265: Saturday 21st December 2013

Today I fitted the new bolts that I ordered (again) to replace the countersunk screws. Good job really as the whole bank of 15 batteries had shifted to the right and were not sitting on the supports any more. The bracket on the end had busted off as it only had small screws in it. I shifted the batteries back and fixed the end back on with much bigger screws.

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With the new bolts I could get a spanner on them and get them nicely torqued.

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I put hold down straps across the top and hopefully they will help stop them from shifting. I really can't be asked to make yet another metal rack at this point in time. I hope to get some Lithium batteries soonish.

264: Thursday 12th December 2013

 Yesterday my new front driving lights and grille mesh arrived. Today I tried a few different configurations. I shall put mesh into the other spaces.

I want pairs of lights on each side, I like that.

I think I prefer the 1st view in the first two photos. Please put comments if you agree or disagree. What is your favourite configuration? See below:
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First configuration:

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Second configuration:

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Third configuration:

263: Saturday 30th November 2013

Friday I Connected the ends of the rows of batteries in the rear. These were the parallel links so there were 3 rows of 5 and 3 rows of 2, this effectively makes 3 rows of 7 batteries. Today I completed the links in each row with the copper straps I made from plumbing pipe. I ordered some M4 bolts, but it was actually M5 that I wanted, so I was bitterly disappointed when I realised my mistake as I could not get replacements quickly. My neighbour had a stock of short countersunk M5 screws, so I used them for now and I shall replace them when my order comes through. The disadvantage is that they are as tight as I can tighten with a screwdriver. This would probably be o.k. for all time, but to be sure I have order hex head screws so I can put a spanner on and get them good and tight. While I was doing this I had a guy come round to install a free type 2 charge point, cool. The picture below shows the charger beside the garage door. My neighbour asked for his house to have one fitted too, so I get a £20 Marks and Spencer voucher for the referral. I got a couple more neighbours to sign up and get theirs installed too, so more vouchers for me. I sold it on improvements to the house value.

262: Sunday 24th November 2013

Before I started working today, I borrowed some lengths of construction timber from my neighbour and set up a long bench with 2 trestles. This was so that I didn't have to keep bending right down with the  and avoid hurting my back (I have my chiropractor on speed dial).

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I bought a pack of wooden battens to construct the racks and I also used Some metal L section to go over the spare wheel well. I had several fixings in the trunk as I have had several different battery types in the past, so I made use of them to fix the new frame down. So back to wood shop class. Fortunately I have quite a good snip saw and and power screwdrivers and a pillar drill etc.

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Just chucked the batteries in next. Caught my fingers a few times. The air was blue, and my finger nail is now going black.

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My wife Mary came out and helped by fixing the rear bumper.She made up the fibre glass, applied it and clamped the bumper. She then wiped off a couple of spots where it had gone on the paint, and then left it to dry.

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Later I took the clamp off the rear bumper and it was stuck good and proper, so hopefully it will stay that way. I shall give it a little touch up on the paint when the weather is good. It looks good now, but there are a few minor chips along the edge.

The next step is to make the connections, then put the hold downs across the top to stop the batteries jumping up. Once they are connected it becomes like one huge battery, so it doesn't move.

261: Saturday 23rd November 2013



I took all the batteries out of the trunk and then placed the 21 batteries in ready to be connected and mounted. Sunday I shall make up wooden racking to mount the batteries properly. I am not going to do metal racking this time as I know I shall get Lithium batteries at some point, then it will be like permanent. This is just another set of recycled batteries that I managed to acquire. I went to all my local hardware stores and could not get 30 x 4mm hex bolts and some washers. Each shop had nearly the right one, but not quite. I had some in my hand then I thought about the price (£15) and they weren't what I wanted and too expensive as well. I came home and got some from eBay for £2.36, then some split washers and flat washers, exactly what I wanted and all for about £6. Only problem is that Sparkie is going to be out of action until they arrive as I won't be able to make the connections. Good job I still have my little Fiat. My daughter Sydney has her driving test coming up and I am sure I will lose the Fiat when she passes. So I have my wife Mary's car to use too, but I need Sparkie to get me to work.  I still need to finish my charge cable, but I have all the bits now, just need time. I am having an operation on my left knee on 13th December and I am trying to get everything done and back on the road before then too so I can drive as I only need my right foot to drive.

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With all the batteries loaded I checked the rear suspension and there is still a fair travel even with all the extra weight. At 14.2kg each for 21 batteries that's just under 300kg. I had a set some time ago that weighed in at 400kg in the trunk, so I know it works o.k. Also the ride height still looks good, so I am happy all round. Now to get them all mounted and the connectors made. I am also going to fix the side of my rear bumber where it popped off. I shall just fibre glass it and clamp it. If it pops off again I shall screw it too, but that involves drilling and filling and rubbing and painting etc. It might not be necessary, so see how this holds up.

