DarmoZ

So after 200 miles of gentle braking on the new discs and pads, tonight I went out and followed the bedding in procedure, here is how my discs looked after, does this look ok?

https://vimeo.com/153832319

Same here and yes I agree any sort of traffic situation or idle sitting is the worst. Can visually see my fuel needle going down haha

Probably just the cold then.

Also just read your post again, I see you're doing 2.5 miles to work then engine off, same on way back, all that cold running and not letting it fully warm up must be a factor.

I do 16 mile round trip, mon-fri and some weekend miles, got 2 weeks out of a full tank. I used to let her idle then drive, now I just turn the engine on, 10 seconds later I take off and take it easy up to 3k revs until temp gauge is Middle. I noticed my MPG go up greatly when I did this, now I always avoid idle running if I can.

Edit: I should probably add that 95% of that journey is dual carriage with cruise control on.

Great result 👠does it feel different when driving ?

Yeh bud go for it, I recommend the scotchprint was easy to work with can be found cheap on eBay, I paid £17 for a roll plus £5 for a heat gun.

Iv'e decided i'm gonna get these lights and just install them without the fog.

Reasons:

1) Easier

2) Looks better

3) At my last MOT I watched the tester the whole time, he never once turned the fog switch on or bothered to check lol

Wow are you sure you had little or no modding experience before?!?

My build thread is probably gonna be a long list of thanks to who i paid to do XYZ lol

Thanks, the kit looks good. Will get some labour quotes (no way i'm going to attempt something like this as much as i would like to) nearest Zedxpert to me is H-Dev (30 mins) or Abbey (1 hour)

Ahh ok that clears it thanks, sounds like I just need the two oil seals and spark plug tubes then (two at the back with the oil in them)

Is this something that's relatively easy to do, would the cam cover need to come off? if so guess I'll need the two gaskets as well.

I assume all these parts are cheap, but the labour isn't.

As first point of call ill inspect the chamber to see how much oil has come back in since they were cleared of oil at last service, to determine how bad the situation is.

Thanks for the help, yes I think its just the seals that need doing, if I can do that and keep the existing covers should be a cheap fix.

Are the terms cam cover seals and cam cover gasket interchangeable? and there are six of them?

OK thanks, so I understand that I need new Cam Covers AND Cam Cover gaskets. As you have to change both at the same time. worth getting a plenum space installed at the same time? mine has never had this mod done before.

Parts / labor what are we talking ?

Run a fuel system cleaner / additive in your next tank and see if that helps things.

Was supposed to post this ages ago, just forgot.

At my last service my mechanic said he found oil in the back 2 spark plug wells, he said it was not sever, like it had built up over time.

I heard that 04's are known to have poor cam covers which can cause this?

Iv'e also heard many other terms and i think i need some education, can someone please help me understand all the different things listed below (iv'e heard them at some point in time) and what they do, difference between them, if something shares the same name would be good to know that too.

• Cam cover
  
• Rocker cover
  
• all the different gaskets
  
• PCV or PVC cover?
  

any others?

Thanks in advanced,

does the rpm drop after a minute or 2?

and yes the pedal dance works.

I want to say yes (talking from memory) I'll pay attention for more than 2 mins next time and confirm. ill give the above method a go anyway as I have never done it before on my ownership

will report back if i notice any performance improvement

Came across this video on youtube:

So two questions:

1) My engine idles above 1k rpm when i turn her on, what is the norm?

2) Has anyone done the procedure in the video, does this work? (pasted below is the description from the video with the steps)

"You must to do this after every ECU reset, every modification, tuning, etc.

Without this steps, installing of CAI, plenum spacer and another modes will not give you anything except sound. To get the power, watch the video and follow instructions. Enjoy the power!

Step 1: Reset ECU and fuel maps.

Disconnect negative wire and really quick pump you brake pedal 3-5 times and wait 20 minutes. After that, before you will wear negative connection back, pump the brakes again 3-5 times.

Step 2: Learning.

Timing is extremely critical. If it is NOT DONE within the specify time, the ECU will not reset and the Check Engine Light (CEL) will continue to remain ON.

1. Confirm that accelerator pedal is fully released, turn ignition switch "ON" and wait 3 seconds.

2. Repeat the following steps (2a and 2b) procedures quickly five times within 5 seconds.

2a. Fully depress the accelerator pedal (HARD).

2b. Fully release the accelerator pedal.

