ca18det based mk indy and iva this year

[Iancider]

Hi Swampy,

The only complication on the switch illumination is the rear fog light indicator switch.  It should only illuminate when it is turned on (night or day) and it should be amber.  This one is often missed by the testers but some will be pedantic about it.  So at night you won't be able to find the fog light switch so that is as another way to look at it!

Regards
Ian

[Iancider]

I noticed on Ian's westie that he drove around yesterday the front wishbones ( didn't see the rears ) are also made from ovalised tube ... is this standard on westfields and do they have problems i wonder ?

If there is a problem they haven't told me but the wheels haven't come off yet! The rears are also ovalised.

I had a probe around and there are some failures out there but it seems to be where the wrong materials have been used and it appears to be track day braking loads that cause the biggest risk of failure.

Ian

[Swampy]

When filling out the forms for the IVA test what receipts exactly have people sent through with the application letter.
I do not have the donor car receipts nor do i have the chassis receipt. Ive got loads from general items through the build and a crap load of pictures.
Also can some one tell me what forms need to fill out. I got these a few years ago and want o make sure they are still the right ones.



I have IVA4 (amateur built declaration) and IVA 1C (application for individual vehicle approval) filled out.

Do i need a confirmation of vin number from the DVLA also (i have just made up a 17 digit number as had no response from the DVLA originally)?

[Iancider]

It is not a disaster if you don't have the original donor receipts but it does raise the risk of you getting a Q plate.  you should be able to link the engine number to the VIN plate recorded at DVLA and if you scrapped it there will be a valid record.  if you bought it from scrap ou would have a problem with provenance.  Have you caught the VIN number in any of you photos - you could recover it that way or have you glass left with it etched on?

Good luck
Ian

[Swampy]

Nut caps are slowly turning up from ebay, have got some grill alluminium to cover the front side exits, started making handbrake and gear stick gaiters last night out of alacantara but now starting a buisy time at work so it all slows down again. Still looking for advise on IVA application papers. Im aiming for a Q plate as it will suit my car in that it isnt new and it is odd.

[Bulldog Bri]

Maybe give the DVLA another call about your VIN number. You don't need to worry about the build up form till registering. All they need for the IVA is the IVA application form and that can be filled in on online then printed to send. You will need a valid VIN number on the form and on your chassis for the test.

[Swampy]

THE SYSTEM WORKS ... well so far ... I went on the delve website to check out to see how to apply for a new vin or hopefully register my selected numbers. It suggests there will be a three day wait for some one to respond and what do you know some one did ... and on a Saturday!!!



Have sent a response week see how it goes

[Swampy]

So IVA this year may have nearly escaped my grasp... its amassing how the time flys ... Since my last post back in February I've been busy with work ... When you work away from home its not even like you can potter in the garage to get things done of an evening. However with that said the car has undergone a significant transformation ahead of the IVA test (date of test still unknown).

With the engine having sat around and not done a lot since its ejection from the donor car i decided that i would indeed rebuild it before the test. I was concerned about the internal condition of the engine and on disassemble i was right to do so. The water galleries were full of rusty gunk from different years. The mechanical internals were "the best seen" due to engine rebuilder Dave Yandell, which was a nice thing to hear. I left a deposit and instructions for a complete overhaul with the addition of forge pistons.



The rebuild took approx. 1 month and so i took the time to buy some other goodies for its re installation in sept / oct time.

A new turbo was purchased with meant a new down pipe and turbo - intercooler pipe to be made. I bought a turbo housing to v band adapter which i am pleased with currently. Well see how it lasts when up to temperature and on the road. A mandrel bent pipe was bought for the down pipe instead of cutting and welding straight pipe to produce a curve. The out come was a lot tidier than the first attempt. Added lambda sensor and v-band clamps at both end provide a really nice and easy to install system. With everything getting tight inside the chassis with slightly bigger turbo housing i bought some poly bush engine mounts to stop the engine moving and fouling on its surroundings.



The injectors were ultrasonic cleaned just to complete the freshen up on the engine side, with matched and good spray patterns being the end result.

