First time DIY... all did NOT go to plan!

[Bob Meadows]

Hi Alan:~
The reason I mention it is that the 240 has a top fill plug & a lower drain one.
Both are notorious for removal- I'm convinced Volvo locked these in place as they stated no oil change schedules for normal mileage use.

The way I removed them had been with heat to breakdown the thread lock and then as you say a long heavy chisel & a lump hammer (the chisel needs to be carefully positioned and at the correct angle) the 240 is difficult for access to the top drain plug because of the tunnel housing- but it can be done- deep breath & one descent hit started the release.

Once removed a larger hex nut has been welded onto both plugs- the next owner will love it!
Regards Bob.

[ITSv40]

Not wishing to derail ilmoint's thread, but, today did not go well.

'er indoors comes back from shopping yesterday - in the Mini Cooper - and said, 'not sure if there is a problem with the brakes but, the front hubs are warm'. I feel the hubs and yes, they were warm, not blisteringly hot but warmer than they should be.

So, today, I strip the front brakes, check the pads, yes all free, check the calipers, wind the pistons back and reassemble. All seems fine. take out for a road test - don't use the brakes - and yes the hubs are warm when I get back and a slight smell of hot pads. No problem, I'll put a pair of new calipers on.

Go and buy calipers, remove old ones and screw the new one on the end of the flexi hose. all well on the driver's side, flexi sits where it was before with no tension and all looks good. Do the same on the passenger side and the flexi ends up with about half a turn of tension in it. Take caliper off the hub and unwind one turn and put back on, flexi has half a turn of tension but in the opposite direction. No problem, I'll just release the other end of the flexi. move it round so it sits relaxed and nip the union up, job done.

This is where it all went downhill. Union nut on the end of the fixed pipe is corroded to the end of the pipe - plastic coated steel - so the whole pipe turns with the nut. I then notice there is corrosion under the plastic coating, no problem, I'll remove the solid pipe from the ABS module and make up a new pipe in Kunifer and job done. 30 mins later, new pipe made up and ready to fit.

Now I should say that there is not much room under the bonnet on a Mini Cooper and everything can be a challenge to get to. Try to thread the new pipe into the ABS module and with a delicate touch, it was extremely tricky to line up and feed into the threads. Now of course the inevitable happened and I ended up getting it cross threaded. I knew as soon as it started to enter the threads it wasn't right so undid and had a few more goes, same result, would feed in cross threaded, but not line up and go in square. gave up and tried a spare union without a pipe in it to remove any tension the pipe might be causing. Nope, even an empty union would not start correctly - b*gger.

Only one thing to do - remove the ABS module and see what damage has been done to the threads and how best to deal with it - 3 hours later the module is on the bench.

Just the top thread was damaged, so I made up a cleaning tap, by cutting two vertical slots in a spare union - ran it down a spare female union to remove any burrs and then tried to clean up the damaged thread in the module. 20 mins later it was all clean and virtually restored, union now runs up and down by hand with no friction. Checked the other union threads and all looks good.

So what should have been a straightforward job had now turned into a full day today and I'm now at the point to start re-assembly tomorrow. I should be able to get better access and should be able to start all the unions in the module before fixing it permanently in the car.

Just one of those jobs I have done dozens of times before over the years without issue but, today was not a good day it just went from bad to worse. Hopefully, at the end we will have two new calipers and a corroded pipe - that needed replacing - replaced.

[abdiel]

ITSv40, you must have the patience of a Saint!

[Laird Scooby]

My neighbours would have learned some new words if i'd had a day like yours!

[DaveNP]

Originally Posted by ITSv40

...
'er indoors comes back from shopping yesterday - in the Mini Cooper - and said, 'not sure if there is a problem with the brakes but, the front hubs are warm'. I feel the hubs and yes, they were warm, not blisteringly hot but warmer than they should be.
....

You casually throw this in at the start of the post and claim it was a bad day! If my 'er indoors was as observant of the car's workings I'd be happy for a year.

[ITSv40]

Phew, all done!

