Winter rebuild - worth every penny

[S2central.net]

Well its been a long few weeks of grabbing hours here and there, and some long nights getting decent amounts of work done but the 1st Phase of the winter rebuild is complete and I am delighted. The car is flying again. Just amazing how you miss a decent car when its been off the road for a while.

Stuff done so far -

All the auxiliary belts
Timing Belt & Tensioner
Water Pump (as you do)
Crank pulley (just in case)
Lambda Probe (had never been changed before)
All the filters
Cam cover gaskets (old ones were very rigid and showing signs of failure)
New HT boots - the old ones were fouled with oil causing misfires & hesitations

AuxRad Deleted - Water temps actually colder if anything at speed due to air effects
Plastic (RS2) Pressure Pipe installed - cooler to the touch for sure. Must be better
Snub Mount upgraded - SQ bracket and the A4 bung. Subtle and effective

Powerflex wishbone bushes - better steering & handling feel in general. No noises !
Bottom balljoints - old ones tired giving some vagueness in steering
Top mounts - much less crashiness on the bumps and ramps
Wheel bearings - no occasional groaning
Outer CV Boots - these were just about to split
Link Rods - old ones were very tired
Front brake discs & pads - nice improvement, but I'll wait for 996monos in the summer
Winter wheels and boots fitted - better grip and confidence on cold slippy surfaces

I recentred the steering wheel by one spline to the left as I've managed to rebuild the suspension running pretty much perfectly straight - only the steering wheel was offset so thats good enough until I get a proper 4-wheel alignment... Needs the rear adjusters replaced I reckon, but I'm gonna try some more -ve camber on the front - there is half a degree of difference there at the moment.

Getting better mpg as a result of new lambda probe (when I refrain the loud pedal) and its running crisp and clean with no more hesitations that must be purely as a result of the new HT boots - you could see cracks and oil ingress on the original items.

Still got plenty to do in the next phase with a new oil cooler and sump gaskets to cure a somewhat sweaty and leaky bottom end.

I don't know what I've spent on parts - a lot - but it was worth it.

Paul

[Rusty]

I know what you mean, makes it all worth while when you floor it and are still suprised at the way it picks up! Lambada probe cures all manner of hesitations and flat spots if it was knackered before.

[Error404]

did you use an OEM Lamda probe Paul, or a universal one?

Theres a great variation in price....... and longevity i'd imagine

[Fat Audi 80]

Paul, is the centreing the steering wheel as simple as removing horn button and IIRC 22mm nut, pull off steering wheel and re attach, or is there more to it? Mine is only a spline or so out, but bloody annoying all the same....

Glad to hear you have a healthy S2 again, there really is nothing like it.

Let me know when you are in the UK for a couple of days and I can do the outside if you want

Cheers,

Steve.

[Error404]

yeah the horn button rotates then pops out (push it in and turn it - can't remember if its left or right )
Then its a 22mm nut..... bit fiddly to get the nut and washer back on i found

[Flat on my back]

yeah the horn button rotates then pops out (push it in and turn it - can't remember if its left or right )
Then its a 22mm nut..... bit fiddly to get the nut and washer back on i found

Errrr...not if you have long fingers. Or slide the nut and washer down on the blade of a screwdriver.

[S2central.net]

Long fingers or the screwdriver trick... Either works, but yes thats all there is to it.

Strictly speaking you should realign the steering rack for such an adjustment so that turning circle in either direction is the same (eg if the steering wheel hangs to the right then you need lengthen the right track-rod by X mm and shorten the left track rod by exactly the same amount) but for the sake of one spline I don't think its worth the grief doing that way.

[Fat Audi 80]

Long fingers or the screwdriver trick... Either works, but yes thats all there is to it.

Strictly speaking you should realign the steering rack for such an adjustment so that turning circle in either direction is the same (eg if the steering wheel hangs to the right then you need lengthen the right track-rod by X mm and shorten the left track rod by exactly the same amount) but for the sake of one spline I don't think its worth the grief doing that way.

Cheers Paul,

yeah, I know what you are saying but one spline must be about 5 - 10 deg of lock if that. I think I can cope with a little bias left or right...

[s2driveruk]

well done, sure is a good feeling when you get it back out on the road again

[dan_b]

How long did all that lot take you? Good work!

[S2central.net]

~4 weeks on and off with some waiting for parts of course over chrimbo. Plenty of time well spent derusting suspension parts, painting and cleaning stuff so it looks pretty well underneath - except for the oily sweats which are the next treatment.

I'll be out another 200 and something for the oil cooler parts and ~90 quid for sump gaskets and assorted nuts and bolts.

[4WheelDrifter]

It might be worth giving the PCV system a good check over if you have a sweaty bottom end.

[mcandmar]

Glad to see your getting some quality time with the S2, nice work

Quick observation on the rack centering, the two steering arms join in the middle of the rack, so if one steering arm is longer than the other it will mess up the geometry when turning. Ackerman principal and all that.

I was using one of the tracking gauges with a bit of string and it would track the car within spec, even with the rack way off center. But when i got a proper four wheel laser alignment done i noticed the machine made them turn the steering left and right to find the center position, then they lock the steering and adjust both wheels to spec. Left was toed in, right was toed out. So it looks like the modern stuff does all that for you

[EspenW]

I replaced my oxygen sensor (lambda probe) with a generic item, and it seemed that the car ran rich (soot all over the rear bumper). Installed a wideband oxygen sensor, and indeed, I was running rich. 14.7:1 at light load, but would go nuts at the slightest hint of load, A/F would dump to 10:1. Had a single wire (non heated) Bosch laying around, and it worked perfectly. The sensor sits close to the turbo, so even a non heated one gets up to working temp in a snap. Non heated Bosch sensors are cheap.
About to delete the aux rad myself. I'm sure the turbo and intake will be happy to get some airflow, no longer being blocked by the aux rad.

Installed the plastic pipe myself (metal was stock on my 95' RS2). Stays much cooler, and lighter weight too. Painted it silver (for more heat reflection), and even put aluminum tape on the underside (not visible) for even more heat reflection. Stays very cool now.

Alignments are actually very easy to do yourself. What I use is a digital level (can do it without it as well). Tells me the camber angle. Using two tape measures to set the toe. One tape measure on the front side of the tires and one on the back. Adjust steering rods until the tape measures read the same (for 0 toe, or adjust for toe in or toe out), then fine tune both rods by the same amount to get the steering wheel centered. Note: tires with grooves that run in the circumference of the tires are required, for example Conti Sport Contact 2 or 3(and many others). Instructions can be found on the net (lots of autocrossers in the US do such alignment adjustments all the time). I'm using wax paper placed under the tires to make them move easily, and settle in the correct position.
Laser alignment racks are nice as long as they are calibrated, but they are surprisingly often out of calibration.