Engine Time

Since the last post, much has changed with the kit build - the engine is in!!! Not jumping ahead too much as there were a few jobs that needed doing before this could 'just' happen. First job was to connect up the gearbox to the engine so it was more or less ready to drop; once the two had been pushed together, this was quite a simple task and when finished looked quite impressive! 

I've also connected up the fuel filler pipe and the registration plate bulb. In addition to this I also changed the rear brake piping, think this might be the 3rd time but I'm finally happy with this! Makes the rear end look so much better.

Other little jobs like giving the engine a clean, removing the old oil filter and fitting the gearbox mount needed to be completed before the engine could go in. I had opted not to purchase the GBS gearbox mount as I had a perfectly good one from the Sierra; the prep of the mount had a slow start but once I cracked how to remove one the old Sierra rivets it was fine.

So all jobs done it was time to start on the lifting and positioning. I was lucky enough to have Mike round to help me with this task - not something that could have been done by 1 person! So on Saturday 4th February we started around 9.30am and by 11am, the engine was lowered in but the gearbox wasn't fitting properly. Again this is another stage in the build where some guidance (or a manual) would be useful from GBS. The issue we had was that the starter motor casing was pressing against the side of the chassis, so after a coffee and then the realisation that we had crushed the steering shaft (oops!) we opted to phone GBS; 30 seconds later I had my answer. Screaming in frustration it's clear - GBS we need a manual!!!!!!!!!

So, engine out, gearbox detached and angle grinder plugged in. I took a corner off the gearbox, unfortunately I forgot to take a photo to help any other builders who may read this. The photo below hopefully shows the general idea!

Once the gearbox had been cut, we reconnected it back up to the engine and lowered it all back into the car. So much easier when doing it for a second time!! This picture shows the engine supported by the engine mounts and the gearbox loosely attached to the gearbox mount. The crane is still in position as I would need to lift it slightly when fitting the engine mounts properly as we had run out of time.

This is how the engine sat until today (11th February) when I found the time to bolt it in properly. I also fitted my new steering shaft, this one is straight and can't have the engine lowered onto it! I have a few days off work coming up, the plan is to attach up the ancillaries. However I have doubts over the Sierra alternator, might be too big - I'll find out soon enough...

Rolling Chassis

It's been a while since I managed to get any significant time on the car due to a combination of illness, holidays and Christmas. At the start of December I decided it was time to drop the car off the stands before it all got too heavy - this is where I encountered a slight problem! Once the nice shiny wheels (which I have managed to pick up off ebay) were on, the rear wheels would lock; odd I thought so I removed the handbrake, tightened the wheels up and once again everything was jammed up. The same would happen with the brake shoes out (drums on - old or new!) so I put it down to a warped drum back plate. After hours spent on the Internet, I found out I should have used a series of spacers, another thing that would have been apparent had GBS put together a manual or full list of parts on the website. Skip through December whilst I waited for the parts, went on holiday and enjoyed Christmas before getting a cold!

My first free weekend of January I got round to fitting the spacers; once tightened up and the rear brakes rebuilt, I could see the results and funnily enough the rear wheels were able to move as I had expected back at the start of December. After this I had to get on with a dull job, tidying the garage.
The second weekend of January I was lucky to have a helpful hand (Jordan) for the whole of Saturday. With the engine planned to go in on 4th February, I had to finish of all of the little jobs that would be best done without a Pinto in the way. I thought the list was ambitious to complete that day but was pleasantly surprised to find that everything got completed:

• Repair engine crane
• Widen steering track rods as my wheels weren't quite right.
• Reconnect NSF top ball joint as the nut hadn't gone on very well originally.
• Shorten steering shaft connector bolt
• Reconnect handbrake following pre-Christmas issues
• Connect the propshaft
• Finish attaching up the loom in the engine bay
• Attach sump
• Take engine off the the stand ready for new clutch & flywheel
• Attach clutch & flywheel

No real complications with any of this except that we managed to fit the flywheel before putting on the metal adaptor plate, soon corrected but disappointed about the wasted time!

Part way through the day once all the 'clean' jobs were done I took the opportunity to get some 'rolling chassis' pictures.

On Sunday I finished off the clutch job by replacing clutch bearing in the bellhousing on the gearbox, messy job but one I was recommended to complete. Again no issues with this and the gearbox is one step closer to being attached!

Rear Panel

When I finished the last blog entry I was just about to embark on the rear panel, here I am 3 weeks later about to report on how this went. To begin with I had the lay the rear end of the wring loom out properly as once the panel was on I wouldn't have the room. Looking at a few other blogs the general concept seemed to be to use cable ties on the fuel tank.

Once this was done I was able to focus purely on the dreaded rear panel. After reading a few blogs I had a fairly good idea of how I was going to approach the task, slowly with lots of care and attention! First off was to attach the U-bend (no other way to describe it!) so that I had an idea where the two bends would be, it also provides an area to clamp to.

Simply repeat the same concept for the driver's side - honestly that simple! When I was happy with the two bends I offered the panel up to the car, seemed to fit OK so I moved onto the next stage - drilling the U-bend and securing to the rear panel. I've gone for a 4 inch gap between the screw holes.

