I feel like overhauling my ABC plumbing

[Conor]

Yes the OEM 3mU filter is just a filter, the one I put up is a magnetic one which would attract sub 3 micron steel debris

Hmm, I see. I'm on the fence with this one. It could turn out this is very effective and removes a lot of sub 3 micron steel debris, but I wonder how much is actually created to begin with?

I could end up installing it yet.. but i'm not entirely sure it's needed. I wonder have many people used it in anger and have pictures of the magnetic pickup.

 

[Conor]

Just a small update on this.

With the exception of return line to reservoir from oil cooler, all lines from the front have been removed. Even though there is no real need to remove the reservoir return line, I will be removing and replacing it. Primary so that, once the job is finished I can honestly claim to have replaced all the rubber lines in the system.. nobody likes somebody who plays with the truth eh!?

As you saw in a previous post, I removed the struts, too.

This bolt came off rather easily.. on both sides, thankfully.



The joints, not so much.. hence why this picture is appropriate.. While I don't have pics, I can assure you that the nuts are completely mangled now and will be replaced.



In fact, look -- there is a lot of play in the balljoints so I think I am going to be replacing them both. I have decided I am going to be buying them from Rebuild Master Tech (Thanks Car Wizzard on YouTube!) in the states as they are SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than their EU counterparts ..

One ABC strut..



Up to this point, I am sure at least one you have been thinking taking out the struts was overkill.. but considering this up close and personal shot... I think we can all agree that there probably isn't an awful amount of life left in this connection..

I'll probably try and source new straps for the dust covers while I am at it..



Before removing the line from strut, I was sure to give a good clean to avoid contamination ..





Now onto the front pulsation damper / or whatever this area is called... These are awkwardly connected to the lines heading towards the back via a union under the car.. I suppose thankfully, they aren't just a single line headed the whole way back..






And once removed, this is what you get. Word of advice though.. if you don't have a vice (even if you do!) you might be better off removing the lines when the body is still attached to the car. I actually removed it with hoses attached because it looked awkward to remove with the wing still attached..

(The white electrical tape is an attempt to keep nasties out of the hollow screw)

 

[Conor]

Oh turns out it's not actually a small update..

Next came along these to nasty's .. lingering like a bad smell! These two pose a bit of a head scratcher... The hard line and fittings look pretty worse for wear, but the entire assembly can't come out, because the hard lines disappear into the engine bay.. I also didn't want to just snip the hard lines and introduce nut / olives with space being an issue. I was afraid that given how tight they fit etc, once the nuts were added they might not fit too well.



So I did what I seem to do best.. got all "brut-ey" and ignorant ... I decided to cut them crimps off, in-situ and will re-fit them with, yeap, you guessed it... a nut and olive!! At least there will be more space...

First decided to use the dremel as I didn't think the cut-off wheel would fit..



I got to work scoring the crimp in random positions that I could manage.. then my big ignorant vice grip got to work..




I really must stress that the removal of this crimp was not even remotely glamorous. It basically consisted of my cutting up the crimp to weaken it followed by some grabbing and pulling of the vice grip.. followed by rinse and repeat until it was all off..




I got a bit sick of the slow speed of the Dremel, so gave the bigger cut off wheel a shot. It just about worked.





After the first cut, the crimp would rotate on the hose..




...And I could pull it apart...

 

[Conor]

It probably took me an hour to get these two off. Here is the end result.

Hopefully will manage a nut / olive on the left.. but I am not sure about the right hand fitting. We might have a bit more licence for that fitting as I suspect it's a low pressure line.

 

[s5tuart]

Whilst this is totally beyond my pay grade Conor, I’m enjoying the thread.
Im glad I have regular shocks on my 350, but even then changing the rear shocks is a several hours job and doubtful that I could ever accomplish it myself.

 

[Conor]

Whilst this is totally beyond my pay grade Conor, I’m enjoying the thread.
Im glad I have regular shocks on my 350, but even then changing the rear shocks is a several hours job and doubtful that I could ever accomplish it myself.

Could be above my pay grade too, Stuart... but only time will tell if my sink or swim in the deep end pays off...

 

[Conor]

Good evening all!

A quick update on my end if you don't mind..

I went a little OCD and re-labelled all the hoses and lines along with sketching them out. Now if you took them all apart and put in a box, I _should_ be able to reconstitute them correctly... famous last words, eh!?

I have been looking at the strut lines and how to make them up.. along with repairing the cuts in the hard lines that I made before I decided to remove the struts.

