ibrooks

Well this was the original method but no-one answered. Possibly because I'm actually looking for springs for a Cortina based hood - there are others about but their owners don't seem to be talking here. I'm not too bad for getting the weights as the springs are upright and just support the body. I can get at the seats with a wheel off so one of those corner weight guages could be stuck under the spring seat to measure the weight that actually acts on the top of the spring. Ideally I'd like coilovers which could be adjustable for height and damping rate but I would still need the spring rate and I'm not sure how I'd go with coilovers as the shocks are at one hell of an angle. Maybe I'll give Tweeks a shout and see what advice they cn give me. Iain

The springs do not suport the unsprung weight. Hence the name "unsprung". These items are sat on the road and so do not have an effect on the springs. The springs suport the sprung weight which then in turn sits on the unsprung items. Iain

Ok folks given the lack of response to my last question on the topic and the number of questions I've seen about it. Is there a rule of thumb which we can use to guess roughly what sort of springs we need for a given weight of Hood (presumably unsprung weight that is)? It's fairly easy to get various sorts and they are not that expensive but it could soon mount up if you start having to try trial and error. Anybody any ideas of the magic formula? Iain

If they start doing things you haven't asked for then I'd suggest you are taking it to the wrong garage. I'd always be very wary of somewhere that employs muppets anyway. How difficult is it to set up the guages? could you do a series of measurements with a jack under the diff to increase the ride height? I'd also suggest replacing the rear bushes if they look at all old as they could be causing the discrepancy. After that I'd say check everything is in good shape and drive it - if it feels wrong or does strange things then look to change it but until then you may only be causing a problem for later by changing something that you have been told is wrong but actually isn't. Iain

There won't be any oil leakage as the halfshaft is a "sealed" unit independant of the arm. The only possible leakage is from the diff end where you will have effectively pulled the shaft slightly out of the diff. I think the difference is negligible but again there are Hoodiez out there who have done it who could answer the question better. Come on guys where are you? Iain

Mick, I'll be there Saturday with the NW clan weather permitting since I aint got a roof. I'd like to camp but it depends on the sunshine. Iain Ian, Bring a tarp to cover the car, no problem!

Where abouts are you and how big do you want the lengths. We get the stuff in packing at work and it's scrap afterwards. If you are anywhere near Darwen or are going to be at the Harrogate show I can bring some along. Iain

You mean raise the subframe within the body? I suppose it is actually possible as it wouldn't have to be as much higher as you suggest but you'd have to be braver than me to do that much chopping and welding. Iain

The reason for the wheels "leaning in" is that the trailing arms on the Sierra rear suspension do not have an axis at right angles to the length of the car (the two bushes are at different distances down the car). This means that the wheels lean in as the suspension drops. No problem on a Sierra as it spends most of it's time at normal ride height. Your Hood is obviously lower. You have three choices. Either raise the ride height to the same as the Sierra (measure the height of the ends of the subframe on a normal Sierra). This may make you rcar look strange and change the handling characteristics so if you're happy with these choose another option. Live with it - expensive on tyres. Correct the camber - there are several methods. Jim had made some wedge shaped shims which bolted between the hub and the trailing arms to do this job but I beleive they have all gone. You can get the same effect by putting washers between them on the top two bolts (others have done it - hopefully they will reply and tell you what to look for and how it works). Fit Cosworth arms (kerching goes the dealers cash register) these were meant to run lower and the arms had different geometry to compensate but just what the angles were I don't know, maybe not enough (XR4x4's were lower too but I don't know if they had different arms or not as they weren't as different from standard as the Cossies). Iain

The cooling system wasn't keeping up in my S7 so I followed the advice I've seen on here in the past and moved the rad forwards to put it in front of some of the holes and try to force more air through it. I also wanted a better fan. The fan that came with it had b*ggered bearings and made an awful noise so I had fitted a Metro one that was lying around. I spent Sunday scouring scrap-yards for a Granada Scorpio or a late Sierra with air-con as these have a massive diameter fan in front of the rad. Unfortunately the only one I could find was on a car that had been front-ended and once I got at it it didn't turn. :angry: In the end I gave up and threw money at the problem. I have fitted a new fan from Car Builder Solutions www.nfauto.co.uk This thing is only 10" in diameter but it's rating (795cfm) leaves the bigger Kenlowe stuff standing. The car now sits and ticks over until the fan kicks in and cools itself down until the fan switches off. Sorted Given more time I would have stuck out for the Ford item as it is even better but I want to be able to go to Harrogate in it at the weekend. Iain

