298 replies to this topic

[gingerjon]

Thanks chaps, will do this next week, just need to raise the outer edge of the hinges to make them flat. Then work out how to fix them to the rear of the coupe. May need to remove another vent from the rear part to be able to attach it properly.

[gingerjon]

A Sunday free of plans left me standing at the door fo the workshop thinking.....i quite like the OEM Boot Lid and roll bar cover afterall!! But, i have come too far!!

 

 

I had bought some sheet Alu to make my brackets from for the rear part of the Coupe.

I needed to remove anothet set of the vents.....annoying and time consuming but without it nothing would have sat right for the brackets

 

Whilst the resin was out i thought i would seal up the roll bar cover too as i plan to remove the headrests

 

Needs another layer of filler later on though

[gingerjon]

After the advice last week, i angled the holes on the brackets and used some washers as a crude test method

I will end up getting some Alu block to make some proper wedges for the angles.

After a lot of faffing, drilling and cutting i stuck it all in place and will hope its all in roughly the same place when i go back next week!!

 

 

I sanded back the glass fibre bridging paste i repaird the door with, was a PITA and took about an hour with a sander on my compressor but the finish is pretty good, not perfect yet, btu fan out of filler to carry on!

 

The dash hadn't been touched for a while so i thought i'd better crack back on

 

Sanded back and made the edges for the Shift Light and the ScanGauge

 

I had bought a "Flocking Kit" a few weeks ago......and thought i'd give it a go!

 

Carnage........

 

Glue dried really quickly and in an attempt to add more to few places i cocked the job and caused some lumps. Not thrilled with the finish, some places look pretty good but i'll need to get rid of the excess next week before i can see how it really came out. for £15, it was worth a go!!

 

 

 

[JG]

Yes, not your finest moment with the dash Thats the polite way of saying you cocked it up

[gingerjon]

 indeed......the dash went the way of the pear!!! Brushed off the excess today and its still pretty poor,  will take out the lumps and then sand back a bit and add another coat. The section that worked well actually looks really good so i am thinking it was down to user error rather than the stuff itself.

 

So, this was it, coupe onto car time.

 

Hinges had sealed in properly and fixings were solid on both parts of the rearWashers again to level up the sides, it will need a better solution, maybe from Alloy Block but thats for another day.

Both sides fixed in. At this point the 2 halves are still glued together

 

After trimming the rear roll bar cover section slightly so the hinges would slide on, i put the roll bar in place and did up the 4 bolts securing it down........then, opened her up......

 

 

And there it is, 3 months worth of work and pain in ass.......i should have just gone with Aero Catches!!!!!

 

Need to thin out the edges as it catches in a couple of places, then add the weathering strip under the front edge. Still undersided whether to use the OEM boot catch or an Aero Catch through the bottom of it, would look much neather it i can use the OEM one.

 

Not perfect, but i am more than happy with my complete lack of bodywork knowledge, i can G is putting his to a bodyshop so hopefully i can get some ideas of how to make it more refined. the finishing touches wofr mine will probably also be done in a body shop when the car goes for paint.

 

Next week is Engine and Gerrbox back in, Brakes and cluth bleeding and coolant filling. I just pray it doens't break its 5th Slave Cylinder....this time i have a mechanic helping, i have everything crossed!!!

[haggi961]

Looking good and once it's all done you will be pleased you went this route.

[Duncan VXR]

Jon looking good! Did you still need suspension top brackets? Clear out still in progress and found a crisp clean set DG

[gingerjon]

Thanks chaps, DG....ill PM you now.

[Graeme Lambert]

Good work mate.

 

G

[gingerjon]

Many of you have read this will have seen i have had an absolute nightmare with my Slave Cylinders on the gearbox. After the engine going in and out 3 times, 3 slave cylinders popping and about 10 litres of wasted DOT 5.1.......i called a friend of mine who is a mechanic as asked him to once and for all work out what the hell was wrong with the car.....because obviously, i had done nothing wrong.

 

 

Well, as it turned out i had.

 

Within 10 minutes of him arriving he showed me why, someone with no mechanical experience whatsoever should, on a whim, decide to "rebuild" their car with no instructions. After months of stress and a good few hundred quid the answer was simple. I had put the Fecking clutch plate in the wrong way round.......Tit.    

 

 

 

I had put the side with the raised edge into the flywheel. So when the slave Cylinder depressed the 1st time, it pushed the prongs from the clutch cover in, but then it didn't spring back out......then when i pressed the clutch pedal again, the slave cylinder over extended, burst and dropped its load over the garage floor.

 

 

Just in case i cleaned up the inner edge, and put the original clutch cover back on and threw the Red one out which came with the kit.

 

With it in correctly, we put the engine back in, coupled everything together and turned her over. She started 1st time even after all those months. Clutch then bled with my heart in my mouth......it worked 1st time again, no popping, no fluid out the bottom.....no tears!!! Brakes Bled (Never got that far before so very exciting!!) Then coolant into the system.

