My Sylva Striker Rebuild

[BDMStriker]

Been meaning for the past 4 weeks to get this set up instead of just using my introduction thread!



1997 Sylva striker which orignially had a 1600 crossflow and has been modified to take a Vauxhall C20xe engine

When i first had her dropped off as a non Runner



starting the stripdown



Where im up to this weekend ready for a practical rebuild after the chassis has been prepeared for a respray and stoneguard.






Pictures paint a thousand words and all that! Really enjoying it up to now, still trying to think of the best way to prepare powdercoat for spraying, whether its best taking it all back or using it as a layer of protection where its still decent,  water ingress is apparent in places where its got under the coat but not to a point its caused major issues,

['The Gaffer']

Keep us posted,  looks great

[stupott901]

looks good you keeping the same engine?

[BDMStriker]

Yes hopefully have a healthy C20xe sorted come the time, i have a spare engine which came with the car, the original one fitted has had a hard life and the head is way past its skim limit

According to the previous owner the threads in the block on one of the head bolts appeared to pull when he torqued the head down & upon inspection the pistons seem to have a bit too much slap in my opinion.

Why do you ask? would you fit something ford based?  Its my first build on something kit based and i'll take any advice im given! 

[fullpint]

Fit a bike engine mate  .
I would love to do a total strip down if I had the space.
Keep with it mate 

[BDMStriker]

A little update. No major progress on the build as yet, but a couple of pictures on the chassis strip,

Bought the car blind and was told it had An LSD which upon further inspection came back positive, sadly the pinion is flapping like a good one on the nose bearings so will need a rebuild before it goes back on the car, Crownwheel and pinion dont appear to have suffered at all which surprised me,

weirdly the pictures show the teeth in a different light, they are fine.,







Some of the powdercoat suffered water ingress so spending that little bit extra time in preparing it for etch primer and a fresh coat..

[Moleman]

There seems to be alot of options on engines these days. From high revving bike engines which are good for trackdays but may have problems with noise tests, to car engines, which seem to be getting lighter these days with a choise of Ford, Honda, Vauxhall & B.M.W if you have the space for them though. Which are almost as good for trackdays & are abit better for touring.
It all depends on what you are mainly going to use it for? & what your budget is?
At the end of the day what ever you use, you can't go wrong with a light weight car with a powerful engine in it. 

[paintman]

Put a 2.0 Zetec in it, loads about to choose from and plenty fast enough for most in a light car!!

[fullpint]

Hope its up together soon mate. Summer time starts tomorrow and would be nice to see this at a meet this year..
As for an engine.. I'm 100% behind a 8000+RPM bike engine  Noise is an issues but I've given up the hope of a track day. Will save up and buy another BEC that meets the requirements for track use 

[Moleman]

You will be fine at Llandow steve, they never check.

[BDMStriker]

I think ill be pushing it to have her fully road legal by the end of this summer especially since funds will be tight by the time its completed.

Trying ym best to make good progress on it without rushing, Im a bit of a stickler on doing it right too, I helped a mate in places rebuild His TVR Taimar and it surprised me how quickly the time passes just with that, either way im looking forward to eventually making it along to an event some time soon

As for the engine for the moment i will be sticking with the C20xe because i have Carbs/Manifold exhaust and ECU to suit, A different powerhouse will be on the cards possibly sometime in the future, all depends how much i can rebuild the C20xe to a good standard,

A little update for today, i was hoping to get a few days over easter on it but the missus dragged me out to every garden centre in a 10 mile radius of doncaster!


managed to prep and prime the engine bay, one night thjis week ill hope to get under and get primed fully,




made good use of the hoist too, came in handy since its only a little garage!

[BDMStriker]

Sorry for all the pictures!

  but is the best way to show its progress!








its primed ant satin black first coat,  underside has all be etched and ready to paint and underseal


one question though, Im in two minds whether to satin black the side panels. the aluminum ones, or whether to polish them back up, what would you guys suggest?

['The Gaffer']

I polished the sides up on my Riot. Bit of elbow grease every now and then but worth it I think.

[stevel]

I have polished side panels on the Tiger, as Phil says a little bit of elbow grease at the start of the season with Autosol or Meguiars Metal Polish should last quite a while.  Once painted no going back you could also consider vinyl wrapping as this can be removed at a letter stage, carbon could look good depending on main body colours.  Polished alloy is definitely more of a period look if you are after a more retro feel.

[BDMStriker]

Just a little update,

chassis fully undersealed and stone guarded,  diff back from the rebuild tomorrow & the new red spax, short rack regreased and gaiters replaced and enamelled up, 

slowly getting there, hopefully a rolling chassis by next weekend if im allowed!





and finally the new satin black sides,

['The Gaffer']

Look forward to the next update.

[BDMStriker]

few more little updates,

Diffs Back & axles back on, stuck with a replacement 3.89-1 CW & P with new bearings 





Just a few more








a Quick one of My mates Taimar currently being restored too,

[Bulldog Bri]

Got some really nice pics there 

[BDMStriker]

first update in a long time! Another weekend set for working on it, had the rocker back from the powdercoaters, tanks on and stoneguarded etc,

rad hoses and ignition system then ready for the fireup,

[bluehornetrider]

Those red tops have got plenty of go in them, a calibra turbo can also add a bit more poke if needed. Rebuild's looking good though.

['The Gaffer']

Nice clean rebuild, very nice.

[Moleman]

That does like nice so far. 
I like the manifold. Is that standard or did you have it made to order?

