Black Ford Racing Puma Conversion Just the beginning.
#41
Posted 04 October 2013 - 08:50 AM
#42
Posted 02 February 2014 - 06:34 PM
Many thanks to eldoodarino who has helped me out and got quite a few things off my list. We decided to leave the engine servicing for the moment to concentrate on some more pressing issues.
The TLDR version:
Front Brakes
Alcon Caliper Overhaul
Textar Pads (backing plate modified)
Freshly Skimmed Alcon Discs
Front Suspension
Service Front Suspension Struts
New Turret Dampers and Nuts
New Ford Strut Pivot Bearings
New Ford Suspension Top Mountings
Wheels
FRP wheel nuts all around, thanks Bentleya!
All 4 wheels aligned to standard FRP spec
Tyres
Four new Continental Conti Sport Contact 3 tyres
Engine Bay
Replace K&N cone filter with standard induction assembly and replace airbox filter
Replace Rocker Cover Gasket to stop oil leak, been bone dry ever since.
Flush out and replace engine coolant
Not really engine bay but I fixed the clutch position sensor which stopped the judder
Body
Fix leak coming into passenger side foot well from the wiring grommet.
Welding and rust prevention on the sills
Interior
Drivers side door clips replaced to stop rattling.
Lights
Headlamp units have been replaced (Thanks Ian-G)
The bulbs have been upgraded to Halfords (HBU9005EB) HB3 Extreme Brilliance
The full version:
Eldoodarino assured me that the wheels would not go flying off when taking a corner a bit tasty but for peace of mind we switched out the wheel nuts for FRP nuts which provide a firmer grip, being fit for purpose and all.
The state of the brakes before eldood sorted it were completely shocking. The disks were in a shocking state of being more rust and corrosion than clean metal and they would squeal under light to medium braking. You would have to brake hard for every stop just to keep the noise down, not ideal. When doing the MOT the garage mentioned that they were both knackered and would need new discs and pads. My mate reckoned he could fix the squeak, and so with a couple of ice cold pepsis, he set to work.
A good few hours of light work, male bonding and a Nando's later (Half a chicken spiced hot, with peri peri chips and spiced corn on the cob – had to be done) and we'd managed to achieve the square root of fcuk all. The squeak was around 80% fixed, which was awesome! but 80%doesn't cut it, so off to the professionals!
So Eldude took on the job and the brakes are now spot on!
One of the callipers was too ceased to split,but eldude managed it on the other.
After some bedding in.
The K&N cone filter that was previously in the car looked knackered, and gave the car quite a loud grunt which was nice if you wanted to be a noisy asshole at the lights but inconvenient if you wanted to get somewhere at a reasonable speed, or drive in a higher gear.
Also note the engine coolant bottle isn't looking too pretty.
The intake was all set back to the standard 1.7 intake pulling from the wheel arch. The car now drives much faster and is much more spritely in the lower revs taking off much better from a standing start and having more oomph throughout the rev range. (Cheers to Ian G for the parts and eldoodarino for the hard graft fitting it all!)
Welcome back, I wish you'd never left.
The Engine had been leaking but this was cleaned up and fixed by Eldude and with the Rocker Cover Gasket replaced there have been no further leaks
Eldude also drained out the old coolant and replaced it with some fresh stuff.
Next up was the front suspension. The Some handy work from a previous owner and Mother Nature's Time had taken its toll on the front suspension top mounts.
Old top mount on the left, new one on the right.
So I got the top mounts replaced, it's all about the gap apparently, and l also got a service of the Front Suspension Struts thrown in along with new Turret Dampers and New Ford Strut Pivot Bearings. The ride is now super smooth over bumps in the road. After all that it was time to get the suspension aligned, so off to TyreX in Shepshed.
Up onto the ramp for the Hunter HawkEye™ Proalign digital imaging system.
Work in progress
Final result
The driver's side door had become a noisy bugger with rattles all over, and missing screws. Eldoorarino sorted me out with new clips and screws. Despite this the door was still broken and would rattle when going over any uneven surface. This is where the handy multi-functional de-misting cloth came into play. Carefully and precisely slotted inside the door the cloth acts as both a soundproofing device (yeah right) and more importantly a soft cushion to dampen the collision rich kinetic activities of rattley metal and plastic door bits.
The car is now as quiet as a whistle, or something.
Having the leak in the wiring grommet fixed has made such a difference to the damp in the car now winter is here. I had originally raised the leak with my garage and had checked the forums prior to taking it there so I could inform them of all of the likely places it was coming from. They fobbed me off however and blamed other things, so they left me with it and it was no problem with the light rainfall in the summer. As soon as autumn hit I was swimming again. I identified the location of the leak by pouring a kettle full of water through the scuttle panel and ending up with a kettle full of water in the passenger side foot well.
