My Murple

[johnny_quattro]

Had to plonk this in Google Translate...
"Cleaned up the sump and the magnets"

Translated to:
"Part returned to OEM/factory/showroom A1 condition"

[MikkiJayne]

Literally the only thing anyone ever got right on this car



The only original parts left of the powertrain are the flywheel and, ironically, the F125 Kersteman's final bodge, fitting a used switch which was equally as broken as the original, is actually what saved the car from certain death.

I forgot to take any more photos, but the engine and box are now joined together again, fluids filled, and oil system primed. I'll clean up the subframe tomorrow and mount the engine and box back on it, and then I can move on to the engine bay.

[MikkiJayne]

Started scraping the detritus off the subframe - it was half an inch deep in places! Didn't have much time tonight so I'll get some elbow grease on this tomorrow.

[RICKY D]

Once you’ve finished with your Murple not only will it be running better than ever, but I suspect there will be a fair bit of weight saving too based on the crud removed from the subframe

[MikkiJayne]

Progress was slowed a tad this week when this monster tree feel down and killed my speedboat Luckily the Polo V8 survived relatively unscathed - a few dents and scratches in the completely ruined paint, but the glass was untouched. When we started, you couldn't even see the Polo! It took 2 days to clear this back as far as the retaining wall.



I cleaned the subframe with Elbow Grease and the pressure washer. Its in great condition, barring the dents and bruises underneath where someone has used it as a jacking point. No holes though. I might paint the rusty bits.



On to the engine bay. What new horrors am I going to find in here...?



Fairly nasty heat shields. Not sure how an aluminium part appears to be rusty



Many studs snapped off. Replacement stud-rivet things are actually available for these (which I didn't know when I did my grey S8), but the damn things are £12 each!! There are 5 snapped off



The bay is pretty nasty













The rack is covered in oil, but this is engine oil from the cam covers



The fuel pipe clips are rusted through. There should be a set of these coming on back-order, hopefully.



An oily mess in the tunnel too



The PS pipes are in amazingly good condition considering how knackered the rest of the car is. I suspect they may have been changed at some point.



Still got a bunch of snapped rivnuts to deal with



With heat, WD40 and vise grips, the broken front panel bolt eventually came free



Then I could remove the nut for the towing eye



This is in a right state



Separated the two parts. The steel bits will go in the Evaporust tub for a while, and the bracket will get blasted and painted.

[MikkiJayne]

This is why I suspect the PS pipes may have been replaced - the bracket is broken and bodged



The top rubber mount has been replaced by a nut and bolt, and the bottom one is torn off. This is going to be a right pain to remove as there's nothing to grip.



Taking the heat shields off, I'm cutting the nuts to save the studs, since the nuts are only 67p and the studs are £12.



Had to remove the electronics box to get the AC pipes out as all the unions are seized



The whole lot came out in one go. I'll separate these in the vice where I can use heat and more force. The aim is to save the pipes at the expense of the consumable parts - condenser, evaporator etc.



I forgot to disconnect the steering column before I put the car on the lift, so I lowered it on to the pallet truck and pulled it forward so I could open the door. With the column disconnected I could remove the steering rack.



Well, there's the problem with the servotronic. The insulation on the wires is brittle and disintegrates on contact



Crusty...



Hard to get a picture, but there is a dent in the right hand chassis leg which I suspect was from changing the oil pressure switch.



Passenger side scrubs up ok under all the grot.

[steamship]

Originally Posted by MikkiJayne

Luckily the Polo V8 survived relatively unscathed.

That sounds intriguing. Any info about it posted on here to read?

Originally Posted by MikkiJayne

Fairly nasty heat shields. Not sure how an aluminium part appears to be rusty

Would you have expected anything less from this car?

[David's8]

In the current lockdown the thing that differentiates the weekends from every other day is the Murple/WITW updates
With all the issues you have with this car, its nice to see that the engine bay is lacquered. At least that is some reward for using the ton of degreaser!

[MikkiJayne]

Originally Posted by steamship

That sounds intriguing. Any info about it posted on here to read?

I thought I had mentioned it previously, but possibly not. Its a mk2 Polo Coupe, with a 3.6 32V V8 fitted where the back seat was, on an Audi Coupe gearbox. It was built by a friend back in 2003, but he couldn't work out a flywheel and clutch solution so sold it on. It then went through a couple more owners and ended up in a field in Oxfordshire being consumed by brambles. I found it mentioned on a forum a few years ago and did a deal to buy it. It has had most of its original Polo parts pillaged for other projects over the years but the custom subframe and V8 engine are still there. It was built before SVA rules, so it actually has the proper engine number and capacity on the V5





Its a 'when I have time' project

Originally Posted by steamship

Would you have expected anything less from this car?

I was thinking exactly that as I wrote it

Originally Posted by David's8

With all the issues you have with this car, its nice to see that the engine bay is lacquered. At least that is some reward for using the ton of degreaser!

FL1 Its a delicate balance between cleaning it but not scratching the lacquer. At least in an FL2 there's less risk of scratches, but then the end result isn't as pretty.

[Stromaluski]

The more I see pictures of the purple, the more I like it.