Discussion
E-bmw said:
Did the same job on my 06 MCS last month & found the same, I decuced as it is pretty difficult to do that at 90k miles it would probably be the original one.
After removing it I was still thinking it was probably the original one!
The old one was a BMW marked part. MG/Rover tank with an extra BMW "O" ring inside the MG/Rover one. Nice bit of bean counter engineering. o make the BMW pump (that failed) and BMW filter housing fit the MG/Rover tank it must have worked out a lot cheaper to Russian doll the "O" rings than retrofit the tank with a smaller threaded collar. After removing it I was still thinking it was probably the original one!
I do like the metal top collars though. So much easier to work with then the plastic ones that snap if you hit them too hard with a hammer.
Not so much a bodge this one as cheap parts.
My car has been a bit noisier than usual recently, but not excessively so, and there was a hint of exhaust smell when stopped. Then the engine management warning light came on. Decided to have a look at the manifold and noticed a flexi joint was a little frayed...
Or maybe a lot frayed and obviously blowing from the soot stains. It's only about 2 years old too, which isn't old at all for stainless steel parts.
I went for a full on fix:
Seems to have done the job.
My car has been a bit noisier than usual recently, but not excessively so, and there was a hint of exhaust smell when stopped. Then the engine management warning light came on. Decided to have a look at the manifold and noticed a flexi joint was a little frayed...
Or maybe a lot frayed and obviously blowing from the soot stains. It's only about 2 years old too, which isn't old at all for stainless steel parts.
I went for a full on fix:
Seems to have done the job.
Special edition of Driveway CSI today.
Paddock CSI
At another charity track day going into the first bend I heard and felt a "pop". I tried to make the first bend but my Alfa didn't feel right. So I then tried to go round the back of the bend instead.
If I had tried that first I would not have straddled the curb smashing the exhaust bracket on the sump. The bolts that hold the bracket in place bent and cracked the sump. My day was over and I made it home despite the oil leak.
Well I made it home with a little help from some bungee rope and crow hitch knot.
Paddock CSI
At another charity track day going into the first bend I heard and felt a "pop". I tried to make the first bend but my Alfa didn't feel right. So I then tried to go round the back of the bend instead.
If I had tried that first I would not have straddled the curb smashing the exhaust bracket on the sump. The bolts that hold the bracket in place bent and cracked the sump. My day was over and I made it home despite the oil leak.
Well I made it home with a little help from some bungee rope and crow hitch knot.
Historic Driveway CSI from today in 2013
"I love hot days like today. I peeled the Halfords "M" badge of my neighbors BMW 318 and stuck it back on up side down.
Place your bets how long will it take for him to notice?"
He didn't until he tried to sell the car seven months later.
Today I have been mostly working on my Fiat Uno track day project. The mystery of why the brakes are stuck on a car that has been stored outside for over ten years isn't exactly a where's Lord Lucan thing but still a faff.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
"I love hot days like today. I peeled the Halfords "M" badge of my neighbors BMW 318 and stuck it back on up side down.
Place your bets how long will it take for him to notice?"
He didn't until he tried to sell the car seven months later.
Today I have been mostly working on my Fiat Uno track day project. The mystery of why the brakes are stuck on a car that has been stored outside for over ten years isn't exactly a where's Lord Lucan thing but still a faff.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Historic Driveway CSI from 2016
"Driveway CSI today and new shocks for the Bravo.
Rear shocks and the chance to pretend I'm a gynecologist for a while. For those who don't know the bottom nuts come undone with ease but you need a 15mm socket and long extension to get to the top bolts. Located thorough a hole protected by a plastic bung on the inner wheel arch you need to carefully extract the bolt. If it drops into the chassis rail chamber you will need a special tool to get it out. I used a fridge magnet held on the end of a bicycle cable surround with duct tape.
Half an hour later and it was time to tackle the front. About three in the afternoon I should be done in time for tea.
Nope as you can tell by the time of this post I was out there until half eleven. The top strut nuts were seized on, one of the bolts fell into the bulkhead and the magnet on a cable trick didn't work because they are aluminum. The drive shaft popped apart and split the brand new cv boot. But it's all done now and what a transformation. The shocks weren't bad at all and good for MOT and the road but all the new bits have come together to make the car feel so good I've deleted the for sale advert".
I have since revised my bicycle outer cable with a magnet tool to include a key ring torch illuminating optic fiber so you can light the magnet end making things easier.
"Driveway CSI today and new shocks for the Bravo.
