Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Moderators: jifflemon, coyote1980, Rachel
- dragonflyjewels
- 480 Is my middle name
- Posts: 1592
- Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
- Location: Norfolk
Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
I'm guessing a lot of members have seen the black turbo auto that popped up on ebay last week having been off the road about 10 years. The 56k on the clock looks to be genuine from the MoT history. It was in Essex, so Al and I went to have a look this afternoon, made an offer and bought it.
Al has been having problems with cramp after long journeys in the manual cars so he has been saying for some time he needs to have at least one 480 auto. Jeff has one tucked away in store but so much else to do, it won't be available for quite some time. We had planned to make this a personal rescue and have the work done by our repairman, but he is always very busy so I wasn't looking forward to asking him if he would take it on (and the bill would have been horrendous). I was really pleased to get a message from Jeff, saying that he'd be happy to do it for us if we could take R5 for a while - no-one has expressed any interest in it and there is lots to do on it. Thankfully the auto is (we think) in better condition - there is a fair bit of rust on the outer arches but inside feels quite solid both sides. The boot has little rust apart from in the tool well - I gave the biggest scab a good scrape and poke with a thumb nail and it felt solid so I'm hoping it's surface. Lacquer peel is pretty bad, same as R5 so perhaps the early black ones suffer from that.
The car belonged to an elderly couple, the husband hadn't been well for around 10 years but he didn't want to part with it so the car was left on the drive until he died last November. The chap we bought it from knew the couple and is a car enthusiast (gorgeous supercharged XJR in the garage, along with his wife's early MX5) He bought the 480 partly to help the widow out and partly thinking he might restore it for his wife who is a fan of pop-ups. However, he is running a digger hire business and not yet at the end of the house renovation he is doing, then he will be building himself a retirement bungalow on part of the extensive grounds and selling the house so he is not exactly time rich. When he first bought the 480 he tried to jump start it but it wouldn't fire up although the engine turned ok. He assumed it needed fuel and a good clean out but postponed it until better weather. Recently he opened the bonnet and found some dodgy wiring so replaced the worst of it, but when he put a battery on it again, smoke started coming out under the dash so he rapidly disconnected it and decided it needed more work than he had time for.
Sadly, this means Al will have to part with Eva. She is also low mileage, much the same as the auto, had a turbo rebuild when we first bought her, always looked after by our pedantic garageman (if it's not perfect it just wont do) and had a very expensive respray/underside treatment over the winter so we will be asking top dollar for her. I don't anticipate parting with her much before the end of the summer but if you might be interested just bear it in mind.
Meanwhile - hopefully one more turbo snatched from the jaws of death !
Al has been having problems with cramp after long journeys in the manual cars so he has been saying for some time he needs to have at least one 480 auto. Jeff has one tucked away in store but so much else to do, it won't be available for quite some time. We had planned to make this a personal rescue and have the work done by our repairman, but he is always very busy so I wasn't looking forward to asking him if he would take it on (and the bill would have been horrendous). I was really pleased to get a message from Jeff, saying that he'd be happy to do it for us if we could take R5 for a while - no-one has expressed any interest in it and there is lots to do on it. Thankfully the auto is (we think) in better condition - there is a fair bit of rust on the outer arches but inside feels quite solid both sides. The boot has little rust apart from in the tool well - I gave the biggest scab a good scrape and poke with a thumb nail and it felt solid so I'm hoping it's surface. Lacquer peel is pretty bad, same as R5 so perhaps the early black ones suffer from that.
The car belonged to an elderly couple, the husband hadn't been well for around 10 years but he didn't want to part with it so the car was left on the drive until he died last November. The chap we bought it from knew the couple and is a car enthusiast (gorgeous supercharged XJR in the garage, along with his wife's early MX5) He bought the 480 partly to help the widow out and partly thinking he might restore it for his wife who is a fan of pop-ups. However, he is running a digger hire business and not yet at the end of the house renovation he is doing, then he will be building himself a retirement bungalow on part of the extensive grounds and selling the house so he is not exactly time rich. When he first bought the 480 he tried to jump start it but it wouldn't fire up although the engine turned ok. He assumed it needed fuel and a good clean out but postponed it until better weather. Recently he opened the bonnet and found some dodgy wiring so replaced the worst of it, but when he put a battery on it again, smoke started coming out under the dash so he rapidly disconnected it and decided it needed more work than he had time for.
