Hi all,

My idiot son managed to total his '98 Felly GLi Estate Saturday night,; wrapped it around the back of a lorry! Everything behind the radiator seems fine, except for the chassis which is broken and twisted on the n/s by the gearbox mount.

I managed to find a (REALLY) cheap "P" plater (thanks Sam, Briskoda member from Bath), last night; and intend if possible, to transfer as many of the '98s transmission bits as possible, to the '96. I assume the engine transfer is fairly straight-forward, but I am wondering about the power steering? If I am changing the engine/gearbox, it will have all the needed auxiliary gubbins attached, so is it a straight swap for the steering rack as well??

Why change the engine in a £150 clunker? Well, the "P" plater is wheezing and clattering badly; and really struggled up the hills coming out of Bath ( the lowest 54 BHP version I think), whereas the engine in the '98 is barely run-in and the top of the line 68BHP mpi version.

Anyone know of any issues I need to be aware of?? I have a friendly mechanic to help, but no workshop with lifts and hoists available; and I am hoping to get it done during the school 1/2 term in a few weeks time.

Other than the engine and steering rack, we are keeping the roof bars, the o/s wing and some brand new tyres; nearly everything else will be up for grabs; it has good, clean seats and carpets, the headlining is pretty good, and all the glass is good; it really is a crying shame, S181KRF was a really sweet car.

I know you've physically got it, but I think you may need the engine loom and ECU out of the MPi; other than that, you might need clamps, and I'd prefer to use the '96 car's steering column, because it doesn't have a compromised collapsable link in it.

You'll need to use the later car's steering column, as the connection to the rack is a different size, IIRC. If the P-plate car is a non-reinforced body model then there may be other things you need to watch for, although I don't know of any (I think the RB subframe still has the same gearbox mounting position as non-RB)

Thanks, yes I guessed I'd need the ECU, but didn't think about the wiring loom. The newer car has an airbag, will that cause a problem with swapping the columns, or can I just disable it/ use the old steering wheel on the new column??

What do you mean by "clamps"

How do I tell if the body is re-enforced or not?? It is a LXi Estate (but labelled "Combi"); chassis number ??.

Are there any members in the Wolverhampton/Dudley area with an engine hoist/ and knowledge we can borrow??

Another thought was if the central locking is compatible? Could I put the newer doors on so the keys all matched (if changing the column); or is the wiring loom to the doors different? If the loom is the same I could probably move the electric mirrors as well.

Any and all help accepted; I am willing to help with grunt work, but my car mechanical skills are limited.

RB and non is easy. Just open the bonnet on both cars and look at the bulkhead behind the engine. They're completely different.

No idea about the looms and that in the doors, but just change the lock barrels in the doors, an easy job.

Thanks, yes I guessed I'd need the ECU, but didn't think about the wiring loom. The newer car has an airbag, will that cause a problem with swapping the columns, or can I just disable it/ use the old steering wheel on the new column??

Another thought was if the central locking is compatible? Could I put the newer doors on so the keys all matched (if changing the column); or is the wiring loom to the doors different? If the loom is the same I could probably move the electric mirrors as well.

the swap the engine to mpi from spi, you will need the engine management loom too yes, plus you will need to take the fuel pump from the tank too.... if you are fitting power steering you will need to use the power steering column too becuase the u/j at the bottom has a different size spline, but the old steering wheel will fit the power column so don't worry about the airbags...

you dont need to change the doors, just swap the motors/actuators for the central locking in, then whip the control unit out as well... it's plug and play!!

i'm sure somebody on here has done a thread on converting to power steering.... use the search batman

I was thinking of the steering rack clamps!

