Paddy The Corolla - 1998 1.3 E11 3-Door

[oldcodger]

Do check the sumps face  is not distorted, its a common problem, even  Ed China found an oil leak was down to such distortion / over tightening etc, easily reworked if its steel, which  I expect yours is,  like mine.

[mickburkesnr]

Bit of a clown moment this evening, as I have the RTV stuff here delivered from Amazon and I went under the car to take off the bottom of the bell housing that's on the engine. I'm under there inspecting it, as the removal of the bell housing frees up the oil pan. It then occurs to me that, as I've got the gearbox out, I've got the engine suspended by a ratchet strap. Where does the strap go? Right over the oil sump!

So now I'm waiting for the main oil seal, that should be here in the next day or two. I'll be able to change that, then refit the gearbox which will then mean the engine's secure again, so I can drop the pan.

[mickburkesnr]

Ok so I've made some good movement on the Corolla over the weekend, and well since my last update.

I hit the ground running on Saturday morning, and I replaced the mail oil seal. Probably the easiest and most fulfilling job I've done on the car really. The old seal put up a bit of a fight to being removed, but the new one went in no bother. The Red 'n' Tacky grease certainly helps! This then meant that I could start to throw everything back on to the car again.

Before refitting, I gave the shield a lick of paint just to tidy it up looks wise. Here's the before:

And here's the after:

And here it is on the car, fitted in place:

The paint I used is an extreme heat spray paint by Hycote. They sell it in the Range. I bought it originally to tidy up the dust sheilds on the brakes. This is as black as it gets I'm afraid!

So at this point I'm ready to put the gearbox back on. We've been here before, but I never documented it really. Plus the ratchet straps I was using broke making it hard to get it back on the car with just the floor jack. This time I used a heavy duty ratchet strap (in yellow) and a smaller one, and the floor jack.

The plan was to ratchet it up as much as I could, then use the floor jack to support it, undo the strap and repeat the process. This bit didn't take too long, but mating it was certainly a problem. It just wouldn't go in. Eventually I stuck a wrench on the crank on the left of the engine, and with the other arm I levered the gearbox in to it. As soon as it was close enough I grabbed a bolt and tightened the gearbox to the engine, and then shoved a bolt in to the gearbox mount. The gearbox was now back on the car!

This then meant I could drop the oil pan. I took the oil out, and managed to get the pan off without too much of a battle.

The bottom of the engine doesn't look too bad, it's done over 110,00 miles. It's been well looked after.

I don't really know whether this has been off before, but there was no gasket just sealant which marries up with what I've seen and what's been said here.

Took an old/cheap sharp chisel to it, along with a green scouer with some paint thinner. And the old rock hard crusty sealant came off. This is about as good as I was going to get it:

At this point the weather turned and it started raining, but I didn't want to leave the car sumpless outside. So I rushed the next few steps, as in I didn't take photos of them! I checked for deformaties with a spirit level (as wood can be warped) and used a torch the other side of it to check for gaps. There was a gap, but it was uniform, so I assumed this is what it's meant to be like. So I gave it a quick clean with petrol, then brake cleaner, and then applied the RTV red sealant. Offered it up to the car, it took hold, screwed it in, and Roberts your mothers brother. Oil pan leak resolved, gearbox won't have to come off again (I hope!)

Since then the weather's been crap so I haven't been able to finish attaching the gearbox to the engine, but it's still being supported by the ratchet straps and the bolts that I fitted. If the weather is good when I get home tonight or tomorrow I'll finish attaching the gearbox to the engine. But from Thursday I'm away until the Sunday so it'd be Monday at the earliest before I touch it again.

Still, quite pleased with how it happened. Onwards and upwards.

 

[oldcodger]

Good work there Mick  

When I change my clutch I used one of these beams with chains to separately support  the engine and gearbox.

Though its supposed to put all the weight onto the wings wasn't happy with that so used the some upright wooden blocks onto the engine mounts and some more wood as it was too easy for the whole lot to slide forwards, otherwise it was a real godsend for just £40.

