Dave's 1993 Cavalier 4x4 Turbo - The Never Ending Story...

[Grant_nova]

cheer's for the good read pal, good to see your keeping going!

[Add_Gee]

A great read, one loved Cav

[Turbodave]

Thanks chaps.

Rather ashamed to say nothing has progressed over the past few weeks however in my defence I have been busy keeping the extended fleet on the road. More so the Cavalier SRi which I bought about three years ago, ran for 6 months then donated to my sister who promptly buggered off to the south coast of England to live and work. Having got it through an MOT last year (when I was in Bath) this year I faced the same task so cue a 600 mile drive north and an Easyjet flight back, and I now have the Cavalier back in Fife. It's been MOT's (neded a wee patch and a bush) and this evening it's been poppd in the unit ahead of a little TLC session. Basically, bringing it back up to scratch before it's delivered back to the south coast. So that, plus the small matter of moving house has slowed the Turbo progress down!

That said and done, I've promised I'm spending all day up the unit tomorrow... so if there's not some degree of progress made... well, I hang my head in shame.

Cheers

[cd-design]

Very Nice vectra C20let (cavalier). No bull****, just a stock looking car. I hope to own one once....


Keep up the nice work, greetings from the Netherlands.

[_Joycey_]

Great thread mate

[TurboRix]

An excellent thread Dave. I've always enjoyed reading about your Cavalier turbo. I have to say OUF is one of my favourite Cavalier turbos and I'm looking forward to more updates in the future.

[Turbodave]

Bit of an update...

Since the last one, things have been a bit interesting to say the least. Having moved house and pretty much got that side of things sorted, the next task was to get the SRi delivered back down to Sussex to my sister. The plan was to drive to London, meet her then fly back north but with a matter of days till the off she decided she wanted to buy herself a newer car. Makes sense as the Cavalier, although decent... is just too old to run daily through winter, especially 600 miles from home. So, she got the bus up and was all set to buy an Astra Coupe locally. For various reasons, that fell through so with two days until she was due to go back south, I found myself on Pistonheads then off to Liverpool the following morning to pick up a 2003 1.8 16v Coupe. From Liverpool it came 300 miles north and spent the next day in the unit getting a full service kit, thermostat, coolant change, brakes stripped and cleaned and the 17" alloys swapped. The next again day, it was 600 miles south to Sussex via Bristol. Job done.

That meant she now has a newer/more reliable/easier to fix car to run and it meant I had the Cavalier sat up here and no real use for it. So, deciding I didn't really want to sell it I cleared out the garage at the new house, gave it a proper clean and attended to a few minor niggles then declared it SORN and stuck it in the garage where it'll stay for the forseeable future. Once the Turbo is done and on the road, it'll be going in the garage so the SRi will either need to be sold or I may put it in the unit and start playing with it. Either a full on restoration or perhaps go down the Turbo route. We shall see.



Turbo wise, again pretty much hee-haw has been done over the past few weeks due to the move, work and other cars taking prority but yesterday I headed up to the unit full of great intentions. Due to a slight shift in logistics, there's currently no need for three spaces in the unit so rather than having two side by side longways and then one at the bottom (at the door) widthways, which wasn't the best for space/access... I figured turning it through 90deg would be a good idea as it'd give me more room to work plus would also give us a bigger space (ie half the floorspace) for doing drive in, drive out jobs. First task was to drag all the crap out from under the car and sort through it. Unfortunately, a few of the metal components have started to show signs of surface rust (or rust dusting) so I'll need to strip them all back, treat them and repaint them before they get refitted.

That done and all the parts sorted into piles to be refurbished, next task was to turn the car round. The first attempt using a dolly didn't work so plan B was the engine crane and much sweating and swearing. Not something I'd recommend doing, I about **** myself and burst three blood vessels but it's done and now sat with it's arse up like some cheap tart awaiting the next step. Next step being to get back under the rear end and start taking it back to the bare metal, dealing with the rusty bits then treat it, prime it and underseal the lot. From there, need to start spending some cash and get bushes and front arms etc so I can get the rear subframe and front suspension fitted (once it's all be painted) and then I should be able to get it back on its wheels for the first time in about three years. From there, strip the remaining parts from the engine bay then paint it then refit what I can (again, all refurbished) and then start on the engine and running gear. The plan as it stands is to use the "spare" LET from the old daily driver along with this cars original F28 box, my VTS locked transfer box and a refurbished propshaft. All going to plan, it should start and drive which should make getting it into the paintshop a damn sight easier.