I've seen a bit about this recently but nothing too useful for my specific motor. I have a 1992 S7 which is Cortina based. The rear suspension is too soft so what's the best way to stiffen it up? Springs? Shocks? Both (yes I thought so). As far as I know the springs and shocks are standard spec (the shocks are newish looking and say heavy duty but.....). There are spring assisters on the rear springs and a big bit of foam over the rear axle (I assume it was contacting the body so this has been used as a bump stop). It's so bad that if I put my boot down hard the rear end bottoms out so it needs sorting sooner rather than later as I want to be able to put my boot down. Ideally I'd like springs/shocks that replace the existing stuff anyone know contacts for such stuff and any idea of prices? Iain

Well the Northwest crew may be interested to know that the S7 has been for it's MOT and only failed on a rear wheel low braking effort. The new cylinder is fitted and it goes for the re-test in the morning. Not bad since it's been off the road since 97. I won't be at the show in the morning as I have some un-avoidable stuff on this weekend (and I'll need to get a tax disk) but I may show my face later. For the rest of this community don't it make you sick that the car still owes me less than £1k. Iain (a happy hoody)

Hi Chaps - and chapesses if there are any interested in this sort of thing. Anyone know if it is difficult to change the body style on the reg documents?? Reason I ask is that I bought an S7 the other week and have been busy getting it towards an MOT. Now the guy I bought it from couldn't find the V5 but I was convinced it was registered correctly because he did have a tax disc reminder which described the car as a Robin Hood S7 - so given that I wasn't parting with too much money I didn't risk losing it over a technicality. Now the reg documents have arrived (in less than one week!!!!!) and I'm now worried. The make is Robin Hood and the model is S7 but the body type is Twin-axle rigid bodied four door saloon. :angry: Now as far as I can remember I shouldn't have a problem getting the legalities sorted (Tax MOT Insurance) as they don't tend to check all these things match. The MOT man doesn't need to see the V5 and neither do the insurance companies (normally) does the body type go on the MOT certificate? If not then the post office person won't generally know any different so it won't stop me there. It's just that this feels like I am saving a problem for the future. Please tell me I'm not going to have to SVA another one! With hindsight maybe this is why he couldn't "find" the V5. Anyone want to buy a load of spares from a cortina based S7? Any ideas? Iain

Rob, My S7 has Mini seats. My only gripe about them is that they are too low - I prefer a headrest. I have a set of Mini seats with headrests - the headrests sit nicely between my shoulder-blades. Headrests my a*se. If anyone has a local salvage yard that gets bent motors it's worth looking for a set of Daewoo Matiz seats as they are nice and comfy and dead narrow. Iain

Well guys - my 2b owes me about 3k. I think that once through SVA it will have cost around £3500 including test fees - not bad methinks since it has new separate smiths guages and fancy Corbeau seats which account for £600 of that. And now to upset you all - my S7 cost me £750 plus about £90 in fuel and trailer hire to get it home. I've spent a little under £40 on bits (timing belt water pump and suchlike). It should be going for it's MOT next week. Don't you just hate people like me I want to have it at Harrogate but since the DVLA reckon it could be 4 weeks until I get the docs (and I haven't to start chasing them until 6 weeks) I may not have been able to get a tax disc by then. Don't you just love a system where you can't comply with the law because the authority are too slow with the paperwork :angry: Iain

Just a little aside here - I know the discs only cost a tenner each and are prone to warping in the Sierra but I wouldn't have thought it was such a problem in a lighter car like a Hood (maybe it's just because they are driven more "enthusiastically"). However on the cars where the discs are only held on by the wheel nuts I've seen them start to wobble suddenly after a wheel has been off. What has happened is that some of the collected cr*p from behind the disc has dropped down between the disc and the face of the hub. Try taking the discs off and cleanig it out before you splash on new discs - can't hurt. Iain

What did minisport do - well they took a nasty oily lump of metal and turned it into a high performance Pinto head. They fitted new valve guides, new seats new cam bearings and all the bits that came in the Kent Cam kit. They also flowed the ports and machined the chambers out to 50cc. Oh they also cleaned it and painted it. They provided all the parts other than the cam kit (Burton were cheaper). I paid Minisport £600 quid for their work so all in the head cost me £750ish. Advice wise they don't really commit themselves about Pinto's it's just that I know some of the guys that work there, who have Ford backgrounds, through some mates in the trade. I knew what I wanted before I went in anyway. If you walk in off the street and ask about Pintos they'll point you at Power-Zone - persist because the guys in Power-Zone are a set of Max Power clones who will only help if you're driving a Saxo. Iain

Hi Robert, I have a 2.1 with an FR34 cam. It was running on the standard Ford injection system in my Sierra and it could shift - ask the guys who I was ferrying up the hill from the pub on the North-West gang's Wales outing. I had several offers for the engine that night. I built the engine for torque because I want a nice useable road engine with lazy low down grunt, having said that it pulls hard all the way to the rev-limiter. High lift will increase torque throughout the rev range whereas high duration will increase power at the expense of smooth running at lower revs - racetrack stuff. The FR32 is just beginning to border on this area but is by no means extreme. You say it is an injection engine - is it still injected? or have you just used an injection engine which is now on carbs? The FR32 may have too much duration for the injection system to cope with even the slightly increased duration on the FR34 had the injection system wondering what the hell was going on and it never gave it's best in the Sierra. It came out of the Sierra last week and is now sat on the garage floor awaiting fitting to my Hood with a weber carb which will hopefully allow it to acheive it's potential. I'd recommend the FR34 over the FR32 for a road car so how do you intend to use it. Just as a final note - you are planning bigger valves aren't you? If not then stick to the FR30 as the standard valves will never allow the head to flow what an FR34 is capable of. Mine are what Burton describe as stage 3 but Minisport who actually did the work called it stage 4 (they are like dustbin lids). Why Minisport were working on a Pinto? well the man who runs the rolling road was actually brought up on Pintos when he worked for the Ford works rally teams - nuff said. Iain

Were you planning to use new shells? If the shells were new and could be proved so then you'd qualify for the original ID from the bent shell. If the shell is second-hand you need an SVA test and will get a Q-plate. In my examples the "new" Hood gets the identity of the SVA'd one under these rules In order to retain the original registration mark: Cars and Car-Derived Vans must use: The original unmodified chassis or unaltered bodyshell (i.e. body and chassis as one unit - monocoque); or A new chassis or monocoque bodyshell of the same specification as the original supported by evidence from the dealer/manufacturer (e.g. receipt) And two other major components from the original vehicle - see list below Suspension (front & back) Axles (both) Transmission Steering Assembly Engine If a second-hand chassis/monocoque bodyshell is used, the vehicle must pass a Standard Single Vehicle Approval test after which a "Q" prefix registration number will be allocated Lifted from the DVLA website. A new chassis of the same spec from Robin Hood and the engine and box from the SVA car would allow our new Hood to be considered the original car re-built rather than a kit conversion. The SVA car is now left without an ID so it has to go through SVA (last paragraph but we know it would pass because it just has) and be given a Q-plate (because a second hand chassis has now been used). The whole thing can now be done again - alright everything but the first ID are Q-plates but hey no SVA tests and by the letter of the law it's legal. If you were prepared to lie then the SVA car could be said to have a new chassis each time you just say that it has the chassis on the receipt for the new kit. You would avoid a Q-plate until the last time where you don't have a new chassis waiting in the wings. Naughty so I don't recommend it. Iain

