December Update #3 on PROJECT INFINITI!

The I35 model was only used for a few years, and maybe you can tell we replaced the numeral 5 that was missing with a freebie from the salvage yard?

NMS hopes you had a great 2025, and we wish you an even better 2026! One of our top projects this year was working on a 2002 INFINITI I35 to give a young relative a working car when they get their learner's permit.

The hood is up to adjust the belt, and the wheel is off to check on any drips underneath. 

This time we'll highlight the new Di-Lithium Crystals that the NMS Engineering Crew installed in the Warp Core, the new Traction Propeller Drive for silent running underwater, and of course our conversion of the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE, or "gas engine") into a full Hydrogen powered car! Oh, and if you believe any of that, you are TOTALLY overestimating our engineering abilities!

Step one: clean that carpet. 

After cleaning up the interior a bit, which included using what mechanics call a "vacuum cleaner" on the carpet and then applying some rug cleaner, we splurged on new Rubbermaid floor mats! Yeah, that's got to be worth about 5 more horsepower per cylinder! My math says that five horsepower times 6 cylinders equals exactly 30 more horsepower! OK, minus some fraction of a HP for adding weight to the car, but I bet that's offset by how much stuff we cleaned out of it!

Step two: Throw in some new Rubbermaid floor mats to keep that 23 year old interior nice!

Up front in the engine bay, you know, where the warp core/hydrogen powered engine lives,  the car had been making a squealing sound on start up. Our team of crack-pot mechanics (or just crack-pots for short!) diagnosed this as a loose belt, so, we tightened the belt! Guess what? No more squealing! Just to be sure, we moved our new family of piglets out of the trunk and let them live out in the barn with the rest of the livestock. At least now the squealing doesn't come from the car. 

Inside the highlighted area, you can see the tensioner pulley at the bottom, with a 14mm bolt that holds it in. Loosen this first, and then to adjust: Above that, also in the highlighted area, is another 14mm fitting that can loosen or tighten the pulley. Not hard to reach if you have the right wrench. Make the adjustment, then tighten the lower bolt. BANG!

For the exterior of the car, we cleaned up the paint with some help from a Mother's Polisher machine, and while it didn't make it look like new, the paint at least looks shinier than before! We focused on the trunk top, top of the car, and the hood. The Mother's kit came with three levels of rubbing compound, sealer, and wax, so hopefully that helps keep the car looking OK too. 

The new rear floor mat is a one-piece unit that goes right over the center floor hump too!

This view is from the passenger side door. 

On the drivers side we cleaned the carpet and then...

Inserted a new Rubbermaid floor mat. 

Greg Biffle

 

Greg Biffle at the AmeriCARna Auto Show in November.

About a month ago I went to the AmeriCARna auto show, and blogged about some of the cars I saw. Today I have to mention that one fun part of the event was that former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle was on stage being interviewed there, and he was just a very entertaining guy with a lot of cool car stories to tell. What impressed me was that he also talked about what he did to assist after Hurricane Helene hit North Carolina, and it really impressed me that he had volunteered to assist with flying essentials into areas that needed help. I'm not the biggest NASCAR fan in the world, but hearing about what he did to help others in a time of need was very impressive, so that makes it very tough to hear that he and his family did not survive a plane crash this week. We need more people like Greg doing good things for people that need help. 

Greg's MG was on display too. 

Automotive Technician Classes Finale

After my last class I stopped to say hi to two of the instructors, Mike and Bobby. 

With the end of Electronic Fuel Systems Class, I've completed all of the Automotive Technician car related classes at York Technical College. Over the past two years I had a lot of fun going to school and learning a LOT. I've certainly done a lot of automotive repairs that were new to me, and realized that there is still a LOT MORE that I don't know about working on cars!

Fuel injectors at the bottom of the picture.

It would take a very long list to mention all the things I learned, or work that I did on a car for the first time, so here's a few highlights. We learned how to use the tire mounting machine, how to balance tires, how to use the AC equipment. Heck, I'm a certified AC guy now! Electric classes covered the basics of electricity, so that was fun! In automatic transmission class we did group projects to rebuild transmissions, and in manual transmission class, well, we learned about those too!

Turbo install by one of the other students. 

Along the way we got to set off some air bags outside of a vehicle, so that was impressive how quickly they can ignite! One very rewarding part of the classes was being able to use these skills at home on my own car, like the epic power steering lines replacement on the Porsche. There is no way in the world I could have done that job without some training and gaining the confidence that "Hey, I can do that!" OK, the real reason I want to be able to work on my car is to save money! Speaking of which, I'd like to thank the Post 9-11 GI Bill for covering some of my education, and the South Carolina Education Lottery for various scholarships that paid for most of my classes. 

Student Miata in the shop. 

Another memorable repair job in class was to replace the head gasket on a Chrysler mini-van. This was a pretty big job that my friend Mac and I took on, and in case you've never done this, it's a little more challenging because the V6 engine sits sideways in the engine bay. That means that the back bank of cylinders and the exhaust manifold is up against the firewall. It's not impossible to do, but it's not the easiest either. Along the way on this job we also got to use some machines to grind and adjust the angle of the valves to make sure they would seat properly. Getting this work complete and having the engine fire up first time was pretty dang cool! 

Here is a VW GTI that belongs to a classmate getting ready to walnut blast the direct injection "gunk" that builds up. 

All the instructors I had were experienced teachers and technicians, with years and decades of experience. Many times they would give us the "book answer" on how to do something, but then also give us the valuable "real world answer" too! I know in a lot of careers you're probably looking for a mentor to help you out, and I'd say these instructors were great mentors. Even for those of us not planning to work in a shop for a living, they shared their knowledge and lessons learned. 

If you're trying to find an exhaust leak, grab a piece of hose, run the car, and use it to listen to the exhaust system. You'll be able to hear where the leak is!