Rear shocks and the chance to pretend I'm a gynecologist for a while. For those who don't know the bottom nuts come undone with ease but you need a 15mm socket and long extension to get to the top bolts. Located thorough a hole protected by a plastic bung on the inner wheel arch you need to carefully extract the bolt. If it drops into the chassis rail chamber you will need a special tool to get it out. I used a fridge magnet held on the end of a bicycle cable surround with duct tape.
Half an hour later and it was time to tackle the front. About three in the afternoon I should be done in time for tea.
Nope as you can tell by the time of this post I was out there until half eleven. The top strut nuts were seized on, one of the bolts fell into the bulkhead and the magnet on a cable trick didn't work because they are aluminum. The drive shaft popped apart and split the brand new cv boot. But it's all done now and what a transformation. The shocks weren't bad at all and good for MOT and the road but all the new bits have come together to make the car feel so good I've deleted the for sale advert".
I have since revised my bicycle outer cable with a magnet tool to include a key ring torch illuminating optic fiber so you can light the magnet end making things easier.
Today I have shafting a squealing wet box and making sure when I removed the plug there was a bucket to catch any mess.
Yep.
I have found out why the gearbox on my Uno track day project....
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
...had a noisy gearbox.
Here's a clue.
A bit of a bearing basket and more metal flake than a House of Kolor catalog.
Yep.
I have found out why the gearbox on my Uno track day project....
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
...had a noisy gearbox.
Here's a clue.
A bit of a bearing basket and more metal flake than a House of Kolor catalog.
A Seicento Schumacher Driveway CSI special.
"Special" Because a very special mechanic fitted a new head gasket, old exhaust and inlet gaskets and old head bolts that weren't torqued down properly causing cross over compression between one and two cylinders and three and four cylinders. Just as well the old exhaust manifold gaskets were used because it they were sealed effectively it could have caused irreparable damage.
Yes that's silicone from the water pump in the gasket itself.
Not a surprise at all because when I took the coil packs off...
...I found the bodgers best friend black silicone sealant.
There was nothing missing from the replacement gasket. So as well as cleaning and re-seating the valves and cleaning the ports I have removed bits of old gasket left on the head and block.
While I was waiting for stage one to settle I wrote this for the post.
When fitting new head bolts do them up finger tight first and take them back out one at a time. Dip them in the oil you dropped from the engine before as far as the stretch section and go finger tight again. Leave them for ten minutes before stage one. This makes sure the threads are clean and well lubricated.
With a Fiat FIRE engine stage one is 22ft/lbs or 30Nm.
Stage two ninety degrees and stage three another ninety degrees.
You will feel the bolts aren't as tight as you left them every time as the gasket molds itself. Always work slowly and never jerk the bolts as they can sheer.
This...
...is my torque ratchet.
A gift from my Grandmother when I was ten years old. It has never had a handle. If I need more torque I put a 10mm socket on an extension bar and slot it over the end. I have used it for close to thirty years and it has never let me down. A mate of mine suggested I should get a new digital one like his as it's old and probably no longer accurate. So I did four wheel bolts at different amounts and tried his digital one to see. Each bolt was either dead on or one fl/lb more.
"Special" Because a very special mechanic fitted a new head gasket, old exhaust and inlet gaskets and old head bolts that weren't torqued down properly causing cross over compression between one and two cylinders and three and four cylinders. Just as well the old exhaust manifold gaskets were used because it they were sealed effectively it could have caused irreparable damage.
Yes that's silicone from the water pump in the gasket itself.
Not a surprise at all because when I took the coil packs off...
...I found the bodgers best friend black silicone sealant.
There was nothing missing from the replacement gasket. So as well as cleaning and re-seating the valves and cleaning the ports I have removed bits of old gasket left on the head and block.
While I was waiting for stage one to settle I wrote this for the post.
When fitting new head bolts do them up finger tight first and take them back out one at a time. Dip them in the oil you dropped from the engine before as far as the stretch section and go finger tight again. Leave them for ten minutes before stage one. This makes sure the threads are clean and well lubricated.
With a Fiat FIRE engine stage one is 22ft/lbs or 30Nm.
Stage two ninety degrees and stage three another ninety degrees.
You will feel the bolts aren't as tight as you left them every time as the gasket molds itself. Always work slowly and never jerk the bolts as they can sheer.
This...
...is my torque ratchet.
A gift from my Grandmother when I was ten years old. It has never had a handle. If I need more torque I put a 10mm socket on an extension bar and slot it over the end. I have used it for close to thirty years and it has never let me down. A mate of mine suggested I should get a new digital one like his as it's old and probably no longer accurate. So I did four wheel bolts at different amounts and tried his digital one to see. Each bolt was either dead on or one fl/lb more.
Historic Driveway CSI from today in 2016
Operation Pigeon Poo
Before...
...and from a different angle.
Trial fit with relocated Lambda sensor mounting.