No planned completion date as of yet, but quite tempted by Opel treffen in Dronten in April... no pressure!

Cheers

[Turbodave]

Sheesh, nothing for weeks then two updates in one day.

Seems the project will be back on track and gathering pace rather quickly this week as BennyMac has managed to pull some strings and as a result all the metal parts will be going off to be shot blasted tomorrow. they were done previously but in my haste to get paint on them, they've reacted in a few places (not helped by being sat in a cold unit for months) so it was my intention to rub them all back, but this way will save muchos effort. Hopefully get it all back this week so I can get it treated, primed and then painted and hopefully all built up for the weekend. Proper chuffed!

Also, another couple of pictures... looking a bit sorry for itself!





Cheers

[Todi-Corsa]

nice update :thumb

[Turbodave]

Thanks chap. Another quick update...

As said, Benny has managed to pull a few strings and has arranged for several tons of metal to go off and be shot blasted. Most of it was done earlier int he year however in my haste to get it painted, I didn't clean/dry/prepare the surfaces that brilliantly and as a result it's started to corrode and blister in certain areas. So, this time the guys are going to shot blast it only then I'll bring it back and do some more prep work before any paint goes near it. Plus, I'll refrain from leaving it all lying about the unit, this time I'll get it blasted and painted then build up as much as I can then bag and tag it all and store it somewhere dry until it's needed.

Couple of random images from this morning's efforts...







Should hopefully have it all back tomorrow, so going to be a busy weekend. On that note, best go do some work...

Cheers

[Turbodave]

Got everything back after a matter of hours and then figured the back of the car wasn't the best place to leave the bits so headed to the unit and also took the opperchancity to lay everything out and see what's what. Also discovered there's a grommit in each end of the main cradle so I can remove it and pump some Waxoyl in which should help it last more than a week and a half!

Anyways, a picture tells a thousand words...


Back cradle/thing which has been primed in black along with the rear arms by the chaps at the blasting place.


Assorted bits in bare metal. They've all since been sealed in bags or cling film and wrapped in sheets and boxed up however I'll need to get primer on them asap.


Rear cradle, arms and diff hanger bar type thing


One of the tank straps which I've primed already and is currently drying. Only did this as a test bed to a) see how the paint takes b) how the paint drys and c) if there's any reactions etc over the next couple of days. Better to test on a bit like this than paint the lot and discover it's no use!

Again, big thanks to Benny for sorting this all out. Hi-5!

[Turbodave]

Spent last night and this morning debating how to paint the bits and in the end, ended up suitably confused so opted for the KISS theory (keep it simple son) and this morning set about getting some paint on the bare metal parts. First, 'borrowed' the gazebo from the garage and set it up in the unit as a rudamentary spray booth, heated by a couple of infa-red heaters liberated from my Mum's house. On that basis, this may be the last update... been nice knowing you all.

Having ensured there was no old paint of any corrosion on any of the parts, I wiped them all down with paintshop spec degreaser and then gave them a coat of Halfrauds grey primer. There's probably a million products better suited the task, but that's what I had so that's what I used. Having knocked up a couple of drying racks, I was going to call it quits for the day until I found a tin of Car Plan gloss black and some VHT silver. So thought "what the hell" and painted a couple of bits, more as a test and also to see what the colour and finish were like.

The Car Plan paint is crap, it's like water and as a result just ran off so the bits I've painted will need a rub don with Scotchbrite and repainted ith something a little more suitable. The VHT silver was good stufff though perhaps a little too silver for what I want. So far I've painted the alternator bracket and the transfer box bracket but not convinced, bit too shiny. So again, probably key these and respray them in something a little less bling!

Anyhoo, couple of random shots from today. Apologies for the quality, tried three cameras and none are particulary happy with the low light condition...



Selection of the bits. Pretty much all will be gloss black aside for the brackets for the transfer box, alternator and the front engine mount which will be silver/grey.


ABS bracket, caliper carriers and some other random bracket painted with Car Plan gloss black which was like water, seemed to go on far too thick and splattery hence the drips. These will be redone!



Alternator and transfer box painted in VHT silver, probably a bit too bling so again these will be redone.


