Drowned V8 Vantage
Discussion
k me that is brave
Cheers everyone!
Neil, I have been hearing that a lot, I certainly have already used the FAQ already which has been a big help along with the service manual.
Graze, thanks for the interest! I'm in Brisbane, working out near the Archerfield Airport.
Iain, it certainly will be a track car as it is a stat write off, so can no longer be registered for the road again. i was hoping for it to have been misfiled but no such luck as it turns out! As is, I believe the brakes and suspension should suffice for the meantime, with some cooling ducts routed and higher DOT fluid. They are at least the standard of my 370z which I track so we will see.
Romeo, thanks for the confidence, I will be honest but I am winging it for the most part, learning as I go! They say hands on experience is the best route so looking to put that to the test.
jfdi, definitely all of the above!
LTP and Canoe, I guess time (and sanity) will tell.
Neil, I have been hearing that a lot, I certainly have already used the FAQ already which has been a big help along with the service manual.
Graze, thanks for the interest! I'm in Brisbane, working out near the Archerfield Airport.
Iain, it certainly will be a track car as it is a stat write off, so can no longer be registered for the road again. i was hoping for it to have been misfiled but no such luck as it turns out! As is, I believe the brakes and suspension should suffice for the meantime, with some cooling ducts routed and higher DOT fluid. They are at least the standard of my 370z which I track so we will see.
Romeo, thanks for the confidence, I will be honest but I am winging it for the most part, learning as I go! They say hands on experience is the best route so looking to put that to the test.
jfdi, definitely all of the above!
LTP and Canoe, I guess time (and sanity) will tell.
Some good news, after extricating the alternator and getting it tested, it is in perfect condition.
If anyone needs to do this, it is a matter of undoing the front bolt until it fouls on the front subframe, then levering the alternator towards the front of the car so the bushes around said bolt come forward. Pull these out with some vice grips and everything should come loose, there is only one more bolt on the underside.
Once everything is loose, unhook the electrics from the back and pull it out from the top, front of the engine, I needed to jack the engine itself up about 2mm to get it past.
If anyone needs to do this, it is a matter of undoing the front bolt until it fouls on the front subframe, then levering the alternator towards the front of the car so the bushes around said bolt come forward. Pull these out with some vice grips and everything should come loose, there is only one more bolt on the underside.
Once everything is loose, unhook the electrics from the back and pull it out from the top, front of the engine, I needed to jack the engine itself up about 2mm to get it past.
Dbeat16 said:
Graze, thanks for the interest! I'm in Brisbane, working out near the Archerfield Airport.
Ah! You're an Aussie. That explains it. Who else would be crazy/brave enough to take this on!Personally I wouldn't want to fix a flood damaged Fiesta, never mind an Aston, and one that is 10,000 away from the factory at that.
Best of luck with it and hope you win a few races when it's done.
Dbeat16 said:
Iain, it certainly will be a track car as it is a stat write off, so can no longer be registered for the road again. i was hoping for it to have been misfiled but no such luck as it turns out! As is, I believe the brakes and suspension should suffice for the meantime, with some cooling ducts routed and higher DOT fluid. They are at least the standard of my 370z which I track so we will see.
Yea, unless you want to go round at a very pedestrian pace they are not enough and neither is the suspension. the brake cooling is certainly one of the big issue but the other is the weight of the car. To try and put this into context i am using pagid RSL1's which are a world endurance pad and still encountering issues on a tight track.
Anyway, interested to see how you get on.
Looking at the PCB pictures it was flooded with salt water or at least highly mineralised water and left for a year or more. It would be highly advisable to check the other electronic units rather than just power them up. (I think some of the PCBs will have inbuilt batteries also.) Fuses may help protect them but individual components within the board may still be damaged. (the Fuses may not be quick enough)
Distilled water prior to any chemicals is a good option.
It's a big task you have taken on. Good luck to you and interesting to see how it goes.
Distilled water prior to any chemicals is a good option.
It's a big task you have taken on. Good luck to you and interesting to see how it goes.
Thanks for sharing this OP - I am already more emotionally engaged in this than any TV show I have ever watched, so please keep the updates coming!
I suspect a few of us who are (far) less brave than you are already living out our restoration dreams through this thread.
Well done sir - and wishing you the very, very best of luck, as I suspect you will be needing it…
I suspect a few of us who are (far) less brave than you are already living out our restoration dreams through this thread.
Well done sir - and wishing you the very, very best of luck, as I suspect you will be needing it…
Cheers everyone for the luck!
Working on the left hand valve cover now, in order to remove the intake manifold, and there is one single bolt that is giving me trouble. It is located just out of sight, and sits close (almost flush) with the cover itself, on an angle, under the brake lines. Now i can get a long sock onto it, but then the ratchet cannot be attached due to the brake lines. I could get a shorter socket but then that would not clear the valve cover. Seems my options are:
Drain the brakes > Remove brake lines > remove valve cover > remove intake manifold
Buy a flexible drill bit > hope it is flexible enough > remove valve cover > remove intake manifold
Certainly didn't think an intake manifold would have the brakes interfere with it!
As far as the electronics go, next time I have a free day and helping pair of hands I will be removing the LHS front quarter panel to access the ECM and give it a good going over. This means taking the door off to remove the panel which I have already had a test run of, so should come off pretty quickly. To anyone needing to do this for any reason, the hinge is fairly straightforward but the wire bundle for the electronics gave me a bit of pain. The rubber cap on the outside of the panel needs to be removed, this is easily done, but the connector is situated a good few inches in, so you need to pull the wires out until you reach it. This we only found out after a solid 15 minutes of looking at the service manual, swapping turns holding the door (which at this point was completely off the hinges) and generally being frustrated!
