Herak, the Cougar and Mk2 Mondy subframes may have a slight cosmetic difference but they are absolutely interchangeable. My old Cougar, now owned by Steve Morris, has a galvanised Mk2 Mondeo rear subframe.
What Have You Done to Your Cougar Today?
- Thread starter Axximilli
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Herak, the Cougar and Mk2 Mondy subframes may have a slight cosmetic difference but they are absolutely interchangeable. My old Cougar, now owned by Steve Morris, has a galvanised Mk2 Mondeo rear subframe.
Yes, the centre webbing is a different shape. On the upper side of the subframe, the piece that goes between the two sides of the tub - stiffening the void between the radius/control arms - is different.
Rich is far from the only person to do this, (for cost or availability reasons) and although they were test pilots, it's proved itself to be perfectly safe. And if you think about it, the Mondy is designed to take higher loads so I'm not sure there's even a risk. Might be that the Cougar one was simply designed to last longer before weakening.
Herak, I'm genuinely interested in your project to get her flat-bellied, (like a touring car?). What's your motivation there? MPG?
Well I'll give it to Paul for lateral thinking and I'm a fan of that. I think that's still a stainless to alloy weld.
Today I stretched the disc by hammering the edge of the disc in an outward direction against the edge of the closed jaws on my vice. The problem is one has no idea how much stretch has been achieved. I my case probably too much. I did manage to drive the stretched disc back into it's place in the pump body but it was painful and took at least an hour after the stretching work. Painful presumably for the disc and the pump body, certainly for my wife who endured two hours of my hammering in the garage which is internal to the house with timber largely timber frame inner walls. ( I made the mistake of allowing the bench to contact with the wall when I jammed it into the corner of the garage, def a wrong move )
Later it turned out to be painful for me too. Spending 90% of my work life these days on a PC is really effective for muscle wastage. The muscles across the centre of my back have been bloomin painful all afternoon and evening.
Anyway disc fitted, metal impellor proven not to hit disc. Assemble pump with new gasket and a smidgeon of silicon sealant on both sides of the gasket. Assembled on garage floor the slotted into place and the final 3 bolts inserted and then all tightened evenly. Tomorrow I'll unbolt it, refit 2 of the 3 hoses the bolt the damn thing back to the engine.
Ordered a new thermostat before hammering commenced but also cleaned up all of the alloy hose connections to ensure good water tight seal between alloy and rubber.
Hope my back is less painful tomorrow. My lovely wife helpfully reminded me I'm not as young as I used to be. Boy ain't that the truth, all down hill from here ! I'm fortunate as she gets more beautiful every time I look at her, I doubt she can say the same about me but hey ho.
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Spent 5 1/2 hours on a train to meet her then a 300 mile drive to get her home, worth it though, she's a beauty.
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Why doesn't mine shine like that !
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Melina's are quite easy to shine, its all about the prep and the products though
Mine looks shiny when used with Ultimate compound and Auto Finese Illusion wax
Think I need someone to professionally polish mine. Have done the good old fashioned T cut a few years ago but was kinda disappointed after many hours work. The laquer I sprayed last winter could do with a rub down to blend better. Any recommend polishers in S Wales ?
Replaced the (cracked) throttle body and installed a new gasket. No more unmetered air, and my idle has sorted itself out.
Thanks Relliot, Mako. I was sure they'd have the same mounts and dimensions, so that's good to hear.
MPG less important, but a side effect of less drag. Top end grunt and grip is my main motivation. 3 litre Jag duratec is on plan as well, but the huge air brake at the back isn't going to help much. Flat floor done right should give me some additional stability as well as giving me a source of air to guide to cool the brakes.
The Capri is going wild, I'll be keeping the Cougar as a more refined stable mate, but it'll feel a little slow compared to a 500bhp/ton RWD beast (aim, may settle for 450/ton)
The Cougar needs to keep some advantages so I don't just go everywhere in the Capri and empty my wallet into the fuel tank. Planning to incorporate a subtle diffuser and encourage a little more scavenging from the exhaust(s?) with it, too - an inverted ram air device, if you will.
Likely making it in FG with steel strips bonded in for rigidity. If it works, I'll make measurements/method etc available if anybody wants to reproduce it.
