-sized Group Size 75 side-terminal battery in the Suzuki Samurai Jimny 1300 SJ413 JA51. I am using the post adapters for the side terminal battery. To stop the problem of chips in the paint from off-road use, I will use truck bed liner on the front valance, the front edge of the hood and around the wheel wells and the bottom of the fender and the bottom rear of the quarterpanel and tailgate. These areas get lots of rocks, dirt, stones and mud throw up and that is where paint will chip and rust will start. Most of this Suzuki Samurai Jimny 1300 SJ413 JA51 will be painted gloss black. I plan to use Dupont Nason which is fine for a Jeep if you get a good price of $99 for a gallon with the catalyst and reducer.

Suzuki Samurai SJ413 JA51 Fender Repair & Bodywork 3 of ?

The most important consideration is stopping all the rust, no matter how small. Because rust always starts small and grows into big rust problems. I am using the Chassis Saver on every small part to kill rust and stop all future rust. I found that using a small glass far , with heavy grease on the threads of the lid of the jar is the best way to keep Chassis Saver ready for many minor touch-ups of any rust. I made the bottom piece of the fender and welded and pop-riveted it to the piece of the fender that shows. Pop-rivets are fast, strong ad easy. And pop-rivets hold almost as good as a spot weld, especially if the rivet is hammered with a hammer and dolly to really compress the rivet. Repairs with pop-rivets are fine for small areas of floors of minor areas that don't show. As long as you seal the seam and rust proof everything, a pop-rivet repair will last indefinitely.

The Right-Way to Remove Loosen Rusty Bolts.

The Right-Way to Remove Loosen Rusty Bolts. The worst thing about working on old car, trucks or jeeps is loosening/removing the rusty frozen bolts and rusty nuts. As long as there are no rubber parts or anything flammable nearby the best thing to use use to remove frozen rusty bolts or nut is heat from a propane torch. You can use an acetylene torch also but you have the danger of overheating the metal and melting it. The heat from the propane torch is just right to free the rusty bolts up. Heat will work to free up frozen bolts much better than any penetrating oil. Btw, (if you have the time) Kroil is about the best stuff there is for penetrating the threads on rusty bolts. Another trick with using heat from a propane torch is that is the perfect amount of heat to remove bolts or nuts installed with Loctite Red. Loctite Red is typically used for a permanent installation. You need heat to break down the Loctite Red if you want to remove the nut or bolt. The heat from a propane is perfect for that. A heat gun may not be hot enough and an acetylene torch could melt things too much. The other trick for the worst stuck fasteners - nuts and bolts is to use reverse drill bits and easy-outs. If you use heat and then try the easy-out, you will often have no problem when using them combined. Again use the propane because you will not melt the steel. Sometimes just drilling with the reverse drill will un-thread the broken off bolt that is stuck inside. Also sometimes drilling off the head of a bolt will relieve a of of the grip and that helps when using the easy-out.

Suzuki Samurai SJ413 JA51 - Fender Repair & Bodywork 2 of ?

Troubleshooting Suzuki Samurai Horn - A Common Problem.

Troubleshooting Suzuki Samurai Horn - A Common Problem. A very common problem on the Suzuki Samurai SJ413 SJ410 Jimny JA51 is the horn not working. This is likely because the horn is not tucked in behind the bumper or in the fender out of the weather as with most cars. It's right in the grill so it gets exposed to weather and typically the horn itself breaks after a while. The first step in troubleshooting the horn is to jump a 12 volt positive source and a ground for the other connection to see if the horn itself is broken. If so, there are plenty of good aftermarket horns available at a very inexpensive. The other common problem is at the horn rig itself on the steering wheel. Typically this area can get corroded after a while especially in harsh climates where you are four wheeling with the top off. You will need a steering wheel puller to get at the horn ring and clean up all the corrosion. Then coat everything with WD40 to help keep the corrosion from coming back. Before you pull off the steering wheel mark the position so you install it back the same as it was before. Then use some Loctite blue and torque the steering wheel bolt to 18 to 28 ft lbs.

Suzuki Samurai SJ413 JA51 - Fender Repair & Bodywork 1 of ?

