Well, it was ready for the weekend!
Engine sounds good so I dont think I've done any permenant damage. £300 in the end with a s/h sump, new oil & filter. I checked it on the weekend and they've fitted a flush type filler plug also so it's no worse than before.
Also fitted the Gates TVD that widemouthfrog reccomended. It's certainly removed the idle rattle that I was complaining about but it now has a faint squeak when decelerating. Hoping this is just some oil on the belt or the rubber on the new TDV needing to soften a bit.
After a week of driving new Transits and a new Ranger Raptor for a couple of days I'm still very happy with my Multipla. I've got a full set of Alloys doing nothing in the back garden so may ask DA Motors if I can do a swap for some more obscure spares I need:
Nearside window switch
Nearside front sill plate
Offside rear sill plate
Nearside sill cover
Offside front wheel arch trim
Offside rear light cluster
The odd door handle

If your struggling for trim parts 'Philler' on page 2 had a lot, I bought the tailgate and both rear door sill trims off him as well as a set of tailored seat covers, he said he had kept everything he thought could be useful.

No pics but I have been doing stuff.

Cheapo washer pump I bought a year back failed. So as genuine ones are £40+ I bought another two cheap ones (£15 total). Fitted & working, only losing the entire contents of the washer bottle while I faffed through the fog light hole. Incidentally, thank you to whoever pointed out this shortcut as the bumper is faff x 10 to remove.

Rear brakes have been making a lovely grating metal on metal sound for a week or two now so I decided to tackle on the weekend. Two hours in on the passenger side and I nearly threw in the towel, I have a piston wind back tool but I lost the flat plate that is shaped like a brake pad. So I had all manner of things in it's place but nothing quite as effective. Absolutely could not get the piston to rotate. After I made sure I had all my Gunsons Eezibleed kit I clamped the hose and took the caliper off the car. In the vice and with some plumbing grips I finally managed to get the piston rotating and managed to push it all the way back to accept the new disc and pads. Assembled it all and bled, cleaned and lubed up the slider pins. I had to leave it with one side done and one side not. The handbrake is comically high this morning so i'll adjust that once I tackle the other side.

Anyone had any similar stories? Overall I was pleased by the quality of the caliper and that all the bolts / nipples came undone without fuss - just that the piston didn't swivel.

Anyway TLDR version, rear brake faff = grumpy.

Nearside rear wheel hot.
Brake must be binding after the change.

All ideas welcome!

Have you tried looking at what the T-bar thing does (where the cable from the handbrake connects to the left and right cables) while somebody pulls the handbrake on? It may be that the driver's side is partly seized, which would throw most of the cable movement on to the passenger side.

Thanks for the pointer wmf, I'll take a look tomorrow. There's certainly something odd going on as after pressing the pedal a few times the handbrake is seeing some resistance very low down. If i pull hard up on the handbrake a couple of times then it goes much higher. (Ooh matron etc)
I think it just needs bleeding again and I might put some copper grease on the 'ears' of the pads that go into the stainless spring clips on the carrier.

Right so over the weekend I cleared 6 feet of space in the garage and sorted through a couple of piles of rubbish and still couldn't find the missing piece of my brake piston wind back tool.:bang:
Anyway decided to have a go at the drivers side rear brake. This side was the side that was making the lovely grindy noises and sure enough i'd gone down to the metal on the inside pad. Cleaned out the slider pins and bores and lubed with silicon grease. Also cleaned off the ABS sensor ring or whatever it is as it was completely coated in iron filings. Wound back the piston with some difficulty but still managed to get the new disc and pads on all back together. This side the caliper seems to be working properly and I bled quite a bit of nasty looking oil out of it.
Decided to remove the passenger side caliper again and re-lube everything but it's still sticking. I've gone and ordered a cheap caliper off ebay and when that's fitted i'll strip down the old one and try to figure out what's wrong.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/163694452076

£39 delivered.



Should have a go at fitting it tonight.

Not a lot of difference but the hole to accept the sheath of the handbrake cable needs relieving a little. Luckily an AA battery only just sqeezes through so O xan use as a go/no go gauge.

Well, I bled through quite a lot to try to ensure all the air was out but it was still a little spongey this morning. So much so that I had a small panic and thought that the reservoir level must have dropped below min but a quick check and top up said it was ok.
Main issue is that with it binding before, it's burnt through an entire set of pads on the nearside. Given the situation I had to cobble it back together with the best of the old. It's working (and importantly also releasing) but I think i'm going to have to get another set of pads for the rear and this caliper will have to come off for a 4th time! Also the bill for the rear brakes is over £100 now - blimey! Once I have the same thickness pads on both sides i'll adjust the handbrake but i'm pleased to say it does hold the car now.

