jimmyesh on Mon Sep 20, 2010 11:24 pm

Ha ha 😆 , anyway - bringing the thread back on-topic...

I spent a couple of hours assembling the rest of the engine tonight 🙂

I have to do a couple of small things before I can continue with it though - firstly, due to my relocated turbo oil return, the return pipe now kinks when I line it up to the male connector on the sump. This is because it's too long as the original location was further along the sump. I suppose it's a blessing really though as the new return is a much more direct route and that is always a good thing 😀

Also I need to get down to Fords and order a new crankshaft oil seal for the engine timing cover as mine's seen better days - it only pushes in though so it's no big deal to fit. Once that's in I can carry on with fitting the crank pulley etc.

Progress is being made, I'm feeling optimistic about this and hopefully it'll run perfectly in a few days :aviator:

jimmyesh on Wed Sep 29, 2010 8:29 pm

Hi everyone, I've been quite busy on the car 🙂

Flywheel refitted & torqued to spec;

Clutch re-fitted;

Stack wideband lambda gauge & water temp gauges fitted into A-Pillar mount and all wired up. (They're on a funny angle as they are big, chunky gauges that are rather deep when compared with the Revotec or Ford Racing type gauges - consequently, this is the best fit I could get in my A-pillar pod without bodging my nice new gauges! :oooh: )

Other than that it has been the smaller jobs that I'd put off, just to get the thing running last time! 😳

Also this week I've;

1. Removed the steering column and fitted an adaptor plate with the correct MK 3.5 PAS rubber grommet for my PAS conversion, then refitted everything.

2. Connected the brake linkage up to the master cylinder.

3. Fitted my new wideband lambda sensor into the exhaust downpipe.

4. Made up a new improved turbo oil drain with some -8AN Goodridge 200-series hose & connectors.

5. Removed the engine from its stand and placed it on the trolley ready for craning back into the car.

Right, tomorrow morning I will be bolting the engine & gearbox back up to each other before dragging the whole lot down to the shop floor (where the crane and ramps are). Once I've got some willing mates from work to give the Fezzer a shove onto the ramps, I'll be re-fitting the engine & 'box :aviator:

Hopefully by this time tomorrow there will be an update of everything running well and perhaps even a vid of me driving it! :oooh:

Fingers crossed that it all works properly this time...

jimmyesh on Sat Oct 02, 2010 12:07 pm

As promised - a couple of vids :Q

I can't believe I've finally driven this beastie! (made a nice change not to have to push it back to the lockup 🙂 )

The first vid is only short and is just of when I fist started it up...

'Missing'
The second vid is a quick minute of it being driven around the workshop - I have no brakes yet (I need to get them bled and investigate a problem with the linkage) so that, combined with the fact that it's got new pistons/rings/turbo is why I'm going quite gently 😳 Apologies too for the shakey camera work but I had to keep grabbing the handbrake, as well as steering and videoing! 😳 As well as this I was completely knackered from all the graft, my hands are cut to ribbons! :oooh:

'Missing!'
Got a tiny oil leak from the T-Piece where the oil-feed to the turbo comes from which I'll sort next week. Also got a PAS fluid leak from where the pipe joins the rack - probably due to it being a home-made effort 😳 I'll get a proper one made up by a hose specialist.

For some reason, the Focus RS cooling fan relay isn't being energised so I need to investigate that, also the Focus RS boost gauge is not working either :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

It's not an easy car to work on due to space being so tight, I've learned that however long you expect a job to take - multiply it by about four and that'll be about right! 🙁

To be fair, all the problems are just niggles and to be expected - I'm just over the moon that I've finally reached this stage - the car is an absolute weapon! :devil: My cheap, old Sanyo camera does not do it justice - it sounds absolutely amazing - the turbo chatter is addictive as hell. it's massively responsive and I can tell it's a seriously fast car :Q

At least now I can go on tour happy in the knowledge that it's pretty much all done and is waiting for me when I get home :aviator:

jimmyesh on Fri Oct 15, 2010 5:57 pm

Right, that's the car under wraps again until I'm next back in the UK 🙁

I spent a few hours today giving it a good wash and polish, hoovered the interior out then took it for a 5 mile drive around the camp (camp's massive 🙂 )

Let it run for a fair while to totally cure the stinky thermotec graphite exhaust wrap.

Brakes all work brilliantly.

The Focus RS Boost Guage is working correctly.

I have now fitted a Sierra Cosworth fan switch into my top-hose which energises the fan relay in my Focus fusebox - brings my fans on a bit earlier than the 112-114 degrees that Focus RS ECU switches the fans on at! :oooh:

Really is a joy to drive - If it had tax/MOT/Insurance, I'd have spent all day out in it on public roads :aviator:

I've left full instructions with the car and the keys with trustworthy people, so if it needs moving again it hopefully won't get damaged (like it did last year :rolleyes: )

I will drive it again when home on R & R. Got a few bits and pieces to do when I get home properly then I'll hopefully be driving it to FITP 2011 🙂

Bye for now 😉

jimmyesh on Fri Feb 25, 2011 8:21 pm

I've been back in the UK since the end of Jan and everything's going well with the Fiesta :aviator:. As I said previously, it's passed its MOT with no dramas.

Since then I've been driving it a hell of a lot inside the camp where I'm based (the place is huge so I can put some running-in miles on without even venturing onto a public road). Although it's got an MOT, I've still been testing it exhaustively just to ensure reliability once I actually drive it on real roads with modern stop/start traffic etc :oooh: . All is ok except it's developed a power steering fluid leak from my home-made high pressure PAS pipe (consisting of a Mondeo MK3 PAS pipe with a fiesta MK3.5 PAS rack fitting welded on the end! :aaah: )

To that end I'm buying another pair of Mondy and Fez PAS pipes, then taking them to that hydraulic hose specialist that joined my Focus and Fiesta MK5 clutch hoses together (for £5! :Q ) - might as well get it done properly.

I also took the time to "clock" my Garrett GT28R Turbo so that the oil drain points directly downward and adjusted the length of my oil-drain hose accordingly.

The Alpine ICE and the Clifford Concept 650 is all wired in and all working perfectly. I took a couple of days with the dash out to ensure all the wiring is immaculate and neat.

I insured the car tonight with H.I.C too with a very sensible agreed value and declared EVERY modification (took bloody hours! 😆 ). Only costing me £400 per year fully comp (I am 33 with a few year's NCD and no points/claims etc).

Lastly, the "DURATEC INSIDE" sticker has been removed from the rear windscreen - I like the car to be as subtle as possible on the outside. 😛

Taxing it next week then I'll be venturing out into the big wide world behind the wheel 😀