ABS module went back in fairly easily and everything connected up. 2 hours to replace the module, 1 hour to bleed the brakes and another hour to finish re-assembly ready for road test. The brake bleeding was interesting, first off there was quite a few large air bubbles coming through and then a seemingly endless quantity of fizz - then gradually became clean fluid with no air. I bled 250ml through each caliper which seemed to clear the air and then went round again and bled another 250ml from each corner. Completely clean fluid second time.

No leaks or seepage, no ABS light, no hot brake pads and now the brakes are really sharp and spot on. No spare bolts or nuts, just one broken plastic clip, which will mean a trip to BMW for a new one - it is a special one off, aren't they all.

Abdiel and Laird scooby: Yes, there were some choice words, however, my neighbours were away for the weekend. so no harm done. As for patience: I tend to be a completer/finisher according to Belbin's theory, so just quietly get on with the job until it is done. It all has to be done right with no short cuts.

davenp: Yes, 'er indoors does have a mechanical empathy, but then I have spent 34 years training her. Or perhaps it is living with me for 34 years and putting up with my car spannering

[Laird Scooby]

Originally Posted by ITSv40

Abdiel and Laird scooby: Yes, there were some choice words, however, my neighbours were away for the weekend. so no harm done. As for patience: I tend to be a completer/finisher according to Belbin's theory, so just quietly get on with the job until it is done. It all has to be done right with no short cuts.

Congrats on a job well done!

It sounds like you're what i call a "plodder" (that's definitely NOT an insult by the way! ) that keeps plodding away on a job until it's done and done right.
If there was a "clap hands" emoji i would add a few of these as genuine applause as there are too many people that operate on the "Bodgitt & Scarper" method these days so full marks for sorting it properly.

I am much the same myself but due to various circumstances these days often have to leave a job half done but i always leave it safe to use or don't use it until it is. No half measures in that area! That usually means that (in the case of the car) whatever the item is could be out of action for a period of time and i sometimes end up with several such things so i quite often fee like "I never finish anyth........."

I do get there eventually though!

In common with Davenp, i think it's unusual for the female of the species to notice the more discreet failures of cars - some years back i advised a female friend her cat had a big crack in it, motnhs later she told me she had changed her car because it suddenly became noisy - can't think why! Same friend came to me a couple of months later with the EML on the dash of her Aygo - "It just appeared and so did a circle with two snakes in it!"

Translation - EML was definitely on and so was the ABS light. Some time later (about 2 coffees) it emerged she'd hit a huge puddle and that brough both lights on. Investigation showed the engine ECU was reporting a difference between the pre and post cat Lambda sensors that was out of range for the conditions and also lost signals on both front ABS sensors.

Reset the DTCs and concluded hitting the puddle had cooled the cat suddenly reducing its efficiency and also swamped the ABS sensors causing a temporary problem until they dried out. Turned out that long term the sudden cooling of the pre cat Lambda had damaged it and on those, they need to be replaced as a matched pair (pre and post cat sensors) from Toyota as the pattern parts don't seem to work with the Toyota ECUs correctly.

This is what most of face from our female friends and partners/wives so you're lucky you have trained yours to be aware of strange things!

[andy_d]

Originally Posted by Laird Scooby

My neighbours would have learned some new words if i'd had a day like yours!

mine already know those words
2foot of snow + ice, 1x S40 with flexi + brake pipe to the rear, the "fun one" that goes above the fuel tank,,

[ITSv40]

Originally Posted by andy_d

mine already know those words
2foot of snow + ice, 1x S40 with flexi + brake pipe to the rear, the "fun one" that goes above the fuel tank,,

I wouldn't want to do that job in the snow! I replaced the rear pipes on the V40 a few years ago, but in the garage and on the lift, still a long winded job.

[andy_d]

Originally Posted by ITSv40

I wouldn't want to do that job in the snow! I replaced the rear pipes on the V40 a few years ago, but in the garage and on the lift, still a long winded job.

a Garage i could get a car in would be "heaven"
a lift,, now that would be spoiling me !!

on the drive,, ramps + axel stands, and lots of "kind words" for the bolts holding the fuel tank straps, and others ,

fortunately i Do have a waterproof, padded , thermal "all in one" motorbike suit, (HG Tureg) but ice water Still finds its way down arms + neck,