Sadly, this means Al will have to part with Eva. She is also low mileage, much the same as the auto, had a turbo rebuild when we first bought her, always looked after by our pedantic garageman (if it's not perfect it just wont do) and had a very expensive respray/underside treatment over the winter so we will be asking top dollar for her. I don't anticipate parting with her much before the end of the summer but if you might be interested just bear it in mind.
Meanwhile - hopefully one more turbo snatched from the jaws of death !
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Wed Apr 27, 2022 3:08 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sylvia
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
- WillC9303
- Can tell where the 480 was built
- Posts: 310
- Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2021 8:46 pm
- Location: Surrey
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
Congratulations!
I’m assuming you bought J5**LBJ?
If I had that car I’d call it Lyndon because of the numberplate
How good are the autos? Pretty much all the reviews and road tests I’ve seen are for the manuals. I assume they’re a 4spd?
Acceleration for a Turbo auto is probably comparible to a 2.0 manual I’m guessing?
Black with red trim stripes is such a classic colour combo for the 480. Front spoiler looks to be quite good as well (going off one picture) shame about the paint condition though.
I’m assuming you bought J5**LBJ?
If I had that car I’d call it Lyndon because of the numberplate
How good are the autos? Pretty much all the reviews and road tests I’ve seen are for the manuals. I assume they’re a 4spd?
Acceleration for a Turbo auto is probably comparible to a 2.0 manual I’m guessing?
Black with red trim stripes is such a classic colour combo for the 480. Front spoiler looks to be quite good as well (going off one picture) shame about the paint condition though.
William
1993 2.0i Limited Edition
1993 2.0i Limited Edition
- dragonflyjewels
- 480 Is my middle name
- Posts: 1592
- Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
- Location: Norfolk
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
I have been trying to ignore the numberplate - I definitely don't want to name it for Lyndon Bird Johnson. Instead I have been toying with Blackbird after the stealth plane, but even that is a sort of sideways reference. Maybe Al will come up with something else. Hmmm.
Neither of us has driven a 480 auto apart from moving R7 around so your questions are much the same as ours.
Hopefully Edie will see this and answer, I know she still looks in on the forum from time to time even though she has parted with her turbo auto.
Much to my surprise, the spoiler is intact. Needless to say the dash surround isn't and neither are the seatbelt arms but they are minor problems compared to the potential corrosion underneath.
Neither of us has driven a 480 auto apart from moving R7 around so your questions are much the same as ours.
Hopefully Edie will see this and answer, I know she still looks in on the forum from time to time even though she has parted with her turbo auto.
Much to my surprise, the spoiler is intact. Needless to say the dash surround isn't and neither are the seatbelt arms but they are minor problems compared to the potential corrosion underneath.
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Tue Mar 29, 2022 8:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
Sylvia
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
- dragonflyjewels
- 480 Is my middle name
- Posts: 1592
- Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
- Location: Norfolk
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
Ha ha just looked up LBJ and his middle name was actually Baines - it was his wife that was Bird, and their daughter was Lynda Bird Johnson. Very confusing!
Last edited by dragonflyjewels on Tue Mar 29, 2022 8:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
Sylvia
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
- jamescarruthers
- 480 Is my middle name
- Posts: 2511
- Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2003 3:19 pm
- Location: Cambridge
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
Well done you two on another save!
Only turbo automatic advice I have to offer is to change the fluid a few times and when driving it to occasionally select 3rd gear yourself, rather than letting it kick down a gear itself.
Only turbo automatic advice I have to offer is to change the fluid a few times and when driving it to occasionally select 3rd gear yourself, rather than letting it kick down a gear itself.
