83C's Shite-esque Fleet: Fleet Reduction Going Well.

[83C]

Incoming: 

A relative had this Mondeo, it’s been off the road six months and is a bit green. It also had two flat tyres. On the upside, it’s a 2.0 TDCi, six speed manual and in posh Titanium spec with the heated/cooled seats.

Interior benefitted from the attention of a wet and dry cleaner to remove the mould:

This is also an issue:

Its electrically dead. I did have it running at my relative’s house the other day, but that was off a big booster pack. The battery itself registered less than 1v on the meter, so the charger/conditioner is on it to try and recover the battery. Priced a new one up just in case, £80 isn’t too bad for one. 

Plan is to put it on the road and daily it for a while, hopefully it just needs a couple of droplinks, a battery and a damn good clean on the outside before chucking it through a test. After that the Fabia will be surplus to requirements, so very definitely for sale.

[83C]

Definitely green:

Tomorrows job with some hot water and a big bottle of car shampoo.

[sierraman]

Once a battery has dropped to that level it’s fucking fucked. Top tip, I’d syphon the PAS fluid out and make sure the filter is clear, common fault with them. 

[83C]

1 hour ago, sierraman said:

Once a battery has dropped to that level it’s fucking fucked. Top tip, I’d syphon the PAS fluid out and make sure the filter is clear, common fault with them. 

That’s pretty much what I reckon, but before I go spending on a battery I’d at least like to try and get it running and moving without a jump pack permanently attached, just to check for any other issues before I start spending on it. The idea is free fixes first, make sure it’s viable, then make a shopping list.

PAS - now therein lies a story. I’ve known the vehicle since it was almost new and over its life the car has had a couple of racks and pumps - not ideal for a car with less than 150,000 miles on the clock. Last time around the pump, rack and pipework all got replaced and is theoretically now good.  However, I don’t know if the reservoir was changed. If it looks even remotely dirty it’s getting swapped for a new one and a full fluid change just to make sure.

[83C]

20hrs of charging and there was an improvement in the battery, it now holds 1.8v. 

New battery ordered.

[83C]

New battery in, success:

 

Well, sort of. Got to work out why the ABS light is on, and fix some of the minor issues like lights that are apparently malfunctioning but appear to work fine (maybe not CANBUS compatible) and low screenwash (even though the tank is full) - probably the sender unit is stuck. 

Spot the difference:

Quick scrub with some degreaser, don’t like working around a dirty engine bay.

Need to buy some mould remover too:

[Zelandeth]

55 minutes ago, 83C said:

New battery in, success:

 

Well, sort of. Got to work out why the ABS light is on, and fix some of the minor issues like lights that are apparently malfunctioning but appear to work fine (maybe not CANBUS compatible) and low screenwash (even though the tank is full) - probably the sender unit is stuck. 

Spot the difference:

Quick scrub with some degreaser, don’t like working around a dirty engine bay.

Need to buy some mould remover too:

You may even find that once the car is moved the ABS light will go out of its own accord.  With no stored data because the battery has been flat to refer to it may want to see a valid speed signal before it will declare the system good.

[sierraman]

Failing that get it loaded on Forscan. Will want a good run to clear the DPF, if it’s still there... again Forscan will tell you this. 

[83C]

Took it for a drive on a private road, didn’t clear the ABS/TC lights. Maybe a sensor has corroded or failed. Needs chucking on a diagnostic machine.

DPF - er, yeah. Less said about that the better, but it shouldn’t be causing any issues.

[83C]

A minor diversion from the Mondeo. I’ve been aware for a while of a squeaking/rubbing noise of some sort from the back of the Range Rover. Obviously I waited until the temperature was fucking freezing before deciding to do anything about it, but with the impending OMG SNO KAOS and the distant possibility that I might actually need a vehicle more capable of dealing with 3mm of icy slush forced my hand. 

Some gentle trundling back and forth revealed that the noise was from the o/s/r wheel, but not related to the discs or pads. So, wheel and disc off and investigate. 

Oh dear. What the picture doesn’t show is the remains of the locating pin from the shoe nearest that fell out as soon as the disc came off, and the fact that the other one was held in place with a speaker screw and clip on the outside of the backplate. None of the local factors seemed to have anything suitable either as replacements, which is a bugger.

