Most liked posts in thread: So, Today This Happened.....

Got the right seat installed today, I could not figure a way to use the sliders as it just raises the seat too high, and it will not go back any further because of the companion bins, but I was able to use the stock seat mounts in the front and it sits well now. the seat feels great, especially compared to my stock seats!

The left one will be more of an engineering challenge as it has the height adjuster - which I'm hopeful that I can figure out a way to utilize, it sits lower than the right seat with no brackets so I think I'm up to the challenge and if I can figure out how to make it work it will give a lot more positions for the driver.

My back gave out before I could do the left one, and besides I'll need to think on it a bit before I start cutting and welding up brackets. Interestingly, the pump part of the height adjuster only works on the back risers, as it raises it pulls the front up by pivoting the front risers, so I will have to fab up a linkage of some sort.

I may also have to come up with some std brackets - the ones that bolt to the cross member. this car has some extra long ones that go all the way from the front to the back of the crossmember, I'll either have to shorten them or trade for a set of stds to someone with long legs.

I'm undecided on whether I'll use the headrests or not......

The seats are out of a 2017 Subaru STi ,

 

One of the straight cut gear transmissions I built went into this.....

 

Right now he's just doing auto cross but plans to get his license renewed for SCCA racing this summer if/when they open up regional contests again. No idea what class he'd run in, but it is really quick, so unless they toss him in with some big HP cars he should do well. He's promised I can go along if he goes racing this summer - I usually go to a couple of tracks each summer with other friends, but regionals may be held at different times and different tracks than the main stuff.

Won't know anything till this thing passes once and for all.....

 

Don't know why my pic is blurred, but you all get the idea.....

 

Well, I found my exhaust leak - not only that, I now know why I always smelled exhaust anytime the windows were open.....the header is split right in the valley of the Y, all the way around and down both sides. Although it's odd that there wasn't any exhaust stain on the pipes.




So, I got out the Mig welder, only to find out that I had left the gas valve open and the tank was empty.

So, I drug the acetylene welder up from the basement again, but the only tip retaining nut I had was the cutting torch tip which was too big for this, so I'm dead in the water till Monday when I can get the gas refilled and/or a nut to attach one of my acetylene tips that will fit my torch.




My backup plan is that I have another header, but it's a single pipe instead of a double, but I have a straight pipe connector too so I have everything I need to go that way if necessary.

But before I did any of that I took a file to the center pipe flange and flatted it off.




it's always sumthin....but it's nice to figure out the problem

 

The trouble light is on a reel.....

Speaking of trouble, this is the last day I have to figure out why this car won't start now.....I know it's not the fuel pump - I hooked up the electric pump from the test stand and kicked it on, then while cranking I watched the clear fuel filter and the regular pump is working fine. Still didn't run, even with the electric, so.....

I used a brandy new dizzy, new plug wires, new plugs. I may put the old one back in as it obviously was working - I had used the new one when I was running it in the test stand and it worked fine. No idea why it might not work now, but I did crank it over with the new one and it made plenty of sparkyness.....and it started once and ran a few seconds the first time I tried to start it, hasn't made a peep since.

Tis a puzzle.....

I have everything else done, axles, suspension, tires rotated and aired up, fresh oil and filter - it should be good to go but I can't see hauling it 900 miles if it doesn't run.

 

I had to take the tie rod end loose again to get the cord out.....

 

I took a few days and finished up some other projects in the shop, then tonight I took another look at why the green Mini wouldn't start and stay running. Just to test a theory I hooked up my jump battery to the ignition to make sure it was getting a full 12V. The car always starts after a few days, and it did this time too - but this time I held the throttle down hard and kept the revs up - which it did for about 5-10 seconds, then it started chugging and smoking like crazy out the tailpipe.

So I think I've narrowed down the problem to the carb - and while I don't understand why both my HIFF44's would fail the same way at the same time I think I know what's wrong. There is an o-ring in the choke mechanism that when it breaks it cause this exact symptom. So I'll pull the carb apart that was on the car originally and see what I can find. If I don't find an issue with that o-ring I'll see if there's something going on with the float in the bottom of the carb. These carbs are so simple it pretty much has to be one or the other - or maybe both!

