Month to madness
Discussion
So I have to do my weekly shopping.
Yep I've been in my shed instead.
Bought a couple plates. One for the bracket and one for the outlet. Well that was the plan at least.
I started by drilling the base plate and finding some bolts that fit the Fiat bracket (from the Skoda bumper and slam panel).
I cut a curve out of the top of the vertical plate for the charger to sit. Cut the edges away so it will be easier to get to the bolts later and used the off cuts to reinforce the two plates when I tacked them together.
Finally dress welded and I'm off shopping while it cools down.
Yep I've been in my shed instead.
Bought a couple plates. One for the bracket and one for the outlet. Well that was the plan at least.
I started by drilling the base plate and finding some bolts that fit the Fiat bracket (from the Skoda bumper and slam panel).
I cut a curve out of the top of the vertical plate for the charger to sit. Cut the edges away so it will be easier to get to the bolts later and used the off cuts to reinforce the two plates when I tacked them together.
Finally dress welded and I'm off shopping while it cools down.
So as proof of concept goes I made the bracket too big. Basically forgot to account for the thickness of the Fiat bracket when I measured up. Once trimmed to fit the inside of the charger is millimeters away from the exhaust manifold to down pipe join. I might have a go at the four branch one again but doubt it will make much difference. I need a turbo manifold so all the pipe goes off to one side and down away from the charger.
Also the inlet fouls the back of the radiator fan. I could get a slim one or as there are holes and space move the radiator across.
Not a bad day even though I did my shopping.
Remember Apollo 13 (the film obviously) and the troubled astronauts were beyond the point of no return?
Well....
...I've cut the end off the supercharger to help make it fit.
Also as I discovered with my GSXR250 project if you need a part you haven't seen since 2002 the best place to look is Halfords.
That filter will be going on the maf fairly soon as I have eight days to get the car ready, no budget so the next few posts will be all about weight reduction with a side bar if I get time to do anything else with the charger.
Well....
...I've cut the end off the supercharger to help make it fit.
Also as I discovered with my GSXR250 project if you need a part you haven't seen since 2002 the best place to look is Halfords.
That filter will be going on the maf fairly soon as I have eight days to get the car ready, no budget so the next few posts will be all about weight reduction with a side bar if I get time to do anything else with the charger.
Right so the Ounce Method isn't happening just yet as I was waiting for the Postman to deliver the final part I need.
Back to the charger. The bit I cut off yesterday has been trimmed and held in place with a pollycarbonate plate...
...so now the filter is free from the where the outlet plate will go.
I realise there won't be enough room for the filter to go there unless I relocate the radiator but I'm working out the small details first. I'll have a bit of ducting from the inlet side to the filter located away from harm and heat.
Back to the charger. The bit I cut off yesterday has been trimmed and held in place with a pollycarbonate plate...
...so now the filter is free from the where the outlet plate will go.
I realise there won't be enough room for the filter to go there unless I relocate the radiator but I'm working out the small details first. I'll have a bit of ducting from the inlet side to the filter located away from harm and heat.
You can't call it "Ounce Method".
"Why not?"
It sound like you're dealing crystal.
"Just keeping hope alive".
Wut!?!
Millennials.
So my Bravo's diet started properly today. The rest of the AC stuff I can get to is now gone, fog lights, loom, cold air intake and various pipes, brackets and the air box.
Why the fog lights?
Well they weigh a bit and it all adds up. Also I was planning to have ducting from the fog light holes in the bumper to the front brakes. As Blyton is pretty hard on the brakes I thought it could be useful. Then I did the maths and for the brake cooling to be effective It would need to be a colder day than the forecast suggests for next Friday.
So and even though I know it has been mythbusted to Hell and back...
...I have an air feed to the filter.
The filter itself will be located behind the fog light recess on the other side of the bumper when I get the charger fitted.
"Why not?"
It sound like you're dealing crystal.
"Just keeping hope alive".
Wut!?!
Millennials.
So my Bravo's diet started properly today. The rest of the AC stuff I can get to is now gone, fog lights, loom, cold air intake and various pipes, brackets and the air box.
Why the fog lights?
Well they weigh a bit and it all adds up. Also I was planning to have ducting from the fog light holes in the bumper to the front brakes. As Blyton is pretty hard on the brakes I thought it could be useful. Then I did the maths and for the brake cooling to be effective It would need to be a colder day than the forecast suggests for next Friday.