260: Thursday 14th November 2013

My Friend came round last night to take my car to the garage for the MOT test. I gave him a lift to work today and on the way home we stopped at the garage to pick up Sparkie. MOT passed with a couple of very minor issues. I had reached 10 miles range when I got home and this was good to start with. I put him on charge and went out for a drive later, but it didn't have a full charge so I got only 8 miles before the levels dropped. It felt like a single battery was failing. I need to rejig the batteries now to get more of the fresh ones I have on board. I probably could have stretched it to 10 miles, but there was no point. He shall get a full charge overnight and be ready for another test tomorrow. It takes a few charge / discharge cycles to wake the batteries up. and I hope to be on a happy 10 miles or more to do the trip to work. I also got a circuit diagram for the charge cable so I can make my cable and use the level 2 charge points at work again. It is inconvenient having the charge points changed, but at least now I will have more options for charging up at other places once I have made the cable.

259: Sunday 10th November 2013

Spent time today putting all the interior trim back in where I had been working on the inside of the body panels. I also made a hold down strap for the new batteries. I took it for a little drive and found the battery level had drop a lot after just a few miles. I had my tester on the new batteries, so I could see it was not them that were dropping the whole pack voltage. I checked all the batteries and found they were 12.6v except one that was 8v. I swapped it with the spare I had in the back and it seems better now. I took the key round to my friend so he can get it MOT tested this week, then I can do some more testing. Looking forward to having him back on the road again.

258: Saturday 19th October 2013

Today I finally got round to changing the height of the rear suspension again. I needed to drop it down 25mm that meant changing the 75mm extension to 50mm. The process was quite straightforward once I had the strut removed and the 3 extenders off, then each one had to be drilled a further 25mm using a 9mm drill for an M10x1.25 thread. I drilled down through the existing thread and when I hit the bottom, zeroed my height on the pillar drill, then drilled down another 25mm. The drill started squealing on the first bolt, so I needed some lubrication to help it along. All I could find was some 2 stroke oil, but it did the job. I had to drill about 2 - 3mm at-a-time then bring the drill out to clear the swarf, also my drill was jamming when I tried to go too deep without clearing it. I clamped each bolt in the vice and ran a cutting tap down, followed by a plug tap to get to the bottom. I also used the 2 stroke oil to lube the tap. I then set the bolt in my vice so that 25mm was protruding from the vice jaws and then carefully cut through with an angle grinder. I used a thin 1mm disc that is normally used for stainless steel. I find these cut better and neater too. A quick touch up with a hand file then ran the tap back down the start of the thread. Then fitted back onto the strut. I put the struts back on, wheels on and dropped it back down on the deck.

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I am happy with the height now. Just dropping 1 inch has changed the look of the car and now the relationship between the wheel and the wheel arch looks good and regular. It also by coincidence looks about the same as the front, just luck.

257: Friday 20th September 2013



On Sunday I fitted the standoffs to my rear suspension.

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To me the suspension is now about 25mm too high.

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In the photo below you can see the centre of the wheel opening for the body is about an inch above the wheel centre. However I had a little drive and did not catch any speed bumps, even at some speed. I shall endeavour to get air suspension at some point. I may change these standoffs again for 50mm instead of 75mm. This is only a temporary solution until I can afford air suspension. I found a system that bolts straight on for a Probe specifically, but I shall keep looking for other options. With air suspension I can program the ride height and also drop it right down when parked, cool...

256: Thursday 12th September 2013

Sunday I made 4 cables and some copper strips to link up the new batteries. I made the cables using 50mm squared wire and lugs with 8mm holes crimped on. The copper strips were made by flattening some 15mm plumbing pipe in my bench vice. I ran out of time as we had my daughters football match to go to. She is now playing semi-professional in a women's team and our matches are all in stadiums now (nice and dry). I took my car for a brief drive and the extra weight meant I caught every speed bump. The side popped off the rear bumper and needs repair. So I needed to raise the back end. I had some 3 inch standoffs made so I can raise the top of the rear suspension struts and hence the rear of the car by 3 inches. That should be enough. Anyway the parcel came today and they shall be fitted at the weekend. 

255: Saturday 7th September 2013

So I finally took delivery of some fresh batteries. They are from a UPS back-up supply and they are in real good condition. The only thing is that they are only 38Ah. So to try to complement the 92Ah batteries already installed I am running 3 in parallel as equivalent to 1 battery. But as there are 2 batteries to be replaced, I am going to configure them as 2 in series making 24v and do this on three parallel branches. This makes the connections much easier and gets a better balance across these 6 batteries and then the whole pack will work better. I am now desperately trying to figure out how to fund Lithium batteries as this is probably the last stock of recycled batteries I can get as my sources have all dried up. So I have made the racking from wood and it just need the bar across the top to hold them down and that is done. Before that I need to make up the connections. Before that I need to identify the 2 duff batteries again. I know one of them, but not too sure about the second one. Since the car has been on charge for months the batteries have recovered slightly, but I know the range will be crap. The problem is that I cannot take it for the MOT test so that I can use it on the road, but I cannot find the battery that is giving me the crap range until I take it out on the road for a bit. I am going to try my load tester, but at the moment I am not confident. With the extra weight in the back the car sits lower now and when I did take it around the block, I caught every speed bump and popped the rear spoiler off the support bracketry, so that needs repairing. I am now looking for some extender bolts so I can raise the rear suspension a few inches. The rear bumper is only a few inches from the ground now and this is just too low. I need to find $1600 plus shipping and tax etc. to buy an air lift kit then I can raise and lower the car on the move. That's another one for the upgrade wish list!

 

 

254: Sunday 14th July 2013





 

It's been a while since I last added a blog. 2 weeks ago I painted the roof and sunroof panel red and this was the last of the painting to complete the temporary paint job. I had one repair where the front bumper was fitted it was stressing the area where I had joined the 2 panels together and a crack had appeared. So today I cut the crack back and started work on rebuilding it.

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By applying fibre glass while it is held in position, there will be no stress in the join. I pushed and poked the fibreglass right into the gap so it was filled all the way down and waited for it to set. It didn't take long because it was very hot today.

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I ground back and sanded the fibreglass then applied layers of body filler. I then waited for it to set again then sanded this back smooth.

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As before I applied a coat of white primer and when that was dry I gave it a quick rub over then applied the red.

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Once the red was dry I gave the other panels a quick wipe. Once this has had a chance to set it will be time for good wash, wax and polish. Next job is to remove the front bumper again, mount some driving lights and fit wire mesh on the back like on the rear bumper. I shall be fitting the battery monitoring system soon hopefully.

253: Sunday 9th June 2013

I still have the roof to paint, but I also had a flue pipe to fit on our house this weekend. That took some time and today the weather is not so good, so I decided not to attempt any painting. I did fit the new front license plate. I like the way it looks, fits nicely to the bumper and doesn't hide any of the styling features. Friday my brother came round to check out the body kit fit and finish so we can work out the preparation for the final paint job. I should be able to get a big workshop for a weekend so we can get it nice and heat soaked, smoothed over and primed then flatted and painted. I can start organising the battery monitoring system now and get it fitted and working. It is good timing as I Have at least one, and I suspect more, batteries that are faulty including the auxiliary battery for the 12v system. Then I can put the interior back together and sort out some fresh batteries. Then get a new MOT test and I'll be back on the road. I need to get running again so I can get my car to the workshop for painting. Anyway I am pleased with the new GB number plate.

252: Sunday 3rd June 2013

Yesterday I went to Liverpool with my friend and neighbour so he could get a 4x4 Ford Cougar he was buying. 242 miles and 4 hours later we arrived, paid the guy and then drove back. Before I went I put a coat of red on the front bumper ready to go on. I added a piece of red tube that I had from some old air horns to fill the hood gap at the front. It doesn't close up the gap, but it does stop the line of sight through to inside, so you cannot see all screws etc.

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With a bit of persuasion and a round file I got the front bumper on and lined up with the hood and lights.  I then painted the hood and left side (I had already painted all of the right side). Then I fitted the front side light and indicator units.

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I fitted the wheel arch liners and front wheels, then took it off the stands and finally tightened the wheel nuts. The fit and alignment looked good.

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The photo below shows the side indicator repeater that I inherited from my friends old Cougar. I took the rubber from the old Probe repeater and with a small cut it fitted the new repeater. Nice touch!

251: Monday 27th May 2013

The front bumper line was a bit weird on one side and I could not get either of the gaps right on the infill panel between the bumper and just below the flip up lights, so I decided to fix the infill panel to the bumper permanently. I also made a small bracket to join the plastic substructure to the bumper and fibre glassed it and the substructure on.

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I put an initial layer of fibreglass in the gap

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When the first layer had set another layer went in to build it up to right level for a finish.

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Next I sanded the fibre glass back to the level of the panel and the bumper. This revealed a row of pitted areas.

