Titanium_Man

Ok, smash was perhaps the wrong word. Maybe encourage would have been more apt 🤔🙃

Try smashing in the next size up Allen, or even a torx bit with a hammer

Once that was put back on I then removed the front passenger coilover out to change the top mount bearing and bush. The old one fell apart on removal Old and new together for the only time 😝 I also ended up changing the bottom ball joint as the dust cover had opened up during removal, which I had expected as I could see it was very cracked when I serviced my car last and had one ready to go on. I knew my rear discs had been an MOT advisory for the last couple of years, and after a full tank of diesel gave me the lowest miles by a long way (just about 300 miles by the time I needed to fuel up), I decided to change them one evening, along with the drivers side top mount bearing and bush Before the strip-down, I messed around with the handbrake mech on the back of the callipers, and wouldn’t you know it, one was sticking. After a quick clean, lube it was all free. The mechanic who installed the 256 rear brakes rounded the first Allen bolt of the carrier had to find another way, which meant removing the bolt from the bottom of the rear shock so I could smack on a damaged head removal socket I still have the original rear stone guards that protect / restrict viewing of the inner face of the disc that were removed and reformed to accept the larger disc, but I’m still ashamed that I let these get in that condition! Not too bad from the front ….. but the inside face was somewhat worse Finally, once I installed the new Apec discs and pads, who claim their disc to be the best at reducing rusting, I put back on the calliper-return springs taken from a VW Sharan. I’ve noticed an immediate and obvious improvement in the fuel economy shown on the dash, but will wait and see what is shown on the proper calculations after the next full tank has been used.

Been a rubbish start to 2022 and haven’t had the enthusiasm to work on my own car. However, have now found some and had a Saturday in the garage, plus a couple of hours after work to make a start on the long list of things that need to be done. First up was to get a better look at the crack I found in my down-pipe when I serviced my car last, which wasn’t a surprise as I remember the moment it properly opened up …….. Getting the down-pipe off the turbo was interesting….. two of the three Allen bolts were accessible from the top; one was well out of sight but easy access, and the other had restricted access and was impossible to get a regular Allen-socket on it. In the end I cracked it with a Allen-ball head socket from above, which wrecked the inner part of the head, then grabbed the head with a pair of vide-grips and painstakingly unscrewed the bolt from below. The final bolt was easily removed, then just a case of removing the clamp on the join to the middle section of the exhaust system, which of course broken trying to undo the nuts, pulling down pipe off the two rubber hanger bushes and wriggling the two sections of the exhaust free from one another. The crack in the down pipe was actually a lot worse than I could see when it was on the car. If I knew it was this bad I would have seen to this much sooner ☺️ All cleaned up and ready for welding ….. I reckon the cracked happened as a result of the original welder who made this exhaust not fully welding on the flange in fear of interfering with the bolt holes, but with a bit of care it can be done 😛

Don’t worry guys and gals, these will be going to a decent home and will be well looked after 🤗 I’ve had my Fabia since 2011 and have done well to keep them as clean as I have, especially given my job. But yeah, bit of a PITA to keep tip top. Gonna look for some kind of spray-on protector before I put them in …. And some very decent car seats for week days!

I reckon there is a market for them, if they’re in good nic??

I’m never gonna remember this thread,(!) so keep an eye on my build thread in the mk1 Fabia project section in the coming weeks 👍

Not changed them over as not built up the rest of the head yet.

I bought 4 x Bosch injector seal kits from eBay …… GSF do good quality VAG stuff, or TPS if they will sell to you (assuming you’re not in the trade)

Something a bit different to my previous posts on this thread …….. just a quick tart-up of my mates son’s first car that he has just bought him. Thankfully, not been asked for my best work as the paint is generally not in great condition with plenty of random deep scratches, etched bird plops that have cause irreparable damage to the clear etc etc but my mate is happy so far.

Sorry for posting another sunset picture 🤗

Agreed. Could have done without the controversial end given what went on in the last race, but it is what it is. Max will be around for a long time and expect him to keep winning titles.

This is not strictly true in the UK. Up to a certain age of car you don’t have to have them, but must be working if headlamp washers are fitted. Search eBay using this number 380496903814 for what you need to get your xenon working again.

