9 turbo Phase 1 9 Turbo

[DaveL485]

You will need to pull the oil gallery plugs out to clean it properly after any blasting.

Noted, it's too late now it's being done so i'll pull the gallery plugs to be on the safe side.

Have a good look at the area where the liner seals sit. They are renowned for corroding/pitting causing issues sealing.

Mine are good, the liners knocked out with one tap - no corrosion or sticking. I was amazed, was expecting to have to whale on them but a sharp strike with a block of wood and a lump hammer popped them right out.

Does it make it more drivable as well?

Like chalk and cheese difference.



Any recommendations for head gasket and bottom end gasket kits chaps?

 

[Brigsy]

Headgaskets are a minefield on them at the moment. Some use elring but mixed reviews. The spesso cometic type is supposed to be good. Bottom end, use genuine Renault crank seal, and get the rubber sump end seals from wherever, both orange and black seem to work.

Use good sealant for the sump mating face.

Also whilst its in bits refurb the oil pump. Can gaurantee the rotors will be at the bottom of the tolerances.

 

[DaveL485]

I've ordered the full engine gasket set from Mespieces auto, everything else I have had from there has been decent.

Engine has been back and sat in my living room for a couple of weeks, so last weekend I threw some paint at it. Seems in decent condition given the age, and that it was sat for 15 years (with coolant in), particularly the liner seats which are absolutely mint. Really shows how much difference it makes having the corrosion inhibitor in there.

 

[DaveL485]

Well. I went to build the engine this weekend and it didn't go well.

I gave the block a good cleaning out, then looked to prep the crank to go back in. It didn't need a grind, so I got out the new bearings and checked clearences. The mains put the brakes on at the first hurdle though, as the STD bearings I bought and stashed some ten years ago were actually +.25 - so useless. Looked at the big ends and they were also +.25 too, god damn it. That put a stop to the crank going in straight away.

I thought i'd get ahead on the pistons and rods so I heated the old pistons/rods in front of the space heater then heated the rod further with a oxy-butane torch, pressed the pin out of the first piston and though I got the pin out it broke the piston skirt. Bit pissed as they were in good nick, but OK....I have new ones anyway. Repositioned the press support and did the second one, again a broken piston it seems they are in no way strong enough to take the sideways force when pressing the rods out on the skirts. I then plasma cut some holes in an old liner and used that as a piston support and got the other 2 pins out without breaking the pistons. Put that down to experience I guess.

Took my new Pistons/Rings/Liners out the box - bought these a while back and stashed them away. I find this staring at me. Brand new, never fitted or used. Pins are a sliding fit in the piston so how this happened I have no idea. FFS - piston is scrap.



So now i'm down to 2 original and 3 new pistons. I should have quit here....but I didn't.

So I heat the first rod back up, drop the oiled gudgeon pin in the piston, insert rod and press it - for some reason the gudgeon pin went through the rod fine but picked up on the far side of the piston....HOW?!





The pin is now stiff in the piston, so thats now also goosed. I'd had it at this point and rage quit. Absolute waste of time.

 

[gordini stu]

Bad day at the office, I thought you could not get the pistons off the rods with out knackering the pistons . Because the heat you need to put into the rod to get the pin out .

 

[Larsson7]

Tough luck mate.

Only a setback though, I know it won't stop you.

 

[DaveL485]

I really wanted to get the engine built over the break..but...sigh.

I resolved the piston issue, had my local machine shop fit them... 2 new 2 old pistons with the all new rings.

I ordered new mains & big ends off the web, the big ends arrived but the mains didnt and were due, according to eBay, at the end of Jan! I went to a local engine place and ordered some instead. They came next day...great...except when I went to fit it all i'd orderded big ends not mains! What the f....
I went back and asked them to exchange them for mains, which they did (£20 more though!). Went back next day, the last working day there before xmas and they hadn't arrived. FFS! They said they would try and get them couriered direct from the DC. Amazingly, next day, they arrived! YAY. I now had mains & big ends.....

.....BUT in one final blow, the big ends I did have when fitted locked up the engine. This was confusing, until closer inspection revealed they were +0.25 oversize again!! For FUCKS SAKE. Not only now did I have two sets of oversize big ends, but the std set I need were in my hand last week and I returned them! So annoying. In the end I had to settle for doing as much clean up as I could and then fitted the crank and liners in. I will be ordering the mains....again...today.

