Capri 1.6LS

[Max]

Kate's Capri is back...

After stopping work on it due to a house move (which turned into 2 house moves) and then an addition to the family I have pulled the Capri out of hibernation.

First a quick summary: The Capri was purchased in March for £500 (Buy it now) with a long MOT. It appeared at PPC in the Park and was used as a runaround until July when the thermostat broke. I then started preparation for the 2010 £999 Challenge, pulling the 1.6 Pinto out and offering up the new engine, it didn't fit. Then I received a call saying my house had been sold so work stopped.

The new engine is a Volvo B230FK which makes a modest 135bhp. I bought a complete Volvo 940 estate which had low miles so I could use the engine, box, loom and ancillaries.

Fast forward to Jan 1st 2011. The reason the engine didn't fit was because it fouled the Capri front crossmember when offered into the engine bay from above, so I decided to insert it from below. First job was to remove the crossmember and front suspension, so I spent 3 hours with a drill & wire brush attachment cleaning up all of the fixings before leaving to soak in WD40 for 24hours. It paid off and all the nuts complied. One of the TCA bushes was seized on its inner bolt so I cut it off.

Next job (3rd Jan) was to fashion a tolley that would support the new engine at the right angle (it's a slant 4) and enable me to roll it under the raised Capri.

Today I have bolted the trolley to the engine and tried rolling the engine under the Capri which needs raising another 10 cms. Snow and hunger have stopped play.

There are photos to follow

[bulletproofbob]

first job is CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! nice work you two, i know you will have put the biggest effort in max but fair play to Kate as i assume she did a bit of the "panting, towels, hot water" stuff....

come on mate, pics pics pics!!!

[Relentless Rob]

first job is CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! nice work you two, i know you will have put the biggest effort in max but fair play to Kate as i assume she did a bit of the "panting, towels, hot water" stuff....

Hot water, towels and panting I'd use an engine hoist myself.

Are you using the Volvo engine mounts to secure the engine to the trolly? Cut the mounting brackets off the cross member, clean it up and weld the trolly legs (cut as low as possible) to the cross member for instant engine mounts.

[bulletproofbob]

hang on there... last time you removed an engine you used a sky hook and dropped it smashing the rocker cover didn't you??

[fha772]

Yep, Bob your right, I laughed my ass off!!!

[Max]

Growing babies is much easier than working on cars, plus Dazzler told me that nothing exciting happens until they are 8 months old hence me getting stuck in with the Capri!

I've made custom mounts for the engine trolley that bolt right at the front of the block where the PAS pump used to be - luckily that side of the block is vertical. By doing that I leave the threads for the old engine mounts free to fashion some new ones once the engine is positioned in the engine bay. At the gearbox end I have a block of wood with 2 castors zip tied to the 'box, gravity seems to be holding it there ok...

The engine mounts are based on Superflex bushes and will be welded to the chassis rails.

Photos after tea

[Relentless Rob]

hang on there... last time you removed an engine you used a sky hook and dropped it smashing the rocker cover didn't you??

£999 rocker/cam' cover repair guide.

Remeber this?

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/6ptW8q3X[/url]

Well with four days until the event I haven't got time to pillock about trying to find a replacement cam' cover (the 320 one won't fit). So I have had to make a repair. Concourse polishing freaks look away now.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/wEXRgFoM[/url]

Cleaned around the hole with a grinder an left a nice rough edge.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/33PnA8lx[/url]

Found an off cut of metal in my shed about the right size-ish.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/wkGV0PBg[/url]

Drilled eight holes.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/4LHnd3Gd[/url]

Drilled holes in the cam' cover and put rivets in place.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/sY9eF29k[/url]

Put instant gasket around the area.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/fOEj35Ii[/url]

Pop riveted the metal in place making sure the gasket made a decent seal.

[url]|http://thumbsnap.com/5xpa2V8i[/url]

Factory fresh and ready to fit.

[Max]

Capri Album:

http://s605.photobucket.com/albums/tt13 ... 20Project/

The other album (Mallory) shows Will's Quattro after he crashed it if you fancy a look

[fha772]

Max, jus a thought,
couldn't you just uprate the bearings in the trolley wheels?
Should that would be up to doing the job?
And save all that work trying to mount it "properly".

[Max]

...save all that work trying to mount it "properly".

Frank, last time I mounted something properly she ended in Peterborough maternity ward.

The trolley does have more structural integrity than the Capri though, not sure it'd pass the IVA

[fha772]

Good point, well made!!

[bulletproofbob]

...save all that work trying to mount it "properly".

Frank, last time I mounted something properly she ended in Peterborough maternity ward.

The trolley does have more structural integrity than the Capri though, not sure it'd pass the IVA

kate, can you confirm the "properly" claim?!?

[Kate Miller]

...save all that work trying to mount it "properly".

Frank, last time I mounted something properly she ended in Peterborough maternity ward.

The trolley does have more structural integrity than the Capri though, not sure it'd pass the IVA

kate, can you confirm the "properly" claim?!?

Nope... Damn that extra bottle of wine!

[bulletproofbob]

ROFL!!!!!!

[Max]

Being off work with a baby that sleeps in 3 hour bursts is great for working on Projects, so there's more Capri work to update:

Having lifted the car up with my trusty engine hoist and supported it securely on old wheels and blocks of wood I was able to roll the engine and it's trolley under the engine bay. I then lowered the body over the engine and supported it on axle stands.

This left the engine sitting about 8 inches to low so I raised it an inch at a time ensuring that it was sat centrally in the shell (I even used a plumb line! very anal). With the engine about 4 inches too low the body started to lift as well . It wasn't clear what it was catching on so I resorted to lowering my phone in video mode through the gear lever hole in the transmission tunnel to find the pinch point.

Basically the transmission tunnel is a good couple of inches too low which made me feel miserable and even contemplate a more mundane swap. I discussed buying a Granada Cosworth donor with Kate, but I like the idea of the Volvo lump so I vowed to press on....

After trawling the net for inspiration I found a guy who is fitting Nissan S13 running gear to a Capri and suddenly felt a little embarassed at my inability to fit an engine - so I dug out the angle grinder and cut out the transmission tunnel (after a morning removing the interior). Now the engine looks like it will fit again