So and even though I know it has been mythbusted to Hell and back...
...I have an air feed to the filter.
The filter itself will be located behind the fog light recess on the other side of the bumper when I get the charger fitted.
This was not supposed to have happened today.
My outlet mounting plate arrived so as it was a chose between working in my shed or getting the bloody lawn mower working.
1/ Place the gasket on the plate.
2/ Mark the sides and hole locations.
3/ Drill and cut.
4/ Make sure the plate fits and mark where the big hole in the middle needs to be.
5/ Use a hole saw to cut a washer the same size as the pipe you'll be using. 6mm took about twenty minutes. Not bad for a shed effort and the average speed on the A52 Brian Clough way this time of year.
6/ Cut the rest of the hole out.
7/ Weld on the pipe and end piece.
8/ Apply a coat of Zinc primer and paint (I've use Aluminium wheel paint as it was the can I grabbed).
My supers are now ready to be charged.
I'm out of budget this month (seriously I'm cycling to work so I have enough petrol for the track Friday).
Shopping list.
1/ Enough ducting to reach the air filter in the bumper.
2/ Front mounted intercooler kit (this will make more sense when it happens).
3/ Exhaust heat wrap for the down pipe and the charger.
4/ Finish the mounting bracket off.
5/ Custom made to length serpentine (auxiliary) belt.
6/ Maybe some bigger injectors if the charger makes more boost than predicted taking my standard ones are over their duty cycle.
My outlet mounting plate arrived so as it was a chose between working in my shed or getting the bloody lawn mower working.
1/ Place the gasket on the plate.
2/ Mark the sides and hole locations.
3/ Drill and cut.
4/ Make sure the plate fits and mark where the big hole in the middle needs to be.
5/ Use a hole saw to cut a washer the same size as the pipe you'll be using. 6mm took about twenty minutes. Not bad for a shed effort and the average speed on the A52 Brian Clough way this time of year.
6/ Cut the rest of the hole out.
7/ Weld on the pipe and end piece.
8/ Apply a coat of Zinc primer and paint (I've use Aluminium wheel paint as it was the can I grabbed).
My supers are now ready to be charged.
I'm out of budget this month (seriously I'm cycling to work so I have enough petrol for the track Friday).
Shopping list.
1/ Enough ducting to reach the air filter in the bumper.
2/ Front mounted intercooler kit (this will make more sense when it happens).
3/ Exhaust heat wrap for the down pipe and the charger.
4/ Finish the mounting bracket off.
5/ Custom made to length serpentine (auxiliary) belt.
6/ Maybe some bigger injectors if the charger makes more boost than predicted taking my standard ones are over their duty cycle.
A little bit of track day prep' for the Bravo today.
New timing belt and CV boots.
A couple of tips for anyone working on the front of the car like this.
1/ Drive the car up on ramps and lift the side with a sturdy jack.
2/ Use the ramp you remove as an extra chock.
Also if you need to keep your brake caliper out of harms way. Get a bit of wire, cut it an inch shorter than the hose and bend a hooks each end.
Should be long enough to hang from the top strut hole and copper line end.
New timing belt and CV boots.
A couple of tips for anyone working on the front of the car like this.
1/ Drive the car up on ramps and lift the side with a sturdy jack.
2/ Use the ramp you remove as an extra chock.
Also if you need to keep your brake caliper out of harms way. Get a bit of wire, cut it an inch shorter than the hose and bend a hooks each end.
Should be long enough to hang from the top strut hole and copper line end.
Yesterday was great fun.
Photo's first and thoughts after...
Still leaning over like a double-decker bus on a roundabout. Lower, stiffer springs next time (yes I said that last time but the wheels wiped out my budget).
As a bonus (???) I had a go in my mate's Buggy thing to "check the steering" for him. It steered every time you hit a bump or put any load on the front end. So when I started to spin my corrections transferred weight making it turn against me. Knife edge driving at half the speed. A bit like an Ariel Atom only made by the soap powder people. Just brilliant.
As for my car.
1/ I was not the slowest and managed to overtake a few people.
2/ I made my 1.25 lap time target (according to the counter on my video no timing allowed).
3/ The trap speed at the braking point at the end of the back straight was three miles per hour faster than March.
4/ My trap speed at the end of the complex was ten miles per hour faster than March.
5/ No mechanical issues what so ever and had a nice drive home along the B1198 instead of the A15 bottleneck.
Analysis.
