Mazda Rotary Club

An opportunity arose to purchase A42 KLN, a 1984 series 3 with one lady owner from new and 67k on clock. I went to meet Tanya (the owner) today to view and test drive the car. We agreed a price and I will pick it up from her later in the week  :D

The car is in VG condition overall, but, inevitably, time has taken it's toll and there are a few minor bits of paintwork that need attention. Mechanicals seem fine and corrosion seems comparatively good. The worst bit, cosmetically, are the wheels, which have been painted and corrosion is bubbling under the paint.

More photos and details later, when the car is with me at home  :)

By agreement with my better half, KIMI 2 will need to be sold in due course, so I can concentrate on getting KIMI 1 finished  :)

Looks great Malcolm,

bring it to Beaulieu ????

Happy days

Damn, 3 FBs, Im jealous

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Tbh from that pic it looks worthy of concours.

Looks like a good buy.......

Tart up or full resto?

Wow looks fantastic.

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Great find.  Looks fantastic.  Red always shows up well.

That looks amazing.

I will have to drop by to see it when you've it home.

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Not jealous at all Malcolm seeing as I cannot afford to run even an one RX8. Looks a great buy.

KIMI 3 now at my home. First major outing will be to take her to Beaulieu on 28th July.

I haven't had a chance to drive her much, especially with the lousy weather! However, I did a 40 mile run and she was a delight, but I do have a strange "rubbing" sound to sort out from the rear, on left turns mainly. I was aware of it before I purchased, so reflected in the price I offered.

In the meantime, some pics:

Interior is immaculate, apart from some wear and tear on the driver's doorcard vinyl.

Factory fresh toolkit and towing eye - were the gloves in there too from the factory??  ;)

Looks fantastic, time warp condition.

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Lovely looking car Malcolm... Would look good at Forge later this year 😉

Well I go away for a few days (or months) and you get another.  :sign0098:

Looks great well done Malcolm.

Lovely to hear you are still lurking on here Chris  :icon_thumleft:

Yep, I couldn't resist this one, a series 3 in seemingly VGC!

Malcolm I have to say that is one lovely looking car. I am so jealous.

Jim! Long time no hear, hope you are well. I've been on holiday so only just seen your post.

She's in great condition overall, but some TLC needed in places. First issue to sort is the wheels, which have been painted and they are corroding under the paint....

Went to a local wheel refurb company yesterday to take a look at the wheels. They've been painted grey at some point, but corrosion is breaking through quite badly. We concluded diamond cutting probably wouldn't be the best option, so decided to book the wheels in to be powder coated next week with a silver finish as close to OEM as possible.

Find some original pictures Malcolm as I have the feeling these were diamond cut on the faces from the factory.

My series 3 wheels looked liked yours Casey,  corrosion under paint.
However the Spare was diamond cut .
From my research Clive is correct and originally diamond cut.
My local refurb place is £90 a wheel on top for Diamond cuttting....thats whether a full face or lip.
I had it done on Eunos bbs wheel lip. Cost £441 for 4 wheels but original and wheels do set a car off. I love em and glad i forked out the extra money. .
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190704/89d41885002fd943cef75529c7f6c0c8.jpg)

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My first choice would have been to diamond cut as this was the OEM finish. I did some research and showed some pics to the wheel refurb technician, plus the manager. They advised that diamond cutting my wheels their current state was unlikely to result in a long lasting finish. I was also advised that the recessed/hidden rim design meant there were areas that the cutting tool would be unable to reach. I reluctantly opted for a powder coat in a colour to match OEM. If it doesn't work out, I'll look to buy some new wheels later, but at least they'll be an improvement on their current state.

I was encouraged looking at some of their work and how busy they were. They had some very high end vehicles in the workshop, many customised BMW AMGs and a 4 day old BMW monster 4x4 where the owner scraped a wheel the day he collected the vehicle! I was told BMW had booked the car in to get the wheel sorted for an unnamed VIP client. Football player I reckon  ;)

Loving those BBS wheels Jon  :icon_thumleft:

Just noticed the tyres on your wheel Jon  :)

I've just ordered a set of Uniroyal RainExpert in 195/60 R14 from Camskill to put on my wheels after the refurb. The current tyres have a bit of tread left, but the tyre markings show that are vintage 2008. As the old tyres are having to come off, it would be silly for 11 years old tyres to go back on!

Cleaned her up recently. Gratuitous pics  ;)

Beautiful example Malcolm


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Its looks new!!

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Looks absolutely stunning

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Wonderful gratuitous pics  :great:

I think those pictures do flatter a bit.

Overall though, the paintwork is excellent for a 36 year old car, but with areas that are inevitably showing the effects of wear and tear.

Quote from: Casey on February 02, 2020, 06:12:31 PM
I think those pictures do flatter a bit.

Overall though, the paintwork is excellent for a 36 year old car, but with areas that are inevitably showing the effects of wear and tear.

Seen it in the flesh Malcolm. It’s still stunning


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Very nice looking clean car Malcolm


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Something a little different. The FM radio has never worked in KIMI 3, so I decided to have ago at fixing it.

Getting the radio out of the dash was a bit of a pain, but I got there in the end. I then set up a power supply, aerial and speakers on my workbench to test the unit. Sure enough, no FM radio.

Unit on the bench:

First task, locate the service manual for the Mazda OEM Clarion E950 unit, which cost me $4.95, but gave me access to all the circuit diagrams and PCB layouts I needed  :icon_thumleft: Next step, dismantle it to look for the fault:

Firstly it looked like the FM tuner module was the source of the issue - the silver, metal screened unit with the label. I tapped it and FM started to work  :icon_thumleft:

That was short lived though, as FM stopped working a few minute later, but at least the signs pointed to a faulty connection somewhere, but where?

The circuit diagrams helped, as they showed there should be a 8 volt supply to the FM Module when FM was selected. But there was no 8 volts on the input to the module. I traced back the primary source of the power feed to an integrated circuit, outputting 12 volts on pin 5. Yep, that was fine. Next, that fed a an NPN transistor being used to drop the voltage to 8 volts,. As soon as I put my multimeter probe on the one of the pins to that transistor, FM started to work again  :13:

Here is a photo of the 3 pins to the NPN transistor. You can see the left pin has a black void, showing a compromised solder joint.

The other solder joints don't look too brilliant either!

So, out with the miniature soldering iron and a bit of re -flowing with fresh solder - much better!

FM now solid as a rock  :great:

Whilst re-assembling - a painful job, I think a masochist designed the casing - I decided to dismantle the front panel and use some cotton buds and cleaning solution to remove 35 years worth of grime:

4 cotton buds later and the panel, buttons and controls were looking a lot better.

I also realised this unit had the rather cool green LED sound level indicators when playing tapes  :great:

I just have to wrestle it back into the dash now  ;)

Awesome Casey and a hugely satisfying fix.
The local tv audio repair shop has disapeared from the high street...along with that skill set!.
Hifi gone now wifi!

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Great job, fried my noodle tho.

I’d start breaking out in a rash if I had to contemplate fixing that lol


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Nice job and only way to do that. Everyone is changing stupid new sound systems for old cars...

Me however, thru Verts cd player to bin. Engine, screamer, blow off and exhaust note is enough sounds for me...

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Well done, you have more patiance than I  ;)

On a different note have you managed to find a UK parts list for your model ?. I am trying to help somone with a front wing and he tells me that he thinks the US version was different.   

I've only got access to a US parts list Clive. Yes , there are differences, so have to be careful using it. Never seen a UK\Euro parts list.

Malcolm
Is this the car you said you would be looking at when I spoke to you at JDM last year ?


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Yes Wayne, I bought it the week after JDM. Ian Mothersole now has KIMI 2. KIMI 1 is still my long term resto project.

It’s certainly is in very good  condition
Love it


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I certainly can't complain for a 36 year old car Wayne  :great:

Shame is, plans to take it to events look like it's not going to happen for many months  :(

Quote from: Casey on March 22, 2020, 12:47:24 PM
I certainly can't complain for a 36 year old car Wayne  :great:

Shame is, plans to take it to events look like it's not going to happen for many months  :(

Yep
Keep applying the wax , can’t see any social gatherings going on for a very long time .


