The "If I can do it, you can" thread...

tuonokid said:

[post]358359[/post] Hi Greg
No bleed valve on the M/C but I seem to remember a few weeks ago someone on here had the same problem which ended up being a blocked hose or bleed nipple. I don't think it will be an M/C problem as those usually end up with a soft pedal.
Barry

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Hi Barry, yeah that was my thought re. the hard pedal thing being more likely to be hose than MC (discounting nipple for now as it new stainless jobbie) just wasn't sure if that previous sticking calliper prob might be relevant so thought better throw it out there too :grin:
Right, better get on to eBay for a hose... k:

Fit both whilst you are at it Greg.

tuonokid said:

[post]358363[/post] Fit both whilst you are at it Greg.

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I just knew you were going to say that! :grin: Just found these and seem a v. decent price so why not,
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-CONTINENTAL-DIRECT-FRONT-RH-BRAKE-HOSE-LINE-PIPE-OE-QUALITY-CDH4898/262724435784?_trksid=p2047675.c100010.m2109&_trkparms=aid%3D333008%26algo%3DRIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D38661%26meid%3D100d07f522e4423eba9d648b95846391%26pid%3D100010%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D301386311332
I'll be an expert bleeder by the time I'm finished (missus reckons I already am but not sure we talking about the same thing :lol: )

That shop's around my neck of the woods, have you seen any Pagid ones listed? They are good quality.

tuonokid said:

[post]358367[/post] That shop's around my neck of the woods, have you seen any Pagid ones listed? They are good quality.

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Euro car parts doing them for £15 each; left & right but will just link to one ... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pagid-70323-Front-Right-Brake-Hose-Ford-Puma-EC-Fiesta-MK4-Courier-/351161668992?fits=Car+Make%3AFord%7CModel%3APuma&hash=item51c2ddd580:g:jbsAAOSwGvhUBZ66
At £17 the pair instead of £30, with the Continental Direct meant to be 'OE quality', will give them a whirl probably.

Enjoy your bleeding :grin:

Having checked out Continental Direct, I've gone with the Pagids (£28 the pair) as it seems CD are nothing to do with Continental and there were some less than glowing reports on other items they do, such as drop links. So cheers for recommendation Barry k:

....hmmm... well I thought I was getting the Pagid ones... I mean the listing was for Pagid, and I paid for Pagid but I got...
001 by G Whizz, on Flickr

Not best pleased... got on to the seller asking why and how come only one when two ordered at same time? They simply said send it back... so replied that means more days with the vehicle off road and doesn't explain why it not Pagid or why only one? Different customer service person replied "We only have Pagid, so we will just do a refund." ....???! Eh? If you only did Pagid we wouldn't be having this conversation mush... and does that mean I still need to return for a refund because if it does I still have to source a new part and so am still off road for days longer?! :evil:

Getting rather fed up of the delays, I've fitted the brake hose anyway... so after getting all that off my chest (deep breaths, whale song in background, stroke earlobes, say "hoozaaah".... ah, that's better)... I'll fill in how to do it for those who haven't tried... like most of these things, it's quite simple... if you know how, which I didn't, not having done it before :grin:

So, seemingly simply, the bottom end (red arrow in photo immediately below) that goes into the calliper (it's an 11mm open end spanner needed to tighten it up) and in the middle (blue arrow) there's a bracket attaching to the strut that needs a 15mm spanner or socket for the nut...

002 by G Whizz, on Flickr

It's at the top that things get a little more interesting but it's still very simple really, once you know how. The top is also held by a bracket but connects to a copper brake pipe as well.

Check out this photo:

IMG_2495 by G Whizz, on Flickr

If you look at this part of the job for the first time there are two sections that can take a spanner, one on the copper brake pipe (the top blue arrow) and the other on the top end of the brake flexi hose (the bottom red) but it isn't immediately obvious which bit you put it on to slack off and release the brake hose. Indeed, given that the copper pipe is obviously not flexible, you might think it's got to be the hose you move... it's not.