1987 Volvo 480 ES, 507274, 217 - Red (Ness)
2006 Citroen C6 Exclusive 3.0 petrol/LPG
2008 Mini Cooper convertible (Mau)
Previous 480's:
J123 CFU -- ES
J449 MNL -- ES auto
D864 CPV -- ES
L691 JFC -- Turbo
F70 MNR -- ES
H858 FGV -- Turbo auto
E981 KHM -- ES (509849)
2006 Citroen C6 Exclusive 3.0 petrol/LPG
2008 Mini Cooper convertible (Mau)
Previous 480's:
J123 CFU -- ES
J449 MNL -- ES auto
D864 CPV -- ES
L691 JFC -- Turbo
F70 MNR -- ES
H858 FGV -- Turbo auto
E981 KHM -- ES (509849)
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
Well, I’m the least technical person here but the auto will still kick when you need it to!
I’d put more reliability in the 480 auto to perform a successful overtake than I would the C30 I had.
I found the auto much more of a cruise. Especially for the first ‘warm-up’ 5 miles. In a way it’s nicer. You kind of have more time to enjoy being in a 480.
I’ve had 2.0 and 1.7 ESs and it is a different drive. It was my first auto car really though so I felt like I had a bit less control compared to manual cars. I found the pedals quite hard and brakes not as responsive (could have just been my car?).
Glad Al has what he wanted now and it’ll be lovely when it’s all back to new! Which I know it will be. fingers crossed on the more on-depth inspection.
I’d put more reliability in the 480 auto to perform a successful overtake than I would the C30 I had.
I found the auto much more of a cruise. Especially for the first ‘warm-up’ 5 miles. In a way it’s nicer. You kind of have more time to enjoy being in a 480.
I’ve had 2.0 and 1.7 ESs and it is a different drive. It was my first auto car really though so I felt like I had a bit less control compared to manual cars. I found the pedals quite hard and brakes not as responsive (could have just been my car?).
Glad Al has what he wanted now and it’ll be lovely when it’s all back to new! Which I know it will be. fingers crossed on the more on-depth inspection.
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
Chalk up another one, I thought that one would have to be conceded to the Forced Induction Shopping Trolley brigade
Current Jobs to do (23/1/22):
Fix Central Locking
Fix drivers side speaker
Annoying Scratching Squeak
Water leaks
Complete Front O/S rebuild
Fix Central Locking
Fix drivers side speaker
Annoying Scratching Squeak
Water leaks
Complete Front O/S rebuild
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto
I can't comment directly on a turbo auto, but currently I am getting to grips with my "new" 440 which is a 2.0i auto...
It's not as quick from a standing start as the manual 2.0, but once up to 30 or so seems to pick up much the same. It's a 4 speed box which today is pretty old school in that some of the changes down as you lose speed seem a bit "clunky", but overall it's fine once you've adapted to it.
I'd agree with Edie's comments about it being more of a cruiser, and also that it's better after a few miles warming up. Mind you, I just did an ATF change which was clearly well overdue, and that has noticeably smoothed things considerably... going to do it again in 3 months or so since you can only drain about 3.5 of 5.5 litres, meaning it'll take 2 or 3 goes to completely change all the fluid.
Kick down seems pretty vicious, though
David
It's not as quick from a standing start as the manual 2.0, but once up to 30 or so seems to pick up much the same. It's a 4 speed box which today is pretty old school in that some of the changes down as you lose speed seem a bit "clunky", but overall it's fine once you've adapted to it.
I'd agree with Edie's comments about it being more of a cruiser, and also that it's better after a few miles warming up. Mind you, I just did an ATF change which was clearly well overdue, and that has noticeably smoothed things considerably... going to do it again in 3 months or so since you can only drain about 3.5 of 5.5 litres, meaning it'll take 2 or 3 goes to completely change all the fluid.