Another motivation, and the one that kicked me with the urge to do it asap is the amount of grot the underbody collects - if I'm putting it straight, it's going to stay straight.
MPG less important, but a side effect of less drag. Top end grunt and grip is my main motivation. 3 litre Jag duratec is on plan as well, but the huge air brake at the back isn't going to help much. Flat floor done right should give me some additional stability as well as giving me a source of air to guide to cool the brakes.
The Capri is going wild, I'll be keeping the Cougar as a more refined stable mate, but it'll feel a little slow compared to a 500bhp/ton RWD beast (aim, may settle for 450/ton)
The Cougar needs to keep some advantages so I don't just go everywhere in the Capri and empty my wallet into the fuel tank. Planning to incorporate a subtle diffuser and encourage a little more scavenging from the exhaust(s?) with it, too - an inverted ram air device, if you will.
Likely making it in FG with steel strips bonded in for rigidity. If it works, I'll make measurements/method etc available if anybody wants to reproduce it.
Another motivation, and the one that kicked me with the urge to do it asap is the amount of grot the underbody collects - if I'm putting it straight, it's going to stay straight.
Very interesting; I really look foward to seeing what you achieve here.
Just as an anecdote, when I had aftermarket DTM sideskirts on my Mk3 200, the MOT had an advisory that the sills were not examined because they were obscured. Curiously the same thing happened to someone here (can't remember who) with a Skoda Yeti; the factory-fitted running boards and belly protection meant that it got the same advisory.
I'll be interesting to see if you get the same for your subframe...
I've had advisories for having winter tyres fitted (in winter!) before. Much depends on the test operator.
Best advisory I ever had was on the Capri "Rear Bumper not fitted" went over to the test bay to ask him about it "Well, the bumper isn't fitted!" - he even showed me where they brackets normally sit. At this point I realised I was dealing with a genius. "No way! It must have fallen off somewhere... I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't pointed it out."
Also had one tell the missus that if one of her brake pipes on her Focus was to burst, she'd have no brakes - right in front of me. Asked him if he knew what "Dual Circuit" meant. Looked puzzled and told me it meant that the handbrake was hydraulic. Leaving the garage, she asked if he was right. "No. It's a pretty standard system meaning that a burst pipe only takes out two brakes, and the other two are on a different circuit - meaning you still have brakes if one pipe bursts." "Shouldn't he know that?" "You should... Anybody driving a car should, let alone somebody supposedly qualified to decide on a car's roadworthiness!"
I long ago gave up assuming that MOT certificates mean anything other than "you won't get in trouble for driving without an MOT" testers aren't what they used to be, sadly.
Best advisory I ever had was on the Capri "Rear Bumper not fitted" went over to the test bay to ask him about it "Well, the bumper isn't fitted!" - he even showed me where they brackets normally sit. At this point I realised I was dealing with a genius. "No way! It must have fallen off somewhere... I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't pointed it out."
Also had one tell the missus that if one of her brake pipes on her Focus was to burst, she'd have no brakes - right in front of me. Asked him if he knew what "Dual Circuit" meant. Looked puzzled and told me it meant that the handbrake was hydraulic. Leaving the garage, she asked if he was right. "No. It's a pretty standard system meaning that a burst pipe only takes out two brakes, and the other two are on a different circuit - meaning you still have brakes if one pipe bursts." "Shouldn't he know that?" "You should... Anybody driving a car should, let alone somebody supposedly qualified to decide on a car's roadworthiness!"
I long ago gave up assuming that MOT certificates mean anything other than "you won't get in trouble for driving without an MOT" testers aren't what they used to be, sadly.
At risk of displaying potential bias but these clowns in MOT testers uniform. Where they at a local independent or one of the more commonly known nationwide MOT testing organisations.
Your spot on about it being pretty much worthless as an indication of the condition of the vehicle.
Wouldn't want to see it dropped though. Not been to the States for a good few years but I believe they have no testing regime, boy did I see some rot boxes and not just surface rust, great lumps of sill missing on cars that require them as part of the structure.
I'd agree with you in principle that the thought of the MOT test being dropped fills me with dread as well, but who among us hasn't been to look at a car that has a fresh MOT on it and only half it's chassis rails, missing bushes, stuck piston in at least one caliper, etc etc - all MOT fail points but somehow made it through...
