'86 Capri Turbo

[Rusted Pistons]

Well, the Capri has around 600 miles under it's belt from commuting. I'm happy to say - no dramas to report!

It's quite noisy in there due to the stripped out rear (can't remember if i mentioned I've taken the back seats and trim out) so I may play with a bit more insulation soon.

Next job is TCAs. It has uprated bushes but i doubt they're fitting nicely - going to fit a pair of new TCAs with uprated rubber bushes for a little more give. The steering is very shakey at 30-50mph. It's made worse by braking due to slightly warped discs so that's job number two. Might use the Cav as my daily again soon and start taking the TCAs off ready for when the new ones arrive. Some pics after getting a bit of shine back from the alloys yesterday:

[GT4ME]

Very menacing.

[heathrobinson]

I've been talking to an acoustic engineer mate, who thinks he's worked out a way of getting a spray-on acoustic insulation that won't cost too much. If it works out we'll be getting a trial load of it, to see how it goes, so I'll let you know what gives when it turns up. Fingers crossed it'll be fairly simple, not too heavy, and easy to get into awkward places like doors etc.

[initialg]

Awesome... just awesome !!!

[Rusted Pistons]

I've got loads of work to do for tomorrow, so naturally, I went for a leasurly drive instead. Lovely evening and all that. Nothing to report, other than a couple more pictures

[Rusted Pistons]

Still going strong - it's a new record! Couple of things that spring to mind:

It really needs a better diff, for some reason it's struggling with traction in the dry too (I'm sure it didn't used to). In the wet, the very slightest hint of boost and one wheel will start spinning and it'll red line in about half a second! the dry is loads better but i can feel one wheel trying to go in 1st and second when i give it a good pasting. I have a welded diff on the shelf but I'm reluctant to fit it.

Maybe there is a little more power now the sensors are doing their jobs properly? I'll have to find a rolling road to get to.

Also, the standard Nissan oil pressure sender is dying. Had a bit of a panic when the light started to come on, the last time that happened, the bearings went My durite oil pressure guage hasn't changed it's readings though - 60-70psi cold idle and 25-30psi hot, happy with that. I've got a new Nissan dial cluster to fit, might help but is probably the sender.

Looking forward to Santa Pod this year, although I worry slightly that the sticky track will snap a half shaft off the line in 1st - unsure how I'll launch it.. 1st lasts about 1 second and is very violent, maybe a 2nd gear launch would be an idea?

[mrluke]

Welder is pretty antisocial at low speeds, but makes a massive difference to traction good to hear she's still going strong

[Rusted Pistons]

Yeah, that's the reluctance! Can't afford a proper diff so they're my only two options.

In other news, still using it daily!

Had a couple of issues. One being that the oil pressure light started to flicker when it was getting warm. The last time that happened the big end bearings spat their dummies out :/

I have a pressure gauge too, but it was reading healthily. Although the needle has a tenancy to stick a little, a tap on the face seems to settle it.

It would only happen as the oil warmed up and only at low revs but it was getting worse... i worried the pump wad failing, or that there wasn't much oil left in the sump. If you know these engines, you'll know that reading the dipstick is a dark art. I kept checking it, but it kept telling me all was well. So there was a problem somewhere!

this is what was happening:



at the same time as this:



I wouldn't have used it like this, but i had to as the Cavalier's in the middle of a carb conversion.

Now, 30ish psi at hot idle seems very healthy to me, but the oil pressure light didn't think so! One of them was lying, and i couldn't be sure that the level was correct either. Soooo, I bought a new oil pressure switch from driftbitz, 5 litres of 10/40 (I was running 15/40, more on that on a mo) and an oil filter.

[Rusted Pistons]

Curiouser and curiouser.



The oil pressure sender appeared to be weeping a little oil. And it was very black! It'd been coming up golden on the stick and I haven't done many miles on this sumpfull. Anyway, I drained the oil and removed the switch (bloomin' tight!) huge as well - 27mm spanner required, seems overkill somehow?! Cleaned the mating surface and bunged on a new copper washer with the new switch.

Always satisfying... excuse the still unwrapped loom - I'm reluctant to wrap it yet in case i have more wiring issues and have to trace any more faults. I've done 30 miles a day in it for a month though....

[Rusted Pistons]

Fired her up...

let it get warm, no light!



Slightly higher pressure.. Could have been slightly low due to the switch weep.



All good

On to the grade. When it's cold, the lifters don't like 10/40. They tap for about 5 seconds before quietening down. They were silent with 15/40. I'll monitor the situation!

