Housing and wrenching in the Bay Area ...

[S21FOLGORE]

So, once again, I find myself in a situation where I have no other choice but to move out the place.

I've been in this place for 6 months. (Sharing, with the landlord)

I had a feeling that this isn't really going to work out well, so I was thinking (vaguely) I may have to find another place.

(The main reason I moved into this place was because of the garage.)

I'd cut out all the small details, personal stuff.

But, what happened over the weekend was ...

My daily driver (1992 Mazda Miata) started making horrible metal rattling sound, Friday night.
I thought, some of the retaining bolts on the exhaust system getting loose, causing some parts to vibrate, making that noise.
(It happened before. I've dropped  a nut on catalytic converter mount, twice.)

When I put the car on the ramp Sunday, I found nothing was getting loose.

So, ... where it's coming from?

It sounded like it's coming from the engine.

Is it valve lifter?

Is it con-rod metal?

Either way, it'd be lubricating problem.

All the repair shops are closed on Saturdays and Sundays.

And I couldn't leave it that way.

So, naturally I did what I could.



Surprisingly, oil change fixed it.

So far, so good.

The problem was, in the middle of oil change, the landlord / roommate lady came back from work.
And saw what I was doing, and ...
She was SO MAD.

Saying working on the vehicle is not allowed by the rules of condo
(which I didn't know. Yes, it's my fault not to check it beforehand.
But, this was (sort of) emergency repair.

Anyhow.
I apologized as much as possible.

Following morning, I found a note saying my rent will increase 22% from March 1st.

Um,... okay, so this is her way of telling me to move out.

Thus, I'm looking for a place to move.
Not because I can't afford 22% increase, but because it's not worth staying here.

It is not easy to find a place with off-street parking in Southern Marin (let alone with the garage.)
And when you find a place with a garage, that garage can only be used to park ONE vehicle (so parking a small car and a motorcycle is violation and a tenant can get fined), NO working in the garage is allowed.
I can't do the oil change, I can't even adjust drive chain of my motorcycle as long as I live here.

Even a house with a garage, HOA can be really uptight depending on location.

I just want a place to keep one small car and a motorcycle (off-street, preferably covered (for motorcycle),  do routine maintenance, not a major project.
Now it seems like asking too much ...

[booger]

Wow. It appears as though one is not free to do anything besides work, pay taxes, snatch purses, or be homeless in northern CA. Pelosi's paradise. I heard it's not at all uncouth to defecate on the sidewalks there in broad daylight. Used needles all over the place. And of course there's the cost of living and real estate which is stupid. Not my idea of a livable area. But look on the bright side -  petty crime goes unpunished, so you've got that.

[S21FOLGORE]

Let's not getting into politics.

But, unfortunately, a lot of people feel the same way.

Sadly, so many people, so many business are moving out Bay Area.

But, for now, the important thing (for me) is to find a place to move, so that I can move out here by the end of March.

And, hopefully my engine doesn't blow up soon.
(Just because the noise vanished after oil change doesn't mean it's fixed. At this high mileage (over 370,000), it could happen.)

[booger]

Does that engine use a timing chain or a belt? With that many miles, if it uses a chain it could be making noise. Not sure about those little engines, usually they use a belt but might be a chain. Guides wear, tensioners get loose, chains make noise.

[Howie]

HOAs co-op boards, condo boards and land lords are problematic wherever you live.

That noise did not sound like tappets, unfortunately I have no idea what it is.

[Jaman]

you have a pm.

[S21FOLGORE]

Thank you, i replied to your PM.

Howie, I start feeling like it's a piston slap, definitely not the valve lifter, not rod knock.

booger,  NA6 engine use timing belt. It's a non interference engine, so even if the belt snaps, it won't cause catastrophic damage. I'll be just stranded.

I religiously follow 60,000 miles replacing interval.
So, I think it's not a belt, but can't say for sure.

[Stella]

I've got nothing to add as far as recommendations so I'll just say congrats on the mileage and best of luck with the new address search. 

[Howie]

Doesn't sound like piston slap to me.  Too rattly, to loud.  Piston slap sound more like a bad lifter and is loudest under load, decreasing or disappearing at coast.  Also usually louder when engine is cold.  Slap will also go away or get quieter when disconnecting the injector on the affected cylinder.  I would pop the cam cover and have a look at the valve train.

[S21FOLGORE]

So I took the car to the local shop, dropped off before going to work, yesterday.
(I already explained about the noise while I was on the phone.
I basically asked them to put the car on the lift, and check if anything is rattling inside of catalytic converter, or in the exhaust sytem.)