Into the big box of random fixings then, for two M6x40 bolts plus four nuts. Obviously the intention wasn’t to clamp them in place, but the slots in the shoes were massaged with a small file and the last 5mm of thread at the head end of the bolts treated similarly. They were then slotted through the shoes and the backplate, and two nuts on each locked together to allow movement of the shoes. It’s not a perfect fix but it works:

Lastly, shout out for these:

They are all of the ossum for working on stuff - great feel and warm. I got mine from here: https://badobsessionmotorsport.co.uk/product-category/mechanix/the-original-range/

Probably not the cheapest supplier but I don’t mind supporting them.

More Mondeo nonsense over the next few days. Probably.

[83C]

On 1/16/2023 at 4:07 PM, sierraman said:

Failing that get it loaded on Forscan. Will want a good run to clear the DPF, if it’s still there... again Forscan will tell you this. 

@sierraman, where is best to get Forscan from and does it need any extra hardware? Seen a load of different options on ebay but no idea if they're the right thing or not. Most seem to come with a USB plug on one end, normally these sorts of thing don't play nice with a MacBook and most of the adverts aren't clear on whether Forscan will or won't. 

[sierraman]

Get the better chip FTSD I think it is for the connector. Any old laptop will do, it’s riddled with viruses probably so I’d use something disposable. Then plug it in, it’s got capability for measuring pressure etc, DPF regen times etc. 

[83C]

That’s a bugger, I’ve not got any old laptops - got rid of my old computer stuff years ago. 

I’ll get a generic code reader, all I want is to read the ABS codes. The DPF shouldn’t be an issue.

[AnnoyingPentium]

22 minutes ago, 83C said:

That’s a bugger, I’ve not got any old laptops - got rid of my old computer stuff years ago. 

@Markeh is a good yin for cheap old laptops. My diagnostics kit is a Compaq Evo I bought off of him.

[83C]

Mondeo progress delayed due to Amazon fuckwittery. I ordered a code reader to be delivered to my local Amazon collection point, which is the local shop according to Amazon. Checked the order this evening to find it had been rejected and was being returned for a refund. Went down the shop to be told 'we're not an Amazon Hub, never have been because we don't have the kit to scan the parcels in' so now I've got to wait for the parcel to be returned for a refund in hopefully 2-3 working days. Fucking awesome.

[ETCHY]

On 1/16/2023 at 4:07 PM, sierraman said:

Failing that get it loaded on Forscan. Will want a good run to clear the DPF, if it’s still there... again Forscan will tell you this. 

Sorry but Forscan is like something from Viz.

Fnrrr fnrrr 🤣

[sierraman]

1 minute ago, ETCHY said:

Sorry but Forscan is like something from Viz.

Fnrrr fnrrr 🤣

I see what you did there... 🤣

[High Jetter]

2 hours ago, 83C said:

Mondeo progress delayed due to Amazon fuckwittery. I ordered a code reader to be delivered to my local Amazon collection point, which is the local shop according to Amazon. Checked the order this evening to find it had been rejected and was being returned for a refund. Went down the shop to be told 'we're not an Amazon Hub, never have been because we don't have the kit to scan the parcels in' so now I've got to wait for the parcel to be returned for a refund in hopefully 2-3 working days. Fucking awesome.

Never had that b4. To the door, local store or locker (preferred). No problems so far 

[83C]

5 hours ago, High Jetter said:

Never had that b4. To the door, local store or locker (preferred). No problems so far 

Oh it gets better.

Tried to do an online chat with Amazon to see if it could be resolved that way, maybe get the parcel redirected. I don’t think the person at the other end understood me at any point in the conversation. I got sent info and help links for how to use the Amazon lockers (it was sent to a post office), then they tried advising that it was me who rejected the parcel, then that it was rejected because I selected an incorrect address… 

Finally seemed to get some sort of acceptance that it was an Amazon problem rather than anything I’d done, so I asked if the refund could be done immediately. They offered to try and process the refund within 5-7 working days (the Orders page says refunded 2-3 working days after the parcel is returned), so that was a waste of time too. Gave up in the end, and this morning woke up to an email from Amazon with a user guide on accessibility for their Locker service which isn’t the fucking problem because I didn’t use the locker service. I wanted it delivered to the local shop half a mile from my house because that was the most convenient place they offered. Given that they have all the details of how the order was placed and where it was ordered to, it’s a bit of a shitshow all round.

Bah. Fuck Bezos and his stupid fucking ‘worlds most customer-centric company’. It’d be a lot more customer-centric if they actually understood the customer.

 

[busmansholiday]

5 hours ago, 83C said:

Oh it gets better.

