Technical tSp's Bravo maintenance log

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Technical tSp's Bravo maintenance log

thesmallprint

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Hello all. Bought myself a lovely MJet 150 Bravo and plan to do a whole list of things to it. Thought I might as well share my progress in case anyone finds it interesting, has tips, suggestions or even spots if I've done something wrong (I'm mechanically pretty good but not done much on cars before). Here she is again:
 

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First: fuel filter.

Nice and easy to start out. on the Bravo the filter's easily accessible and up high so you don't even need to pull any fuses to drop fuel pressure. I just let mine sit overnight so it was cold, with a mostly empty tank. See pics - they match the steps.

Step 1: Disconnect the battery. Probably not even necessary, but I like to avoid any possibility of sparks and leaking fuel in the same space.

Step 2: Disconnect fuel lines and undo retaining collar. Nice and easy as they have pinch grips, and are suspended in the right position, so it's difficult to get them wrong when you reconnect, and the pich grips are oriented to make you take them off in the right order. The collar's not actually attached on the other side, just hooked in, so don't drop it.

Step 3: Put the plastic caps from the new filter over the inlet and outlet tubes of the old one as it's still full of diesel. Do the first one slowly or the pressure might make the second squirt. New filter is a little fatter, but everything's in the right place. Unclip water presence sensor connector from the bottom and remove the filter assembly from the car.

Step 4: Unscrew the sensor over a catch pan and let it drain. Remove the caps you put on the tubes so it'll drain faster. It holds about 4-500ml.

Step 5:Screw the water presence sensor into the new filter until it's snug. Careful not to strip it as it's plastic-threaded.

Step 6: Follow the steps in reverse. In this case, the fatter filter meant the collar didn't fit neatly in its initial position, but the end hook is stepped to accommodate larger filters, so I just moved it out tot the next step. Well thought-out design!

Step 7: Reconnect the battery. Get in the car and turn the ignition to ready position so that you can hear the fuel pump running. It's gurgle and grouch for a bit as the system re-fills with fuel. Do this a few times, until it stops bubbling.

Final step: Start the car, check for leaks. If your car's telling you 'ASR disconnect' and 'Hill hold not available', that's because the battery was disconnected. Just drive a few feet and it should remember what it's supposed to do. Done! Now mark the new filter with the mileage when it went in.

Great success! Just from driving forward a few metres and reversing back up the slope I am pretty sure it had been losing power at low revs, because it felt a lot smoother on the clutch while reversing slowly. Cleaner fuel delivery should also mean it has a little more power, and stops straining the fuel pump.
 

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I've been looking for a replacement key fob badge since I got my car, because the stock one is wrecked, but I could only find those ones stamped out of coke-can thin aluminium that look s*** and bend as soon as you put them in.

Then I found a FIAT lapel pin being sold by jbcarspares on ebay, on a hunch, asked him to measure it, and I was right... it's the OEM part with a pin welded on it. It still even has the locating pins. So, dremel, tape, and done. Much better!

I was hoping to share this as a source of replacement badges, but it seems the listing has ended. Anyone looking for a badge though should try jbcarspares and ask if he can get more in. There is another 'official' lapel pin too that looks cheap though, so take care.
 

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OK: today's mission is to diagnose and fix my car of one clear fault and two worrying signs.

Symptoms:
- Some white smoke (?) at low revs, not at startup, gone when the engine has warmed up.
- Low coolant levels when I received it.
- Engine light, with fatal error code P010F - Mass airflow sensor A/B correlation.
- Some slightly weak performance climbing hills in low gears, though it seems to shift on the flat. Hard to tell, as I haven't had the car long enough to tell what is normal.
- Tendency to stall more easily than it should.

So, 'head gasket' was definitely on my mind. The MAF fault gave another possible explanation though. I connected to multiecuscan, and looked at the parameters. What stood out was an air demand of 710 whatevers, and a supply about half that, scaling with revs.

1. First things first, got it into the barn and up on jacks. Belt and braces: handbrake on, car in gear, axel stands, a scissor jack and a hydraulic jack all holding it up. Give it a good shake to see if it moves at all. Nope: it's not going to crush my head. Good.

2. Take off the engine undertray/skid plate. This step is in the repair manual, but it's not actually necessary, it just gives you easier access. Still, I wanted to have a look as I haven't properly inspected the engine before. All the bolts are mismatched, some are screws, some are cable ties, and one bolt is stripped bare but the plastic around it is completely mashed from someone's attempts to get it out. Never mind, it still keeps water out and doesn't rattle. Because the back two bolts are replaced by cable ties. I can just leave it hanging rather than take it completely off.

3. The MAF sensor is on the front left. Disconnect the battery negative, then the MAF's cable connector: use a screwdriver to lever up the yellow clip, then pinch in the black part it was tucked into, and wiggle it loose. Don't pull it by the cables! It's on hard and in a tight spot, so not easy.