A crack in the inlet manifold was found and so repaired, shot blasted and sprayed before re fitment to the engine.

A new ecu map was bought from horsham developments to accommodate for the new modifications.



A new clutch was ordered and because of the weight differences between the donor car and the kit car i decided on a lightened flywheel. Having fitted and run the engine the flywheel does give bad idling characteristics with the car at static and droping from higher revs. I hope that i can change this in the future with a change in the map, time will tell. The raving of the engine is a lot free'er with the new wheel.

[Swampy]

Other engine related extras include a relocation of the oil filter (again for space restrictions) and an acusump system, however this will not be put on for the iva it will go on after the engine has been run in.

Re fitment of the engine went smoothly as if someone had thought about how it would go in an out when they built it

First engine fire up (of the re built engine) went without a hitch and the recommendation to swap to evans waterless coolant has proved successful so far with temperatures at least 8 degrees lower and a lot more consistent in fan response at static.

Now the list of pre IVA jobs is being worked through ... interior trim such as gear stick and handbrake gators have been finished off by making aluminium surrounds and then wrapped in the same matte metallic brown colour as the body.

Both cycle wings have now been fitted and look great in my opinion. for the iva i will need to add wheel spacers due to the wings being made to fit the new wide wheels rather than the old stock wheels. The new wheels and tyres don't quite fit underneath but this was always going to be the case.

Both wing mirror mounts are now fixed in place although I'm still not sure of how good the motorcycle mirrors look.

Fule pipes have been changed from silicone items to bs stamped rubber pipes.

Vin number has been applied for AGAIN due to lack of correspondence from the DVLA (this only happened this week so updates will come for that hopefully within the next two weeks).
On asking for information this time round all members of DVLA staff on the phone were very helpful. Time will tell ...

The IVA test may get booked for early Dec ... Vin number and availability depending. I intend on it failing but just so i can at least have a list of things to change rather than unknowingly be chasing things in my head that may or may not be correct.

After trying to fit the dash and steering column together it seems I've missed a step somewhere as they do not fit together well... With the lack of radius along the bottom edge for IVA knee protection this may require a re design ... but at least the current dash will give me a start point and template for the components i wish to attach to it.

Current pics of the car as it stands are thus...

[sanzomat]

Looking great. Some really nice details. One to be proud of and I bet it'll fly. Hope the IVA goes well.

[Moleman]

They are both looking good.    Hope it all goes well.

[Iancider]

Good to hear from you again Swampy and to see it going so well!

Regards
Ian

[Swampy]

Over the weekend i have been looking at ways to improve the dash for a couple of reasons.
1. to pass the IVA radius
2. to integrate it with the steering column

The radius for the IVA is fairly straight forward, however integrating the dash sucsessfully with the column i found harder.
I was going to use the original nissan cowling but it does not lend itself to good fitment and doesn't match any of the other interior plastics. So a new solution was found.
I used a piece of 110 clear tube that i had and shaped it to fit around the column and relevant switches. Using the clear plastic helped as i could see what was behind it before cutting allowing me to draw directly on to it in marker before i cut.

I will wrap the surround in a satin black vinyl to mach the rest of the interior when i am satisfied it all fits.

Having made a new surround the dash hole i had created for the nissan item was massive and would require "amending".

I had made the original dash from aluminium and wrapped it with a good looking metal based carbon effect wrap and then covered it with a polycarbonate sheet to protect the dash gauges.

It had always bugged me and was never quite right in my eyes.
So last night i template the dash on Illustrator and in about 3 attempts made a template that i can use on a new dash.


The new idea to make a dash is to buy a sheet of 6mm polycarbonate and apply this template to the top. It should reduce the weight of the old aluminium dash and with the template matching up the old dash and fixings it should fit into place as though nothing has changed! Thats the theory anyway.

Will buy sheet this week and update on situation next weekend

[Bulldog Bri]

Looking good. And best of luck with the IVA

['The Gaffer']

Great detailed write up

What figures are you expecting from the map?

[Swampy]

Great detailed write up

What figures are you expecting from the map?