The day after the repair, at Oulton Park:

[Rusted Pistons]

It didn't take me 4 hours though in case you spotted the time on the dials!

Eagle eyed readers will also notice that the cluster is new - the temp, speedo and tacho didn't work on the old ones so i picked a new cluster up from someone on SXOC.

And on to the current issue! The steering has become horrendous! It tramlined a little at first (when back on the road) and had a very faint vibration at certain speeds. Over the past month using it as a daily this has developed into a very violent shake and a tendency to follow anything it likes on the road. White lines, ruts, cracks - in short, it's horrible! Had a good root around when sorting the switch and i can't see anything obviously at fault. Previous experience tells me it'll be the inner bushes in the TCAs but I don't want to go to the trouble and expense of fitting them if it's not! Going to get the tracking done this week, as i know it's out from the state of the tyres. I'll take our from there and report back!

[Rusted Pistons]

Still using this daily - still have nasty feeling steering!

I've ordered a pair of heavy duty track control arms to see if i can sort this issue. I'm guessing having lowered the front that there is extra pressure on the bushes. The last time i changed then i fitted poly bushes but it clearly hasn't worked as I've only done about 5000 miles on then and they're worse than ever! New ones have the following mods:


1. Inner bush housing increased diameter to 43mm.
2. Heavy Duty `I` section ribs increased thickness to 7.3mm.
3. Ball joint housing increased diameter to 43mm.
4. Section ball joint housing to main body increased to 17mm.
5. Inner TCA bore fully machined to accept Polysport / Race or heavy duty rubber bushes.
6. Outer TCA bore fully machined to accept Polysport / Race bushes or compression strut cone & link.
7. Extended thread length on taper pin.
8. Neoprene dust seal with deep retention groove.
9. Supplied with heavy duty outer TCS rubber bushes fitted.

I'm hoping that the steering and front end in general will feel better than ever after fitting these bad boys.

Random fleet shot:



Also, I'm looking into proper brakes! the 2.8i stuff - even drilled with EBC pads and braided hoses, just doesn't cut the mustard. I'm side stepping the servo upgrade and looking at body diameter disks and 4 pot calipers. I've seen some conversions using Fiat Coupe Turbo calipers so in looking into that at the moment. I've decided to sell the Cavalier to help fund the brake upgrade and I'm maybe going to look into a 2 wheel drive conversion too - not a weldy one though! brakes first..

Oh, and here it is being a Practical Performance Car again!:

[Rusted Pistons]

So the TCAs landed on Friday, i sorted stuff out for work on Saturday freeing up today for some tinkerage. The outer bushes came fitted, for some unknown reason, the inners were seperate.



They're made of heavy duty rock hard rubber too, so needed some force to fit.






Success! Who needs a hydraulic press, when you've got a 40 year old bench vice?

A ratchet and strap came in extremely handy for taking the pressure out of the anti-roll bar.



Old and new




Fairly straightforward job, with no hitches really. The ones that came out did feel slack (even though they were poly bushes) so i was quietly confident the awful steering shake might be better....

It only bloomin fixed it! It feels better than it ever has in the 13 years I've owned it! really positive, responsive and tight steering with no shake or vibration whatsoever. It's literally transformed the handling, it really feels like a completely different car! My mate had a go and was well impressed.

[Rusted Pistons]

So, after a successful morning, I carried on with the tinkering. Nothing major but lots of nice little achievements.

Fitted some sound proofing in the back and gave the boot area and where the rear seats used to be a coat of paint, bolted my new fire extinguisher in place, tidied up some interior parts and trimmed the old Range Rover boot mat so it fitted better. Just satisfying little bits!

[meltedcheese]

Great weekend of progress Wolly!

[PhoenixCapri]

Looking good, may have to get a set of those TCAs for Lauren's Capri, as it's got something odd about it, no vibration though just feels a bit vague

[LDM-Mk2]

Looking good - well done!

[Rusted Pistons]

Thanks fellas - a very satisfying weekend's work!

You should definitely get a pair dude, the transformation was ridiculous! I had poly bushes, brand new springs, decent tyres and the tracking was freshly done before fitting them, but it was like night and day!

[Knugcab]

That's about the meanest Capri I've seen, lovin' it!

[conair]

Absolute beast and on my to one day meet list, awesome fella, love seeing it used and enjoyed, i'm not the biggest Capri fan but this is the exception to the rule as its spot on.