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Well, not much mileage on KIMI 3 over the past year, but she is safely tucked away in my garage most of the time, with a smart battery charger connected. I try and take her out about every 4-6 weeks for a 20-25 mile run, when the roads are dry.

She did have one very enjoyable long trip up to the Yakushi show in August though: http://mazdarotaryclub.com/forum/index.php?topic=85085

I've done no major work on her (well, compared to others like Jamie, Jarno, Clive and Grant!), but I did attend to some nasty rust around the rear suspension mounts, both sides, on the inside. Patches had already been welded on the outside, but whoever did the work didn't paint over the inside of the job!! Pictures of the exterior patch one side; plus inside before and after clean up, but before full POR15 treatment and seam sealant. Can't find the final pics at the moment, but happy the corrosion has been dealt with in those two areas.

I did have to get a tiny patch done on the floorpan behind the driver's seat. Some pinholes had developed there!

And a little bit of work was needed to deal with some passenger side wheelarch corrosion.

Removed all visible rust, area treated, filler applied, primer, base and lacquered. Not 100% happy with the final result, but it'll do for now. At least least it should stop the rot. I will try and get some old oil down the inside, between the body panels when I get the chance.

I tidied up those horrid fusible links and the fuse holder, cleaning up the plastics and metalwork too;

Thought I should renew the original fuel pipes in the engine bay. The ends of the pipe were perished, but a cut through another section of the pipe showed the pipe to be in good condition.

New fuel pipes and clips  :)

Tarted up the radiator front cover too. Replaced the fixings with stainless steel bolts:

Good work Malcolm.

Progress is progress no matter how big or small. You done the important stuff of tin worm.

Thankfully that's one thing I don't need to worry about


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Good job sir!

Damn I love FBees

Umm, which Kimi did have some Finnish parts on it?

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Quote from: re japi on March 08, 2021, 07:06:09 AM

Umm, which Kimi did have some Finnish parts on it?

The air filter housing went on KIMI 2 - so Ian Mothersole now has that one. I've cleaned up the rear light clusters ready for KIMI 1 and saved the LH rearview mirror for KIMI 1. However, not sure about the mirror? It should be OK, but it's for a LHD car, so the adjustment range might not be correct for a RHD seated driver? If it's wrong, I may be able to dismantle and tweak  ;)

 Very nice!

Quote from: re japi on March 08, 2021, 07:06:09 AM
Damn I love FBees

Me too! :sign0098:

BTW I thought this was KIMI I. I see now the error of my ways.  ;)

Quote from: Casey on March 08, 2021, 11:19:12 AM

Quote from: re japi on March 08, 2021, 07:06:09 AM

Umm, which Kimi did have some Finnish parts on it?

The air filter housing went on KIMI 2 - so Ian Mothersole now has that one. I've cleaned up the rear light clusters ready for KIMI 1 and saved the LH rearview mirror for KIMI 1. However, not sure about the mirror? It should be OK, but it's for a LHD car, so the adjustment range might not be correct for a RHD seated driver? If it's wrong, I may be able to dismantle and tweak  ;)

Ok

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Gosh, it's a long time since I posted any updates on KIMI 3  :-[

MOT is booked for next Tuesday, so fingers crossed all is well.

Here's an update from the last couple of weeks I've what I've been up to......

I spotted a radiator leak and have had the rad re-cored by a local company.

Whist the rad was out, I have also removed the rad surrounds and battery tray to clean up and re-paint. I also noted the thermostat elbow was badly corroded, so decided to remove it and ordered a replacement from eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/322216870054

However, I managed to shear the lower thermostat housing M8 bolt, despite being very cautious  :(  I then tried to removed the bolt with an extractor, which promptly sheared inside the bolt  :(  :(

I decided the best solution was to use a JCB Diamondtech 8mm core drill (Toolstation, £9.86) and, if necessary, retap for an M10 bolt.

I got lucky though, the drill bit cut a clean and quite fast core to a depth of about 8mm, which I was able to remove (so part bolt and part extractor gone  :icon_thumleft: ). That left a remnant of M8 bolt in the blind hole which drilled out quite easily with a 6.5mm cobalt drill. It was then a matter of retapping/cleaning the remaining. lower part of the M8 thread. To be safe I drilled a few mm deeper into the blind hole and tapped the M8 thread a bit deeper too. It all cleaned out nicely and a stainless steel bolt tightens up in there securely.

