Coilovers fitted

[nu99et18]

today i had some coilovers fitted to my felicia, they are mk3 golf on the back and mk1 ford focus on the front.

I didnt fit them myself as i havent got the time but a friend fitted them and said the rears went on fine dead easy, he said the fronts fit fine too however there wasnt enough thread at the top so he couldnt fit the top mount bearings so for now he said he used washers. (need the car so had to settle for this for now)

anyone got any suggestions how to get around this?

other than that its all fine.

also, now i have coilovers i wont be needing my lowering springs, so lets say 50quid for the 4 to whoever replies first? (postage is likely to be high) They will lower the car by 35mm.

Thanks

[TeflonTom]

Well done. A picture tells a thousand words ref the top mounts.. It might be possible to do something with the top spring plate like machine a recess or counterbore in it..

[nu99et18]

Well done. A picture tells a thousand words ref the top mounts.. It might be possible to do something with the top spring plate like machine a recess or counterbore in it..

i could get a photo but uploading it may be an issue, my phone is playing up when uploading.

which angle would be best? from the top in engine bay and then from underneath the arch?

not sure how much you could gather from that tbh

[TeflonTom]

Before you put it in the car would have been better tbh...

Do you know how much the thread is short by? A few mm or much more?

[nu99et18]

Before you put it in the car would have been better tbh...

Do you know how much the thread is short by? A few mm or much more?

too late for that now ha

erm he said with the bearing in he could only get about a couple of turns out of the nut...

the handling is way better with the coilovers on, though saying that my original shocks were pretty knackered, pretty firm but kind of expected really, holds the road much much better.

[TeflonTom]

Oh it's not far out then.. Find somebody with a lathe who can shave a few mm off the top of the upper spring plate, or better get them to machine a counter bore on the underside so that damper piston is recess into it slightly which will allow relatively more of the thread to poke through the top mount..

Alternatively you could modify the suspension turrets to take the focus top mounts, they have 3 bolts instead of the 2 bolt fitting on the felicia ones, you'd probably only have to drill 3 holes a side to make them fit..

my favourite would be to use the ford top mounts tbh but both of these solutions are fairly easy to achieve.

[rolo]

Sounds good. Pics would be good. Hows the tyre clearance on the rears? What size wheels/tyres/spring poundage are you using at the rear?

Edited 21 December, 2011 by rolo

[nu99et18]

il have to see what i can do about the mounts then, cheers for that

No idea about the spring poundage tbh,

theres plently clearance at the back and im using 17" 7j 215/35/17 all around offset 38.

the car is probs at around standard ride height atm but im going to lower it down on saturday i could get a before and after pic of that.

as for the other pics what would you like to see? day off tomora so il get some then

[nu99et18]

Some photos, not sure if there anygood but its all i could get really

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0056.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0055.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0057.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0059.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0054.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0053.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/SAM_0052.jpg

Current ride height

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/tempdb13eef9-52a0-4d9d-bcdb-7d67cecf7c37.jpg

il post a comparison once ive lowered it down.

[TeflonTom]

haha if i ran mine that low the sump would be on the floor, the only thing i can think of to say is that you havent got very much clearance on the rear wheels to allow for tread squirm on the tyres, might be worth putting some spacers in there

[nu99et18]

haha if i ran mine that low the sump would be on the floor, the only thing i can think of to say is that you havent got very much clearance on the rear wheels to allow for tread squirm on the tyres, might be worth putting some spacers in there

yeah im gna get some spacers, i would like to get some of those stub axle spacers you had 5mm, then i would add some 10mm spacers also, then once ive done that get it to the ride height i want and have the arches rolled.

[TeflonTom]

it's a lot of work to fit a spacer behind the stub axle tbh, you have to strip the rear brakes and bearings etc and that's when you start breaking things!! you'd be better off just getting some 15mm wheel spacers instead, but get some decent quality centre centric ones like ones from fk automotive which have the centre spigot machined for the wheel ans have longer wheel bolts..