And the verdict was "Guilty".
Before and after.
Second trial fitting to make sure there was enough cable from the Lambda to go round the back of the inter cooler pipe bracket as far from the exhaust as possible.
Heat wrapped before fitting for the final time.
The old Pigeon Poo pipe hangs in my shed as a reminder of how not to make a down pipe.
Operation Pigeon Poo
Before...
...and from a different angle.
Trial fit with relocated Lambda sensor mounting.
And the verdict was "Guilty".
Before and after.
Second trial fitting to make sure there was enough cable from the Lambda to go round the back of the inter cooler pipe bracket as far from the exhaust as possible.
Heat wrapped before fitting for the final time.
The old Pigeon Poo pipe hangs in my shed as a reminder of how not to make a down pipe.
The first Driveway CSI for my Rover 620Ti today and time to free the sticky starter motor.
I did the usual take it off, take it apart, clean it and squirt some bike chain lube in there; but because it's a Lucas motor...
"Star Trek reference I must. I guess if this doesn't work I'll get my local parts place to beam me up a new one".
Historic Driveway CSI from today in 2015
Driveway CSI today is more faffing about with the FTO. The donor car was a lot easier to take apart because I didn't have to put it back together I could use proper tools like hammers and of course my trusted grinder. As the silver car will be going back together (in theory) I'm having to find ways of undoing bolts that were done up in Japan without such annoyances as the engine and gearbox being in the way.
This is like meditation for me. Concentrating on a mundane task thus freeing the rest of my mind.
Free to contemplate life's more important questions. For example when working on the coolant system is it possible to remove the top hose from the radiator without thinking...
"Pimpin' aint easy, but it show is fun".
Anyway the battery tray bracket is now off and because the battery is in the boot it can go in the skip (or back of my shed until I find a use for it).
Very oily clutch...
...covered in crap. No wonder it was slipping.
Tool of the job today goes to this piece of cardboard I used to store the bolts.
SM - Starter motor.
SMB - Starter motor + Bracket.
TF - Top front
T1, T2, T3, T4 - Top front 2,3,4
M - manual ratchet.
A - Air ratchet
PIA = Pain in the Arse
Worth it though. I miss this car.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Driveway CSI today is more faffing about with the FTO. The donor car was a lot easier to take apart because I didn't have to put it back together I could use proper tools like hammers and of course my trusted grinder. As the silver car will be going back together (in theory) I'm having to find ways of undoing bolts that were done up in Japan without such annoyances as the engine and gearbox being in the way.
This is like meditation for me. Concentrating on a mundane task thus freeing the rest of my mind.
Free to contemplate life's more important questions. For example when working on the coolant system is it possible to remove the top hose from the radiator without thinking...
"Pimpin' aint easy, but it show is fun".
Anyway the battery tray bracket is now off and because the battery is in the boot it can go in the skip (or back of my shed until I find a use for it).
Very oily clutch...
...covered in crap. No wonder it was slipping.
Tool of the job today goes to this piece of cardboard I used to store the bolts.
SM - Starter motor.
SMB - Starter motor + Bracket.
TF - Top front
T1, T2, T3, T4 - Top front 2,3,4
M - manual ratchet.
A - Air ratchet
PIA = Pain in the Arse
Worth it though. I miss this car.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
In 2013 I had a Panda 4x4 called "Project Peterborough" the plan was to make it an armored vehicle capable of dealing with the scumbums who use roads in that God forsaken crap hole of a city.
Short version; the head gasket blew because...
...two of the stud holes had car body filler in them to repair stripped threads. The whole project was scrapped in the end.
Short version; the head gasket blew because...
...two of the stud holes had car body filler in them to repair stripped threads. The whole project was scrapped in the end.
Sloppy gear change on my FTO a few years ago...
...today (no photos as it was not my car) my mates Vauxhall Astra Diesel back box had fallen off. It had been repaired before but the repair was rusted to nothing. So I used a length of Stainless Steel dairy pipe the same diameter and cut back until I found solid metal to weld it to. Should be good until it rusts somewhere else.
...today (no photos as it was not my car) my mates Vauxhall Astra Diesel back box had fallen off. It had been repaired before but the repair was rusted to nothing. So I used a length of Stainless Steel dairy pipe the same diameter and cut back until I found solid metal to weld it to. Should be good until it rusts somewhere else.
I bought myself a Mk1 Punto to fix up while I am between jobs and maybe turn over a little profit.
£300 for the car £50 recovery. Needs welding and some consumables according to the MOT fail sheet.
Track rod ends were a fail and advisories for the wishbone bushes.
The old ends were perfectly fine. No movement, no cracks, no splits; no way dust has got in there. I changed them anyway as it's £15 in parts and half an hour.