The rad hoses were serviceable but very tired looking, so managed to bag a pair of black silcone hoses that were left over from a group buy on another forum a while back. Plus I ordered some stainless steel "Mikalor" clamps as the originals were very shabby.

Rad before and after re-coring (note they managed to braze the cap overflow on incorrectly, which they quickly sorted!)

More photos to follow...

New thermostat elbow and home made 1mil gasket:

Prep of metalwork, full POR-15 pre-treatment and 2 coats of POR-15 chassis paint. Not a perfect finish, but good enough for the job.

New silicone custom-made hoses (a great fit!) plus some beefy Mikalor S/Steel clamps:

A chance to clean up the front end of the engine bay:

All back in and only the tiniest of leaks of coolant (literally a couple of drops!) from the top hose to rad connection. Now nipped up a tad more, so hopefully sorted. Now the rest of the engine bay is being shown up as needing some TLC, it never ends  ;) ;D

Oh, forgot to say I even cleaned up the rad fan in the process  ;)

Excellent job! Back in the 90s "rad" was US slang for "cool". Very fitting!

Quote from: Casey on October 29, 2021, 06:46:58 PM
All back in and only the tiniest of leaks of coolant (literally a couple of drops!) from the top hose to rad connection. Now nipped up a tad more, so hopefully sorted. Now the rest of the engine bay is being shown up as needing some TLC, it never ends  ;) ;D

Bit of elbow grease Malcolm
Looks like
It's had quite. Bit already


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Looking really good Malcolm, you have put a lot of work into this to make it look like this  :13: 

Looks absolutely amazing

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Yay looking good.

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That's great work, amazing attention to detail.
:13:

Looking great

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The common issue of the electric window failing has happened on my driver's side.

See photo below for the condition of the switch when taken apart. I could have just cleaned it up and it would probably have worked again for a while, but the contacts are showing signs of pitting due to the stress of making/breaking a 15amp (ish) inductive load intermittently for 37+ years!

I know several owners have added relays to the circuit to take the direct load off the switches. Electrically very simple, the issue being where to site the relays for neatness. I decided on a location I've not seen anyone else use before, in the space occupied by the rear ashtray. Who sits in the back anyway and, even if they did, I wouldn't let them smoke in my car anyway  :)

Outline procedure:

1. Disconnect the battery.
2. Unclip the switch panel in the centre console.
3. Disconnect the two off 4 pole connectors that feed the window switches.
4. Disconnect the 2 pole connector feeding the rear window washer/wiper.
5. Pulled off 2 spade connectors on the rear electric aerial switch.
6. The centre switch panel can not be removed completely.
7. Remove 2 screws under the switch panel area and another two at the rear of the cubby hole, under the armrest.
8. The centre console can now be lifted out.

Due to photo attachment limitations, I'll post up how I proceeded to fit the relays in separate posts...

The ashtray is removed by taking out two screws:

There is just enough room in the area vacated by the ashtray to position the required 4 SPDT (30/40A rated) relays:

There is a pic of two relays wired up (base-to-base) to fit in the confined space. All connectors are crimped, soldered and heat shrink wrapped, using 15 amp (minimum) wiring where they feed the window motors. One pair is needed per window circuit.

Here are the two new wiring looms in position:

Finally, an aluminium plate I made to fix over the ashtray aperture, using the existing screws and fixing points.

Externally, nothing (bar the ashtray plate) is visibly changed and everything could be easily converted back to an OEM state if needed. No changes were made to the car-side loom wiring. All now fitted back and I have two working windows again  :icon_thumleft:

Nice work Malcolm


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Why, thank you, young man. No fibreglass was involved though, otherwise it could have been a disaster  ;D ;)

Fuel gauge on Kimi 3 isn't giving a reliable reading  :(

Most likely the sender. I might be able to remove it and repair, but others have said that's only a short term fix and they often fail again aftre a month or two, so managed to get a brand new one:

It's really strange that the sender for a Series 3 has a low level sensor, but it is not used on UK spec cars. Given the thirst these cars have for fuel, that's a surprising omission. Just for the sake of a length of wire, a simple detection circuit, and bulb in the cluster?