[nu99et18]

it's a lot of work to fit a spacer behind the stub axle tbh, you have to strip the rear brakes and bearings etc and that's when you start breaking things!! you'd be better off just getting some 15mm wheel spacers instead, but get some decent quality centre centric ones like ones from fk automotive which have the centre spigot machined for the wheel ans have longer wheel bolts..

well i was going to fit the spacer behind the stub axle when i change the drums to disks again, i have the bigger master cylinder and everything its just finding time to do it, so if you have some i would still like to have a pair.

[TeflonTom]

yes sorry i've barely been home at all in the past 6 weeks busy with work, i'll dig them out 2moro, along with something else that rolo wants too :-)

[nu99et18]

the comparison photo after ive lowered it down....

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee98/nu99et/phone/temp469b8bfc-64a9-4f0a-94a3-9d006d4566c1.jpg

Have to say though its now a very harsh ride

[Sonner]

ONe thing nugget, the wheels ARE TOO BIG.

it's all done to personal taste but i try to get the wheels to match the age of the car.

you should try some mk2 Golf GTI 15" BBS wheels, they look perfect on a felly, and the slightly smaller trye will reduce drag, help fuel economy, unsprung weight, handling and top speed.

also wanted to check, you have converted the front discs to vented from solid i assume before you have started upgrading the rears??

[nu99et18]

ONe thing nugget, the wheels ARE TOO BIG.

it's all done to personal taste but i try to get the wheels to match the age of the car.

you should try some mk2 Golf GTI 15" BBS wheels, they look perfect on a felly, and the slightly smaller trye will reduce drag, help fuel economy, unsprung weight, handling and top speed.

also wanted to check, you have converted the front discs to vented from solid i assume before you have started upgrading the rears??

Ive had 14",15",16" and 17" wheels and i just much prefer the 17s.

As for the the brakes i havent upgraded them yet but i have had all the parts for the front a while now, the other week i sent the ford calipers to my dads work and he ground the necessary amount off the carriers, tried them on a few days ago and they fit perfectly, already got the discs, just need the pads now and i can whop them on.

[Sonner]

yeah that makes sense, upgrade the front and rear at the same time, now seeing as the car only weighs 1000kg(with 13" wheels, probs more like 1050kg with 17") you should have some very impressive brakes there Nugget.

because i only use my felly on the road and it's my main commuting car meaning i normally drive it VERY sensibly i find that my standard brake setup is just about up to the job. i have 5.1 dot silicon brake fluid, drilled front discs and green stuff pads, i guess they all help a little too.

but i have 14" BMW 320i(E30) bbs alloys on mine so i think a larger front disc would force me to change to 15"

so what engine work have you done then nugget, i mean you car runs on collies, will soon have powerful brakes, wide tread tyres, what about more

power??

my biggest mistake was not heat wrapping the stainless steel manifold i fitted. my car seems to run really well when thrashed for a few minutes but after i a while it starts to suffer from massive heatsoak and the car loses about 20bhp.

My puts out decent enough power now for a daily driver. it's abot 100bhp but a decent 130lb ft torque!!!

if your engine is completely untouched you could try a 'Remote Turbocharger' meaning no need to fit an intercooler. also because of the low revving nature of the 1.6 litre engine you could use a turbo from a diesel car too, probs one from a scrappy somewhere. the hardest thing will be to set the ecu and fuelling up correctly. the hardware will all be very simple, ssorting the software is the bit that needs working out.

the internals and gearbox on these engines are proven to be a fair bit tougher than they need to be, meaning the engine could probably take about 120bhp, maybe 130bhp of turbocharged power. the engine certainly wouldn't last forever at that power if thrashed though.

