Ask a Shiter

[FakeConcern]

Check the hoses to see if any are 'sweating.'  If so, Radweld will seal them for a while but sweating hoses means they are way past their best and could fail suddenly.  Also, if the coolant in the header looks a bit muddy i.e. nothing like normal, off the shelf coolant, then oil may be slowly getting in to it - this will also cause the hoses to sweat, soften and fail.  Check the radiator fins.  A slight leak from a stone impact may only show as a stain because when cold the coolant will evaporate rather than drip, more so when hot. If you can see the water pump, look for staining there as well.

All the hoses & rad look dry, when I've had water pumps fail then either I've seen coolant dripping from the pulley or they've rattled, neither the case here. The coolant is still bright pink. I do hope it isn't the pump, not sure how much of a job it is on this engine as it has a timing chain.

Thanks for the response RayMK & Twosmoke300.

[twosmoke300]

Pink is th wrong coolant for that car - someone has been playing before

[FakeConcern]

Pink is th wrong coolant for that car - someone has been playing before

Well a google image search shows most have pink

[panhard65]

If this snaps will the back suspension collapse?

 

20170802_153047.jpg

 

Or is it something just to stop sideways movement?

 

Bloody hell mk1 Fiesta rear shocks I can't remember the last time I fitted one of those. If it snaps the axle won't collapse and you probably wouldn't notice, best to replace them though if you can.

About the 207 coolant it should be pink due to the age of car.

[AlabamaShrimp]

^^thanks, I'll get saving!

[scdan4]

Yes, bottom ball joint. They can be a swine, there are various methods to remove them using proper tools, sometime heat helps, and sometimes CAREFULLY tapping a big screwdriver in the slot in the hub (probably at the back) to widen it slightly can help. Also pressure downwards on the suspension arm while hitting the hub (again, carefully) can release their evil hold. If you can get a lever above the thread to push down on it, or better yet access with a hammer (maybe using an extension bar on it) you may also get it to move. Unscrew the nut until it's level with the top of the thread before trying either of those methods though.

  

Hate to say it but you will need a ( inexpensive) tool to change that ball joint .

The best way to separate a taper ball joint is to loosen the nut so it's finger tight but leave it on the threads to protect it , then belt the knuckle at 90 degrees to the ball joint . What you are trying to do is momentarily deform the tapered seat so it releases the joint . I assume from the damage to the threads you were hitting it on its end ? That's never going to end well .

The fork type splitters are a waste of time too as they always fuck the boot which is an mot failure anyway .

Quite pleased with myself that I did work through all that list pretty well by myself. Wasn't making a complete hash of it...

 

Was a fork type splitter, yes. Boot got duly fucked, yes. Then temper was lost, and, ah well. Ball joint socket ordered to fit the new ones.

 

They were easy compared to the rh driveshaft. It was seized in the mount, and the mounts dowels onto the engine had corroded hard, so the driveshaft wouldn't slide through the mount and the mount wouldn't budge either.

 

Happy days. Gearbox is off,I'll go back to it later.

 

Thanks, as ever, for the help.

[somewhatfoolish]

Painless balljoint removal;

 

1. Remove nut.

2. declag thread with a die or die nut.

3. refit nut loosely and go for a short drive over the nearest available potholes, checking frequently to see when it pops.

4. remove balljoint.

5. tea and medals.

[Asimo]

Bloody hell mk1 Fiesta rear shocks I can't remember the last time I fitted one of those. If it snaps the axle won't collapse and you probably wouldn't notice, best to replace them though if you can.

That bracket on the shock absorber is there to stop the rear axle turning with braking force. So no handbrake turns until you have new shockers!

**Crude, but a clever bit of design to save every penny of parts cost and every second of assembly time.

[Timewaster]

Today I saw 2 police cars both Focus Estates one 15 reg and the other 65 reg and neither had any lights at all showing, as in no DRLs. I thought they became law in 2011 or 2012, so how could this be?

I have a (company) Focus Estate 14 reg and it doesn't have DLRs.

Just normal side, dip and main.

 

Only the high end models had DRL.

 

See: Triggers daily. Both plod and I have poverty spec Foci.

[AlabamaShrimp]

That bracket on the shock absorber is there to stop the rear axle turning with braking force. So no handbrake turns until you have new shockers!

**Crude, but a clever bit of design to save every penny of parts cost and every second of assembly time.

LOL handbrake turns with the power of 957cc!!

 

Tbh I'm banned after I got told off for doing them outside the new national stadium in Malta some years ago in a totally knackered Starlet hire car

[Guest Hooli]

You'd get on with my dad, he got bollocked by university staff for doing donuts on their drive in a Carlton. He was about 55 at the time & dropping my sister off.

[AMC Rebel]

I have a (company) Focus Estate 14 reg and it doesn't have DLRs.

