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Post by harvey on Aug 19, 2017 19:42:50 GMT
fitting was poor. They removed the dynamo for clearance and on replacing it managed to trap the fanbelt between the waterpump and fan, rather than in the pulley groove.... the squeeling on the short drive home gave the game away! It also blew badly from the manifold as they didnt replace the flange gasket. It is worrying that professionals so frequently make schoolboy errors like that.  Making the mistake is one thing, but what it proves more than anything else is that they never bl**dy well test anything. My neighbour had a clutch fitted on her Micra, and picked it up after the garage had closed. As soon as she got in it to drive away she knew something wasn't right, the clutch pedal went down, but was very slow to come back up again. She couldn't drive it for more than a mile before it was too much for her, and she phoned me and I knew immediately what they'd done, went out with a lump of wire, tied my foot to the pedal and drove it home for her. They'd jammed the cable between the box and the engine when they put the box back in. I don't know haw far they got with the job before discovering it, but they just took it out to get it free and left it.... I told her that, and they barefaced lied to her and told her they had tested it after the job was done. You would have known just driving it out of the workshop. W*nkers. |
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Post by Derek UK on Aug 20, 2017 18:12:45 GMT
Matt, did you got my PM about the Bond Bug Notes Book?
Derek
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Aug 21, 2017 20:00:15 GMT
Hi Derek, i did, thankyou! Yes please - i'll reply to your PM now..
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Aug 29, 2017 21:53:08 GMT
   The air filter has worked out well. I used 2 cheap SU ram pipes off ebay as flanges to attach the air ducting, then made a bracket up to mount the foam filter under the floor. Having tested it, theres no loss of power compared to running no air filter at all, and its massively better than it was with the awful wire mesh thing. Its almost too fast now. |
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Post by penguin45 on Aug 30, 2017 22:53:44 GMT
Nice solution.
Chris.
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Post by Derek UK on Sept 6, 2017 11:37:03 GMT
Too fast! Well power to weight ratio is pretty good. Bumpy Norfolk country road corners at 80 might be a bit of a challenge. I guess that you got the Bug Note Book OK. There is a small reference there to Fred having a wider wheel for the front made up to suit a wider tyre. That improved the front end grip a lot(relative) and gave you a more secure feel when booting it in a corner, especially in the damp. Wheel needs to be widened equally on both sides. I think he had it made at Ton Tyres who in their day would widen/band/modify any wheel to your desires. Quality was always good. It might be still on the Hayabusa car now! There could well be a Mini wheel now that is correct for that job.
Nice job on the filter, Fred would have like that.
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Sept 6, 2017 20:46:14 GMT
Hi Derek. I messaged you last week via PM but im not sure you are getting them? Anyway, thank you for the chance to read the Bug Notes, its a fascinating little piece of history, you are lucky to have it! I wonder why the car ended up laid up in the garage and how long it sat there for....
Anyway its on its way back to you, please let me know it arrives ok?
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Sept 6, 2017 20:49:10 GMT
Popped down to Beaulieu Autojumble last weekend. Its always fun, and even yeilded some useful bits.....  New front spring / shock unit - very hard to find, mine is worn and leaking....  Dash Top Ammeter, mounted here under the regulator box. I can keep an eye on the Lectrics now.... |
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Post by Derek UK on Sept 7, 2017 12:09:06 GMT
Bug Book received this morning. Thanks. As you say, fascinating stuff, Fred was always meticulous. I don't know why it ended up on blocks, which is surprising as Fred could talk the hind leg off a donkey. He got into Morris Minors after that, having a 4 door and a couple of Woodies.
I was at Beaulieu too. Hope you got your shopping done on Saturday when the weather was fantastic. Sunday was miserable and we gave up at 2pm and went to Lymington before going to dinner. Made camping miserable with 20 hours of rain. Struck camp Monday without even bothering for breakfast which meant that my 4 Dutch friends were able to get an earlier boat.
We've been camping at Holland's Wood for 27 years in a row and have at last decided to be sensible and get an Airbnb next year. That will be luxury!
Derek
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Post by Derek UK on Sept 9, 2017 10:18:22 GMT
Hello Matt. No I've not had any PM's. Email address is OK in my profile so not sure what is happening there. Am I the only one with the problem? Some Forum PM systems are very hit and miss.
As I view, the post counts don't seem to be going up. Looks to be the same for you too.
