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Born Again Cars

Finishing Touches - Engine

4/6/2011

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Well it's been a long time since I last updated the Blog, but that's kind of the nature of a project like this, it can be put on the back burner when other things take over.
In fact the project has carried on, it's the blog updates that have suffered from the back burner treatment! So I plan to take you on a whistle stop tour of the last six months!
I'll split it up into bite size chunks of Engine (firing up and tuning etc) - Interior (fitting out the "soft furnishings") and Body - (the satisfaction of adding all the bright work and shiny bits etc).
But first to get the ball rolling, here are a few of the latest pictures, showing the finished article in all it's restored glory...
Picture
In the last Blog update the engine was just about ready to fire up, all that was left to do was a little plumbing, and that included the interior heater.
This was in a bit of a state, fortunately only cosmetic, so a strip scrub and paint of all the components was necessary. I also air pressure checked the matrix using an air line and a bucket of water to make sure there were no leaks or weeps.
Once the heater was fully restored the last of the cooling plumbing could be finished. 
So the time had come to crank the engine and see if it would come to life!
The sequence for firing a fresh engine is quite critical. After filling with oil, I removed the spark plugs and spun the engine on the starter. Without the plugs there is no compression so the loads on the bearings, that are yet to be filled with pressurised oil, are as low as can be and the engine also spins a lot faster which gives the oil pump the best chance of sucking oil up from the sump

During the engine build I had packed the new oil pump with grease to make sure it would have the best suction possible, and sure enough after a little while the sound of the engine turning changed, and the oil pressure gauge flicked into life. Stag one complete.
I then carried out a compression check on all four cylinders, This is partly to make sure everything is working properly, but it also gives a reference value for each cylinder should there be any issues later. They are all nice and high (as you would expect with a newly honed block and freshly lapped valves etc), and also very nice and even across the cylinders.
Stage three was to prime the fuel system, so the pump was connected, and at key-on that gave a satisfying click-click-click, until the pressure built up and the clicking slowed to a stop. A quick check all round for any leaks (fuel, coolant or oil) and we were ready for the big moment!
Sure enough, a couple of cranks was all it took for the engine to fire, all be it a little rough, but it was enough to get it warm and carry out an initial timing check.
Just as I was about to turn it off, there was a big hissing noise and some steam fom near the water pump! Not Good!
I turned it off and an investigation revealed that the small hose between the water pump and cylinder head has burst along it's seam! (it was of course brand new, so I was very dissapointed it had failed on it's first use!).
This would mean a Head-Off repair! A few explitlves, and about an hour and a half later the head was on the bench.
I had left the spigot alone when rebuilding the head because they are notoriously difficult to remove, but it appears the route cause of the failure was the slightly eroded spigot, being shorter than it should have been the clamp had pinched the hose on the sharp end of the spigot, initiating the split (so my fault after all)!
Just to be sure I bought a silicon hose to replace it, not exactly original, but much stronger than the standard rubber part, and hidden from view once in the engine bay. 
I then went about the removal of the spigot. It was completely corroded in place, which meant it had to be drilled out and subsequently tapped to a larger than standard M16 thread. I made a new spigot on the lathe from an M16 bolt and secured it in place with thread sealant. Before re-fitting the head (using a fresh gasket of course).
After following the same procedure again, the engine was back up an running once more.
It took a fair amount of tuning and fiddling with the SU carbs (mixture, balance and engine speed), to finally see the car running smoothly.
I finished all the other jobs, which I will cover in my next updates, but to finish the engine section i should tell you about the first test drive. Unfortunately this wasn't as smooth as it could / should have been, the engine was very hesitant under load, missing quite badly on one or two cylinders.
I first tried a different coil, which had no effect, then I swapped the HT leads, also no effect, I then fitted a new distributor, which frustratingly also did not fix the problem (although it did make the off-load running spot on, and is now the correct part for this age of Mini Cooper).
I finally decided to change the spark plugs (they were already new during the re-build), and that's what made the difference!
It appears that two of the new plugs were breaking down under load, not something that I have ever come across before, and they were a good brand too?
So finally I had the engine running as it should! Sweet through all speeds and loads, I have since traveled about 300 miles in the car to help bed in the bores and check for any little issues, but there has been nothing.
So that was the engine story, next I will update you with the interior build, thanks for reading!
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Subframe Carburetor and Distributor

8/21/2010

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Thanks for checking in on the blog, since my last update having installed the engine, I have had a week of holiday, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty of Mini progress to update you with, far from it.
 