I'll see if there is a way to wire it into an indicator light of some sort.

Biggest issue will be removing the old sender, which may well have rusted fixings  :(

I replaced mine it's an easy job but be sure that the old and new sender Arms are the same length and throw
Got mine from mazda  Japan oem matching numbers but have slightly different arm lengths that only gives you 3/4 to 1/4 tank
I also looked at trying to fix the old one but after 40 years the sender wires are worn down to nothing and not making contact any more

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I've not had time to install the new fuel level sender yet!

However, the MOT is due next week and I've not been happy with the feel of the brakes for a while now (even though they work OK and stop in a straight line) so decided my priority was to do a major brake overhaul, given most of the brake parts are original and so nearly 40 years old!

A set of 5 HEL braided flexi hoses has been acquired - bought because I know they have been successfully fitted to several S3 RX-7's and fitment was good.

New Mazda OEM brake master cylinder has been acquired - thanks here to Clive for locating and supplying it!

I will post a rather detailed and laborious set of posts shortly, for the benefit of anyone who decides to tackle this work and maybe, like me, doesn't tackle this job very often. So far, all the new hoses have been installed, including renewing the two hard lines over the rear axle. I plan to bench bleed and install the master cylinder shortly.

For the seized pipe, if you can undo the calliper so its floating,  wind the calliper off the pipe.

Then with the pipe set free, use a blow lamp and get just a little heat on the union and it should free off nicely   

Malcolm has read as many Haynes manuals as I have - he knows "should free off nicely" is right up there along with 'reassembly is the reverse of removal' in the wishful thinking stakes!  :)

Quote from: jinx on October 25, 2022, 03:48:32 PMMalcolm has read as many Haynes manuals as I have - he knows "should free off nicely" is right up there along with 'reassembly is the reverse of removal' in the wishful thinking stakes!  :)

:))  :))  :))

Here comes the "Haynes-like" but real-life description of an amateur mechanic tacking the brake hydraulic refresh. For those who have done this many times, it'll be a bit boring!

First task was to crack the wheelnuts all round and get the car up safely on stands, then all the wheels off.

To stop the fluid leaking out too rapidly when removing the hoses, I placed some plastic under the master cylinder cap to create a vacuum.

I went around cleaning around all the hose fixing areas to help prevent dirt from getting into the system later, then squirted penetrating oil on all the fixings and left this to soak in overnight.

The next day I applied another dose of penetrating fluid to all the fixings and then started on the front passenger side by removing the spring clip holding the centre hose support to the bracket on the suspension strut. The hose can then be freed by jiggling the hose support forward, then down through the notch in the bracket.

(Driver's side shown)

The next step was to crack the flare nut on the bulkhead bracket and the hose into the caliper. Using a good quality flare spanner was essential, as the years of exposure to road grime had created quite a bond between the hose and the flare nut and they were reluctant to part. Once both had been cracked, I unscrewed the flare nut completely, capping the end with a bleed nipple cover, which successfully stopped it dripping. The spring clip can then be removed (tapping with a screwdriver and hammer needed!), and the hose fixing pulled out:

The HEL hoses look to be well made and are a close match in length the OEM hoses. The only perceptible difference is that the front hose are about 3-4cm longer, which shouldn't present an issue. I will carefully check for any possible rubbing or snagging after fitting. Here are 3 of the 5 hoses; front, rear and axle mount. Fresh copper washers are provided.

The centre support on the HEL line is not fixed, but can slide along the hose. There are some plastic clips provided to attach both sides of the hose. When in position, these restrict movement. Instructions for positioning/fixing these "stops" this are provided with the hoses.

One snag arose in fitting the front hose into the bulkhead mounted bracket - the HEL fitting was about 0.5mm larger than the hole in the bracket. This required the use of a Dremel grinder to take off a very small amount of metal. After that, the new hose was bolted with the new washer onto the caliper, the centre fixing fitted to the strut mounted bracket and the other end fitted with the spring clip into the slightly enlarged hole on the bulkhead bracket. The existing flare nut screwed easily into the new fitting, just requiring a bit of a careful clean up of the few ml of fluid that inevitably was lost in the process.

