gm's unhealthy obsession with mx5s - squeezing in a few last drives before Exo goes into hibernation

[hairnet]

56 minutes ago, Jim Bell said:

I bet there was a few neighbors at the curtains. 

"Mary, there's scaffolding zooming around the street. Contact the Neighborhood Watch. "

'someones nicked the lurkle kids climbing frame like'

[Shandylegs]

Well done. You always remember the first drive in something you’ve put together yourself 😂

Just recently picked up a couple of unfinished kits (one already IVA’d, one not) and am looking forward to getting stuck into them - just deciding on which engines to use!

[juular]

Off the scale. Fuppin amazing. Superb work. 

[DVee8]

Ummm, wow. We have just popped down to have a look. As the kids would say OMG.

 

[gm]

And you were so graceful getting in and out when you had a wee seat in it  

 

no videos today as i as I definitely didn't drive it up and down the street again  

how about some 'before and after' pics instead ?

i can just get it off the drive without scraping if I go at an angle 

I gave the engine an oil flush and it has quietened down a bit, I'll change it again as soon as I'm on the road properly. The old oil looked fairly clean on the dipstick but came out black as ink after the flush .

[gm]

Not much to report today - wired up the 12v and usb sockets

didn't realise there was a handy voltmeter in the usb one  

finished off fitting the handbrake

there's a matching 'leather' cover for the gearstick, both came off the donner car

then test fitted my ebay cheapo number plate lights

in the dark - not sure if they will pass the iva, maybe I'll mount them above the plate facing down instead of at the ends

yuk yuk

[gm]

time for a bit of an update - not much has been happening in EXO land as that stupid BINI was getting all the attention last week

I did manage to tick off a few tiddly little jobs, first off being the coolant expansion tank

this is the one that came off the donor car (after it has been through the dishwasher) you can see why I might not want to use it

so I nipped along to the retail park to source an alternative

some quality parking going on here

decathlon sports turned up a decent looking water bottle for £not much

which got a couple of holes drilled in the lid and suitable pipes attached

I might splash out on a cycling bottle cage for it but a couple of cable ties seem to do the trick for now

the piss weak coolant is just there for the pics, I'll put proper stuff in when I'm sure I don't need to take the radiator out again.

 

[gm]

I spent a bit of time tidying up the front to rear wiring - exciting stuff !

 

[gm]

the fuel tank on the mx5 is sealed to the shell with this wonky square shaped gasket and bracket

I was looking to solve a different problem and happened across the bracket in my scrap pile

yes, that might just come in handy - let's grab the grinder a wee minute

stop..........hammer time  

needs holes drilled but has potential

nuts and bolts 

an offcut piece of plastic (from a window blind, the rod that weighs it down so it hangs straight)

sorted  

I'll swap the plastic for something stronger but I'm pretty pleased with that

the hood doesn't quite sit straight but it's not a kick in the arse off it

obviously I had to have a sit in to admire my handiwork

brum brum noises  

[gm]

I'll be sorting out the wiring on the back of the car this weekend so had to turn it round so the rear is nearer the heater - that's my excuse, anyway  

 

gearbox is notchy as fuck, another job to go on the list

 

sounds a lot better since the engine flush  

[gm]

not much has been happening for a couple of weeks, been busy with family stuff and too much festive eating and drinking  

I did have a go at fitting the centre tunnel

needed a bit* of persuasion

then I had to take it out again, the foot panels need to go in first  

[gm]

being as it's so bloody cold in the garage, I needed to find something I could do in the house

the rear cover that fits over the fuel tank needed a bit of work

I'll have to fit a standard plate for the IVA but would prefer to use an import style one later - I'm using those little led bolts for illumination so can have them pointing down on a long plate or sideways on a square one

also fitting the reverse and fog lights to the corners of this panel

all fitted in place - the square* plate will definitely look better here, especially if I do buy a K123EXO registration

wiring complete

wait a minute - whats that little label on the left of the pic ?

oh, you cock !

lucky the cable is long enough to stretch across to meet the harness which runs along the passenger side of the car

a quick test

lights out in the kitchen

I'd say that plate is well enough lit

reverse light is blinding, fog isn't looking quite so clever  

hopefully it's because I was using an iPod charger for power, I'll be royally pissed off if the wiring is wonky

I'll do the same for the lights on the rear mud guards tomorrow.

little steps  

 

 

[gm]

test fitting the rear cover was a bit of a bugger, I had to "adjust" the lip on the edge of the tank with my biggest hammer but it fits now  

the fuel filler needs to go in that angled section near the roll bar diagonal, roughly where I've marked on the masking tape

take the lid off

just there will do

I cut down the original filler neck and have ordered some extra flexible tube to link it to the tank. I'm not cutting the hole until I'm sure its in the right place.

