Matts CDX - Work In Progress.

[ilovedmymantas]

good news. The panel arrived Friday, the day after the seller received it

While I was waiting for it I started thinking about fitting some kind of water deflector. now that it's arrived I can see that Vauxhall thought of that, sort of





The problem seems to be they left a narrowing gap that funnelled the water directly to the top of the shock, a perfect hidden water trap

Seal it up while you can!

[ilovedmymantas]

Update

pics of the repairs...

…..the lower spring seat













The rear arch.....













So glad to be back on the road

Comments & thoughts welcome, I'm too tired to post mine just now.....

[btcctroy]

wow really nice repairs there mate

nice welding!

Troy

[thomas]

Amazing, impressive really sound looking work. When I seen that shock mount picture a few weeks back I thought it was going to be terminal, and all the previous quality work for nought,

Love that spring seat too, it's solid looking -how was the circular disk cut out from the flat piece?

I'm still waiting for my Viva panels coming back from sandblasting and powdercoating, and contemplating some work on the bike come spring, new (s-hand) barrels and pistons being readied to hopefully restore falling compression, as well as still remedying some aftermath from April's crash. Cav just keeps on trucking.

My stainless pipes are dented, by the wheel as the forks folded back, but it might be a plan to add a balance/link pipe (which it should have), between the header pair. And one of my new forks is leaking a little, I shouldn't give it welly over yumps.

[Robsey]

Looks like a good quality job.
Those repairs should give the car a good few more years of trouble free motoring.

[ilovedmymantas]

It's so good to have my freedom back and not be able to go anywhere

wow really nice repairs there mate

nice welding!

Troy

All credit to a guy called Greig , a nova owner who hasn't time to work on his own car. I'm sure it sounds familiar.

After a couple of charlatans over the years, I think I've finally found a local version of you so I'm happy

Amazing, impressive really sound looking work. When I seen that shock mount picture a few weeks back I thought it was going to be terminal, and all the previous quality work for nought,

I was in a state of shock and denial but thanks to sourcing replacement klokkerholm panels and having an enthusiast doing the work It turned out well

Love that spring seat too, it's solid looking -how was the circular disk cut out from the flat piece?

No idea but I'm impressed so I'll need to find out. In the more able days I'd have had to hacksaw it in a vice!

I'm still waiting for my Viva panels coming back from sandblasting and powdercoating, and contemplating some work on the bike come spring, new (s-hand) barrels and pistons being readied to hopefully restore falling compression, as well as still remedying some aftermath from April's crash. Cav just keeps on trucking.

My stainless pipes are dented, by the wheel as the forks folded back, but it might be a plan to add a balance/link pipe (which it should have), between the header pair. And one of my new forks is leaking a little, I shouldn't give it welly over yumps.

[ Image ]

I've fond memories of viva's.
Before I was driving in the 70's my mate loved them and i was lucky enough to be a passenger. Happy days

He was the son of a scrappies so could have anything
The last one I was in was his favourite, a magnum.

Looks like a good quality job.
Those repairs should give the car a good few more years of trouble free motoring.

That's the hope.
The car only has to outlast me, and I'm still looking at the long term, no doubt there are more surprises in store

matt

[ilovedmymantas]

Well, it was mot time on Monday, the car's 'anniversary'.

I wasn't expecting any problems, I'd fixed the non working sidelight the day before. The holder had fallen out, breaking the contact so a free fix

I was wrong

It did pass that day but not without a bit of drama...

I've never seen this on any car i've owned!


Although a shock It worked out quite well. The brake pipe burst on the tester so it couldn't have happened at a better time and place
I thought when the front to back pipes were replaced last(ish) year that was them all done. Wrong again

The remaining pipe will get done next week, weather permitting.

[3cav3]

Always good when it's only minor things that fail. On my wife's car the rear wheel cylinder must of failed on the test as I got a pass with no advisories but drove it half a mile home and the next time I used it there was no brake fluid in it. I'm sure that the cylinder must of been weak and when subjected to a harsh brake on the test probably caused it to pop. Probably the same thing happened with your brake pipe.

[ilovedmymantas]

I have a little problem to look into tomorrow.


Not the best picture but that is more than a drip.

I did smell petrol a couple of times when parked last week, with no obvious cause, then it vanished. it's only happened on today's journey of around 20 miles. There was no sign of loss after local trips so a bit puzzling.

