Sump Pan Depth

[Guest Cantbearsed]

...and I'm still not convinced enough to hacksaw the bottom off my (or any) sump. Ideally the sump would be 3 ins clear of the floor, the plough tube would be 1 inch below that and I'd have room for a sump guard.

 

Then again, did i just see a pig fly by...?

[Guest chris brown]

Dale I don’t understand why you are so worried about shortening the sump I found it to be one of the easier jobs to do on the build at least it is well documented unlike most of the other jobs and as people have said if you don’t have a mig then its not hard to find someone who will soon do it for you and providing you have prepared it all ready it would not cost much

[Guest Cantbearsed]

Chris, I think I was fooled by the blurb before I bought my RH2B. It looked to be one of the best kits around with service pack, included hood and frame, had technical support and looked like a great bolt-on-and-go fun car.

 

Having got the kit home, stashed it all away and put the kettle on (Hoodies Rule No1 ! ) I prepared to watch the "instructional" videos.....

 

Now, 2.5 years on, I know my chassis is not symetrical at the front, there's a chance one rear wheel may sit further out than the other, my sump is way too long and I have to fill in the gaps where Richard didn't see fit to offer advice.

 

All I have currently is my chassis loosely located over a rear axle and a well worn engine hoist from hauling a 2L Pinto in and out.

 

I guess I am just disillusioned and want something to go right.

 

I am not a bodger, I like to do things properly and cutting the bottom off the sump seems like a bodge to me. The pan is that size for a reason. I would like it to stay that way. If it means I have to find ground clearance another way, then so be it.

 

Before I get beaten up, I am not suggesting those who have shortened thier sumps are bodgers, it's just not the way I want to do it.

 

Oh well, back to the drawing board....

[Guest bobr]

Vulcan Engineering do a shortened sump for the pinto, this is not only for Robin Hoods but for most 7 Type Kits or any kits with a low bonnet line. The Pinto is a tall engine so somethings got to give.

[Guest Jaffer]

My contribution for what it's worth...

 

I was against messing about with the sump originally, but after trial fitting the engine decided that something had to be done! [The sump is from a large family saloon after all!]

 

I shortened the sump to level with the bell housing and put extra capacity with an extra part on the front. This extra replaces the whole of the oil capacity lost from the 'chop' and should help prevent oil surge on cornering which may be an issue with the extra capacity on the side. [The extra piece is well baffled, and will only fill on heavy braking, when power is off...]

 

Just my thoughts on it...

 

Jaff

 

[PS If i could work out how to post a pic you could see what i've done!!! i hate computers!! :angry: ]

[swan]

Dale

 

Quote

 

"I am not suggesting those who have shortened their sumps are bodgers"

 

Neither would I .

 

With the advent of speed humps/ramps since the design of

the car was produced then it is the practical way to modify the sump to give the extra ground clearance required .

 

Of course the decision to shorten or not is yours.

 

I certainly know which route i would take.

 

With regards the welding do as others have said and take it to a local engineering/ fabricators. the last sump I had T I G welded took about 35 minutes to do so the cost to do this is not prohibitive.

 

HTH

Swan

[Guest Charles B]

It's all down to cash really. If you want the best option, buy a complete dry sump kit, but it will cost lots of money. The alloy sump I use gives me three inches of clearance, but will not take the knocks like a steel sump. I think the best option would still be a properly modified steel sump with the extra capacity on the side or front, and well baffled. There are plenty of other modified parts on the 2B anyway, the whole point of this car is that it isn't a meccano set, you have to put a bit of thought into it. That's why everyone is different, and it's such fun to go to meets and see how someone else has done it.

[Guest docter fox]

I guess I am just disillusioned and want something to go right.

meow!

 

if you dont want to shorten your sump, buy a short one

 

most 7 type cars using a pinto use a shortened sump for decent ground clearance, and the ground clearance on a hood is more than iv seen on others,

 

my clio has more rattles and squeaks than the hood does, by building a car yourself you will envitably come across problems, the difference with production cars is that you dont know about the "bodges" that were made

[Guest Bandit1200]

Hi all, I have just attempted to weld up the shortened sump. It looks fine until I put water in, and it seeps out slowly. I have welded again all round the leakage points, but it keeps coming. I have thought about using epoxy resin around the outside, with a thick coat of engine enamel on top. what are your thoughts about the longevity of this "bodge"?

[swan]

about 10 minutes?

 

swan

[Guest chris brown]

what are your thoughts about the longevity of this "bodge"?

As Swan says about 10 minutes. Where it is leaking don’t just try piling more weld on - this rarely works - grind it back so as to see exactly where the leak is it is usually due to insufficient penetration due to trying to go too quickly.

By cutting back in this way it is normally easer to rectify the faults and don’t worry I think most of us have gone down this route you will get there in the end but don’t give up and try to bodge it as it would never work.

[Guest Battery Bill]

And Here is how Joey managed to 2 "Bodge" our sump

Bandit

We had the same problem and struggled on, and on , and on then we got a mate to weld it he took about 15 mins

[Guest Bandit1200]

Thanks for the info guys. I dont want to bodge it, but after spending 6 hours on it and it still leaked, I started to lose faith. At least I can see now that others have had the same trouble. I have had an offer to professionally weld one, but if lack of penetration is the problem (been married a bit now! LOL) then I will try to fix it. Is it a case of more power and slower movement with the mig?

[Guest Cantbearsed]

Dearest Doctor Fox, I have spent longer in the automotive manufacturing industry than you've been alive. Please do not presume I do not know what goes on in the production line environment.

 

The reason I do not wish to shorten my sump if at all possible is because I AM well aware of the "make it fit" and "nobody will see that" bodges which cause the rattles and squeaks in cars such as your Clio. It's not fair to dupe the paying public and, if I try to dodge the issues such as the sump, I'd only be lieing to myself.

 

If there is a way round it, I'll find it. Given time.

 

Cheers to all who gave their 2p worth on this one.

 

better get back to my spanners....

[Big Jim]

I'm sorry Dale, but if you don't want to shorten your sump, then you either need to find one of the Capri sumps that are already that depth, or even fit the RS alloy job, but this is not as shallow.

It's a fact that in this type of car you cannot have a "standard" sump on without risking giving it a thump on something one day, and sooner or later you will!

 

All 7 type cars, Caterhams, Westies, Tigers etc. etc. modify their sumps. After-all, Uncle Henry didn't design the Pinto to go into a car that are 5" off the floor!

 

As to the axle being offset, yes it is! all the 2B's from the initial first batch have been like that! Ok, it's wrong, live with it!

Put a thin spacer behind the wheel! if you try to move the axle over to "make it right" then you'll bugger things up more, It's been tried!!

 

The people on this board will give you the answers to sort out the problems for a kitcar that is at the budget end of the market, complete with all it's faults, now if you want to ignore the advice, fine, that's your decision, and if you wanted a car that would go together like a Meccano set, you should have bought elsewhere.

 

PS. I was in engineering when you were just a twinkle in your Dad's eye!