The first job after fitting the engine meant changing the order of my plan round, for a very good but rather unexpected reason. Originally I was thinking I would finish off everything in the engine bay before tackling the rear subframe and rear suspension. However I noticed when lifting the car back up to a higher setting on the axel stands that with the engine in place and virtually no weight in the back of the shell, the whole car wasn't actually all that stable, there was a small risk that it could end up toppling forwards! So I brought the rear subframe strip and re-build forwards, literally to balance out the assembly.
Picture
Having used the rear subframe for alignment duties during the shell welding I knew it was in pretty good condition under the rather badly applied red paint, but once stripped it became clear that this is a virtually new part, it really couldn't have been any better. So all I needed to do was make sure it stays that way for years to come. As with the front subframe I first applied a coat of red-oxide primer, and followed this with a number of coats of hard wearing engine enamel paint, you can see in the pictures below that the headlamp bowls are also getting the same treatment. On a hot summer day it was like working in an oven and the coats were dry almost before I had finished.

I then fitted the brake lines, the mounting brackets with new rubbers and the exhaust mounts before fitting it to the shell. Once in place the back of the car was nicely weighted down so I would be safe to continue my work at the front.

So, back to the engine bay. First up is a strip clean and rebuild of the distributor, it goes without saying that I have fitted a new set of points, a condenser a Rotor arm and a cap, the leads were new on the car when I bought it, otherwise I would have fitted a set of those as a matter of course too. It's also important to check that the vacuum actuator is working, the rubber diaphragm inside can perish, but fortunately this one is fine and just needs a clean and a coat of paint.

I then fit the Dynamo, as I have mentioned before the car was bought with an Alternator fitted, which was not the original specification for this period of car, so I have bought a new voltage regulator which is already fitted and this is a new dynamo. Then I have made a coil bracket to fit the coil in it's correct location above the Alternator, I did look but it proved impossible to find an original bracket, so mine is as close to original as I can get it, working from some pictures of old engines bays I found on the internet.
Next up is a big job, in fact it took about twice as long as I was anticipating, the Carburetor rebuild. 

It only took longer than expected because I had forgotten just how many components there are in the carbs and they all need to be cleaned and made spotless. Plus of course, being a Mini Cooper there is a pair of them! So I had a happy couple of evenings in the degreasing tank (affectionately named the "Gunge Tank" by my daughter!).

There are some parts that can wear on the SU Mini carbs, the needle and jet are examples. However it’s very difficult to measure, and almost impossible to see needle and jet wear, so I have rebuilt using the original parts and will wait to assess their condition when the engine is running. With a running engine it will be apparent if there is wear (to be honest it was running quite well when I bought it so I don't expect to have an issue). I did however find significant wear on one of the throttle plate spindles, so I sourced a replacement, which came in a kit with new throttle plate screws directly from SU. Its worth passing on that SU are still in business and still sell spare parts in kits for their original products, which for the spindle I needed, was the cheapest I found (SU is actually part of Burlen Fuel Systems now, but they can be found under SU on the web).
As you can see in the pictures above I tackled one Carburetor at a time, even having stripped and rebuilt numerous of these, it's still worth restoring them individually, initially this is a good idea because you always have a fully assembled part for reference, but the main reason I do it this way is to make sure I don't mix up the parts for one side into the other and vice versa. It's important to put the same components back together in the place they came from because they will have bedded in there, and you will get unwanted clearance and / or faster wear if you don't put them back into their original location. Once complete it's time to put them back onto the engine, which also secures the exhaust manifold into place. So it's all coming together. I have also rebuilt the drive-shafts and front hubs, but I'll take you through that in the next blog.

Thanks as always, for your time. Before I sign off I should let you know that the car is now advertised on E-bay. My plan is to have it finished by the end of September, so the advert will hopefully create some interest ahead of that. After all, the sooner it sells the sooner I can start the process of looking for the next project! (However for now, this one is getting very exciting!)
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Plenty of work to fit the Engine

8/5/2010

2 Comments

 
This is the good bit, the part I really enjoy, Reassembly. 
It's started in ernest and I can start to see the fruits of my labour. All those hours in the cleaning tank, the endless wire brushing, the carefull painting of parts is finally paying off. It's also satifying fitting parts and knowing, for that little component, however small, the job is done (and its no longer occupying the space on the bench which it has called home for the last few months!)
Picture
So to business. The first parts to be fitted to the new shell are the door straps, this is a protection measure to make sure the doors aren't opened too far, which could damage the painted hinges, I then fit the door seals, again to protect the fresh shiny paint.

