Meriva Cat D salvage project....

[pas-chill]

I have the correct driveshafts for this. They're from a low mileage Meriva VXR. I also have the complete braking system with front and rear hubs. And some of the mounts for the M32 into the Meriva. Basically all you need!

[joff-turbo-nova]

I have the correct driveshafts for this. They're from a low mileage Meriva VXR. I also have the complete braking system with front and rear hubs. And some of the mounts for the M32 into the Meriva. Basically all you need!

I've emailed you - Cheers !

[joff-turbo-nova]

This box was waiting for me when I got home last night which had come from Evans Halshaw in Newport ....



Out came a top gasket and seal set ....



Next were these bubble wrap blue things.....



Turns out to be a set of Meriva VXR caliper carriers so I can fit the 308mm brakes from the Astra (the discs and pads were brand new!)....



Next up was a new turbo fitting kit....



And finally one Z20LEH (Astra VXR) turbo brand spanking new .....




I also ordered off ebay a valve clamp as well so I can get the valves in and out of the head when I pull it off the block .....



I'm sure more stuff will come soon - Christmas all over again !

Joff

[AJBek]

looks really good mate, will be watching this build with interest.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Update..

I sourced a 5k miles alternator from an Astra VXR. What I didn't know is that the pulley has a different depth than the Z20LET one. The brackets sit the alternator 1/2 inch further in to accommodate this.



I therefore picked up today the correct brackets so it should all fit on the Z20LET block.



Its also a higher rated one than the Z20LET at 120A...



I got a Cdti airbox a few weeks ago - brand new from Autovaux. Its a shame I didn't measure up properly before ordering as its far to big to fit in the space behind the meriva headlight (its going up for sale soon!)....



I therefore bought this off ebay last week, a Pipercross filter which I will hook up to an induction hose which should be effective at keeping the heat out of the induction tract.....





And talking of the induction tract I sourced a flow meter to turbo kit last month ....



And also a Courtenay kit for the top hat and a metal side pipe .....



I've also had word that I may have access to some Meriva VXR shafts and CV's so watch this space!

Lastly, these arrived today from a firm in the West Midlands ... a nice set of Timken bearings for an M32 box. Will do a "how to" on changing these bearings when I get round to working on the box.



Enjoy!

Joff

[M Beirne]

This is going to be sweet, will be keeping a eye on this.

[rc]

good work, cracking on with thus now

[joff-turbo-nova]

I got hold of a "balancer shaft deletion kit" last weekend , which is basically a girdle and oil pick up pipe from a Vectra or Astra X20XEV engine.

These were pretty caked in muck so I set too with the gunk and RTF and soon had them cleaned up.



There seems two schools of thought about getting rid of the balancer shafts mainly to do with engine harmonics. The Z20LEH engine doesn't have them as they run dual mass flywheels which does a similar job.

Therefore as I will running a dual mass I thought it would be better to get rid of the balancer shafts, which weigh a hefty amount (about 9 kg I thing) and they do sap a little of the engine power!

I also trail fitted the Z20LEH alternator on the revised brackets and it all seems to sit fine . I didn't order the straight flat bracket at the back by mistake , but lengthened the bolt holes at each end and everything seems to sit where it should.



Joff

[saabturbonova]

i wouldnt use a dual mass, they have a habit of falling apart easily.

[joff-turbo-nova]

Update...

Another box rolled up today ....



It contained a nice shiney intercooler........



And a dual mass flywheel, clutch and cover plate from a 15k VXR engine .....



There is a little bit of surface rust where it has got slightly wet, but nothing a bit of sanding won't fix !



Joff

[Alex.r]

Looking good mate. Will be really interested to see the 'how to' thread on the gearbox bearings when you get round to it!

[joff-turbo-nova]

Update,

Upgraded the brakes today and have also done a "How to" on brake caliper refurbishment, here is the main text and pics to save you swapping threads :-

Right first off - I started with a set of cruddy 308mm Astra G calipers. Fortunately the calipers had brand new pads and the vehicle had brand new discs so it was just the condition of the calipers that concerned me.





So I stripped down the calipers to the various components and gave them a wish with a flapper disc in my grinder, and also a going over with a wire wheel attachment in my drill . I then soaked them in my tub of vinegar for a few days to clean them up a bit and this was the results :-







If you have access to media blasting equipment (I don't) then you may get even better results!

I then used some silver smooth Hammerite and gave the components a couple of even coats.







I then purchased a rebuild kit of Ebay for about £22 which I thought was good value - the parts from Vauxhall are about four times this !





I then set about rebuilding the calipers. The slider bolts live in two rubber housing at each side of the piston, these just need pressing through. There is a rubber seal within the piston housing about 1/4 from the top, this needs replacing and then the piston dust seal needs putting on.







Next job is jack the car up and put the axle stands underneath for safety.



And start removing the standard 280mm brake cailpers and discs ...



First job is to clamp the brake hose so you do not lose all the brake fluid out ...





Continued below ..