Horsham sugest that the car will produce between 260 and 280 bhp with chip and relevant modifications but do not give a torque figure.
The engine standard power is 180 bhp or so i believe which is fairly low for a Japanese turbo engine.

We will see, once the engine is run in i will take it to horsham for a final tune.

See below the link for there website.
http://www.h-dev.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=5030

['The Gaffer']

Great detailed write up

What figures are you expecting from the map?

Horsham sugest that the car will produce between 260 and 280 bhp with chip and relevant modifications but do not give a torque figure.
The engine standard power is 180 bhp or so i believe which is fairly low for a Japanese turbo engine.

We will see, once the engine is run in i will take it to horsham for a final tune.

See below the link for there website.
http://www.h-dev.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=5030

I would imagine that would be a mid to upper range tune and probably ideal for the car, much more that and the car would probably be a handful to keep on the road due to the light weight... Should be fun

[Swampy]

Some progress this week. The polycarbonate turned up and it seems i went a bit mad and now have enough for two dashes ... at least it gives me a back up.
Ive finalised the nissan dial sillouette and have pretty much got the steering column hole in the right place ... I decided enough was enough and that i should actually make something instead of computer drawing. So here is the end results. Ive used a 3m silver Brushed metal for the dash instead of the origional carbon. I liked the effect and had some spare from work earlier in the year. I backed the perspex with a black gloss vinyl to stop the behind view of unwanted dash components. This seems to have worked well and adds depth to it. I have also pinstriped where the gauges show through in satin black just to make a crisp edge to the design. I will cut a steering column hole using a jigsaw when i am 100% i know where its going. Will use a scrap vinyl template using the square circle and star as reference. Its not been easy but has givem a different to the norm option wich i like. Need to work out how im going to radius the bottom "knee" edge for the iva and if its a good solution ill keep it for the future. i though i had an idea but its not ideal so looking for other options. Your advise is welcome !


Will be fitting the dash back in towards the end of this week... am still waiting for dvla responce to vin its only been a week i guess .

[Swampy]

So a year (plus some) has passed since i started this build blog now wrongly named "ca18det based indy and IVA THIS YEAR . At least for the first time now its booked in for an IVA 23.03.16

Have a couple of things to report.
Firstly to start from where i left off last, the dash is now complete and ready for IVA inspection. The tempting paid off and a sticker was made from brushed aluminium effect vinyl wrap and applied. Necessary holes were cut in pre designed places, so repetition of a new dash can be made without moving components.



I added a black backing to the clear perspex so that additional light or other components couldn't bee seen by looking sideways through the sheet.



I used the standard 200sx dash components to facilitate the majority of the engine running with the addition of three stack gauges to the left hand side, oil pressure, boost pressure and a water temp gauge, which also has a micro switch built in that can be set to turn on the rad fan (through relay).
I bought some polycarbonate pipe and managed to bend the end to follow the curve on the rhs of the dash. I did this by inserting a silicon pipe inside (to support the molten plastic) the perspex and then heating it and bending it as suited. It worked very well. I curved the rhs of the dash to allow easier access to the ignition barrel.
The pipe was then cut down its length carefully enough to allow it to slot onto the bottom of the new dash. This i will keep after the IVA but is not a large enough radius to pass the knee protection requirements on its own. So i will add additional pipe cladding covered in a premium tape (tessa tape) which will give a good effect that looks permanent and will keep the pipe cladding securely fastened to the dash rail.



I was not sure how to approach the steering column shroud and i wanted something that would look like it was supposed to be there rather than on some kit cars with just look like an after thought. As i had got on well with the other polycarbonate parts i chose to do the same in this area. I took a measurement of the widest part of the stalk switch gear and bought a pipe with the same diameter and a length to match from the steering wheel down to the bulk head.
I carefully measured and drew on cut outs to the pipe and machined it using my pencil grinder. Because i bought clear pipe it was easy to see where i had to open up any holes or indeed where to start new holes. My intention was to then wrap it in black vinyl to match the rest of the interior trim, also covering any mistakes or scratches made.