The body roll coming out of the long bend on to the back straight is still an issue. Worsened by the lighter weight wheels as the inside front gave out easier this time despite there being noticeably less roll due to the new rear bar. I need lower, stiffer springs and lose the weight from the back end (I needed the back seat the night before so the interior was complete).
Less rotating mass meant I could brake later and the car was pulling out of the corners much, much better this time. All four tyres are well bobbled due to trail braking to try and compensate for roll.
Even though I was only a few miles per hour faster at the end of the straight I was ten miles per hour faster at the end of the sweepers. This is due to the flat spot elimination and rotating mass reduction. All in five second quicker laps for a set of wheels, exhaust, air filter, AC pump removal and bit less weight is a bloody good result and I am looking forward to September already.
Photo's first and thoughts after...
Still leaning over like a double-decker bus on a roundabout. Lower, stiffer springs next time (yes I said that last time but the wheels wiped out my budget).
As a bonus (???) I had a go in my mate's Buggy thing to "check the steering" for him. It steered every time you hit a bump or put any load on the front end. So when I started to spin my corrections transferred weight making it turn against me. Knife edge driving at half the speed. A bit like an Ariel Atom only made by the soap powder people. Just brilliant.
As for my car.
1/ I was not the slowest and managed to overtake a few people.
2/ I made my 1.25 lap time target (according to the counter on my video no timing allowed).
3/ The trap speed at the braking point at the end of the back straight was three miles per hour faster than March.
4/ My trap speed at the end of the complex was ten miles per hour faster than March.
5/ No mechanical issues what so ever and had a nice drive home along the B1198 instead of the A15 bottleneck.
Analysis.
The body roll coming out of the long bend on to the back straight is still an issue. Worsened by the lighter weight wheels as the inside front gave out easier this time despite there being noticeably less roll due to the new rear bar. I need lower, stiffer springs and lose the weight from the back end (I needed the back seat the night before so the interior was complete).
Less rotating mass meant I could brake later and the car was pulling out of the corners much, much better this time. All four tyres are well bobbled due to trail braking to try and compensate for roll.
Even though I was only a few miles per hour faster at the end of the straight I was ten miles per hour faster at the end of the sweepers. This is due to the flat spot elimination and rotating mass reduction. All in five second quicker laps for a set of wheels, exhaust, air filter, AC pump removal and bit less weight is a bloody good result and I am looking forward to September already.
https://youtu.be/gb3lJYxchRk
An hour to transfer from the memory card, forty minutes to edit and save as a mp4, an hour and ten minutes to upload on to Youtube.
An hour to transfer from the memory card, forty minutes to edit and save as a mp4, an hour and ten minutes to upload on to Youtube.
On my way home from work yesterday it was perfectly normal and uneventful. I reached the A47 dual carriageway and got up to the speed limit. A short time later a pillock in a generic pratmobile overtook in a cloud of black smoke. A moment after that a graphite grey BMW also overtook.
I didn't think anything of it at the time but about a mile later the BMW and pratmobile were in a layby. The BMW was an unmarked traffic car and the passenger was stood at the entrance waving for me to join them.
I stopped, got out and asked if there was anything wrong.
"Do you realise that street racing is a serious criminal offense?"
No "good morning sir, thank you for stopping" and from the body language he was not in the best of moods. Probably close to the end of shift and not wanting to deal with the situation.
"Yes officer. It's also bloody stupid".
Got a smile for that.
"The gent' we have stopped there suggests the reason he was speeding was because he was racing you".
"Oh. Did you see us "racing"? If you would like the memory card from my camera it will show you I had got up to the speed limit and he passed me. Not being rude but if I were racing that pile I would ten miles further up the road".
Got a chuckle for that.
"Ahhhh, it's okay. Can I take your details just in case we do need a clip from your camera as well as the one in our car?"
Gave the officer my details and left them to it.
So I decided to re-yellow or de-Abarth my Bravo yesterday afternoon. Thanks to living Jeremy Kyle Street sleep wasn't an option.
Finished by four so all I had to do was shower and get ready for work.
On the way in my Bravo felt a bit odd. I put it down to the return of the Bangle Grinder wheels but after a few miles I knew it was more than that.
Stopped for petrol and noticed two of my valve caps were missing.
Between my leaving my Bravo just after four and heading out to work around twenty to six my tyres had been let down from 32PSI to 19 and 18PSI.
Jeremy
Kyle Street!!! 