And, they found where it's coming from.
It was the resonator.
(BTW, that's NOT a shop I take my Miata regularly. But, they are very nice People. They arranged the schedule for me (dropping off before going to work, picking up in lunch break. They do shuttle service. And, they charged only 0.5 Hr labor.)

(My regular go to shop is PR Motorsport in Hayward, so that was not an option. I have to have a day off in weekday. to go there.
But, Hector (the mechanic at PR), after watching the video on YT, told me that it sounds like coming from exhaust system. He suggested to take it to local shop and put it up on the lift and check it.)

So, my initial thought was close.
Something inside the resonator broke / fell off, and rattling inside.

I'm SO glad it's not coming from the engine internal.

So, my next step is to take the car to the muffler shop.
They would cut off the resonator, and weld on a new one.

I could order brand new mid pipe,



$183.50 from Good-Win.


Or, maybe I can just cut the resonator off, weld on straight pipe.

I know it would make exhaust noise a bit louder, but won't change anything other than that ...

[Duck-Stew]

Except possibly being an illegal mod in CA...

[ducpainter]

Wow. It appears as though one is not free to do anything besides work, pay taxes, snatch purses, or be homeless in northern CA. Pelosi's paradise. I heard it's not at all uncouth to defecate on the sidewalks there in broad daylight. Used needles all over the place. And of course there's the cost of living and real estate which is stupid. Not my idea of a livable area. But look on the bright side -  petty crime goes unpunished, so you've got that.

You need to tread very lightly on the politics BS.

Don't test me.

[S21FOLGORE]

... a little more update...

I talked to the landlord yesterday morning.
Telling her (calmly, of course) about my plan of moving out.
She quietly listened and understood what I said.
No drama there.

This morning, she took down 22% rent increase. So my rent will remain the same.
If I can't move out by the end of March, I can just pay the same amount for April rent and stay another month.
Anyway, that means no extra expense for me, which is great.
All I have to do is to be careful not to upset her.
(She clearly admitted that writing rent increase note was done on impulse.)

I am actively looking for a place, but I haven't found anything yet.

However, I did find motorcycle storage / parking space in walking distance from my work.
Located in down town San Rafael
Indoor motorcycle storage
with plug-in for battery tender sort of thing
gear locker
24 hr access
parking spot for a car during the day
(so, if I'm not in the walking distance, I can drive up there, park my car, change clothes, go for a ride.)
at a reasonable rate.

I found the ad on CL, and contacted the poster.
It turned out that the poster was someone I used to know (we haven't met years, though).

So, at least, I don't have to worry about where to keep my motorcycle regardless my moving situation.

That doesn't solve the wrenching situation problem.
If I give up doing all the mechanical work on my Duc, take it to the dealership every single time, the running cost will rise horrendously.

That reminds me about the conversation I had with the sales guy at the local Ducati dealer years ago. (Hattar Motorsport back then, now Marin Speed Shop)

He said I was one of the VERY FEW people who repeatedly come to purchase things like oil, oil filter, coolant, etc.

(Vast majority of the customers don't work on their motorcycles, he said. No oil change, no brake / clutch fluid change, not even drive chain adjustment.

My reaction back then was, "well, if they don't even adjust the chain, that's a totally different kind of motorcycling ..."

But, now, I think some of the people were (kind of) forced to do that by living situation.

Motorcycling is an expensive hobby in Marin county ...

[Langanobob]

Don’t know your overall situation and I don’t know  Marin County so it’s hard to come up with any realistic ideas.  Seems like the bay area is a focal point for cool bikes and cars, seems like there just has to be places to work on them.  You’ve probably tried a craigslist ad looking for a place you can work on your vehicles.  What about looking further away, toward Santa Rosa or Napa? 

I’m guessing your job is pretty good and that’s what’s keeping you in the area.  How much of a pain in the rear would it be to find a more normal place to live out of town and commute to work?
 
I can sort of understand your landlord over-reacting to you working on vehicles in the condo garage.  She probably freaked, thinking that you were going to get her in trouble.   Not realistic to talk to her again and stay there?  You seem responsible and a good tenant and I’d think she’d want to keep you there.  But then you still have the problem of finding a place to work on your vehicles, although that sounds simpler than finding a new place to live.

No idea what your job is like, no chance of being allowed to occasionally work on your vehicles there, assuming they have some sort of shop space?   

That’s all I got.

[Heath]

Have you ever looked into Moto Guild in SF?  You can rent shop space by the hour and even store your bike there if needed while doing major service. They have tools available for you to use as well.
https://www.motoguild-sf.com/

Id caution against a place where you store your bike not close to you. I had a friend that did that in his own complex and his bike was stolen. Storing a bike that is not in a garage attached to my house I am in scares me.