Oh, firstly.. look at this hose that really came apart as I removed it from the crimps.. It might have had many years/miles in it, but I wouldn't be confident of it.. I basically pulled it off the hose tail like I did every other.. no extra force... Another piece of reassurance that this is a worthwhile _mission_



I laid out the strut line and cut piece to see what I was working with. Note the orange masking tape was used to highlight the cut section.

You can see the bleed nipple in this photo. I must have a look at this. If it's seized, i'll replace it.

For the quick connect, I might try and cut the jacket off to see if there is some suitable steel underneath to which I could attach a nut and olive.

(The explanation for this photo applies x2, considering the other side).


The cut... There have been concerns that perhaps an olive wouldn't seal fully due to pitting. Mr Pirtek said it probably would as the olives really do bite in. I am sure it would be fine but I am starting to think that perhaps I should just get a brass filler rod and try my hand at brazing. I think this would be an ideal starter project.. (Maybe not at 200 bar, mind you) - Jury out on approach here. If possible, I would like to avoid having nuts/olive everywhere..

 

[s5tuart]

Brazing is a great idea imho but I do remember soldering central heating pipes years ago and learning pretty fast that cleanliness is next to godliness as far as joint preparation went.

 

[Snake Charmer]

Flame brazing will leave an oxide residue and possibly flux inside the tube then flake off unless cleaned thoroughly either mechanically or by acid pickling. Tig brazing with gas purge might be OK but as @s5tuart says, would need to be clean bare metal. You would also need a sleeve or socket for strength.

 

[Conor]

Thanks guys, yes.. seems like a sleeve would be decent.. I was thinking the same thing. I wonder are they readily available as oversized to fit say, a 10mm pipe?

Cleanliness shouldn't be an issue. I'll scrub the metal back and clean vinegar to remove rust.

Oh and just a note for anybody reading this and worrying about brazing. Ordinarily you won't need to braze if you don't cut, and just remove the entire line going to strut.. I am fixing a problem of my own making

 

[brandwooddixon]

This is a great thread and I admire your determination.

I know that you're planning on the front only, but consider that a failure point is where the hard pipes are clamped to the body, the pipes tend to rust through at the clamping points, this is especially true where they pass over the rear subframe as they're more exposed to the elements.

 

[Conor]

This is a great thread and I admire your determination.

I know that you're planning on the front only, but consider that a failure point is where the hard pipes are clamped to the body, the pipes tend to rust through at the clamping points, this is especially true where they pass over the rear subframe as they're more exposed to the elements.

Hi Chris,

Thank you - it's pretty involved alright..

Well, I do plan on doing the rear also. My comment on front only was on whether or not I would do forgo the rear for now, get the car back driving and then do the rears at a later date.

I have been thinking about it recently, and I am inclined to just go at the rears also, before getting the car back on the road.. because now that I know what is involved.. I might be inclined to put it on the long finger.

All the hoses for front have been given to Pirtek and they are making up new hoses, which will all be crimped with threaded ends. I will then use a nut and olive where the hard lines meet the hose. It will make the lines very easy to service in the future with the trade off of the setup not looking factory.. I will survive that.

 

[Flyinspanner]

@Conor - doing them all now does make good sense, avoids the old hoses sending any debris into the new, plus while it’s off road/ up in the air, it’s a one hit joblot, plus you have the recently learned know how at your fingertips so it will be quicker in some respects.

plus it avoids Sod’s Law, where you would get it all on the road and on day 2 a rear line blows when you are miles from home

Like you, I could very happily living with a ‘non original look’ that you never see.

Great work mate

 

[Mark Q]

Hi Chris,

Thank you - it's pretty involved alright..

Conor > I can't believe your doing all this just with the car on axle stands, I thought early on you must have a pit or a lift, you must really like being up close to the underside of your car. Really in depth delve into the ABC system, hope it all works out well.

 

[Conor]

Conor > I can't believe your doing all this just with the car on axle stands, I thought early on you must have a pit or a lift, you must really like being up close to the underside of your car. Really in depth delve into the ABC system, hope it all works out well.

Thanks Mark.

Yea..... it was quite involved, removing those pipes.

It really is turning into a big lesson, learning all about the plumbing etc.

I really despise being up close and personal like that tbh.. and the more I do it the more I hate it... but needs must.

That said - I am looking at getting a 2 post lift installed and I cannot wait for the day, to be honest.. there's only so many ball joints, brake changes you can do on the ground..

