Macca's '98 1.3

[xp_mckenna]

Hey all,

Long-time lurker first time poster - thought I'd post a few pictures to show my progress with her so far...

eBay purchase for not a lot more than a pair of my fancy running trainers:

Mmm...luxurious

Giffertastic sticker is going nowhere

All mod cons!

All dem cubic inches

Where would sir like his steering wheel situated today?

 

[xp_mckenna]

First job(s) started...

Side strips had to go (the wheels in the back I had kicking around, but are not a long-term solution):

Found this seamless repair - I'd go as far as to say OEM+

...and under the trim, bubbly bubbly. I blame Northerners. Not going to repair it tbh - just might cover it with a garish sticker

...like this...

Yeah, these had to be colour-coded:

 

[xp_mckenna]

Quick trial fitting of 'new' wheels (please for give unacceptable arch gap)

Overspray is the enemy...

Hate long winter nights

Free JDraceYO tat! (free because they sent the wrong colour and let me keep it)

Welcome to the 21st century...just...with Panasonic choonage

I spent aaaages making trim rings out of MDF, only to find that they wouldn't fit under the grilles. So in true style I botched it instead.

No pics, but this rather garish unit is powering - via a 4 channel Vibe amp and 10" active subwoofer - a set of Infinity front coaxials and Hertz rears in the shelf. Happy because I had ALL this cluttering up the garage - free soundz!

Upgraded to LED numberplate lights and eBay special exhaust tip

 

[xp_mckenna]

Took a long old time cleaning up the side strips...caramel wheel on my drill just left some nasty yellow discolouration

That's after a couple of passes with an orbital polisher. When the weather clears up I'll try again with some more aggressive cutting compound.

In the end went with...

...and it worked an absolute charm - better than meths, petrol, brake cleaner - pretty much anything I tried!

Not a lot I can do about this at the moment though:

Again, will try cutting back when the weather improves.

Trial fitting some 'new' retro wheels...I think they have potential...

...and we have lows! Before

After

Much better - although considering half a coil off at the back (although over bumps I'm getting some rear tyre scrub), and maybe some 10mm spacers on the rear as well. Went down the Suzuki Alto rear spring route along with Corsa B shocks. Progress was slow because I ordered two pairs, and was sent two. Twice. A few days apart.

Also hit some issues fitting the Corsa B rears. The crush tubes in the Corsa B shocks were too long, but also too narrow. Drilling them out proved impossible as I don't have access to anything more than a piddly electric drill, so I hacked the crush tubes out of the old Micra bushes and ordered some PowerFlex polybushes. They took nearly a week to appear but when they eventually arrived I could rebuild and fit it all together.

So here's how she sits currently -

 

[0611john]

I'm a long time lurker here, I havent yet had chance to get hold of a micra myself. That looks awesome, you've made some great changes, subtle but makes a big difference. I always like the looks of these once the side strips have gone, i dont know why more people dot do it.

 

[xp_mckenna]

Cheers! Doing the bumpstrips was a much bigger job than I had anticipated - peeling them off was easy but dealing with the glue took a good 2-3 hours each side. There were times when I regretted it...especially seeing some of the paint underneath.
Glad I did it though...

 

[xp_mckenna]

Today's job...

Not bad for £15...although someone has seen fit to colour bits of the new wheel in with a biro...?

 

[xp_mckenna]

Thought this was worthy of an update...not done a lot other than drive her over the colder months.

Did however 'upgrade' my gearstick gaiter and knob

£4 Chinese eBay win!

More importantly, invested in some new wheels - finally got rid of the garish 15" chromed effect 5 spokes for these rather fetching 13s sporting 175/60s.

Yeah I know she's bogging but she'll get a well deserved wash soon enough.

Also took a coil off the springs front and back which, in my excitement, caused me to pull a driveshaft and pour gear oil over the driveway.

The upshot was one week off the road (calamity was last Sunday and simply not had the time since), but 2 litres of fresh oil and a much smoother gear shift!

 

[xp_mckenna]

Added a couple of bits over the last couple of days...knew my GCSE in Electronics would come in handy at some point...

I'm running a sub and two amps in the boot so thought a voltage gauge would be useful, whilst this beautifully spec'd creature did not come equipped with a rev counter.

The oil temp gauge was fitted, all it needed was a signal wire - but I couldn't fit a sandwich plate without fouling parts of the engine bay - so the oil temp will be fed from a sump plug sender instead - not as accurate or immediately useful as it could be, but then I'm not racing her ;-)

Oh, and these had been gathering dust in a packet for about 2 years - they were originally destined for an RX8 - so I thought...whilst I've got the crimpers and the reel of wire I may as well get busy with the cable ties

 

[xp_mckenna]

Here's how she looks after a good wash...

Getting there...