This pipe would solve a lot of under steering column IVA radius requirements and although it is offset to the steering wheel centre as you look at it from the drivers seat it does not look out of place more finishes off the area nicely.

I added some bobbins to the ends of my milage trip and dash clock switches with protrude and would have stupidly failed the radius test at IVA.

When all mounted and secured to the mk scuttle it seems to all feel sturdy as would hope and i think looks in keeping with the car. Its a different approach and i will only know if it looks right when i finally get it out of the garage and parked next to other kit cars.

[Swampy]

Extra modifications for the IVA test have been to swap the new front rims to the rear so they sit comfortably under the arches, and stick the original 200sx rims on the front. New rubber was bought for these and suitable spacers to take up the offset built into the arch mounts. This is not the cheapest way round the problem but it did solve it for now... although it does look strange and a bit like a hover craft.



With the car all in one piece i booked the car into a local garage to see if i could get an idea of a couple of problems i may encounter at the IVA centre. With the help of a friend (my current broken back and ankle not ideal at the moment) we drove or rather he drove us down yesterday in the very wet.

I wanted to...
1.Check the Brakes so i could finalise a position for the bias bar and immobilise it pre IVA.
2.Check the headlight alignment as i had herd of failures with the dominator style lights.
and
3.Check the emissions based on the new information from nissan who have now confirmed that the production date of the engine is 07.09.1993 and registration of donor car is 31.05.1994.

Firstly the brake rollers was an issue... I mentioned that the sump was the lowest point on the car and with it being sat right in the centre of the front track we should watch as the car drove into the rollers... sure enough the tester didn't and couldn't understand why one wheel wasn't reading correct... sure enough we were balancing on the sump (i wasn't very happy). Still no damage done and worse things have happened. We jacked up the ride hight and tried again and much to my disappointment the brake rollers started playing up and then was informed that "someone was coming to look at them after the weekend and would i mind coming back" ... again not great but thats how things are.
So we moved onto headlight alignment and as suspected the dominator lights provided a more flat beam pattern then standard uk headlamps. However the beam did also flick up slightly to the RHS.

Has anyone had any problem with dominator headlights going through the current IVA test. I'm happy to put through an american style flat beam unit as its in the IVA manual but would rather go down there with something thats trying to pass.

Lastly we put the car through the emissions test. Im still not sure about if the car requires a cat or not as I'm sure the donor car would have had one fitted as standard. But through listening to the folks on here in another post they have said that my dates should pass a "Non Cat test". I think there is a bit of a leak on one of my V band connectors after the turbo so i will address that as its throwing the lambda reading off. But also my carbon monoxide reading was high. This could be down to a couple of factors.

1. if my v band is leaking then it could be changing the lambda sensor reading and therefore sending in more fuel then is needed.
2. the garage could have been doing the wrong test (forgot to note down the readings at the time as my back was hurting so more concentrating on that).
3. the new map in the ecu could be sending more fuel through on idle (but i doubt that would be the case)
4. my lambda sensor could be faulty.
Ill start with the possible exhaust leak and work outwards from there.

Ill be popping back to the garage next week for a re test of these items and will take some pics to try to solve these areas before i head to the IVA test on the 23rd...

On the trip to the garage my "test driver" had noticed that although he could lock the wheels, the brake pedal was very hard. I have always thought this but also put the feeling down to being non servo assisted. On researching the issue i feel the only way to solve the hard pedal it to move the master cylinders lower down the pedal, nearer to the pivot point allowing a greater pressure ratio. My master cylinders are the smallest i can get at .625 or 5/8 so i can't down size anymore. The clutch too is a hard pedal and so if i have time in the next two weeks before the test i may make another bulkhead to lower both brake and clutch master cylinders further. I have done this once already and its beginning to look a bit messy behind the pedals so the would clear this aesthetic up also.



Time is certainly ticking down now !!!

[Iancider]

Swampy,

Most people find the pedal on a kit car hard because they are used to servos - you just get used to it.  Not sure what callipers you have but if he feel concerns you in future you could move more fluid and soften the pedal by using multiple pot callipers with the existing master cylinder.  Callipers getting bigger instead of making the master smaller.