Thinking if about it, Darkside Developments state on their website that the 4th gear selector fork is a weak link. Dunno if there’s anything in that …… although more likely an issue with the synchro mesh

My box has wined in 2nd for the last 10 years and 80k, but no crunching. TBH it sounds like you’ve just been unfortunate with the 2nd hand box.

Nice little thread you got going on. Tidy looking motor and nice to see a car being looked. The sunglasses holder is a great little mod. Love mine and really easy to fit too.

Would your mate not do a bulk discount?!?

Worth the investment if you have a few to do as the cheapest I was quoted was £10 per dent. It does have its limitations, but will work perfectly on doors, bonnet etc.

The next issue that needed my attention was my A/C. On the way to Cornwall on a particularly hot day the airline decided it not longer wanted to be cold and changed to temp to max without my input. Not a happy wife! I remember reading posts a while back on here about the possible cause, so set aside another afternoon in the garage to rip out the heater motor flap. Took me a while to get all the various bits off the car, and although it isn't really necessary I removed all the plastic pieces from around the handbrake. Reason being I wanted it to go back in perfectly, without scratching anything. The offending part .... stripped and all cleaned up with GT85. So far, touch wood, I've not had the same issue since, but fully expect to to have to replace this at some point in the future. Given my car is almost 17 years old I happy as Larry that the aircon actually works, just needs a re-gas before next summer. Whilst I was at it I removed the drivers vent as the slats were not sat as they should be. Turns out that I need a new unit as the little tabs on the gears are broken, but managed to get it into the position I usually have it in without it moving and will not touch it!

The not-so-fun bit in the last couple of months was the coolant warning light on the dash coming on during my drive to work. I immediately pulled over, popped the bonnet and was met with an empty coolant tank 😞 Thankfully, I was about half a mile from where I park. I popped her on the ramp at work, filled the tank with water and put the pressure tester on it. It was immediately obvious it was coming from the radiator, in a couple of different places. Weirdly, there was no sign it was leaking, but I had been using the wife's car to get to work for the previous two weeks as she's still working from home. I contacted both TPS and our local parts supplier for prices for a new one, but elected to go for an upgrade instead. Some might argue paying twice the price for a custom radiator is a waste of money, but the lifetime warranty swayed me. Took about two weeks for it to be made and delivered, but was happy enough once I got my hands on it. .... bit of a difference from the OEM one, 40% increase apparently Old one out .... me trying to be organised ☺️ one knackered radiator .... and new one in It wasn't exactly straight forward as some of the hole were a few mm out, plus they were not the same thread as what was there originally. This added extra stress and time trying to find and modify bit and pieces. Oh, and it was bl00dy hot, about 30 degrees, so chose to work without a top on.... stupid mistake https://flic.kr/p/2mPAJYm Whilst I had the room I also removed was is meant to be a captive nut on the battery tray that was not longer captive, meaning I could get my battery out. Out came the mig welder. Not pretty, but now works as it should

Jeez, time has flown since my last post 😛 The dent puller I bought was from Instagram, but the attached pic is (obviously!) from Amazon and is pretty much identical, although I also bought some extra glue sticks. Nice and simple to use, once I had set the puller the correct distance from the panel. A bit of trial and error and I eventually got there. I bought a cheap glue gun from the 'bay for about £12. The video on Instagram showed the person spraying the cold glue left on the panel and used some sort of plastic tool to remove it. I didn't fancy that or trying to pull it off with my fingers, so I used a heat gun to warm it up and wiped if off with some Wurth brake cleaner and an old but clean microfibre cloth. Proper work on my car has not really happened. Although I didn't think it would happen, but working on cars all day means there's little get-up-and-go left in my tank in the evenings and been pretty much tied up most weekends with college work 😞 That said, there has been the odd quite day in the garage and I have made a decent start to cleaning up the gearbox casing. This is a long and laborious task, so been doing a bit here and there to break it up. I also had a bit of fun cleaning out the manifold 😋 ... soaked in petrol, then filled with brake cleaner and used an airline make some flames

Not posted in this section for a while, nor used Lightroom 😬 Took this a couple of weeks ago during sunrise on the Caribbean Coast of Mexico, taken with my now very old iPhone 7 ☺️

Damaged screw extractors might work, but failing that I use a small chisel and hammer after applying some heat, like Keith has mentioned

An impact screwdriver is exactly what you need

Yup, you need a “multi-spline” socket.