The last step was to fit the spring clip into the centre mount and check the hose position by turning the steering wheel to both extremes before affixing the two plastic "stops". I'll need to re-check for clearance when the suspension is compressed later.

Removing the rear brake hoses was pretty much the same process as for the front EXCEPT the position of the hard line flare nut is such it has had full exposure to the elements for nearly 40 years, so the hard line had "fused" onto the flare nut. So, although the nut (surprisingly) was relatively easy to free from the thread in the hose, the hard line twisted with it  :(

This was the same for both sides. Also, the 5th hose would not come free from the T splitter on the axle - the other end is in a shielded position and looked like new and easy to remove. I therefore decided the best option was to cut the two rear hard brake lines and re-make them.

The new rear hose went on easily.

Freeing the 3 fixings into the very rusty "T" splitter mounted on the axle was not easy. I was about to resort to heat but tried one final time with the T firmly in a vice and a 6 point 17mm long spanner on the hose nut when gentle persuasion of a lump hammer finally freed the connection. Penetrant had been soaking in there for days with little effect it would seem.

Just for reference (handy when you find yourself on the floor with the wrong tool to hand ;) ) the caliper end fixing nut on the OEM hoses is 17mm and the HEL ones are 14mm!

The other two flare nuts in the T were also reluctant to free their grasp, so I cut the pipes close to the nuts so I could put on a 6 point 10mm socket. They surrendered fairly easily when faced with this attack :D

T splitter de-rusted and sprayed before re-installing, together with replacement s/steel 6mm bolt.

Something to mention if you only re-make brake flares occasionally. There are basically 2 main types of brake union flare nuts. The pics below show the type required for the RX-7 on the right. It has a 45 degree chamfer on the inner edge to correctly seal the inverted/double flare used in the RX-7 calipers and fittings. The other type (with the "shoulder") is for use with bubble flares and won't correctly seal to 45 degree seats.

 

All hoses and hard lines now fitted. There is obviously still masses of air in the system, but I still had a full reservoir and will be changing the master cylinder next, so decided to give the pedal a few gentle pumps to see if it revealed any leaks. Yes, it did! Both rear hose-hard lines leaked (all the rest OK), so I tightened nipped them up a bit more (not wanting to over-tighten them when I first installed them). A few more pedal presses showed no further signs of leakage anywhere. I will check again when the master has been changed and the system bled.

Typical flare on new lines - looked OK to me  :icon_thumleft:

Passenger side hard line finished. I drilled and tapped a 4mm thread in the sway bar mount to add a new P-Clip as the old one was shot.

The rust is a job for another day!

Super job Malcolm,

Quote from: Jamie R on November 07, 2022, 04:04:55 PMSuper job Malcolm,

Thank you, but nowhere near to the level of your awesome projects Jamie!

Installing the new brake master cylinder was very straightforward.

First task was to bench bleed. I had the kit mentioned in a post above, which enabled two ports to be bled, so I made up a something to bleed the 3rd port. In practice, the nearest two ports bled fairly easily, but they then required to be blocked off to bleed the furthest port easily. I simply used some "Sealey" brake hose clamps, which I already had in my tool collection. Once bled, I used some bleed nipple caps to prevent fluid leaking everywhere.

Next stage was to remove the old master cylinder. Messy, but very straightforward. I syringed out the fluid from the reservoir first - yuck, there was some horrid black sludge in the bottom of the tank!! The three pipe unions released easily, and the two nuts to the servo. The level sensor connector needs to be unclipped too, then remove.

It's a doddle then to install the new master as quickly as possible to minimise the entry of air. I noted there was no gasket on fixing to the servo (I should have checked the parts list to see if there should have been one!), so gave a generous smear of white lithium grease to keep any water out. I replaced the two nuts and spring washers with s/steel.

As expected, there was plenty of air in the system, having replaced the rear hard lines as well as the hoses.

I tried gravity bleeding the two rear calipers and couldn't get it to work.

I tried a vacuum brake bleeder on the rear and no luck either - I think air was coming in via the bleed nipple thread rather then the lines, despite usimg some red rubber grease on the threads.

