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Yeah, and it would be a nice feeling busting those hydragas units with a sledgehammer.

Hans Efde wrote:Yeah, and it would be a nice feeling busting those hydragas units with a sledgehammer.

I'd let the nitrogen out first!

Seriously go for it, it's worth it.

Dont forget Hans,

If you really dont like the spring kit (doubt it though) you can always grind the weld on the edges of the top hat off and revert back to hydrogas, as it doesnt affect the retainer.

David, can you tell me if the hole in the top of the hydragas turret is wide enough to let the spring through? I got the advise from Alan (already a long time ago) to get more height to increase the possibility for adjustment. Rich did this to convert the trumpet. But if the spring is small enough to go through the standard hole, I thought of making literally a steel hat that slides into the recess of the turret. So I would not need to weld at all on the subframe. I have this idea: Looking at the pictures you made of your conversion it is probably too tight, but designing something like this would make life a lot easier.

Hi Hans,

The spring will just pass through the hole, but there isn't enough clearance to get much else in there with it. The other thing I looked at was making a bolt on spring seat that bolts into the four holes used by the cover plate, I abandoned this as the seat would have been offset and I've have been applying sideways forces as well as tension to the mount.

Rich

Picture of the nearside spring seat, not yet painted but you get the idea. It's also welded around the inner edge.



Initial ride height when the wheels touched down for the first time, part of this will be caused by me fitting up the suspension at full droop, only the top arms didn't come off during this session but if I hadn't had to replace the CV boots and ARB bushes I could have gotten away with less dismantling but to be honest it's actually quicker to take it all off and work in clear space than to fiddle around the fitted components.



It's now settling nicely, give it a couple of months to settle and I'll set the heights properly.

Looks great Rich. Should be easy when the engine is out. I like the idea of using the holes of the cover, but I agree with the problem of the momentum created. That could be solved with a strap over the hat, but in the end your idea may be simpler. I am just not a big hero welding on metal when it's still in a GRP car.

Hans Efde wrote:Looks great Rich. Should be easy when the engine is out. I like the idea of using the holes of the cover, but I agree with the problem of the momentum created. That could be solved with a strap over the hat, but in the end your idea may be simpler. I am just not a big hero welding on metal when it's still in a GRP car.

It's not as scary as it sounds and the hot metal isn't in contact with the glass.

like Rich says, its a bit tight to be having anything else in there with the spring.

I am not in the slightest worried about not having the lock nut on. And, after 3 years driving it like that it hasnt been an issue. I checked the other day to see if I could still adjust the height and it was fine.

If its still an issue to you, just take the cone to a lathe and spin a few mm off the shoulder which holds the spring on, or for that matter, the other end (or both), then refit the lock nut.

Rich wrote: I've fixed the fan and all the other bits but I've still go a miss-fire when the engine is hot.

I think I've found the source of the misfire.... one of the HT leads was shorting out on the lower radiator hose. Looks like it's time to make up some leads with a little less free length.