 

 

[mickburkesnr]

Yeah I remember that, although I didn't remember it when I went about it with the scaffolding pole 😂

I do need to invest in a hoist at the very least though, especially for the other car when I start work on it as the engine needs a rebuild.

Rained off yesterday, and most likely tonight, so I'll get back on this next week.

[tooSavvy]

The 'sealant track' profile - in a *perfect world - is to run inside of all the bolt holes punched through the sump tin pan.

I imagine the thinking is no oil passing freely into the bolt hole zone/potential leaking up threads....

A good old 'lashing it well on/thick' approach is more than enough**

**deffo how I would be doing it 🙂

 

GR8 going m8

 

2sav

[mickburkesnr]

3 hours ago, tooSavvy said:

The 'sealant track' profile - in a *perfect world - is to run inside of all the bolt holes punched through the sump tin pan.

I imagine the thinking is no oil passing freely into the bolt hole zone/potential leaking up threads....

A good old 'lashing it well on/thick' approach is more than enough**

**deffo how I would be doing it 🙂

 

GR8 going m8

 

2sav

The Haynes manual called for 5mm strip, but I MAY have applied more to the crankends as thats where the leaks were occuring. And totally right, forgot to mention that. The bead went around the nuts so that the bolts would be sealed from the oil, instead of the bolts being in the seal or in contact with the oil.

Bare in mind though if it goes on too thick, it'll ooze out both outside and inside the engine. By the time my engine sees any oil it'll be well dry, but the Toyota sealant takes about 5 minutes to go off but doesn't fully harden for a while after. So you run the risk of the sealant going around the innards of the engine blocking up oil channels.

[mickburkesnr]

This is a quickie, and I'll fill it in more detail later when I get chance, but I was rebuilding the brake master cylinder at the weekend. It all went fine until I put in the piston stop screw which promptly broke leaving it inside the cylinder. It's since been drilled out, although some of the bolt is still in the thread and it feels like something is catching in the barrel around that point. I'm going to take the cylinder to a machinist tomorrow hopefully, but in the meantime I am looking for a new brake master cylinder.

Mick's Garage (no relation, unfortunately) have one but it says it's for left hand drive cars even though I've given the number plate of my Corolla. Can I use the left hand drive version on my right hand drive car does anyone know?

[oldcodger]

Cannot answer your question, but these folk may have one that does fit RHD,  use them myself.

https://brakeparts.co.uk/

[mickburkesnr]

27 minutes ago, oldcodger said:

Cannot answer your question, but these folk may have one that does fit RHD,  use them myself.

https://brakeparts.co.uk/

Thanks for that. Gave them a quick check and they're out of stock on the brake master cylinder, plus it's listed for ABS models and not non-ABS which my one is.

I think it's just a case of where the pipes connect to it, they're going to be the other side of what the RHD one is. That's a pure guess at the moment though. I bought the one from Mick's Garage and it'll come tomorrow so I'll know then. I could be lucky, but I wouldn't hold my breath!

[mickburkesnr]

On 4/24/2019 at 2:08 PM, mickburkesnr said:

Thanks for that. Gave them a quick check and they're out of stock on the brake master cylinder, plus it's listed for ABS models and not non-ABS which my one is.

I think it's just a case of where the pipes connect to it, they're going to be the other side of what the RHD one is. That's a pure guess at the moment though. I bought the one from Mick's Garage and it'll come tomorrow so I'll know then. I could be lucky, but I wouldn't hold my breath!

As luck would have it, the part came this morning!

And it's the wrong one. The positions where the brake pipes go in to isn't an issue, like I could run new ones of them. But it's how it bolts on to the booster. The Aisin one that came off uses two bolts side by side. This one that came in has three in a triangle shape. So it's just completely useless, so it's going back.

So, this bit is a bit long winded. There's a chap I watch on YouTube called George and he has the Soup Classic Motoring channel. He's doing up a Range Rover at the moment and broke the windscreen, and it's a struggle to get parts for it in Ireland. Just so happened that the guy he's got to fit it sourced one up the road from me. He's already going to Wales at the weekend so I said - seeing as I'm a bit stuck on my own project so I'm at a lose end - I'd pick it up for him and bring it to him. Told him about the issues getting spares for the Corolla in the UK and that they're plentiful in Ireland, so he's going to source (or try at least) to get one over there. Which is brilliant really.