Springs... undecided on colour. Had thought bright red but that's perhaps too bling so I fancy anthracite. There's some random Vauxhall colours up the unit, Moonstone and Diamond Black so one of those may do.

As for the top coat, I had planne don leaving them in primer for a while until they're going back on the car but a) they'll get dirty and b) I'm impatient. So, tomorrow going to carry on and get as much done in gloss black/silver/grey/red/anthracite as possible. Unsure on what's best to use, but given it's taken four large cans of primer just to do the bits here (excluding arms, cradle, diff etc) then I'm going to roll out the big guns. Literally. Seemingly, Smoothrite thinned down 20 - 30% can be sprayed through the gun and gives a really nice durable, gloss finish plus that way touch ups will be simples. So, that's the plan for the morning. Powder coating would have been best, or zinc coating, or a million other options but nothing ventured nothing gained.

[rc]

good progress

[Todi-Corsa]

good work, suprising how well bits can be cleaned up with a bit of work

[Adam]

I admire u Davey boyo

[Turbodave]

Having sat up until 2am last night debating what paint to use, I decided that Smoothrite wasn't the best option. Seems it dries ok but is prone to chipping easily, which on suspension parts isn't ideal. So, after another hour of research (not that sort of 'research' either) I sussed that Tetrosyl Chassis Paint is the daddy... based on numerous good reviews. So, this morning got up and rang the mate and within 20 minutes has 5l of Chassis Paint and 5l of thinners. Total cost, a shade under £40. Given how far a small amount goes, well worth the outlay and much more cost effective than arsehole cans.



It can be brush painted, but not a fan of that as it's messy and time consuming so a perfect excuse to fire up the compressor. I thinned the paint down 10 - 15% as per the data sheets but found it still a bit thick for the gravity gun, so found about 25% was ideal especially as the air tempertures were pretty low in the unit and the perts were quite cold too. For the purpose of measuring, I relieved the kitchen of a jug. She's not noticed. Yet.



First up, I used a foam sanding pad and gave all the primed parts (which had dried great with no reactions etc) then wiped them down thoroughly with Tetrosyl panel wipe and several clean rags.



Back in the rudamentary spray booth witht he parts worming in front of the infa-red heater, I set to it with the gun. After playing around with the pressure and the flow rates, found a happy medium (40 - 50PSi on the compressor and about half on the gun... whatever that means!) Felt not much paint was flowing however it was going on well with a cracking smooth, gloss finish. Plus, anymore and it'd end up flooding the prts so less was more. I just had to practise hard at being patient!

Rear cradle...


Auxiliary drive belt tensioner, still on it's mount (lazy, yeah... I know!)


One of the front hub/struts. There's some primer showing around the bearing but I avoided this area with the gun to save getting paint where I don't want it. I'll touch parts like this in with a brush once they've dried out fully.


Front driveshafts...


Engine mount, strut top caps, couple of random brackets and the transfer box mount... which is silver and still not really growing on me!


Everything else is done however I avoided taking pictures of everything... a) it's not very exciting and b) the camera is ****e given the light conditions and I was getting fed up playing around with the settings. With that all done, I cleaned the gun with thinners and had a tidy up then hung everything up to dry overnight... or evening into next week just to be sure.

Lastly, the springs. I'd debated what colour to do them. They were red original but that's a bit garish and against the black, dunno if it'd look good. Bit like one of those goth types wearing red lipstick. I opted to leave them be for now, then found some Vauxhall Moonland Grey lying around and thought "...why not..." so gave them a good coating inside, outside and upside down. Actually properly chuffed with the colour, not too in your face but will stand out in a sea of black! Plus, they're pretty close to Eibach's original colour.



And that's it for today. Tomorrow I'm heading back up for a couple of hours, probably strip/mask the rear trailing arms which still have the hubs and shafts in place (...becasue the rear hubs are a git to strip!) and get some paint on them. Also going to powerwash the front subframe, degrease it and then paint it too along with the radiator fan housing and that should be it for paint for the time being.

Assuming the paint has dried enough to handle, I'll be able to build up the front struts as the Bilstein inserts, new top mounts and bearings are all there and waiting. I'll leave the rear until next weekend as I need to strip and paint the diff and also replace the gasket, plus the arms will still be wet. If time allows and she's not nipping my head to go shopping... which I doubt as she's bound to realise about the dishwasher, gazebo, heaters and measuring jug soon... I may carry on riding my wave on enthusiasm and disappear under the rear end and try and get it ready for next weekend.

