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PollyMobiles Rebuild

had a word with cousin and i think i should replace the cheapo ebay normal pulsar groove discs with some black diamond grooved discs thats heat treated etc and will match the new predator FT pads too

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costs £131 for the pair, then few extra quid to get the diameter lathed down abit
http://www.lkperformance.co.uk/brak...lack-diamond-grooved-brake-discs-front/246870
 
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to fix the windscreen chip i rang few windscreen places for repair costs.
my current sky insurance says windscreen cover/excess applies which is £80!

cheapest quote was £25 and autoglass was £88. one guy says his tool costs like £2k while other cheapo guys could be using £400 machines of bad quality and its a one-shot repair job. so? still go for the cheapo job cos its not in a major area and don't care if its duff repaired

also renewed me insurance for £592 but they can't provide breakdown cover cos the cars too old:confused: any recommended breakdown companies? may also need euro cover when i goto germany. so is this car technically a classic then?
 
£80 for a new windscreen though Paul ;) hehe. Still, if it's not in a major area then it's not going to be an issue, just watch out for heat waves in the summer, as we had a piddly stone chip on the Volvo windscreen that suddenly turned into a gurt crack and had to be replaced :(

As for breakdown recovery, Can't think of anything other than RAC, AA and Green Flag. Not sure I have it with Sky, (must read small print), however the usual breakdown recovery comes in the form of a ruddy great 110 Defender and a Brian James race trailer, (oh the joys of having a petrol head father!).
 
£80 new? did think could i do it myself but appears rather tricky. can't do it by myself here, requires a helper. maybe if it turns into a massive crack and when i have more time. is tigerseal similar to what they use?
for alittle bit more i could also get a heated windscreen for those winter defrosting?

i'll have to check out those recoveries to see which suits me, most pref one that will trailer my car back home the cheapest if shes broken or damaged at the track. not worried bout the guy fixing or replacing bits at roadside cos i usually carry my own tools n parts for trackdays.
 
pollyp said:
£80 new? did think could i do it myself but appears rather tricky. can't do it by myself here, requires a helper. maybe if it turns into a massive crack and when i have more time. is tigerseal similar to what they use?
for alittle bit more i could also get a heated windscreen for those winter defrosting?

i'll have to check out those recoveries to see which suits me, most pref one that will trailer my car back home the cheapest if shes broken or damaged at the track. not worried bout the guy fixing or replacing bits at roadside cos i usually carry my own tools n parts for trackdays.
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Heated windscreens are a fair bit more, (more like £200+ now). Matt has a stash of them as he bought a few of them when I got mine a few years back. Insurance only replaces with a certain type and often does not use OEM parts either, I tried to get a heated one done and pay the difference but they weren't having any of it. So I bought a screen and had it fitted by a mobile fitter, did a great job but still to hook up a relay and get it working. Something which was planned in, as I am doubtful the heater box will be in the car given the bulkhead mods. Will still be able to use the heater matrix with basic flow control with fan unit for cabin heat.
 
btw thought i'd update bout the clutch after oulton park. maybe my left legs adapted to the heavy clutch but it feels much more managable now. its abit softer (or my left legs become stronger :p) and the bite point engagement is alot smoother/less sensitive
 
diamond black gtir grooved discs arrived. the anti-rust paper has a strong inspect spray smell to it :)

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min thickness is 23.9mm basically till all the grooves have worn off

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straight internal cooling vanes

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will measure my current disc dia then get the new disc lathed down tomorrow
 
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Machined down? I have always been interested in this fact, as a few people, including Matt say that the discs need ~3mm machining off the OD. I have Black Diamonds on my car and they didn't require any modifications at all. Seems there must have been a caliper change at some point on the GTIR/Pulsar?
 
yea the O/D of the grooved pulsar disc i brought off ebay had to be lathed down 2mm otherwise it'd rub against the caliper when warmed up.
i'll be comparing the new BD disc with the current machined disc to check if its the same oem pulsar diameter.
 
measured the gtir oem disc is 256.5mm o/d and 26mm thick

my current machined discs are 252.5mm o/d and they're worn down to 25.3mm thick (66%) so still got lots of meat left, just needs that crack skimming down.

i'll get the new discs lathed down to 253mm o/d

the ebc red pads also look abit worn so good time to fit new disc & pads

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That's very interesting, I have a few mm clearance between the caliper/carrier and an unmodified disc......hmmm!
 
interesting that the minimum thickness is 23.9... the value recorded on my non-grooved brembo discs (oem) installed last week with gtir calipers and ebc green pads is 24

i take advantage for a question: the mechanician told me that because of the more space beetween pad and caliper there is a noise on road irregularities, pot etc that ends when pushing the brake pedal, and another noise with the reverse gear... he told me not to worry, ok, but is this caused by the missing of same spacer or something similar or is it normal? pics here http://www.micra.org.uk/threads/purplish-blue-from-italy.40081/#post-513911
 
tonight i just stuck the cam mount onto my helmet with double sided foam tape

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test it in the car and i think i got the angle just right :)

 
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Sunburn said:
interesting that the minimum thickness is 23.9... the value recorded on my non-grooved brembo discs (oem) installed last week with gtir calipers and ebc green pads is 24

i take advantage for a question: the mechanician told me that because of the more space beetween pad and caliper there is a noise on road irregularities, pot etc that ends when pushing the brake pedal, and another noise with the reverse gear... he told me not to worry, ok, but is this caused by the missing of same spacer or something similar or is it normal? pics here http://www.micra.org.uk/threads/purplish-blue-from-italy.40081/#post-513911
Click to expand...

when u release the pedal and the wheels moving, the moving disc face normally pushes the pads back by a fraction (till the disc kinda spins freely but can still hear it touching the surface) and the piston slackens but doesn't fully move back on mine (basically after removing the guide pins i could just about slide the caliper straight off).

if the lower guide pins are very worn and the piston can retract fully leaving a gap between the pad & piston, the caliper could possibly shake about over bumps (used to happen on my old stock calipers)

my pulsar brakes don't make any noise at all on normal driving.

if urs is like the usual screeching brake sound try the copper grease on back of pads trick then try sanding the pads lightly with wet dry on a mirror to expose a new pad face

btw did u space the pulsar caliper carrier 1mm from the hub so the carrier is centered to the disc? else the disc could possibly touch the carrier side if the wheel bearings slightly slack.
 
removed the block of wood above the backbox that was burning and ooh boy it burnt alright

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thought bout making some solid PU hangers but then thought i could just wedge & ziptie the rubber hangers into length with some wood like this

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fitted on and it works just as good as before. so no more burnt wood eh

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rear ARB abit rusty n seized. sanded it back to bare metal n rust treated before painting. the PU bushes tend to dry up n seize very quickly, wish i could use like ball bearing front/rear ARB bushes instead that will never seize as easily.

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Polly, bit off course but a quick question coz i know you did all the lowering and balancing on your car, can you think of any reason the back right of my car is sitting lower than the rest?
I just fitted new tein springs, no left/right markers and theyre identical when compared so im fairly sure its not them... what could it be?

Also why do you always make the backbox solid fixed? surely that just transmits all the vibration into the cabin, which is what car companies try to avoid...
 
JoeK11 said:
Polly, bit off course but a quick question coz i know you did all the lowering and balancing on your car, can you think of any reason the back right of my car is sitting lower than the rest?
I just fitted new tein springs, no left/right markers and theyre identical when compared so im fairly sure its not them... what could it be?

Also why do you always make the backbox solid fixed? surely that just transmits all the vibration into the cabin, which is what car companies try to avoid...
Click to expand...

is the car on a very flat level floor?
get someone of similar weight to sit in drivers seat before measuring wheel to arch lengths.
are the springs fully seated into their cups?
are both L & R rear springs fitted with their rubber end seats?
are the rear spring seats fully adjustable? (make sure they're same setting left/right)
are the rear dampers height fully adjustable? (check they're the same)
are the rear damper top mount parts fitted in the right sequence of order?
any major changes in body weight distribution e.g. relocated the heavy battery from front left to boot?

naturally the front right of the car is heaviest due to the driver/steering/brake system/dash instruments/alternators/pulleys/pumps/engine being on that side.