Just normal side, dip and main.

 

Only the high end models had DRL.

 

See: Triggers daily. Both plod and I have poverty spec Foci.

I looked this up - the EU directive applies to stuff with a new type approval after 7 February 2011, so models that haven't needed a type approval won't require DRLs.

[kinkersaab]

^ I see a few of you mentoning you drive new model focus, Do you, like me, manage to turn the lights on with your knee everytime you get out of the fucking things? I have lost count of the amount of times i have had a flat battery on them due to it. The rubberised rotary switch makes it grip ones knees.....   Perhaps you need long legs...

[Timewaster]

Not often, but it has happened.

I'm not exactly lanky at 5'10

[AMC Rebel]

Anyone had any joy stopping/reducing the black smoke from their dizzlers?

 

The Disco 3 hasn't had a lot of use recently, so I took it for a 300+ mile trip at the weekend - in spite of me trying to give it an Italian tune up all the way, it's smoking like Alex Higgins up hills or when accelerating at lower revs.

 

The Crying Pumpkin has also be quite smoky - I don't normally boot it as there's no point since the auto trans seems to swallow up any go so you just end up using more fuel, making more noise and not speeding up much.

 

Are any of these fuel additives any good? 

[DodgeRover]

Turning the pump down a touch always used to help the Jap import Pajeros as well as a can of Forte.

[SiC]

Has anyone ever used a Pela 6000 to bleed their brakes/clutch system? Just thinking of possible tools (that I already have) to make a clutch slave change on the MGB a bit less of a nuisance.

 

I have one of those really cheap eBay special vacuum pumps that's I've used to test EGR and other stuff before. However I'm not convinced it'll work very well for bleeding stuff.

[Guest Hooli]

Clutch slave on that shouldn't need 'owt fancy, it's a straight run & if you've got the front of the car up then it'll bleed fine.

 

All* you need to do is train the missus to push, hold & release when told.

[SiC]

I have read that the MGB can be a bit awkward to bleed. Also I'm thinking of taking a few days off to do some car fettling, so won't have a useful assistant to help me.

[AlabamaShrimp]

What does damaged or broken forks on the thing that presses the clutch feel like?

 

Frontera can be hard to get into first or reverse. Sometimes it can jump out of first.

 

Bloke yesterday that I asked to change the gearbox oil said it was full and that it was damaged. Drives OK other then being a bit of a git sometimes when stopped.

[The Moog]

I have read that the MGB can be a bit awkward to bleed. Also I'm thinking of taking a few days off to do some car fettling, so won't have a useful assistant to help me.

This is the best thing I have found to bleed brakes and clutch etc. 

 

If you dont want to buy one I can post you mine to use and then you send it back . 

[SiC]

This is the best thing I have found to bleed brakes and clutch etc. 

 

If you dont want to buy one I can post you mine to use and then you send it back .

Looks like a slightly modified version of the Pela idea. Expensive though but if it works...

 

Car hydraulics I've always avoided due to the pain of bleeding. Less a problem on the older stuff, but newer stuff if you get air into the ABS modulators, it can be a whole world of pain.

[SiC]

How do I get it to fit the cap on the MGB, as it's not 45mm cap?

 

How does it compare to the gunson eezi bleeds? I know they come with the correct sized caps.

[Asimo]

I bought an eezibleed. I thought it was rubbish.

 

Used to buy "self bleeding nipples". These were simply replacement bleed nipples with a built in non-return valve. To bleed, just slacken half a turn and pump gently on the pedal. Not seen them for years, a shame because they were such a neat thing to use.

[NorthernMonkey]

How do I get it to fit the cap on the MGB, as it's not 45mm cap?

 

How does it compare to the gunson eezi bleeds? I know they come with the correct sized caps.

You can buy different size caps for specific models...the only one I've come across that these don't fit are MGFs

[Guest Hooli]

I bought an eezibleed. I thought it was rubbish.

 

Used to buy "self bleeding nipples". These were simply replacement bleed nipples with a built in non-return valve. To bleed, just slacken half a turn and pump gently on the pedal. Not seen them for years, a shame because they were such a neat thing to use.

 

I've seen them as part of a bleed tube. I've got a couple & neither of them work as a one way valve.

[SiC]

You can buy different size caps for specific models...the only one I've come across that these don't fit are MGFs

Is that for the sealey? I couldn't see any other caps apart from those wanky looking universal one.

[NorthernMonkey]

Is that for the sealey? I couldn't see any other caps apart from those wanky looking universal one.

I'm getting mixed up with my other older brake bleeding kit. The universal VS820UA caps do work though...

[The Moog]

Is there a trick to get brake rattle springs on? I seem to spend ages battling the puma ones.

[twosmoke300]

Yes there is