Anyone need any oversize C1J bearings? I have plenty of the blasted things!

Cleanup







The piston odd mix lol



The offending big ends





Had to remove the oil pump grille, cleaned the holes out



Much better



Stripped and cleaned the rocker shaft



Ready to lay the crank





Liner seats are in fab condition



Liners in - good old socket tower liner clamps lol

 

[Big Steve - Raider]

WOW! I've never seen a set of liner seats on a C1J look so flippin clean! That's like brand new!!

I hope she doesn't snatch failure from the jaws of win anymore on you during this re-build!!?

 

[DaveL485]

That's like brand new!!

The whole engine inside is like it, if i'd known how good it was I wouldnt have stripped it and just cleaned the outside. Amazing especially with it being off the road since mid-2005. I just made sure it had a strong coolant mix in it....that same coolant from 2004 until I took it apart LOL

 

[gordini stu]

That block is so clean , back in the day we Used to build A few for the gt turbo cup and got a contact at radboure racing 50% discount of list so had the three sizes of shells on the shelf A long with all gaskets etc bloody handy when I ran one myself,

Top stuff.

 

[DaveL485]

I've decided to take a sabbatical from the 21 for a bit while I wait for some things to happen, so I put it in the corner and dragged the 9 to the work area to go on the rotisserie





I emptied out all the spares I had stashed inside the car so everything doesnt get tumble dried when I spin it over.



Between sorting the frame out for the 21, the huge tidyup and rearrange and selling another two cars this weekend all I got done was dropping the subframe off the 9 and mounted up the front rotisserie fitting.



Here we go again

 

[DaveL485]

Don't get if you don't ask...right?

 

[Larsson7]

As we say in Scotland, you would get a piece at anyone's door!

I like Chris Harris, seems a good cunt, and a presenter who is also a damn good driver.

 

[Brigsy]

Lhd, be no good for rhd?

 

[DaveL485]

Lhd, be no good for rhd?

I can swap my glass on to the reflectors. Glass is fine, reflectors aren't great.

 

[DaveL485]

Just had a few days off work but ended up getting tangled up in non-Renault-9 things until late Friday, overall for a 1986 car (35 years old) it's not bloody bad you know. Far better than the 21.



...but not completely rot free



I decided to drop off the rear shocks and investigate the poorly looking bit on the NSR wheel arch, checked the new shocks I have look OK - hopefully they are fine for use as they have been stored for probably 15, 16 years!



Buzzed it with a wire wheel



Choppy choppy, weldy weldy. Still debating whether the top bit where the shock goes is OK to leave with treat/paint or if I need to reinforce it. It was pretty crusty.

 

[DaveL485]

I managed to bag a pair of new sills not long back, so I just went all in on Saturday. Feck it. Didn't look THAT rusty but the jack point was bad and it's damaged at the back (been like that since I bought it in 2002!)



All in for the win.







Nasty



Got stuck into the inner sill








Then attacked the jacking point section - yuk.






Deeper in looked OK, it's just the actual jack point that was goosed

 

[DaveL485]

Chopped the rust out, chucked some BHH80 around inside the rest of the section



Started piecing it back together











That finished off Saturday - pretty good progress!

 

[DaveL485]

Sunday I was supposed to be going somewhere to do something but it was cancelled last minute, so I dived straight back in the garage hoping to get the outer sill back on. I painted the inner with Bonda...



While that was drying I stripped out the remainder of the fuel pump and lines, the pressure reg and the trip computer fuel flow thing, all being replaced with the stuff for the EFI conversion anyway. I also removed all the front struts, brake lines, the brake master, remote brake reservoir, the choke cable, and the headlight adjuster cables (never worked anyway!). I put the front calipers aside to go for a refurb. And yes, the bleed nipples freed up ok

 

[DaveL485]

By this time the primer was dry so I started refitting the outer sill panel. It's a non-OE one so not perfect, but better than making something from scratch! Punched some spot holes.



Cleaned up the welding surfaces and away we went (after about an hour of messing and adjusting and trying to get it in a good position)











I was happy to spot the door openings, and seamed the pillars/ends. I also seamed the back edge to the floor, which was a great bit of welding even if I do say so myself!







And there we have it. Sill back on Got a bit of floor to replace inside, and the reinforced part of the jack point to make next time.