So, Gwyn was around to use the tried and tested two person method, which worked a treat. Took a while, but no issues until I checked for leaks at the end. I found a very slight weep from one of the rear splitter outlets on the axle. nipping it up didn't seem to help, so decided to undo and refix. a small amount of re-bleeding and all was good :D

Without the servo, the pedal felt 100% better than prior to undertaking this overhaul.

Time for a test drive then.....

Wow, I'm sooooo glad I did this! The brakes feel so much better - no "softness", just a progressive bite and "solid" feel. No problem in stopping in a straight line with a heavy stamp either. I deliberately didn't go as far as locking up the brakes, but felt they were capable of doing so with a heaver foot.

After a test run I came back and immediately checked the disk temps with an IR gun. The temps across each axle were as near identical as they could be, with the front temps (as expected) being higher than the rear. I did a final visual check for any leaks (none  :icon_thumleft: ) and to confirm no fouling of the front hoses on anything, given the suspension was now fully compressed. All good too.

Another satisfying job with a great result. The stopping power may not be as good as my RX-8, but I'm so much more confident in the brakes now, knowing there is a good feel and adequate stopping power.

And to complete the story, I took the car in for it's MOT today and she passed with no advisories.

 :0012395:

Now, if that isn't a good start to the week, I don't know!  :great:  Congrats!  :sign0098:

Quote from: Casey on November 07, 2022, 04:17:07 PMAnd to complete the story, I took the car in for it's MOT today and she passed with no advisories.

 :0012395:

:00123101:  :00123101:  :00123101:

I'm finally getting around to replacing the faulty fuel sender!

I have had a new one, sourced from Mazda, sitting on the shelf for months, but couldn't face doing the job in the cold and wet weather, as I'd need the garage door open to provide the space needed.

I pumped out all the fuel via a long fuel hose attached to the engine bay hard line fuel supply. Back end then jacked up, the shields/guards around the tank removed (only one reluctant, rusted bolt), the three pipes to the top of thee tank were then marked and disconnected. Three bolts holding the filler neck in place, under the fuel flap, removed, sender connector removed.

All ready to drop the tank at this stage.

A few bolts undone, sender & 3 fuel pipes disconnected, a bit of wriggling to get the fuel filler pipe clear and the tank is out  :)

The top plate bolts, holding the fuel supply and return lines came off easily and the in-tank filter is remarkably clean.

As expected, removing the 6 bolts holding the sender unit in place was another matter. Four bolts gave a fight, but were removed cleanly. The top two bolts were solidly corroded in place, such that the heads both sheared off. I had to drill out the remains of the bolts as best I could and will need to tap some new threads for replacement bolts- I have some stainless steel bolts, courtesy of Ian Mothersole, who recently had the fuel tank of KIMI 2 out for refurbishment.

Bolt remnants, before drilling out:

As this stage, the plan was to clean the exterior of the tank, give it some rust treatment and apply some protective paint. I couldn't put it back like that  :)

I've got new fuel hoses and will replace all the existing ones when refitting the tank.

The tank interior wasn't too bad. As far as I could tell, there are only two areas where rust is appearing. I was thinking of the full POR15 tank restoration kit, but it seems overkill.

I also decided to remove the fuel pump and bracketry for some tarting up. I cleaned and POR-15 treated some other bits too:

The fuel filler pipe came up a treat too:

At this point, a miracle happened. A former owner (Dave) had posted up that he had a "New, Old Stock" Series 3 tank available, and he was located only 20 minutes from Brentwood, which I visit once a week! A deal was struck and I bought and collected it  :)

Dave bough the tank 20 years ago as a spare, so I decided to tart it up a little with a coat of paint topside and some extra bitumen based treatment underneath.

I spent a few hours today cleaning up some minor surface rust in areas it is easier to access with the tank out. De-rusting, de-greasing and metal prep treatment, prior to 2 coats of POR-15 tomorrow, I hope.

Before:

Ohhh. Malcolm
If your not busy
I'd happily drop my car for a bit if love
Credit to you


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Well done, such patience :) 

Bravo ole bean !

That Nikki will look amazing ! Lol


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Excellet work! You're setting standards here, Malcolm!  :sign0098:

POR-15 painted areas that were showing signs of surface rust. I would have liked to have done more (like the axle!) but I know from experience how "job creep" extends the time off the road! This started as a simple, tank out, replace fuel sender, put tank back in. It has already extended well beyond that!