Tried to do an online chat with Amazon to see if it could be resolved that way, maybe get the parcel redirected. I don’t think the person at the other end understood me at any point in the conversation. I got sent info and help links for how to use the Amazon lockers (it was sent to a post office), then they tried advising that it was me who rejected the parcel, then that it was rejected because I selected an incorrect address… 

Finally seemed to get some sort of acceptance that it was an Amazon problem rather than anything I’d done, so I asked if the refund could be done immediately. They offered to try and process the refund within 5-7 working days (the Orders page says refunded 2-3 working days after the parcel is returned), so that was a waste of time too. Gave up in the end, and this morning woke up to an email from Amazon with a user guide on accessibility for their Locker service which isn’t the fucking problem because I didn’t use the locker service. I wanted it delivered to the local shop half a mile from my house because that was the most convenient place they offered. Given that they have all the details of how the order was placed and where it was ordered to, it’s a bit of a shitshow all round.

Bah. Fuck Bezos and his stupid fucking ‘worlds most customer-centric company’. It’d be a lot more customer-centric if they actually understood the customer.

 

I've had exactly the same problem with EVRI (Hermes). Turned out the courier was rejecting it because he knew the shop wouldn't accept it. A right fucking farce getting my parcel (last one was a code reader), you have my sympathy.

[83C]

No pictures but some forward motion with the Mond yesterday. Gave it a thorough blast off with the pressure washer and have probably found where the water is getting in - the rear spoiler is a bit loose (lifting a bit) on the n/s and opening the hatch afterwards saw water running out of the inside of the plastic window trim. Think it'll get tigersealed in place, job done. 

I'm also on the lookout for a dehumidifier to run in the car to try and draw any moisture out of it. Must be the time of year but B&Q, Screwfix, Toolstation etc are all out of stock. Anyone know where I can get a half-decent one for not too much coin?

[stuboy]

liking the look of the mk4 mondeos..

[stuboy]

On 1/24/2023 at 8:15 PM, 83C said:

Mondeo progress delayed due to Amazon fuckwittery. I ordered a code reader to be delivered to my local Amazon collection point, which is the local shop according to Amazon. Checked the order this evening to find it had been rejected and was being returned for a refund. Went down the shop to be told 'we're not an Amazon Hub, never have been because we don't have the kit to scan the parcels in' so now I've got to wait for the parcel to be returned for a refund in hopefully 2-3 working days. Fucking awesome.

shame ur not near me couldve plugged my new reader in for its virgin run

[83C]

Still waiting, buying a diagnostics reader is a fucking pain in the arse.

Amazon - still waiting for a refund. Takes a day to send it, two weeks plus 3 working days to return and credit my account. Wouldn’t mind so much but Amazon have had the fucking thing the whole time, I never even saw it. 

Ebay - apparently the original has been lost in the post, the seller is sending another one. Tracking number on the Evri page for the original says ‘waiting to receive parcel’. Will give them to the end of the week, if no progress then it’ll be a claim. 

Both for the same item, an Autel ML629 which looks like it’ll do all of what I want across most makes and models, but different sellers and selling platforms. 

Meanwhile the Mondeo sits waiting, no progress can be made other than blowing up the tyres on a weekly basis. The wheels need to come off and go down the tyre place to clean off the bead and reseat them, but I’m not taking them off only to have to take at least one off again to solve the ABS issue. 

In more mechanical matters a few days ago I started to dig out the wiper motor on the Arnage to figure out if the motor park switch was working, or if it can be replaced. Unfortunately nothing I had would shift the wiper arms off their tapered splines, not even a ball joint splitter carefully wedged under whilst hitting the tops of the spindles with a drift and hammer, and they need to come off to get the scuttle cover off for access to the motor so I lagged them in WD40 and left them for today. Popped down Halfords on the way home for a wiper arm remover but it looked a bit weedy,  so I picked up a small cup-type ball joint splitter as well. 

The wiper arm remover was way too small, it wouldn’t get near the spindles. It was also too tall so it wouldn’t clear the bonnet, luckily the ball joint splitter just fitted:

Both arms popped off fairly easily, the splines will be cleaned and a thin layer of grease applied to stop them seizing on next time. Darkness was falling so further investigation will have to wait.

[83C]

Over the next six weeks I have 5 vehicles going for test. 

First up: Mrs 83C’s Mini Countryman. Easy job, set of rear pads and wear sensor.

Discs are ok at the moment, will probably want doing next year. Of course, it couldn’t just be a simple job, took the n/s/r wheel off to find the inside scrubbed away. Therefore:

Tyreforce in Shrewsbury were spot on, took the wheel down there and was in and out in less than 10 minutes. Not bad at all for an odd size needed asap, usually have to wait a few days and order something in.

All back together, MoT pre-checks done, fluids filled, etc.

Next up, the wipers on the Arnage. The biggest problem with these cars is finding any information at all about them, parts numbers and whatever else are a pain to find. Parts can be found from the likes of Flying Spares and other specialist breakers/parts suppliers, but they tend to carry a £howfuckingmuch price tag and not much in the way of information. 

Tools out, scuttle panel removed. Helpfully the fasteners holding the wiper mech in place all appear to be made of cheesium, as the two hex-head bolts I tried undoing both started to round out rather than undo. Lagged in WD40 and fingers crossed. 

Decided to see instead what could be done with the motor in situ, and access is awkward but not impossible. Next stop was trying to find a part number. 

Looks to be a Marelli TGE422. Not sure if the ‘G’ is important or not, but I can’t find a listing for a Marelli TGE422G. Can find several references to a 422 B, or a 422 M or other suffixes, but even the MM catalogue doesn’t list the Bentley application, as these are all the 422 applications listed:

I’m fairly sure many of the common parts on the Arnage will be variants of mainstream stuff, but obviously being the Bentley version the main difference will be a ridiculously inflated pricetag. The only spare wiper motor from an Arnage that I’ve found comes with the mechanism and is over £500 as a ‘recycled’ component. Searching for Mk.1 Freelander wiper motors gives a new motor at less than £40, which is much more palatable. Question is, will it be a direct swap or are there differences such the wiper sweep or wiring? Looking at photos it looks the same, so I might just bite the bullet and buy one, ideally from a local source where I can send it back if it isn’t right. 

Also figured I need new cabin filters on the Arnage:

Thats naaaasty.

Obviously there is a pair, not pulled the other one but I’d be very surprised if it is any better. At the moment I’ve not found any alternatives to paying £75 for the pair, plus the seals which also need replacing each time (£40 for 4 pieces), and by the looks of things the filter holder requires updating to the later frame (£260 the pair) to hold the new filters (which are the post-2001 version) which I suspect is why these are in poor condition - £375 to do the cabin filters is a piss take. 

More research required…

[83C]

WD40 didn’t work. 

The drip tray had to come off in order to give the motor bracket enough flex to remove the motor from underneath, so the heads have been drilled off the bolts. I’ll deal with the remnants later, I don’t have an appropriate set of taps to clean out the threads on the captive nuts nor the right bolts to refit the drip tray with. Drip tray itself could do with a coat of something protective too. 

Anyway, one Magneti Marelli TGE422 windscreen wiper motor in all its glory:

Now to find a replacement, or find a way of accessing the park switch to see if it can be revived. 

[83C]

And just because it could, the Range Rover (which needs a few bushes on the front) decided to add to its list of things to rectify:

Another thing for the diagnostics machine, if the fucking thing ever gets here. Had an email yesterday saying my parcel had been received by the courier, which happens to be everybody’s favourite parcel disposal service - Evri, nee Hermes. Be a fucking miracle if they even get it to the right county, let alone the right house.

[Asimo]

Cabin filters by size.

 https://www.wixfilters.com/Lookup/FilterBySize.aspx

[83C]

More windscreen motor musings. 

I seem to be gaining far more knowledge than is healthy about Magneti Marelli TGE 422 wiper motors. It seems this one is a bit of a bugger to deal with, and is rarer than other variants in having six terminals in the electrical box rather than 5. And there are at least 3 variants of 5 terminal motor too. Unfortunately with this one, there isn’t even a plug for the loom, it’s like the wires have been direct-soldered to the terminals and then the whole thing has been filled with foam:

 

Nowt more I can do with that. So, on to the gubbins underneath. 

Looks fairly gunked up. Question is, how does the park switch work, and is it even part of this bit? Either way, it’s getting a clean:

I’m guessing the two terminals to the middle and left are contacts, the terminal to the right hasn’t got a contact on it and there doesn’t appear to be remnants lost in the grease. Going to clean as much of the grease off as possible.

Anyone know what grease is best for putting back into a wiper motor?

[tommytwo]

I would try Dielectric Silicone Grease, I dont tink you can go far wrong with that. Garage shops sometimes have small sashet;s  of it, and its white in appearance.  Bought  a small 50 Gram tin to use on a Video Cassete Player mechanism a few months back, £3.90 from Ebay. It was overkill for what you need. Good luck.