All going well so far, it has taken about a week to get to this stage! Next step is the IVA trim, not only is this a requirement, I think it actually adds something to the overall finish.  I added this with the panel suspended from the car, seemed to go on OK and it saved me having to drop the panel yet again. I started with the trim in the centre and worked out from there.

I couldn't resist at this stage and just had to put the diffuser in place, admittedly held up by an inspection trolley and beer but it's in place! The photos also make it look squint, think my camera skills need to be worked on. After the main part of the panel was complete I had to lay down the 'arch' part of the panel.

Up to this point took me the best part of 2 weeks. From here I moved onto the underside of the rear panel, once the bottom is pushed up and riveted to the chassis the sides are then lined up nicely to properly accept the diffuser. After reading many blogs where the builders attached the bottom of the panel flush with the bottom of the sides I was careful not to make the same mistake.

So, back, underside, arches and top all attached; that just left the wings.  As I had been checking everything lined up as I was going this would be an easy task, in theory. A few rivets and it's all done, again simple! I had a little difficulty on the driver's side with some gentle persuasion I got it lined up properly. This is how the passenger side looks:

And the final end result after almost 3 weeks!

A week off work

With it being half term I thought I'd take some time off work to spend time with Lydia, however with it being Lydia's half term she had decided to meet up with various teacher friends so it meant I had plenty of time to devote to the car!

Since the last post I have fitted both side panels, the car apparently now looks like a fancy boat. Both panels have gone on with quite a bit of ease, Sikaflex used in great quantities and a few rivets which I expect will be hidden once the car is complete.

Monday
I took a trip up to GBS as I needed a few more parts. Not sure if this is due to the build order I've gone with but I was kind of hoping the kit I had originally purchased would have lasted me until nearer Christmas before I had to buy lots more parts. Despite Monday being the day they had returned from the Exeter show they were happy to answer a few questions I had about the brake pipes, although I was more or less happy with my original routing they were able to show me a better route that would retain some kind of neatness. I was also given some tips on fitting the required IVA trim in relation to the front suspension. So in addition the advice I obtained and the parts I collected it was a worthwhile journey, be it just over 7 hours of driving!

A tip to anyone planning a Zero build, think about your build order ahead of ordering the kit as it may save you some journeys or delivery costs! Like many other builders have mentioned, GBS need a build guide.

Tuesday
I got started on the car later than I had planned to, probably due to the journey the day before! The first job of the day was to reroute the nearside front brake based on the advice from GBS, this now goes directly to the tunnel and around the passenger footwell instead of going across the engine bay. The offside front follows a similar route, under the steering column towards the tunnel then into the engine bay down towards the flexihose join. Hopefully the picture explains a little better.



The next job on the list was to start fitting the front wishbones and suspension. This included fitting another set of bushes, I won't go into the detail on these again as it's a dull job and one that requires a certain degree of attention to ensure everything is straight. I decided to start from the bottom up and focus on one side at a time, I'm pleased to say that everything went in place with a certain amount of ease (better than the rear!).

At this stage the steering rack was just placed in the car for storage, fixing this was a job for Thursday. The suspension and wishbones had just been loosely bolted in, I needed to pad out the upper wishbone and upper bracket of the suspension with washers before I could tighten. Again this would a job for Thursday.

Final task for the day was to finish cleaning the front hubs, this job doesn't deserve a photo!

Wednesday

Today was a day off the car, except for a first coat of paint on the hubs and get the front brake calipers in soak ready for cleaning on Thursday.

Thursday

Thursday was always going to be a car day as I had arranged some help from Dave. Before I was joined I managed to get a second coat on the hubs and I cleaned the front calipers. Once the calipers had dried I applied the first coat paint, gone for a matt black which will hopefully look nice against the gunmetal alloys I plan to get.

When Dave arrived we set to work on securing the front end, wasn't a huge task but needed to be done right (and tight). After just over an hour everything was tight, I've included a photo of the suspension to show how it was padded out with washers.

We then set about fixing up the steering rack arms with the lovely IVA covers, these are easier to apply when slightly warmed up. As the photo demonstrates, it may be worth me adding some paint to the end sections of the arms but for now they are done. I also couldn't stop myself from adding a hub unit to the set up.

To finish the day off we secured the steering rack in place, on second thoughts this may need to be adjusted slightly but I'm saving that for another day. Once the steering rack was secured we then fitted the steering shaft from GBS.

Friday

I was on my own again so managed to get to work as soon as I was ready for the day. Started the day by finishing off the brake calipers, these would be ready by the end of the day. After getting some advice from Mike and the Internet I thought I'd tackle the rear shoes. It took just under a couple of hours but I finally got the better of the offside rear, I was mega pleased with myself! So much so that I have to include a photo (admittedly with the drum on). 

With the first drum brake complete I wanted to continue with the good progress but something potentially quicker. I started on attaching the front upper ball joints, only temporarily though as I need the lock nuts. Not letting this stop me I managed to secure everything and ease in the wing bracket with some copper grease - got loads left so I should use it wherever I need it.

Soon after this I managed to replace the front brake pads, took delivery of my new discs (great timing by Parcelforce) and then fitted the whole brake set up.

I finished up on Friday by refitting the other rear drum. The car is really taking shape now and I felt like I had completed some significant tasks. Only downside from the whole week though - the garage (and car) really does need a clean.



Saturday

I cleaned both the garage and car, needed doing and I can now see the floor of the car again. Forgot how smart it all looked.

I had a decision to make, start on the scuttle or the rear panel? Both tasks had a high chance of going wrong so I had to take things slowly. All I did on Saturday was fold in all the tabs courtesy of the garden table.

All in all a good week, according to my original plan I should be in December now.







Fuel Pipes

I only had a couple of hours spare today so I thought I'd focus on fixing in the fuel pipes as far forward as is sensible at the moment. Along with this I also managed to fix up some of the wiring loom and the rear brake pipe (hadn't been properly attached).  To make life easier I made up some brackets from some left over metal.

I'm all set to start drilling and fixing up the side panels ready in time for half term when I can concentrate on the front suspension & steering. Will be planning a trip up to GBS to collect a few parts and take a look at the part builds to see if I can take any inspiration.

Only a short blog as I didn't really do much else on the car. I might need to stick the Dyson round the car soon, it looks a bit of a mess!

Fuel Tank

This weekend I was joined by Mike to specifically tackle the fuel tank, most of the preordered supplies arrived within an hour of Mike arriving and we were then good to go. Starting with the fuel sender, Mike got stuck in and applied the Hylomar Blue Gasket Sealer. After a couple of self tapping screws issues the send unit was in and will hopefully be sealed.

Once we were happy with this join we moved onto the actual placement of the fuel tank, it was also decided that a couple of metal (and sponge) straps would also help with keeping the tank in place. GBS tend to just bond the tank but with a couple of straps then the tank really won't budge! So the straps were made, sponge cut and the Sikaflex laid down. Once the tank was on the car, the straps were finally attached, M8 bolts at the top and two rivets at the bottom as I'm not sure how close the rear panel will be.

Following this it was decided to look at the final placement of all the rear braking lines, Mike made a couple of adjustments but nothing major. Quite pleased that I hadn't got it all completely wrong!! We also laid out the wiring loom, few bits cable tied in for a trial fit but nothing is final by a long way. Mike marked up the nearside body panel for drilling, this will just be screwed in for now. Final task of the day was to fix in the nearside front brake line, riveted and p-clipped in it now looks smart. Once the offside is in I'll add some photos.

After Mike had gone I decided I wanted to play around with my dashboard ideas:

Not doubt I'll revisit this many times over the next few months. Might just build the scuttle and fit the dash so I can view the whole lot!

Thanks for all the help this weekend Mike, fuel tank looks great and you passed on lots of valuable advice. Ta!

Drive shafts & rear brake work

With the October Indian Summer hitting hard this weekend I thought I'd lock myself in the garage and crack on with the build. Saturday started with a messy job, I had to clean the drive shafts ready for painting, joy! In actual fact the back of the rear drums and the drive shafts cleaned up really easily, so out came the paint and they were then done for the day. The engine below looks much cleaner than it really is!

Next task was to finish mounting the master cylinder so I could start connecting up the brake lines. The master cylinder is now in along with the reservoir, I've connected up the rear brake line but it looks a bit messy. May revisit once the other brake lines are in, as a collective they may look good.

Following this task I set about fixing in the passenger foot well, clamped in with a bit of sikaflex I left them to stick overnight. On Sunday I then stuck in the rivets and removed the classy protective film. It's amazing the difference a couple of panels can make to the overall appearance.

Final task on Saturday was to fit the handbrake & cable, this was a relatively easy job and is another tick on the overall plan. I was a bit disappointed my original Sierra handbrake didn't fit the mounts but £60 later for the full GBS kit I was well on my way. It fitted 1st time with no issues, another well built part from GBS.

That was it for Saturday, a good 4 hours in the heat but it felt like good progress. Sunday came about and I was keen to get the painted drive shafts in, I had been advised that a bit of grease would be required so I gloved up ready! Grease on, drums lined up, I was quite surprised that both drive shafts reattached to the diff quite easily. Bolts went in and the job was done, took about an hour but I thought I was going to have more problems. The end result looks great..............

You can also just about see the rear end of the handbrake cable.

After riveting the foot well in place (as above) I then start playing around with some of the scuttle panels, wanted to get a feel of how they will all fit together. It's really a job for another day but its good to plan ahead. Also looked at the steering rack, need to speak to GBS for advice of this as I don't think the Sierra steering rack is quite right, don't seem to fit on the mounts. I decided that I'll give them a ring, also need to ask them about the deceleration valve as used on the Sierra.

To ensure I finished on a high I decided to test fit one of the side panels, fits like a glove, the clamps are there just to make sure it doesn't fall and to help it take some of the shape of the car. Can't really properly fit these until the front brake line p-clips have been drilled but it'll give me an idea of where to aim!

Roll on next weekend when the main job will be the fuel tank, sender and pipes.