If you are concerned at getting the mapping just right and definitively finding the fault you could try Dave Griffiths at Interpro in Thornbury - that would be followed with a rolling road test for the definitive result.

Good luck Ian
Hope you back recovers soon

[Swampy]

Cheers Ian, good suggestion on the brakes and emissions. Have looked today at the exhaust and managed to get a better seal on the v band clamps will check on the emissions tester again later this week.
With regards to the Brake feel i have a set of 4 pot callipers to upgrade to (from an s14 model 200sx). The current s13 model callipers are single pot so as you suggested this should provide some relief. However alongside the brakes the clutch too is quite a hard press and after the improvement i had earlier in the year with lowering its position by about an 35mm i would strongly consider doing it again.
I have all the material to do so, its just if i can get into the tight space now everything else is in place and if i can get the time to do it before the IVA on the 23rd. I think it would be worth it, my current peddle ratio is a poor 3.33:1 ratio not a 5+:1 which would be more ideal. The only problem i can see currently is that if i lower the master cylinders i will need to make sure that i have enough room left to fit the push rods in (cut down possibly) between the pedal and the bulkhead.

Whilst doing the emissions test the car seemed to puke a bit of coolant. Today I managed to find the source of two leaks, nothing serious just a bit more tightening needed on the jubilee clips. Ill keep an eye on them all over the next week before heading back on the road.
The emissions test was the first time the engine was brought up to a higher temperature. The fan cut in as needed and kept the coolant at a steady 97 deg c at high idle. Pressure obviously increased enough at this temp to leak at the two points. The evans waterless coolant does seem to be doing its job and i believe it would have boiled if it was standard antifreeze and water mix. I'm happy with this for the moment as obviously no air was passing over the rad or engine so the temps should stay like this or cooler when travaling.

[Swampy]

Just found this government "DVSA help to pass IVA guide" whilst looking about for IVA pass info on google.

possibly useful but has been talked about on here too at length I'm sure.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/individual-vehicle-approval-iva-for-cars-help-to-get-a-pass/individual-vehicle-approval-iva-for-cars-help-to-get-a-pass

[Iancider]

Swampy,

This is a good and helpful guide but relatively new.  It is so much easier to understand in this pictorial way.  It explains why it is important.  The dome test can be easily simulated with a ball of the right diameter. 

Ian

[Facial Hair Optional]

Well that 7 in the 1st picture is never going to pass, it is clearly not yellow enough 

[Swampy]

Just a mention here (for anyone following the build) to the work ive done on sorting out my bump steer.

http://bristolkitcarclub.co.uk/smf2/index.php?topic=4635.0

Just a cheap way to get an idea of what my car was doing and a mod to suit it.

[damouk]

Well that 7 in the 1st picture is never going to pass, it is clearly not yellow enough 

I think for a first time pass it needs to be Orange and black / carbon wrap

[Swampy]

If a wrap is all it takes to pass then pfffshshhh i'll piss it

Last thing to adjust on the front end is the Brake callipers. As suggested earlier on in the post a change to multi pot callipers from single instead of changing the brake master cylinder would give a better or softer at least brake peddle feel.
I recently acquired some 4 pot callipers from a nissan s14 200sx and as a direct fitment to my s13 uprights and original disc diameter size they provide to be a near perfect solution. They are made from steel but no heavier then the originals however. In future if i was feeling flush a set of aluminium versions of the same 4 pot calliper are available from the Z32 300ZX twin turbo.
I say nearly perfect upgrade ... i had a slight pants pooping moment when i tried to fit the standard nissan alloys over the new 4 pots and they rubbed ... NO GOOD... however the new bbs style alloys i intend on using after the IVA did fit much t my relief and with the spacers needed to fit the nissan alloys under the cycle wings they will be fine just for the IVA test.

They also look better then the four pots and with the NISSAN exposed on the casting it gives the keen eyed observer something to think about with the bonnet closed.

[Swampy]

IVA FAIL WOOOPIEEEE!!!!