 

Turned the car on and ran it up to temperature for the 1st time for 2 years!!!

 

Finally, progress, it will really help when i move house in a month or so to have the car mobile. Now i can crack on with the interior and finish of the coupe rear. Got a few issues with bleeding the coolant system, there is an air lock somewhere as the from Rad pipes are not getting hot at all even when we try and bleed and squeeze the water round. That's a job for next week.

 

And yes.......i did sit and rev it for a while.....the VSE sounds just as good as it always has!!!!

[XXX]

So, let's get this right. You put the plate in wrongly 3 times. Not once, not twice, but 3 times

 

Glad you got it sorted and the VX llives!

[gingerjon]

Technically No....I put it in wrong once....then never thought there was a problem that side so never took it out again. Because I didn't realise that it could go in wrong, I just carried on trying to make it work with a new slave cylinders..... Seemed a good idea at the time......not so much looking back now.

[XXX]

Technically No....I put it in wrong once....then never thought there was a problem that side so never took it out again.

 

That does make it more understandable.....

[gingerjon]

Doesnt make it any more forgivable though!!!

[Ormes]

Many of you have read this will have seen i have had an absolute nightmare with my Slave Cylinders on the gearbox. After the engine going in and out 3 times, 3 slave cylinders popping and about 10 litres of wasted DOT 5.1.......i called a friend of mine who is a mechanic as asked him to once and for all work out what the hell was wrong with the car.....because obviously, i had done nothing wrong.
 
 
Well, as it turned out i had.
 
Within 10 minutes of him arriving he showed me why, someone with no mechanical experience whatsoever should, on a whim, decide to "rebuild" their car with no instructions. After months of stress and a good few hundred quid the answer was simple. I had put the Fecking clutch plate in the wrong way round.......Tit.    
 

 

 
I had put the side with the raised edge into the flywheel. So when the slave Cylinder depressed the 1st time, it pushed the prongs from the clutch cover in, but then it didn't spring back out......then when i pressed the clutch pedal again, the slave cylinder over extended, burst and dropped its load over the garage floor.
 

 
Just in case i cleaned up the inner edge, and put the original clutch cover back on and threw the Red one out which came with the kit.
 
With it in correctly, we put the engine back in, coupled everything together and turned her over. She started 1st time even after all those months. Clutch then bled with my heart in my mouth......it worked 1st time again, no popping, no fluid out the bottom.....no tears!!! Brakes Bled (Never got that far before so very exciting!!) Then coolant into the system.
 
Turned the car on and ran it up to temperature for the 1st time for 2 years!!!
 
Finally, progress, it will really help when i move house in a month or so to have the car mobile. Now i can crack on with the interior and finish of the coupe rear. Got a few issues with bleeding the coolant system, there is an air lock somewhere as the from Rad pipes are not getting hot at all even when we try and bleed and squeeze the water round. That's a job for next week.
 
And yes.......i did sit and rev it for a while.....the VSE sounds just as good as it always has!!!!

Don't knock yourself. You are learning and it takes some balls to do what you have done.

[Goosenka]

sh*t happens. Good effort.

[gingerjon]

Not a huge amount of progress but another of the ongoing issues ticked off today. After expert eyes on .org figure out the problem with my front right suspension, DG kindly provided a new bracket for the ABS pump and Damper.

 

 

As you van see there was a serious difference between the 2......it seems buying new suspension may have been a tad hasty 

 

 

Finally.....the old Bilsteins leave the car!

I know these Shocks have had some bad press recently, i have also seen many people who are more than happy with them so i am giving them a whirl  . 

 

A quick trip round the other 3 corners and another job done. Quick question.....Where can you get the spacers for the front 2 damper top mounts? Mine are a little gappy and the bushes are not fixed in correctly?

 

 

I have also removed all the flock from attempt number one on the dash ready for another go next week 

 

Engine started again 1st time today, still running a little lumpy however. My issue is air in the coolant system i cannot seem to remove. tried a few tricks i had read about on here, next is the air valve in a coolant cap next week. The pipes into the heater are getting hot, but the heater doesn't warm up really?? Also the pipes and the radiator don't get warm so the fan doesn't engage yet the liquid comes from the bleed valve on the rad pipe?!?! Its a conundrum! Any Idea's? 

 

[Arno]

On most dampers you re-use the 'top hat' spacers that were fitted with the original Bilsteins to space it out properly and allow the bolt to clamp onto the whole stack without deforming the bracket as it's tightened.

 

Bye, Arno.

 

 

[Sticky]

Number 20 on here http://www.deroure.c...&SMO=0&ST=&SC=0

[gingerjon]

Perfect, thanks Arno, cheers for the link Nick.