First though, at the middle (double-headed) arrow is a locating clip, if things are rusty it isn't easy to spot, but it sits on top of the bracket and slots into a groove on the brake hose connection. I used a smallish flathead srewdriver to pull it out.

The fixing at the bottom of the copper brake pipe is a nut that will rotate... mine though was seized and was in danger of shearing the pipe if I started turning it, which of course really threw me as it seemed neither the bottom part (which is held by the bracket) nor the top part would move without something shearing. Being in something of a quandary, I texted my mechanic mate who explained that the top was seized and asked if I had a blow torch to warm it... I had nothing but my own natural hot air and some WD40 but thankfully the WD and a bit of gentle jiggling to and fro eventually did it, or I'd have been blowing on it still now :lol:

So, in a nutshell to change the hose you simply undo the nut on the strut bracket; remove the locating clip (double-headed arrow) then undo the bottom connector going into the calliper and then undo the top brake pipe connector. To fit the new one simply reverse. Should look a bit like this...

IMG_2496 by G Whizz, on Flickr

You'll need to wipe off any spilt brake fluid and then spray some brake cleaner over it as well to clean everything up. Don't forget to bleed the brakes after either... you can look that up online, it's how I did it and isn't Puma specific.

So, now I'm the proud owner of an ST170 300mm conversion... and a bit more Puma knowledge :wink:

I do have one question to throw out there guys, as I've just noticed it in the bottom photo: the end part of the flexi hose seems relatively taught, can it be fed through the bracket apperture and the wire protector or is it fixed to those bits?

Hi Greg
Yes, but you'll have to unravel the bracket as it goes around the hose a little bit as it's pretty tight. The reason that it's tight is that your caliper entry is now 20 mm further away than what it was.
Barry

tuonokid said:

[post]358421[/post] Hi Greg
Yes, but you'll have to unravel the bracket as it goes around the hose a little bit as it's pretty tight. The reason that it's tight is that your caliper entry is now 20 mm further away than what it was.
Barry

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Hi Barry, when you say "unravel" is that prising apart the bit the hose goes through to then slide the hose down and give some slack lower down, or, am I not catching your meaning?

Hi Greg
That's exactly it, it's tightly coiled around the brake hose so you'll have to use a blunt screwdriver to lever it apart without damaging the hose. Tricky but do-able.
Sos about late reply, talktalk broadband shite tonight.
Barry

tuonokid said:

[post]358424[/post] Hi Greg
That's exactly it, it's tightly coiled around the brake hose so you'll have to use a blunt screwdriver to lever it apart without damaging the hose. Tricky but do-able.
Sos about late reply, talktalk broadband shite tonight.
Barry

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Cheers Barry k: (Only) posted about 10 mins before, so yeah.. your standards slipping :lol:

Yeah Talktalk make me look really bad..... to**ers!!!! :grin:

I first fell for the Puma back in '97 when my then girlfriend got one new. My regular drive back then was actually a restored 5a Reliant Scimitar rebuilt with a Rover V8. It was all hairy chested, twin stainless exhausted, RWD fun and really rather roarty and manly; so much so that I even considered wearing driving gloves and changing my name to Dirk.

Then we went car hunting for her and I test drove the Puma, I'd previously been rather scornful of FWD cars but it was a complete revelation, so chuckable and such an enjoyable drive, I was a bit smitten by Ford's new kitten!

Despite the ignorant 'girl's car' comments around at the time I took every opportunity to drive it, though always with two reservations about it: one was a fear that'd I'd begin to develop a taste for musical theatre; the other that the seats were so bad they'd leave me walking like someone who enjoyed musical theatre, a lot!

In the intervening years I've learnt that the girlie car comments are basically just a result of ignorance (and that jokes about musicals and walking funny are possibly not far off the same ) but the one thing that has remained steadfast is my cripplingly low opinion of the Puma's seats: they are a complete pain in the ass, or the lower back in my case.