The return journey was thankfully uneventful. Idle had slightly more vibration but otherwise ok.

I'm hoping it's not the tank. i'm having a hard time finding a decent replacement

[chrisp]

Petrol tanks for the Cavalier are indeed very hard to find - and they do rust quite badly on the top where water accumulates between tank and car body. So a secondhand tank sourced from a scrapyard is likely to be terminally rusty also.
The tank on my V6 started leaking when it was full beyond the halfway mark and I eventually sourced a replacement via www.carz2.co.uk. They didn't stock the tank but helpfully sourced a new one for me from Denmark. It was good value too at around £90, though that was 2 or 3 years ago.
To fit the tank you really need the car on as hoist to allow enough room for manoevre so, although I normally do all my own car servicing and repairs, I got my local garage to fit it. They showed me the old tank - you could poke your finger through the rusty top of the tank!

[Mk3alan]

That reminds me when I had just 'brimmed' the tank in my old MK2 Astra Estate. Paid in the kiosk and returning to the car I could see an ever growing puddle must have been 4ft diameter! Bad news.
Quick peer underneath and it could be seen that the bottom of the tank had a problem so drove about 4 miles home where I knew I had some empty tile adhesive pots and managed to fill up 5 of them..
After the emergency had died down I discovered the bottom of the tank was cracked. It looked like a dent had been sucked into the tanks base (no damage marks) and would then allow the panel to flex in and out with the weight of fuel eventually causing the crack.
Stuck a patch on it with can't remember what but it didn't last and had to source another tank.
All good fun!

Alan

[Robsey]

To fit the tank you really need the car on a hoist to allow enough room for manoevre so, although I normally do all my own car servicing and repairs...

It can be done on axle stands quite easily, but it is much easier if the tank is empty. Lighter and less chance of getting a petrol bath.

In my case I got it done by Squig who was one of the original admins, during a mini meet behind my house in September 2011 -

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=4069&start=725

I am a bit too old and rickerty for crawling about on a concrete floor these days.

strewth, is my current tank 10 years old??

[ilovedmymantas]

The car's being looked at by the garage on monday, i'm just not agile enough these days.

If it's the tank i think the leak must be mid to high up. At home, reverse parked on a slight slope with half a tank there's no puddle.
At that angle i'd expect the hoses to be leaking

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It was Cars2 that supplied my klokkerholm inner wheel arch panel. I'll try there, thanks for reminding me
I've sourced four, maybe five (the pic on the ebay one looks iffy).

I did change a tank, decades ago, I doubt i could do it easily now.
Of course if that elusive lotto win comes and i can have a warm garage and a ramp etc. things may be different

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That reminds me when I had just 'brimmed' the tank in my old MK2 Astra Estate. Paid in the kiosk and returning to the car I could see an ever growing puddle must have been 4ft diameter! Bad news.
Quick peer underneath and it could be seen that the bottom of the tank had a problem so drove about 4 miles home where I knew I had some empty tile adhesive pots and managed to fill up 5 of them..
After the emergency had died down I discovered the bottom of the tank was cracked. It looked like a dent had been sucked into the tanks base (no damage marks) and would then allow the panel to flex in and out with the weight of fuel eventually causing the crack.
Stuck a patch on it with can't remember what but it didn't last and had to source another tank.
All good fun!

Alan

A similar thing happened with my first cav.

Filled up the night before a camping trip with nothing out of the ordinary. Loaded the car next morning and oh-oh!
Unloaded it again and back to no leak.
I bought petro-patch, followed the instructions exactly and......It leaked
I tried it a second time mainly out of desperation to get a break, and this time it worked. i think because second time i burnished it with the rounded end of the paintbrush and got a stronger bond.
It never leaked again

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It can be done on axle stands quite easily, but it is much easier if the tank is empty. Lighter and less chance of getting a petrol bath..

If i was doing it myself (i'm not) I'd remove the pump and drain the tank from the back seat, wouldn't that work?

I am a bit too old and rickerty for crawling about on a concrete floor these days.

You have a concrete floor to work on? Sheer decadence

I haven't advanced, it's still in the car park, rain sleet or snow. I just can't do that anymore
I can't go anywhere to spend so it's going to the car (again)....

