Member Since: 29 Jul 2020
Location: Kirchstetten
Posts: 96
Happy Easter
I'm back under the car.
During the engine rework I found a strange thing........ Oil-pan is dented
Click image to enlarge
dont know where this happened.....but yes, maybe, i did some offroad testdriving without ANY bashplate underneath.
But as always........this is the best reason to improve the car and get the"OK" for the investment from my wife.....sure, she must not know that this happend because of my own dumpness
After some research I found that the prizes are unreal for that pieces of sheet metal....
They have to be out of gold when you look at the known brands.
I took the steel ones, and they are MASSIVE! they are heavy and sturdy....no doubt about that.
I would have prefered if the plates would have been thinner, but at this price point there is no discusion about it.
The parts are all laser cut. and the quality is......reasonable....again..... they do not fit perectly, I had to rework 2 holes, but at this price, this is fully aceptable. And I mean, these are bash plates....they are there to get bent and scratched and dented. So no need for perfection.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
And we had a flat tyre on our first overlanding trip. shich sucked because I already had the 265/70R18 on and the orignal spare wheel is even for the original wheel size small.
So I could convince my wife of a spare wheel carrier.
Again, prices are ridiculous. but Mp4x4 had something for me as well.
for around 430€ its a bargain. It was clear to me that I would have to rework it, but If I build one completely by my own, the cost for the materials would already outrun this price.
And I was really surprised by the quality auf it when it arrived. Nice weldings. good paint. massive bearings.
It is more or less bolt on.....just cut the end of the bumper, mark some hole positions and cut the hole in the plastic bumper.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Fits pretty good.
the main carrier and the bearings are really strong! I think the bearings are bigger than our wheel bearings.
What has to be modified is the adjustable "wheel carrier arm" it is adjustable to extend further out if the tire is wider, or not so far if the tire is thin. its to flimsy....its shaking....and I will reinforce it.
Click image to enlarge
and the locking mechanism is as well a little bit to flimsy in my opinion.
I will rework them and show it here when it is done.
18th Apr 2022 2:07 pm
Fuxl
Member Since: 29 Jul 2020
Location: Kirchstetten
Posts: 96
Hi
I started with the re improvements of the carrier.
As stated above, the adjustable arm is flimsey and wobbling. using a U-shaped profile in this section, and than making long slots in the sides is crucial.
I added some Rips to get some torsional stiffness
Click image to enlarge
and for sure put a lid on the cup
Click image to enlarge
Now this is rigid enough to handle the 33" tires.
The carrier itself needed some care as well. to reduce the stress in the welding section I added some Rips as well.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
And the locking mechanism is out of some sort of butter-soft steel.
So, again, I added some Rips.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Now everything is strong enough....the actual weakpoint at the moment is the bumper of the car it self.
When I wiggle on the tire the whole steelbumper is bending. But it seems ok to me.
Next is to paint that thing again!
PS: I don't know why, but I think I should do a BBQ today....I'm hungry.
25th Apr 2022 6:32 am
Fuxl
Member Since: 29 Jul 2020
Location: Kirchstetten
Posts: 96
Hello
I already reported some rust issues. strangely they didn't get better by themself.
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
And now was the time for a first offensive action against this enemy!
weapon of choice: angle grinder, tin snips and MIG welder
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
And just to hide my ridiculous welding efforts, I bought some Rock/Tree Sliders
Click image to enlarge
Again from poland. And again, the quality seems good. they are really massive and the coating looks strong. One small disadvantage: they hang pretty low. They extend around 20-30mm below the original sills.
Click image to enlarge
But they are functional, and SHMBO likes the look of them. So everything is fine.
Click image to enlarge
After the Install I did a small Weekend Offroad tour.
And you won'T believe it, but I had the chance to test all of my new Offroad goodies.
First I hit a big bolder with the underbody protection..
Then I skipped off a tree stump and hit with full force the rock slider ( I guess If I would have hit the rusty section of the sill without the slider, the treestump would have gone thru the body to the backseats )
And then I had a flat tire and had to replace it with the spare one.
Click image to enlarge
So all the investment has already paid off.
By the way, its already the second time that my Yokohama Geolandar G015 had a puncture.
I don't know what it was last time, but this time it was a stone. I was skitting down a really steep hill And I guess I hit a stone with locked tires.
Click image to enlarge
I plugged it up......but I'm not sure If i trust this tires anymore
Click image to enlarge
Not because of the plug, but they are obviously not strong enough for my type of driving.
but I like the dimension of 265/70R18........ and there is not a wide range of this size available.
lets see what budged my wife gives me to tune the car further more. After all she want to do a proper offroad tour with this car in this summer. so the chances are not soooo bad.
12th May 2022 2:29 pm
Lee Trinder
Member Since: 12 Aug 2018
Location: Henley in arden
Posts: 516
Great effort mate, like your style
12th May 2022 4:26 pm
altblech-schrauber.de
Member Since: 15 Feb 2021
Location: Lingen
Posts: 26
okay, Step 1 for my saturday: Pray and remove the side panels ...
13th May 2022 6:43 am
Fuxl
Member Since: 29 Jul 2020
Location: Kirchstetten
Posts: 96
Hi Ho fellows
Some new issues happend. The car never fails to excite with failures!
But lets start at the beginning.
As mentioned before, we want to do a holiday trip with the whole family in this car. so we need a roof rack for a rooftop tent.
I thought I will do the car something good, and invest in some premium stuff this time.....not always the cheap polish things which have to be modified to really fit.
So I ordered a proper brandnew frontrunner roofrack....which costs a fortune!
When the day come to pick it up, our feuerstuhl decided that he doesn't want to cooperate.
He declined me entrance with a completly empty battery!
And how it is always...when the remote doesn't work, you can be sure that the mechanical release on the driver door doesn't work as well. Its completly stuck. no chance to move it. tried it with all kind of oils, but I couldn't get in to pop the hood for the access to the battery.
I managed to connect some thin wires to the starter from the bottom.......just enough to get the remote key working.
Click image to enlarge
You can belive me, it wasn't easy to get a proper connection to the starter......so better get your mechanical door lock working...like I did afterwards!
after connecting the charger, I searched for the reason of the empty battery. couldn't find anything. all the lights are off. nothing connected to a power outlet
charging the battery didn't help......it was gone. only 4 Volts after my recharge attempt.
So I had to buy a new battery, beside the very expensive roof rack.
After one week waiting for the new battery, I could finally pick up the roof rack an mount it with all the shiny accesories a real overlander needs.
most important....BIG led lights
and a awning and a roof top tent
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
Click image to enlarge
And with the new battery I found the reason for the death of the old one...... the fuel burning heater starts on his own. every 5 min or so it starts for I guess 2min. stops. and then starts again.
There was a short circuid during a broken connector directly on the FBH.
And you cannot see it on the pictures, but after the first testride with the tent on top, a massive diesel leak emerged under the car!
It was coming from the back of the engine.......and it wasn't the fuel filter. It was running from the top back down over the gearbox.
I feared bad things! because I know that back there is only one thing that has Diesel in it....the high pressure fuel pump!
I checked all the connectors, tubes, pipes, and so on. NOTHING to see from the top! everything dry and clean.
The Diesel was coming from the rear timing belt housing. So it was indeed the HPFP
Click image to enlarge
Again 1000€ spare parts.
When I add all the costs of the last month together......Holy Sh..... that was more money than a brand new dacia would cost.
But SWMBO loves this car. She never drives it, but she loves it, and I'm not allowed to sell it. Not that I would sell it, because in secret I also love this car, but I don't tell her, so I can blame all the costs on HER love for this car.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
