Another BX - Scotland road trip

[LightBulbFun]

3 hours ago, mat_the_cat said:

It's been a bit of a struggle this week, as I think I came down with Covid after Shitefest. I've tried to grin and bear it as much as possible, but not much fun.

The steering rack gaiter was the easy side  so changed in a matter of minutes.

The rear wheel bearings had completely dried out and subsequently corroded.

Looking at the new ones I bought  the SKF branded one was machined into the hub, as you can see the localised heat treatment.

But the Motaquip side had a separate race pressed in, so it looks like it's dependant on the type you have as to whether you can replace just the bearing.

I'd ordered a 41mm socket last Friday for the hub nut, on a 2 day tracked service. I'd booked it in for an MOT today, so when it hadn't arrived yesterday I was getting worried! Nowhere locally had one in stock (although i had a nice chat with the BX fan owner of a newly opened motor factors, who offered to lend me his personal one the following day!) I tried the tool hire place, and although they don't hire out socket sets they offered to lend me the one from their workshop with no charge. (It was duly returned with a few beers, and I actually felt happier after the whole episode than I would have done had the original purchase arrived in time!)

It was slightly tricky to remove all of the old bearing, but thinning the inner race with an angle grinder allowed me to crack it with a chisel. New one back in place and torqued up.

The exhaust turned out to be an unseen crack on the top of the front section, but fortunately I had a spare, along with a manifold to downpipe 'brillo pad' seal.

It took ages to remove this, although not quite as long as it took to replace the securing bolts! Access is very tight between bulkhead and engine, and frustrations were high. All that was left to do was the indicators, which I had put down to the hazard switch as that's the only place where both sides are linked.

I had a feeling this package contained the replacement switch...

...but when I fitted it the problem remained. It took a lot of head scratching but eventually I found the cause. Any guesses?

a 5/21W bulb with an internal short in it or something like that?

[mat_the_cat]

Nope. I did try another stalk, even though I doubted that could fail in such a way. Before doing what I should have done to start with, and actually diagnosing the problem!

With a meter I was getting a short between the two indicator circuits, even with no switch plugged in, but where to start investigating? Obvious place was the nearside rear light, where all circuits are routed through. First thing I tried was unplugging the piggy-back loom for the trailer sockets, which did the trick straight away!

I've yet to investigate, as I needed to drop it off for a retest ASAP! I can imagine a corroded mess inside the 12N socket though. But for the first time in years:

[mk2_craig]

Well done!! Hope you're on the mend. 

[HMC]

Nice one! have you got some current pics of it?

[mat_the_cat]

1 hour ago, HMC said:

Nice one! have you got some current pics of it?

Only a quick photo from this morning, flattered by the rain!

[mat_the_cat]

You sometimes hear folk say about a car they trust "I'd drive it to Scotland tomorrow". So that's what I've done!

John O Groats, and some fairly horrendous lacquer peel!

I fitted a new accumulator sphere before I left...

...and the only reason to lift the bonnet was, annoyingly, the new hydraulic pump belt that I'd fitted. Chevronics had sent me one a couple of sizes larger than listed (638 versus 625mm), and upon re-tightening it after bedding in, I ran out of adjustment. Fortunately I'd kept the old one even though rather hard, so I've put that back on for now.

[mat_the_cat]

1300 miles and 3 days later I've made it back to Wales.

I may have said this before, but I don't think a BX is an ideal motorway cruiser. It's not bad, but wind  noise is high by modern standards, the low weight means that it's buffeted by trucks, and the suspension isn't as supple as say a CX, so you can still feel the small bumps and cat's eyes etc. But for fast A and B roads with real world surfaces, it's an absolute joy to drive! Bigger bumps, even mid-corner, are just soaked up without stopping feeling planted. So it was an ideal choice for Scottish travelling. The road round from Ullapool, via John O Groats and down to Tain on the other side was particularly enjoyable.

Apart from the belt, the only problems were a blown bulb in one of the combined fog/spot lamps.

And the gear knob cracking up.

I was foiled changing the bulb by a siezed nut, and the gear knob is from a 16v BX so difficult to come by. Hardly a major issue though!

Economy was pretty good at over 50mpg too:

A question - are these little rain deflectors fitted to many other cars? I can't say I've particularly noticed them on other vehicles, but this work well keeping the side windows free of rain at speed.

[EyesWeldedShut]

46 minutes ago, mat_the_cat said:

I may have said this before, but I don't think a BX is an ideal motorway cruiser.

I had a 1.9 Diesel BX on a 'J' plate in 1994 (ish) when I was commuting along the M40 pretty much Banbury > West London. It was, as you say, a trifle light on its toes at times but I was getting 55mpg @ 75 - 80 mph which was pretty fantastic compared to my previous car (1.6 petrol Montego). Given that I was paying my own fuel costs then I thought it great.
Mind you - back then the lorries were struggling to hit 50 mph and nobody was hooning around in SUVs etc that are 3 tonnes or so. These days I  think I'd share your feelings to be honest.
Great cars though - thanks for the updates.

[mat_the_cat]

Another 2000 miles done, and still generally running well. Although the rev counter had started to become a bit intermittent once warmed up. In a strange bit of circularity, this was the very first job I did on the BX, shortly after purchase in 2004. The price had more than doubled from the £17 it cost back then!

Fitting it is fairly simple from below, albeit oily in my case - I think the cam cover gasket is leaking. A simple 10mm headed screw secures it.

New one in place - the depth is set by the pips in the plastic which contact the flywheel, then as soon as you start the engine they are worn away.