And, while I write this, I've found a master cylinder for a Carina E which looks the same as the master cylinder I have. It's fairly cheap too, £25, so I'm going to risk that incase George doesn't come up with anything.

[tooSavvy]

👍

Spreading the Lurve ... GR8

 

2sav

[mickburkesnr]

The Carina E's master cylinder turned up today. All looked promising, got home and the two bolts that connect it to the servo are narrower - by all of 8mm. The fact I had a bad day as well meant I was thoroughly fed up! So the Corolla is still missing some Carina love John!

Back on eBay again while I took stock of the situation. I don't think all of the broken screw is out of my current master cylinder, so I'm toying with the idea of bringing it to my old work place and asking them to drill and re-thread it. I'm also considering going to Mr.T as a last resort, that's even if I can get one from there!

eBay has been useless to be quite frankly. I have searched plenty of times for a brake master cylinder for the Corolla and it shows me all the ones that don't fit, and plenty for Land Cruisers and Rav4's that won't fit. In frustration I went on to Google and searched for "brake master cylinder upgrade toyota corolla e11". There was a link to Team Dynamics toyota corolla on the Irish eBay site. What do you think is the top listing on this? A brake master cylinder from a 1998 Toyota Corolla. It even gave the part number on the resevoir, which I checked against my current one. And they're a match! Where is the listening based? Leeds.

I went back to the UK eBay to look for this on the searches I was doing and I can't find it. The seller has put it in the right places, but whatever is going on with eBay it's just ridiculous. So I've bought that, asked for 1st class so it'll be here by Wednesday or Thursday. And let that be the end of it!

Aside from that, think it's worth pointing out what is left on the car to get it an MOT.

• The car is missing a bracket for the back box
• The driveshaft has yet to be fitted (although that has been all put together with the proper grease and proper clamps this time)
• Brake pads and discs
• Tappets need adjusting
• Water pump needs tightening (evidence of some water leak since I fit it)
• Bonnet needs re-attaching
• New air filter
• General service (new oil for the gearbox and engine, filter)
• New indicators (which I've got)
• A good wash
• Reattachment of wing mirrors
• Reattachment of wipers
• 4 new wheels (refurbishing the alloys)

The list, thankfully, isn't full of hard jobs. Well, except the bracket, but it's close now to getting MOT'ed and back on the road. I'd have been there a lot sooner if it wasn't for the dodgy brake master cylinder rebuild kit I got from Amazon. It's an ABS one by the way, best avoided as far as I'm concerned. I can sort out body work issues (they are numerous) but none of that will stop it being given 12 months of MOT. Just might spoil the photos!

[tooSavvy]

Have you tried Micks Garage, Ireland? #oops You Have!

Lots of NLS $hite for obscure wheels [lyke us!] 🤐

2sav

[mickburkesnr]

4 hours ago, tooSavvy said:

Have you tried Micks Garage, Ireland? #oops You Have!

Lots of NLS $hite for obscure wheels [lyke us!] 🤐

2sav

Ha yeah they're the second place I go to when Autodoc are no help. You've just reminded me actually, they haven't responded to my request for a refund so I'm going to chase them up now.

[mickburkesnr]

So yesterday I got hold of the replacement brake cylinder, and it's the perfect fit. No idea about how long it's been out of a car, but I've kept the old pistons from the cylinder I broke in a tin of brake fluid. So if the pistons are bone dry in my new one I can replace them easy enough. The fluid container is also a lot cleaner than the old one, so it makes it look a bit cleaner.

While I was there there I remembered that I fixed the exhaust issue I had, with the corroded nut on the manifold gasket. Went to B&Q, bought some M12 nuts. bolts and washers. I cut the old one off fairly easily, and then I just tightened it down. Very snug fit, a job well done I think.

All of the underside of the front of the car is now back in place, barring two bolts which I need to get from Toyota. The bolts are missing from the rear engine mount. I'm also missing one of the black cap things that go on the driveshaft/hub nut.