I consider it progress tho.

One other interesting thing, the exhaust sounds way different with this header, much louder and "barkier", which is interesting cause other than the header, it's all the same stuff. Maybe this motor just has way more compression and the other one was so worn out it was down to 6:1 or something!

 

So, no joy in Mudville yet...........

Can't find any issue with the choke o-rings in either carb, and I decided it can't be a stuck float as no fuel was coming out the overflow. Since the old engine ran with the old carb, and the new engine ran with the new carb in the engine stand just fine, I'm really scratching my head on this one.

In the engine stand I had a new dizzy, new intake and new carb - ran fine.

Old engine had old intake and carb and old dizzy - ran fine, just leaked oil and burned it too.

I started this install by using the old dizzy and carb/intake, thinking if it ran fine before it should be fine now.

I've since switched carbs, dizzys and coil to the same ones I used in the engine stand - same exact issue with either setup.

Starts, runs a few seconds then slowly dies, and won't hit a lick after that for several days (till the flooding evaporates?)

Last time it started I revved the snot out of it - which it did at first - then slowly started chugging till that's all it would do even with the throttle wide open - and made huge amounts of what looked and smelled like black fuel smoke.

So, sounds like flooding, right? Like a carb issue. But why would it happen with two completely different carbs, both of which worked perfectly fine before?

I put the original carb back on and I still have a few things to hook up before I try it again.....

 

No, tires are in balance, and it only happens between 45-50 mph, and it's worse under light or no load, under load it hardly does it. Everything in the front end is new. I've tried another set of tires off a car that does not do it - still did it on mine. I know the subframe mounts are good.....

I'll set my dash cam up next time I drive it and get a video.

About the only thing I haven't tried is the brakes - which work fine - and have new pads and new rotors.....my thought there is a sticking caliper, tho I don't see or feel any evidence of it.

I've had the car for 5 years and it's always done it.....I just drive around it, if you go either slower or faster it's smooth as can be.

Guess which way I go?

 

New joints, new axles.....did it before I changed them too

 

Yes, I've read about it, also happens on some hot rods. The common denominator there is a straight axle front end, totally different animal than on a Mini. They usually install a steering damper shock to cure theirs, I can't think of any way to do that on a Mini's rack and pinion setup.

I remember some BMW's having the issue in the past, don't remember what they did to cure it.

I'm going to have mine aligned again, maybe there's something amiss in the alignment.....tho I can't think of why it would cause this.

 

Well, the puddle isn't large, but it's there.....so I'll go ahead and change the axle seals on both sides......it was so easy to do this while the engine is out of the car and so much work to do them when it's in. :-(

 

Right side is pretty dry, left side is definitely leaking....I have the suspension loose but I may need some help to get the axle out of the pot joint, I don't think there's enough room to just pull the pot joint out of the transmission and move it out of the way so I can pop the seal out and replace it, tho that would be the easiest way to do it. Still cogitating on how best to do this.....On the right side I can just slip the pot joint out of the transmichigan and change the seal.




With the old joints I would just release the large end of the boot and pull the inner part out of the pot joint, but these new joints don't work the same way, they have in essence an inner metal ring that the boot attaches to rather than the shaft and the shaft snaps into this metal sleeve arrangement.

Hmmm, it still might come apart by just releasing the big clamp and pulling the guts out. Need to study on it a bit before I go cutting clamps.....

Everything else seems drier than a popcorn fart!

Left side caliper seems to be draggin on the disc, while I have it off I may as well rebuild it - I was going to do this 5 years ago when I first got the car but they seemed OK after I cleaned up the pistons and changed the pads and rotors. Talk about project creep.....wonder if I have time to change the head too?

 

The engine I've been building in my engine rebuild videos is for this car, I got a good start on getting old smoky out of the car. All I have left at this point is the left axle and motor mount, then it's ready to come out.

If I don't drop the subframe and take it out the bottom to get it out of the engine compartment I have to tip the water pump end way up so the other end will clear the brake booster. To that end I bought an engine leveler from HF - it should make it a lot easier to get it back in too as I have to level it out as it goes under the booster.

More as it happens.