W3STY's Progress Thread

What colour S3 Avus for the Track?

  • Porsche Guards Red

    Votes: 43 57.3%
  • Kawasaki Green

    Votes: 32 42.7%

  • Total voters
    75
Went to the tyre fitters today to get the tyres off my track wheels and off the new wheels I'd bought last week.

As I run 5x112 PCD adapters for my daily S4 wheels it is a PITA to have to remove them when I want to swap wheels for the 5x110 S3 track wheels. The original idea was to get hold of the exact same ronal wheels that are used on the B5 S4 as they are 5x112 and identicle looking to the S3 wheel. These wheels dont tend to come up too often and when they do they're not that cheap. Anyway last week a set of 5 A6 wheels appeared on eBay and I won the auction with a bid of £102, bargain!

Here are the wheels:

1928db54.jpg


9365b382.jpg


b075c198.jpg


23310ae1.jpg


f5fa8c42.jpg


As you can see i've got 4 black (one very poorly wrapped) and 1 silver. They look identicle to the S3 wheel except without the dimple at the end of the spoke. The idea now is to get them refurbed and powder coated in Kawasaki green, as mentioned a few pages ago.

My TRS fabric tow strap aslo turned up today and I want the wheels to be a similar colour:

cde06758.jpg


87905835.jpg


So my old S3 wheels have done me proud and are being sold to a friend to be used as track wheels for his S3. I gave them a quick clean up as a last goodbye :( seen here with the new silver alloy to show a comparison:

d138817b.jpg


1587f12a.jpg



Also if anyone was wondering how much one of these wheels weighs without a tyre on it's just a tad over 12kg

4608bda8.jpg


The new wheel was 12kg on the nose:

9cf5a7c4.jpg
 
Heavy stuff there dude!!!!

Nice idea on getting 5x112 track wheels, very cool. What offset are the new wheels, and what thickness are your adaptors? Could end up looking quite cool :)

Interesting on the wheel weights too, fairly heavy, but not as heavy as my ronal TT's which are almost 14kg each!
 
Heavy stuff there dude!!!!

Nice idea on getting 5x112 track wheels, very cool. What offset are the new wheels, and what thickness are your adaptors? Could end up looking quite cool :)

Interesting on the wheel weights too, fairly heavy, but not as heavy as my ronal TT's which are almost 14kg each!

The new wheels are ET45 the same as my S4 wheels. The PCD adapters I use are 20mm front 25mm rear leaving me with offsets of ET25 front and ET20 rear, these new wheels should look very agressive out in the arches and bright green :racer:
 
Well I have a date to do my engine rebuild, Easter.

The folks go away for a week so I'll have the garage to myself to strip down the block, change the rods and get the AEB head and Exhaust mani fitted. Should also have a WMI kit to fit also.
 
Should be epic mate, and to think some people can't even change a dog bone bush....
 
Hopefully the LNM team will be trained up and ready by easter to help out... :rtfm:
 
Alright mate it's honestly not as scary as it seems ;-)

When you going to be doing it? As got a lot of time off in the early part of the new year if you need any extra hands :)
 
Tonight I went boost leak hunting. I know I have one somewhere as I'm only holding 16psi :(

Anyway I attacked the FMIC boost hoses. I decided to change all the clips from T-clamps to Jubilee clips and also trim some of the boost hoses. When I fitted this FMIC setup I had some of the hoses overlapping joiners by a few inches so it was time I tidied it up:

A few pics:

6ba0dec1.jpg


7f74770c.jpg


c51e7413.jpg


4c99d09c.jpg


d18a958a.jpg


6dc440c8.jpg


Took in out for a spin and made it 100 yards before blowing a hose :( I'd forgotten to even tighten the charge pipe hose,whoops. Tightened that and went for a proper spin. PROGRESS :yahoo: boost is back peaking at 22/23psi and holding 19psi but not every time! Sometimes it is still dropping off to 16psi and others holding at 19psi :( I think i need to go round all the clips again and give them another turn each.

Getting there though.
 
Arrrgghhhh bad memories- what a horrible flashback!

10 mins MAX on 150 C - don't get distracted watching soccer AM like me and my mate did and let it turn into a floppy like Victoria sponge gone wrong! Or if it's not ready then place it back in for 3mins stages observing very carefully!

My mate had to break the seals in-between the glass and plastic as well with a flat screwdriver to break the seal as well whilst it was hot else it'll never come off... Are you sure you need to separate the glass to get to it - I don't think you do buddy. My mate had the back of my whole headlight apart and out apart including the adjuster etc though the back of the headlight. You can remove all the wiring etc just takes time and lots of tiny screws and remembering where they all go. Only reason we were trying to remove the glass was to replace it as it was scratched to pieces.
 
Last edited:
Arrrgghhhh bad memories- what a horrible flashback!

10 mins MAX on 150 C - don't get distracted watching soccer AM like me and my mate did and let it turn into a floppy like Victoria sponge gone wrong! Or if it's not ready then place it back in for 3mins stages observing very carefully!

My mate had to break the seals in-between the glass and plastic as well with a flat screwdriver to break the seal as well whilst it was hot else it'll never come off... Are you sure you need to separate the glass to get to it - I don't think you do buddy. My mate had my whole headlight apart and and adjuster clips etc though the back of the headlight. Only reason we were trying to remove the glass was to replace it as it was scratched to pieces.