I attacked the tappets, easy enough job and it wasn't too bad actually. Nothing really needed adjusting. Because everything seems to have gone well now, and that I'm more or less finished with the mechanical side of things, I decided to chav it up and paint the engine rocker cover red. Used the brake caliper paint as I have a can left over, probably the wrong paint but I don't mind it. It was threatening rain so painting was cut shut.

In the process of taking the rocker cover off I changed the rubber seals where the nuts sit on. One dropped, and it's missing now. I think B&Q sell replacement ones but I'm going to try and find it tomorrow.

Today was spent clearing out the garage as it turned in to a bomb site, and because now I can move on to the fun job of body work. Started off with the alloys. The plan is to paint these white, and I have stickers to go on them to pay homage to the alloys the WRC car used. Mine are 5 spoke, the WRC ones were 6. Can't have it all! Anyway, I put Nitromoors on one to see what happened, and it hasn't done a fat lot.

Other issue is that I thought I had cleaned them, but they're caked in brake dust. So I'm going bring them to the car wash tomorrow and attack them with a jet washer. Of all the tools I have, I don't have a jet washer!

I then decided to do something about the front grill. A mesh grill is just a bit too expensive really, so I thought I'd attack the grill with a dremmel and make one myself. I cut it all out, then filed and finally sanded down the edges. After that I applied a coat of plastic primer. And I'm left with a rather nice frame!

It is still a little rough around the edges, so I'm going to fill these in with plastic filler. I bought some as parts of the front bumper have some scratches. The Isopon filler I bought comes in satchets, and I wouldn't use one satchet fully on this grill. So I'll wait until I have the bumper off so I can do the both together. In the mean time, I applied two coats of filler primer to the grill to fill in some of the small rough edges on the grill.

Tomorrow now I will take off the metal part of the front of the car, the bit that this grill sits on and do the same with that. The front bumper will also come off, I'm not cutting it. I'm going to fix the scratches and then paint the black trim to white. I'll do the same eventually to the rear bumper. The alloys will be cleaned, and I'll strip them and prep them for paint as well. That'll be a week long job though.

Still got to fashion an exhaust bracket to fit the new back box, I do feel I'm putting it off but I might try and work something out tomorrow. Once I have the missing cover thing for the driveshaft/hub nut the brakes can go on, be bled, then it'll be nearly MOT time!

[mickburkesnr]

New bolts have been ordered, and I pick them up tomorrow. It was quite funny, as a young lad served me and refused to accept that the registration I gave him was an actual registration and not an import. Poor lad had never had to look up a car with the old 'A123 ABC' reg, only the new style. Was quite funny really.

I asked him as well how much Mr.T charge for a brake master cylinder (more out of curiosity than anything else) - £280! A rebuild kit comes in at about £100, but there'd be a better chance of Toyota's rebuild kit not snapping in half!

I couldn't find my phone yesterday so I couldn't take photos of the bumpers. But I've put about 3 coats of filler primer on the black part of the bumper, sprayed the bottom white part of the bumper in plastic primer, and filled in any holes and deep scratches in the bumpers and the grill. So tonight, especially given the weather as it's a wash out, I'll be sanding back the filler and prepping it for another coat of primer before I hit it with Toyota 040 - the white colour for this car.

[Bernard Foy]

Glad you finally got the brake thingy at long last Paddy is on his way to a full recovery. You have the patience of Job.

[mickburkesnr]

Well I have been mega busy since Wednesday, all for the good and I'll give you a spoiler alert here now: nothing bad has happened, sort of.

Mechanical work really only consisted of me buying a cheap no name air filter from eBay and throwing it on just to see what will happen. My confidence with this is sky high, as on the box it calls itself a "high officiency air cleaner system"...

Placed it in the engine bay, looks alright. Whether it does anything other than knacker the engine remains to be seen.

Most, if not all of my time has been spent just doing body work. Starting from the front and moving to the rear, I removed the bumper and took it all apart. The idea being is that the black part of the bumper, which is textured, I want to have white and it'll look bad if I just paint it white without dealing with the texture. So I applied one or two coats of plastic primer to the black part, then several coats of filler primer (along with plastic filler to tidy up scratches etc), and then sanded back using 1200 wet'n'dry sandpaper.

