Miami Makeover

[Chris_Mi 6]

About 4 years ago I purchased a minty Miami blue 1.6 with a Mi16 installed

 

 

It gave me a good two years of motoring before it started giving me a few problems. First the crank angle sensor packed in, giving random symptoms. I spent ages tracing it down and fixed it, then the alternator started playing up. No problems, fixed that, then it developed a small leak around the sump. No problems, just a bit embarrassing washing the oil up from friends/parents/missus' drives. Then the "new" alternator packed up, and the speedo packed in. Then it began to randomly stall. I started to get headaches everytime I wanted to drive it. Motoring shouldn't be like that!

 

Anyone would have thought I didn't look after the Miami - but I did. I lovingly washed and waxed it every week. I refurbished all the brakes, replaced all the brake seals, added new braided hoses, new top strut bearings and mounts, new suspension and springs. I even got a freshly rebuilt beam off Anthony, spent ages sanding it down and painting it up and nearly broke my back putting it in (write up here: http://forum.205gtidrivers.com/index.php?showtopic=103739&st=0 ). Still though the Miami misbehaved

 

The final straw for me was when I took it to Skip Browns for a rolling road test - I knew something wasn't right as the car didn't feel as responsive as it had previously done and wanted it checked out. When it came back with a measly 125bhp (I think - because I never took the print out I was so disappointed), that was the last straw. Paul indicated that it could be cam wear or something on the inlet side, but without pulling it all apart I could not be sure.

 

As soon as I got home, I dumped the Miami in the garage and started planning what I was going to do.

 

The following topic is what I have done in the 2 years whilst the car has been off the road is where I am currently at with the car. Hopefully, Inshalla, it will be on the road in Spring!

[Chris_Mi 6]

As soon as the Miami was off the road, I started planning what I was going to do.

 

For some reason, my experience at Skip Brown had convinced me that it was probably the inlet side of the Mi16 that was causing the problems - the air flow meter looked past its best and problems with the inlet sensors were seemingly occurring more and more (both here on the forum, and with friends that I knew). I therefore convinced myself that if I could do away with the Mi inlet system, I could do away with my problems. So I began looking for throttle body options to bolt on to the Mi.

 

Those that most appealled to me were the Jenveys/OMEX package that Spoox were offering. However at just over 2k a pop, I knew I could never afford it. One day, by pure chance, I was browsing Ebay and stumbled across a Mi16 with the very same package. After some initial enquiries I found myself travelling down to deepest Dorset to view a Graphite 1.9 with a Mi. By the looks of it, the seller had only just converted the engine to run Jenveys and OMEX. All the gear was brand new, and the install standard looked to be a very high quality. The downside was that the seller had done the conversion into, lets just say, not the best shell Generally most of the panels looked to have been sprayed, on a whole the car looked good from the outside, but as soon as you looked underneath there was rot abundant, the sealer was split and rust was starting to show at the door pillar bottoms

 

An hour later and I found myself hooning up the M5 to the pleasing sound of Jenveys at full song!

I'd just bought myself a trick bit of kit, in a crap bit of car!

 

 

 

[Chris_Mi 6]

I didn't run the Graphite for too long. It soon became stored in a friends' barn.

Time passed, days, months and I had too little time to either strip the Graphite, or work on the Miami.

Both sat waiting.

 

Here is what the Graphite hid under the bonnet

[Chris_Mi 6]

Finally around April, I dragged the Graphite out of hibernation, and began stripping it down.

 

Pulled the engine out in the summer sun

 

 

Around August, this is how it looked

 

 

At the same time, I started getting stuck in to the Miami

 

 

Pesky inlet, AFM and associated sensors off:

 

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

never knew about that car, Guess over Blandford way maybe? but it looks like a right mess under the bonnet with cable and pipes close to the old Cambelt.

Depending on the space at the front of the car I would be tempted with some longer trumpet's, this will help the power and Torque overall, those short ones never give great results

[Chris_Mi 6]

never knew about that car, Guess over Blandford way maybe? but it looks like a right mess under the bonnet with cable and pipes close to the old Cambelt.

Depending on the space at the front of the car I would be tempted with some longer trumpet's, this will help the power and Torque overall, those short ones never give great results

 

Yep, from a nice chap in Bladford. He had all the receipts for the trick bits; only purchased a few months before I came along!

 

Miles, the install was actually very well done. The only negative I would say was that it had been dropped in without a cam belt cover - asking for a major disaster really, but it wasn't really on the road long enough for any mishaps, and fortunately I got away with it when I did use it. The consequences of a simple stone flicked under a cam pully would have been horrendous!

 

The photos look a mess because I stupidly didn't take any under the bonnet before I started pulling it apart, so all the photos I have is after I've started taking things out

 

I'm contemplating some 90mm trumpets (i.e. double the size of the 45mm currently installed), however I do worry about clearance. Are there any "proven" ways round this? I will be getting a Tom F rad lowering bracket (when funds allow) but my main concern is the slam panel - anybody know if this will be an issue?

Edited October 10, 2011 by Chris_Mi