Hi Duncan @La_vida_diver The date stamp on the tyre is 4801 wk 48 2001. The stamp is near the valve. That size of tyre isn't made any more and the nearest size I have found is 125 85 16, and very small difference in rolling radius/circumference.
#ZedShed La_Vida_Diver's Blue upgrade and TLC
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Well we have almost come to an end on Project Blue, there are a couple of easy things left on the list.
We are waiting for some new Red Stuff pads which had to be ordered and hoping they would arrive today, but alas no. Also while we were generally cleaning up under the front end we noticed that the drivers side track rod end was splitting. Had a quick chat with Duncan this evening and we are going to get them both changed - the car will be trailered back to Devon and then be put in for a full tracking check.
So what did we get up to this evening? Sit back with a cuppa, it's gonna be a long one again
Replaced the manky ball joints. Passenger front was splitting, and both generally in poor condition...
There were a few snagging jobs to be carried out which couldn't really be photographed, but I'll list them here for completeness.
Installed the new front shocks (with existing springs)
New quality Brembo front brake discs.
With the original pads temporarily fitted to allow Lee chance to give everything a light brush over with some Hammerite. Like with the back calipers this is just a tidy up, and not a full on hardcore refurbishing service. Certainly not something we will be doing on every Zed!
Just a sneaky peek through the wheels... Will look nicer once the new Red Stuff pads are fitted!
Blue at this point is pretty much back together, and ready to be dropped to the ground and the all important test drive. We started the engine up while finishing fitting the wheels to let it warm up as it hadn't been run for a while. Lumpy as anything, rough idle, revs wouldn't drop or come off the auto choke. Few hard revs and 15 minutes idling and it seemed to settle down.
Once all the wheels were back on it's time to drop it off the stands, was a bit more tricky due to the front lowering - so we had to drop the front wheels on to bricks to allow enough room to pull the trolley jack out.
Test Drive
Getting a bit excited at this time as it's show time and the all important test drive! We'd already agreed with Duncan that I could drive Blue as well, so game on...
Lee took the first leg, and we headed of in to a very soggy Basingstoke. Everything felt pretty good, although Lee was a little concerned that the steering felt wrong - obviously as he is used to driving super cars we switch over seats. Could pretty much confirm straight away that the steering was wrong, and Lee suggested popping to Tesco and checking the tyre pressures.
Funny story time, pulled up at the air pump behind a newish Vauxhall Astra. Realised that it was a pay air pump, and neither of us brought any coinage. Never mind, this chap will be out of here quickly and we can probably use the pump before the time runs out. I can't believe how long it took the young chap to check his tyres. Started to worry we would have any time left if he didn't hurry up, and started mumbling rude comments about how annoying it was we wouldn't be able to pinch the remaining time. The McLaren F1 team would have been impressed of how quickly we managed to check and inflate four tyres just before the time ran out! Don't worry Duncan, we saved 20p off your bill tonight
The basic gist of the pressure check was the fronts were down to 18psi and the rears around 26psi. Suffice it to say this resolved the steering issue.
Blue now handles superbly, you can feel the road and how the car is reacting to it like it's part of you - exactly how a Z3 should be. Utterly composed on a soaking roundabout, no thoughts of if being unruly or wanting to step out. Actually with the road conditions it was likely the front end would slide way before the rear end would, but it balanced perfectly! I didn't find the PowerFlexed rear subframe overly harsh, in fact I was pleasantly surprised overall. Duncan is gonna love it
Back to the garage then, so we could measure the ride heights. We took some pictures at an industrial estate during the test drive, which I'll put at the end of the post. We'll try and get some daylight ones so you can see how she sits on the lowered springs.
Before we pulled the car in to the garage we had a quick sweep up. We had quite a bit of Devon left on the floor...
Weight saving = race car!
Going by the Bentley hand book the ride heights for the front of Z3 are as below. Blue has 17" alloys so we are looking at 632mm before hand (oddly this states that Sport suspension is actually higher than standard.
Measurements are taken from the top of the wheel arch, to the bottom of the alloy wheel (not the ground). From the measurements we took the front is down 27mm and the rear only 8mm. We thing the rear springs may need more time to settle and should hopefully drop a little more.
I didn't take a picture of the rear ride heights, but wrote it down on the dry wipe board on the wall.
So that's this evenings update, so I'll leave you with some moody industrial estate images to look at! I say moody, I mean dark but you get the idea...
We are waiting for some new Red Stuff pads which had to be ordered and hoping they would arrive today, but alas no. Also while we were generally cleaning up under the front end we noticed that the drivers side track rod end was splitting. Had a quick chat with Duncan this evening and we are going to get them both changed - the car will be trailered back to Devon and then be put in for a full tracking check.
So what did we get up to this evening? Sit back with a cuppa, it's gonna be a long one again
Replaced the manky ball joints. Passenger front was splitting, and both generally in poor condition...
There were a few snagging jobs to be carried out which couldn't really be photographed, but I'll list them here for completeness.
- Refit the spare wheel carrier
- Refit the heat shields underneath the prop shaft
- Refit the exhaust system. We put new rubbers on the rear hangers as the previous ones had deteriorated - I think one split removing it.
