RaggedLob's MK4 Beeza 1.2- work in progress

RaggedLob

The worst is yet to come
Mar 29, 2009
179
0
Thatcham, Berkshire
Just browsing round the forum and landed here. How easy is it to take the rear mudflaps off, noticed you did this early on.

Cheers:)

Mudflaps i think ruin the smooth lines of the rear, so i tried yanking them off but realised their are 3 tight crosshead screws holding them into the wheelarch... got a bit impatient with the second one and just tore it away though :happy:

And to the next comment, yeah, working there part time for a year and a half now, so pick up some decent deals, like last week a new Garmin traffic model for £28 (missing screen mount)
 

Veyron

Active Member
Dec 3, 2009
2,307
3
Birmingham
Mudflaps i think ruin the smooth lines of the rear, so i tried yanking them off but realised their are 3 tight crosshead screws holding them into the wheelarch... got a bit impatient with the second one and just tore it away though :happy:

And to the next comment, yeah, working there part time for a year and a half now, so pick up some decent deals, like last week a new Garmin traffic model for £28 (missing screen mount)

Mine didn't even come with mudflaps :s
 

RaggedLob

The worst is yet to come
Mar 29, 2009
179
0
Thatcham, Berkshire
Finally started fitting my components to the rear, after removing pain in the arse rear door card, breaking only one or two clips in the process :D

I was prepared to remove the speaker bracket as it is a useless shape, but then decided to bolt the speakers onto spacers behind the brackets, rather than mess around with MDF, seems to have worked just as well...

I forgot to take pictures of the speakers in place, but bear with me, i'll be taking the panel's off soon at the weekend...

P180210_1430.jpg


However, when they were all plugged in I discovered they were actually much quieter than the paper originals in the front, and the bass response was worse. Turning it up made things a little better but eventually it distorted. I was told by several people that it was because the output of my Sony H/U was not enough to drive the new, tougher speakers properly, so....

P010310_2212_01.jpg


Got myself the cheapest 2 channel amp Halfords had in stock :)

Will be jamming it under the seat this weekend..
 

RaggedLob

The worst is yet to come
Mar 29, 2009
179
0
Thatcham, Berkshire
How can you go for more speakers? My current ones already defeat my interior plastics - they vibrate all over the place!

My trim isn't too bad actually, the only rattles are because the panel behind the front door ones needs to be sound deadened...

Best bet is to cram foam or Dynamat in every orifice, eventually there is nothing to rattle against :D
 

RaggedLob

The worst is yet to come
Mar 29, 2009
179
0
Thatcham, Berkshire
Yesterday i took her in to get Cupra wishbone bushes and a new front ARB installed at Quartz Bodyshop (SEAT specialists) in Newbury, for a fair price of £230 (3 hours labour, plus my engine management light was reset)..

So pleased with the result! I never noticed how much the car pitched and wallowed in bumpy corners, it takes them so much flatter and allows you to carry much more speed in confidence. the steering feel is much improved too, you get a lot more communication :D

The trade off is the ride at low speeds picks up the smaller ripples a touch more, and there is more steering shudder at low revs, but a fair trade off, as it manages bigger bumps better with much less noise :)

The rattly trim is getting quite bad now, it shudders over the horrible West Berkshire potholes, so i need a solution, anyone?
 

RaggedLob

The worst is yet to come
Mar 29, 2009
179
0
Thatcham, Berkshire
Another update: Was driving rather flamboyantly on a very fun, bumpy road near me (Burys Bank road, through Greenham Common). Great fun, but once i dipped the clutch coming up to a junction, the engine cut out, and refused to start several times.

After being towed home with and Astra and some electrical wire :)p) I called Green Flag out to look at it. It would rev fine but misfire, was down on power, but more importantly would not idle, just died instantly if revs let off.

Took it to the same guys above, who have discovered (yep, you guessed it) the timing chain jumped a few teeth, which was creating a vacuum inside the cylinders. Luckily it did not snap, so it was only a £250 fix. My mechanic said that if i had driven it for more than the few miles i did (left foot braking) it probably would've snapped off, basically wrecking the engine.

VERY common when relative to most newer cars, only 1.2, but if these symptoms occur (with no dash lights) avoid driving if possible.

Me, i've got a Suzuki Alto for 4 days. Lets see if i can have it in a ditch later. ;)
 

andy17

PD100
May 20, 2009
416
0
Southport
Same thing happened to me last year in the first week i had the car. makes your heart sink. how was the alto? i think id rather walk ;)
 
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