charlie_pank

I've rebuilt the solenoid on both my K-series 7 and also on my wife's Pug 306TD, the approach I take is to clean it all up, then cover the plunger in grease, then wipe it all off again. This is in an attempt to leave the tiniest amount of grease still on the plunger... Glad that the rebuild has sorted you out.

I replaced the offending mount once we had identified it.

Both of the symptoms you are describing are consistent with the a "sticky" solenoid. When it just clicks and fails to start, this could be because the cylinder and piston are "sticky" and the piston not being immediately "thrown"; when the starter motor stays engaged with the ring-gear of the flywheel this could be because the cylinder and piston are "sticky" so the solenoid disengages but the spring cannot push the piston back because it is "stuck". I suggest that you dismantle the solenoid and give the cylinder and piston a good clean up with wet and dry. You could probably do a lot worse than looking at the instructions for the K series starter dismantling.

If you put the cover back on and push firmly down anywhere else on the engine do you eliminate the noise? I had a really nasty squeak that took ages to pin down, ended up being and engine mounting. I still have no idea how it managed to make such a loud noise...

Ol, I believe I am right in saying that some "normal" cars you buy these days off the shelf come with tyre-weld instead of a spare wheel. Given that, ditch the spare [sorry - couldn't resist 😬] and enjoy the lighter rear end.

I fancy a blackbird because I will get more power for less weight (I'm a skinny shortarse too!) and a 6 speed sequential gearbox thrown in for free. I was always a bit dubious about BECs mostly because of the rumours of them being difficult to live with etc... however, I now have a bike licence and a bike, and I can fully appreciate that all that has been said is true - the change into 1st from neutral is clunky and the bike does tend to scream a bit at the upper end of the rev range 😬. However, I don't find either of these things a problem on a bike, and don't really see that they would make a 7 any more inconvenient than it already is. I'm not keen to go down the route of overstressing my metro engine as I feel it's a bit overworked as it is, so in order to get more of the right kind of power (the high revving kind) I think a bike is the right answer. The reason that I fancy a 'bird is simply that a few other people have done it and this makes me think that the parts are likely to be readily available. Are you suggesting that it might be cheaper for me to start from scratch by buying the bits I need from Caterham (ie rolling chassis) and then sourcing the other bits myself (eg engine, propshaft, loom, ecu etc...)? Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Battered, I'm sure you're right. Thing is, I don't think I can bear to part with Kermit. He already has so many of the things that I want, I don't want to start from scratch and have to add them all again. I'm (currently) happy with all aspects except the lack of bike-engined-ness. Also - is it really such a huge project - what do you think is going to be the stumbling block?

It's getting cheaper by the minute... 😬 if I can keep the diff casing, presumably I can keep (at least half of) the propshaft too... Sounds like I'm going to need to spend some time on willshefindout.com to figure out how to do this without SWMBO getting wind of it...

Peter - Great :) what about the ECU? Also not sure about the half shafts etc... Sam - thanks. I do have screen, but no heater. I don't mind modifying the bike loom to include a screen heater and foglight... Edited by - charlie_pank on 16 Jul 2004 15:48:40

Peter, don't you remember blatting up and down the M20 with your knees up round your ears? I don't have a passenger footwell anyway!

For some inexplicable reason I have an urge to convert Kermit to Blackbird power. This is a long term plan for when funds and time allow. In the meantime, I would very much appreciate it if you would consider the list of things I will need to change and let me know if I have missed anything or if there's anything that I have included in the list of changes that doesn't need to be altered... Current config: 1.6 K series engine Emerald ECU 5spd Type 9 gearbox Standard Diff (non LSD) De-dion rear Desired spec: Blackbird EFI engine LSD Things I will need to dispose of: Kseries engine gearbox propshaft Diff intake manifold wiring loom full exhaust system instrumentation (rev counter, speedo etc....) dashboard ECU (unless I can use the emerald for the Blackbird engine - which would be nice) Engine & Gearbox mountings Fuel tank and pump (unless I can use the old ones with the new engine) Things I will need to install: Engine & gearbox New mountings ECU (see Emerald info above) Airbox Full exhaust system and probably new sideskin Bastardised wiring loom LSD Propshaft Dry sump Stack dash Full new dashboard Gear linkage Fuel tank and pump (unless I can use the old ones with the new engine) I would welcome your thoughts on this and if anyone has an idea of the cost, that would also be extremely useful...

I don't have a heater, they're for girls (aparrently).

Interestingly, I have a similar problem and am familiar with the radiator fan theory. I think my issue is different though as it does it when the fan isn't on, AND it's only done it since I got an Emerald. It doesn't really bother me, neither does it appear to have done any harm, just a bit odd. Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Brad, you shouldn't need to replace block to go from 1.6 to 1.8...

The engine is turning over, so you are either missing fuel or spark. Any haynes manual should be able to help you out with testing these two things. I think that the spark is the easiest to test - take off an HT lead and hold the contact just of the engine block while your volunteer cranks (IIRC this will tell you if you have a spark). In my old VW Golf manual it says that to test the injectors you can just pull one out of the inlet manifold and point it into a jar whilst cranking the engine. Don't know if K-series injectors are as easy to remove... HTH C

I think it's a case of adjusting your driving position/finding a comfortable place for your foot. There are many many people with 7s and I find it hard to believe they all drive along resting their left foot on the clutch pedal - I certainly don't... If you've got long legs, rest your foot behind the pedal as already suggested, if you've got short legs (like me) you can bend your left knee and rest your foot flat on the floor in front of the pedal.

Wahey, is it not better to stick a modified VVC head on a non-VVC engine? It's my understanding that this is far more tuneable in the long run. If you wanted to convert to 1.8 from 1.6 you can just change crank and pistons and botch the fuel pressure regulator I believe. So why lose the old block/loom/ECU etc...? C

Surely you would drain the battery pretty quickly as you'd be turning the engine and moving the wheels with this method because the starter motor interfaces with the flywheel. I would have thought the solution would need to work with the wheels disconnected from the engine in order to have an electrically powered reverse. Also if the solution you choose involves turning the flywheel in the wrong direction, you can't keep the engine running in order to top up the battery you are draining rapidly by driving an electrically powered car. Just my 2d's worth, all totally theoretical of course...

If we all understood the wiring diagram that you get in the build manual, then we might all find it a bit easier to troubleshoot. For me it's more useful to know the basics in order to allow me to think through a problem for myself than it is to be told: "if you have symptom A, do X; if you have symptom B, to Y etc..." Great articles by the way. I thought the resistors one was particularly interesting as I'd never understood what they were doing in the gauges circuits.

Definately get engine first.

well diagnosed and fixed!

Pah. He's a softy Southerner to me! Well, if he sees this - Hoopy - get in touch and come round for some grub!

When was it and where is he now (ok I know he's in Newcastle, but they have computers there too don't they?)

Nemesis. I would recommend Hayward & Scott here. I used them for my 4-2-1 on my 1.6 and there was a very noticeable improvement. You may want to get some more info about what length the primaries and secondaries should be. H&S workmanship is fantastic. - I think they may have had a hand in K2RUM at some point as it was on Arnie's recommendation that I went there originally. Hope this helps....

Mike Molloy - surely a scrappy will have one, or if you want a genuine Blackbird one, just hang around at the first corner down the road from the Honda showroom on a sunny Saturday morning!