[Robsey]

My concrete floor is an outdoor communal car park covered in stones - no decadence here fella - lol

[chrisp]

B&Q sell interlocking rubber tiles that can be laid loose on concrete garage floors - these make getting down and under cars MUCH more comfortable - and warmer. You do have to protect them with a sheet of wood when positioning jacks or axles stands but this is a minor inconvenience against the vastly increased comfort when you lay on them.

[ilovedmymantas]

It's been a frustrating week.

My PC locked up on monday when i was going to post and refused to do any of the fix options, not even select individual start up items, when booted with a repair disc or repair usb
It must be at least fifteen years since i last had to use DOS, needless to say i've forgotten 99%. I couldn't change directory to the c drive, it was in X:boot and wouldn't let me use the/f command
I have no idea how it happened but perseverance seems to have paid off. Time for a new hard drive i think.

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Back to the car....

I jumped to conclusions because of a dislike for ethanol and the inability to get low down to check. I couldn't have been more wrong about the problem though
Now that i've seen it on the ramps it's actually water coming from a pinhole in the back box
I didn't think of that because it was a new klarius box fitted less than five years old so i'm not impressed with them now

I know exhausts produce water and usually rot from the inside out but i've never had a leaking exhaust that was a holding tank. That doesn't seem normal, what's going on, can i blame ethanol ?

I bought the klarius because it was the same shape as my previous sri one and i figured the bigger box would give a better flow?
It's hard to find a back box with the correct oval pipe, all the aftermarket ones are weird shapes.

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Although it's my only car it's difficult to rekindle the passion I had pre covid/brexit. My motivation is low just now. The price of living keeps going up and all fuel now costs more, no thanks to greetin' greta.
I feel like i'm going back to the 70's/80's where anything was done to keep you barely legal because it was all you could afford. Never thought it would come to that, my world is regressing

Mot's in January

Option a.
look and budget for the correct one for my car. I've no idea what that is, i've lost the part numbers.

If that doesn't work

Option b.
Old school. Smear the threads of a short self tapper with exhaust putty and screw it in.
Crude but effective.
Considering the poor value i've had from the box i'd even think about fitting a drain plug, replaceable at mot

Erm. I think it might be me that's regressing

[Robsey]

I feel your pain Matt.
Everything is climbing in price - although for my part, I kind of got used to the price reduction of everything during covid (2020), and now all the sellers and suppliers are playing catch-up - and more besides.

This is why I have been making a poor attempt to sell off the family silverware throughout 2021.
Even considered selling the Cavalier a few times.
I am damn sure 2022 is not going to make it any easier.

As for five years on a back box. From experience, that seems quite normal.
Not sure why, but I vividly recall going through a period of replacing back-boxes on the C18NZ on what felt like a weekly basis.
I fitted my Bosal SRi box in 2018, and then left the car to rot for the past 20 months.

Oh the shame of it all....

[chrisp]

I got a back box for my Cav V6 from Klarius. I knew the V6 back box was a specific design not shared with other Cavs and ordered the Klarius one that was supposedly for the V6. When it arrived it looked simialr to the old one but when I fitted it would not mount high enough to clear the rear axle beam, without the tailpipe jamming up against the rear bumper. I had to resort to cutting the tailpipe off short and adding a curved downwards bolt-on extension. This is in stainless steel so looks quite good but it's not original of course. So I too was not impressed with Klarius stuff.

[ilovedmymantas]

As for five years on a back box. From experience, that seems quite normal.
Not sure why, but I vividly recall going through a period of replacing back-boxes on the C18NZ on what felt like a weekly basis.
I fitted my Bosal SRi box in 2018, and then left the car to rot for the past 20 months.

You've put so much into that car It would be shame to lose all the passion, money and hard work that's gone into it. Hopefully next year things will improve, you never know

looking online, five years does seem to be the maximum, unlike an original.
Having said that my driving has changed due to two major events, lockdown...and the end of sun holidays! No more occasional long journeys with a week's daily driving, it's back to two or three shopping trips.
It seems to be my fault for not driving enough
- https://www.walkerexhaust.com/support/e ... r-out.html
Two thoughts.