I didn't think anything of it at the time but about a mile later the BMW and pratmobile were in a layby. The BMW was an unmarked traffic car and the passenger was stood at the entrance waving for me to join them.
I stopped, got out and asked if there was anything wrong.
"Do you realise that street racing is a serious criminal offense?"
No "good morning sir, thank you for stopping" and from the body language he was not in the best of moods. Probably close to the end of shift and not wanting to deal with the situation.
"Yes officer. It's also bloody stupid".
Got a smile for that.
"The gent' we have stopped there suggests the reason he was speeding was because he was racing you".
"Oh. Did you see us "racing"? If you would like the memory card from my camera it will show you I had got up to the speed limit and he passed me. Not being rude but if I were racing that pile I would ten miles further up the road".
Got a chuckle for that.
"Ahhhh, it's okay. Can I take your details just in case we do need a clip from your camera as well as the one in our car?"
Gave the officer my details and left them to it.
So I decided to re-yellow or de-Abarth my Bravo yesterday afternoon. Thanks to living Jeremy Kyle Street sleep wasn't an option.
Finished by four so all I had to do was shower and get ready for work.
On the way in my Bravo felt a bit odd. I put it down to the return of the Bangle Grinder wheels but after a few miles I knew it was more than that.
Stopped for petrol and noticed two of my valve caps were missing.
Between my leaving my Bravo just after four and heading out to work around twenty to six my tyres had been let down from 32PSI to 19 and 18PSI.
Jeremy
Kyle Street!!! 
Well the Bangle Grinder wheels are sold via the forum and will be ready for delivery Sunday.
But...
It will be the last ride in the Bravo for me. She's sold and I'll be dropping her off and collecting a new just as yellow Fiat on the way home.
It is no exaggeration when I say my Bravo has been one of the best all round cars I have ever owned. From a boot full of stuff to a race track she has done everything and more than I could have possibly expected for such a bargain buy.
Sure I had to replace a few things to keep her on the road and had to do a few things to make her keep up with more focused stuff on the track but she got me home and back to work the next day while those focused cars were loaded on to trailers and needed repairs.
A brilliant car and that is what I am passing on to someone else.
As for what's coming next? Be on the look out for Guff III
I have some unfinished business to attend to. Wooooooo-ha-ha-ha-haaaaaaa!
But...
It will be the last ride in the Bravo for me. She's sold and I'll be dropping her off and collecting a new just as yellow Fiat on the way home.
It is no exaggeration when I say my Bravo has been one of the best all round cars I have ever owned. From a boot full of stuff to a race track she has done everything and more than I could have possibly expected for such a bargain buy.
Sure I had to replace a few things to keep her on the road and had to do a few things to make her keep up with more focused stuff on the track but she got me home and back to work the next day while those focused cars were loaded on to trailers and needed repairs.
A brilliant car and that is what I am passing on to someone else.
As for what's coming next? Be on the look out for Guff III
I have some unfinished business to attend to. Wooooooo-ha-ha-ha-haaaaaaa!
It wasn't the "last ride" at all.
In fact I've done over a thousand miles since then. The Bravo doing daily driver duties as well as a few eBay runs.
I believe this has been the best all round car I have ever owned.
But is it as good off road as my Panda 4x4 was?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1a3EBcQ6IUU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLXmsGEJ7Qo
The puddles weren't as deep but the filter location acted as a snorkel and the coil pack in a watertight casing also helped.
In fact I've done over a thousand miles since then. The Bravo doing daily driver duties as well as a few eBay runs.
I believe this has been the best all round car I have ever owned.
But is it as good off road as my Panda 4x4 was?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1a3EBcQ6IUU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLXmsGEJ7Qo
The puddles weren't as deep but the filter location acted as a snorkel and the coil pack in a watertight casing also helped.
In other news to save my Bravo from another track day I bought this...
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
...stancy pants MX5
With the Bravo supposedly sold I now has this...
...to take on Summer daily driver duties.
If the sale goes south completely I may use the Seicento as planned and spend some time and effort making the Bravo handle better, weigh less and go a bit quicker as the next track day is September 22nd and I'll need something quick.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
...stancy pants MX5
With the Bravo supposedly sold I now has this...
...to take on Summer daily driver duties.
If the sale goes south completely I may use the Seicento as planned and spend some time and effort making the Bravo handle better, weigh less and go a bit quicker as the next track day is September 22nd and I'll need something quick.
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