Lexus V8 with NOS in a Renault Espace - yeah lets do it !
Discussion
Krikkit said:
Looking awesome yet again, what did you use for cleaning up the handbrake bits?
I have a shotblasting cabinet at home , perfect for parts like this , and then I use a can of Etch primer and then silver paint , and my favourite go to cleaner for just about everything - plastic/rubber/glass/metals/laminates/upholstery etc etc is a spray called elbow grease (available in pound shops/home bargains etc) it is absolutely fantastic and cleans things that brake cleaner/acetone doesn’t even touch ! Highly recommended!!
So all the rear suspension is fully refitted , along with freshly painted prop shaft and exhaust shields
I moved onto the front end underneath and well .... had to basically take a step backwards, I removed a lot of the front suspension that had already been refitted and then I removed the subframe , it really needs blasting and powdercoating, to my surprise I found both engine mounts were broken so glad I decided to take this route to remove them
I’ve ordered new engine mounts so in the meantime I will clean up all the other parts
I moved onto the front end underneath and well .... had to basically take a step backwards, I removed a lot of the front suspension that had already been refitted and then I removed the subframe , it really needs blasting and powdercoating, to my surprise I found both engine mounts were broken so glad I decided to take this route to remove them
I’ve ordered new engine mounts so in the meantime I will clean up all the other parts
Got going this morning by changing the gearbox mount for the new one that arrived
Short lived excitement when 2 of the bolts snapped whilst removing the old mount ......
I remember when I first snapped a bolt many many years ago , horror set in but nowadays I just roll my eyes and get on with removing the broken bolt
So for anyone who’s interested here’s how I do it , First I ground the bolt back to a flat surface , there was so little sticking out anyway that it was basically flush with the gearbox housing , then I centre punched the ‘centre’ of the bolt and got the drills out
A set of good quality drills is invaluable at this point , gradually working up from 2.5MM up to 6.5MM , then a tapping drill of 6.8 MM , then a good quality M8 x 1.25 tap coated in a good cutting compound like ‘Trefolex’ , and then the job is done
I got the mount fitted with new S/S cap head bolts
Short lived excitement when 2 of the bolts snapped whilst removing the old mount ......
I remember when I first snapped a bolt many many years ago , horror set in but nowadays I just roll my eyes and get on with removing the broken bolt
So for anyone who’s interested here’s how I do it , First I ground the bolt back to a flat surface , there was so little sticking out anyway that it was basically flush with the gearbox housing , then I centre punched the ‘centre’ of the bolt and got the drills out
A set of good quality drills is invaluable at this point , gradually working up from 2.5MM up to 6.5MM , then a tapping drill of 6.8 MM , then a good quality M8 x 1.25 tap coated in a good cutting compound like ‘Trefolex’ , and then the job is done
I got the mount fitted with new S/S cap head bolts
F1natic said:
lexspace said:
Both the engine sump plug and gearbox sump plug are really bugging me as they are rusty lol so I will have to give them both an oil change before long just so I can clean the plugs up
Inspiring results, do you have any photos of the whole vehicle "as is"? Fascinating to see it coming together so precisely.The LS400's had a metal protective strip covering the wiring loom ahead of the front subframe crossbrace to prevent damage from road debris, do you still have that part, or are you going to run a flat floor and diffuser?
Another productive day , got lots of little bits sorted and then started work on the final part of the exhaust system, it is basically the tailpipe section as shown by the red part in this pic
I cut off the silencer and cut the remaining pipe in 3 other places to give me 4 parts , 2 bends and 2 straights
I then spun the first bend and welded the second bend to it and the straight after that to make the exit in the centre of the car rather than the outside
I’d like to add at this point , it was quite a bit more involved with templates , cutting , grinding , tacking , relentlessly under the car and back to the bench etc etc , but above shows the basic principle
And here is the result
With the exit now looking like this
Instead of the original bumper where the towbar blanking plate is usually fitted
I cut off the silencer and cut the remaining pipe in 3 other places to give me 4 parts , 2 bends and 2 straights
I then spun the first bend and welded the second bend to it and the straight after that to make the exit in the centre of the car rather than the outside
I’d like to add at this point , it was quite a bit more involved with templates , cutting , grinding , tacking , relentlessly under the car and back to the bench etc etc , but above shows the basic principle
And here is the result
With the exit now looking like this
Instead of the original bumper where the towbar blanking plate is usually fitted
Wow , Thank you guys all so much for the great comments, I’m glad you all like it , there’s lots more work to do but in the great scheme of things the end is closer than the beginning, these two pics are in the same place 6 years apart but in 5 of those very very little was done on it , I’ll try to make 2021 the year it all comes together
V small update , so another Le Mans has come and gone - and the car was still not there , I’ve bought some new engine parts recently , a few general service items and a new power steering pump , as the old one had become so noisy . Started fitting them last night and hoping to get a good long weekend working on it this bank holiday weekend. My Work has been so busy that the car has sat neglected for a few months but hoping that is about to change and now (ahem)(fingers crossed) 2022 can be THE year it’s used on the road (and go to Le Mans lol)
New v old
New v old
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff