A20 GTX - BRM152 2-litre GTX - long term affair

[GTXTRA]

A day of pottering and tweeking further.

And a 45 minute blast too..........

[GTXTRA]

More cleaning up and tweaking - it's been a good weekend on the BRM, coming together nicely.

Quite like the interim wheel look......








Seats need some more work

[GTXTRA]

Well, not quite the big summer of taking the old, refreshed BRM to all the shows.

Need to get another weekend or two of cleaning up the engine and genral running gear - a wire brush or two plus some satin black - and solve the issue of the speedo drive getting chewed up. Hopefully NOT a gearbox rebuild.

Then decisions re seat material.................

Then a set of 7 x 15 RA's needs to be refurbed and she'll be finished in time, hopefully, for Inters 2015, 25 years after I took the original chassis to Inters '90 at TRL and, scarily, 10 years after the crash that trashed it.

[bengould]

Inters 2005???
Have you turned it into a delorean? Lol.

Ben.

[GTXTRA]

Inters 2005???
Have you turned it into a delorean? Lol.

Ben.

Noted.

[GTXTRA]

An increasingly heavy clutch...................yes it can happen to anybody.



One thing I overlooked and then forgot about after the 2005 re-shell.

Got the Golf Mk1 repair panel and cut it accordingly - I know the engineering purists will laugh at my Tommy Dickfingers skills but it'll do for now until I can get properly patched up in the warmer weather. Had a spare correct length clutch cable too and seems to be bang on correct adjustment wise.



Might take the long route to the jet wash tomorrow morning - Beast is still wearing it's pre-Xmas coat of salty road grime.............

[GTXTRA]

Mot - check
Bulkhead welded - check
New speedo cable and speedo gear sorted - check.

[GTXTRA]

BRM had a week with Tim and Paul at the Phirm recently.
Again, with employment a bit more stable I was able to get it properly serviced and also - yes you read it here first - raised the suspension. With the autotech z bar the coilies had been set just a little bit too low and now set up as per the GTL all round. Much better.

Underside and bits of running gear need some time, overdue, with the wire brushes and paint spent on it. Also, the main shift rod c/w detent bolt not in the first flush of youth.

Aside from a possibly dribbling injector - based on how it starts but hopefully a clean and blow through will sort - it's just the gearshift and hidden cosmetics needed on this one now...........could be time for those 7x15 RA's to make an appearance...........

25 years on from the original BRM engine conversion and 11 years on from the reshell...... this old car may even get to a event this season.........

[GTXTRA]

Dropped the BRM down to Tim and Paul at the Phirm today.

New clutch time - this is the original one last seen when BRM fitted a 210mm 16v pressure plate back in 1991 @30k miles during the engine conversion. 25 years and 65k miles (with several periods of almost zero use) later it's all a bit awkward compared to the much sweeter and also original one in the Scala.

In good company - Pauls Mk2 Golf with the first, at the time, TFSI conversion.

[GTXTRA]

Took the long way back from the Phirm today - the new clutch, Neuspeed short shift and weighted rod, refreshed rods, every suspension component retorqued and cleaned/new seals injectors made for a great blast back.

Flywheel needed skimming............. just in time re the clutch!


New input shaft seals fitted too plus inner cv joints regreased.

Started motor failed whilst down there - it was the original one from the December 86 built original car so it's more than done it's duty - ditto for the heater matrix; a whiff of coolant and gaugues steaming up so thought best to get done.

Also - dropped these off for refurb this morning. The 7x15 RA's should be on for Bromley Pageant............



The two GTX's together this afternoon at the Phirm.

[GTXTRA]

So, all sorted mechanically.
Just the final tweak - and a homage to the original car and those early GTI Internationals at TRL where I bought the BBS RA's in 1990.








Lepsons did these - I'm thrilled with the job they've done tbh.

I'll need to get used to cleaning a set of these again though............ worth it.

[GTXTRA]

11 years after the reshell it was great to get the BRM along to the NATIONAL for the first time.




Just spent the day prepping the old girl for her E38 debut - there's usually enough older retro metal there amongst the modern stuff thankfully.

[GTXTRA]

It's all about the stickers.

[GTXTRA]

To supplement the new clutch from last year I've recently refreshed the entire linkage/clutch release bearing/push rod shaft and had a gearbox oil change as part of a major service - again at the Phirm.

A delight to hustle this old beast along - took to Goodwood and Bromley too recently. Likely National Meet again.

[GTXTRA]

So - collected the BRM from the Phirm today.

Had been curious to see how the engine was looking after 60kmiles and 26 years since the conversion - and after the dissolving cylinder head on the Scala a couple of years back.

Happy to report- head in good fettle, new valve seals fitted, bottom end sound, oil pump and water pump sound. g60 head gasket fitted.

Going well. Needs a serious clean in light of shite weather here this weekend.