The fender on this Suzuki is not the same as a Samurai fender. It's actually a Japanese model Jimny JA51. I think a SJ413 or SJ410 may work but would have to be shipped from western Canada to Florida, USA so I decided to fix this one. Plus most of the time aftermarket fenders might not fit right anyway. Most of the sheet-metal on the Suzuki Samurai, SJ413, SJ410, Jimny JA51 is about 18 gauge and very easy to cut, bend and work with. You definitely don't need a plasma cutter or anything special to make a fast clean cut in 18 gauge sheet-metal and a jigsaw works extremely well. After this patch panel is fine-tuned, I will weld up where I had to make a couple cuts, then I will cut out the damaged area on the fender, flange all the way around with the flange tool and then use panel adhesive to glue on the new repair panel I made.

How to check the Charcoal Canister Return Fuel System.

How to check the Charcoal Canister Return Fuel System. This how to check the Closed Fuel Evaporation system on the Suzuki Samurai, Jimny, SJ413, SJ410 or JA51. Most cars are basically the same. You feed air into the side of the Fuel Charcoal Canister on the side that come from the fuel tank and check for air that comes out the other side. The principle, on how this works, is that fuel that would have evaporated into the atmosphere that used a vented gas cap, is captured in the Charcoal Canister an either returned to the gas/fuel tank or used by the engine directly from the Charcoal Canister itself. This part of the emissions system. On all 1996 cars and newer the engine diagnostic system would display a code for a problem with the fuel evaporation system is the charcoal canister is clogged. This is how to check the charcoal canister by using compressed air. This is a very easy simple method to check if the evaporator charcoal canister is clogged.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai Jeep - Floor Rust Repair 3 of 3.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai Jeep - Floor Rust Repair 2 of 3.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai Jeep - Floor Rust Repair 1 of 3.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai Jeep - Floor Rust Repair 1 of 3. One place a Suzuki SJ413 Samurai or Jeep will rust out is the floor because rain water or mud can accumulate on the floor and puddle there until it rusts out. That's what happened to this Suzuki Samurai SJ413 due to a tear in a plastic window (that has been since replaced). The floor on the Suzuki Samurai (Jimny SJ413) is almost 0.100 thick or close to 12 gauge steel sheet metal. The first step is to cut out the rusted weak area of the floor. Then grind the metal around the hole to clean steel about an inch all the way around the hole. Next step to to take some paper and trace the size of the hole. I also cut out some cardboard to check the size of the replacement steel patch again, to make sure I have the right size. It is always better to measure and check twice before cutting any steel. The next step is to lay the cardboard cutoff onto of the raw 12 gauge sheet-metal and then spray paint over the cardboard template so you know how big to cut the patch. The patch will be about 3/4 a inch bigger than the template and overlap the floor in the Suzuki Samurai (Jimny SJ413). I bought a gallon of Magnet Paint UCP934-01 Chassis Saver Paint in silver versus buying POR15 in black. On Amazon a gallon of Magnet Paint UCP934-01 Chassis Saver Paint in silver costs $93.00 versus a gallon of POR15 in black that costs $165. Quality seems about the same and shipping was also less money. A gallon of Chassis Saver or POR15 is enough to do a few cars.

Car & Jeep Rust & Painting tips

Car & Jeep Rust & Painting tips. This is just a quick overview on very practical tips for the DIY weekend mechanic that will paint a car, paint a truck or paint a jeep outside. Tractor enamel with the catalyst is better than ordinary Rustoleum found at a hardware store. And Acrylic Enamel is much better than tractor enamel (alkyd enamel). In the 1960's and 1970's Chrysler products were painted with a single stage Acrylic Enamel and that stuff did hold up very well. For the price, I think Acrylic Enamel with the catalyst is the best deal for the DIY weekend mechanic. Acrylic Enamel is tougher than Acrylic Lacquer and a good choice to paint a jeep or paint a truck.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai DOOR HINGE BOLTS.

Suzuki SJ413 Samurai DOOR HINGE BOLTS. Taking out the bolts on the Suzuki Samurai, SJ413, SJ410 or Jimny can be very difficult if they have been in a very long time. I tried a 200 plus FT LB Impact with very heavy Phillips head screw-drivers which largely did not work. Reverse drill bits and easy outs worked perfectly. The trick is to use a smaller Reverse drill bit and follow it with a larger drill bit that cause the head of the bolt to separate. Then the bolt comes out very easily. I used stainless steel bolts to replace the original ones. To avoid stainless steel bolts into steel electrolysis I used heavy grease or use anti-seize.