A little later than promised, but an update I had a great day at RRG the weekend, even got burnt! I think 2015 will be camping and taking all of it in.
Firstly, well done to Maj and the trophy he received at the gathering……. Best of steels. Good on you pal.
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I decided to keep the trumpets uncut. No point in making more work and they look fine as they were, the next problem was how to mount them. None of the clamps online where the correct diameter and hose which is normally used for this was far too wide and didn’t look right. Whilst tidying some wiring, it hit me…………….. Shrink wrap! Very thin and strong after shrinking. I tried a range of wraps, clear, black, glued and unglued. The glued black worked perfectly and looked great too. Also the glue acted as a seal.
didn't link the clear
black installed. Props to Mark for this awesome photo from RRG14
Also found some stack covers from outerwears in America. A couple of clicks and hey presto, a little protection.
I cant remember if I had added anything on the wiring but I hid the ecu in the old coil box. With the innovate wideband lambda in a more accessible position
Next was a position for the header tank. Because space is tight around the Alfa block, it had to be installed in view. A bracket was made and painted to match the paint and install in the only place it would fit. I might move this at a later date but for now it’s easy to fill and high enough get rid of the system air. You can also see the stack looking installed with the black glued heat shrink.
It was time for the trip to immy at torqueflow, but before then I knocked up a heat shield to protect the crank sensor as the system I wanted joint down the left hand side 2 into one which meant it had to run under the sump.
Immy ripped into it, back within the day. Very good workmanship and good price too. I asked him to make me 2 sections. So the smaller muffler is removable if I wanted it louder. Also he drove to look at the car before saying ok. You don’t find many exhaust fabricators giving that kind of service.
I wanted it to run the original way and to mount the same as the old box. I attached a new stainless bracket and this is how it was returned.
Next was the car faded interior, so it was time to rip it out and get it sorted. Ordered the carpets from sj sports and got on with the refurb.
Because the binical has major corners, it had to me made up of a few bits of material.
Made up some templates, line depicts seem line
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scrim foam round the binnacle to smooth the edges
Messy. Lots of rivets to remove gaining access to belts and handbrake area.
Old withered dash
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old carpets verses new
A new tacho as the old unit was geared up for 4 cylinder. I wanted all gauges to remain the same. Even though it’s a refurb, I wanted it to look period just with a fresh look.
installed the carpets and test fitted the seat. Yet to order the door seal.
I pretty pleased with the outcome. If any of you watch wheeler dealers, then you will have remembered Edd China after he had completed the installation of the blue esprit interior…. Big sweaty mess? That was me without all the hair!
I'm so happy with how the engine bay looks. I wanted it to look as if its always been this way, every detail thought through so nothing had to be altered.
I have upgraded the air sytem to accurairs E-levers which is just simply the nuts. Massively chuffed with this bit. Some things have to be kept unique, plus I didn't get the best photos.
So, on to the first trip out, it had to be RRG. A great drive to and from the venue with no issues. I did however worry about everything ;
‘’what was that noise’? ‘’Is that my car smelling’’ ? ‘’Did I tighten that bolt’’? We have I suspect all been there!
At home I ordered a larger bore clutch master. This was the only thing that could have got irritating in a cue.
I read the map from the journey to and from RRG. As you can see the adaptive map works very well alongside the lc-1 wideband 02 sensor. I haven’t given it the full beans due to only 70 miles on rebuilt engine. Only the low rpm and load has been corrected to match the AFR on the base v6 map. I tell you, what a great bit of kit. As long as you have the wideband settings close enough and the closed to parameters close to target, you can fire it up and let it work its magic. Money well spent;)
Thanks to everyone comments at the gathering all that work is worth while for that alone
I will post some HD videos of sound for all those interested. I love how drivable this car is. Took the dog to the park in it last night just for an excuse to enjoy it, exactly what was intended. The dog on the other hand couldn't give a curse word.
@ Charliecrocker, Your question ‘’How tall is your car’’ from Sunday got me thinking so I measured tonight….. 39inchs, maybe a fraction lower. So the low comp is on!
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