 

 

[gm]

IVA regs require the fitting of a tray under the tank to keep any fuel leaks away from the hot exhaust. 

lack of metalworking tools means it's time to get creative

bash, bash, bend, bash etc

rivets on the corners and a dab of gasket sealant and we can call that job done  

I'll drill a drain hole once I decide which exhaust I'll be using

 

[gm]

lights fitted to the rear arches and tested, ready to go on (bonus points for mildly offensive birthday card in the background) 

look much better than I expected

 

[hairnet]

ALREET!!!!

would you have any drivers side seat belts in your stash?

or recommend someoe to buy new ones from

thanks

 

[gm]

5 minutes ago, hairnet said:

ALREET!!!!

would you have any drivers side seat belts in your stash?

or recommend someoe to buy new ones from

thanks

 

I do but I'll need to check if they are mk1 or mk2 as they differ. the mk1 donner car had mk2 seats (belt receiver is fixed to the seat instead of the floor) so you may be in luck.

I've not long locked up for the night so will dig them out tomorrow and let you know.

there's definitely a pair of lovely* beige coloured ones from the v-spec from when I swapped the interior

[hairnet]

will have to check about where they fit (didnt know that)

and i cant check as i cant get the seat out at the mo

 

[gm]

that fuel tray I made yesterday needed to be fixed in place

brackits

rivits (and goop)

fits neatly onto the subframe mounts, no chance of them coming loose  

tank refitted (you can see how I carefully* modified the edge to fit under the cover)

and a wee drain hole (right hand edge, half way along) leading away from the 'zorst

alarmingly, that represents three hours work ! still, little steps  

[hairnet]

FAB DOG

[gm]

It's currently minus 3 outside and the latch on my gate is frozen shut - nipping in to the garage to fetch some wd, I noticed it is only 1oC in there - time for a bit of preventative maintenance

i suspect that a gallon of my piss would have better antifreezing properties than this lot

it can get refilled once I'm happy the rad doesn't need to come off (again)i

good news is that my omg£££ fuel hose has arrived so can get fitted tomorrow

and they sent me a big book of temptations too  

[loserone]

Those sainsbury's baskets are great aren't they?

 

Good work.  And.. Only -1? 

[gm]

On 1/5/2021 at 8:15 PM, hairnet said:

ALREET!!!!

would you have any drivers side seat belts in your stash?

or recommend someoe to buy new ones from

thanks

 

 

On 1/5/2021 at 8:23 PM, gm said:

I do but I'll need to check if they are mk1 or mk2 as they differ. the mk1 donner car had mk2 seats (belt receiver is fixed to the seat instead of the floor) so you may be in luck.

I've not long locked up for the night so will dig them out tomorrow and let you know.

there's definitely a pair of lovely* beige coloured ones from the v-spec from when I swapped the interior

 

On 1/5/2021 at 8:26 PM, hairnet said:

will have to check about where they fit (didnt know that)

and i cant check as i cant get the seat out at the mo

 

@hairnet

I dug those seat belts out of the garage, they are definitely mk1 type so I'm not sure if they will fit your mx5 or not ? check the size of the buckle on yours against my very technical drawing

there are two of them, let me know if they will be any good 

[hairnet]

ok cool

have to find out if mine have pre tensioners...........apparently they might........

wont know that till weekend when its light........

 

[gm]

more wiring has been occurring - seemed to take way longer than it should but I guess it's worth doing right first time (label maker ftw!)

that all needed sorting out as it's almost time to fit the rear cover

but first, the fuel filler needs doing

that awkward sod

needs to go in there

so a bit of careful* measuring later we have

(a Bini wheel centre was just the right size to keep the dust out of the tank)

then we need a cable clip to hold that wiring loom, just a quick wee hole here will do..

oh you fucking helmet !

yes, that is petrol

thankfully, chemical metal is a wonderful thing (I put more on once that had hardened)

and back to the original job - which turned out surprisingly neat

shame about that fugly cap but I'll replace it with something fancy when (if ever) funds allow

I just hope there's space to squeeze the nozzle past the roll bar (careful measuring, my arse)

that's the tank cover all fitted and another job ticked off the list  

[Noel Tidybeard]

On 10/11/2020 at 11:25, gm said:

a bit of a conundrum on the rear fog light - its currently wired so that it will only come on if dipped beam is on (used to work on the sidelight circuit but apparently that is wrong for the Iva) but, as I discovered last night, switching to full beam knocks the dipped beam and therefore the fog light off  some sort of diode required ?

that should be ok- if you ask Mr Wobbler he will demonstrate his GSA doing exactly this

[gm]

I had another fiddle with the wiring and the fog light now operates with either dip or full beam, hopefully will be sufficient to keep mr iva happy 

[gm]

Time for some metal bending

pedals removed to make space

drivers kick panel trimmed and bolted in place

the passenger side is a bit of a nightmare so the wiring tray needed to come out  

oh lordy !

but there's not a chance I could have got that in with the wiring in the way

a wee bit more tidying up to do and it's time for fun with wiring again

centre tunnel tomorrow

[Jim Bell]

Fantastic. I wonder if there's a market for doing customer builds for the kits. 

Just think what you could have earned if you'd been on an hourly rate. 

*Completion times may vary, due to weather conditions, operator mood and other unforseen issues or life events. GM industries take no responsibility for your disapointment or death. 

[gm]

I can't imagine so - I had the opportunity to buy one ready built for less than this has cost me (although I haven't added up the pile of receipts yet, I'm saving that treat* until i'm finished)

completed builds do crop up for sale on eBay etc from time to time but there doesn't appear to be much money in them - a ready built turbo one recently went for under £9k, looked to have been very well put together too.