Edited 30 December, 2011 by Sonner

[nu99et18]

yeah that makes sense, upgrade the front and rear at the same time, now seeing as the car only weighs 1000kg(with 13" wheels, probs more like 1050kg with 17") you should have some very impressive brakes there Nugget.

because i only use my felly on the road and it's my main commuting car meaning i normally drive it VERY sensibly i find that my standard brake setup is just about up to the job. i have 5.1 dot silicon brake fluid, drilled front discs and green stuff pads, i guess they all help a little too.

but i have 14" BMW 320i(E30) bbs alloys on mine so i think a larger front disc would force me to change to 15"

so what engine work have you done then nugget, i mean you car runs on collies, will soon have powerful brakes, wide tread tyres, what about more

power??

my biggest mistake was not heat wrapping the stainless steel manifold i fitted. my car seems to run really well when thrashed for a few minutes but after i a while it starts to suffer from massive heatsoak and the car loses about 20bhp.

My puts out decent enough power now for a daily driver. it's abot 100bhp but a decent 130lb ft torque!!!

if your engine is completely untouched you could try a 'Remote Turbocharger' meaning no need to fit an intercooler. also because of the low revving nature of the 1.6 litre engine you could use a turbo from a diesel car too, probs one from a scrappy somewhere. the hardest thing will be to set the ecu and fuelling up correctly. the hardware will all be very simple, ssorting the software is the bit that needs working out.

the internals and gearbox on these engines are proven to be a fair bit tougher than they need to be, meaning the engine could probably take about 120bhp, maybe 130bhp of turbocharged power. the engine certainly wouldn't last forever at that power if thrashed though.

100bhp and 130lb ft torque thats pretty good tbh what work have you done?

i havent really done much at all, fitted a K & N induction kit and a back box, thats all lol

i didnt particularly want to bother tuning up the 1.6 i was looking to just have a bigger engine put in there, 2.0 turbo or someting similar.

[Sonner]

First mod my car has was the exhaust, i fitted a stainless steel manifold/downpipe connected to a 2.5" 100cel sports cat originally meant for a impreza. i purchased the diesel center and rear section exhaust system for the car(as it's 50mm rather than 42mm) so it's a mixture of stainless steel manifold and cat going to a cheap mild steel system, i got a powerflow dealer to weld it all up for me and he did a really tidy job. including labour it cost in total under £400

next i fitted a sealed carbon fibre induction kit. not an open k&n 57i kit.

then it went down to TeflonTom who had a decent ported cylinder head lying around. i think it had stronger strings and angle grind job(whatever that is), Felicia16v happened to have a regrind camshaft from his rallying days, i bought that off him and and that fitted at the same. the camshaft was more aggressive than we expect and made the car a little rough at idle. but it changed the characteristic of the engine alot. it was just a strong low down, if not stronger due to the ported cylinder head, but where i found my car used to run out of puff at about 4500/500rpm i found it was now very eager to rev right to the limit now.

after that i contact a on the POLO forum who chips the ecu(our ecu's are too old for a normal remap) it's £100, you send him your ecu, he fits the chip and posts it back. this smoothed out the idle a little and bought the fuel ecomony back up to about 38-40mpg. the chip itself did make quite a difference and as a standalone mod would be worth doing to your car for sure. go look on the polo forum and contact the guy.(felicia 1.6 AEE is the same engine as the 1.6 AEE fitted to the polo 6n)

the car was RR'ed at 101bhp at the flywheel and a massive 132lb ft. the torque figure really surprised me. but the car can outrun my missus 1.4 16v 100bhp fabia on a 1/4mile drag without me revving the engine past 3500rpm in any gear.

it's top speed is still cr*p but it gets to 85/90mph quite quickly.

and though i've not used any timing gear i would put the 0-60mph at around 9.5secs.

i've been lucky at was able to buy my cylinder head and camshaft off forum members for very reasonable money.

otherwise it's not really worth it.

a 2litre turbo engine for your car?? what you gonna fit?

