Still here, but...

HELLO!

Its been a while since I last posted an updated and I'm sure you are wondering what's been happening. Well, life is happening and I don't seem to have enough time to blog, but there have been some positive new, and some bad too! You cant have it either way.

The good news first!

The good news is that I managed to find shock absorbers for the MU Wizard. It took me a while but I found them in Papua New Guinea's second largest city, Lae.

We were driving around after a meeting when I spotted a Motorist Discount Center (MDC) and asked the driver to stop. I got the suspension parts for around K280.

Now they are standard shock absorbers for both front and rear. The models for my vehicle were not available but the salesman offered parts that were meant for the Isuzu Bighorn and TR (Faster) which actually share the same chassis.

The only things left are the suspension bushings and coil springs.

I haven't done the installation yet. There seems to be no time and I need to get a couple good jack stands for the job. But things are looking brighter.

Now the bad news.

The Wizard's registration expired early this month and I have not been able to have it renewed. Then I've also heard that costs have increased and I could be looking at nearly K1000 to get renewed.

Anyway, it's not only bad news for me but for all motorists nationwide so that some consolation.

Until next time, lukim yu!

Comments

Interior Cleaning – Driver’s Seat

So I’ve started cleaning the interior beginning with the driver’s seat. The seats have collected dust over the years and I frankly not healthy for use. The interior is very dirty and will require a lot of cleaning. Anyway, I have started with the driver’s seat and I’m working my way around. I had initially wanted to have it vacuumed but after seeing this video I decided to give it a try. The seats are not in spectacular condition, but I have gotten rid of the dust and it is much better than it was. I also had to clean the bottom slider so the seat would move freely. It had hardened dirt could hardly move. I clean it using a carb cleaner which was a mistake. It turns out carb cleaner has paint thinner and stripped some of the paint. Driver's seat is much cleaner now. This was easily fixed with a bit of sandpapering and a coat of paint. I plan to have all the seats cleaned by the end of the week. Unfortunately, I have just met another obstacle – a dead battery.

Ball Joints and Wheel Bearings Replaced

So after a long hiatus we have finally started some work on our Isuzu MU Wizard. The first thing we did was replace the ball joints. The ball joints had reached the point where it would fall off any time. It would squeak whenever I hit a hump/bump or turned a corner. This led to me grounding the Wizard for almost 6 months. I know its a long time but I was caught up with work that there was very little time during the day to work on the SUV. Fortunately, I'm starting 2021 with catching up with the vehicle's maintenance. Last week we replaced all the ball joints and outer wheel bearings. All parts were sourced from Pacific Engineering in Port Moresby. The ball joints did not require special tools - ball joint puller, etc - but it did require some elbow grease and breaker bar. While the ball joints were out, we also decided to check the wheel bearings - and yes - they were also kaput. We ended up replacing them as well. We have also identified that the tie rod...

A Trip to the Baruni Wreckers

Last weekend I visited Baruni Wreckers to find parts for the Isuzu MU Wizard. The vehicle has been sitting at my office car park for months and its about time I resumed my journey into making her beautiful again. My ultimate dream is to restore her to her former glory. Unfortunately, there are other expenses that need to be considered, parts to be sourced and time to actually do the work (which I don't have much these days). Anyway, it was my cousin Daniel who took me to the wreckers. He has been there several times sourcing second hand parts for his Toyota Hilux Surf (2.8 Turbo Diesel) so when he suggested we check the wreckers, I immediately jumped at the idea. It was disappointing that I could not find any Isuzu MU Wizard or Holden Frontera in the yard so we had to improvise and I bought parts from an Isuzu Trooper. The parts we purchased were a torsion bar on the driver side and the rear sway (stabilizer) bar which is broken. The wreckers is a treasure trove for...

Bernard's Isuzu MU Wizard Journey

Search This Blog