IanMc Posted June 21, 2020 Share Posted June 21, 2020 Hi Herman, Great work and attention to detail as always! Can you tell us more about the rear fog light modification please? - this is something that I am interested in. I did actually buy a brand new, genuine GM rear fog light on Ebay a few weeks ago, but I cant quite bring myself to fit it as it completely ruins the balance of the back of the car, Your solution would fix that, while make the car a bit safer too. Thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted June 21, 2020 Author Share Posted June 21, 2020 Hi Ian, will take some pics👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted June 21, 2020 Author Share Posted June 21, 2020 The promised pics: You make a hole exactly the same as the others, because of the hole you have to cut the earth strap to other bulpholders. You have to repair that, I did that with the red wire and some spade connections. You can use female connections to fit them on the original earth strap. Use a double connection to give earth to the bulpholder of the foglight, I used an original bulpholder of a spare cluster. The bulpholder can be connected with another wire (purple one) to the + feed of the foglight you will find in your boot: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Everything together: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. I drilled in the bottom and top of the cluster some holes to ventilate the heat of the bulp, but with the led bulps that problem will be less: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Grts, Herman 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanMc Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 Nice job - thanks Herman! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessopia74 Posted June 23, 2020 Share Posted June 23, 2020 Yeah, that is proof great minds all think alike! thanks fir the pic Herman, I know for sure we can fit a lamp in there now, so that will fix the issues with the MOT requirements 🍻 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted June 24, 2020 Author Share Posted June 24, 2020 Gave the Insignia new oil & filter, was more than 1 year ago... And drove to my "400". The car is still in the Oldtimer storage 😢, those corona stuff and the work on the GSI made me impossible to drive it. Had to remove the front bumper to put the fan in front of the radiator. Tried first above, removed the locking system (had to fit those special washers anyway)but that new redone radiator is thicker so not done: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. The frame is from a Renault 21 and the engine/fan is Opel. From above: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Searching for the right cable from fuse 5, rear window heater. That can handle the electrofan: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Made an extra loom, comming out the bulkhead next to the accelerator cable and going together with the main loom to the relais right side of the coil, follows the loom of the indicators to the fan: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. The bumper is back on it's place and today I went for a drive to a local (ex-Opel) workshop to talk about adjusting the front lights and the brake test. Brakes need another bleeding and have to screw the shocks harder cause they have some play between the rubbers. Mondaymorning the car goes to another workshop for the wheel alignment. The engine runs great and the gearbox shifts like new. Grts, Herman 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted June 29, 2020 Author Share Posted June 29, 2020 Last days doing those last details, went today to alligne the front so the steering wheel is back pointing at the right direction when driving straight. Yesterday I bleeded the brakes again with my son and after some more intensive braking they feel better. Maybe the old pads are getting hard? Today it is my wife's birthday so in the afternoon I did what she wanted, we went for a long walk. So morantic... 😁 A quick pic of the car next to the little truck, the Missus is looking like she wants me to park the car back inside😉: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Grts, Herman 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starmist Posted June 29, 2020 Share Posted June 29, 2020 On 23/06/2020 at 15:57, Jessopia74 said: Yeah, that is proof great minds all think alike! thanks fir the pic Herman, I know for sure we can fit a lamp in there now, so that will fix the issues with the MOT requirements 🍻 My exclusive has the fog lamp in the cluster, really unclutters the rear end and never had a problem at MOT time. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted July 2, 2020 Author Share Posted July 2, 2020 Done the last things on the car, fitting the grills in the hood: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Made something like a oil catch tank, an empty small metal can that fitted nice if you all can find it: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Tolled my son this is NASA-technology😉, he said it looked more like "road kill"🤣 Cleaned the boot, lost somewhere the original carpet so bought a doormat that layed itself nice on the bottom of the boot: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Cleaned the interieur, need to buy new floormats: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Went Tuesday to that other workshop, they tested the brakes and shocks on a testbank, setted the lights all for 20€! They used to be an Opel workshop so they were happy to see my Manta. Today I passed the MOT, without any advisors. Happy me 😀. Grts, Herman 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
611 Posted July 2, 2020 Share Posted July 2, 2020 Nice work Herman. Ready for some Opeling 🙂 Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted July 2, 2020 Author Share Posted July 2, 2020 Thanks Andy, but then the Belgian government comes peeping behind your back. If you buy a new car or a second hand one you order your numberplates at your insurance office. Takes thanks the internet 2 days to get those plates. (For the ones that doesn't know "our way": In Belgium you the numberplates stay by the owner, not on the car) The other possibility: You leave your car at the garage and buy another one than you fit the plates on the other one. But when you MOT a car as an old-timer you have to fill in the forms yourself and wait 3 weeks till the friendly postman brings the "oldtimer plate"...😬 So Opeling will have to wait,😢 And if it is not enough over three weeks I'm still in France and the postman will send them back cause I don't open the door when he rings. Such things can make me tired, Belgium is not a country for petrol heads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
