A long time ago in a Galaxie far, far away (and other shit)

[Split_Pin]

That is a damn fine car. 

[808 Estate]

22 minutes ago, sdkrc said:

I've been having some dirty thoughts about the Lexus...thoughts I struggled to express using free image editors.

You get the idea anyway

 

Sounds like you need a Toyota Crown estate.

[sdkrc]

The crown estate is alright but just doesn't adequately rustle my jimmies 

 

In unrelated news, someone I know has been buying parts for cars he doesn't have. Is anyone looking to buy an MGB roadster roof?

 

And I also bought this, it's called a Flipper Zero. It can capture and emulate sub-ghz radio frequencies. This means in theory I can copy old car key fobs and barrier key fobs but it's taking some fiddling and research to understand. 

[somewhatfoolish]

53 minutes ago, 808 Estate said:

Sounds like you need a Toyota Crown estate.

If a Crown's not exciting enough grafting the arse of one of these onto the Lexus probably easier than starting from scratch.

[somewhatfoolish]

Look more midget than B; @SiC may be interested?

  

45 minutes ago, sdkrc said:

In unrelated news, someone I know has been buying parts for cars he doesn't have. Is anyone looking to buy an MGB roadster roof?

 

 

[SiC]

2 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Look more midget than B; @SiC may be interested?

Hard top looks MGB Roadster going what my Midget hard top looks like but wing looks MG Midget. 

Tbh I'm more interested in the Flipper Zero. I'm having a poke through the firmware and schematic atm, distracting me from the welding I should be doing.

[SiC]

My Spridget roof upside down but get the idea. Around the rear window area is very different. (Ignore the expensive, rusty hard top holder)

 

[sdkrc]

Lexus is in for some welding. It's got some previously unknown frilly bits but it's nowhere near Rustang/Galaxie bad. I'm fairly certain @DoctorRetro 's new Lexus has similar rust spots so will be interesting to compare notes.

I also think my dream of an LS400 estate will have to wait until funds have been built up. 

Some fleet movement expected in the next month

[sdkrc]

Weldy bits done, not by me. Hat tip to Mr Nuttz. Sills were slightly problematic around the ends. There are some traps for dirt/moisture and shite from the factory. I strongly suspect all UK LS400s will have similar problems 

 

Exhaust/cats are proving problematic as access is pants and bolts/02 sensors are rusted. I need to find an exhaust place near Glasgow if anyone knows a decent one? The flanges around the cats are guffed (tadts) and I've got an EML/limp mode/gas leak

 

[SiC]

Are the cats worth mega money on these?

Older (iirc pre 2001) can legally have non type approved cats. 

[sdkrc]

I think they're £1k-ish from memory. 

Current sensible suggestion from @juular who spent an inordinate amount of time with Mrs Juular's  Lexus zorst

take an angle grinder to the end of the cats and just join them back up to the Y section with a length of steel. 

[Low Horatio gearbox]

Nice. It would ha e made an epic load lugger mile muncher estate. Tho not quite the image Lexus  were aiming for.  I imagine it would be lovely as a 2 door coupe. 

[juular]

To get the O2 sensors off, I had to put a spanner on, then jack the car up on the spanner. One side I had to leave overnight in this state. Jap fittings are ridiculous for rusting together.

[juular]

1 hour ago, sdkrc said:

I think they're £1k-ish from memory. 

Current sensible suggestion from @juular who spent an inordinate amount of time with Mrs Juular's  Lexus zorst

take an angle grinder to the end of the cats and just join them back up to the Y section with a length of steel. 

If the piece of new pipe is cut in half along its length, the top part (nearest to the floor) can be welded on from below. Then the other half welded on to close it off.

That way the exhaust doesn't even need to be lowered.

 

[sdkrc]

I think the key here is to not buy luxurious Japanese cars that are nearly 30yrs old like the Toyota Century/Nissan President that I'm saving up for and will do my utmost to purchase

 

[GingerNuttz]

The flanges can be welded but I just didn't want to be the guy who breaks £££ parts to get em off 😂

I put the impact on one of the bolts at 170psi and the bolt just laughed at me. 

I pity the fool who has to remove em. 

Anyways give me a week to sort out this funeral mess and that and I'll just cut the fuckers off. 

 

[83C]

On 8/29/2022 at 6:14 PM, 808 Estate said:

Sounds like you need a Toyota Crown estate.

In Athlete V spec with the turbo 1JZ, yes please. 

[GingerNuttz]

Never again 😂

What was left of old flange

New one, both sides are the same.

Absolute bitch of a job to do with the cats not able to come off, burnt to shit too 😂

 

[Matty]

Just now, GingerNuttz said:

Never again 😂

What was left of old flange

New one, both sides are the same.

Absolute bitch of a job to do with the cats not able to come off, burnt to shit too 😂

 

I did a similar job on an e39 once. Half way through I threw a full on tantrum like I've not had since childhood. Throwing tools across the workshop, shouting and swearing. Took half an hour and 4 cigs to calm down, come back and finish it. Proper ashamed.

Tldr, shit job to have to do 😆

[GingerNuttz]

6 minutes ago, Matty said:

I did a similar job on an e39 once. Half way through I threw a full on tantrum like I've not had since childhood. Throwing tools across the workshop, shouting and swearing. Took half an hour and 4 cigs to calm down, come back and finish it. Proper ashamed.

Tldr, shit job to have to do 😆

I got a bomber in my ear within an hour on the first side then one down the sleeve later that day, next day I got another down the sleeve and one on my neck 😂 I look like I've been shooting up .