TBH, the MOT doesn't do enough, but also leaves a lot of naive motorists thinking they're looking after their car with an MOT.
How many times have you had a neighbour ask you for help and then bemoan the MOT station?
"It was only MOT'd last week, I don't know how it could be out of oil if they did their jobs properly..."
"I had it MOT'd! How can it need a new clutch!?"
"My car won't start. The MOT was only last month! How could they have missed this!?"
Too many people think an MOT and maintenance are the same thing. If it passes the MOT, they assume their car is perfect and needs no attention for another 12 months. Balance that against the amount of car's that are deathtraps and still MOT'd because the right nod and wink were exchanged with a few additional pictures of ol' Liz... I'm not sure the net benefit of the MOT regs we currently have are actually on the positive side.
To answer your potential bias question: Both types of MOT stations, as well as garages.
To go into a personal rant (again, I know...) this isn't an argument, it's an opinion/viewpoint/experience and you're just as entitled to yours as I am to mine, etc:
National chains/Main Stealers aren't worth going near. ex-BIL worked as a tech at a main stealer and then a couple of national chains (until he and my sister parted company and I had no reason to care where he went) helped him and his gaffer put drum springs on - both had shredded their fingertips to the point of bleeding over an hour of trying to put the return spring on a transit rear drum when I arrived to pick him up. Gaffer said he wasn't leaving until the drum was back together. So I sent the gaffer to fetch me a screwdriver, popped the spring on in 3 seconds, handed him the screwdriver, was offered a job there and then - laughed and told him I don't work for idiots. Moving his tools out of the garage when he later left, I found a cache of pollen filters and spark plugs that had never been fitted because "they're trouble" - called him on it and was shown behind his colleagues' boxes. All the same.
I've seen independents where similar things happen, etc. Yep. No argument there - it's rife all over. I have friends and family members that have more mechanical nous in a sneeze than main stealers, and run their independents extremely well.
Independents are the ones that I've seen hacking exhausts up to create a fresh, perfect exhaust for a nurse who couldn't afford a new exhaust for her MOT. I've seen independents that tell people struggling to make ends meet "Look, we can replace it and it'll cost xyz for the part, or we can try and fix it for 30 minutes of labour. If it doesn't last, we'll fit the new part for cost only"
Bias all you like (I don't know which way you swing there, but this is my rant ) but chain workshops NEVER consider the customer first. They can't - they're given book times to do a job. Book times that were calculated with an engine on a bench, not on a car. Too late behind the book times? Bye. Chain mechanics simply can't DO the job and KEEP their job. It's not the fault of the mechanic in most instances, just the situation the bean counters have put management in.
Any time I go to a garage because I don't fancy a job (front wheelbearing, anybody?) I go in and talk to them whilst they work on somebody else's car and watch them like a hawk until I know I trust them enough to watch them work on my car.
No chance of that at a national/global brand workshop. You get the "technician" with his papers etc who forgot to torque a customer's brake caliper - a week after he failed to torque the hubnut on another customer's car at a main dealership in Derby - and STILL kept his job! The oxygen thieves that serviced a friend's Mum's 1 year old Volvo in Blackburn and "forgot" to put oil back in.
...but you can't tell. You don't have any chance to meet and size up the person that will be working on your car at a chain garage.
TBH, the MOT doesn't do enough, but also leaves a lot of naive motorists thinking they're looking after their car with an MOT.
How many times have you had a neighbour ask you for help and then bemoan the MOT station?
"It was only MOT'd last week, I don't know how it could be out of oil if they did their jobs properly..."
"I had it MOT'd! How can it need a new clutch!?"
"My car won't start. The MOT was only last month! How could they have missed this!?"
Too many people think an MOT and maintenance are the same thing. If it passes the MOT, they assume their car is perfect and needs no attention for another 12 months. Balance that against the amount of car's that are deathtraps and still MOT'd because the right nod and wink were exchanged with a few additional pictures of ol' Liz... I'm not sure the net benefit of the MOT regs we currently have are actually on the positive side.
To answer your potential bias question: Both types of MOT stations, as well as garages.