®evo03 Posted July 5, 2020 Share Posted July 5, 2020 On 2/7/2020 at 19:31, H-400 said: Today I passed the MOT, without any advisors. Happy me 😀. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted July 9, 2020 Author Share Posted July 9, 2020 Just a short video of the car driving out the garage, my little truck makes it narrow: 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanMc Posted July 9, 2020 Share Posted July 9, 2020 A beautiful car Herman and a real credit to all of your hard work Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted July 9, 2020 Author Share Posted July 9, 2020 Thanks Ian, the car will stay in the garage for another 3 weeks. Tomorrow we leave to the south of France, with the Insignia. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessopia74 Posted July 12, 2020 Share Posted July 12, 2020 Have a nice trip 👍 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted August 2, 2020 Author Share Posted August 2, 2020 Well I'm back! Thanks Jess, we had fun and stayed save. When we arrived in the south of France we hardly noticed anything of Corona. The region we stayed was as big as Northern Ireland and they had 3 people that died, senior ones. We went for long trips by foot under a hot sun, and found out how French people repair a worn oil sealing ring: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. The sharp eye can find the solution! And a car broke down, overheated and I used my professional tow bar to bring it back. But when I poured water into the cooling system it ran as fast out of the spark plug holes😁! After dismantling the head the wet liners' gaskets and the head gaskets were all gone😢. So the owner and me decided we had to change the engine, also cause the oil sump was rusted that bad I could push a screwdriver into it. Engine out: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. And 2hand engine in, I used some imagination to lift it: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. Gave the local Safari beige Rocky jeep also an oil & filter gange so everybody was happy: Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. About my GSI: Still waiting for the numberplates😬... But while I'm waiting I can search this forum with all those new things you all did, Grts, Herman 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessopia74 Posted August 2, 2020 Share Posted August 2, 2020 Haha Herman, you go on Holiday and still find something to get your teeth into mate, genius 👍👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanMc Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Herman, you really are a hero. I bet the owner of the Twingo couldn't believe their luck! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buz Posted August 3, 2020 Share Posted August 3, 2020 Legend 👏👏 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted August 3, 2020 Author Share Posted August 3, 2020 Thanks guys, when I am in holiday I take always a toolbox with me. And where can you put your towbar better than in your car? Happy I could help some friends and I went home with an extra case of wine 🍷. They also treated me nice at the local bar/restaurant. Tomorrow I am allowed to bring the papers of the GSI (with the insurrance papers after MOT) to the DIV-service (DVLA in the UK?) so I hope the oldtimer numberplates arrive at the end of the week. Because of the higher corona numbers the Antwerp region is closed for unnecessary travels , so I can't get to my "400"😢... I will keep you all posted. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted August 6, 2020 Author Share Posted August 6, 2020 At last the oldtimer-plates arrived. So I took the GSI for a long hot drive to test it. Not on a highway but most of all small roads and into the centre of our hometown. So the tropic radiator did his work, never had more than 1/3 on the temp. gauge. Noticed the rubber gasket of the rocker cover leaked a bit but the screws were not tight. This weekend I'm gonna use this car for a road trip, my son is the first one to test it! Project images are available to Club Members Only, Click to become an OMOC Member. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessopia74 Posted August 6, 2020 Share Posted August 6, 2020 Seems really odd that it did not have number plates. Was it necessary that they was swapped to the old timer one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-400 Posted August 7, 2020 Author Share Posted August 7, 2020 Very difficult in Belgium Jess, I owned the car in the past with normal number plates. So we keep as a person a numberplate and give it to another car that we own. But when the car gets the age of 25 years automatically you have the benefit to enjoy the tax of an oldtimer. But you still have to go to the MOT every year, no problem for me because I am a car mecanical. On the other side if we decide to give our car an oldtimer-numberplate we have the same benefit of the tax and have to go each 2 years to the MOT. And if the car is older than 50 years every 5 years. In Belgium the MOT is a service made by the government, so they need to be payed and want something as a quantity of cars that don't pass MOT so money gets in. And if you are totally not a spanner monkey they suck the money out of your pockets. In my case they have a difficult thing to decide if a car is good or bad, because I am a professional car mecanical and they don't have to be. So sometimes I have a dispute but they make the rules, makes me mad! Some big cities allow you only to enter the centre with oldtimer numberplates, so last years I changed all my old Manta's with those oldtimer numberplates. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessopia74 Posted August 7, 2020 Share Posted August 7, 2020 1 hour ago, H-400 said: Very difficult in Belgium Jess, I owned the car in the past with normal number plates. So we keep as a person a numberplate and give it to another car that we own. But when the car gets the age of 25 years automatically you have the benefit to enjoy the tax of an oldtimer. But you still have to go to the MOT every year, no problem for me because I am a car mecanical. On the other side if we decide to give our car an oldtimer-numberplate we have the same benefit of the tax and have to go each 2 years to the MOT. And if the car is older than 50 years every 5 years. In Belgium the MOT is a service made by the government, so they need to be payed and want something as a quantity of cars that don't pass MOT so money gets in. And if you are totally not a spanner monkey they suck the money out of your pockets. In my case they have a difficult thing to decide if a car is good or bad, because I am a professional car mecanical and they don't have to be. So sometimes I have a dispute but they make the rules, makes me mad! Some big cities allow you only to enter the centre with oldtimer numberplates, so last years I changed all my old Manta's with those oldtimer numberplates. I guess the MOT aspect is similar to U.K., however it only changes at 40years old, but no. Plates usually follow the car ( a small few exceptions to thus). So for you, is the old timer number plate withdrawn if your car does not pass it’s periodic inspection? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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