RichardKs wanderings: Insight or in-stinked? Smokin! (advice request)

[IronStar]

21 minutes ago, RichardK said:

This is the one I like the look of:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007002786673.html

That one doesn't do wireless CarPlay / Android Auto, that would be a deal breaker for me.

[RichardK]

1 hour ago, IronStar said:

That one doesn't do wireless CarPlay / Android Auto, that would be a deal breaker for me.

I'm not worried about wireless as I'm absolutely hopeless at remembering to charge my phone, so plugging it in is a benefit not a drawback

[RichardK]

Finally found a picture of some Mercedes T1/601 panels from the back that shows the structure of the inner wing, and the reason I can't find the part that is rusty is because...

...it's part of the front wing. Duh. So if I replace the front wings, I get new filler panels as well.

This makes the MOT fail EVEN MORE CONFUSING, but reinforces the idea that what I should do is just replace the bonnet and front wings, sand and redo the front panel, and just make the damn thing look nice again.

Simple, right? Of course not. None of these pieces are genuine Mercedes. They're all these mail-order, terrible pictures, brands I've never heard of replacement panels. They could be stamped on the same tools thrown away from the Bremen plant. They could be shaped by a farmworker in Vietnam as a side hustle, working from pictures. I have literally no idea what kind of quality the pressing will be, what thickness and standard the steel is, no idea of how well it will fit.

I did find one company claiming to offer a galvanised metal bonnet. So I'm going to order the bonnet and front wings (sadly the front wings don't claim to be galvanised) from them and see what i get. It needs them anyway, the bonnet is holed and as it's a bolt-on part I can't mess it up too much I think.

[IronStar]

12 minutes ago, RichardK said:

I'm not worried about wireless as I'm absolutely hopeless at remembering to charge my phone, so plugging it in is a benefit not a drawback

Should be fine then, and you really can’t go wrong at that price. Bonus points for wired being a bit more stable connection than wireless.

[RichardK]

Tried to tidy up the stainless steel exhaust trim on the Boxster. Yes, it's not important, but it had a rusted in bolt where the head had disintegrated so was probably adding to the rattles, plus a new one is LOTS OF MONEY. It's stainless all the way through so should clean up.

Managed to remove it by chiselling the edge off the bolt and careful pry-bar applications. but the remains of the bolt will not budge, Molegrips, no. Stud extractor - I am now minus one size of stud extractor. Drill is also minus the pilot drill bit.

I will be very pleased when I do finally defeat the bloody thing. The captive nut looks like a very nice design once cleaned of the rust from the bolt!

[RichardK]

Mucky

Rusty

(It used to be an M8 x 16mm bolt)

Chisel, pry, into the degreaser

Still very determined

Vice grips: no

Heat: no

Stud extractor - succeeded in pilot hole, bore, etc then...

snapped the extractor.

Got very annoyed. Put stumpy end of bolt in a vice with not much movement, twisted.

It budged.

Twist more. More WD40.

Very slow and faffy but...

Cleaned threads out, ordered titanium alloy race spec dual-head (hex and allen key) bolt.

Why all this effort on a tailpipe trim?

[RichardK]

You Won't Believe This One Neat Trick

[RichardK]

One small step

[RichardK]

And thanks to the post, some more even smaller steps

Old number plate bit

Such a minor thing, and hidden, but it makes a difference in my head

There

And the weird rubber screws...

Covers for scuttle

Don't torque it right up. That won't help.

this is how they work

Locate in hole on strut top

No more rattles (there. other rattles are available).

[jonathan_dyane]

Just to warn you, there is a box section along the bottom of the Merc bulkhead which the rotten area of the front wings covers. This will probably be rotten too.

[RichardK]

41 minutes ago, jonathan_dyane said:

Just to warn you, there is a box section along the bottom of the Merc bulkhead which the rotten area of the front wings covers. This will probably be rotten too.

For a moment I thought you meant the Boxster 😂

The bulkhead seems okay - I have poked it while trying to work out WTF the garage was on failing it for a lip of wing/inner arch overlap and putting it as a chassis rail - but I think once the front wings/bonnet/etc. are off, the sparkly stick action for fixing the bulkhead and floor would be almost halfway there anyway!

[RichardK]

Now it's definitely mine and I think I want it to stay:

Mid engined Porsche things

Nice place to sit

But now the garage is empty someone else dashes in

Had to remove this. Any other firm would make the diff drain hole accessible - BMW make it clever-easy to remove the crap they put in the way at least.

Spare wheel on the way from Windleys. I think the strap is broken but not sure how.