I initially tried cleaning out the leaves thinking this would work, but it was to no avail.
The leak into the passenger side footwell has now been resolved by eldude who put the grommet back in the correct place. The car still isn't 100% dry in the driver's side footwell, but it is much dryer.
I replaced the headlight units and bulbs myself in a display of unprecedented mechanical astuteness.
First off I tried a second hand pair of Philips BlueVision Ultra 4000k bulbs for a fiver, but found these to not be much brighter then the originals (clocking in at 30% brighter)
Old one on the left, new one on the right.
Clear to see the difference here
Philips BlueVision Ultra 4000k on the left, standard bulb on the right.
Standard bulb in old headlight unit
Philips BlueVision Ultra 4000k bulb in new light unit
After all that bulb changing I couldn't get enough, so I decided to upgrade the bulbs once again (It's all about the steady progression not just the end result!) and went for Halfords (HBU9005EB) HB3 Extreme Brilliance (90% brighter) in all four lights. Much better! I can now see the road when I'm out in the country whereas before I'd be guessing and correcting every second.
I also finally found the cause of the judder.The clutch position sensor was found to be snoozing on the job and taking an unscheduled break which had been going on for a while.
I'm sure that's not how it's meant to work.
So I repositioned it and the car finally drives smoothly. Here's some information Alan at Pumabuild gave me. Cheers Alan! He had this wisdom to bestow about the situation.
When driving at a steady speed say 30mph you will find a slight hesitation if this sensor is removed. It tells the ecu if the car is being driven or if it is coasting. *this actually kicked in at around 1.8k revs. When you start your car and drive off the ecu runs in something called closed loop this is to make sure that you are getting the perfect air fuel ratio of 14 parts ait to 1 part fuel. When you put your foot to the floor it goes into open loop drive and runs a richer map for higher speeds. When you put your foot on the clutch it runs in closed loop cruise so the ecu knows you are slowing down and you foot is on the clutch and to shut the revs down to slightly over tickover speed. When you stop the car tick over will be 850rpm and the ecu will control this rpm. As well as returning a 14:1 fuel ratio. Basically you need this sensor if it has been tapped up it is to mask another problem you have such as vehicle speed sensor fault or an O2 sensor fault. As your car is a 99 year you will not have an engine light and the only way to see if there are any fault codes is to plug in and do a read.
So more fun and games ahead!
I took the car in for an MOT and it failed on the rusty sills. I try not to do things by halves when it comes to getting quotes, so I went around a whole bunch of places, and got a full range of quotes. The people I wanted to go with couldn't get me in for another 6 months, so I had to have a temporary job done to ride me over.
Drivers side outer sill:
Before
In Progress...
Now repaired:
Still not quite what I was after so I'll have to get it sorted another day.
Drivers side inner sill:
Now repaired:
Under passenger side door:
Passenger side inner sill:
Work in progress...
New metal welded in around passenger side seatbelt anchorage
Now fixed:
Now my attention turned to the seats.
Passenger Seat Before:
After:
Driver's Seat Before:
After:
Bugger:
The Tyres I had on the front were not very effective in the wet. like driving a barge down the rapids, squealing often in the dry and having trouble putting the power down in the wet. The wheels were all over the place balance wise, the steering wheel vibrated so much my hands went numb.
Out with the old, in with the new. Two new Continental ContiSportContact 3 tyres on the front. Leverless fitting at Oakham Tyres, tyre choice and fitting recommended by elduderino.
The lubricant they used created an interesting effect after cruising along some country roads.
Not the best of weather, but a good opportunity to try them out in the wet. Unlike the previous tyres they stuck to the road religiously. It was a warm day around 7c and they gripped the road all the way when launching and the braking was dramatically improved. The steering wheel was rock steady at speed for the first time since I got the car, now it's really starting to feel sporty.
Now the front tyres were sticking to the road, the back ones were sliding about all over the place. I took it back to Oakham and they told me the tyres on the back were directional tyres and not designed to be at the back,and so suggested trying switching the back to the front to see if it was any better. I gave it a blast to see if now handled better and the front was back to sliding all over the place again. There was nothing left for it but having the final two tyres replaced.
All sorted now. Not managed to do any sliding about yet. All this faff made me 2 hours late for the 10th Anniversary Nottingham Meet, but I got there in the end.
Here it is in its current state:
Which one would you prefer?
Still to do...
Outstanding Functional Stuff:
1. Cam belt needs replacing, and all of the rest that goes with it.
2. Clutch has started to slip
3. Front suspension squeaks
4. Water leaks into driver's side foot well in heavy rain
5. Air con blows hot year-around, despite what the dial says – can't see it being a problem for a while.
6. Needs a new stereo, with Bluetooth. I fancy a double din job personally,even if I have to hammer it in. The current stereo cuts out whenever I turnaround a sharp corner or go over a bump.