To go into a personal rant (again, I know...) this isn't an argument, it's an opinion/viewpoint/experience and you're just as entitled to yours as I am to mine, etc:
National chains/Main Stealers aren't worth going near. ex-BIL worked as a tech at a main stealer and then a couple of national chains (until he and my sister parted company and I had no reason to care where he went) helped him and his gaffer put drum springs on - both had shredded their fingertips to the point of bleeding over an hour of trying to put the return spring on a transit rear drum when I arrived to pick him up. Gaffer said he wasn't leaving until the drum was back together. So I sent the gaffer to fetch me a screwdriver, popped the spring on in 3 seconds, handed him the screwdriver, was offered a job there and then - laughed and told him I don't work for idiots. Moving his tools out of the garage when he later left, I found a cache of pollen filters and spark plugs that had never been fitted because "they're trouble" - called him on it and was shown behind his colleagues' boxes. All the same.
I've seen independents where similar things happen, etc. Yep. No argument there - it's rife all over. I have friends and family members that have more mechanical nous in a sneeze than main stealers, and run their independents extremely well.
Independents are the ones that I've seen hacking exhausts up to create a fresh, perfect exhaust for a nurse who couldn't afford a new exhaust for her MOT. I've seen independents that tell people struggling to make ends meet "Look, we can replace it and it'll cost xyz for the part, or we can try and fix it for 30 minutes of labour. If it doesn't last, we'll fit the new part for cost only"
Bias all you like (I don't know which way you swing there, but this is my rant
) but chain workshops NEVER consider the customer first. They can't - they're given book times to do a job. Book times that were calculated with an engine on a bench, not on a car. Too late behind the book times? Bye. Chain mechanics simply can't DO the job and KEEP their job. It's not the fault of the mechanic in most instances, just the situation the bean counters have put management in.Any time I go to a garage because I don't fancy a job (front wheelbearing, anybody?) I go in and talk to them whilst they work on somebody else's car and watch them like a hawk until I know I trust them enough to watch them work on my car.
No chance of that at a national/global brand workshop. You get the "technician" with his papers etc who forgot to torque a customer's brake caliper - a week after he failed to torque the hubnut on another customer's car at a main dealership in Derby - and STILL kept his job! The oxygen thieves that serviced a friend's Mum's 1 year old Volvo in Blackburn and "forgot" to put oil back in.
...but you can't tell. You don't have any chance to meet and size up the person that will be working on your car at a chain garage.
Ordered a mercury grill of ebay 15 quid with postage think thats a result. Thanks rickysmith for link to spoiler
Nice car mot history not bad. Shame to scrap
Nice car mot history not bad. Shame to scrap
Got my sub-frame back from Geoff tonight with the ARB brackets all nicely strengthened. Going to take it along with my tank straps, axle beams, trailing arms and trailing arm brackets to the galvanisers tomorrow morning and hope that they can do a 24 Hr turn around for me. Looking forward to putting it all back together again and having it ready for Blackpool.
Just got to get a patch welded on to the nearside sill at the front where I had it welded before. Obviously the garage that did it had not cut out any rusty metal and just welded a small patch over the hole. I also need a new drivers side wing asa mine is rotten at the bottom. My original rear bumper needs the lip sticking on to it and resprayed and I have to put it all back together. Not a lot, should be done reasonably quickly if the weather ever gets better. It may look a bit on the shoddy side for Blackpool as I need some painting done, but, who cares, as long as it is back on the road.
At the risk of wandering further off-topic, I just wanted to address this.
Vehicle testing in the USA is mandated on a state rather than federal level. Or to put it another way, it depends on where you are. Some states only care that the Check Engine Light isn't lit. Others - such as California unsurprisingly - include an extremely strict "smog check" or emissions test. A few have a test similar to our MOT. I grew up in Florida by the way, where there is no testing.
Interestingly, states in the "Rust Belt" - that's states that salt their roads in winter - generally don't have a full test. Nor do many states on the eastern seaboard (again with the salt, only this time from the ocean...). The logic seems to be that outside of major cities, a car is a necessity. And Americans will not stand for the government telling them that they have to get rid of theirs and buy another. Ironic, given that those are precisely the states where vehicles are likely to be falling apart at the seams.
So anyway, it's just a subtle little social difference toward cars that they have.