i would think a 1.6 16v vw engine with about 125/130bhp would give you car a very quick feeling

Edited 6 January, 2012 by Sonner

[nu99et18]

First mod my car has was the exhaust, i fitted a stainless steel manifold/downpipe connected to a 2.5" 100cel sports cat originally meant for a impreza. i purchased the diesel center and rear section exhaust system for the car(as it's 50mm rather than 42mm) so it's a mixture of stainless steel manifold and cat going to a cheap mild steel system, i got a powerflow dealer to weld it all up for me and he did a really tidy job. including labour it cost in total under £400

next i fitted a sealed carbon fibre induction kit. not an open k&n 57i kit.

then it went down to TeflonTom who had a decent ported cylinder head lying around. i think it had stronger strings and angle grind job(whatever that is), Felicia16v happened to have a regrind camshaft from his rallying days, i bought that off him and and that fitted at the same. the camshaft was more aggressive than we expect and made the car a little rough at idle. but it changed the characteristic of the engine alot. it was just a strong low down, if not stronger due to the ported cylinder head, but where i found my car used to run out of puff at about 4500/500rpm i found it was now very eager to rev right to the limit now.

after that i contact a on the POLO forum who chips the ecu(our ecu's are too old for a normal remap) it's £100, you send him your ecu, he fits the chip and posts it back. this smoothed out the idle a little and bought the fuel ecomony back up to about 38-40mpg. the chip itself did make quite a difference and as a standalone mod would be worth doing to your car for sure. go look on the polo forum and contact the guy.(felicia 1.6 AEE is the same engine as the 1.6 AEE fitted to the polo 6n)

the car was RR'ed at 101bhp at the flywheel and a massive 132lb ft. the torque figure really surprised me. but the car can outrun my missus 1.4 16v 100bhp fabia on a 1/4mile drag without me revving the engine past 3500rpm in any gear.

it's top speed is still cr*p but it gets to 85/90mph quite quickly.

and though i've not used any timing gear i would put the 0-60mph at around 9.5secs.

i've been lucky at was able to buy my cylinder head and camshaft off forum members for very reasonable money.

otherwise it's not really worth it.

a 2litre turbo engine for your car?? what you gonna fit?

i would think a 1.6 16v vw engine with about 125/130bhp would give you car a very quick feeling

i did look into having my exhaust done becuase theres a place just down the road that specialise in powerflow, but im not really willing to pay so much to have it done, plus im unsure what would be the best setup to go for? also is the centre section a legal requirement or can you just take it out?

i heard about the ecu chipping but again i wasnt really willing to pay for it seems pretty pointless if im not going to do any kind of serious modifications.

as for the engine swap im not too sure, i suppose just anyting that could but put in without great difficulty, i was thinking along the lines of a Z20LET (astra gsi engine) or something similar

i did also consider the 1.6 16v but not sure, if i could get it over 150bhp without too much hassle id be pretty tempted.

[fabia55]

i believe a 1.6 16v with about 125bhp as standard is fitted in the lupo gti, is this the same engine

[nu99et18]

i believe a 1.6 16v with about 125bhp as standard is fitted in the lupo gti, is this the same engine

Yep

[nu99et18]

update-

as for not being able to fit the bearing firstly i just filed the nut down to get it to fit, but now i have fitted some FK automotive focus coilovers and with these fitted the bearing goes on and the nut fits fine because they have a allen head so the thread goes to the very top.

secondly i have removed the mk3 golf rears and replaced them with polo mk4/6n coilovers as these are much shorter so i can have it low but with decent ride quality rather than pretty much unbearable with the mk3 golf coilovers on.

can still go about 60mm up or down on the back and about 10mm on the fronts.

[RainbowFire]

Am not normally a fan of lowering (can't say why really, just not my "thing"), however, to every rule there is an exception. I like this car. I like the wheels too, the silver sets it off perfectly!

Nice job! :)