20v Auto Coupe mini project

[cadiddy]

Right then, after a great day at adi I've come home super motivated to get this coupe a bit more sorted
It's mostly engine bits it needs so will try to get the following done over the next month or so,
Losing water and seems to be quite hot after even short drives, I've previously dropped a rad hose off and it seemed really ******, obvious signs of rad weld gunna try a cooling system flushing agent (if anyone has any recommendations please share)
Will then get the rad changed out as that is showing some signs of leaking.
Bit of a scraping sound coming from front of the engine suspect pas pump or alternator so will disconnect both and see when it stops.
Also got a rocker cover gasket to fit and cure a minor oil leak, will get intake mani and rocker cover sprayed up nice as well
That should be enough to keep me busy me thinks, will keep you all updated
Cheers n gone

[cadiddy]

So finally got some time on the car over the last couple of weekends and here's another (overdue) update.
Coolant leak fixed pressure tested the system before forking out on anything and that showed that the hose tail off the thermostat housing was pissing out coolant at less than 1 bar. Turned out to be a mass of crystallised antifreeze on the lower side which obviously prevented the hose from sealing. I love free fixes
Next was the Cam cover gasket, I took this off and sprayed it up 2 weekends back just needed to refit with new gasket and bolts as the old ones where starting to round out.


So got it all back together and found loads of other stuff I want to do now
Tidy wiring and pipe work is the main one and find one more oil leak.
Also need a new cambelt cover as mine has bloody cracked

Thats all for now folks

[cadiddy]

And here we have yet another long overdue update, really must do this more often
So since my last post I have been quite busy on the car but not as busy as I would've liked Main thing is I've just about got the car machanically sorted bar 2 oil leaks 1 track rod adjuster and the tracking.
Anyway this past weekend I managed to get the timing belt and water pump done (water pump has made a world of difference seeing as the bearings no longer rumble louder than the engine!)
Got the car closer to the tarmac with a ~30mm drop all round and got the fluid and filter changed in the auto box, also made a big difference.
Unfortunately I have failed in the picture taking due to a power cut rendering the garage lights useless during the interesting bit of the whole day so apologies for that and I'll get some at the weekend after its had a nice wash polish and hoover
Cheers n gone

[Error404]

Glad to see you're getting on well with it
Unfortunately the 7A / 3B cam cover is NLA now and rare to find in good condition, you might have to get a carbon one of Aron

[cadiddy]

Forgot to mention that, got a belt cover from another forum member (goodaz I think it was) in real good nick so result on that front. However carbon is always an improvement Also adds 10mph to theoretical top speed right?

[cadiddy]

As promised a few pictures of the car clean and closer to the tarmac



It's sitting better now and handles a load better as well, I'm still undecided between 17's and 18's I think correctly spaced 17's have their place but ultimately I think 18's fill the arches better but i'll see what turns up on the bay of thieves.

[cadiddy]

Right then, been busy on the car over the last few weeks , got the front shocks renewed, tracking sorted, wheels spaced, fitted clear side repeaters and have changed back to wood trim after seeing AMD's 200 20v, I really like the look with the dark seats. Anyway, here's some recent pics, will get some better ones after a good polish at the weekend.

[macspring]

If it was me, I'd have swopped out the carpet to a black one by now - once I could find one.

I know you've tired both, but Carbon inserts are more poplar than wood for a reason.

I see you appreciated the improvement in appearance when you swopped out the front orange indicators to clear, you see the same improvement with late ABY Coupe red rear tail lights, with the reversing lights with red lines running through them and red coloured indicator lenses.

I presume the new correct fluid for the auto box and a new filter got rid of the jerkiness ?

Be sure to try using the gearbox like a dsg box in that click it into second, and move it to third and then D when you're ready as you accelerate, and also click it down through the box. As you do it more often you'll get much better at it, and it will feel a lot easier and more natural.

Great for around town when in second and you floor it it doesn't do massive jerky kick downs, or for early morning blasts over the hills. Try is for a couple of weeks and see what you think.

Leave the wheels as they are, they look fine, 18" are too harsh and crash, and may make the car look a bit 'chav like' i.e. trying too hard. What size are you rims, tyres and spacers ?

Powder coat your interior chrome door pulls to black satin or glass finish, a cheap but very worthwhile upgrade.

Please be aware that all of the above comments are just my own biased, self centred opinions, but shared as constructive criticism to be helpful and allow you to garner others perspectives on your car.

Kind regards.

[cadiddy]

Thanks for the input mate, and all but 1 point I agree whole heartedly and that'll be the wood trim, however if it was genuine carbon not a vinyl wrap I'd agree, as for the auto box the correct dextron atf went in along with the right filter, that was a bit of a pain as had to cut the dipstick to remove the sump and then get it welded but yes it's smooth as butter now and to be honest I rarely use the kickdown and shift it manually instead, I find it a lot smoother and easier to get the engine up to where it performs best. I have also grown to like the auto and I think that the majority of people who slag autos off haven't learnt to drive one properly, don't get me wrong I'd love it to be manual but I'm not going to change it because of that.
As for the carpet trying to find a decent one for decent money is proving troublesome, and I think I'll try and find a non Quattro interior as that niggles me.
Wheels are staying, now they're spaced right I love them, will touch up the paint soon and they'll be right on, rear lights may come with time but we'll see, same with the door pulls.
I will be sitting down soon and making a list of stuff to do, repaint the IM and cam cover is one of those things as I rushed it first time and it shows.
Will update soon
Cheers

[Bowie69]

Keep the interior as stock as possible, even orange indicators look awesome to me, and the later lights are just.... like someone took a red spray can and painted them.

Retro is best for sure

[cadiddy]

I think ultimately I want to get the best of both the b3 and b4 so the front end is staying just love that but so are the clear indicators, as for the interior some non Quattro cloth seats would be lovely, really not a fan of velour, just a bit too retro for me, and the lack of stance in standard guise is laughable really, so I'll see how it progresses and go from there really.
Cheers