When I'm sitting at lights and being embarrassed by the clouds coming from the exhaust, is it water vapour or acid vapour?
How many gaviscon should I throw in the backbox per trip

I got a back box for my Cav V6 from Klarius. I knew the V6 back box was a specific design not shared with other Cavs and ordered the Klarius one that was supposedly for the V6. When it arrived it looked simialr to the old one but when I fitted it would not mount high enough to clear the rear axle beam, without the tailpipe jamming up against the rear bumper. I had to resort to cutting the tailpipe off short and adding a curved downwards bolt-on extension. This is in stainless steel so looks quite good but it's not original of course. So I too was not impressed with Klarius stuff.

I've ordered klarius again.
The seller is offering a five year warranty. May be too good to be true considering klarius only offers three years max. but the terms are vague and in my favour so nothing to lose I could have got one from a couple of sellers at half the price but I didn't want to risk unknown brands.
The box that's on now took a bit of persuasion to fit, even then the tailpipe doesn't sit true, maybe this one will. That could be down to an aftermarket part before the backbox?
The warranty says fit tested among other things:
https://www.klarius.eu/klarius-warranty/
I wasn't aware of it last time, now that I know we'll see how it goes.

The wide box appears to be for 2l facelift cars. That'll explain the crudely hacked out mud flap then

[ilovedmymantas]

What a faff it's been getting this back box.

Seller one needs to sort out his courier who claimed it was delivered fourteen miles away and signed for. It was click & collect, so no signature required.
- Ebay had to step in and force a refund.

Second cheapest option was messaged to ask if it would be klarius sent, as feedback suggested it may be a cheaper gt part.
'Oh yes, it's as the advert' I was assured. Two days later - 'We don't have the part, will you cancel the order'?
- Another refund, and waste of time

Coming in at thirty quid more the last seller delivered the goods in three days. Finally I've got one!

The car's booked in next Friday for fitting and mot. I hope the pipe on this one sits straighter

[3cav3]

I'm finding more and more sellers on ebay are getting worse. If you challenge them, then you guarantee their excuse will be Covid!

[ilovedmymantas]

I don't mind waiting a bit longer for delivery under the unusual circumstances. My dilemma is normally how long past the due date do you leave it?

The mot forced the time-frame so I'm glad I started looking early.
- At the same time I'm disappointed that I've become a consumer, I used to be a fixer, how did that happen

I think it's the difference between keeping a car on the road out of necessity on a tight budget, and being an older enthusiast on a dwindling budget trying to keep the car living on through original parts replacement.

In the old days I'd just get the local blacksmith to repair with a gas weld, as many times as needed. Now that I've bought a new back box I'm almost embarrassed.

I fear I'm heading towards the middle ground between bodging and purism
- I hope I don't get banished from the site
I'm in two thoughts of mind just now. Do I cut it open to see what's inside or do I keep it and repair for next time

[Envoy CDX]

Matt, if you get no joy with the seller, shout up.

I have a BOSEL back box here granted it's for a 2litre, but I think it will fit (hopefully someone would be able to confirm) and also a fuel tank. If you can arrange the shipping, happy to work out a price for both with you

[ilovedmymantas]

Matt, if you get no joy with the seller, shout up.

I have a BOSEL back box here granted it's for a 2litre, but I think it will fit (hopefully someone would be able to confirm) and also a fuel tank. If you can arrange the shipping, happy to work out a price for both with you

Thanks for the offer . Would you believe It turned out I didn't need one as soon as I thought?

The car passed it's mot and another birthday last week, just an advisory for the cam cover oil leak

I didn't expect it to pass on the unchanged box but that's what happened, the pinhole was allowed!
When the tester told me that back boxes had a drain hole I couldn't believe it, I just had to look it up and it turns out he was right. Why have I never heard of, or seen this in the past?
https://garagewire.co.uk/news/exhaust-d ... rts-bosal/

Mine is definitely a pinhole though, It's not at the lowest point and it's well off -centre but I've been told the box is solid so who am I to argue

I've looked over the new klarius box (same as the fitted one) and I don't see a hole, it may be under the label but I doubt it. I'll find out when the time to change comes, then I'll remove the label and if there isn't one, time to dig out a 2mm drill bit

I've been told the car's still good underneath apart from extra rust on a front jacking point so all in all a good £30 mot

[Envoy CDX]

You can't scream at that. That's news to me around backboxes too! That is probably why they rot out so quickly in comparison?

Congrats on the pass.