I am also still stuck on the seating side of things, and on the verge of jury-rigging a battery and wires to get the seat motors going as opposed to relying on the car controls as these just will not cooperate. If anyone has any ideas on this point let me know, I am willing to give everything a try.
Thanks for reading again, hopefully have a few more photos for the next update. Uni has started again so have a little less time to work on the car these days sadly.
Working on the left hand valve cover now, in order to remove the intake manifold, and there is one single bolt that is giving me trouble. It is located just out of sight, and sits close (almost flush) with the cover itself, on an angle, under the brake lines. Now i can get a long sock onto it, but then the ratchet cannot be attached due to the brake lines. I could get a shorter socket but then that would not clear the valve cover. Seems my options are:
Drain the brakes > Remove brake lines > remove valve cover > remove intake manifold
Buy a flexible drill bit > hope it is flexible enough > remove valve cover > remove intake manifold
Certainly didn't think an intake manifold would have the brakes interfere with it!
As far as the electronics go, next time I have a free day and helping pair of hands I will be removing the LHS front quarter panel to access the ECM and give it a good going over. This means taking the door off to remove the panel which I have already had a test run of, so should come off pretty quickly. To anyone needing to do this for any reason, the hinge is fairly straightforward but the wire bundle for the electronics gave me a bit of pain. The rubber cap on the outside of the panel needs to be removed, this is easily done, but the connector is situated a good few inches in, so you need to pull the wires out until you reach it. This we only found out after a solid 15 minutes of looking at the service manual, swapping turns holding the door (which at this point was completely off the hinges) and generally being frustrated!
I am also still stuck on the seating side of things, and on the verge of jury-rigging a battery and wires to get the seat motors going as opposed to relying on the car controls as these just will not cooperate. If anyone has any ideas on this point let me know, I am willing to give everything a try.
Thanks for reading again, hopefully have a few more photos for the next update. Uni has started again so have a little less time to work on the car these days sadly.
Great project and I wish you the best of luck.
On the intake, I don't have experience if the v8 but I have taken them off the V12 and worked magic in tight spaces on TVRs. Can you get a short 1/4 drive socket on the nut, then squeeze a short extension bar between the brake lines? I have one that's about an inch long and great for tight spaces.
My other advice is tbe leave the battery off until you've stripped, checked and cleaned EVERY electrical module below the flood line. The seat motors are likely on, but the modules are likely dead.
Stick a small sharp chisel through the seat mounting bolt heads and lift the seats out. ...
On the intake, I don't have experience if the v8 but I have taken them off the V12 and worked magic in tight spaces on TVRs. Can you get a short 1/4 drive socket on the nut, then squeeze a short extension bar between the brake lines? I have one that's about an inch long and great for tight spaces.
My other advice is tbe leave the battery off until you've stripped, checked and cleaned EVERY electrical module below the flood line. The seat motors are likely on, but the modules are likely dead.
Stick a small sharp chisel through the seat mounting bolt heads and lift the seats out. ...
If you rig the seats then consider using some sort of fuse inline with the potential for issues much higher than normal.
A multi meter used in current measure mode with a fuse of the correct capacity for your seats might be a good solution. (The meters have a removable fuse, usually in the back and possibly too high in value for your requirement)
A multi meter used in current measure mode with a fuse of the correct capacity for your seats might be a good solution. (The meters have a removable fuse, usually in the back and possibly too high in value for your requirement)
BGB autosport said:
Great project and I wish you the best of luck.
My other advice is tbe leave the battery off until you've stripped, checked and cleaned EVERY electrical module below the flood line. The seat motors are likely on, but the modules are likely dead.
Stick a small sharp chisel through the seat mounting bolt heads and lift the seats out. ...
On your first point, that's the plan from now, I'm thinking this Saturday I will finally get to the ECM.My other advice is tbe leave the battery off until you've stripped, checked and cleaned EVERY electrical module below the flood line. The seat motors are likely on, but the modules are likely dead.
Stick a small sharp chisel through the seat mounting bolt heads and lift the seats out. ...
As to your second, well...
Scrump said:
That could be a big project!
If it is going to be a track car then why bother fixing and re trimming the seats? Would it not be easier, cheaper and better to fit some track oriented seats?
Good luck with it and keep us updated.
Definitely a big one!If it is going to be a track car then why bother fixing and re trimming the seats? Would it not be easier, cheaper and better to fit some track oriented seats?
Good luck with it and keep us updated.
It might just be cheaper, but I am trying to keep this as true to form as I can. The actual leather seems to be fine, so just the foam will need replacing, which should keep the cost down a fair bit!
Your not going to "knock the head off" a 10.8 graded bolt with a wood chisel. not to mention that the seats are into captive floating fasteners in the floor which you will probably kill.
Either power probe the motors directly or remove the gear surround to get to the back of the switch unit. If they are memory seats there is another box of crap under the seat that could be dead, so in that case i would probe the motor directly.
Final option would be to move the spindle bar with a pair of grips
Either power probe the motors directly or remove the gear surround to get to the back of the switch unit. If they are memory seats there is another box of crap under the seat that could be dead, so in that case i would probe the motor directly.
Final option would be to move the spindle bar with a pair of grips
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