Fuel pump fitted back, just the linking pipework to re-connect.

I changed the diff oil while convenient, with the car up and tank out of the way. The old oil came out very clean; a distinct, red, transparent colour. Odd though, nearly 2 litres drained out, but the manual states capacity is 1.2 litres? I put in about 1.2-1.3 litres of fresh oil and that came to the fill plug level.

The drain plug had a few fine metal filings attached, but nothing much. Nicely cleaned up  :)

Lying on your back, applying POR-15 is a hazardous business, full PPE required  :lol:

You don't want to be breathing in the fumes from that, or get in in your hair or skin.  Despite precautions, some paint managed to drip down my right wrist without me noticing, so I'll be wearing  that for a week or two!

Wow, looking good.

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How are things on the Nostromo? Watch out for aliens!  :))

Quote from: Eccentric shaft on May 14, 2023, 06:38:53 PMHow are things on the Nostromo? Watch out for aliens!  :))

 :))  :))  :))  :))

Quote from: Casey on May 14, 2023, 05:56:13 PMLying on your back, applying POR-15 is a hazardous business, full PPE required  :lol:

You don't want to be breathing in the fumes from that, or get in in your hair or skin.  Despite precautions, some paint managed to drip down my right wrist without me noticing, so I'll be wearing  that for a week or two!

Didn't know you were a bee keeper Malcolm


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Quote from: Jamie R on May 15, 2023, 03:25:07 AM

Quote from: Casey on May 14, 2023, 05:56:13 PMLying on your back, applying POR-15 is a hazardous business, full PPE required  :lol:

You don't want to be breathing in the fumes from that, or get in in your hair or skin.  Despite precautions, some paint managed to drip down my right wrist without me noticing, so I'll be wearing  that for a week or two!

Didn't know you were a bee keeper Malcolm

 :))  :))  :))  :))  :))


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A slight diversion from laying on my back under the car  ;D

Playing with a 1st Gen instrument cluster: https://mazdarotaryclub.com/forum/index.php?topic=85484

This was KIMI 3 today, left at local garage, awaiting MOT test :

20231018_105003c.jpg

...and, a couple of hours later....

Clean pass, no advisories  :13: 

I was hoping for that result, but with a 39 year old car, one can never be sure!

Great news ! Well done


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I knew it! Congrats!!  :great:

Wow , fantastic news.

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You should be very proud of this loverly FB.
The Mot was a foregone conclusion because of the work and care you put into it  :great:   

Thanks guys. She's now safely tucked up in the garage as the storm rages around us!

I do love the car


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Gorgeous, sunny day today, so took her for a 60 mile trip into Suffolk and back on some lovely, quiet country roads - bliss!

Still looking wonderful and great to see it out and about  :great:

Great! Looks fab as always.  :great:

Crumbs, I haven't posted on this topic for nearly a year  ???

Where has the time gone!?

I'll post up on another topic about my recent trip to the Japfest Classic at Goodwood, and a very recent Essex Rotary Owners meet yesterday.

The other big news is KIMI 3 went in for it's MOT today - it's last legally required test, being 40 years old!


and....

.... she passed with NO advisories again  :whoo: 

A small thing, but satisfying progress on a part I was about to throw away.

I thought this windscreen washer motor was beyond redemption as the rotor was rusted solid to the casing magnet. However, a soak for a few days in some rust remover solution did free up the rotor and I managed to get it apart, as in first pic.

After a bit of careful cleaning, all looks good. A lick of paint on the casing and I'll re-assemble, hopefully gaining a working motor again!

Wow, well done. You have more patience than I  ;)

I recently came across this wine! With that name, I had to buy a couple of bottles to try 8)

Brilliant find

Good one! Sadly no Noriaki wine to be found, but there's always this one for all MRC members:

:)) I like it  :13:

I had KIMI 3 professionally valeted today, ready for the NEC Classic Car Show next week. I'm pleased with how she's looking - I'll bet it'll be raining on the trip up next week though  :))

Stunning! 😍

Far out bro that looks like a brand spanker off the forecourt :notworthy: