General Look who's come home...

[blu73]

Yeah want to upgrade to led, make it a bit brighter. The dullness annoys me. Just dont know what the fittings are called and all the ones i can find are there 509t type ones. The clock was a 509t though

 

[jatkinson]

Im looking at doing a "brintec" conversion were i can change all the colours and bits , (Y)

 

[blu73]

lol.. must admit it makes me like a youth messing with dashboard LEDs completely unnecessarily but its something i started last time i owned her and never finished so i shall complete it. This has actually only happened now cause i wanted to buy something for the car but was too skint to be able to afford anything other than a few LEDs

 

[blu73]

well its been a month, time for an update.

Still being used as my daily, recently developed a knock - rear gearbox mount by sounds of it so replaced that today - been waiting for a day off to get it done. Not had chance to go for a spin yet so cannot confirm right now if that was the issue but the old mount doesn't look to clever so i'm 99.9% thats what it was.

Also recently my idle has been creeping upwards and my heater a bit rubbish. Quick look around the bay for vacuum leaks etc and i quickly found a weeping water pipe, the one going upto the heater. So that will be why my heater is crap i thought. No vacuum leaks though.

Anyhow, thought best fix the leak, looked simple enough. Drained the coolant which looks like it might have just been water without coolant tbh so good job I decided to do this today with the recent drop in temperature. Went to the leaking connection and....

surprised it didn't leak worse than it was really, the smaller piece was left in the pipe with a clip holding it there, nothing really holding the two pipes together other than a bit of friction.. Didn't have a proper connector so i have bodged it together for now (not got the alfa atm so need the car to work 2moro to take mrs to work etc).
Stuck new coolant temp sensors in, decided to change the one for the gauge too as wasn't convinced that was telling the right temperature either. Gave the car a good flush through and refilled (with actual coolant this time lol)

and result, fan now kicks in when gauge says just over 90 and cuts out again just under 90 as it should. Whereas before it was not even showing 90 when the fan came on before. And idles nice and smooth at 800rpm and not 1500rpm like before.

proof...

and no, i still not sorted led's for the dash cluster

 

[Honeymonster]

Hopefully this is the only time we'll see your dirty hand with a broken piece of rubber int it.

 

[woj]

The only serious (meaning I ended up in the middle of a crossing with a puddle of coolant under the car ) problem with cooling I had at the dawn of my turbo installation was because of the crappy plastic connectors from Fiat. The plastic somehow ages and becomes brittle.

 

[Honeymonster]

The only serious (meaning I ended up in the middle of a crossing with a puddle of coolant under the car ) problem with cooling I had at the dawn of my turbo installation was because of the crappy plastic connectors from Fiat. The plastic somehow ages and becomes brittle.

Really? I seem to remember it overheating when you finished it prior to the thermostat mod.

 

[woj]

Really? I seem to remember it overheating when you finished it prior to the thermostat mod.

Depends really on what you call serious. These days I am not even sure it was overheating, maybe it was just my paranoia, I was simply not comfortable with the temperatures it worked with (this summer I hit the limits again going uphill in the Alps, the poor thing spilt its guts a bit after this, not sure what the exit point of the coolant was, but a small puddle was there, nevermind). But I did overtighten one of those plastic three-exit connectors near the heater matirx and at the first sight of high pressure it snapped. That was the only time in the history of this car that I had to be towed back home (5km), luckily a mate of mine saved me and the whole episode took less than 1 hour.

 

[Honeymonster]

Cento driving the Alps... that's ubber cool you should have taken some pics!

 

[blu73]

never had cooling issues with the tubby sei, touch wood!! there was that annoying hard to find leak but it has never overheated. But then York is very very flat compared to the Alps hehe.

Just been out for a spin in the cinq, knock has gone well the one knock/rattle noise that i was concerned about is gone at least haha, there is still many rattly noises to go just none that are bad and need fixing. My passenger chair for example rattles when no-one sat in it (annoying but not really an issue)

 

[blu73]

right, 1 week and few hundred miles on and knocking is back with vengeance, if i'm honest it only didn't knock for about 15miles .. The mount i used was one i had lying around, unknown origin or brand. In my defence it is defo brand new unused mount - not exactly same as oem one, perhaps a 899 mount??? I never played with 899s really, do they have a different mount?

So bought a new one, from the micks at ECC this time and got a bilstein branded one, should be decent one. Just now swapped it over, it best not knock now or i shall be annoyed, it is classic rear mount symptoms though so pretty confident.

Just having warming cuppa having come inside - i really am not ever buying a house without a garage again, brrrrr. But will go for a test drive later on.

 

[blu73]

right just to keep everyone posted, as i know you love reading about my life lol..

Knock solved there is still a couple of knocks from the passenger side, but there is not left that i can be now - i couldn't hear this knock over the previous engine mount knock but it must be new. Car has had new wishbones so its not that, defo not track road ends so unless its the front gearbox mount (they rarely go in my experience and it looks ok) it must be strut top mount which is of unknown age and origin. I shall add it to the list.

Also my random high idle returns, car runs fine and idle isn't erratic it just sometimes stays too high, thinking sticky ICV but not had a chance to look at it and besides i run out of carb cleaner so will have to buy some first.

 

[unclebloodyfester]

You sure it's not a loose track rod / knocking arb / loose exhaust mount on the back of the box?

 

[blu73]

I'm 99% its the top mount. In the end, it will get new track rod ends and top mounts. Its getting a different exhaust soon. I am basically slowing going through the car changing just about everything. All the bushes and mounts and anything that gets old and tired basically. Bits are amassing about the place i just rarely look out the window this time of year and think to myself, i want to sit on the floor out there in the wind and rain and mess with my car unless it needs something. But ultimately even if i don't go crazy on this car i want it all feeling tight and new to drive (bar the odd rattle of course, thats part of the charm)

 

[ycming]

just pop the bonnect the and bounce the car on the side you think it's dodgy you should see or at least feel movement in the top mount if is that :0.

 

[unclebloodyfester]

If the top mounts are gone, you should see the suspension strut poking more out of the top of the mount when the car is put down after being jacked up. Failing that, get someone to turn the wheel from lock to lock for you whilst you watch the top mount - if it's fecked you'll see ( and hear ) it clunking.

I presume youve checked stuff like subframe bolts / steering rack clamps?

I have this to do on mine yet and like you, sitting outside armed with gloves, plusgas and several bottles of humour really isn't top of the pops at this time of year

 

[blu73]

I was under there y'day doing this rear mount and everything under there is either new or still looking tip top, and i checked everything was tight etc.

I'm usually on my own so not had chance to watch while someone turns or what not. I'm not worried, its not bad really, i haven't even remoed the dustcaps to look at the top mounts yet, i'm just assuming its that really but i'm still pretty damn certain. And whatever it is will get changed as part of the course anyway come some sunshine. Really want to sort this idle as it annoys me but it also ain't bad, still getting 300 miles from a tank without trying to drive economically so just leaving it atm til its at least not raining and gale force winds lol.

 

[blu73]

well update on this, seems its rear trailing arm bushes. Clunks when you bounce the rear of the car - opposite end of the car from where it sounds it coming when you drive it but had the mrs sat in the car and she swears it sounds like its coming from the front from inside with the door shut :shrug: I'll get some bushes ordered tomorrow.

 

[Honeymonster]

It's nearly always the back ones :bang:.

That will be fun outside in the cold...

 

[blu73]

my mate has press in his workshop, i'll probably have to do it up there to use the press as i not got any pullers or anything at home.