my backbox is securely fastened against the chassis to prevent it rocking about freely and banging against the suspension when cornering or hitting a bump.
the rear silencer doesn't transmit any audiable annoying vibrations since its still cusioned by the rubber hangers and i doubt its more than say the noise of the exhaust itself or the much harder engine mounts.

i don't mind the louder than stock exhaust or roadnoise, i built this car more towards performance & driver feedback than comfort
 
The only thing i have changed on the car is the springs, ive left the shocks stock till the springs bed in so i can see how it handles and sits before deciding whether to upgrade them, both L & R are fitted with the stock end rubbers and to my knowledge they are fully seated (they were when i fitted them) but i will check them at the next opportunity. Cheers for the checklist, i'll run through it when i get under the car again tomorrow.

fair enough on the security i guess, im still on stock backbox so theres loads of clearance to other components, wouldnt wanna bash your coilies though!
 
Read through a fair amount of this from the first page, this is one seriously in depth blog and one big rebuild!

Big respect for this!
 
Jims said:
Read through a fair amount of this from the first page, this is one seriously in depth blog and one big rebuild!

Big respect for this!
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well done for reading through 53 pages :p glad u like it

its kinda 2 major rebuilds all wrapped into this one life blog, the story with blue slx and the other story with my grey one.
 
I think you and I are the only people on here to re-build a Micra to such an extent Paul. I think my SuperS is pretty much fully restored now lol.

Here's an interesting shot of my clutch splines on the Helix clutch. I think this face pretty much sums it up --> :eek:

Pretty amazing FAIL to be honest considering we were only shoving 100lb/ft through the transmission and the car had barely covered 1500miles! Helix will be hearing from me shortly :rolleyes:
 

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Low Rider said:
I think you and I are the only people on here to re-build a Micra to such an extent Paul. I think my SuperS is pretty much fully restored now lol.

Here's an interesting shot of my clutch splines on the Helix clutch. I think this face pretty much sums it up --> :eek:

Pretty amazing FAIL to be honest considering we were only shoving 100lb/ft through the transmission and the car had barely covered 1500miles! Helix will be hearing from me shortly :rolleyes:
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hehe least we know our micras all fixed now throughout.

blimey what happened to that clutch? what type is it, 180mm 3 puck, 190 full face or 200mm full face?
tis like that splines made of cheese
 
pollyp said:
hehe least we know our micras all fixed now throughout.

blimey what happened to that clutch? what type is it, 180mm 3 puck, 190 full face or 200mm full face?
tis like that splines made of cheese
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Yeah, there is something satisfying knowing that everything is in order. Building up a car knowing everything is solid makes driving it on it's limits a satisfying experience and winter strip downs a real pleasure.

It was a 184mm 3-paddle cerametallic plate with sprung hub. I suspect that wouldn't have lasted much longer but it may have explained the trans noises we were experiencing which we couldn't seem to find. The gearbox input shaft is completely fine, not a mark on it, so cheese pretty much sums it up. Either way, it's poor and they owe me an explanation as to how a clutch plate can fail that quickly, the friction faces and resurfaced flywheel are just about worn in.

It will be replaced with a 184mm full face organic plate this time, of which Helix accidentally sent me 2 of when I ordered one :D
 
Low Rider said:
Yeah, there is something satisfying knowing that everything is in order. Building up a car knowing everything is solid makes driving it on it's limits a satisfying experience and winter strip downs a real pleasure.

It was a 184mm 3-paddle cerametallic plate with sprung hub. I suspect that wouldn't have lasted much longer but it may have explained the trans noises we were experiencing which we couldn't seem to find. The gearbox input shaft is completely fine, not a mark on it, so cheese pretty much sums it up. Either way, it's poor and they owe me an explanation as to how a clutch plate can fail that quickly, the friction faces and resurfaced flywheel are just about worn in.