[BDMStriker]

thanks guys!

Slowly getting there, the september 2013 completion date has been shifted to march 2014 due to finding more things that needed an overhaul than expected,

the exhaust manifold is an old SBD westfield one that has been shortened at the collector to fit the striker,  its a bit marmite,  cant quite tell if i like it or not at the moment

had it all wired up to have it running this weekend gone but lacked a spark  hopefully either the coil or  crank sensor as im keeping my fingers crossed the MBE ECU hasnt died off, it hasnt ran for 10 years so is a possibility!

[Iancider]

You are working wonders in a small space.  And your are going at some pace too!  Good luck with it.

Ian

[BDMStriker]

Well a little setback this weekend

had no spark across all 4 plugs last week so replaced the coil and crank sensor to no avail,

MBE 906 ecu is dead as a dodo, either its just corrupt or the ignition drivers are dead, it hasnt been used for 11 years so half expected it, but sets me back on the build quite a bit, especially since its something circa 500-600 quid,

looks the part mind,  carbs all cleaned through, and practically ready to rock and roll,  because its a modified head i cant run conventional dissy and rotor either, which would of been a way round it for now!

sad times!

a couple of pics of the mani and silencer and with the rad  and bellmouths, nice garage ornament for the next couple of months!

[Iancider]

Sorry to hear about the problem,

I know little about ECU's but have some electronic knowledge.  See the link below this is rather informative.  Inside it is a very simple beast using an EPROM memory chip which contains the program and the mapping all in one chip.  It should be non-volatile memory - in other words the program should still be there without power after years but 11 years is pushing it somewhat.  4-7 years is normally okay.  If you can find an original device that works then the EPROM in that can be removed and simply copied by an electronics workshop  and then just pop-it back in the right way round and try again.   Be careful to keep you hand on a true earth at all times to prevent static damage to the chip.

As the device is so simple it could also be just wiring - check the power and earth to start with. Then check out all of the sensor wires.  Also check for corrosion in the box.  If you see metal salts on the surface invert the box and rub around the circuit with a stiff bristled brush and apply a small squirt of Silicone sprar.

See link http://www.conradscastle.co.uk/Westie/ECU/ecu.htm#diags

Good luck
Ian

[BDMStriker]

thanks for that Ian

Had a good look inside it and the eprom is possibly the only thing thats not coated, the rest seems to have a protective resin on it,

and has an odd oil like residue on it, so not sure if its been water damaged in the past,  the ()6 going by what ive read is about 22 years out of date in the terms of programming and being able to tune to suit,  Ive had a few people mentioned about Emerald Nodiz and Megajolt,  and only Nodiz seem to be the only company that will support the original trigger wheel setup /crank sensor, otherwise its a new triggerwheel which has to be fitted to the crank pulley,

cheers for the help!

[Iancider]

Hi again,

Have a chat with OMEX - I've used their ECU.  From the manual it seems to be pretty versatile and does handle various trigger wheel sensors so it is not hopeless.  It is also possible I think to change the sensor but not the trigger wheel itself so it may not be too difficult once you have got over the shock of having to buy an new ECU.  The problem you currently have is trying to support legacy technology and it is not forgiving of change - newerer ECU's are truly programmable.  From what you say it does look like the programme is gone from the EPROM being unpowered for so long but if you can clone another EPROM it could well work still.  If you can find a doner EPROM I could find a source that might copy it for you.

Regards
Ian

[BDMStriker]

Finally had it all wired up and running!

The vid seems to make it sound like an old 1.1 fiesta engine! 


feels such a milestone getting its heartbeat back, advance settings and fueling needs trimming but for a first run in 12 years after rebuild i think it ran quite well!

['The Gaffer']

Seems to be running pretty smooth, and no smoke too

[Moleman]

It is nice to hear it running for the first time.     It sounded ok too. Mine was rough as houses the first time. 

[Iancider]

Good news - I've enjoyed watching the build - good result!

[BDMStriker]

Not really given much of an update up to now..


Bodywork was ordered and collected from Raw Direct,  Fantastic Bunch of guys & true Petrolheads at heart.. fantastic seeing the home where theyre initially built


decided on a 1 piece rear tub all in white... now the difficult bits done wireing dash and interior for the summer!







Apart from a  few gel cracks... on the side mounts to the ally panel on one side, i am amazed how versatile fibreglass is,, especially cutting out the exhaust etc

the front arches arent fitted and just resting on the tyres, so not a bad fitment!

[Moleman]

That's looking nice mate. The manifold cut out's look like they was tricky & time consuming to do? 

[BDMStriker]

Cheers mate!

as for the Mani cutout not bad at all really, took all in about 30 mins,  had the added bonus that i kept a template of the old bonnets cutout, transferred it iver and got busy with the dremel . small disc cutter followed by barrel sander to finish it off

feel like ive done 10 rounds with a pack of loft insulation mind!

hoping ot get it down to a BKCC meet once back road legal, give it a good shakedown from doncaster too!

[Iancider]

BDM - its looking good
Ian

[Bulldog Bri]

Tidy job so far. Enjoy the wiring. 

['The Gaffer']

Good update, keep em coming.

[BDMStriker]

short but sweet update, made a backing plate/cluster for the read lights,, gives it a different look for a kit, droppled the old 7" fronts for a 5"3/4 set in matt black too

progress, should be MOT time in the next month or so

[Iancider]

It has some real style - love the lights