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I put on a layer of filler. I use David's Isopon P38. Other brands are just as good, but I didn't realise that until recently, as it was all my local store had.

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I sanded back the filler until it was just transparent and perfectly flat.

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I put on a coat of white primer, then a coat of red. I also painted all the inside of the panel so that any part seen through a gap will be red. I ran out of day and put the bumper in the garage to dry. I wanted to have another day, but I guess it will just have to wait until the weekend unless I can do some more in the evening maybe. I am pleased with the way this has gone. I need to make a couple of brackets once the bumper is mounted to finish the fixing supports and then ready to finish the painting.

250: Sunday 26th May 2013

Started work on the front bumper yesterday. I spent some time helping with some gardening out the front as we are getting rid of our planter and having more space on the driveway for parking. I took the original bumper off and stripped the substructures and supporting bars off as well as the number plate and holder and the side lights / indicator units. Today I started with a loose fit of the front bumper. The photo below shows it hanging on the body with just a plastic clamp on each side. It was a good fit.

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 I transferred the lights onto the new bumper. This was a simple matter of drilling the screw holes then fixing them. The substructures and support bars were all linked, so from one wheel arch, across the front to the other, everything was linked up. This made the aligning of the supports etc. really easy as then ends could only go in one place and everything else fitted well in between. Drilled all the holes and fitted it all together then mounted on the car. A few minor adjustments with a round file and it all fits well now. Tomorrow I shall be fibre glassing the sub structures to the skin or screws and nuts etc, then ready for painting.

249: Saturday 18th May 2013

With all the holes in the door and side filled I gave bottom half a blow over in red. I had sealed inside the door with polyurethane sealant and this was painted over too.

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Wheels back on then off the axle stands.

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Now just the front bumper and finish up the rest of the painting ready for a professional job. I still have no new batteries, so not ready to go back on the road yet. I had a short drive round to the car park to take some photos and back to my driveway and it was then dead. The duff battery I have is taking power out of the pack, so it is not really getting charged now.

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More pics....

248: Sunday 5th May 2103

Started on a beautiful Saturday morning by removing the inner door panel. I had about 10 or 11 holes in the door where the clips for the old trim panel were. As this was not needed and would look silly now I had to fill these. With a fresh mix of fibre glass, I took my plastic scraper with some fibre glass on it inside the door and covered the holes from behind. While this was drying I went out to the summer house at the back of garden and got the other side skirt. I took off the old side skirt and trimmed a strip from it with the clips attached, fitted the strip back on then offered up the new panel. The panel would not go anywhere near the body with the clips strip attached. I took the clip strip off and offered the panel up again and checked the gap. It was a good fit, much better than the other side. By this time the fibre glass on the door was dry and I ground back the excess and spray painted with primer to stop any rusting. Then the rain came, and then the Hail came. So I went indoors and Twister was on TV, so I sat and watched, and that was Saturday.



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Sunday was a beautiful morning, the sun was shining and I got reasonably early start (10 am). I filled the holes in the door that were fibre glassed ground back and primed the day before. I also filled the rear bumper panel as there was a dip where I had got carried away with the sander machine. I carried on with adjusting the clip strip on the other side skirt while the filler was drying. I cut more off the strip and made it so the clips were only secure on one side and could be bent in. I took one clip off altogether and cut the strip into 2 parts. The rear part was still too big, so I decided to just have one clip at the rear. I reworked one clip so it would fit under the trim, then drilled holes to mount the panel with screws. With the side panel nice and secure and fitted generally I marked the top of the trim where it meets the door ready to be trimmed later. This is necessary in order to make the door open without catching as the panel needs to drop down a few millimeters. The process was mostly the same as the other side except I kept some of the clips together on a strip of plastic to make is easier to mount them. The filler on the door dried and I rubbed it down to make it smooth. It took me 2 goes to apply the filler as it was so hot that it was going hard quite quickly. I sanded it back smooth, but the rear bumper needed another layer, so I mixed some more and put it on. More sanding and then  was ready to mask up the windows and other trim so they didn't get painted. I put primer over the bottom half of the door, generally covering my work and the rear bumper repair. A light sand by hand and I was ready to prep for painting. This involved a quick dust off with a dry micro-fibre cloth and a tissue wipe with white spirit to remove any trace of grease or other chemicals. I also sprayed a bit of the rear bumper where it had picked up some over spray of primer from another day. I sprayed the repair on the rear bumper and the rear quarter panel. I sprayed inside the edge of the door over the polyurethane sealant and then the outside of the door. I didn't have enough paint in the can to finish the door, but I got most of it done and it is not super important to be finished at this stage as  have plenty more painting to do and I can go over it again then. It is starting to look better and better.