Sparky's winter/spring/summer/autumn work

Cheers all

Been doing some tuning and some miles and with a bit of tweaking here and there, the juddering seems to have gone :)

Popped into the garage and filled up again and have just worked out the mpg for the last two weeks - 18.4 :eek::confused:

Not too disappointed though as that does include driving regularly from tickover up to the redline, sitting in the garage playing with tickover settings, data logging acceleration and deceleration profiles, driving without overun settings, sitting in rush hour traffic driving to work, and generally driving in the most uneconomical ways possible. Let's hope the next few weeks will be better :)

I must say though that the MS seems to have brought together all of the tuning goodies that Sparky came with, (Stage one heads, RP4 cam, tubular headers, lightened flywheel, etc) and runs well with them, unlike the weber which never really worked 100%. He did go very well, but nothing like now; the Megasquirt has really unleashed his full potential.

(or has it - it might get better :))

So, very pleased with the transformation, but what a job.

Richard

Next job, brake upgrade :cool:
 
Sounds like you are getting there, which is a great feeling. MS really does transform a car - I remember giggling like a small boy when I first took the Landrover out after fitting it, and then again with the P6, the difference in performance is certainly noticeable!

as for "or has it - it might get better" ... It almost certainly will.

I would say that this is the only downside to MS, because it is endlessly adjustable you can endlessly adjust it!

I still make the odd tweak here and there, and I've done over 20,000 miles now on fuel injection in my P6, god knows how many in the Landrover. All part of the fun :)

Economy-wise places to get the extra mpg are:

  • Leaning out cruise as far as you can - you'll know when you've gone too far as the car will start to surge a bit. Upping the timing can help too, but be careful.
  • Reducing warm up enrichment as much as possible. Reduce it too much and it will start to hunt during warmup. Check the advanced settings in the "WUE Analyze" section of Tunerstudio - it has a "Temperature based adjustment to Target AFR setting" this by default targets richer than normal values during warmup- around 1.5 AFR points richer. I have cut mine right back so that it only goes half an AFR point richer in very cold scenarios.
  • Minimising acceleration enrichments - this is tricky because too little AE will make it bog, as will too much. Reviewing logs is the only way to tell which way you have gone.
  • Leaning out overrun areas of the fuel table.
  • Being as aggressive as you can with fuel cut-off on overrun.
After that the rest is pretty much down to your right foot! :D:D
 
So, I popped out to the garage, basically to go out for a tune up run but when I opened the door, I could smell petrol. I walked round to car and it seemed stronger at the back. When I opened the boot it hit me, the boot stank of it. I had a really good look around and couldn’t find any leaks, and no drips anywhere. I took the filler pipe off, cleaned up all the bits, then removed all the breathers, checked they were ok, sealed one up because of a small crack in the rubber. Checked the high pressure pipe from the new pump, down to the 8mm copper pipe in the boot, and all seemed ok. Refit the filler pipe and hoped for the best :)

After leaving the boot open for two days, there is still a faint whiff of it, but I don’t know if it’s still leaking or just a residue from the original leak. I'll just keep an eye (nose) on it for a while.

After finding a wet spot on the floor under the car, I decided to get it up on the ramps and have a good look underneath. There was no smell to the wet bit, so I crawled under and checked the pipes all the way along, nothing! I did manage to find a drip on the rear caliper, but it was just brake fluid. I also found some oily residue on the front O/S chassis rail and....... hand on a minute - BRAKE FLUID??

I have a leaking O/S rear caliper, a leaking power steering box, and a petrol smell in the boot :(



I spent a while inspecting all round the caliper, hoping an external hose was at fault, but no, it was seeping from the main seal, so off it came. A bit disappointing as I had only rebuilt them a year or so ago (looked it up – it was 6 years ago :eek: ). Had I got it wrong? Did I get some poor quality seals? Or should I have had the calipers sleeved when I rebuilt them? Well, they’re at an engineering shop at the moment getting sleeves. Only one was leaking but I learn my lessons well, so am doing both.

Something black and gooey in there.



When I was waiting for the calipers to come back, I thought I would do something with the front brakes. I have been comtemplating some uprated brakes ever since I took the Rossinis off, but never made up my mind what. It has been discussed a few times on here, that a company called Fosseway Performance made a set, and after a long chat with them I emptied my bank account and got some.

Standard disc set up



These were from a well known and apparently respected supplier. I would not recommend them though, and won’t be offering them for sale when I have taken them off, even though they have only done a couple of thousand miles. Say no more :cool:

Compare the two types and there doesn’t seem to be much difference. Disc is the same diameter, and the caliper is about the same size although lighter, and I mean a lot lighter. The Fosseway one does have four pistons though and the disc is vented.





Pads, in and all finished (Ok I have to fit the hoses yet)



I’m thinking the front brakes are going to be a pig to bleed though.



They do bolt straight on, with no mucking about. I’ll be reporting back about their performance, when I get back on the road.

Richard
 
Last edited:
I’m thinking the front brakes are going to be a pig to bleed though.
:eek:

I can see the thinking that put it there, but I don't think it's strictly necessary. Like you say, that's going to be a real pain in the a*se.

The caliper is on the right way round, isn't it? ;):D
 
:eek:

I can see the thinking that put it there, but I don't think it's strictly necessary. Like you say, that's going to be a real pain in the a*se.

The caliper is on the right way round, isn't it? ;):D

:rolleyes: Yes, it's the right way round - there is a bleed nipple on both sides :)

There is plenty of room around it so I may be able to get at it with the wheel on, or I will have to get the back off the ground, and get both front wheels off, and then get under it. Too risky :oops:
 
Having done a very similar upgrade to my build as you know, I'll be very interested in the result of the lower unsprung weight and overall braking performance on your road going car :D
Oh, what pads do they use? Wilwood?
Jim
 
I am wondering how much weight I'll save as although the caliper is a lot lighter, the disc is heavier. I may weigh them both to see the difference.

