Mick Day

As some of you from Sussex/Surrey will know we had an engine problem in France & had to be recovered. As we were travelling with John Howe he very kindly offered to have the car at "The farm" for the repairs. On taking the head off we found we'd joined the: "My Engine's Ingested Something Club". Not from the airbox or anything like that but 1 of the throttle butterfly screws had come out. So gave Jenvey a ring & although the bodies are 8 years old they were full of apologies & will send a few in the post FOC. Damage is very minimal, just slight surface dents to the piston & head. The bore is OK & it looks as though all 4 valves are undamaged. So remember to check throttle butterfly screws for tightness along with any other fasteners in the airbox/filter.

How do you know the Emerald is reading the correct temperature? Just because it's digital & connected to your laptop doesn't mean it's correct. My ECU temperature & SPA gauge temperature are 5 degrees apart. Which one is correct? Probably neither.

Ram mounts:here & here. I've used this here to attach to the lower rail of the dash. Blatmail me if you want to buy it off me as I now use a sucker attachment to my carbon dash. Edited by - Mick Day on 12 Jul 2008 12:27:53

Similar problem to mine then. Glad you've got it fixed. Now you've taken the engine out once it's not so daunting a task next time. 😬

I know of a number of people who've had diesel X-Trails. I had one & did 30,000 miles in just over 2 years. Great tow car by the way. However everyone I know has had engine problems. Mine did & needed a new turbo/intercooler. The intercooler was leaking oil again when I sold it. Where does the oil come from? Leaking seals in the turbo. In fact everyone I know of (6?) needed new turbos & intercoolers! It's a Renault engine. This sums it up: here

😶‍🌫️ Earplugs? 😬

When this happened to me the gears had started to "pick-up" on the main shaft. All sorted by R&R but box has to come out for this. If the clutch fork was bent I don't think you'd get "drive" in neutral. However it could be a combination of clutch/fork/gearbox problems all at once I suppose. If it's any consolation this was my 1st introduction to removing an engine. Good luck.

So it's not just me then. Strange that the hoses I took off the car 2 years ago when it was rebuilt were the originals from 1994. I still have them as spares & not a crack in sight. The new ones appear v soft & of inferior quality. So the next set will be silicone then.

The last time I saw a hose burst like this the thermostat had jammed shut. The second hose also split in dramatic style as well. Best to check when you replace the hose. Good Luck On a similar thread what's the thinking on silicone: is it just for posers or is it worth the extra? I've heard they can be difficult to seal as well. The reason I ask is that I had to replace the block (thermostat) to heater bypass hose (k series) as it had started to split after only 2 years! 😔 Edited by - Mick Day on 24 Jun 2008 17:50:05

Recommended draining and flushing procedure when changing from mineral oil to Castrol R - or vice versa: 1. Drain the mineral oil (Castrol R) when warm. 2. We recommend the following: Flush the engine. After draining the Castrol R, refill with Castrol Flushing Oil* to a level approx 25-30mm above the normal fill level. Restart the engine and run at fast idle for 5-10 minutes. During that time, the engine should be given a few bursts to moderate revs. NOTE: The vehicle should not be driven or the engine put under heavy load during this period. Stop engine and thoroughly drain all flushing oil and replace or drain any filters in the system. 3. Refill with the desired Castrol R (or Castrol engine oil) grade. Please consult Castrol office for recommendation if Castrol Flushing Oil not available.

Nissan Micra = Renault Clio AFAICT........................... however..................... Witter show 2 different towbars for the Clio & the Micra. See www.witter-towbars.co.uk for 03 onwards Micra's. Edited by - Mick Day on 21 Jun 2008 12:07:27

Turn the fuel pump off & remove the plugs. V V small load on the engine for about 3 seconds, I don't think this will be a problem. Advantage of this method is that the oil is pumped into the tank to drain at the bottom. Alternatively drive the car until oil is 50 deg C & drain from the tank immediately on stopping the engine. That's what I do. I think we get a bit precious about getting all the old oil out of the system considering how often we change the oil. I can't remember a posting saying my engine went bang because of poor quality oil. I can think of lots of postings though where the starter motor has been used to check oil pressure on a new engine or after changing the oil. Edited by - Mick Day on 19 Jun 2008 11:45:28

A 6 speed gearbox can be fitted to a X-flow or indeed a BDR.

Oh yes forgot to mention the DVA sump gasket mod! V important! Too big holes drilled into the gasket over the oil pick-up pipe. Edited by - Mick Day on 9 Jun 2008 19:28:52

Thomas You need to check there is some clearance between the oil pick-up & the bottom of the sump. If you can see witness marks on the sump pan then there is not enough clearance. To ensure this it helps if you give the bottom of the pick-up a few blows with a hammer & drift in between the 3 pips. I used a big screwdriver as a drift. When I removed the foam I also fitted a Hellier Baffle which kept the OP above 2 bar in all conditions. However I did modify the pick-up as recomended. Good luck. Mick Edited by - Mick Day on 9 Jun 2008 16:27:44

Ozzy If you send me an blatmail I can send you a pic of my trimmed 1st motion shaft with a ruler along side. I too went from a 1.4 to a 1.8. Mick

Non VVC. Oh well it looks as though it'll end up on the tip......................I tell you what John, I'll take your stuff to the tip in the same load for a fiver! 😬

*wavey*Go on make me an offer! For anyone fitting an Apollo it'll save you drilling the cam cover. Edited by - Mick Day on 5 Jun 2008 17:13:48

SOLD to Nick. Please send me a Blatmail & I'll arrange to parcel them up; or do you want to pop down to Horsham, or next meet at the Parrot on the 19th? Mick

2 x SPA Saloon/Touring Car Mirrors (TBL & TBR). 132 x 69mm 1 x SPA Centre Post Sports Car Mirror SCFB-1. High impact black nylon bodies. These are 6 years old & the black nylon is somewhat stone chipped. However I have been told that they can be painted which will eliminate the chipping & colour code to your paint scheme. Mirror surfaces are in good condition & will be supplied with new stalks. As seen on SPA’s web site: www.spa-uk.co.uk/design/mirrors.asp £45 plus postage.

Black K series cam cover (EU2) with gold painted spark plug cover. It has been drilled for an Apollo tank vent but is now blanked off with a neat black bolt. £35 plus postage.

😔Now that was my idea if you remember Matt! 😬

The recomended oil for this engine is 5w40, preferably synthetic. Go & get some either Comma or Halfords own brand (made by Comma). I've used Halfords 5w40 synthetic for yonks. Almost certainly Hyperion would have used a 5w40. You can mix oils. Mineral can be mixed with synthetic without a problem. You can even mix grades, it'll still work as a lubricant. However if you know what's in the engine just use that: why not ring Hyperion & ask what they used?

Check the throttle pedal bush hasn't seized as well.

My Pace DS oil pump gives circa 15 psi at hot idle (1000 rpm) wheras the previous WS Rover oil pump would produce 30 psi. No worries plenty of OP at 4000 rpm: 60 psi +. I think this is a function of the Pace pressure pump so I've set hot idle to be 1200 rpm when OP is 25psi. Just drive it! Edited by - Mick Day on 14 May 2008 22:28:41