   

After sanding it back I got quite a good smooth finish:

I did the same to the lower part, but only in patches, to make sure it looked presentable. Then on Sunday I hit it with the white paint, and I think it looks wicked. Not a bad job from a rattle can I must say! I taped off the grill part as I painted that gloss black, as it would look a bit weird if it was all painted white.

    

I then sprayed the grill mesh red just to see what it'd be like.

After that, I assembled the bumper and it looks brilliant I think. At the moment, other than the mechanics of it, it's probably the best bit of the car!

Once that was all complete, I put it in the garage to let it harden as the last step will be to spray a clear lacquer on it. That can't be done for at least 24 hours after the top coat has been applied. I moved on to the wing mirrors using the same techniques, except I didn't use a filler primer on them. Just plastic primer, another coat of normal primer, and then the top coat.

To finish the plastics objects off, I fitted a steel mesh to the grill I cut the guts from. Sprayed it in etch primer, fixed it to the the plastic using hot snot glue gun. Looks alright, if a bit rough as I didn't have any side cutters when I started. I bought a pair though to trim it down. Whether it fits or not I'm not sure, as I can't really fit it to the front of the car at the moment as there's nothing to fit it to. Although, really, it looks alright. Just a shame I don't have a TTE Badge to fit on it!

I then moved on to the body work on the wings, as I'd like to get them done before I attach the bumper. The passenger side wing was badly rusting but I got most of it off. I then treated it to some rust converter, sprayed it with some etch primer, flattened it back (I don't know why I applied primer at this stage, but I did) then applied some body filler. I got too much hardener on it, so it looks a bit rough.

On the opposite side, there was a long rusty scratch where it had been keyed years ago, along with other bits and pieces. I removed the paint and rust from several parts but it wasn't too bad. The part where it was keyed above the arch I paplied rust converter just to make sure, applied etch primer and then attacked it with filler primer as the spots weren't too deep compared to the paint around it. There are two coats of filler primer on it at the moment, I'm going to sand it back tonight and then apply two more and see where I get to.

I went around the car removing various bits and pieces of spot rust, probably overkill, but at least they're off the body now. Applied etch primer to them to protect them in case the lovely weather turns without me knowing.

When I had a bit of filler left I applied it to the boot, just under the glass as it was going rusty. But I made a hash of that job, as you can see:

So I think I'll be respraying that back panel completely I think.

Other than that, to finish, I sprayed the wiper arms in etch primer then gloss black, and refitted it to the car along with the scuttle and bonnet! However, I ended up scratching the scuttle in the corner which annoyed me. I also don't think the wipers are set properly, but I'll check that when I have the Battery back in the car and test it.

So tonight there's more to do with the body work on the wings, and I will definitely make a better start on the alloys. I've added nitromors to one wheel, but I'm going to remove it with the disc I used on the car and/or a wire brush attachment. I also need to order one dome nut for the rocker cover (as I lost one before and can't find it), and a bolt for the front engine mount. Which I seem to have misplaced for some reason.

The MOT for Paddy is also booked for Monday 20th at 10:30am, so mechanically it's fit for that. Body work is a bonus!

[mickburkesnr]

Some minor upgrades applied to the car yesterday. I bought some chrome indicator bulbs which I fitted to the car on both sides along with some Osram NightBreaker bulbs:

The NightBreaker bulbs are a bit different in size to the original ones in the car. The NightBreaker is on the left, while the "original" bulb is on the right:

With the bulbs fitted and changed, I put the grill part back on:

It's not fully fitted back, but there are 4 bolts (2 on either side under the headlights) which have been put back, so it's secure enough. I couldn't help myself so I refitted the grill. It's not perfect, I think so glue is fowling it underneath so I'll trim that and try fitting it again:

I also went to fit the clear side repeaters I took from my friend's scrapped Corolla, one is drying (as the lens broke off) but I fit the other one after spray painting the wing:

Which then also meant I was tempted to see how my bumper looks:

I think it looks really, really well. It's totally transformed the look of the car. But, as always, I then thought what would the wing mirrors look like...

