BLU

iTrader: (27)

^^^ what he said ^^^

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Not much done, flipped the wishbone links for more caster which is a PITA when the car is a foot off the ground and you need to get some leverage on the breaker bar, but sorted in the end. Fitted some coilover socks which are a bit strange on the rears because Meister R fit a tapered spring so you have a rubber top mount to prevent it knocking, and then just cleaned it...

PH neutral snow foam and some cherry wheel cleaner to start...





Then a wash with some Autoglym shampoo and a coat of Meguiars Classic Gold wax













Not fitted but put in place to get an idea - next mod




The match and quality of the paint from Ryan (aka Prodriverules) was impeccible as ever

And a quick wipe under here too



Before putting it all away

M2RTXhawkeye

iTrader: (61)

Brilliant as usual Jon cars looking mint... Love the bonnet vent...

Martin

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

I wasn't sure initially because of the size, but now it's painted I'm happy

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

So I had a day off work, this is before...



And then it all started




Checked the position...



And then finished masking up and positioning the template...




The point of no return with the fixing holes drilled




And the first cut is always the deepest

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

So an interesting afternoon - the shank that held my cutting discs snapped so I jumped on the old treader and a 5-mile round trip later a new set of useless dremel accessories from maplin, but still cheaper than buying 2 shanks on their own

Then the drive cable in the flexi attachment decided to give up the ghost

Anyway, not to be deterred I carried on without the flexi cable and before I knew it the hole was cut...




Then to remove the un-necessary strengtheners...




Followed by a check of the fit before committing...




Unmask and clean the bonnet...




Next was to fit the vent, a few self tappers and seam of tiger seal




Before finally putting the bonnet back on the car all cleaned up...





Left to do is wait for the tigerseal to fully set and then I can give it a good going over with some cutting agent before giving it a polish and wax. Also need to order some touch up paint to treat the bare edges

M2RTXhawkeye

iTrader: (61)

Great work Jon... Very jealous defo need to get me one of these. Looks superb

Martin

bioforger

iTrader: (1)

Nice job that

martin850

iTrader: (51)

Looks spot on mate. Is there anything under the hole that you wouldn't want to get wet ie the alternator?

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Cheers guys

Yes so I'll either make a cover that fits underneath for bad weather or a duct drawing air out from the rad through this vent but whichever option I choose it will protect the engine from getting drowned

BLU

iTrader: (27)

You're a brave man cutting through the bonnet when you've spent a few £££ on the respray

Worth it though as it looks über cool

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Cheers bud, but the respray was 3-4 years ago and the car has done some miles since then so it has it's share of battle scars. One of those was a dint from the underside of the bonnet - I don't know where it came from but it has now been cut out

BLU

iTrader: (27)

Win Win

martin850

iTrader: (51)

The duct sounds the best option though probably the more tricky. Still with your DIY skills it shouldn't be too hard and will look the nuts at the same time

kin quick

iTrader: (2)

Nice work Jon, looks awesome

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

The underside of the bonnet...




Definately need some finishing and some sort of weather proofing under the vent for inclemen weather, but easily removable for every day use

Ducting is going to be a PITA because of the coolant hose

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Next is under the bonnet, I'll be ordering some gaskets from Alyn ths week so I can start to build up my new inlet manifold. After that I need to start tidying up under the bonnet...




Plumb in thre catch can but also tidy up the inner wings, I'm tempted to get them welded up and relocate some ancils to clean it all up.

Tuck this inside a wing somewhere...



and generally clean and tidy this lot...








Relocate the fuse box into the inner wing or at least tidy up the wiring. I started with a tweak to the FMIC pipework...



And the inspiration...

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

So the sun came out and I...

I sorted the leaking roof on the garage





Cut the grass (or at least most of it) and put the washing out, got the wife to varnish the garden benches too




And started to build up my inlet manifold...





The brackets for the fuel rails had no adjustment and I wasn't happy with how the injectors lined up in the manifold so I modified the brackets and resprayed them to get them to fit better. Gaskets have been ordered from Alyn as ASP so will be here next week, then to measure up all my unions and hoses and I need to decide whether to keep them blue ones given most stuff under the bonnet is red and black, or change the blue stuff to black

RallyWRX

Love the bonnet mod ... got me thinking now

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Got a small parcel today...



Cheers Alyn, great price and service as ever delivering those essential but invisible bits...



So I can start putting it all back together...

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Just need to decide now whether to use standard fuel hose and push fittings or braided hose and AN6 fittings under the bonnet - in time I might run braided hose to the tank but not at the moment

AS Performance

iTrader: (4)

happy to have assisted John..............best of luck

BLU

iTrader: (27)

Looking good Jon

robj2502

Wow loving this it has come a really long way from page one! really looks great especially all of the colour coded suspension parts

IanPaskin

Did you spray the manifold or get it powder coated?? Loving the fuel rails...

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Cheers Rob

Painted Ian by Ryan (aka Prodriverules) who does all my paintwork. The rails were a bargain - about £60 from China - the injectors didn't line up quite right in the inlet so I modded the brackets slightly to make them fit

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

Things are never simple but at least I've now got the wheel alignment sorted thanks to Rich at FB Tuning



Slightly less aggressive than the previous set-up and certainly feels very composed on the Meister R's - they're a much compliant ride than I recall BCs being.

So splitter back on and this is how she currently sits








Whilst the car was uncovered I decided to use a pot of DBM I ordered to treat the rough edges around where I cut the bonnet vent...




It's no oil painting but it suits the purpose for an under-bonnet treatment. Also a temporary cover of paint over where I removed the battery tray until I decide what colour to paint the under bonnet (grey or white)



And then the hiccup of the day - the rear CV boot has worked it's way loose




At least with white wheels you spot these drama's early; it seems that when the boot was changed a couple of years ago they guys that fitted it did it wrong so the outer clamp is only hand tight and I could push it back on. Interim - when I get a moment I might just cut off the metal clamp, pack it out with grease and zip-tie it on. The fix is across to FB Tuning's workshop and swap it with a known good driveshaft that he's got lying around

robj2502

Out of interest how much was your wheel alignment and were the settings suggested by FB tuning or what you asked for/had previously?

Dirk Diggler 75

Excellent work .....

JonMc

iTrader: (51)

He was £120 which is competitive with companies like Wheels in Motion and Carnetix and he does put the time and effort in to get it right. I had previously set some quite aggressive settings so I picked his brains and tweaked them slightly based upon my planned usage.

Cheers bud