Kick down seems pretty vicious, though
David
Current: 1994 480 GT, 1996 460 CD & 1997 440 LE with lots of optional extras & 2007 V50 SE Sport
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
- dragonflyjewels
- 480 Is my middle name
- Posts: 1592
- Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 10:38 am
- Location: Norfolk
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
This was picked up by a Shiply transporter this morning - apparently brakes very rusty and seized on so it was dragged onto the transporter with the aid of a mini digger to keep it in a straight line ! I just hope the digger's not done it any damage, there's enough to do on it already. Arrival at Jeff's wasn't straightforward until the brakes were freed off - I'm sure we'll get a report from Jeff on that. I wonder if his neighbours will spot the different number plate ?
Al has been driving Eva and fallen in love all over again so he's not at all sure about changing her for this one. Amended plan is to get it road legal so Al can drive it for a few months to give everything a chance to to get moving properly again. Once he has decided, we'll either have the full monty at our expensive bodyshop or go cap in hand to Paul to get an affordable job for re-homing.
Al has been driving Eva and fallen in love all over again so he's not at all sure about changing her for this one. Amended plan is to get it road legal so Al can drive it for a few months to give everything a chance to to get moving properly again. Once he has decided, we'll either have the full monty at our expensive bodyshop or go cap in hand to Paul to get an affordable job for re-homing.
Sylvia
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
Snazzy - 1993 Paris Blue ES red dipstick 2.0i bought 2001
Lethal Lily - 1991 White Turbo
Paris the Unicorn - 1991 Paris Edition
hubby has
Sven - 1994 Racing Green GT
Evil Eva - 1992 Paris Blue Turbo
no previous 480s - can't bear to sell any
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Oooo...decisions, decisions...dragonflyjewels wrote: ↑Wed Apr 27, 2022 3:22 pm
Al has been driving Eva and fallen in love all over again so he's not at all sure about changing her for this one. Amended plan is to get it road legal so Al can drive it for a few months to give everything a chance to to get moving properly again. Once he has decided, we'll either have the full monty at our expensive bodyshop or go cap in hand to Paul to get an affordable job for re-homing.
David
Current: 1994 480 GT, 1996 460 CD & 1997 440 LE with lots of optional extras & 2007 V50 SE Sport
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
So.....
It's fair to say me and R8 didn't get off the best of starts.
Trying to unload a car with seized brakes is not fun. They had a mini digger to load it, there was just me to unload it!
This also did not help.....
The sidewall blew out a long time ago, so no chance of getting air in it. That's it jacked up to get it's space saver on in case you were wondering!
With it deposited (quite literally) on the driveway, I'm fairly certain everyone knows what step 1 is - Clean. A few images of why....
I spent a good couple of hours blasting away with the pressure washer, moving endless amounts of never ending grime. And if you thought the outside was bad, I had this waiting inside....
Overall, the car didn't look too bad when wet....
But sadly, when dry......
On the positive side, it means one less car to try and keep clean! Surprisingly, despite the vigorous pressure washing, the car remained dry inside! And whilst it definitely needs a respray, the lack of actual rot is quite refreshing...
Quick victory time?
Blocked filler drain spotted....
And fixed!
(compressed air in a can is awesome!)
It's fair to say me and R8 didn't get off the best of starts.
Trying to unload a car with seized brakes is not fun. They had a mini digger to load it, there was just me to unload it!
This also did not help.....
The sidewall blew out a long time ago, so no chance of getting air in it. That's it jacked up to get it's space saver on in case you were wondering!
With it deposited (quite literally) on the driveway, I'm fairly certain everyone knows what step 1 is - Clean. A few images of why....
I spent a good couple of hours blasting away with the pressure washer, moving endless amounts of never ending grime. And if you thought the outside was bad, I had this waiting inside....
Overall, the car didn't look too bad when wet....
But sadly, when dry......
On the positive side, it means one less car to try and keep clean! Surprisingly, despite the vigorous pressure washing, the car remained dry inside! And whilst it definitely needs a respray, the lack of actual rot is quite refreshing...
Quick victory time?
Blocked filler drain spotted....
And fixed!
(compressed air in a can is awesome!)
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Right, inside next.
Obviously we need the seats out. So lets have a look at....
Oh joy.....