Anyway Gunsons Eezibleed for the Win.

Going to have to make a decision regarding tyres soon. I think I have 3 on the limit and the 4th has a very slow puncture. I have the standard set of ELX wheels with lots of tread but the brands are all shonky. It was pretty lethal in the wet. It's going to be cheaper to put tyres on these though that the Fiat coupe wheels. Final off the wall idea are these:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Alfa-Romeo-145-Cloverleaf-Phase-1-15-Alloy-Wheels-And-Tyres/153677182105
I have a feeling they'll really suit the Multipla and with my spacers and longer wheel bolts I should have options on fitting them.

For the standard ELX alloys, I found Michelin Energy Savers to be a good match. Quiet, good ride quality, decent grip and the car seems to roll along very easily on them. I think they're on to Energy Saver + or something similar now; not sure what they're like.

I've been running Goodyear Efficient grip tyres on my cars for a few years now and rate them quite highly. Good deals can be had if you pre buy them on line from places like Formula one tyres.

Hello all, Love this thread. I have just bought a mapping device on diagnostic port last week. On the mk2 120 diesel,which has been a bit dull. Massive change ... Loads more torque and really improved drivability. Not as much as 155 bhp map some years ago on 115 jtd that we ran/enjoyed for many years. 115 quid from pro racing and you can move it to other diesel cars
Has anyone else tried something like this?

Thanks all on the tyre options. Trouble is that I'm a serial cheapskate. Michelins look to be about £80 a corner and Goodyears about £65. You can see why the Alfa 146 wheels were looking attractive at £130 plus I could have sold my coupe wheels. Hmm more pondering to be done. Might refit the ELX wheels with budgets and see what they look like and how they handle in the dry. At the moment with 205 section and 50 profile the multi sticks like **** to a blanket.

MM, is that just a tuning box you've bought then that plugs into the rail pressure sensor? I've heard they're a bit crude but get the desired effect. I bought Galetto 360 and cable but you need an XP laptop to drive it so I sort of stalled on that one. Anyway, let us know what you bought!

No this one is inside - plugs into diagnostic port by steering wheel.
Glows red which is a pain. It takes 150 km to optimise it says.

ProRacing Chip Box OBD2

I bought on ebay for less than the main site is offering (paid -£118)

I can move it between diesels is the idea if we change cars etc.

I have not tried on the MK1 Dolphin nose yet as it is awaiting clutch and not insured.

Hiya shed, For decent tyres I like to run Pirelli, never found them lacking for grip or wear, either wet or dry.
I've gone through the Mich, Good Year, Avons and Conti's etc, etc but always come back to Pirelli - they did a fantastic P4 but they seem to be a bit rare now.
Admitted they ain't cheap but they outclass the cheapies in good milage, handling, grip and more importantly - I feel safe with them under me.
I know you can get some deals on chinese tyres but I don't like the way they give up without any warning - I found the line between grip and no grip was scary - grip, grip, gone, no little warning slide or a shake of it's arse - just gone!
BUT - it's your choice so whatever suits for you is good enough.
Only my personal views guys, so put the armoury down
George

Well I threw on the elx wheels with chinesium tyres. The grip is *interesting*.

Question;
- Air bag light is on.
- Plugged in MultiScan ecu.
- Drivers and passenger side airbags intermittent low voltage.
- Doesn't clear.
- What now?!?

MOT Tuesday 10th!

Arghhhhhh!

Check the orange connector on the floor at the front left corner of the passenger seat.

https://www.fiatforum.com/multipla/323147-help-airbag-sensor.html

Got to post #34 in that thread for the dashboard airbag fault.

Thanks widemouthfrog,
I will try to pick up some IPA (isopropyl alcohol not Indian Pale Ale) or something similar as they are either poor connections or damp. From looking at that thread the issue was more front airbags - this is specifically stating side airbags so are the ones in the seats? I'll take a look at the orange connectors at some point and feedback any results.

Yes - the orange connector on the floor is for the seat side airbag. I've used WD40 before now, with success. It's more a case of using something to act as a cleaner/lubricant to help shift the corrosion that causes the rise in resistance reading, that then flags up the fault. Sometimes even a quick wiggle of the connector is enough.

You may need to clear the fault, which needs the special lead - I forget which colour it is now as I haven't used mine in ages. Or just start and stop the car a few times to see if that gets rid of the light. If you start/stop five times and the light is still on, then I'd say that approach isn't going to work.