Restoration - next steps

[dixieflatline]

Hi all - been a very long time since I've been here. Won't go into the reasons why (very dull) but my S3 rebuild has stepped up a gear - from neutral to first - and I wanted a bit of advice/reassurance that I'm going about things the right way. It's a full body off restoration, and I've now started to put the car back together.

The suspension (front and back) and steering rack are now on, and the next thing I'm doing is replacing the diff seals and reattaching the diff/rear axles to make the chassis manoeuvrable. After that's done I'm going to redo the brake pipes and the fuel lines, and then attach the new handbrake cable.

So, I have a couple of questions:

1. Anything else I need to do to the diff other than replacing the seals and changing the oil?
2. Any pitfalls to look out for when doing the brake pipes? I've got new hoses, and I have the old brake pipes to act as a guide. It's my understanding that doing the pipes is fiddly and time-consuming rather than skilled, and I have access to the tools I need.

I'm sure I'll have some more questions when it comes to doing the fuel lines, but I don't want to get ahead of myself

I suppose a more general question is what else should I do before putting the engine and transmission back in?

[blues3]

Hi,
Have the calipers redone. Bigg Red did mine and a fantastic job too, about 150 large.

[dixieflatline]

Done them! Got some nice shiny ones ready to go back on.

[ketvrin]

Make sure you put a nice new set of Rally Design engine mounts on while the engine is out. new gearbox mount would be worthwhile too, but I guess you have them already ? Presumably the rear diff mount is good and the rubber is not split or damaged?

K

[dixieflatline]

ketvrin said:

Make sure you put a nice new set of Rally Design engine mounts on while the engine is out. new gearbox mount would be worthwhile too, but I guess you have them already ?

Haven't got those yet - added to the shopping list! Engine isn't finished yet, and we're going to change the clutch, reattach the gearbox to the engine and then lower it in to the chassis on one piece.

ketvrin said:

Presumably the rear diff mount is good and the rubber is not split or damaged?

K

Yep, it's good. I asked one of the mechanics to have a look: he took it off me, clamped it in a vice, stuck a crow bar in the middle and gave it a good wiggle. No splits, and the bonding held so I was happy with that. I gave it a good clean and now it's ready to go back on.

[aero340]

change the UJS on the propshaft as changing these at a later date will be ahead ache.