Another chunky update in the life of this car.
So all my EVAP/SAI delete stuff turned up allowing me to remove a massive amount of useless pipework and free up a bit of space in the bay. I used a blanking plate from eBay to block the hole on the block and then set about replacing the coolant neck and cutting away a lot of the useless pipes.
While on the engine block war path I removed the aircon condenser, which had never worked since the engine conversion so was just dead weight. This was fiddly as the top bolt hit the chassis leg stopping it from being completely removed causing me to cut the bolt in half to remove!
After the removal of the aircon I sourced a shorter drive belt from Euro's and fitted this all up happy. I think it was part number 06A 145 933 D.
Anyways after a productive few hours all this was out...
Meanwhile the rest of my boost piping arrived and alongside some H1 Osram Night Breakers I have got to replace the horrible HID wiring and shoddy bulbs.
Another hour or two of cutting, flexing and generally tearing stuff out all the HID wires had been removed and an original headlight loom re-installed as well as the new boost and coolant piping routes in place and clipped up.
I refitted the slam bar and FMIC this time a little tighter to the car as the Air con rad had been removed.
And I was left with this...
Next up was the bumper...I salvaged the old one and am slightly ashamed to admit I have 'drift stitched', as the JDM boys like to call it, the bumper with cable ties. They're black and neat so pretty unoticable especially due to the fairly obvious scrapes on the front!
A colour coded bumper is on my shopping list.
The bumper itself was straight and not to broken which allowed a good fitting and even a new set of amber indicators to clip into the outsides...finally things were going in the right direction!
The bumper fitting however highlighted quite how bent the drivers wing was, after a quick search online for a colour coded one I couldn't find something in a nice enough condition to bother with so bit the bullet and purchased a new one off the ever lovely Boney Bradley made famous as Mod of the MK3 section and owner at OEM and More. I had all my braking components off him previously and the service was impeccable.
While the headlights were off I masked them up and Joey Modded them. I've always liked the look and saw this as an ideal opportunity.
So all I had to do was fit everything, refill the system and test drive it...or so I thought.
It turns out the late model twin rad Aircon VR6's carried a completely different fan system and plug set up to any other model in the MK3 range. Now I was using a 16V rad and fan setup none of my plugs fitted. I managed to source a new radiator temp sensor and extend the loom to fit the plug on the other side of the rad to before. The fans however were a pain.
I took the decision to remove and swap a single fan as people wanted stupid figures for the whole fan and rad system.
So my old system was part number 1H0 959 455 J and I managed to source a 1H0 959 455 AH fan which carried the new style three speed, four pin plug.
Removed the rad from the cowling and swapped the fans, hooked the system up and it all kicked into life!
Filled her with coolant, bled the system, fitted the everything up and took it for a spin.
Boosts lovely and goes like the rocket I remember, one very happy chap although it is grill-less at the moment for that true project car look.
Its on a show stand (not show material but at least its got a story) at GTI Festival up Pod on the 5th and I have a few cheeky plans for it before then. Now to get the saving back on track for an RTEC trip.