Leave it draining

Girlfriend had ways of getting me out from under car

So leaving it for now. Tomorrow I will fill this one and rust treat & waxoyl under here then refit the spare wheel carrier after cleaning it up a bit.

Then I need to do transfer case and front diff, Front looks hardest.

Fairly sure I can feel movement in the prop centre bearing. It needs doing ASAFP for my own sanity, but so does the front suspension's array of bushes, links and rattlesnakes.

[Zelandeth]

Sorry to hear the van needs welding!

If you're pulling the front apart that far anyway, worth going one step further to pull the dash and windscreen to sort the scuttle and heater intake boxes?  At least then it's just done.  

[RichardK]

Rear diff, done, transfer case, done, front diff WTAF how much crap do I have to remove from under the car?!?

Might as well get it done. The back of the engine looks like it's been bathing in brent crude. Rear seal or runoff from a leaking cam cover, I wonder.

Propshaft and flexi look recently faffed with, so I am not sure why (how) the centre bearing could be bad. Maybe it is a box or diff after all.

[RichardK]

On 04/07/2024 at 20:34, Zelandeth said:

Sorry to hear the van needs welding!

If you're pulling the front apart that far anyway, worth going one step further to pull the dash and windscreen to sort the scuttle and heater intake boxes?  At least then it's just done.  

It doesn't, or doesn't any more than it already did - was just a weird tab from bulkhead to wheelarch/wing lip they didn't like. MOTd now

[RichardK]

Every time I have a big family event like, say, a wedding, some shit causes problems...

So this time, we decide to take the most valuable, not-broken car, and leave early to drive to Scotland.

Bugger.

First junction, right after filling the tank. Sounded alright but don't want to risk it, so...

Rattling suspension, still noisy diff/other,  but bless its stinky little socks it powered over the A68 like a beast and made excellent time. I want to restore it to full health!

And the Porsche, we'll see what Mr. OBD reader has to say...

[2flags]

Now that is called sods law. Just as well you had the BMW to save the day. 

[RichardK]

On 07/07/2024 at 10:09, 2flags said:

Now that is called sods law. Just as well you had the BMW to save the day. 

It worked out for the best as I absolutely knackered my ankle, and the X3 just did was it was built to do, albeit with more noises and bouncing than factory intent - 490 miles, 3/4 tank diesel, effortless and comfortable: I think the Boxster clutch and any hint of traffic might have been too much.

I think the BMW's repair schedule has the front dampers now at the top of the list and I'll judge the state of the bushes and arms afterwards. Need to change front diff oil as well, and that is a pig of a job relative to the others, but I think I'm going to need a reconditioned diff and one end or another. 

Pretty sure the bit I don't need is a transfer case - the car feels smoother and happier since changing the fluid and resetting the adaptations on it.

Boxster:

Code reader says "Downstream O2 sensor bank 2" or somesuch, which is what I suspected it would be given it was tricky on MOT emissions - the cats are, I think, original so probably past it. I'll change the air filter, check the oil separator and PCV, run this tank of V-Power down and throw some cataclean at it, but it may just need a good run - it's had a few short trips and not much else since I got it.

[RichardK]

Small Boxster improvements - put a new air filter in, and found a rusty engine cover latch so ordered new bits.

At some point it's getting plugs and PCV done so they're hiding in the basket:

Cracked and scuffed

Spiderwebs and small dents

Spoiler up

Undo rusty screws

This was all cleaned up and waxoyl attacked, of course.

Driver's side vent - a pocket of foam and flaps.

Passenger side was pushed in, with a carrier bag melting on the exhaust heat that was clearly used to try and block the mess.

The plastic vent clips in securing the foam, but I had folded melted foam covered in sealant. New parts are £56 but the plastic vent was fine, so..

Cleaned up, sandwiched and re-secured the vent. The foam halves were stapled, if they fail I'll buy a new piece.

Looking  better

This is the wrong S though, so I added a proper one to the parts order.

(It has a square profile, not chamfered, and looks like the "tenner a badge" S badges)

But this looks a lot nicer than when I got the car!

Small bits of progress.

I'll judge the engine after I've put new spark plugs in and replaced the air oil separator and PCV valve. Needs a good run and this place seems to be congestion central whenever I want to go somewhere!

It's very dry, dusty and rusty (on fittings) in here:

The engine really is right behind you

Pantomime engine

Looking a little threadbare

Comedy accessory - it was cheap on eBay

Dash looks like serious business though

[RichardK]

RIP, Sir Nea, Eric's Son.