Thankfully, armed with the hot spanner, it was soon this
I know it sounds a bit obsessive to remove the interior to clean it, but it's quite honestly the only real way to tackle stuff like this:
and its that kind of grime that's going to make all the difference once the car is back on the road. So.... Carpet be gone!
Deploy picks and brushes and vacuums...
Generate profit.....
But more importantly, attack the carpet. I hit it primarily with the steam cleaner, followed by some fabric cleaner and drill brush attachment. Not too bad really!
Ok, even I was slightly surprised by how well it came back! And the steam has ensured anything that was thinking about taking up permanent residency in the carpet has been well and truly evicted!
Obviously we need the seats out. So lets have a look at....
Oh joy.....
Thankfully, armed with the hot spanner, it was soon this
I know it sounds a bit obsessive to remove the interior to clean it, but it's quite honestly the only real way to tackle stuff like this:
and its that kind of grime that's going to make all the difference once the car is back on the road. So.... Carpet be gone!
Deploy picks and brushes and vacuums...
Generate profit.....
But more importantly, attack the carpet. I hit it primarily with the steam cleaner, followed by some fabric cleaner and drill brush attachment. Not too bad really!
Ok, even I was slightly surprised by how well it came back! And the steam has ensured anything that was thinking about taking up permanent residency in the carpet has been well and truly evicted!
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
If you look back at each and every image showing us something you’ve done to all these cars… I think you’ve single handedly revived the largest percentage of any particular vehicle out of anyone, ever
Looks like the inside will come out fine… but the paint
What’s next for this one? Mechanical fixes? Tyres? Or a rest and back to R1!
Looks like the inside will come out fine… but the paint
What’s next for this one? Mechanical fixes? Tyres? Or a rest and back to R1!
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Funny you mention it.....
Before going too far, I needed to know we have a mechanically sound base to start from. First thing we need is a battery.... and before a battery, we need the battery tray out!
Yes, this was AFTER all the previous jetwashing! these area's are a proper little grot trap if you're not careful!
So, battery tray out, next up, washer bottle!
See what I mean?
Then (and stay with me....) spark plugs out!
Absolutely past their best, but with them out, it meant I could fill the cylinders with some penetrating oil, as a precautionary measure. It also makes it so much easier to turn the engine over!
Timing cover off and I think a belt change is a little overdue.
as well as a drivebelt....
and, of course, more pressure washing....
Minor detour involving cleaning the washer bottle and coolant tanks... because...
as well as blasting the rusty water pump pulley clean.....
before dropping this on
and buttoning all back up, with new drive belt and painted pulley. Engine rotates nice and easily, but we'll keep lubing up the cylinders for now. Plenty to do before a fire up!
BTW, removing the washer bottle not only gives you a great opportunity to clean out the grot trap, but gives you so much more access when doing the timing belt.
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Excellent progress Jeff, very well done as always
R8 is really starting to look viable again...
David
R8 is really starting to look viable again...
David
Current: 1994 480 GT, 1996 460 CD & 1997 440 LE with lots of optional extras & 2007 V50 SE Sport
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
Previous: Celebration 331 (re-homed with Richard S), Celebration 467 (returned to Martin Mc); Celebration 346 (re-homed with Alan480); Celebration 269 (scrapped abandoned project), Celebration 73 (sold on after 6 years), 1992 ES, 1988 ES - and numerous other non-480 Volvos!
-
- Can tell where the 480 was built
- Posts: 362
- Joined: Wed Sep 30, 2015 5:08 pm
- Location: Knaresborough
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Great stuff as per normal Jeff.providing it runs and drives it doesn’t look too bad.
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
So, next up battery.
Very very dubious about this stage, because of this:
Before connecting the battery, I removed both of the heathrobinson "repairs" and made sure they weren't touching anything. Then the battery was then connected up with the positive cable first, then the negative cable via my multimeter, measuring amps. The reasoning was twofold. Firstly, and most importantly, the meter is fused. If anything was pulling more than 10amps or shorting out, it'll pop the fuse in the meter, thus disconnecting the battery rather than producing any of Mr Lucas's finest electrical smoke. Secondly, there shouldn't be anything pulling an excessive amount of current.
