Cats clapped out Cars. Wafting North

[catsinthewelder]

That's the weird bit, I don't think the instruments are actually fused by any of those fuses.  I put in that blade fuse as a bodge to keep the ignition on but tightening the loose screw near the coil seems to have fixed the actual ignition and instrumentation issue.  You can remove the fuses one by one and the gauges work with any of them out.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

On 8/26/2021 at 8:02 AM, dollywobbler said:

Romanian electrics certainly do make French electrics seem really quite good! I remember the joy we had fiddling with fuses at speed in the Dacia, ....

I seem to recall British Rail had a similar quality problem with the Class 56 diesels that Electroputere built for them...

[beko1987]

On 27/08/2021 at 06:51, catsinthewelder said:

That's the weird bit, I don't think the instruments are actually fused by any of those fuses.  I put in that blade fuse as a bodge to keep the ignition on but tightening the loose screw near the coil seems to have fixed the actual ignition and instrumentation issue.  You can remove the fuses one by one and the gauges work with any of them out.

Sounds like a gesture making it easy to rewire the whole thing whilst still bring able to drive it fine! Strip everything old out bit by bit and wire the new stuff up then by the time you've done all that over 3 weeks worth of a few hours after work in the progressively shittening weather you'll find the actual root of the problem and be able to fix that and wire in the fully rewired dash! 

For toonage didn't @vulgalour fit a cheap ebay Bluetooth amp and some stealth speakers to something once and say it was alright? Plus they do the retro style but with sd and Bluetooth head units, @Six-cylinderhas a few, although does the car have a mounting hole for it in the first place?

Then build a huge sound box for the rear. Nice big sub, large amp, and as many 6x9's as you can fit in and you'll be able to hear it over the noise of everything else! 

[Six-cylinder]

[Angrydicky]

MOAR ROVR PLS. THANXZ

[brownnova]

17 minutes ago, Angrydicky said:

MOAR ROVR PLS. THANXZ

I’d like to place on record my concurrence with this statement. 

[catsinthewelder]

There was me thinking I should get the Peugeot going again.

[loserone]

2 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

Peugeot

RAWR

[catsinthewelder]

7 minutes ago, loserone said:

RAWR

Well it won't be tomorrow as we're going to High Force 😜

[loserone]

We went last week - start at Low Way farm, there's a nice cafe and you can save paying to walk over the bridge.  

 

If you get lost over the hill to the north, shout

[vulgalour]

On 8/28/2021 at 4:59 PM, beko1987 said:

For toonage didn't @vulgalour fit a cheap ebay Bluetooth amp and some stealth speakers to something once and say it was alright?

Not me.  I've not really advanced beyond the Casette Age in automotive audio.

[Noel Tidybeard]

3 hours ago, vulgalour said:

Not me.  I've not really advanced beyond the Casette Age  8 track in automotive audio.

FIFY 😁

[catsinthewelder]

So I've let this topic slide away down the board but I've broken the Dacia and need some advice.

Needed to get to Bridgnorth earlier and thought it could do with a run.  The battery was a bit flat so I bump started it away from the house.  Seemed to drive fine at first although the indicators might not be working.

At the bottom of the hill I drove through a village at 30mph in 3rd then accelerated at the NSL sign.  The gears were perhaps a little hard to select going into 4th then 5th was a bastard to get into.  I slowed down for a bend and couldn't get out of 5th so clutch in, turned off and coasted down a lane to a layby.  At the layby I had to knock the engine off as I couldn't get it into neutral. 

I got Miss C to operate the clutch while I fiddled around under the bonnet and with the pedal but couldn't really get anywhere.  In the end I restarted it in neutral and forced it into first at the right rpm to do it on the synchromesh.  I tried to change up at various speeds but it wasn't having it so I drove home at 15mph on the lanes.  Fortunately the only bit of main road was up a steep hill.  I'm going to try and borrow a deep 8mm socket to adjust the clutch cable but I don't think that's the issue, any ideas?  I'm going to have to remove either the engine or the gearbox aren't I ?😵😵

 

 

[Mr Pastry]

1 hour ago, catsinthewelder said:

I'm going to have to remove either the engine or the gearbox aren't I ?

If it's like a Renault 12, then engine out.  I am not a million miles away if you are stranded or stuck for a spanner, but I doubt if adjusting the cable will do much good.

 

[vulgalour]

That's what the Princess was like when the clutch slave cylinder failed.  Gears got harder and harder to select until it was impossible to select any gear with the engine running.  Was an easy fix at least, cured with a rebuild kit for a couple of quid so you might get lucky.  Depends where Renault have hidden the cylinder, if that is the culprit.

[dollywobbler]

I thought it was a cable clutch, but could be wrong. On some cars, the clutch operating fork can fail/bend, so you can't disengage the clutch properly. 

Oh and don't ever think of taking it to Bridgnorth again. The last time I took it there, it broke down on the main bridge in the centre of town. Which was fun! It clearly doesn't like it there.