4.Having a look underneath, I find out two important things: one, look! A coolant leak! It looks minor, and gives an explanation other than head gasket failure for the low coolant levels. The second point is that one of the retaining clips on the air box is rusted to s*** and wasn't fastened, allowing debris to get into the air system around the filter. This is looking promising.

5. From the top, loosen the jubilee clip that holds the air intake hose onto the MAF, then loosen the hose.

6. Undo the two bolts. This is really tight, so I used a tiny ratchet to break them loose, then a u-joint adaptor on a long 10mm socket to undo it. The adaptor gave a bit more leverage than just fingers would.

7. Work the MAF loose and take it out. Great news! It's covered in s***! That means it probably is the root of the problem, and it's not a faulty sensor. The MAF is a mesh of wire whose resistance decreases as airflow cools it, so being covered in mank and dust would make the ECU get the fuel mix wrong. I used a whole can of EGR cleaner (you need a spray that is intended for cleaning electronics and leaves no residue). For bigger bits, grass seeds and leaf fragments, I used a cocktail stick to poke it loose, and blasted it out with the spray, agains the usual flow direction. Be careful not to damage the mesh.

8. Waited for it to dry completely, and took the opportunity to change the air filter. This is really difficult unless the MAF is off, because that whole assembly pushes on the air box lid, stopping it from opening. Make sure the rubber gasket is oriented the same way (rubber to the right of the car, foam to the left). Fixed the rusty clip, reattached everything (new bolts where possible for the undertray, wire-brushed, rust-treated and re-tapped everything that needed it) and dropped it back down.

Success! Cleared engine code did not reappear, and multiecuscan reported air demand and supply as both being about 400 at idle, and remaining pretty much in step right up to redline. No smoke of any colour. Ran out of time, but can't wait to take her out for a drive and see if it's found a bit of its missing power!
 

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Another point: spotted an oil leak while under there. looks slow, no drips. Leaky sump? Transmission? What do you reckon?
 

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That looks like it's coming from your gearbox. Drive shaft seals possibly. Get it checked as soon as you can. You don't want to run your gearbox dry.
 
You're the second person to say that now - you're probably right. I know the o-ring on the MAF sensor just snapped and fell off, and that probably got put in the same time as the drive shaft seals.

Edit: had a look in the repair manual and there is actually a dipstick for gearbox oil - didn't think there was. Will check this ASAP as engine oil levels are OK, but it may have been topped up before the sale. That'll tell me where it's coming from.
 
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So this update is a long time coming. Lots of issues have come up and repairs mostly made, which I’ve documented and taken photos for and will post. In order:

Flywheel ate the clutch - mechanic repaired, expensive. Transmission leak also repaired at the same time (you were right wizk1 - it was the drive shaft seals).

What I’ve done on it:
  • Replaced broken rear coil spring.
  • Changed boot badge/button.
  • Changed oil (won’t document, everyone knows how to do this)
  • Changed brakes…

...and that’s where it got complicated.

When changing brakes, noticed callipers in poor repair: degraded boots, gritty, seizing and corroded with paint nearly gone. So…


  • Disconnected callipers, stripped and resprayed them.
  • Rebuilt rear callipers, replaced all rubbers.
  • Noticed degraded brake hoses. Attempting to get these off to replace, accidentally twisted brake pipe a bit. ****.
  • Replaced both rear brake pipes and hoses.
  • Reattached callipers
  • Bled and refilled the brakes.

Other repairs/updates:

  • Fuel filter was leaking, found it had degraded old gasket on it that I should have spotted, but assumed it was part of the sensor. My mistake.
  • Oil filter cover had was partially broken and was rubbing on filter, caused it to crack and dump about £50 worth of oil all over the road. New filter, didn’t put the cover back on it this time.
 
Roar coil spring replacement.

See ordered photos at end of post.

Car cronking whenever lifted, back end felt funny after hitting a ramp too fast where they were resurfacing the road. Mechanic who replaced the clutch confirmed it.

1. Important: Match the spring part number to your engine type and trim level. The MJet’s heavier than the TJet, and the Sport trim has harder suspension, so if I’d gone with what the mechanic quoted for, I’d have had hard in the front and soft in the back. Part number for the MJet Sport coil springs is 51806125. Order in pairs, as it’s important your car’s balanced, even if one side is perfectly fine.

2. Car up on jacks, wheel off. Try not to vomit at the state of the rear brakes and calipers. Jack under the wheel arm, just to raise it slightly so that the suspension strut can come off. Then dropped the arm slowly to let the spring open up as much as possible.

3. You may not need spring compressors for rear coil springs on most cars but as this one has harder suspension I needed two compressors, a crow bar and a lot of swearing to get these off. Careful not to damage brake pipes. Note I had compressors on opposite sides, to avoid the spring slipping out and smacking me in the face, as I had to compress it pretty hard to get it out.

4. I re-used the thrust rings as they were in OK condition and are pretty much just sleeves.

5. Thrust rings on the ends of the new coils. Make sure to get the springs the right way up, as they’re not symmetrical. These Lesjofors ones don’t have a direction indicator, but putting the numbers the right way up is a safe bet.

No more cronking! Now, those horrible brakes/callipers...