Ahhhh, thanks. I'll take a look tonight if I get time.
 
have you drilled the clip i gave you yet, or obv waiting till you have the headlight apart?
i hope it works. they look very close to a broken one i removed from my headlight.
 
Ive not replaced one yet, i did what welly advised at the time and used a piece of silicone tube to push the light into position permanently. Went in through the back if it. Removed the old clip through there too
 
Well I've covered a good 70 miles this weekend in the car and although it feels better, the boost is still inconsistent. Sometimes it will hold 19psi, other times only 16psi. This becoming annoying now.

My 35mm diameter alu bar arrived yesterday which I'm using to strengthen the crash bar strut to fit my towing strap. While the bumper is off again I'll tighten up all the FMIC hoses again.
 
Well, I've just collected my WMI kit from the post office and just opened up the box. I think this could be going back on eBay!

Pump
dba8cb3f.jpg


Damaged fitting bracket. Not a big issue:

86225cb7.jpg


The plastic thread has been cross threaded on the pumps inlet or outlet:

e865eac8.jpg


And here's all the thread on the attachment:

fb84de7d.jpg


I'm hoping that I can still get a decent seal using a bit of PTFE tape.

The Coolingmist nozzles are total pants, will be getting a Devil's own nozzle:

58a921b3.jpg


79448ca6.jpg


6d3f5689.jpg


46ebb69f.jpg


I have got a check valve which i'll open up and clean out:

98ef3995.jpg


Water bottle is also a shocker:

9d58bfa2.jpg


a4ba0420.jpg


Nowhere to fit a level float for low fluid warning and check out the way it's been tapped into:

d6189b2d.jpg


All in all, looks like a load of toot. I need to check the pump over, if that is ok then I can make a kit up after ordering a few more bits from Devil's Own. If not, then this lot will be back on the bay.
 
PTFE tape might not do it mate... meth is corrosive and eats through normal seals...

The level sensor is just a float switch and is typically self sealing so you can just drill a hole in the side of the tank for that...

That clear hose won't be rated for pressure or for meth either... the stuff that comes with the kits is a solid plastic line much like the fuel lines running under the car...

tbh mate I would sling it back at him and just stump up for an AEM kit and do it right first time...

<tuffty/>
 
PTFE tape might not do it mate... meth is corrosive and eats through normal seals...

The level sensor is just a float switch and is typically self sealing so you can just drill a hole in the side of the tank for that...

That clear hose won't be rated for pressure or for meth either... the stuff that comes with the kits is a solid plastic line much like the fuel lines running under the car...

tbh mate I would sling it back at him and just stump up for an AEM kit and do it right first time...

<tuffty/>

I'll clean up all the parts and take some decent pics then relist it on eBay. Might make a few quid from it as the seller I got it from didn't list it too well.

It was worth a punt I suppose :(
 
Bad times mate... the AEM kits though are pretty good... fitted a couple of these now and seem to do the job well...

<tuffty/>
 
Bad times mate... the AEM kits though are pretty good... fitted a couple of these now and seem to do the job well...

<tuffty/>

I've just cut off the plastic hose from the ends of the nozzles and it's soft as sh!te! ****** cheap rubbish.

I'll get all the bits in the ultrasonic bath and clean then relist it.
 
A very productive night of Late Night Mechanics.

Firstly I fitted my new brake discs. MY Brembo max have been on for around 2 years and have covered 2 Nurburgring trips and a UK track day. The grooves had been worn completely flat:

0f11cc49.jpg


e0824291.jpg


The Brembo max were good but as Euro Car Parts had a 25% sale on and my mate was doing an order I went for the S3 ATE discs and got a pair for £100:

024870ff.jpg


29aeec7c.jpg


ecabdabe.jpg


After I'd fitted them, it was time for the bumper to come off............. AGAIN!

I received the aluminium bar I needed to do my tow strap so I set about it:

7749ece8.jpg


38ed8b53.jpg


b0c226a3.jpg


bbabbcac.jpg


799e55cf.jpg


7147af6f.jpg


0bb72f8d.jpg


It tucks behind the boost hose when not needed ;)

While the bumper was off I also decided to sort out my ****** xenon adjuster motor! It's been a problem for the 3 years i've owned the car.

This motor:

48b30ff0.jpg


is meant to clip into this clip:

95343696.jpg


But broken as you can see so the headlight internals have been bouncing around.

Thanks to my mate Superkarl I have a new clip:

7de74535.jpg


This clip is apparently from a Megane but fits a treat:

2dcced6e.jpg


So got it in the light fitting:

ef741396.jpg


And now it's sorted :yahoo:
 
1 question about your tow strap, which looks wicked. but wont it pull up against the bumper IF you get towed??

It is very tight I must admit. I can adjust the height of the strap with the long bolt I've used so might need to lower it slightly nex time the bumper is off. Let's just hope it's never needed!
 
Westy its taken about 4 sittings now but i've just finished reading every page of this mamouth thread and I sooo applaude the dedication you share with your motor....

I want one even more now...

Such an inspiration for any S3 noob......

Must admit though my misses would tear me a new one if I spent the amount you do in such a short period.....

Keep it up.

JQ.
 

Similar threads

Replies
9
Views
2K
Replies
26
Views
2K
Replies
225
Views
21K
Replies
1
Views
844