Not even a hard job in the grand scheme of things but it was soul destroying 🤣

[juular]

1 hour ago, GingerNuttz said:

Never again

Absolutely sums up my feelings about this job. Just absolutely 100% fuck working on a jap exhaust ever again.

I admit I also had a huge tantrum and threw the heaviest tools I had lying around at my fence, which now has several holes.

Cap doffed, you are heroic for dealing with it.

[Matty]

24 minutes ago, GingerNuttz said:

I got a bomber in my ear within an hour on the first side then one down the sleeve later that day, next day I got another down the sleeve and one on my neck 😂 I look like I've been shooting up .

Not even a hard job in the grand scheme of things but it was soul destroying 🤣

Soz for the laughing reaction but I can see it in my minds eye 😆

[sdkrc]

The crossclimate gods smiled upon me and cast a nail upon my tread. Fucking lazy builders. 

Went to Kwik fit:

- Can you patch my tyre today?

- Sorry, it's just me in today because most of the lads called in sick and I can't do any work on my own

Fuck me. Spare slapped on but it's going in the opposite to the suggested direction. 

EML still on even after resetting the codes with a battery disconnect. It's pre-obd so I'm going to need some bare wire and 30mins to figure out what it's complaining about. Power feels up after the exhaust patch so that's very positive. 

Bonus minor fleet activity, 2 cars potentially on their way out. Pray for them. It's like escaping Auschwitz if a car leaves here not on a flatbed

[sdkrc]

1. Insight = sold
2. Mystery car = almost sold
3. Visa = for sell or scrap

Got a letter from the factors saying they're aware of my all consuming SORNed shite collection in the car park. I think now's the time to expel my surplus chod more for my own sake than anyone else's though. Check it out anyway - 

 

 

Did some basic EML diagnosing with the pre-OBD Lexus last night. You bridge 2 connections in the fuse box, slap it in neutral and then count the number of EML flashes. 

21 - main oxygen sensor left bank

52 - #1 knock sensor signal

55 - #2 knock sensor signal

I reckon it's running at about 85% power now, up from 60% before the cat flange fix. I'm hoping sorting this in the distant future will bring me up to 100%.

Also sounds like EML is not part of the MOT in January.

 

Bonus photo of me trying to jimmy open the door unsuccessfully

[Schaefft]

Knock sensor signal oof. If there's really an issue with the knock sensors that would mean the intake manifold needs to come off. I replaced the starter in my Celsior and knock sensors while in there. It's definitely doable but no fun job. Would be odd if both of them would fail at the same time, maybe they just detected knock temporarily for whatever reason.

[loserone]

They wouldn't come back on once cleared then though?  

 

The other alternative is..  what if the sensors are OK?

[juular]

1 minute ago, Schaefft said:

Knock sensor signal oof. If there's really an issue with the knock sensors that would mean the intake manifold needs to come off. I replaced the starter in my Celsior and knock sensors while in there. It's definitely doable but no fun job. Would be odd if both of them would fail at the same time, maybe they just detected knock temporarily for whatever reason.

Agree, I think it's possible the engine had a little bit of a fit due to an implausible / dodgy O2 sensor reading.

I'd replace that left bank O2 and clear the codes, take it from there. Presumably there's some way to reset the codes via the blinky light method?

[sdkrc]

We cleared the codes last night and the codes came back on after giving it some throttle.  The knock sensors have a common ground so it's possibly that. O2 sensor and clear the codes sounds like a good shout. 

No hunting at idle so it's possibly not a vacuum leak 

[juular]

44 minutes ago, sdkrc said:

We cleared the codes last night and the codes came back on after giving it some throttle.  The knock sensors have a common ground so it's possibly that. O2 sensor and clear the codes sounds like a good shout. 

No hunting at idle so it's possibly not a vacuum leak 

I suspect the knock code is a result of the faulty O2 sensor allowing the fuel-air mix to drift out to the point that knock occurs (or almost does), after which it's probably running on some default / limp home setting to prevent engine damage.

If you can get the sensor out (it'll be the front one at/ under the manifold for extra joy) you can test it with a blowtorch and a multimeter.  As it goes in and out of the torch flame you should get a reading smoothly shifting between two values (usually 0v - 1v) without any spikes or strange voltages.

 

Always worth checking the earth points on these cars. Most of the ones I've found on our 1999 LS have been really shit.

I've got a vacuum gauge here somewhere if you want to make sure there's no leaks. 

[horriblemercedes]

6 hours ago, sdkrc said:

1. Insight = sold
2. Mystery car = almost sold
3. Visa = for sell or scrap

Got a letter from the factors saying they're aware of my all consuming SORNed shite collection in the car park. I think now's the time to expel my surplus chod more for my own sake than anyone else's though. Check it out anyway - 

 

 

Did some basic EML diagnosing with the pre-OBD Lexus last night. You bridge 2 connections in the fuse box, slap it in neutral and then count the number of EML flashes. 

21 - main oxygen sensor left bank

52 - #1 knock sensor signal

55 - #2 knock sensor signal

I reckon it's running at about 85% power now, up from 60% before the cat flange fix. I'm hoping sorting this in the distant future will bring me up to 100%.

Also sounds like EML is not part of the MOT in January.

 

Bonus photo of me trying to jimmy open the door unsuccessfully

You are correct - 

 

Engine malfunction indicator lamp (engine management light or ‘EML’)

Turn on the ignition and check that the engine malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) illuminates and then goes off. On some vehicles it will be necessary to start the engine before the MIL goes off.

You need to inspect MIL fitted to:

• petrol vehicles including hybrids with 4 or more wheels, not more than 8 passenger seats in addition to the driver’s seat and first used on or after 1 July 2003