Battery on - No smoke, no blown fuse.
However, things started to add up quite quickly.... and what was adding up, was the list of things NOT working.
Interior lights
Keyhole lights
Central locking
Dash lights
Dashboard
DRL lights
And so began the deep dive into that most joyous of areas, 480 electrics! Despite their notoriety, they honestly are quite simple. Compared to P1800 they're complicated, but they're closer to a P1800 than say, a c30!
Simple checks first. Fuses. Remove them, check them, replace and dead ones, replace any with creepy green death, and clean the fuse box with Contact cleaner.
This yielded a couple of dead fuses, but nothing in a "woohoo! It lives kind of way"
Next up was the bodges. Before removing them completely, I like to understand what it was they were trying to fix. the flappy wire in the engine bay worried me the most. Because the switch that it went to, was a momentary switch. Hold it to make contact, release to switch off. Not many things need that sort of thing.... just things like Horns, washer pumps and starter motors. Now on any other car, I wouldn't even be breaking a sweat about that, but on a turbo, the starter motor is a bloody awful, 3 hour job, involving contortions, sensory socket placing and adding of monies to the swear jar - Ask me how I know.
So.... With one end of the wire just flapping around in the engine bay, the other end was all important. The flappy end was traced and it did, go to the switch. The world held it's breath, and mercifully, the "other" end of the switch went to earth, NOT the ignition barrel!
This would very likely mean it was horn or washer pump, as both are "earth to operate" devices. Sure enough, one of the horns was disconnected.
A vague picture was starting to form in my head.... So next up, after removing the switch and launching it far, far away, was the wiring loom bodge on the light circuit.
A quick scan of the wiring diagram showed that the previous electrical work was to connect the Dip beam feed, into the CEM.... only the CEM part was a CEM controlled earth. So at some point, you'll have a live feed going to earth, which is commonly known as "a bad thing".
It did, however, start to make more sense of the list of dead circuits.... The CEM getting a blast of unwanted voltage would indeed produce some smoke and make the CEM and EX-CEM. Horns run through the CEM and as you need one of those for an MOT, you bodge your way through. What's not clear yet, is what the original bodge that killed the CEM was trying to fix.
The red emergency rescue phone was used and it was confirmed we had CEM's available! So, onwards we go whilst we wait for stock.
Dashboard was removed and given the treatment included new cog, bulbs and a resolder.
Because of how much I despise the dashboard design in terms off access for fitting/refitting, I now test like this....
Because it's MUCH easier for connecting/reconnecting the dashboard plugs! As you can see though, we're making progress!
also replaced a multitude of small bulbs like these
along with ashtray, Shifter bulb, heated seat bulb and dash switch panel bulb. Again, not strictly a "rescue" item, but its all about those little details!
The Brinkie Winkie dance was performed, which revealed an almost dead NS popup. I popped the gas strut off it and it was then MUCH happier.
These had definitely popped their last - The OS (bottom) was doing nothing, the NS one Seized.
Also noticed we had headlamps flopping around within the casings, so both sides got stripped, their pivots lubed, new headlamp adjusters (also lubed!) and new gas struts.
As we can't embed video, you'll just have to believe me when I say they're both happy little popups now!
There is still much poking to do around the electrics of course, but we need to wait for the CEM.
Very very dubious about this stage, because of this:
So, new battery acquired and placed on charge. Don't get me started about shops not maintaining their stocks float level, but this one was sat at about 30% charge.dragonflyjewels wrote: ↑Mon Mar 28, 2022 6:27 pmRecently he opened the bonnet and found some dodgy wiring so replaced the worst of it, but when he put a battery on it again, smoke started coming out under the dash so he rapidly disconnected it and decided it needed more work than he had time for.
Before connecting the battery, I removed both of the heathrobinson "repairs" and made sure they weren't touching anything. Then the battery was then connected up with the positive cable first, then the negative cable via my multimeter, measuring amps. The reasoning was twofold. Firstly, and most importantly, the meter is fused. If anything was pulling more than 10amps or shorting out, it'll pop the fuse in the meter, thus disconnecting the battery rather than producing any of Mr Lucas's finest electrical smoke. Secondly, there shouldn't be anything pulling an excessive amount of current.
