kirby mackintosh

Hi Les, No oil pooled around base, and the gloop looks to be deposited from the tip upwards and not the other way round...Rocker gasket is clean and breather is rather new. I didn't test the plugs while I had them out, but there is a difference in the way the car starts if you wait for the glow plug light to go out as opposed to spinning it immediately. So I'd assume some if not all are working. Forgot to mention the car has about 132 000 kms on the dial. The Compression Tester is a US General brand. This evening we ran some tests on a 200TDi rebuilt fully about 12500kms ago and got the following compression readings 1. 31 2. 34 3. 32 4. 32, so comparatively higher than mine which is to be expected. I will post pics of the glowplugs tomorrow, they look quite different to mine,not as wet and with a more diesel feel than oil.. Any further ideas as to the source of the oil? Thanks Kirby

Weekends fiddling on the 300Tdi revealed the following: You need to remove quite a few bits to get at your glow plugs properly....(if you have an Aircon mounted). 3 of my glow plugs where quite oily / carboned up. (No 1 was really quite clean but original like the others) I did not warm the engine up for very long, and about a 1200km's ago installed an LPG fumigation system into the landy, and they do say it will cause carbon deposits to be burnt off etc etc... am I looking at oil that shouldn't be there, or is it some sort of diesel / carbon residue. It felt and loooked like the nice clean Delo 400 oil I put in last weekend.... There is only the normal puff of black smoke on start up, no real oil consumption during driving... so any opinions as to what might cause these symptoms? Answers on a post card please.... I bought a shiny new in the box Compression Tester off Schmee Bay and this was its first use... I did two runs on each cylinder with all plugs removed and got the following readings in BAR: 1. 27.5 2. 24.5 3. 27.5 4. 26.5 These seem very healthy although number 2 is a bit low but within 10% of the others.(just) Now new Tdi are quoted as being about 24 BAR, good condition is anything above 20... So is my US Instruments gauge reading really inaccurate? It looks pretty decently made? Or do I have very high compression readings, we will try and test it on a mates 200TDi and see what readings we get. Thanks Kirby

I first installed some Hella H4 halogen inserts in place of the standard glowworm cannisters to my Series 2A and it made quite a difference. Once I read and understood the effect on voltage drop on bulb output (.5 of a volt drop = a MAJOR drop in output, as bulbs reach their stated output not at 12 V but at about 13.8 to 14 Volts when your alternator is running) Trust me if you measure the voltage at the lights you'll see that the relay installation is well worth it. I then did the relay conversion last year and the difference is remarkable. The lights are MUCH brighter and more effective. It really helped. Light is bright and strong, now if only the adjusters weren't shot I could aim them somewhere useful! Go for it, if you need lights you won't regret it. Kirby

Hey Nige, Your story is one of the inspirations behind my project, so this is partially your fault! I do intend to do some vaguely scientific tests... before and after 0-100 (km/h!!!!) and real world drive tests etc! I'm sure there are some head banging and scratching evenings / weekend ahead. Warmed up for this by DIY installing a LPG fumigation kit in my 300 TDi, and that goes well! Regards Kirby

Hey Dave, I see MS2 can do the direct control and looking at all the wiring on the EDIS module, I might well go that route. If so I'll save the EDIS for a mates landy and a megajolt conversion. (Oh good another project.....) Quite a few people have commented that just the quality of the EDIS spark and eliminating the vagaries of the Lucas dizzy can make a huuuge difference to how these 2.25's run. The very vague plan is to convert spark first and get her running and then to shotput the carb and start squirting. simple no?!

Hi Tony, We are not space pioneers, as one or two have completed MS projects on the 2.25, but they are so few and far between we are definitely at the "thin edge of the wedge" Which makes setting up the air/fuel and spark advance tables all the more entertaining... hence the cash spent on a good O2 sensor! We'll definitely be in touch! K

Ta for that, I found them on the interweb via google , just wanted to see if anyone else did it to compare pricing.... When 1 pound is worth 14.5 of my dollars it sometimes pays to shop around.... K

Theres been a lot of talk, but not much action on this topic, so to stop Fridgefreezers continuous prodding here goes! Fridge & other illustrious MS convertees I've followed your Megasquirt V8 chronicles with both interest & humility. you're about to hear a lot more from me in the coming weeks..... Backgound: Here in Namiba, Africa a much worked on 88" Series 2 A with... A 2.25 5 main bearing rebuilt and rebored to a 0.4" so now a 2.32 give or take K&N filter ported head and intake manifold branched exhaust manifold big bore exhaust with single free flow box 2.5 Camshaft Problem: V8 like fuel consumption without the go! Weber 34ch not really giving greatest performance or economy... Solution : Megasquirt the old dear...unfortunately not an off the shelf solution in the local shops. I've gone crosseyed sitting up on ebay and right now from around the world a vast array of Efi parts are winging their way to Africa... my local post office are in for a surprise! My Visa card is tired... The following bits have arrived: GM (Vauxhall) Single Point Throttle Body Injector (Includes injector, fuel pressure regulator, Throttle Butterfly, Thottle position sensor, Stepper Idler Valve and various MAP take off points. Plastic intake hood for the TBI above ( this fits properly and helps eliminate leaks) Ford EDIS ignition module, trigger wheel, vr sensor, coilpack & leads (this seems the most reputable ignition system available) A crash sensor (thrown in free with the EDIS, cuts power to FI high pressure pump in the event of a shunt) I have the following on its way: Megasquirt 2 V3 (MS 2 necessary for Idler Stepper motor) MS Relayboard ( To tidy up the engine bay wiring, and protedt MS from me! Good idea on a car thatdid not have EFI previously) Stimulator to test the MS (I'm a long way from expert help!) Wniversal Wiring Harness (to ABC ... 123 the whole process a bit) Other wiring bits for MS (tuning cables for laptop, link to relay board) Swirl Pot (Needed to ensure fuel supply as series tanks have no baffles,and off road angles can cause starvation) Bosch Fuel Pump (High Pressure Type, model no later) Various GM sensors & connectors (air temp, coolant temp) Innovate Wideband O2 sensor & gauge (wideband allows more accurate & continous improvements to the fuel / air mix. Some other bits i'm sure seemed necessary at the time, will add to this list later. So I researching the MS side of it, and some of the diagrams and explanations seem quite sensible and doable but it does elevate into some serious geek speak which I'm still deciphering. I'm organising some brackets and things and will try and post info / pics of the build as I progress / kick things around in frustration. There will be some special connections for the throttle and the fuel system, but let see how we go. I'm especially excited by the fit of the injector body, its butterfly throat mimics the existing manifold aperture near perfectly so the low down torque should be retained without dumping excessive fuel. till later Regards Kirby

Hi, Looking for a supplier, preferably online who fabricates harnesses for series vehicles, more specifically for a Series 3 2 1/4 diesel. Any leads appreciated. The previous owner prior to my mates rebuild had wired in all sorts of rubbish including some 220 V plug boxes Sitting in deepest Africa, I don't fancy buying a few miles of coloured wire and starting from scratch Thanks Kirby