It looks good, however I need to wash the car. I should've done that to begin with (I can't remember why I didn't think of it), and I think after a clean the colour match won't be too bad. It looked a lot worse when it was wet than dry to be honest.

Mud flaps have arrived today, so they'll be fitted in due course. Tonight I'm going to carry on with the wheels. I started one, like I said, and yesterday I took cellouse thinners to it with some sort of success. Tonight I'll attack it with a wire brush attachment along with a non-stripper alloy to see which is the best route to go down. While the steel wheels and their tyres look OK, the ones for the alloys are much better so I'd like them on for the MOT.

I'm in London for work tomorrow so I won't be able to do anything on it tomorrow, but I have Friday off and the weekend so it should be finished to a point by then! I'm also waiting on some new dome nuts to replace the one I lost (and to freshen the other 4 that are left) and a missing bolt for the front engine mount. At this point, I was meant to put some heat wrap on the manifold which I still might do, and then the wheels etc can go on, and the brakes can be bled etc. So it's a busy old weekend ahead!

[oldcodger]

Making real progress there Mick 

Februarys Car Mechanics magazine had a 3 page spread on diy alloy wheel painting etc they used 180 grit discs on an orbtal sander to clean and key up the existing paint rather than chemically strip it off, though suppose its a case of how good or bad they are ?

Be interesting to see how you do yours .. 

[mickburkesnr]

4 hours ago, oldcodger said:

Making real progress there Mick 

Februarys Car Mechanics magazine had a 3 page spread on diy alloy wheel painting etc they used 180 grit discs on an orbtal sander to clean and key up the existing paint rather than chemically strip it off, though suppose its a case of how good or bad they are ?

Be interesting to see how you do yours .. 

I know, thank God! It's taken long enough 😂

I have that copy but I don't think I got round to reading it. I'll give it a read tonight, as after I attacked the one alloy (that I used the chemicals on) it's just a lot of work and doesn't leave a good finish at all. I've sprayed it with etch primer, and then another wheel I've just ran a key on the wheel and sprayed that with etch primer. I'll read the magazine and see what it says there, because to be honest I'm more inclined to pay them to get done locally. But for now I'll see what I can do.

[tooSavvy]

I was really fortunate to score, from a dubbScener[4x100], a nice set of unkerbed OZ Polaris for a ton.

15x7 et37... A verryyy close fit!

A local breaker provided 16 FORD s/s alloy cone slipper nuts @£10.

FORD AlloyNuts

You are making steady progess and will really enjoy your first 'post-MOT' hoon...

2sav

[mickburkesnr]

@tooSavvythey look great, I do need to get some nuts for these alloys, as i'm using the standard ones that came with the car anyway for the moment. After the MOT I'll go to a breaker and source some alloy ones that will fit.

As for the wheels, it's been a total disaster. I prepped the wheels in various methods. Chemicals, wire wheel, normal sand paper. The paint reacted so it started cracking and stuff. But if you stand far enough away from the car they look good...

Hit a disaster today (sunday) which means I can't bring the car to the MOT tomorrow.

For whatever reason, I started the car and it just gave one click and nothing. So I tried again, and again, and it just gave a click. I checked the ground on the negative Battery terminal to make sure one point was on the chassis and the other was on the gearbox. Then it sort of worked, I could hear the stater motor a little, but it wasn't cranking at all. Then it just went back to clicking.

I checked to make sure the starter was on the gearbox tight, it was. It was all wired up, and it felt red hot. So I took the starter off the car to make sure it was working. I connected the body to the negative terminal on the Battery, and the positive wire to the wire running from the solenoid to the motor. The motor spins but the cog doesn't throw itself out. So, to me, that looks like the starter motor is duff? I'd appreciate it if someone could confirm that I'm looking for the right thing really.

Should just add that I bought a new Battery from Halfords, as well as using a battery boost and the result was still the same.

[Ant182]

Those look great now mick it's all guns look fantastic when done 👍 When you start looking for performance parts PM me and I'll point you in the right direction 👍 if you want to know more pm me later