Careful use of leather cleaner spray allowed to dribble down to the sticky pad let the Sony Ericsson bluetooth button pad fall off and NO DAMAGE!

So out with the rest of it

It has loom adaptors, so, WHY. FFS.

All that crap to take over the speakers.

Looking neater.

And it will be a shame to lose this originality when I switch to the CarPlay unit

Let's enjoy it before it goes.

[bangernomics]

Hi Richard can I pester you for a cable recommendation for Lexia please.


My god I love that interior colour.





Gzongenflatch
In memory of Phil.

[RichardK]

49 minutes ago, bangernomics said:

Hi Richard can I pester you for a cable recommendation for Lexia please.


My god I love that interior colour.

I think if it were boring black I'd be less inclined to clean and fix the rest of the car, but the carpets look faded 😕

It feels nice enough that I'm considering having the driver's seat refurbed to sort the bolster wear of 108K miles.

The Lexia cable was loaned by @ruffgeezer but it looks like the ones you find on eBay for around £70 - it looks like more of the trick is getting the right diagbox and VM setup, I'm using 7.57 I think under Windows 7 32 bit and VMware 5.x (whichever was last for 32-bit hosts) and the VM claims the USB device from boot.

[RichardK]

This is hard work, but...

Getting the shine back

[RichardK]

Halfords run - BMW wanted a coolant top up (half a litre after 1000+ miles, not a disaster).

Spotted:

Trying to reduce spots:

Delivery from China:

For context - the Boxster does, for some years, use this very obviously PSA-sourced light switch. Later years of 986 Boxster get a more bespoke interior lamp with map lights, but cars with auto dimming mirrors/light or rain sensors kept using the Peugeot/Citroën interior light (which I believe is from a 205, but was used on various models and probably continues to be used on some vans or rest-of-world models). A Porsche box around the part will cost you £100+ over the cost of a PSA original (which itself can vary from £30, to £55 to £95 depending on if it's a secondhand item, a new 'generic' one, or advertised as being for a 205 GTI or similar 'new record at Bonhams' shed).

Or you can buy a new repro part for £19.99, which is what I did. Detail obsessives will notice it has a flat, matte surround rather than the raised gloss black of the PSA original, and the metal contacts inside are silvered aluminium (probably) rather than what looks like copper (calls Ea Nasir to check, trusted expert) so might not last 20 years. But it fits and doesn't rattle, and I won't be annoyed if I break a clip on it – the one in the car had a broken clip and was rattling. If I see a reasonably-priced PSA original of course I'll change it, because the opacity of the lens and the feel of the click is slightly off as well as the style, but if this had been the original Porsche part all along I wouldn't have felt anything was amiss.

I bought two radios chosen from the 1-DIN CarPlay offerings on AliExpress, because the majority of 1-DIN models are slightly over the standard faceplate size (some have little humps or bumps to fit a larger screen and two control knobs, and I quite like where they're going with those for cars that have a flat dash and a bit of headroom over the radio such as a Mk3 Capri already butchered for DIN fitting).

However, the Boxster is very much 'single DIN'.

Does this look like a choice?

Candidate 1 - the FM60. This is a weird one, it doesn't seem to attract any well-thought out brands, but it has been sold in America by Walmart stores which is where I spotted it. It has a resistive screen rather than capacitive, but it has physical buttons and a volume knob. And fits perfectly into a 1-DIN space.

Candidate 2: The Navifly costs almost twice as much in this, the latest Android version, at £42. In addition to being Android based (the earlier Navifly looks similar on the front, but has a square chassis instead of a flat one with big heatsink design, and is based on Windows CE). It has GPS and supports wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, but it's 4mm too tall to sit flush!

Argh! So the £24 "Mystery Shenzhen Factory" FM60 will be used. The volume control and hard buttons are good, the resistive screen less exciting. No mention of DAB accessory where an Android unit would allow DAB with a USB thing.

So what to do with the Navifly one with that annoying not-quite-1-DIN front?

It literally looks like it was designed to fit in that specific space. If it weren't for the lack of physical controls I'd think it was brilliant for this retro application.

But first I need some wires. And an antenna. Back to Halfords!

Comparing the chassis sizes - at the bottom, the Porsche's Becker, in the middle the Navifly (note the connectors come UP from the unit, not straight out of the back) and finally the tiny FM60. It weighs nothing and the lid wasn't even screwed on, so I could look inside - it has three or four boards, a few ribbon cables, a couple of LSI ASICs which I'm guessing handle CPU and comms. I'm going to stick a couple of heatsinks in there, as it seems badly designed for thermal management and like everything cheap and audio based, probably overdrives every cheap component to near death. It could also use some proper grounding, as it has some background hiss and noise depending on various factors.

