What I have been up to...

[buddylove]

Chase messaged me and said some of you might be interested in what I have been up to, so I decided to post a topic on here.

Well in between working full time and going to school full time, with the help of Lisa, I have been working on a few things on the Clubman over the past month. I have been posting updates on another forum, so I will post by date.

Post from 1/26/09



Just received all the parts I have been waiting on for a bit now. Over the next few days most of them should be going on.

Made space for it in the garage, had to knock down the wall behind it where the GTI is sitting so we could get 2 cars in there. Took about 2 hours to get the GTI to the spot that its in, but now we have a 2 car garage so its worth it






She's a bit dirty, but she'll get a good clean after this is all done.

Box of parts from Minispares in the UK.

[buddylove]

Suspension components, have 4 shocks total. They are lowered adjustable Spax Krypton shocks.



Genuine Hi-Los, had to pay a bit more for them, but I am told they are worth it in the long run. The height adjustable part of the suspension.

[buddylove]

The Rubber Donuts "Cone Springs"



New Stainless Steel Mirrors.



New Lucas P700 Halogen Headlamps. Will be a nice change from the sealed beams



All the other maintenance components. New cap, rotor, condensor, plug wires, fan belt, and K&N air filter. There are also adjustable tie rods in there with a bush kit as mine are bent.

I also bought Por15 Engine Enamel Paint - Chrysler Hemi Orange to paint up the drums and the engine. Should be nice and bright.

[buddylove]

1/27/09

Didn't get as much done as I would of liked, errands took a bit longer today then I thought.

I did get the new condensor, rotor, cap, plug wires and coil installed. Lisa got the lights in, we still need to adjust them and mount them a bit better.





The engine still needs a lot of work to pretty up, will happen in time. Hopefully by summer. Just focusing on getting it running good and driving well right now.

[buddylove]

1/28/09

Just fitted the K&N Filter, fan belt, and adjusted the idle screw. Also fitted the new stainless mirrors.



Hoping to start on the supension and adjustable tie rods this weekend.

[buddylove]

1/29/09


Cleaned up 2 of the wheels. I was originally going to run them as is, but I decided that I might as well do a quick refurb on them. The other 2 still need to get remounted and balanced anyways.

Before:






After:






1/31/2009


Yesterday, I tried to fit one of the wheels. There is a reason they came with spacers for all around. The tire is basically going into the inner arch. So, I have 2, 3/4" spacers and 2, 1" spacers. Just need to order the longer wheel studs now and find someone with a press.

Today, went to remove the gas tank so I could get started on the suspension. The fuel line decided to come out and then the tank proceed to leak all its fuel out onto the floor and onto the ground. That was fun times, lol. I had an oil drain pan handy, but wasnt expecting the fuel line to come out so it still had some old oil in it. The nice thing though, is it will make it easier to replace the fuel sending unit in the tank now.


2/5/2009

Update from Tuesday. New fuel sending unit is installed in the tank and the rear Hi-Los and Spax Shocks are on. Still need a lot of adjustment as I was unsure how the whole setup worked at first. The shocks have rebound dampening and seem to be super stiff, which should be nice. When I was jacking the car up on the driver side to change it out, the passenger side came off the ground rather quickly as well. The whole setup should transform the car into a rather nice go kart.

Sorry no pics, was rather greasy.

[Mark]

Way to Go! That is going to ride so nice! Do enjoy it, it sure looks like a blast. Kudos to Lisa for getting into it as well.
Best regards,
MSH

[DaveB]

love the pictures and notes. this kind of thing is one of my favorites to read on the site!!

[Guest]

Glad you posted it, it looks good. I wish I could work on a mini.

Chase

[Dixminion]

I've got dibs on the box the HI-LO's came in! Well done Lisa and Ryan. Don

[Cheleker]

A few thoughts.
Lowered shocks are for cars that are lowered, usually an inch or more. Work best that way. Lowering the car increases front camber more negative (not necessarily a bad thing), but decreases postive caster (not necessarily a good thing).
I see adjustable lower arms and adjustable tie rods in your future.
Set the shocks up on the light side to start with; especially, in the back.
No need for a press to remove and replace wheel studs. A vise and/or a BFH will work fine.

[pigpen]

BFH...my favorite tool.

[buddylove]

Good point Chuck. Already have the adjustable tie rods, planning for the adjustable control arms down the road as well. I definately plan on lowering it about 2 inches.

[buddylove]

Attempting to move the fuel tank and have it pull off the fuel line...

[buddylove]

Not a lot done today, finished fitting and aiming the headlamps and also finished installing the fan belt and getting it all tightened up.