It will be replaced with a 184mm full face organic plate this time, of which Helix accidentally sent me 2 of when I ordered one :D
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hmm my 3 paddle 184mm clutch spline looks fine after several trackdays, 1 drag and few k's of roadtrip n daily drives using 180ftlb. badly glazed the pads after santapod n before i recently upgraded to 200mm it could only handle bout say 100ftlb before slipping.

maybe it was a duff spline metal that bypassed quality check? was it ever launched aggressively? high rev instantly dumped clutch?
 
pollyp said:
hmm my 3 paddle 184mm clutch spline looks fine after several trackdays, 1 drag and few k's of roadtrip n daily drives using 180ftlb. badly glazed the pads after santapod n before i recently upgraded to 200mm it could only handle bout say 100ftlb before slipping.

maybe it was a duff spline metal that bypassed quality check? was it ever launched aggressively? high rev instantly dumped clutch?
Click to expand...

Never launched aggressively by dumping no. 2 trips to POD, some road miles and one trackday at Goodwood. I am just boiling it down to a duff batch and some bad luck. The only time I have seen such stuff is people stuffing a lot of torque/power through the trans and those people are either completely shearing the plate splines or snapping the input shaft to the box :eek:

It perhaps offers some explanation to my feeling that something was not right up front. I always boiled it down to the LSD when we would get some strange clunking when doing low speed maneuvers and when engaging reverse and taking up drive, that was always particularly noisy initially.

The whole drivetrain is being replaced anyway, new organic clutch plate, new billet flywheel, 31v gearbox and shafts, so fingers crossed ;)
 
ARB laquered

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fitted and working smoothly

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always wanted to mount the camera underneath, see whats going on. so mounted it like this

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to get this vid. need to lower the mic sensitivity next time. you can see why i've secured the backbox solidly



next i tested the helmet cam. works pretty good eh. i get the feeling the helmets quite big and kept banging against the sunroof edge so i'd have to shift my head slightly left

 
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got the discs tday. £36. specifically told him and post noted it to lathe it to 253mm dia but it measured 252mm :rolleyes:

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these pads used to be red

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degreased with carb cleaner and lotsa tissue

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ok the dia just large enough

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same on other side

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so new discs starts off like this

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after 3 mile of normal street driving the black coatings barely rubbed

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in the country road i repeated take her to 40mph, brake gently to 30 and repeat several times then cruise down motorway to cool and looks like this after 8 miles

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this time go to 50 and brake harder to 20 repeatedly, cooled down and looks like this. much cleaner with a hint of transfer layer. will do for now

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ready for next trackday on me bday:D
 
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What pads/discs are you using now?

BTW, remember when you said that hard braking will rip the front bushes of the wishbones? Well, i did it again... :rolleyes:
 
baguete said:
What pads/discs are you using now?

BTW, remember when you said that hard braking will rip the front bushes of the wishbones? Well, i did it again... :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

woopsy time to upgrade to these eh

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now its black diamond grooved discs with black diamond FT predator pads
 
Here's a very old low res photo of my car when I fitted GTI-R brakes Paul. You can just about make out that they have not been skimmed.

I'm also quietly enjoying a good laugh at the chavtastic blue caliper paint and EBC Greenstuff pads......yuk! :oops:
 

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Low Rider said:
Here's a very old low res photo of my car when I fitted GTI-R brakes Paul. You can just about make out that they have not been skimmed.

I'm also quietly enjoying a good laugh at the chavtastic blue caliper paint and EBC Greenstuff pads......yuk! :oops:
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did they touch the caliper when really hot like when i first tried the unlathed disc?

my calipers could do with repainting
 
pollyp said:
did they touch the caliper when really hot like when i first tried the unlathed disc?

my calipers could do with repainting
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No, never and I once blued them off at Brand's Hatch. I will measure them when I get a chance and see what their OD is for information. I'll also double check all the caliper measurements you gave me a while ago, when I am back in May, to see if there are any differences there too.

The calipers are now silver and on Mintex M1144s. Gone have the days of scary painted calipers and dust free wheels, I try to keep as close to OEM as possible these days ;)
 
Just watching through some of your video's and it actually only just clicked how close you are to me.
...gonna have to look out for this thing while I'm around middlesbrough!
 
Low Rider said:
No, never and I once blued them off at Brand's Hatch. I will measure them when I get a chance and see what their OD is for information. I'll also double check all the caliper measurements you gave me a while ago, when I am back in May, to see if there are any differences there too.
Click to expand...

thx
maybe if we compare several measurements like:
disc O/D
hub centre to caliper guide pin centre distance
gap between disc edge and inside edge of the caliper
 

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