[Scruffy Bodger]

I can pop up at some point and have a look while you prod the clutch and vice versa if you like?

[Asimo]

I think it is a cable clutch. Maybe the cable outer has pulled through?

Tip - without a clutch, it is best to stop the engine, select first and then re-start the engine in gear. Changing gear without a clutch is easy if you are used to double declutching, especially if the car has really good synchromesh!

[Scruffy Bodger]

29 minutes ago, Asimo said:

I think it is a cable clutch. Maybe the cable outer has pulled through?

Tip - without a clutch, it is best to stop the engine, select first and then re-start the engine in gear. Changing gear without a clutch is easy if you are used to double declutching, especially if the car has really good synchromesh!

Agreed but it seems some gearboxes really do not like to come out of gear no matter what you try and rev match to? I've driven a Mk2 Cavalier for about a week with no clutch and a couple of XUD powered machines for shorter journeys no problem. My kit car with a Type 9 in was a totally different matter tho, start it on the key in second and get yourself home job/out of trouble job, I couldn't even get it out of gear, no matter select another.

[catsinthewelder]

Sorry, busier than expected today.  It is a cable clutch on this. 

The pedal operates the lever, hopefully just not enough but I don't think I'm that lucky.

  I thought it was a cable outer problem for a few moments before realising that cable was the throttle.  It's the one nearest the door on LHD 😂

It's quite hard to see the inner end of the cable but I'll have a nose tomorrow with the aid of a torch and a mirror

I can't really avoid Bridgnorth, my girlfriend lives there 😂

[catsinthewelder]

I had a fiddle with it earlier on, managed to tighten the cable right up (which the manual claims is just to allow for clutch wear).

I now have a very heavy pedal and but can change gear with only minor difficulty with the engine off.  Unfortunately that was as far as I got as the b****y battery died before it started.  I started disconnecting it then headed out back to get the spare but was distracted by other jobs and then it was dark.

I fetched the manual in but it was no use other than to inform me that it's the gearbox rather than the engine that comes out for clutch jobs which is reassuring as the only place I can use an engine crane up here is the patch of concrete that the Rover is stuck on.  Might still try and shift that so the Dacia is spending the winter on hardstanding (or leave it in Bridgnorth if I can get it working).

[Mr Pastry]

16 hours ago, catsinthewelder said:

I fetched the manual in but it was no use other than to inform me that it's the gearbox rather than the engine that comes out for clutch jobs

Is that the Haynes method?

[catsinthewelder]

1 hour ago, Mr Pastry said:

Is that the Haynes method?

Autodata 🤞

 

[Mr Pastry]

7 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

Autodata 🤞

 

A main dealer might well take the gearbox out with the car on a lift, and a transmission jack.  If you are doing it solo it will be easier, quicker and safer to take the engine out.  Admittedly you will need a hoist, but the alternative is lying on your back in the shit struggling with a very heavy gearbox and driveshafts that have probably never been off, think about it.  I don't have a crane, but if it's any use I can lend you a chain hoist if you can find something to hang it from.

 

[TataBobu]

On 8/25/2021 at 12:11 AM, catsinthewelder said:

Not put anything in here for ages but the Dacia is now MOTed and has been to the FotU and FoD this month.  I was quite pleased to see this the other night 

Ended up wiring the two dipped beams together as one of the fuse positions was duff.  Not certain what current is required to blow these fuses as they seem to get hot enough to melt without blowing 🙈

The white fuses should be 10 A, and you should have 4 fuses for headlights.

On 8/26/2021 at 9:42 AM, catsinthewelder said:

 

2, If it's wired as badly as it looks with all the dash switches being before the fuses I could pinch the little fusebox out the back of the campervan for the Dacia and use the new fusebox in its place which would simplify the wiring there as one side of it consists of all the unfused positive contacts wired together.

This, unfortunately. But you could straight swap the rubbish fusebox it has for any generic one, with some lenghts of wire. Maybe this image will shed some light on the wiring:

 

On 8/27/2021 at 8:51 AM, catsinthewelder said:

That's the weird bit, I don't think the instruments are actually fused by any of those fuses.  I put in that blade fuse as a bodge to keep the ignition on but tightening the loose screw near the coil seems to have fixed the actual ignition and instrumentation issue.  You can remove the fuses one by one and the gauges work with any of them out.

True. Speedometer is mechanical.

 

 

In regards with the latest mishap, I'm afraid your pressure plate is past it's best. It usually happens suddenly. To check if this is the problem, and not a bent gearchange fork, try to start it while having selected 2nd, and put your foot down: if it's just like a failing clutch disk (lots of slipping), but on top of that you can't change gears with the engine started, it's the plate. 

To adjust the clutch cable you can work at the end linked to teh gearbox, if I remember correctly it should be an open-ended 10 mm spanner.

