success - the valver is fit again!

All aspects of tuning,modification and repairs to the BX 16valve.
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Adrian E
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success - the valver is fit again!

Post by Adrian E »

The valver came to spend a couple of weekends with me recently while my Dad was helping me replace our soffits/fascias/gutters

We didn't get around to fitting the Scorpion tailbox I acquired recently, but as we were using the valver to get to various shops for stuff I noticed the tell-tail 'crack' from the rear suspension when you jump in.

My Dad was convinced nothing was wrong (it doesn't do that when I leave it in the garage for a few days) so he drove home with the Scorpion box in the boot to play with.

Couple of weeks later and we're down in the West Country for a flying visit for a family wedding. Dad comments that the steering seemed to be a bit too lively on the drive home from ours.....

He'd got the Scorpion box fitted, although not hanging right, so stuck the suspension on high and proceeded to demonstrate WHY the car feels like the steering isn't working quite as it should! Not helped by having mudflaps on the rear of the car, but there was a distinct angle to both rear wheels - worse on the offside, unusually.

Cutting a long story short, after lots of telephone advice (I did mine on the p2 one side at a time in a tiny single garage!) and links sent of instructions, both rear arms were removed last week. The nearside had bits of metal filings (aka bearings!) dropping out from both sides, with rusty bits and crud. The offside had the inner bearing still more or less OK but the outer bearing was mullered - hence why the wheel angle looked worse on that side!

Dad managed fine on his own getting the arms out, but couldn't shift the bearings to fit the new kits he'd ordered from GSF. Took it down to his local friendly garage who service his A4 and they managed to figure out a way to smack the old bearing shells out and seat the new ones. He's now painted both sides in black bitumastic paint to keep them looking nice and got the car back on its wheels today :D

Happy days!!

Still not sure how to correct the alignment on the Scorpion tailbox - the rear mounting seems to be too far towards the front of the car, so the rubber is being pulled quite a bit forward from the hanger on the car. But if anything you want to pull it even further forward to get the tailpipe sitting in the centre of the cutout rather than towards the centreline....will probably require some application of heat!

Adrian
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Post by bxmark »

Glad you got the car sorted Adrian , i'm very lucky as a good friend of mine Is an ex Citroen mechanic and is a great when it comes to having jobs done , I think he served his apprenticeship when the bx 16v was around and he knows them inside out , he's pretty spot on with the zx too , Mark
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Adrian E
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Post by Adrian E »

Cheers Mark

For some reason my Dad gets a slightly perverse pleasure from managing to fix the car with the minimum available tools! Think it's his age (70!)......

Spoke to him last night and apparently the exhaust is now hanging perfectly - he removed the cross box and rear silencer together and when he put it back he obviously managed to get a bit more lean on the thing so it's now square in the centre of the bumper :shock: he's got the spare wheel hanger to clean up and paint before it goes back on the car - it's looking a little scabby - then it's job done and the car can go back in the garage for the winter!
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Timmo
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Post by Timmo »

i was going to say the crossbox is rotateable as such to alter tyhe allignment of the rear box/intermediate pipe,
guessing rear arms will be needed soon on the ol' girl!!
Timmo 8)

After all i am the Cornish one!

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Adrian E
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Post by Adrian E »

Hi Timmo

I think lack of use does come into play with rear arm bearings - my old '92 car needed them doing when I lived in Sutton about 9 years ago, probably for the 1st time on that car. I would guess every 10 years or so on a car that gets regular use without being abused?

When I tried to help my dad align the box we did undo both clamps on the centre box to try and rotate it more, but for whatever reason we only managed to get it to clear the cutout marginally. Removing it completely has clearly allowed it to hang differently, so glad we've not had to mess about with trying to heat and bend the pipe on the inboard end of the back box.

I was rather disappointed that it doesn't make more noise than it does! I've not heard it above 4k to know if it sounds more meaty then. At idle it's barely any different to the old pattern box...

Adrian
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Timmo
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Post by Timmo »

Adrian E wrote: I would guess every 10 years or so on a car that gets regular use without being abused?
erm........ Mine was Abused every time i drove it! :twisted: :twisted: :shock: 8)
i know ive had one done but dont recal the other, will be on the big list of bits to check for when i eventually get her home!!!
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Post by Vanny »

Is the box not the GTi one, like i have on my car, with a tail that comes out of the bumper at an angle? If so, well its for a GTi and wont sit in the middle without 'work'. I intend to cut the tail off mine, straighten it and tig it back on so it comes out correctly.
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Adrian E
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Post by Adrian E »

It does stick out at an angle - I thought all the Scorpion boxes did?

It seems OK now anyway - I quite like the look of it with the diesel bumper :lol:
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Post by ollie »

quickest way to get bearings out is to clean the running face and run a bead of weld rpound it with the MIG cools down and the bearing contracts and fall out!

to drive them out you first need to extract the plastic liner which is often easiset done by setting light to it........ :wink: and then give it a tug with some long plires whilst its still warm
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