Next up: Boot badge/button replacement.
 

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Brake calliper rebuilds

Ok, so aside from the callipers looking like they had leprosy (pic 1), they were stiff and seizing. Aluminium callipers are expensive so… time for a full respray and rebuild!

(Pic 1) To get the calliper pistons out I had to loosen them with a wind-back tool, then pump the handbrake arm to make them spit out the piston while there was still brake fluid in them. Took off callipers. No room for a breaker bar and the calliper bracket was on really hard, so used a jack to turn the ring spanner. Note you have to turn the calliper around to get the brake hose to disconnect, not the hose itself as it’s locked in place and will just twist. All sorts of crud and grit in the calliper, especially in the cylinder. Best way to get it out was with a pack of cotton buds and a lot of patience, wash in water and blast out with an air gun, leave to thoroughly dry as you don’t want water in your brake lines.

(Pic 2) I’m lucky to have access to a sandblaster. This took long enough as it was but would have taken twice as long without. To prepare for blasting I used polymorph - a type of plastic that you can melt in hot water, squish into all the holes and threads you don’t want damaged, then it sets hard. Great stuff - really useful for masking. I left the old pistons, bleed nipples and spare brake pipe connectors in, and sanded off as much loose paint as I could. A Dremel with a flap-drum was really useful, and a scriber to get all the bits out of stubborn corners.

(Pic 3) Sand blasting gets great results, making the callipers look shiny! I then sprayed with 2 coats of undercoat, 2 of colour, then 2 of clear coat - all calliper paints rated for high temps - following the instructions on the can for drying times etc.

(Pic 4) The actual workings of the piston are held in by a spring clip, shown here in the order they come out, to be reinstalled into the new piston. Locking surgical pliers are handy to get this out, but needle nose pliers and patience will do it too. Pretty easy to fit the new rubbers as it’s a like-for-like replacement, just make sure the piston seals go on in the same orientation as the originals or they’ll leak.

(Pic 5) Voila! Two rebuilt callipers ready to go back on. Now I just need to sort out brake lines and hoses for them.
 

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Brake lines and hoses

(Pic 1) Hard to see here, but the hoses were 11 years old and not in good shape. Once the callipers were off (turn the calliper, not the hose), pull out the retaining clip (marked) with pliers, and use a brake pipe spanner, WD40 and patience to get the connector apart. This is where I got impatient and twisted the pipe first time.

NOTE: The coated brake pipes on the Bravo and I think the Punto are a weakness. When twisting the old lines to get them off, in some places the pipe had corroded under the coating and in those spots the pipe broke really easily. When getting my MOT done, the mechanic said he’d had a Bravo in weeks before where the pipe had burst because of that exact issue.

(Pic 2) A reminder of the sorry state of the brakes before I started on them. This is why you should wash your wheels after driving on salty roads, kids.

(Pic 3) Brake lines need flared pipes: a bulb-shaped end on the pipe that will squash down inside the fitting and make a high-pressure seal like a crush-washer. I bought a cheap Chinese flaring tool - Sealey AK506 - to work on the brake pipes. It was so badly made it could not be used to make a symmetrical flare, and promptly broke after a few practice runs. Going into town to source a new one, I was told an old rally mechanic who now works on pressure washers might lend me one. He did, and it’s a great tool. Should be too since it cost him £120.

(Pic 4) The new brake pipe fitted. A great way to get the track right is to use a welding rod or length of wire, run it along the old brake pipe and copy the bends. This gives you both the length of the pipe and the correct shape to copy. I did them in copper first, but a friend came by with some cupro-nickel pipe, which has a higher burst pressure and is more corrosion resistant, so I did them again. Bending can be done with your hands or with a bending tool. I did both, trying to keep the runs neat. Important to avoid kinks or metal fatigue from over-working it. Remember to put the fittings on BEFORE you flare the pipe on both ends, or you’ll have to cut the flare off and start again (derp). Also keep the fittings in the right place when you bend the line, or you’ll have to un-bend it to move the fitting back into place, and that fatigues the metal (herp derp). Could have re-used hose retaining clips, but new ones cost nothing so I got them.

(Pic 5) Finished! No more leprosy brakes! Remember to fit the new hose to the calliper first and get it tight, then when you tighten the fitting on the brake line, it will squash the flare and set the thread in a position where the hose is completely in the calliper and not at all twisted. Get this wrong and it’ll leak and you could lose your brakes. Then, bleed the brakes thoroughly as they’ve been open to air and water while the callipers were off. Be sure to protect the callipers from the brake fluid as it’s basically paint thinner. I used a vacuum-based bleed tool. This pulls bubbles through and helped to show up a minor leak from an under-tightened hose and a badly-threaded bleed nipple, so I swapped that out and gave it a bit of thread seal to be sure. Labour-intensive but better to find the leaks before you put the wheels back on.


There, now tell me that doesn’t look 100x better! When I bought it last December, my Bravo had 11 advisories on its MOT. It just went in again and came out with 0 advisories. :slayer:
 

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