Just got back from servicing the puma ( Pics )

[Sam]

Hi There

Thought i would post some pictures of my day, been most intresting and most expensive so im in a funny mood. Happy that everything ( well nearly everything ) is 100% sweet but on the otherhand with my wallet being a wapping £900 lighter i feel a little "flushed"

Anyway heres what i had done

- Brake Refurb - Removed the calipers, stripped them down and gave them a good old clean, New seals and pistons were needed due to all 8 of the pistons being pitted badly ( The 4 pot Alcons in the FRP dont have dirt seals so need to be serviced ideally every few months ) Im going to learn how to do it myself as its quite simple.

- New Ford Racing Pads, had loads on the budget mintex pads but i found them to be crap so changed them for the more expensive Ford Racing spec pads, The diffrence is fantastic.

- Full Service including uprated plugs - Had a full service which oviousley included the normal bits and bobs , payed for uprated plugs - Denso Iridium allready have magnecor leads so thought i would finish it off.

- Brake Fluid Change - Castrol SRF Racing Brake Fluid , Completley overkill £59.99 for the brake fluid change + SRF but if i ever track it apprentley this stuff is the DADDY !

- Fanbelt change

- Diagnostics

Then i spent around £60 on loads of great megs gear to add to my little collection

On the Ramps

Up she go's

Scousers have nicked my wheels :\

 

[Sam]

New Pads - ooo luvly

Shiny refurbed brakes

Shiny refurbed brakes again

Being worked on

Problem is now i think the idle control valve has gone because as i was getting within 20 miles of my house it simply wouldent idle just kept stalling

I love this car, really flew to brum today the way it handles just dosent stop amazing me. Love it to bits and simply cannot wait to get it on the track sometime this year.

New Tyres on tuesday , 4 Eagle F1s

Hope you enjoyed my little write up

Sam

 

[Sam]

£142 on a service + £25 fo upgrade to the Denso Iridium plugs

£475 having the the calipers reconned ( 3 hours labour = 3 x 49.00 + 39.00 for 4 large pistons and £32.00 for the 4 small pistons then £60 odd for the seal kit ) In this package you also get your calipers painted but unfortantley i didnt have enough time so it will be done next time

£59.00 having the brake fluid flushed and filled with the best ( Normal stuff is £39.99 )

£100 on Ford Racing Pads

£60 on Megs Gear

The brakes were the killer , pumabuild are very reasonable but unfortantley Racing puma spares are very very expensive. A rear bumper will set you back £750 and then you have to prime and spray it

Its what you get owning a car where only 500 were made , spares are very limited and therefor very expensive.

Sam

 

[Sam]

Hey mate - did I see you driving through south london, s.circular to be specific today (sat) ? You got a tom tom in the corner of your window, right ? . . . . . am sure it was your plate I saw darting around. . . .

R

Mehul

YES !!!! was with muncher but had to come home because my cars broken Oh well wallet out again

 

[Sam]

Thanks for all the advice etc guys, the calipers have done 50k without a rebuild and should do another 50k without a problem as long as i simply remove the pads then give them a clean with some brake cleaner. A very simple job.

And to the people who keep saying ive been "done over" please read my above posts which breaks down the costs. Racing puma parts are expensive , you either buy them from ford , pumaspeed or pumabuild.

Im very happy with my car, and therefor i dont mind spending lots of money on it. I knew it would be expensive to maintain before i bought it

Sam

 

[Sam]

Hey mate - did I see you driving through south london, s.circular to be specific today (sat) ? You got a tom tom in the corner of your window, right ? . . . . . am sure it was your plate I saw darting around. . . .

R

Mehul

What were you driving btw, and where abouts did you see me. Where you doing the tunnel run too ?

 

[Sam]

I know you love your car and rightly so but although limited in numbers it isn't good enough in performance to warrant that level of exspense to maintain, especially as you will out grow it and want something faster pretty quickly.

Although for your age it is a pretty impressive car .

For not that much more than you paid I am looking at a 14" 4pot brake kit for my car on a group buy direct from the states (AP I think). I would have binned the standard calipers and bought some better ones with seals, might have cost more but it would have been cheaper in the long run.

Just spare a thought to the fact that all this money you are having to throw at an average performing car could be going towards buying an outstanding performing car in a few years time.

Man I thought I bought an exspensive car to service

Average peforming car ? I think you would have a little bit of a shock if you saw it being driven properley on track As i have said before 0-60 isnt everything and it seems its the only thing the FRP dosent offer. The package as a whole is what its all about. The Handling is just sublime the best handling FWD car ever made IMO. The Seats are just fantastic , the noise it makes is simply insane. Its a very rare car and it looks just stunning. Remember im 18 and insuring anything remotley quick is a real problem.

Muncher

£59.99 is to have the old stuff flushed out , the new stuff put in and oviousley it includes the fluid I just thought i might as well get the best hence why i got the densos.

Cheers Guys

Sam

 

[Sam]

Oh i looked at new brakes for it

Theres a 4 pot brembo kit which includes everything to get you going ( discs / pads / carriers etc ) but thats over £1000. I did think about that but

A. I wanted to keep my alcons and keep the car standard

B. The brakes are not that bad to maintain, just got to clean them myself which simply involves removing the pads and giving them a quick clean with brake cleaner.

Who ever said something about £475 every year , thats the first one and its 6 years old now.

 

[Sam]

Top Gear April 200

Sam

 

[Sam]

And a quite shockingly white face after today!

Come on guys leave off

Well at the next RR you guys can buy me my food and drinks because ill be skint

 

[Sam]

Looking good Sam, spent £900 myself at Pumaspeed on Friday so I know how your wallet feels

(Stalling problem probably is the idle control valve, been there as well )

Hi Fella

Its all worth it in the end tho By the summer the she will be running on fantastic tyres in 100% full health ready for the shows and meets etc.

This problem is going to be a nightmare mind you It could be the Hego / Idle Control Valve / Coil pack i really just DONT KNOW and im not sure ford will either. I hope they actually try to diagnose the problem rather than just wacking things on to try to eliminate the problem landing me with a MASSIVE bill lol.

 

[Sam]

Vaguely remember that article, what car won at the end?

1. Clio
2. Racing Puma
3. Integra

Clio won for its versatility and on road speed which i agree with. Ive been in cocos and evan tho it was like a lake and the roads were full of pot holes that thing held on like glue. The FRP and integra are not soo good due to having wider tyres and harder suspension ( more of a track set up )

I did actually look at a 172 cup but insurance was a big no no lol

Sam

 

[Sam]

Looking good, Sam. Are the chaps up in PB ok?

Sorry missed this, yes mate there fantastic did an amazing job and didnt mind me watching over everything they did asking about a million questions

SDK uses them too

Sam

 

[Sam]

Went a bit crazy with the megs stuff :\

 

[Sam]

Ofcourse we did mate

Sam

 

[Sam]

Front discs and pads for the Racing puma if done properley IE Alcon and Ford Racing stuff is

£218 each disc
£100 for a set of pads then what an hours labour so about

£640

Sam

 

[Sam]

But like I said earlier, that's an Impreza STi with 4 pot 320mm Brembos...

The brakes on the FRP are 4 pot 300 mm alcons So not much diffrence in it really

Sam