 

[Conor]

Hello everybody..

Just a quick update on this. I am spending a lot more time in the UK now so haven't look at this since mid may.

I will return later this month and hopefully get the front re-installed.

These spanners have just arrived which should be quite helpful for the reinstall. I like the flex and also the slight offset of the ends, which will come in very handy in one particular area.

Purchased on eBay for around £65

Laser Tools 7260 Flexible Star Spanner Set 4pc

Laser Tools 7260 Double ended, flexible head Star* profile spanner set from E6 to E24, providing greater access in difficult areas.

www.lasertools.co.uk

 

[Conor]

Hello everybody,

Just a quick update from me.. I've not forgotten about this project.

I recently installed a lift and got the R230 up on it.. after a slight delay doing some maintenance to my S212 (mounts, guibo, rear brake lines).



I am loving this lift and it should really entice me to do a lot more work on my cars. Previously, jacking up onto stands took the fun out of things.. and if I had any sense of calm still remaining in me, that would soon get wiped out by crawling in/out from under the car. The simples of jobs were done with resentment. Not any more..

When I got the car up on the lift I spotted some rust on the underside, which I had noticed before but not in a position to address. I can't tell if it has gotten worse or not.

With the following picture in mind. I am now going to remove both bumpers and skirts, along with heatshielding an other bits to get a good view of the underside. I will then tidy up any rust and treat, spray, wax.. it is more than I want to do this time around, but it feels so much easier when the car is up and already partly apart. That said it's relatively easy to do now that I have a lift, so I should get better at breaking jobs into more bite size chunks....(so I can get onto building my Clio).

...Oh and I just noticed that I actually have a bunch of photos and progress here on my pics, that haven't been uploaded yet. I'll get to that shortly.

 

[Blobcat]

Hello everybody,

Just a quick update from me.. I've not forgotten about this project.

I recently installed a lift and got the R230 up on it.. after a slight delay doing some maintenance to my S212 (mounts, guibo, rear brake lines).

View attachment 85892

I am loving this lift and it should really entice me to do a lot more work on my cars. Previously, jacking up onto stands took the fun out of things.. and if I had any sense of calm still remaining in me, that would soon get wiped out by crawling in/out from under the car. The simples of jobs were done with resentment. Not any more..

When I got the car up on the lift I spotted some rust on the underside, which I had noticed before but not in a position to address. I can't tell if it has gotten worse or not.

With the following picture in mind. I am now going to remove both bumpers and skirts, along with heatshielding an other bits to get a good view of the underside. I will then tidy up any rust and treat, spray, wax.. it is more than I want to do this time around, but it feels so much easier when the car is up and already partly apart. That said it's relatively easy to do now that I have a lift, so I should get better at breaking jobs into more bite size chunks....(so I can get onto building my Clio).

...Oh and I just noticed that I actually have a bunch of photos and progress here on my pics, that haven't been uploaded yet. I'll get to that shortly.

View attachment 85893

Did you find the sailboat in the boot of the R230 (@00slk )...

 

[Conor]

Did you find the sailboat in the boot of the R230 (@00slk )...

Haha I didn't.. but I am sure there are a few R230s out there that could certainly host one..

It's a cousins boat that he has been dry storing over the winter with an aim to do some remedial repairs.

 

[Conor]

Jeez guys, turns out i've quite a few pics here on my laptop that i've not yet shared... I didn't think I was as far behind.

Without further ado...

Just spotted this actually.. one of the "super seal" type seals came away from the plug for one of the struts. Need to figure out how to resolve this one.. will probably fix the other too. (Any ideas?)



After stripping all the fittings from the pipes, I then proceeded to strip the "e-coat" from the exterior.. I have learned from the past that a fast wire wheel is great to remove stuff but it polishes the steel and thus paint has a hard time adhering.. with my lesson learned, prior to paint I would then scuff the surface with amber scotch bright which is about 320 grit.



I opted to remove the hose from the strut and separate this not so quick release fitting.. which will in turn be replaced by a 90degree bend and compression fitting.


For the benefit of others, look where it comes apart... I was trying to undo a different area on the fitting.. live and learn..




Then I used the wheel on various parts of the pipes, where rusty... I can't remember why I didn't run these through the ultrasonic cleaner with vinegar.. perhaps the pipes were too large or something.. oh well.. they scrub up nice, eh!?



Off we go to Pirtek for new hoses and fittings... (Actually this is on return from Pirtek.. I didn't have a before shot..)



Out with the old...


... In with the new..