[IronStar]

How did those arrive so fast? 😳 Here the wait for packages from AliExpress is usually upwards of two months!

[RichardK]

I think it was about a week - first order so very cheap, but packages without ISO connectors can get in the sea

[mat777]

Richard,
Its really great to see the difference some dedicated detail fettling makes, to change a presentable car into a properly smart example   I was gutted to see about the EML spoiling your trip, fingers crossed the suspect sensor is an easy/minor fix - there may be something in the theory of an "Italian Tune Up", as I lived close enough to a back road that I could make this a part of every journey in the car, and it did seem to pull more cleanly the more it was exercised!

I'm incredibly sorry the badge appears to be incorrect! It was a genuine badge from a Porsche specialist, if you like I can send you the invoice and you may be able to get them to swap it for whatever the correct one is? I do think the "S" part is flatter than the rest of the script in general because the font is thicker.

This is the badge that was ordered:

https://www.reasonporsche.com/product-page/porsche-s-badge-chrome

Based on looking identical to the ruinously expensive entire script:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/155356907069?_ul=GB&mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=710-53481-19255-0&campid=5338990947&toolid=10001&customid=eb%3Ag%3Avms%3Aeb%3Ap%3A155356907069%3BCj0KCQjwhb60BhClARIsABGGtw8A5Yu8T4_XF2fMt2Yp8QO10s9qfZX3a0_zBl_6dCBE9emw0rWbvlwaAmaIEALw_wcB&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwhb60BhClARIsABGGtw8A5Yu8T4_XF2fMt2Yp8QO10s9qfZX3a0_zBl_6dCBE9emw0rWbvlwaAmaIEALw_wcB

 I must say the replacement bumper looks smart though - I'd never even unwrapped it from when Merc gave it to me, so glad to see it's turned out as described! The bright lights of your garage really show how poor the damaged one was.

In news from my end, thanks to you and my mate I now successfully have the large cache of RR panels and parts stashed with the JagRover, which remains in the barn whilst I try to find sensible insurance - although someone I mentioned it to has made overtures on purchasing it! Any profits generated from such a deal would be split in your favour as I feel that's only fair! 

"I got Range Rovers, they're multiplying" 🎵
-John Travolta (probably)


 

[RichardK]

I'm doing what I can - the Boxster scares me mildly given the potential bills, but I think it's worth it for the experience of driving the Boxster 😂

TIL Porsche don't put a switched live on the ISO connector so I'm tapping the fusebox. FFS. This isn't bad for £24 though, and I can have nav!

Only downside is there's a fair bit of electrical noise when USB is in use. I'll add some extra grounds, and a heatsink or two on the chips, and it might last more than three months (it tries for 45W and yet has no thermal management).

I think they sent a generic part for the badge!

Proper one:

Their advertised part has chamfered edges...

What they supplied is squared off:

Like this:

But then again £25 is cheaper than the Boxster S badge, and I also suspect this style might have been used on earlier cars, so it's only annoying from the point of view of someone who has spent a lifetime working with fonts and designs!

The rear bumper makes a huge difference, it's looking even better as it gradually gets polished. Once I've refreshed the PCB/air oil separator and popped new plugs in I think it'll be pretty smooth too - even a fresh air cleaner seems to have made it a little happier.

Don't take the critique personally - apart from anything else, I know this car has 22 years of history behind it! I'm like this with all my cars and it's how I get motivated to make improvements 😂

Polishing cars gets very boring though.

The Boxster's shape is worth the effort.

[RichardK]

(this seems like a good moment to remind the audience that several autoshite people have commented that - or loaned me cars on the basis of - if you want to know what's wrong, bodged, broken, about to break, or has been hidden in a car's past, lend it to me. I'll usually fix some of it as well, while cursing some forgotten garage somewhere 😂 My standards are definitely higher than my ability when it comes to bodywork though).

[RichardK]

Oh, the camper gets attention today too...

Spot the difference?

A clue...

Hello!

Weird formatting,  but it works...

Quite legible.

It has a GPS sensor so if it had a network connection, runs Google maps - and it sounds pretty good! The main thing I don't like about these headunits (other than the time spent soldering and heatshrinking a loom) is the lack of radio text on RDS. Then again, I'd normally be getting DAB+ if I was spending money.

Also no volume control on the touchscreen one. It has flying leads for steering wheel remote which I might connect to a controller - I also need to go over the van wiring and make sure I've hooked up a switched and permanent live properly as I can see it draining the battery, it goes to sleep, not off.