I am actually glad ... couple of reasons,
1. With my current health situation i didn't think i would be able to walk as soon as i have been able to and therefore get to the IVA itself. I took along two friends who shared the driving for me and performed as test monkey for the test whilst i gave instructions.
2. Its so much easier then its made out to be ... there is a lot of hype about how hard the test is but if you follow the book and use some common sense whilst building (bearing in mind some things may come off after test) its a very achievable test.
3. I now have a list of "errors" to amend (not to long either) rather then trying to second guess the tester without having met him.

The test (in Avonmouth) took about 3.5 - 4 hours, its my opinion it could have been a lot quicker then this but i was happy that they did it at their speed rather then push them. A bit of banter between the tester my friend and myself certainly made the experience more enjoyable and he was very clear and helpful when it came to areas of failure or concern. He had very reassuring comments about my build which was a complement.
Showing up on time with a clean and complete build with plenty of documentation was a massive plus. It showed confidence and a pro active approach that is apparently lacking when people come to the centre, therefore started us off on a good foot.

So the failures.
(I will post pictures and my amendments with details when i have completed them all)

1. Service brake control (foot brake).
The bias bar was not locked and with the intention to set it at the centre if it was the only fail. Roll pins is the preferred method of fixing and is easy to do. Further to this is a balance failure that will need to be amended before re test. I had tried to do a brake roller test at the local MOT garage but their rollers were not working properly and so i chose to accept failure at the test in order to fix the problem properly.

2. Hydraulic and vacuum systems.
Basically i could not prove that the non pressure brake fluid pipe from brake reservoir to master cylinder was suitable for brake fluid. It is and i will be calling earls to ask for a spec sheet of the pipe. I may have to buy a meter just to prove it is the same pipe.

3. Brake performance.
The rears are locking before the fronts. In an attempt to fix this problem or at least improve the front braking efficiency days before the test I fitted a set of four pot calliper to the front (increasing piston area overall from originals). However this did not have the desired effect as the master cylinder also needed changing to compensate for the extra piston area and therefore actually made the rears lock even sooner then fronts. Therefore the standard callipers were again fitted with acceptance that they would probably cause a fail.
I will re fit the four pots and find the correct master cylinders over the next couple of weeks and test on a working set of rollers along with locking the bias bar before i go for re test.

4. Interior fittings.
The ecu which is in the passenger foot well (roof) did not conform with the radius test. Along with the inside sides of the scuttle panel protruding further then the chassis rails. Both an easy fix.

5. Exterior projections.
My adaptation of mc pherson strut to double wishbone part did not have a radius to suit requirements. An annoying fail as it would not cause an issue to some one walking into the car but a rule is a rule and it has to be changed.

6. Speedometer.
I can't remember it ever not working but there again i can't clearly remember it working. On the way to the test i did notice that it wasn't working which was bummer but the tester reassured me that as i had used all parts from a single donor car with no ratio change any where it should pass when re tested and suggested i GPS tested it before hand.

7. Statutory Plates.
This was a F£%@er! I had once welded in and then un-welded a vin plate to the chassis after the DVLA said i was unable to chose my own Vin plate (classic case of ask the correct questions to the right people and don't believe everything written in forums). When i finally got a DVLA issued Vin number i welded it in seam welded all-round so not easy to remove.
When we got to the test the first thing checked was the Vin and plates. The one in the chassis has to be on the RHS of the car !!! It is written in the IVA book and i missed it. I intact put it in the passenger footwell to save it getting stood on every time the driver got in and out. Forgetting you can see it from the right hand side it is technically in the wrong place and again rules are rules and it needs to be changed! The car may end up having two (of the same) Vin numbers in, one for British rule and another for the european market

8. Rear Fog lamp.
Again another common sense failure from the rule book writers. The tester failed the fog light and pointed it out as he did so. I was confused as i had checked the measurement knowing it was only on there for the IVA test and would be integrated into the rear lights after test. The minimum height of the fog light is 250mm from floor. Mine sits at about 220mm but the light top is at 300mm so 50 mm in the allocated area. The tester said that the light emitting area of the light must conform to the rules. I asked if the Fog light has a required size to which "No" was the answer. I asked if blocked the light from inside the lens would this be sufficient (as it would still retain the E mark on the outside)? "Yes" was the response. A complete farce in my opinion even more so considering as the name suggests the FOG light will be used in the FOG and in said FOG the measurement to floor hight will not be easily seen due to the wall of red cloud behind the kit car driving through the low altitude water mass.
An easy fix but annoying.