7. The left rear speaker would be ideal if it worked.
8. Heated windscreen has gone, windscreen needs replacing.
9. Rear windscreen has one metal heater wire broken; I hear you can get glue to fix this?
10. The carpet needs to be better fitted ideally.
11. The drivers side seat had become very bobbly, got shaved down, and is pretty wrecked in places.
12. An old MOT before I owned it tells me the nearside and offside front, and the front to rear Brake Pipes are slightly corroded, though this wasn't picked up on more recently.
13. I still have a glove box light ready for install! But I don't know if I'm mad enough to fit it. I'm not sure I'm ready for that level of luxurious convenience.
Outstanding Bodywork and Cosmetics:
1. Rear Fog Lights need replacing as they are currently faded, I have some smoked ones.
2. The Front Grill needs sand blasting and powder coating.
3. It needs re-painting on the inside of the front and rear arches where stones have chipped the paint. The rear bumper could also do with some paint.
4. Need to fit my Puma Sill Protectors.
5. Wheels need re-furbishing; I'm thinking of going for a similar shade but am undecided.
6. The whole thing could do with a bloody good polish, with some scratch removal thrown in.
This post has been edited by Perfect Dark: 29 March 2014 - 05:13 PM
#43
Posted 02 February 2014 - 06:56 PM
Ford Puma 1.7 2008 ~ Ford Puma Thunder 1.7 2008 - ~ Ford Racing Puma (0182/500) 2011 -
#44
Posted 02 February 2014 - 07:13 PM
Eek..didn't realise you only got two tyres on your first visit... no wonder that made the car 'interesting' with the budgets on the back..
Denso Iridium Plugs
Helix Clutch
Mobil 1
#45
Posted 02 February 2014 - 07:23 PM
#46
Posted 03 February 2014 - 08:48 PM
This post has been edited by nottadam: 03 February 2014 - 08:49 PM
#47
Posted 25 July 2014 - 07:50 PM
Firstly strip out the whole interior - Diagnose drivers side water leak problem before it rots the car out! and do an Audio upgrade front and back.. />
had to rip out some of the rotten under floor insulation and replace with dynamat
The issue of the water ingress is where corrosion caused the adjoining seams to swell slightly, which then causes the seam sealant to split and let in water..and plenty of it too!.. I scraped away some of the sealant, exposing the seam and rust and then plastered it with a good quality sealant that's more flexible than the production line stuff..
------------------
then on to the sound... for some reason one of the rear speaker had totally died so I did a rear bin 6x9 modification - lined it with dynamat
Boston Acoustics are Fab speakers!
then some JL Audio 150mm speakers for the front doors..
then the nice job of valeting the whole interior and re-installing it...
All looks pretty pukka now tho...
Denso Iridium Plugs
Helix Clutch
Mobil 1
#48
Posted 25 July 2014 - 08:38 PM
That looks like part of a sandwich on the carpet
#49
Posted 26 July 2014 - 06:18 AM
#50
Posted 01 August 2014 - 11:43 AM
#51
Posted 02 August 2014 - 08:12 AM
FRP #385 / FORD FIESTA ZETEC-S
Looked after by GK!!-In GK Ford I trust
BRAKES LOOKED AFTER BY DR.ALCON @ ELDUDE-BUILD!
PERFORMANCE FORD SHOW 2006-BEST PUMA WINNER
FORD FAIR CONCOURS CLASS WINNER 2006
WONDERLAND SPORTSCAR SHOW 2007-CONCOURS 2ND PLACE
BEST PARADE LAP FRP WINNER-CASTLE COMBE 2007
PUMAPEOPLE CALENDAR CAR 2009
Racing Puma Owners Club Membership Administrator
#52
Posted 31 August 2014 - 08:16 PM
Looking a bit grubby...
you can see all the usual kak down by the bottom pulley... it's plastered in dirt, oil and CV grease!
the coolant is also very old and rusty looking!
The gearbox is also plastered with crap inside... it's even found it's way onto the flywheel causing slippage...
Denso Iridium Plugs
Helix Clutch
Mobil 1
#53
Posted 31 August 2014 - 08:22 PM
Lot of work been done before this shot....
Sump sections all cleaned up and re-fitted..oil pump cleaned and fitted with new crank seal... rear crank retainer plate replaced - water pump fitted - new Cam seals fitted
new thermostat - cam belt and tensioning - bottom pulley pressed back on -
usual issue of loads of corrosion and kak to clean off the coolant housing
New aircon pressure plate seals installed..
Let's get it back in FFS!!!
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Denso Iridium Plugs
Helix Clutch
Mobil 1