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Post by bent8rover on Sept 11, 2017 11:29:28 GMT
Hello Matt. No I've not had any PM's. Email address is OK in my profile so not sure what is happening there. Am I the only one with the problem? Some Forum PM systems are very hit and miss. As I view, the post counts don't seem to be going up. Looks to be the same for you too. I've tested post count and PM box for me, both ok |
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Post by penguin45 on Oct 13, 2017 12:30:01 GMT
That there Bug is in the October issue of Practical Classics. Nice one, Matt.
P45.
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Oct 15, 2017 20:32:55 GMT
Ive fitted a little electric fan to the Bug to combat the long-running issue of hot running in traffic. You can drive the thing all day and its fine, as soon as you stop, the temperature starts to rise and it gets bad tempered and spluttery. Theres no room behind the rad so ive mounted a small (7") fan in front of the rad, keeping the existing mechanical fan. Its just big enough to act as a booster, and its wired to a thermostatic switch. It was hot here today, and it seemed to work well, cutting in automatically as soon as it starts to get hot. No more dreading traffic queues!  Ive also bought a set of hinges so i can mount the side screens. They rivet on - ive added a blob of tiger seal as well for added strength.     The side screens look ok in the pictures, in reality the vinyl is hard and cracked, and the windows wrinkled and yellow. I'll need to get them recovered, but at least i now know they fit correctly and the metal frames behind are ok. |
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Dec 9, 2017 16:33:28 GMT
The Bug is still running a Dynamo, and it just cant cope. At idle, it does not charge at all, and at night at speed you have the choice of lights OR wipers, or both and run the battery down.... Not very brilliant. I got given a Lucas ACR alternator, and attempted to fit it - no chance. Theres just enough room for the Dynamo, the extra width of the Alternator meant it was hard against the bodywork. Later Bugs had alternators as standard, and revised bodywork with a bulge in the footwell to clear it. Most people in the Bug Club make a bulge during restoration - but i didnt fancy hacking mine about now its painted... Then at the NEC i found this:  Its a "Dynamator" by Accuspark. Same size as a Dynamo but an Alternator inside.  Fits neatly onto the existing mounts and looks original.  As its an Alternator and has its own regulator built in, the dynamo control box is redundant and needs bypassing. This can be done by cutting and joining the wires, but as my Bug has a brand new loom and the control box is quite visible in the footwell i wanted something a bit neater... So i found that AES do a dummy box that looks standard but is internally linked correctly for an Alternator.  As a bonus, inside it has a replaceable 50A fuse that protects the charging system. More protection on a GRP car is always a good  !  Does it work? With the engine ticking over, and the headlamps, heater fan, and fogs on, we have a decent voltage at the battery. Happy with that!  |
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Post by Matt of the Vivas on Dec 9, 2017 18:33:08 GMT
Next thing id like to look at is gear ratios... The Bug is quite a comfortable car at speed, at 55 to 60 it feels far more stable than it does at 30, and its happy up to the legal limit and beyond. At anything over 55 the engine is buzzing away, and its hitting 5000 rpm at 75mph. Too much. Its currently running an 850 "yellow top" engine, standard Bug gearbox, and standard Bug back axle. The 850 HT-E engine - the "Yellow Top" was only used in 1984 and 1985 in the Rialto 2. It was coupled to a super high ratio back axle and the engine was tuned for torque. The was to make the car more economical on motorways. Sadly, it was not a great success, as it struggled a bit with 4 people in a Rialto and it was discontinued after a couple of years. In the lighter Bug, with only 2 seats, it apparently works well and is a popular choice. The issue is finding one - they didnt make many and they are prized by trike builders. I got lucky back in the summer, having bought (for £20!) a very, very rusty back axle from a Rialto 2 that was about the right age. Having dismantled it and counted the teeth it is indeed the super high ratio. Ive since been offered £200 for it - they are THAT rare... I cant use the complete back axle as is - the Bug mounts and suspension are completely different - although it is possible to cut the Rialto mounts off and weld the Bug ones on. This Rialto axle is corroded badly, so i wont be doing that.... The plan is to take the crown wheel and pinion out of the Rialto axle and fit it into the Bug casing. Its been done before, but im told some modification has to be done to get it all to fit... I'll let you all know how that goes when im feeling brave. The new ratio is 2.78 to 1, the standard Bug ratio being 3.55 to 1. Should make a fair difference. |
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