Hi guys, I did post something to this effect some time ago. Basically it can be a perfectly legal way to by-pass SVA. What you would need to do is build a new vehicle (i.e. for most of our purposes a Hood) using enough parts from a registered donor vehicle to qualify for it's ID (remember the points system pre SVA). The vehicle is then considered to be the original vehicle with new parts fitted (yes even the chassis). Even then it must go through SVA unless (and here's our loophole) the body style hasn't changed and the appearance has not significantly changed (we could do it with the Sierra if a Hood was a 5 door hatch and looked like a Sierra). Now with a Dutton or similar we would meet these requirements and be legal so long as we genuinely have used enough of the Dutton's parts. Quite a bit of work so it's probably easier to pass SVA. Also to my knowlege Dutton never used the Sierra as a donor so only good for an older Hood that wasn't registered at the time. Using a perfect SVA Hood would again be legal so long as you physically transfer enough parts to the "new" vehicle. So long as you genuinely have done this you are perfectly legal to present the original SVA'd Hood for another test and obtain a new ID. The tester would almost certainly not like it but so long as you can prove the transfer of all the necessary parts then you would be able to force him to test the "new" vehicle (probably only after many arguments and letters to the DVLA though). Expect a stringent and "picky" test because this is certain to annoy them. For interest and from memory I think you would have to transfer the following. Engine Transmission Axles (the rear one and the front two stub axles) Steering (column and rack) Brakes A big job but probably only a couple of weekends worth since they have all been on and off recently so no rusty bolts. All these parts must be transferred in their entirity but new parts of the same spec are allowed to be considered as transferred - probably because there is no way for them to prove that it wasn't fitted to the donor shortly before the re-incarnation. If people start doing this and the testers get "wise" then expect to see the loophole closed quick smart. I narrowley missed out on this because they didn't have the clause about the body style and appearance changing when I got my Hood but some people did it with the Sierra ID and the loophole was tightened. The type of knee-jerk reaction they have to things like this tends to make things more difficult for everyone in the future. Have fun looking for registered Sierra based sevens. Iain

It'd also be a little public in a Hood - not to mention cramped (I nearly said tight but thought some of you might think I meant something other than room in the car). Mind you I suppose if we weren't all at least a little exhibitionist at heart then we wouldn't be driving cars like this would we. All right.......I don't drive mine yet coz it aint finished but I'm getting there.

Doesn't the box actually ask for the maximum design speed?? If you look at the Sierra owners manual it says the maximum safe continuos engine speed is around 6000rpm (a little variation depending on which one). Now we all know for a fact that a Pinto can rev past that (OK only breifly - ask Jim Stott) but that is the maximum safe design speed. If your car is designed to do 70 then the requirement is that it can do 70. If it is capable of more then that's just because it exceeds the design specs by a little. Besides it can't do more than 70 because there are no public roads in this country where it would be legal to do so - and if you want to do it on private land then you don't need to have passed an SVA test so it's nothing to do with the DVLA. Not an attitude that's likely to get things done quickly though so you'll probably just have to compromise. Iain

Are you trying to make a scuttle or just alter the way the bonnet hinges? I hinged my 2b bonnet from the top tube above the dash which I think is much better than the RHE method. Dead easy and no cutting of the bonnet involved. I'll post pics and details if you want. Iain

They're always difficult to read (especially when they're 10+ years old). They were never stamped very deep (so don't be too fierce or you'll obliterate them yourself) and never straight (Terry - have you re-stamped yours coz Ford never got them that neat). If you are careful you may be able to remove the paint from the flat and leave it in the numbers. At the VRO the inspector rubbed some chalk on the area and then wiped it off again leaving some in the indents of the numbers. Iain

Dave, I thought of a screw extractor but given how tight it obviously is I suspect it would break before it came out and I didn't want to fill the diff with swarf from drilling a hole in the plug. My uncle (well great uncle actually) used to be the serice dept manager at the local Ford dealership and he tells me that they used to drill a hole through the plug and then insert a saw blade and cut to one edge of the plug and also nearly to the other edge. You need to be careful not to do too much damage to the threads in the casing. If you then get a grip with something the plug will crush a little and break it's grip on the alloy. I still think popping a halfshaft will be easier and quicker. Scott, Again I've seen the spline bits and debated it but I'm kind of short of hammering room square onto the face of the plug. My other thought is that if the torx bolts around the outside of the rear plate are more willing to come out I could work on the thing on the bench. Like I say popping a half-shaft isn't that big a job and I should be able to get a reasonable amount of oil in there to make it a non-urgent problem that I can deliberate on for some time. Iain