Nose Prep

My nose grille change means I have no access inside the nose once its on the car; so I setup a couple of cable tie points inside to bring the indicator wiring up where I can reach it when everything is fitted:

Fan

I wanted to sit the fan behind the radiator so picked up one which is designed to run in either direction push & pull. The fitting kit was not great though so I modified the mounting to run the pull ties directly through the main fan chassis rather than via add on clips.

I also modified the fan itself (left hand side in this picture) to sit cleanly against the front chassis rail in the car:

Something like this - although the springs didn't actually make it to the final install:

This is the result; neat & tidy:

Update - Replaced this fan at approx. 5,300 miles with a large diameter pusher on the front of the rad.

Update - Replaced the radiator at approx 12,500 miles due to leaks caused at some point by the through radiator fixings.

Front mudguards

I'm waiting on some radiator fixing clips - to set off my chain of events for an egnine run i.e.

    Radiator clips

    Mount radiator

    Fit nose (for the last time)

    Fit bonnet catches

    Fit manifold (for the first & last time)

    Start the engine

Meanwhile; 

Time to prepare the front mudgaurds with their repeaters:

First up I checked them both; black = +ve, white = Ground; then 20mm holes to mount them; I used a spare washer for the template:

The step drill bit isn't my favourite tool - it tends to wander off centre & is difficult to control - it does leave a clean finish on GRP though & only needed a little further light filing to tidy up the reverse:

These do have a 'top' almost invisibly marked on the lens:

The G-clamps are to apply gentle pressure and hold the lamps in place; They have a bead of bond holding them tight applied from the inside:

Hot air ducts

A little more work on the heating ducts, the two top outlets from the heater are going to 2x vents either side just under the dash - the intention being to route warm air to the drivers hands.

This is the slightly modified bracket from T7 along with some trim to hide the edges:

In situ along with the connecting duct. It was a real s*d to drill the holes for the outlet bracket, the combination of a round tube + 90º drill attachment and a shortened drill bit just gave me enough room to get the job done:

...and finally as viewed by the passenger - no nasty holes in the dashboard:

I also have some work to 'box in' / cover the various sharp edges under the dash in this area which should hide the ECU & wiring currently visible.

Electrics testing

Headlamps

Wired up according to the GBS instruction sheet - tested, side/dip/full beam all working.

Wiper motor

Working dual speed - its parking on the wrong side (offside) currently so I'll need to change that - the wiper motor (or at least the gearboxes) will be coming off before IVA anyway. My wiper arms are designed to park on the passenger side.

Washer pump

Checked - working fine.

Indicators

Not really checked, but I wired in the flasher relay and mounted it under the dash.

Fuel pumps

Both pumps running now when the ignition is turned to its second click & with a little more fuel in the system they are both running quietly, i.e. full of fuel, which is a good sign

So all good news & the only niggle is the wiper motor parking on the wrong side.

Fuel & Coolant

Topped up with 3-4 litres of fuel in the tank & thus-far no leaks

Coolant added, approx 50-30% antifreeze - again no leaks so far - but then I wouldn't expect any until its actually pumped around.

This stage is just preparation for starting - I wanted to slowly add the liquids & check for leaks before moving on.

Electrics - on and working!

Ignition switch connector

Once the ignition switch was re-wired the car could, in theory, be started - or at least the electrics turned on and some basic tests carried out:

The spare pink is for an optional remote start button which I am not using; everything else wired across according to the GBS instruction sheet. I write on the sockets too as a belt & braces double check:

Chassis loom routing

Then some tidying up of the front wiring loom; I wanted to at least get to the horn & test it:

This looks simple but took ages to route everything neatly. The front chassis loom has been languishing for weeks now not being properly fixed, its good to finally be in a position to connect it up:

Stock GBS horn, seems loud enough to me;

Power on testing

Then it was time for a couple of tests;

Before I connected the battery I just tested the resistance across the car loom battery connectors to make sure there were no short circuits - checked out fine - infinite resistance so at least things shouldn't go bang.

1. Battery connected,
2. Ignition on,
3. Clocks all flicked over & back; Speedo showing 0000 miles, Revs showing oil warning (its not connected or filled yet), Battery warning & indicator tel-tales when the hazzards selected
4. Fuel pump ran ( I didn't leave it running for more than a couple of seconds since theres not much fuel in the tank currently)
5. ECU running
6. Horn works ! :)

Its not an exhaustive test but very positive non the less, Very happy, first life in the car!

I think the next up test will be with more fuel in the tank & let the system pump through & prime the swirl pot/check for leaks etc.

(Disconnected battery live for safety)

Heater (again :)

More fiddling with the heater. I wasn't really happy with the bottom hose 45º connector so decided to try something different & hopefully simpler and more reliable before filling the system with coolant.

I'm going with the 5/8" pipe to keep things simple. The bottom edge of the heater is going to be mounted a little further out than the top so it inclines in the right direction for the bottom hose:

I'm using a direct 1/4" BSPT to 5/8" hose tail adaptor on the bottom pipe. The adaptor is much longer than the standard T7 hose tails so I'm hoping it gives the bottom pipe enough support; Its also too tight to get a jubilee clip in - although the only way I have been able to get pipes off that hose tail is to cut them off so again - hopefully we are good!

All back in place, I hope for the last time!

At least I'm getting some practice in removing/installing it; note also added the jubilee clips on the air hoses:

Front Indicators

My reading of the IVA (October 2012) is indicators must be:

1. Less than 400mm from the widest part of the car
2. At least 500mm apart
3. 350mm to 1500mm from the ground
4. 80º outwards, 20º inwards visibility
5. 15º upwards, 5º downwards visibility

Checking various build pictures it looks like they roughly sit mid height of the front grile opening and roughly level with the front of the mudguards.

Measuring stick prepared with the key 350mm & 400mm measurements and begin to markup. I decided on 400mm height. The only weight not in the car is passengers and coolant, so I'm hoping this is a good margin above the 350mm regulation:

Double checked the steering on full lock with the mudguard roughly in place to ensure I have sufficient clearance:

Then the holes, 4mm pilots followed by 10mm x2. I decided to drill them on the car with it sitting level; the holes are just in front of the radiator position so managed to miss holing that too:

Getting to the next step took a good amount of work; the brackets needed adjusting to leave the indicators straight and level. Initially they were pointing down and forwards by a significant amount due to the shape of the nose.

In this picture the right hand one is still twisted up a little too much, but soon corrected:

Inside I need to at least add the plugs, possibly extend both lines; With my radiator grille I have no access inside the nose once it is installed so need to make sure I can get at the wires to plug into the main loom:

Headlamps

Shortened the headlamp attachment bolts:

Both 'eyes' installed: