What have you done to your MGF MGTF today? (Second Part)
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Had the amber engine malfunction light illuminate yesterday, so Today I took her down to my local Rover specialist in Wrexham (R & J Motors). They very kindly hooked up their OBD reader (free of charge) and there were about half a dozen faults including short on fuel pump. misfire, catalytic converter and a few others. We (or rather he did) cleared them and touch wood, the light has stayed off thus far. I have a feeling that my rattling cat might have been the culprit - need to get that changed anyway soon.
Other than that, I finished off my project to 'colour code' my 1.6 mpi - had already changed the side air scoops, recently managed to upgrade from manual black plastic mirrors to colour coded electric ones and finally changed the door handles this morning so that they are all Tahiti Blue JRJ.
All in all, pleased with Today - next thing on the agenda is to fit the Mike Satur Mk1 chrome roll hoops that I acquired recently. A job for a nice dry day no doubt! - then it'll be on with my colour coded hard top for the winter.....god it's getting cold already!
Other than that, I finished off my project to 'colour code' my 1.6 mpi - had already changed the side air scoops, recently managed to upgrade from manual black plastic mirrors to colour coded electric ones and finally changed the door handles this morning so that they are all Tahiti Blue JRJ.
All in all, pleased with Today - next thing on the agenda is to fit the Mike Satur Mk1 chrome roll hoops that I acquired recently. A job for a nice dry day no doubt! - then it'll be on with my colour coded hard top for the winter.....god it's getting cold already!
Just put the hardtop on. We're off on holiday, so she'll be standing on the drive for two weeks, and the HT seems to kep the interior a bit drier. Probably stick solar charger on the battery for good luck. All I need now is a web-cam set up so I can see her while I'm away . . .
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I need to change my handles. Did you add remote locking/unlocking? If not how do I stand with the MOT if I can't unlock the passenger door from outside?
When I get back to the uk this is on the to do list.
I already had remote central locking so for me it was just a case of swap out the plastics and replace the original door locking barrels into the new handles - not sure how you would go about adding central locking if you didn't have it. I'm not sure if it would be a fail if you couldn't undo from the outside but curiously the passenger handle that I originally had did have a keyhole but the colour coded replacement I bought did not. I still placed the original barrel into the space simply for central locking purposes, but there is no way to undo it with a key unless one drilled through the plastic blank. In which case, I guess you could say that I couldn't undo my passenger door if my central locking failed.........
I found it quite odd that my base 1.6 mpi had a passenger handle where a key could be inserted but all of the colour coded ones I've seen do not, regardless of central locking or not. Personally, I'd have preferred the ability to put a key in, but alas no. Anyway, here's an eBay listing of what I removed and replaced:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MGF-MG-TF...324295?hash=item51ed675987:g:6xgAAOSwpLNX~gSe
Oh, just found this which may be of some help if you plan to upgrade to central locking:
http://www.mgf-tf-central.co.uk/garvin/mglatch.htm?zoom_highlight=central+locking
Can you tell me how the sensor on the bottom of the res disconnects . Do I pull the sensor connector down. Or pull it to the side.Decided to replace my coolant tank with a much nicer, much cleaner one that I sourced from one of my local scrapyards. Easy job, took about 15 minutes to 'turkey baster' out the current tank, disconnect, fit new tank, reconnect and refill. Much better.
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My tank doesn't have the sensor fitted, unlike later models. I think if you have the correct tank (part number PCF000140 with the additional sensor plug hole in the bottom) if you remove the old tank it should pull straight down off the bottom of the tank and should be push fitted back to the new tank. I found this guide about fitting a low level coolant sensor and the guide seems to indicate that fitting of the sensor is simply a push fit, so disassembly should be the reverse of assembly.
MGF/TF coolant level sensor
Filthy old Expansion Bottles can be cleaned up like new. I shake a few drops of petrol around inside the very dirty ones, then follow up with cloths tied to rods or stout wire to fully remove old coolant stains and residue. Then fully submerge and soak overnight in a weak Bleach solution.
I removed a good used bottle from an MGF in a local yard, cleaned up well then did the swap on my F. :~
That's better.
It is essential to keep an eye on coolant levels of any engine. Not just MGs and Rovers of course as recommended by all manufacturers. When serious overheating damages engines, the early signs that something is wrong can be detected by simple visual regular checks of coolant level. Thus serious damage avoided.
Otherwise no checks can lead to something like this in any car being avoided. Yes, even by the laziest "never check nuffink" types.. Rocket Science it aint! ...
Plenty of those about ...AA/RAC and other rescue call out stats confirm that many, many times.:~
or this ....
The above are not my cars. These are :~
It takes a few seconds to lift the bonnet and do a visual check. Most Bottles have MAX-MIN indexes. Any signs of coolant loss should be investigated. Keep in mind that Coolant Expands when hot. So on a recently switched off engine it can be above the MAX level. Best to check engines when cold. Here's the Bottle on a 25 soon after hot engine switch off. :~
Best to keep an eye on those fluid levels... all of 'em...
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6,751 Posts
Is there any other option?
Well, Today and Yesterday (mainly) I set aside plenty of time to fit the Mike Satur Mk1 Chrome roll hoops that I bought from our very own Dave & Kayleigh (MGRover Mobile Mechanics - Derby). They were breaking an MOT fail that they had in and I spotted them on their eBay listing for the car. I Dealt with Kayleigh over the hoops and some mud flaps (yet to fit) and a good deal was struck. Big thanks go out to them both, you're both stars!!
Anyway, took me some time as I'd never fitted anything remotely like this before. I'd spotted a few "how to's" on here and coupled with some instructions mailed to me very kindly by Mr Satur himself, I set about the task......
They are fiddly little things to fit and even the instructions from Mike were not crystal clear, but with time and patience, I got there. Plenty of time taken to chisel out the back of the T-bar and refitted my original MGF rear speakers with the bits n bobs I bought from Mike - template, speaker mounts and a few nuts and bolts. I managed to get away unscathed by the sharp wood chisel required to trim the T-bar to fit.
I picked up a neat little trick from the forum - use a 40mm rubber washer from some plumbing joints to tidy up any rough or unsightly edges from where the holesaw was used in the T-bar - finishes things off nicely, I think.
So, without further ado, here are some pics of the finished product:
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Anyway, took me some time as I'd never fitted anything remotely like this before. I'd spotted a few "how to's" on here and coupled with some instructions mailed to me very kindly by Mr Satur himself, I set about the task......
They are fiddly little things to fit and even the instructions from Mike were not crystal clear, but with time and patience, I got there. Plenty of time taken to chisel out the back of the T-bar and refitted my original MGF rear speakers with the bits n bobs I bought from Mike - template, speaker mounts and a few nuts and bolts. I managed to get away unscathed by the sharp wood chisel required to trim the T-bar to fit.
I picked up a neat little trick from the forum - use a 40mm rubber washer from some plumbing joints to tidy up any rough or unsightly edges from where the holesaw was used in the T-bar - finishes things off nicely, I think.
So, without further ado, here are some pics of the finished product:
Yesterday: Took our 1996 65,000 miles Amaranth VVC to be MOT'd, Failed! 1.Front lower suspension ball joint... 2. Windcsreen washer provides insufficent washer liquid front [8.2.3] Then read at the FIFTEEN Advisories, which will stay on the public record for ever. Ordered a ball joint and wiper stalk... at least we can still drive the silver 1998 F featured on the front and on pages 68-72 this month's edition of MG Enthusiast
Today: Took our 2004 128,000 miles Smart Roadster to be MOT'd, passed! No advisories, cross examined the examiner... he could find nothing wrong with it...
Today: Took our 2004 128,000 miles Smart Roadster to be MOT'd, passed! No advisories, cross examined the examiner... he could find nothing wrong with it...
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6,716 Posts
Out of interest, how will the new wiper stalk solve the lack of washer liquid being expelled?
Unless of course there is no water at all and you have found the stalk/switch to be the fault...
Advisory "014 (wiper stalk floppy but still works okay)"...but intermittently squirts, still replacement was less than £10 delivered
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Superior German engineering. Deutschland über alles
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