THATS IT !

Now, after leaving the test i realised that without the speedo test (which i presume is done part on rollers and part in the car park) a self centring test was also not carried out. As i informed the tester that the speedo wasn't working the only time we went outside was to test noise. Technically the car hasn't failed on this and so shouldn't be retested but if the car does go outside with the tester i don't want it to fail if it is not sufficient enough. My indy is not the standard Sierra setup and so does have some self centring, it currently also has some over centre issues near full lock and its my opinion that these would not aid a pass. I will look into it and have rose jointed wishbones to add more caster if needed and to be on the safe side.



Was brilliant to get the car on to the road legally and straight out of the box wasn't a bad first effort (even if it has taken 10 years to get this far !!!). Its a hobby not a chore though. Got a couple of quick snaps and some camera car assisted video shots. With me in the van filming it was a overwhelming site hearing and seeing the car accelerate towards us and when throttle left off the chatter from the turbo was a cherry on top.

[benchmark51]

Thats the worst of it done though. You now have a list of things to do which is ok, but have an even bigger list of things that you don't have to do! Like the driving test, there's a lot of b****cks involved. As soon as you pass, you can more or less do your own thing.

[sanzomat]

Yes, that's not a bad list to have to work through - all seems do-able. When is the restest?

[damouk]

Not a bad result at all, Tony down there is a nice chap, and like you said, I think if there was a lot wrong with your car it would take a lot longer as he does explain what they manual says and what needs to be done to fix it. He would have checked your mirrors outside as well when he did the sound check, and part of manoeuvring into position he would have seen some degree of steering self centring, which I believe is all that is needed.

I'm not sure about your brake theory, are you sure you have the front and rear master cylinders round the right way? If you put bigger pistons on the front then they will give more effort than the ones they replaced, you won't have any gain if you change the master to a larger one as well. I have a great spread sheet for calculating brakes (not created by me) if you want it. Don't forget the total piston area will need to be divided by two if it is a fixed 4 pot calliper.

We had a similar fail point on fidodido's 2b a couple of weeks ago, the front indicators were too low by 30mm, so a simple fix of bending the bracket up brought they high enough and passed.

Its seems bazar that you can drive a car that you have built from scratch legally on the road with no number plate to the IVA, but in a good way!!

He will only retest the things he failed it on do you should be ok..

[Swampy]

Cheers for the comments chaps ... re test not booked as yet i will ring tomorrow to see what the availability is like then that will at least give me a deadline.
When I've added the four pots to the front the pedal was completely different (softer). The master cylinder (both front and back are .625) was not large enough meaning that the fluid for the rears had pushed through and rear brakes were on and the fronts had hardly moved in the same pedal moment.

But yes, everything is achievable and should be done in a couple of weeks (he says).

[Iancider]

Well done Swampy!

I think I am the only member to have seen this car in the flesh so far and I know how much care you have taken and what a beautiful job you have made of it.  As Damouk said they will only retest the (minor) items you failed on.  I am guessing you are going back for a correction re-test and it was not a complete fail.  So if it is the former it is a bit like advisories on an MoT but on this one occasion they have to be done before it gets its certificate.  Your timing is also immaculate and you should have it ready for sunny days.

Some things are a little nonsensical but rules are rules.  The one that gets me is the headlights regulation.  The UK fought for its right to use the kick-up to the left on the dipped beam but in Europe that is not acceptable AND we have to put deflectors on the headlights when we go there.  The Europeans have dip-down headlight beams and can come here protected by EU regulations and drive legally but we are not allowed to do the same under UK regulations!

Good luck with the re-test - Ian

[Moleman]

You should fly through next time mate. Good luck with the retest.