As you may have guessed, I'm not overly happy with the idea of re-using the steering column.

having fitted power steering to my "N" reg felicia it is easy enough but 1) the power steering column has to be fitted and 2) it goes thru the bulkhead in a different place which means you need to adjust the hole a bit and make a plate to seal it up with. 3) needs the X member fitting too (so hope youre is ok)

then you have the little bits like there is no mounting for the resivour and stuff like that..

also as said you will need the fuel pump and probly the immobiliser unit unless you have vagcom to re align the ecu's.

having fitted power steering to my "N" reg felicia it is easy enough but 1) the power steering column has to be fitted and 2) it goes thru the bulkhead in a different place

power(left).... manual (right)

then you have the little bits like there is no mounting for the resivour and stuff like that..

just like that!!! the holes are pre-drilled on them, you dont need a bracket, it just sits straight under the lock carrier panel

here we goes.... it's been covered by somebody on here in some detail in the past :wonder:

Linky - power steering retro-fit thread

Thanks for the link and all the advice; when I looked I could not find anything about power steering on the forum, I searched using several different key words as well!!

Sadly though, it has all been for nothing; my idiot son has "given" the complete car to the first shyster who offered him £50 for it; I am very unhappy and have told him so vigorously!!!!

[

just like that!!! the holes are pre-drilled on them, you dont need a bracket, it just sits straight under the lock carrier panel

ahh but thats a later front panel. if his "p" reg was the mk1 shell it wont have the holes or the correct shape panel to mount it..

irrelivent now anyway it seems lol

you could always drill a few holes, and cut out the plastic resovoir mount from a 6n polo and graft it on.... irrelevant now it seems :'(

GentleGiant:

Would this be the same "idiot son" who paid £180 for a voltage regulator to be fitted? If it is, i think he needs to come on this forum himself and explain his actions!!! he clearly had no respect for his lettle felly! :wonder:

GentleGiant:

Would this be the same "idiot son" who paid £180 for a voltage regulator to be fitted? If it is, i think he needs to come on this forum himself and explain his actions!!! he clearly had no respect for his lettle felly! :wonder:

Possibly we should just hope for him to win a Darwin? NB, there is such a thing as a "Living Darwin", for those who destroy their ability to reproduce without dying in the process!

£163 in the end, but YES, this is the same idiot son.

I am highly suspicious of the "uncle" who told him the chassis was twisted now; the same uncle told him the engine was not worth transferring and then turned up with a "friend" who was willing to buy the car as scrap for £50. I am guessing that only a sub-frame needed replacing and that the car will be back on the road, being offered for sale within a couple of weeks.

Even as spares that car was worth £200-£300

I have told my idiot son that if the engine in this "P" plater dies (it does not sound good), it will be up to him to get it fixed; I want nothing more to do with the car.

how old is your son? he seems a little, how can i put it without causing offense, um, gullible?

you can take the horse to water but you cant make it drink!

Atleast you tried though, it will be a learning curve for your son.

I have told my idiot son that if the engine in this "P" plater dies (it does not sound good), it will be up to him to get it fixed; I want nothing more to do with the car.

Well, sounds like he needs to learn to sort things out for himself.....should we expect him to register on here, or would that be taking too much initiative?

Obviously I didn't see the car after the crash, but it would take a fair bit of an impact to bend a Felicia, they're pretty tough.

Well, sounds like he needs to learn to sort things out for himself.....should we expect him to register on here, or would that be taking too much initiative?

Obviously I didn't see the car after the crash, but it would take a fair bit of an impact to bend a Felicia, they're pretty tough.

yeah, a mechanic we sometimes use tried to scrap a dead one and cut it up for the metal. i clearly remember him saying these exact words:

"it normally takes about 4 hours with an angle grinder to disassemble something like a escort or focus. this little b*****d took me 4 days!"

He will be 18 in March, and gullible is one word for it; I think I will stick with "IDIOT" tho.

Most of it is laziness; he is too lazy to think for himself; THAT I blame on his mother.

Don't bail him out again then, he'll soon learn.

He did register on here, but I have not seen a posting from him in two months, and no, if the car dies he will have to sort it himself; its about time he learned to stand on his own two feet instead of expecting me or his grand-parents to sort everything out for him.

And I have told them not to help him if it cr@ps out as well!!