There are two types of clutches on those: 180 and 200 millimeters clutch disk diameter. Don't know which one you have, if it's 1289 cubic centimeters it should be the 180, but I think you can use whichever. Anyhow, the code for the 180 mm one from LuK is 618017106

 

 

EDIT: Mr. Pastry is right, nobody took the gearbox out for a clutch job on those when doing it in a backyard. Always bonnet out, and then engine out. Usually done with the help of two or three neighbours.

 

Here you have a way better manual than the one you have (looks dodgy, but if you wait with that page opened for a full minute there will be a "download file" button, which will reward you with a 64 MB pdf of a 400 page book) : https://vdocuments.net/download/automobile-dacia-diagnosticare-intretinere-reparatie

 

The problem is you'd have to learn Romanian

[catsinthewelder]

Thanks guys,  that is very helpful.  It's my girlfriend's birthday tomorrow so I'm a bit busy with that and kids stuff but I'll get on it soon.  

@Mr Pastry That's a very kind offer but I have nowhere to hang it from apart from the kids swing.  Surely the box can't be as bad as the one I did in the Discovery?  Might only need 3 mates to help put it back in 🤣

 

[catsinthewelder]

@TataBobu You absolute legend, thanks mate 😁

[catsinthewelder]

I've not had much tinkering time lately but a bit of a OMG the modern is broken last week* saw me thinking that I really should get another car working.

2 things I needed to do were ordering a clutch kit in either 180mm or 200mm and moving the Bollox Rover off the only flat bit of concrete** nearby that will hold a engine crane.  Part one had me tearing my hair out the other night and still isn't done.  Part 2 started today as they were resurfacing the only road up the hill so I couldn't go out unless I wanted to be out all day.  Prevarication obviously happened first so by 11am I'd sorted out a new broadband deal and done my tax return and it was time to get on with it.

 

Every wheel was solid despite me unseizing a couple of them recently.  In turn each was loosened (breaking a 19mm socket in one case).  Caliper beaten hard with a hammer, squeezed in a G clamp, a little brake fluid released then the jack handle used against the wheel studs to lever it into moving.  After a couple of hours I had a car I could push to and fro, marvelous, is the engine seized?  5th gear selected it will still push to and fro, cool will it start?

Fresh battery, click 

Fucksake, where's the jump leads?

Connect Focus, click.         Click.                  Click.                Etc 

Beat starter motor repeatedly.       Click 

Try leads in a different place.           Click 

Try leads directly onto starter solenoid.   Click,. What about the other bit?  Sparks, many sparks.   Click 

 

So I gave up and strimmed the overgrown bit near the house.

On the plus side it is now mobile and some dash wipes I found inside made the steering wheel and gear knob 1000% nicer to use.  Not sure where to go with it though.  Anyone want it?

 

 

 

 

* Symptoms including, locks playing up (far more than I initially realised), brake fault light lit, car not knowing the temperature, indicators not working etc.  Caused by my daughter dislodging a big bundle of cables from the fusebox which was easy to fix once I worked out what was wrong.

** I recently found out that there used to be a corrugated iron garage here till it blew away in the wind.  

[Lankytim]

20 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

I've not had much tinkering time lately but a bit of a OMG the modern is broken last week* saw me thinking that I really should get another car working.

2 things I needed to do were ordering a clutch kit in either 180mm or 200mm and moving the Bollox Rover off the only flat bit of concrete** nearby that will hold a engine crane.  Part one had me tearing my hair out the other night and still isn't done.  Part 2 started today as they were resurfacing the only road up the hill so I couldn't go out unless I wanted to be out all day.  Prevarication obviously happened first so by 11am I'd sorted out a new broadband deal and done my tax return and it was time to get on with it.

 

Every wheel was solid despite me unseizing a couple of them recently.  In turn each was loosened (breaking a 19mm socket in one case).  Caliper beaten hard with a hammer, squeezed in a G clamp, a little brake fluid released then the jack handle used against the wheel studs to lever it into moving.  After a couple of hours I had a car I could push to and fro, marvelous, is the engine seized?  5th gear selected it will still push to and fro, cool will it start?

Fresh battery, click 

Fucksake, where's the jump leads?

Connect Focus, click.         Click.                  Click.                Etc 

Beat starter motor repeatedly.       Click 

Try leads in a different place.           Click 

Try leads directly onto starter solenoid.   Click,. What about the other bit?  Sparks, many sparks.   Click 

 

So I gave up and strimmed the overgrown bit near the house.

On the plus side it is now mobile and some dash wipes I found inside made the steering wheel and gear knob 1000% nicer to use.  Not sure where to go with it though.  Anyone want it?

 

 

 

 

* Symptoms including, locks playing up (far more than I initially realised), brake fault light lit, car not knowing the temperature, indicators not working etc.  Caused by my daughter dislodging a big bundle of cables from the fusebox which was easy to fix once I worked out what was wrong.

** I recently found out that there used to be a corrugated iron garage here till it blew away in the wind.  

This thing has been around for ages! Does it still have the BOLLOX ENGINEERING plaque on the engine?

[catsinthewelder]

It's moved onto the dash for safety but it's still there 😃