Pads supplied are EBC Ultimax 2

Richard
 
That looks very nice! What exactly (if you don't mind saying) was wrong with the standard ones you had fitted? I am lucky enough to still have what are probably genuine quality discs on the front from decades ago, a situation which I fear can't last much longer with the mileage I do. :confused:
 
I am lucky enough to still have what are probably genuine quality discs on the front from decades ago, a situation which I fear can't last much longer with the mileage I do. :confused:

Back in the day I rarely fitted front discs, only sometimes if the pads wore down to the metal, but other than that I can't remember doing a set that were worn down too far through normal use, or had another fault such as judder or pull. Rears were a different matter, they cracked and often got worn away with the pads metal to metal.
 
Richard, what is the problem with the front discs that you say you've only used for a few thousand miles? I can't tell from your photograph what you are unhappy about.
Please weigh the Fosseway caliper and vented disc, it'd be cool to know that info. I will be very interested to hear how the four piston front brakes compare to the standard set-up.
Are the allen head bolts holding the caliper halves together stainless?
 
The problem with the current brakes is the constant juddering. I was very careful fitting them as I always am with brakes, making sure mating faces were super clean, and everything was torqued correctly. Then when I removed them and refitted them because of the juddering I was very careful again. But whatever I do they always start to shake the front of the car when they get anywhere near hot. The hotter they get, the worse they get. This has shown up more when tuning as you need to take it right through the rev range, then slow down and do it again. So, although it may be me, or something else in the system, I won't be offering them for sale just in case it's the discs at fault.

I have fitted the Fosseways on the other side now and have had a small problem. The fitting sequence is to remove the hub, replace the disc and refit it to the car. Then fit the adapter bracket to the caliper, fit the pads, pins etc then fit the caliper to the upright. Unfortunately the bolts didn't line up and I spent far too much time struggling with it so went indoors :mad:. Next day, I took the hub back off and removed the caliper from the adapter. So now, I'm just fitting the adapter to the upright with nothing else in the way. The brackets have a cutout which fits snuggly into the shape of the upright, or rather it should do.



After a lot of mucking around, I found that the shape of the bracket and the centralisation of the holes were actually spot on, but the holes on the upright were slightly off centre and with a casting mark/nodule just in the wrong place, the bracket just refused to line up. 30 seconds with my dremel sorted it, and it's now fitted and all lines up nicely.

Just got to connect up the hoses, clean up the mess from the power steering leak, then up top and try to work out where the power steering is leaking from and sort that out :cool:
 
Time for an update :)

Brakes have bedded in well and pull the car up strongly when leant on. Very smooth braking now, so the judder has gone altogether. Brake fluid level hasn't moved on 5 months, so pretty sure the leak has gone.

Have been reading, tuning, reading, tuning, reading......... and so ad infinitum ::oops: He fires up and runs second time, every time, but I'm sure I will sort that shortly. Drives away straight away, nice and smoothly, pulls away from junctions without hesitation (a problem sorted), ticks over well, pulls like a train right through the rev band, and basically behaves very well. I have found someone who 1/. Has a rolling road, and 2/. Knows megasquirt well, so have asked him to check it out, tweak it if necessary and give me a power run. Turns out this chap is very good at four barrel webers as well - wish I'd known that 12 months ago :mad:

IMG_3662.JPG

Anyhoo, a little mild tweaking did happen, but pretty much as I took it there, nothing like a rolling road for that final tune though.

I did notice however, a bit of a rumble in the engine when on the rolling road, and when I got home I spent quite a bit of time trying to work out what it was. It was in the middle somewhere and sounded like the camshaft was trying to get out. After a fair bit of panicking, I discovered this -



D'oh!! Better than a cam, but still a bit of a pig as I thought the car was ready to go to a few shows this year.

Half an hour later all the bolts were out. I must say, knowing what can happen, that was scary ::oops:

IMG_3696.JPG

I've also adjusted the headlights as they pointed all over the place, but found that one of them doesn't have any adjusters, so another small job that has turned into something a lot bigger.

Power figures are now 214bhp and 268lb/ft so pleased with that.

Richard
 
Last edited:
They are apparently measured engine figures. Not quite sure how it works, but something to do with measuring the resistance on over-run to work out power loss in the drive train, if that makes sense. So, engine, not at the wheels :)
 
I have said it before and I will say it again, your car is truely awesome!
If you have trouble finding who to leave it too in your will, worry no more ;)


Graeme
 
Thank you Graeme.

I always said as a poor destitute yoof, that if I ever made any money, I would rebuild a Rover P6 and make as good a job as I possibly could. Well, I managed to make a few bob and here it is :)

Sorry to say though, will is already written :)
 
I don't normally comment on a lot of the build threads, but wanted to say that those brakes look amazing.

I know someone who builds replica Jags at the £100k starting mark, and he uses Fosseway brakes in everything he does. Looks like a great upgrade for a daily runner.
 
Cheers Chris, they are a little better at bringing the car to a halt, but I think the main benefit is that you can use them in anger without fade. I'll see in September when the next MOT is due, as they'll measure the performance for me :)

I have the rolling road printout, check out the torque :)

Scan_20170502.thumb.jpg.1be7dc541abbc4d68130fc91fb996479.jpg

The previous printout started at nearly 190 so is difficult to compare. I have plotted them both on the same graph to show the difference in torque curve which is frankly astounding.

torque.png

I know it's a different rolling road, but that is a major difference.

Richard
 
Last edited:
Of course, if I had plotted it correctly, it would look like this :oops:

torque2.png
Which is more believable :)
 
Back
Top