Apologies for the long winded update...!

Cheers

[Melv]

Good update Dave.

[Todi-Corsa]

nice update like the Moonland Grey on the springs

[Turbodave]

Cheers chaps.

It was Moonland Grey or high build filler primer... lol!

[dearing5]

mate you gone mad with this!!

worst bit for me was painting this sorta **** lol gets boring!!

[Murray]

That some effort put in already.

Can't wait to see the finished product .

SRi looks pretty clean too. Should be worth a 'freshen up' too.

[Turbodave]

Thanks gents

Had hoped to have a bit more done today but a hangover has stopped play. Not even a bacon roll and a builders tea have sorted the issue out.

As for the SRi, it's actually pretty mint underneath too. I'll not be strting anything on this until the new year. For the time being it's dry and in the garage. Out of sight, out of mind and all that!

Cheers

[Turbodave]

First chance I've had to get back up the unit as I've been a bit preoccupied doing a 5 stud conversion on a mate's Astravan, however found some time this evening to nip up and check the freshly painted parts and see if it could be deemed a success or not.

First up, the springs which were shot blasted, primed and painted Vauxhall Moonstone grey (because it was the only colour I had to hand) and thankfully they've turned out pretty good. Perhaps need a little flatten but I'm not aiming for concours here, just neat and tidy!



Thankfully the gloss black parts have also dried perfectly, actually quite impressed with my handiwork if I say so myself. I think I'll flatten some of the parts and give them all a second coat as there's a couple of runs and a couple of missed bits. But, given I wasn't working in the best light and the paint was going on rather quick... I'm happy enough!





Boxed everything up safely and had a tidy up as I won't be back up there until the weekend now (guess I should really do some work at some stage!) but before leaving, couldn't resist having a dig and poke around the chassis legs again and also buff back around the spring seat. Thankfully, all is well aside for some light pitting so I'll need to investigate the best product for converting or indeed killing rust.





Much more of this in the weeks to come as I need to get the chassis back to bare metal, treated and undersealed before I can fit the suspension. On the plus side, not only has the good lady not noticed that in the past week I've abused the dishwasher, ruined a measuring jug and liberated the gazebo... but she's also actively suggesting I spend more time up here. Or maybe she has noticed. Hmmm.

More to come over the weekend.

Cheers

[Cavalier-C20LET]

good progress dave , best rust treater ive used has to be jenolite , miles better than ku-rust, when you planing to have her ready ? 20-12 or 13

[Turbodave]

Sunday 19th February

Been a while, been distracted by Vectras and beers whilst also coming up with a new masterplan. I've now decided that finishing it for summer, whilst doable, is just too optimistic and so the plan is to run the Vectra for the next couple of months and get a few shows out of it whilst also carrying on with the Cavalier's running gear... ie, finish the chassis, fit all the suspension, lines and get the brakes done then get the engine and so on refitted and have it starting/driving by sort of August time... and then send it off to be painted.

So, on that basis I drew up a new list with the first being to have a reshuffle of the unit seeing as we've since added an E30 BMW to the collection of ongoing projects. One engine crane and much swearing and the car was relocated a meter further up meaning with some more shuffling and re-arranging of stuff, we're back to the three car capacity plus have managed to make the space a little more useable. Next, jacked it up as high as I dare in readiness for the next thing on the list.



Rear diff... bit of a head scratcher here as I always felt the diff on the car was rather tight and so I aquired another low mileage one from Dougie and set it aside to be fitted as and when the time came. To cut a long story short, I seem to have misplaced the one from Dougie but only realised that after spending an hour buffing down what turned out to be my original diff. We had a bit of a board meeting, drank some tea and decided that the diff wasn't that bad after all so sod it, it'll be going back on. Bring me the primer...





Still a work in progress, need to clean up the mounting faces and give the gears a good wash out, fit two new driveshaft oil seals and then give it a couple of coats of gloss black. Then, once I've painted the rear trailing arms to match I can get the rear subframe assembly put back together again and then, once the chassis is painted, get it all refitted.

Finally, one sad shot. If nothing else, it'll prompt me to get my finger out and get it buffed back, treated and painted this week...



Got a Vectra to bling up to show standard too and a Cavalier SRi that needs some attention or sold...