What have you done to your car today?

Like the colour and wheel combo! ^
What model is it?

It's a Seat Toledo I-Tech in Ocean Blue, wheels are Titanium Silver I believe :).

I'm so glad I got one in this colour, wouldn't have it any other way. I'll have to get a nicer picture now I've properly done the wheels too, they shine lovely.

Spent most of yesterday washing, claying, sealing and then going over with sonax detailer following the advice of a forum member, brilliant stuff!
 
Had a go at replacing my serpentine belt today, slightly put off by the fact that one of the spindles is stiff, I'm not sure what that specific one is but they all spin nicely and silently except that one, seems like its seized which would be why it ate the last belt - Just wish I knew what the spindle was for, think it's possibly power steering :/
 
Had a go at replacing my serpentine belt today, slightly put off by the fact that one of the spindles is stiff, I'm not sure what that specific one is but they all spin nicely and silently except that one, seems like its seized which would be why it ate the last belt - Just wish I knew what the spindle was for, think it's possibly power steering :/

What car?

E: Can you grab a photo of the engine (or an internet pic) and point to the stiff pulley?
 
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http://s1.hubimg.com/u/5313818_f520.jpg

Its a Toyota Celica 1zzfe I think the engine is, it's the middle ribbed spindle on the bottom row.

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Going clockwise from the top right that's:
Alternator
Pas (possibly)
AC compressor
Crankshaft
Tensioner pulley
Water pump


The crankshaft will be rather stiff to turn by hand without a spanner/breaker bar. :p

E: My list is wrong.

11408-11548-full-toyota-mr2-zzw30-1800i-roadster-vvti-belt-layouts-729.jpg
 
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That's good news :D I got a bit worried then, thank you :)

I know this is probably a how long is a peice of string question but how much give in the belt should I get from pulling on the tensioner? I'm only really getting it to move around 1 inch and I still have a whole spindle to clear, should it move more than that? Think I should buy myself a Haynes...
 
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Thanks for all the info you're a star! I'm totally wimping out on this though, just doesn't move enough for me, the belt is already pretty tight without being over the water pump and alternator, measuring it against the old belt doesn't really help because its mangled so I possibly might have the wrong belt (non -AC vers) even though I specifically bought the AC version from ECP.

A mechanic has quoted me 20quid to put it on if I can get it towed to his garage, think I'll go for that :(

Edit: it's just dawned on me my AC has never really worked, I always assumed it was because it needed re-gasing, is it possible it didn't have the correct belt on it in the first place? I'm pretty sure it'd all fit nicely if it wasn't over the AC spindle...

Double edit: had another go, allllllllmost on, just can't get enough purchase on the tensioner, ah well I tried! :p
 
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That at the bottom Hilltop? How'd you manage to get it there? I saw a Radical in front of me spin at the second corner of the chicane there and lose a wheel!

Yeah that's the spot.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...131021073136!Oulton_Park_Circuit_Map_2013.svg

On this map it was the chicane at point 10, the track was drying out but this corner was greasy all day, turned in with a bit too much enthusiasm and lost the back end, car kept rotating and I went off sideways...quite scary as I felt the wheels dig in at one point.

Will try and get the onboard footage this week :D
 
As many know, the S2000 comes in GT or Roadster, the GT benefits from having a hardtop. To convert a Roadster to have a hardtop isn't just as simple as buying a hard top and putting it on, there's a few things you need to buy/do which aren't as cheap as you'd hope.

  • Hardtop itself, typically around £600
  • Fitting kit, I paid £300
  • Bolts for the fitting kit, I don't think the ones already on the car work
  • Wiring loom for the rear screen (I don't have it)

On top of this there are a few bits of trim you either need to change or cut. I decided on cutting mine as when I come to sell the car I preferably want to sell it with the hardtop included.

I wasn't sure on how to do it, but without reading any guides I set upon having a go myself. How hard could it be I thought.

I fitted the kit to one side to have an idea of how it sits and what I needed to cut.

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With the trim back in place you can see where it would foul the hole for the bolt on the hardtop. In addition, due to the way the mounting kit sits, it blocks the trim from being put back on correctly.

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It's pretty easy to spot what needs cutting:

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I needed to get a new tool to allow me to cut the standard trim, this will do nicely:

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Let's get that trim chopped:

tvibJ1n.jpg

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Test fitting, pretty much got the cut right the first time. I didn't fancy spending too much time cleaning it all up on the edges as it's well out of sight when on the car. Looking at the pics though I may get some sandpaper and tidy it up one day.

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The passenger side has part of the loom for the heated screen so I had to chop a little more off:

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How it looks all back together:

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IMG_0472.jpg
 
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