[joff-turbo-nova]

Then undo the two retaining bolts with a E18 torx socket...




And remove the calliper. The disc can now be removed, if it has one fitted remove the bolt with an allen key/allen key socket .

Once off you should be left with something like this …



This flange is only 2 years old and is already rusty. Vauxhall do not coat these with anything from the factory so the discs tend to rust to the flanges and become solid.

I cleaned mine up and put a thin coat of copper grease on the face to eliminate future problems should I need to remove the disc in the future …



Next up is put the new 308mm disc on and bolt up the centre bolt with an allen key again. Then put the calliper carrier in place. At this point I found that the Astra G calliper carriers are the wrong shape and will not fit up against the hub. The solution for a corsa C / Meriva hub is a set of calliper carriers off a Meriva VXR which I sourced new for £48 each ….



The put the pads in , using a thin layer of copper grease on the backs of the pads to stop brake squeal …



And then put the calliper onto the carrier and tighten up the slider bolts onto the carrier ….



Reattach the brake hose and bleed the brakes with either a pressure bleed system , or an assistant pumping the pedal.




Put the wheels back on. And here is proof 308mm discs fit under 16” Vauxhall alloys ….




Full "How To" is here :- How To - brake calliper refurbishment


Joff

[Astra Dan]

Good stuff. But if your car had only done 5k why not just retain your original calipers?

[joff-turbo-nova]

Good stuff. But if your car had only done 5k why not just retain your original calipers?

I didn't realise that the same callipers are fitted to the 280mm stuff as well as the 308mm discs . I only realised when I pulled the old callipers off and noticed the ATE reference number was the same ! You live and learn !! The refurbed calipers are as good as new now so they got slapped on ! The meriva has just clicked through 10k now as well !

Joff

[Astra Dan]

Ah roight. Carry on!

[joff-turbo-nova]

Quick update from yesterday :-

Got my engine stand out - never actually had need for it till now ....




No instructions , but hey instructions are for wimps ......



Engine rolled out ready for the crane .....



Needed to get the flywheel off before I mounted it to the engine stand. Made a little flywheel jam from a bit of spare steel plate. Not exactly pretty but did the job .....




Then got the engine mounted on the stand ready for some stripping action .....



Started stripping the head last night .....




Its been used and abused this engine and its somewhat caked up. This is the top breather.......



And this is into the exhaust ports .....





I wonder what's lurking inside !!!! It runs without any clattering or undue noise so I suspect its just rather tired and coked up inside.

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

A bit more stripping done tonight ....





The cams look in good condition , I was getting a bit worried when I saw the state of the breather yesterday !!!



Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

More bits arrived in the post today....

Paint for the block....



Restrictor bolt for the oil line to the turbo.....



New thermostat, which is an 82 degrees cool one ....





Got the old thermostat housing out and changed out the old ....




For the new ....



Also got a brand new GM Bosch airflow meter for £41 off the bay last week - less than an aftermarket cheap one .....



Busy on the nova over the next few days pulling the turbo off so nothing much will happen on this for a while.

Cheers

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

More boxes arrived today ....

Some nice gauges care of a chap on VXRonline - not cheap ones , but look really nice...



Went for boost, oil pressue and oil temp.

This how they look installed in a bespoke astra dash, I'm putting my in a 3 gauge pillar pod....



Lots and lots of nice new hoses from Roose ....



And finally an Astra VXR gearstick which works with the M32 gearshift pattern....





May get a play with the engine on Saturday ....

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Been a busy day today, took a trip down to the VBOA parts day to meet up with a couple of chaps who did me some excellent deals.

First off was my ebay purchase from last week .... a full Meriva VXR interior








Next up was a variety of driveshafts (Meriva VXR ones included) , cv's flanges, gearbox mounts and a set of coilovers for both a corsa C and Astra G from my newest best friend Paschal from on here.






Just about managed to get everything in the car. I then went for a wander round the VBOA stuff, not really that much stuff that I was interested in , and nothing that I needed.

Just bought a couple of funnels for the garage lollollollollollollol

Cheers

Joff

[joff-turbo-nova]

Had chance for a quick session this morning before the rain set in ....

Got the tools out ready for getting the front seat out .....



Sods law one of the torx bolts decided to round off , which was handy . Out with the MIG welder and a 13mm nut sorted it out ....



Needed to sort the wiring out under the seat and swap over the pre tensioners and then bolted the VXR seat in.....



The clouds started gathering so I quickly fitted the switches for the heat pads and put two 15A fuses in slots 38 and 39 and tested the heating....




Toastie ar$e was the result !

Need some better weather for the other side and the rears!

Joff

[johnsastra16v]

seats look great.

did you have wiring under the seat ready there?

[joff-turbo-nova]

seats look great.

did you have wiring under the seat ready there?

Yes the wiring was already in situ which makes a change from the other electrics on the car!

Joff

[johnsastra16v]

thats a bonus then. mine didnt have any wiring under the seats. so now ive got to make a loom up to get the electric height adjustment working. are the VXR seats electric too or just heated?