Flooring it.

With Junior just two weeks away if the midwife is right, my focus has been on other stuff.  However, I have managed to finish a job that has been dragging-on for yonks. Dave at Track Developments made the panel to go beneath the engine as far back as March of last year.  However, I'd made a boob when ordering the eight Dzus fasteners that attach it to the chassis.  Frustrated, I hadn't bothered to work-out what I actually needed so the panel has just sat in a corner of the garden shed.  The stimulus to get it sorted was a need to order some other stuff from Car Builder Solutions.  So, having measured again, I added c.£50 of the little clips to my order.  Fifty quid!!

Anyway, once they arrived I was keen to get them fitted - over two short evenings I finally got the job finished but not before I had to remove some clips for the second time because the rivets needed to go the other way around.

The clips are seriously tight - I used a big penny washer to twist them into place but it was a real wrestle.  I need to order one of the special tools to make my life easier in the future.  I've also added some sound deadening just to try to stop it from flapping about due to resonance and also to stop it from clanking against the sump if it does move.

Here it is in-place:

It j-u-s-t clears the motor which is exactly what I wanted.  As well as the Dzus clips, I am going to attach a stainless steel cable tie between two p-clips - one on the floor and one on the motor - to stop it from being pulled down and to provide some extra security.

I'll try to post a remaining to-do list later this week - it will do me good.

TC

Turn*uckle

In the very short amount of time that's been available I've managed to collect the last aluminium fitting for the gear-shift rods from Track Developments.  Having cut the rod carefully to size I applied epoxy cement and put it in the vice to set.

Fitted it looks like this:

Unfortunately it seems like my special glue has gone off as it's not worked.  I need to get some ordered from RS.

TC

Indicative.

Crikey, another thrilling update: My new-old-stock 'retro' indicator switch is fitted to its switch pod.  This has a super-seal connector fitted to its own mini-loom awaiting connection to the main-loom and light-looms. Loom, loom, loo..... ugh.

TC

Beep Beep

So, I resolved my slightly flappy fuel pipe by indeed drilling a very small hole in on of the webbed portions on the engine.  No harm done and it took very little time once I'd bought a flexible drill extension to get me in there.  A small zip-tie did the rest.

The last few bits of hose arrived in the post so I plumbed the oil feed and drain that will connect to the puke/separator tank.

I added a cable-tie base to the airbox that allows me to clip the vent-hose in the right location.  I drilled the airbox in-situ but had the vacuum cleaner on the whole time making sure that none of the nasty carbon could remain or make it into the bell-mouths.

At the top here is t'other end of the same hose.  There will be a tank between it and the hose in the foreground which will feed any oil back to the engine...

... as seen above.  This hose also provides some support for the high-pressure fuel-line as it moves towards the fuel rail.

I'd somehow managed to lose the resistor for the master switch.  After a bit of Google-ing, I found that a suitable replacement could be had from RS for a couple of quid and further-more it was suitable for panel mounting.  

I've also collected some powdercoating this week - most notably my re-coated, previously leaky rear wheel. I'm just awaiting some fresh fixings to put it back together.  I really hope it doesn't leak again; the other three I rebuilt are perfect.  Also collected were my side-impact-protection bar and my modified throttle pedal.

Here's the 'S.I.P.S' cable-tied into place - I can't fit the bodywork with it in place.

Something was lost in translation on the pedal, I wanted both ends left uncoated; that's almost what happened:

Rather than get it re-done, I made-good with some hand tools and paint.  Here it is sporting it's grip-pad and the little rod-end that the cable will connect to:

Despite the warnings on the packet, I managed to snap the corner off the grip pad.  Thankfully, it doesn't seem to make a huge difference.  I may change it next time I order from Burton Power.

I've also continued to work-on the wiring to the extent that I can test it.  I've got power to coils, fuel pump and throttles plus the EXUP valve cycles so all is looking okay.  It did give me a bit of a scare however as I hadn't expected an odd noise from the fly-by-wire throttle servo.  I therefore posted the following video to ask the question:

Apparently this is normal - so all is well.  I still have some sensors to finish connecting-up and then have to sort-out the wiring for all the switches and run the cables forward to the front lights, horn etc.  Speaking of which, the only thing that doesn't seem to work is my second-hand transponder.  I wonder if it can be repaired?

TC

Testing 1-

I managed to complete the electrical connections at the CBS Wiring Module-end this weekend. This meant that the most basic connections could be tested. Power reaches the ON switch; the accessory switch powers up the lights and cycles the motor that would normally control the air trumpets. It's early days and there is LOTS still to do and prove. I'll take it for starters though - completion did for the first time in a while seem tangible however.

My leaky wheel is disassembled and with T.P.C.S for refinishing (I had to use chemical to soften the sealant and this wrecked the paint.). Also, I've realised that my old hand injuries mean that using the paddle shift will be painful after a few minutes, so a new column-shift is planned. Oh and I've run the fuel hose going from the (as yet imaginary) swirl pot to  the throttle bodies.

The only issue is that it needs one more clip to hold it well away from moving parts - the best way to do this seems to be to drill a small hole in a lug on the motor. I'm not sure if it's either RGB-legal or wise?

TC

Boxes of tricks - fitted.

Seen it all before...

The RGB season kicks-off this weekend which is depressing.  Yet again I have no car.  The progress made has been to finish some stuff that has been WIP for ages.

Rear Loom:

Airbox:

The plan is maybe to upgrade the standard JC50 filter to a proper box-lid at some point, but that's another £400 project so this will certainly do for now.  Noise will likely determine if I need to change things.

I'm trying to keep the bonnet bulge as small as possible.  I'm conscious that I'm used to driving cars with cycle-wings and seeing as much of the road as possible is important to me.

TC