So, nearly 2 decades on I have my own Puma to play with and I'm not standing, or sitting, for it any more! They gotta go. But what to replace them with? Within the range only the Millie seats were of interest and a set came up (with obligatory butchered bolsters) but I fancy something else, if I can get 'em to fit:

IMG_20170207_161634 by G Whizz, on Flickr

They are "Tombstones" from a Gen 4 Honda Prelude. I really like the look, but more importantly they are super comfy and get a hold of you like Donald Trump with a beauty contestant.

IMG_20170207_152611 by G Whizz, on Flickr

Meanwhile, I got hold of a set of later Puma seats for a comparison (my car is a '99 so slightly different) and the seat rails are roughly same dimensions as the Puma's: the Honda, centre to centre of rail mounting holes, is 43cm wide & 34.5cm long. The Ford is 41.5 & 34 but the seat is offset from the mounts. It is overall roughly 54cm at the widest point due to that, with Honda a cm or two less.

IMG_20170207_152636 by G Whizz, on Flickr

Before I go removing my own seats to check, I thought I'd throw this out to all those who have done seat swaps, removed their interior etc. etc.- from the photos, what do you see as possible pitfalls?

IMG_20170207_154543 by G Whizz, on Flickr

My first concern is that offset mounting, what's it to clear on the car and is it a problem for the straight mounting Hondas? The front mounting hole on the Hondas would need cutting and flattening/straightening and I'd probably have to ditch the pre-tensioners.

Anything else spring to mind guys? Solutions, if you got 'em, also welcome k:

Edit-P.S. swapping Puma mounting bracketry onto Honda rails one option am wondering about, or, Honda seat onto Puma base if possible, which would mean keeping pre-tensioner.

Hmmm, judging by the lack of suggestions/advice, perhaps for this idea I should change the thread name to "If I can do this you'll be bloody amazed!" :lol:

Hi Greg
I'd keep the pre-tensioners if you can even if you have to adapt the seats slightly as they can be life savers.
Barry

tuonokid said:

[post]360294[/post] Hi Greg
I'd keep the pre-tensioners if you can even if you have to adapt the seats slightly as they can be life savers.
Barry

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Hi Barry, yeah definitely preferred option, first thing will be to try and get some early Puma seat rails & see if I can fit the Honda's to them, or some fiesta 3.5 runners maybe? I did get a spare set of Puma seats but they are the later ones and even after doing a bit of site searching I'm still not clear on whether they will fit my '99? If they did then would just swap over the pre-tensioners.

Hi Greg
It's a minefield trying to fit seats from another car nowadays as the mountings differ so much. In the old days you would have had four boltholes in the floor in a square pattern but those days have gone now. I had a look at my early to late Puma mountings when I switched seats and there's not so much difference. If your car is from 99 a set of Millie Recaros may go straight in without any modifications, just ask James to make sure.
Barry

tuonokid said:

[post]360300[/post] Hi Greg
It's a minefield trying to fit seats from another car nowadays as the mountings differ so much. In the old days you would have had four boltholes in the floor in a square pattern but those days have gone now. I had a look at my early to late Puma mountings when I switched seats and there's not so much difference. If your car is from 99 a set of Millie Recaros may go straight in without any modifications, just ask James to make sure.
Barry

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Hi Barry, I might have to go the Millie route but want to explore the Tombstones first, having had another look I think the easiest solution might be drilling out & taking off the Puma mounting brackets, attaching them to Honda rails & then drilling the rails from side & attaching the pre-tensioners. I did find a set of Fiesta 3.5 rails, which would have been a simple swap it looks like but the guy's asking £99 for them!! Seems just a little OTT.
P.S. I thought you'd achieved 'Guru' status the other day? Have you been returned to the ranks? :grin:

Hi Greg
Just had a look at my old seats as I have yet to put them in the loft. The rails and the structure looks so complicated from underneath, I hope you can manage to separate it all out.
I'd never noticed my status until you mentioned it but it looks like I've I've been promoted to an Elder which may be particularly apt