The first proper assembly job is to run the wiring loom through the shell. For this project I have spoilt myself and bought a brand new loom from Mini Spares. This is partly to save time, the old loom had been badly cut and shut to run an alternator instead of the correct dynamo, but it's also because there is nothing better than new wiring, it makes sure there are no niggling continuity issues, no corroded terminals, and no cracked or broken wires hidden deep inside, plus specifying a period fabric wrapped loom it's going to look fantastic as well.

Because of the dodgy alternator, there was no voltage regulator in the car when I picked it up, so I have a shiny new one of those (and a dynamo to fit to the engine later). I also fit the fuse box, and because the wires are run with the wiper mechanism, I have stripped cleaned, painted, restored and fitted the wiper motor and mechanism too.
 
My enthusiasm also got the better of me and I have rested the dashboard in place to see how it looks, which explains the white tube in the pictures, it's the capillary tube for the oil pressure gauge, and I couldn't resist fitting the new wing mirrors too!

Now I'm motoring. The next major job is to restore the brake and clutch master cylinders, (including a seal kit for both). I'm very please that under the grime they are both in very good condition. Once fitted to the bulkhead, which includes fitting the peddle box inside, I run the copper brake and fuel lines all the way under the car. This is all heading in the direction of the engine fit, the brake and fuel lines both run behind the front subframe so need to be in place first.

Another component that needs to be fitted before the engine and subframe is the steering rack, having already been restored this is very simple, but even if I say so myself, it looks great once in place.
I also fit a few more chrome parts, and it's really starting to look like a mini again!
Picture
One thing I am very keen to do, is keep this car as original as possible / practical. To this end I have decided not to use cable ties where they can be seen.
A friend once said he simply couldn't go rallying without a bunch of cable ties and a roll of gaffer tape "what on earth did they do in the old days?".
The answer lies in clips and lock wire! So here on the brake and clutch tubes I have used two protective lengths of washer tube and some neat lockwire to stop the copper pipes tizzing. For sure it's a little more time consuming than a cable tie, but I hope you will agree, it's a much "more period" result?

Picture
There are just a few more parts to fit to the bulkhead before I can get the engine ready for fitting. The washer bottle and hoses go in, as do the bonnet hinges, and there we are, ready to receive the front subframe and engine!

So now I have a little prep work to do away from the body. I need to fit the engine into the subframe, but even before that I have to fit the front brake lines. A job that can't easily be done once the engine is on place.

I then fit the gear change mechanism, being a Mk2 Cooper this is car has a "Remote" type change, the "Non-Cooper" of this age would have had the "magic wand" type gear leave, and the body shell still carries the hole for this type, but here it will get a blanking plate.
 
Now it's time to fit the engine into the subframe, a careful operation, and to be honest a little fiddly, especially fitting the left hand engine mount bolts with the radiator in place. Once complete the whole thing can be wheeled to the body.

And so to the final "decking" of the engine and subframe assembly.

With the back of the car supported as low as possible on axel stands, I lift the front of the car high enough to roll the engine assembly under the front. I then carefully and slowly lower the body checking to make sure everything is clear and roughly in the right alignment.

Once the body is lowered back onto the axel stands at the front (which have been set to the same height as the rear stands). I lift the engine and subframe the final few inches into place with a crane. The alignment at this point is critical, but it can be controlled by dropping a bar down through the body fixing points on the bulkhead into the top of the subframe suspension towers, thus giving an effective leaver to move the few millimeters when necessary.

Then it's time to fit nuts and bolts to hold it all in place, before a well deserved cup of tea and a chance to take stock (and a few more pictures of the engine in it's rightful home).
That brings you up to date. Next up is the remaining engine bay fitting out (dynamo, distributor, carburetors, wiring etc etc). So until then, thanks for your interest and your time, and good luck with your projects, whatever they may be!
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    Rob Russell.
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