- Put the wheels back on (obviously!)
Installed the new front shocks (with existing springs)
New quality Brembo front brake discs.
With the original pads temporarily fitted to allow Lee chance to give everything a light brush over with some Hammerite. Like with the back calipers this is just a tidy up, and not a full on hardcore refurbishing service. Certainly not something we will be doing on every Zed!
Just a sneaky peek through the wheels... Will look nicer once the new Red Stuff pads are fitted!
Blue at this point is pretty much back together, and ready to be dropped to the ground and the all important test drive. We started the engine up while finishing fitting the wheels to let it warm up as it hadn't been run for a while. Lumpy as anything, rough idle, revs wouldn't drop or come off the auto choke. Few hard revs and 15 minutes idling and it seemed to settle down.
Once all the wheels were back on it's time to drop it off the stands, was a bit more tricky due to the front lowering - so we had to drop the front wheels on to bricks to allow enough room to pull the trolley jack out.
Test Drive
Getting a bit excited at this time as it's show time and the all important test drive! We'd already agreed with Duncan that I could drive Blue as well, so game on...
Lee took the first leg, and we headed of in to a very soggy Basingstoke. Everything felt pretty good, although Lee was a little concerned that the steering felt wrong - obviously as he is used to driving super cars we switch over seats. Could pretty much confirm straight away that the steering was wrong, and Lee suggested popping to Tesco and checking the tyre pressures.
Funny story time, pulled up at the air pump behind a newish Vauxhall Astra. Realised that it was a pay air pump, and neither of us brought any coinage. Never mind, this chap will be out of here quickly and we can probably use the pump before the time runs out. I can't believe how long it took the young chap to check his tyres. Started to worry we would have any time left if he didn't hurry up, and started mumbling rude comments about how annoying it was we wouldn't be able to pinch the remaining time. The McLaren F1 team would have been impressed of how quickly we managed to check and inflate four tyres just before the time ran out! Don't worry Duncan, we saved 20p off your bill tonight
The basic gist of the pressure check was the fronts were down to 18psi and the rears around 26psi. Suffice it to say this resolved the steering issue.
Blue now handles superbly, you can feel the road and how the car is reacting to it like it's part of you - exactly how a Z3 should be. Utterly composed on a soaking roundabout, no thoughts of if being unruly or wanting to step out. Actually with the road conditions it was likely the front end would slide way before the rear end would, but it balanced perfectly! I didn't find the PowerFlexed rear subframe overly harsh, in fact I was pleasantly surprised overall. Duncan is gonna love it
Back to the garage then, so we could measure the ride heights. We took some pictures at an industrial estate during the test drive, which I'll put at the end of the post. We'll try and get some daylight ones so you can see how she sits on the lowered springs.
Before we pulled the car in to the garage we had a quick sweep up. We had quite a bit of Devon left on the floor...
Weight saving = race car!Going by the Bentley hand book the ride heights for the front of Z3 are as below. Blue has 17" alloys so we are looking at 632mm before hand (oddly this states that Sport suspension is actually higher than standard.
Measurements are taken from the top of the wheel arch, to the bottom of the alloy wheel (not the ground). From the measurements we took the front is down 27mm and the rear only 8mm. We thing the rear springs may need more time to settle and should hopefully drop a little more.
I didn't take a picture of the rear ride heights, but wrote it down on the dry wipe board on the wall.
So that's this evenings update, so I'll leave you with some moody industrial estate images to look at! I say moody, I mean dark but you get the idea...
Great job guys, that's usually the time of night I get finished , in the "moody hours". Maybe the rear looks a little high but as you said it may settle a bit yet.
Tony.
ps. I tested a Z4 2.5 Sport today and it only required 2 headlight adjust and a new horn at 65K so not too bad, I didn't have any cards left so I left the owner a note suggesting that he has a look on here.
Tony.
ps. I tested a Z4 2.5 Sport today and it only required 2 headlight adjust and a new horn at 65K so not too bad, I didn't have any cards left so I left the owner a note suggesting that he has a look on here.
I bet the note went something like this......
WWW.ORLANDOWISHESVILLA.COM
Oh, and by the way, this is a nice place to visit as well, Zroadster.org
WWW.ORLANDOWISHESVILLA.COM
Oh, and by the way, this is a nice place to visit as well, Zroadster.org
I look forward so much to playing! I can't thank the guys enough for their efforts! the height looks are different than I expected (I think, like the guys, that there is some "settling" to take place so allow time for things to equalise, don't forget the springs have been heat treated after shortening, so are likley take a little time to settle) but Gary's description of how Blue handles fits with my experience and expectations, and what I expect from my experience with Black (but without the potential problems I had with Black having lowered her by 70+ mm) My plan is not to track Blue regularly but I have to do some so that I understand where I have taken Blue as a road car. Chatting with the guys as they have gone through what they thought was a process they knew and understood has I think surprised them somewhat as some of my thoughts are very flexible and differ from keeping a standard car, or just keeping a car on the road. As we have progressed they have listened to my "odd" thoughts because of my experiences. (I look forward to both of them coming to a Track Day and coming round the track with me so that I can try and explain my odd thoughts)
I know I have some funny expectations be they right or wrong but as we talked they listened, understood and acted. When I did Black I had a target to progressively change things and truthfully Blue was left mistreated and left as a under-supported road car, and I have sort of ended up with a big bang change from mistreated (almost ignored) road car to revised expectation of sweeping changes to create the ideal (for Duncan) road car. (Black being a progressive change was much easier in that respect) That Gary anticipates my pleasure when I take Blue out is great news for me as he knows my odd driving style because he is often my support for events when we "play" on our Zroadster.org events.