Battery on - No smoke, no blown fuse.
However, things started to add up quite quickly.... and what was adding up, was the list of things NOT working.
Interior lights
Keyhole lights
Central locking
Dash lights
Dashboard
DRL lights
And so began the deep dive into that most joyous of areas, 480 electrics! Despite their notoriety, they honestly are quite simple. Compared to P1800 they're complicated, but they're closer to a P1800 than say, a c30!
Simple checks first. Fuses. Remove them, check them, replace and dead ones, replace any with creepy green death, and clean the fuse box with Contact cleaner.
This yielded a couple of dead fuses, but nothing in a "woohoo! It lives kind of way"
Next up was the bodges. Before removing them completely, I like to understand what it was they were trying to fix. the flappy wire in the engine bay worried me the most. Because the switch that it went to, was a momentary switch. Hold it to make contact, release to switch off. Not many things need that sort of thing.... just things like Horns, washer pumps and starter motors. Now on any other car, I wouldn't even be breaking a sweat about that, but on a turbo, the starter motor is a bloody awful, 3 hour job, involving contortions, sensory socket placing and adding of monies to the swear jar - Ask me how I know.
So.... With one end of the wire just flapping around in the engine bay, the other end was all important. The flappy end was traced and it did, go to the switch. The world held it's breath, and mercifully, the "other" end of the switch went to earth, NOT the ignition barrel!
This would very likely mean it was horn or washer pump, as both are "earth to operate" devices. Sure enough, one of the horns was disconnected.
A vague picture was starting to form in my head.... So next up, after removing the switch and launching it far, far away, was the wiring loom bodge on the light circuit.
A quick scan of the wiring diagram showed that the previous electrical work was to connect the Dip beam feed, into the CEM.... only the CEM part was a CEM controlled earth. So at some point, you'll have a live feed going to earth, which is commonly known as "a bad thing".
It did, however, start to make more sense of the list of dead circuits.... The CEM getting a blast of unwanted voltage would indeed produce some smoke and make the CEM and EX-CEM. Horns run through the CEM and as you need one of those for an MOT, you bodge your way through. What's not clear yet, is what the original bodge that killed the CEM was trying to fix.
The red emergency rescue phone was used and it was confirmed we had CEM's available! So, onwards we go whilst we wait for stock.
Dashboard was removed and given the treatment included new cog, bulbs and a resolder.
Because of how much I despise the dashboard design in terms off access for fitting/refitting, I now test like this....
Because it's MUCH easier for connecting/reconnecting the dashboard plugs! As you can see though, we're making progress!
also replaced a multitude of small bulbs like these
along with ashtray, Shifter bulb, heated seat bulb and dash switch panel bulb. Again, not strictly a "rescue" item, but its all about those little details!
The Brinkie Winkie dance was performed, which revealed an almost dead NS popup. I popped the gas strut off it and it was then MUCH happier.
These had definitely popped their last - The OS (bottom) was doing nothing, the NS one Seized.
Also noticed we had headlamps flopping around within the casings, so both sides got stripped, their pivots lubed, new headlamp adjusters (also lubed!) and new gas struts.
As we can't embed video, you'll just have to believe me when I say they're both happy little popups now!
There is still much poking to do around the electrics of course, but we need to wait for the CEM.
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
So, following the May meet, I left with a bundle of CEM's to try. First thing was to remove the old one. If you don't know, its tucked up on the passenger side A-pillar (UK cars), and held in by two screws. You'll find it much easier if you remove the bonnet release latch. Once out, it was apparent that it's been enjoying a bath....
New CEM fitted and suddenly the list of things that weren't working, suddenly were. Amazing! As mentioned previously, when I'd removed the plugs I'd loaded the bores up with some oil and had be rotating the engine daily to ensure everything was free and easy. So, with a working CEM, should we try and fire up? Key twisted to ignition, dash lights are on but we had a distinct lack of fuel pump noise... I checked the plug at the pump end - we were getting 12v to the pump and the earth was good. Bugger.