The advisory front wishbones looked to be about a year old with perfect bushes. The rear bushes that were also a failure are also in fine serviceable condition and nowhere near as deteriorated as the fail sheet suggests.
My first thoughts were the bushes and ends were added to try to rip the previous owner off. As you can see I have been addressing the welding on the drivers side of the car. Inner sill was crusty so I cut it out and replaced the end of the outer sill. Primarily I cut the old one off so I could get the inner section that needed replacing.
The passenger side has had previous repairs but patches have been welded over rust. None of it had been cut out and as a result the whole passenger side floor needs replacing. Including the section where the rear subframe bolts to the floor.
I now think the other issues were a fiction to make the repair quote unrealistic. In the hope the car would have been scrapped instead of sold on. If it was the same garage who did the shoddy repair work having to do it again and properly this time would cost them as new floor sections aren't available in the UK and about 600 Euros on the continent. Plus several hours work.
Sadly beyond what I am willing to do so the car will be a donor to a Panda 16V project or broken for parts to make sure it doesn't end up on the road with an MOT as dodgy as the previous welding.
£300 for the car £50 recovery. Needs welding and some consumables according to the MOT fail sheet.
Track rod ends were a fail and advisories for the wishbone bushes.
The old ends were perfectly fine. No movement, no cracks, no splits; no way dust has got in there. I changed them anyway as it's £15 in parts and half an hour.
The advisory front wishbones looked to be about a year old with perfect bushes. The rear bushes that were also a failure are also in fine serviceable condition and nowhere near as deteriorated as the fail sheet suggests.
My first thoughts were the bushes and ends were added to try to rip the previous owner off. As you can see I have been addressing the welding on the drivers side of the car. Inner sill was crusty so I cut it out and replaced the end of the outer sill. Primarily I cut the old one off so I could get the inner section that needed replacing.
The passenger side has had previous repairs but patches have been welded over rust. None of it had been cut out and as a result the whole passenger side floor needs replacing. Including the section where the rear subframe bolts to the floor.
I now think the other issues were a fiction to make the repair quote unrealistic. In the hope the car would have been scrapped instead of sold on. If it was the same garage who did the shoddy repair work having to do it again and properly this time would cost them as new floor sections aren't available in the UK and about 600 Euros on the continent. Plus several hours work.
Sadly beyond what I am willing to do so the car will be a donor to a Panda 16V project or broken for parts to make sure it doesn't end up on the road with an MOT as dodgy as the previous welding.
Edited by Liquid Knight on Tuesday 25th December 16:29
Driveway CSI Festive flat spot special.
A few things have been bugging me about my Alfa 145 since I got her back.
1/ The speakers had all been blown. Simply replaced those.
2/ The smell inside the car due to various substances being smoked in the cabin. Three hour valet later it smells a bit better.
3/ Loud exhaust and flat spot half way up the rev' range.
First off I welded a stainless middle box in place but this made no real difference.
While I had the exhaust off I noticed a tight bend and some truly horrific welding.
So Project Pigeon Poo II
Cut out the tight bend and patchwork. Replace with a proper bend and weld it all together with my eyes open.
Results. No more flat spot and the inside of the car is 10dB quieter.
See what I mean about "patchwork"?
Tight bend but doesn't look too bad from here...
...BLEAUGH! How can someone weld that and...
a/ Call themselves a welder.
b/ Sleep at night knowing they have unleashed that into the world.
Bit of two inch stainless pipe from a skip at work.
Not great but a damn sight better than it was.
The pigeon poo cross section was less than three quarters of an inch wide. No wonder the poor Twinspark was choking.
A few things have been bugging me about my Alfa 145 since I got her back.
1/ The speakers had all been blown. Simply replaced those.
2/ The smell inside the car due to various substances being smoked in the cabin. Three hour valet later it smells a bit better.
3/ Loud exhaust and flat spot half way up the rev' range.
First off I welded a stainless middle box in place but this made no real difference.
While I had the exhaust off I noticed a tight bend and some truly horrific welding.
So Project Pigeon Poo II
Cut out the tight bend and patchwork. Replace with a proper bend and weld it all together with my eyes open.
Results. No more flat spot and the inside of the car is 10dB quieter.
See what I mean about "patchwork"?
Tight bend but doesn't look too bad from here...
...BLEAUGH! How can someone weld that and...
a/ Call themselves a welder.
b/ Sleep at night knowing they have unleashed that into the world.
Bit of two inch stainless pipe from a skip at work.
Not great but a damn sight better than it was.
The pigeon poo cross section was less than three quarters of an inch wide. No wonder the poor Twinspark was choking.
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