How do you say thanks! when the guys have enabled me to hope to have fun again with the Zed that started all my fun with cars? I hope everyone is enjoying the thread as much as I am! (actually that's not possible LOL, but I hope you understand what I am trying to say).
I better take some pictures of how the new home for Blue is taking shape.(@Nutty_Hazel did a better job of that than I have so far lol) and the next step will be a body strip down and rebuild. I ought to add that Blue will never be a garage queen that does not fit my character, I sometimes wish it did.
I know I have some funny expectations be they right or wrong but as we talked they listened, understood and acted. When I did Black I had a target to progressively change things and truthfully Blue was left mistreated and left as a under-supported road car, and I have sort of ended up with a big bang change from mistreated (almost ignored) road car to revised expectation of sweeping changes to create the ideal (for Duncan) road car. (Black being a progressive change was much easier in that respect) That Gary anticipates my pleasure when I take Blue out is great news for me as he knows my odd driving style because he is often my support for events when we "play" on our Zroadster.org events.
How do you say thanks! when the guys have enabled me to hope to have fun again with the Zed that started all my fun with cars? I hope everyone is enjoying the thread as much as I am! (actually that's not possible LOL, but I hope you understand what I am trying to say).
I better take some pictures of how the new home for Blue is taking shape.(@Nutty_Hazel did a better job of that than I have so far lol) and the next step will be a body strip down and rebuild. I ought to add that Blue will never be a garage queen that does not fit my character, I sometimes wish it did.
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By the way I did love the "Moody" shots Blue looks great set in the dark!
Great write up everyone, next up Duncan's first drive reactions! JIM
Great work guys and glad to see the differences.
@La_vida_diver , what made you go for custom springs as opposed to an off the shelf spring (eibach etc)
@La_vida_diver , what made you go for custom springs as opposed to an off the shelf spring (eibach etc)
I was looking for a 20mm drop which is what the front shocks were quoted as being with Standard springs and finding 20mm was difficult and I spoke to some guys that race/trackdays etc and they all mentioned coil springs as a company so I gave him a ring and price did not seam out of order so I went with it.
I've known a lot of street rodders that have had custom coil springs made and found them to be very reasonable along with custom rated long leaf springs. That way you know exactly what you have and they're made to fit rather than trying to adapt ready made springs. JIM
Thanks for the response, interesting approach
Sorry for the delay in replying, I didn't get chance to drive it before we started. From personal experience when the bushes are in this condition the car feels very wobbly at the back end. The knackered shocks makes the car lean in corners, but from the back - really odd feeling.
Morning all, I had a little play last night.
I ran both cars for a little while to make sure they both had juice in the battery ready for when Duncan & hazel collect this weekend. I also fitted the EBC red stuff pads which look great.
I attempted the track rod ends. I managed to break the tapered joint but got no joy in releasing the rod itself. I even managed to pivot the car on the stands. They will need some serious heat.
Lee
I ran both cars for a little while to make sure they both had juice in the battery ready for when Duncan & hazel collect this weekend. I also fitted the EBC red stuff pads which look great.
I attempted the track rod ends. I managed to break the tapered joint but got no joy in releasing the rod itself. I even managed to pivot the car on the stands. They will need some serious heat.
Lee
- Joined
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- Model of Z
- Z4 coupe sport.
Great read and sorry I missed this from the beginning, lots of helpful info and pics, but dreading finding all the bushing on mine needs changing. Fantastic job well done both of you. Roy.
Duncan and Hazel dropped by yesterday and picked up Blue and Filbert. Darned annoying that it was raining as it made the test drives a little subdued.
Hope you all had a safe drive back to Devon, and thank you both for the slap up pub lunch
Hope you all had a safe drive back to Devon, and thank you both for the slap up pub lunch
Many thanks @GazHyde and @Lee Both @Nutty_Hazel and I can't thank you enough. We did get back fine and as I drove Filbert Back and Alan drove Blue I can confirm that Filbert feels so much more planted at the back it is Brilliant. Alan reports that Blue was a dream to drive so I am looking forward to getting a proper spin when the weather breaks, but even the wet weather allowed me to feel the difference from before, a much more balanced setup whatever I did to the steering/brakes and throttle just much more planted and even, I would add the word stable as well.Duncan and Hazel dropped by yesterday and picked up Blue and Filbert. Darned annoying that it was raining as it made the test drives a little subdued.
Hope you all had a safe drive back to Devon, and thank you both for the slap up pub lunch
Next task is the bodywork over the winter so we will keep the thread going so that people can watch that part of the restoration of Blue to former Glory.