So more interior out.....
pump out
Marvel at the rotten pipe.....
and the blocked filter....
And the rotten sealing ring.
and apparently, that was once fuel.....
much fun* followed, removing the old tar and cleaning the tank.
before a new pump was dropped in.
and if the tank contained Tar, then the filter probably caught most of it too, so...
Shiny new filter, dated so we know when it was last changed
Add 10 litres of fresh fuel, and turn the key, and we now have a nice buzzing pump!
With fuel looking positive, lets look at the sparky end...
Not a good start (no pun intended!) so....
New cap, rotor and plug leads.
The rest of the fluids were checked, and it was cranked over.... As we don't have a way of embedding video, you'll just have to believe me that it fired up, and after the initial smoke screen had cleared (that oil that I'd been circulating in the bores), it settled down to a nice idle. The next part is the most nerve racking..... Waiting to see if the radiator fan cuts in!
Once the radiator fan cut in, I breathed a big sigh of relief, added a coolant flush and ran up to temperature again. Flushed all the old coolant and topped up with fresh antifreeze.
Oil and Gearbox oil will follow soon, but for now, good progress!
New CEM fitted and suddenly the list of things that weren't working, suddenly were. Amazing! As mentioned previously, when I'd removed the plugs I'd loaded the bores up with some oil and had be rotating the engine daily to ensure everything was free and easy. So, with a working CEM, should we try and fire up? Key twisted to ignition, dash lights are on but we had a distinct lack of fuel pump noise... I checked the plug at the pump end - we were getting 12v to the pump and the earth was good. Bugger.
So more interior out.....
pump out
Marvel at the rotten pipe.....
and the blocked filter....
And the rotten sealing ring.
and apparently, that was once fuel.....
much fun* followed, removing the old tar and cleaning the tank.
before a new pump was dropped in.
and if the tank contained Tar, then the filter probably caught most of it too, so...
Shiny new filter, dated so we know when it was last changed
Add 10 litres of fresh fuel, and turn the key, and we now have a nice buzzing pump!
With fuel looking positive, lets look at the sparky end...
Not a good start (no pun intended!) so....
New cap, rotor and plug leads.
The rest of the fluids were checked, and it was cranked over.... As we don't have a way of embedding video, you'll just have to believe me that it fired up, and after the initial smoke screen had cleared (that oil that I'd been circulating in the bores), it settled down to a nice idle. The next part is the most nerve racking..... Waiting to see if the radiator fan cuts in!
Once the radiator fan cut in, I breathed a big sigh of relief, added a coolant flush and ran up to temperature again. Flushed all the old coolant and topped up with fresh antifreeze.
Oil and Gearbox oil will follow soon, but for now, good progress!
Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Amazing story!! - I am always astonished at the dedication, vision and sheer bravado of those who really do care about this wonderful car.
Keep the pics coming - I look forward to seeing the end result, which I am sure will be fantastic.
Martin
Keep the pics coming - I look forward to seeing the end result, which I am sure will be fantastic.
Martin
1991 ES White / 1995 ES Red / 1995 ES Red / 1994 S Black / 1995 Celebration Red / 1994 S Paris Blue / 1995 Celebration (again!) Red - Currently free of all extramarital cars, wrench-loose and fancy free
- Jay-Kay-Em
- 480 Rookie
- Posts: 441
- Joined: Tue Nov 27, 2012 10:42 pm
- Location: Huntingdon
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Re: Rescue alert ! Black turbo auto ? R8 ?
Good work Jeff. I spent the weekend helping a mate with an E34 BMW that had sat on someone's drive for 10 years. Bit of diagnosis and the fuel pump was dead. Opened the tank hatch and greeted with exactly the same. The rubber transfer hose I can only describe as a squidgy garden slug. Petrol was more like varnish. I can speak first hand at what a horrid task that cleaning mission was.
Jay-Kay-Em
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