3. Wait 7 seconds, fully depress the accelerator pedal and keep it for approx. 10 seconds until the CEL starts blinking.

4. Fully release the accelerator pedal (while the CEL is still blinking)

5. Wait about 10 second.

6. Fully depress the accelerator pedal and keep it for more than 10 seconds.

7. Fully release the accelerator pedal (The CEL light will continue to blink).

8. Turn ignition switch to "OFF" position and now you can start the car. The CEL light should be gone.

If the CEL light continues to remain ON, repeat the above steps. Timing is EXTREMELY critical to resetting the ECU.

Accelerator Pedal Release Position Learning

Operation Procedure

1. Make sure that the accelerator pedal is fully released.

2. Turn ignition switch "ON" and wait at least 2 seconds.

3. Turn ignition switch "OFF" wait at least 10 seconds.

4. Turn ignition switch "ON" and wait at least 2 seconds.

5. Turn ignition switch "OFF" wait at least 10 seconds.

Throttle Valve Closed Position Learning

Operation Procedures

1. Make sure that accelerator pedal is fully released.

2. Turn ignition switch to "ON".

3. Turn ignition switch to "OFF" wait at least 10 seconds.

Make sure that the throttle valve moves during above 10 seconds by confirming the operating sound.

Idle Air Volume Learning (Throttle Position Learning)

It is better to count the time accurately with a clock.

1. Perform "Accelerator Pedal Released Position Learning".

2. Perform "Throttle Valve Closed Position Learning".

3. Start engine and warm it up to normal operating temperature.

4. Turn ignition switch "OFF" and wait at least 10 seconds.

5. Confirm that the accelerator pedal is fully released, then turn ignition switch "ON" and wait 3 seconds.

6. Repeat the following (steps 7a, 7b) procedures quickly five times within 5 seconds.

7a. Fully depress the accelerator pedal (HARD)

7b. Fully release the accelerator pedal.

8. Wait 7 seconds, fully depress the accelerator pedal and keep it for approx. 20 seconds until the Check Engine Light (CEL) stops blinking and turned ON.

9. Fully release the accelerator pedal within 3 seconds after the CEL is ON.

10. Start engine and let it idle.

11. Wait 20 seconds.

12. Rev up the engine two or three times and make sure the idle speed and ignition timing are within the specifications."

Hi Tom,

I know what you mean and i was wary of this deal as well, but since it was cheap, the website and company legit, and it was most of the month left till expiration, i thought why not. If they bullshit me reasons for failure ill just say thanks, walk away then ring my mate mechanic to stick my reg through the computer and pass it for me.

But the garage that the site assigned to me was very good, i watched them work and he went over the car thoroughly, the only advisory he gave was front brake discs and pads which I was already aware of and bought parts from cougar store getting fitted this Thursday, probably not all garages are honest though you are right, guess I just got lucky.

Hi Mate, great wheels and nice looking car, i just want to know what you used to paint your door handles, wing mirrors, and badge? Plasti Dip?

it wasn't mentioned but yeh it's a given haha

Im struggling to find anything rwd for cheap. e36s used to be a good shout but they have shot up recently

I think you'd want something FWD for winter run around, but now that you mention E36, a few people i know are buying them now as the price is low, and you are right they are now starting to appreciate, maybe good for a profit flip.

That's very good service, I'm not far from H-Dev, currently saving up for an Uprev myself

Unfortunately I don't have a little run around so unless there's a good amount of snow put down the z gets used or I just work from home. You guys do know the loud pedal isn't binary right?

Take a look at little CAT D cars on Auto trader can get yourself a run around for around £500 and then run it like a cheapskate, comes in so handy though.

Out the house this morning to go to work looked at the frosted Zed, looked at the frosted Focus, looked at the frosted ground. I bottled it and hopped in the Focus. Iv'e already written off one Zed and i aint gonna write off another lol even if it does have MPSS on them, I think i'm scared for life haha

If anyone is looking to book an MOT soon I recommend heading over to http://www.servicingstop.co.uk/.

They have a January sale so you can book MOT for £25, then a local garage gets assigned and picks up / tests / drops off your car

I told them i would rather drive to the garage instead and they were fine with that.

Anyhow zed passed MOT and then a couple hours later got some emails from a member of staff at service stop who said he can cashback £10 card if i leave a review on Trustpilot website, so i did. Then he said he can refund another £10 for a Google review, so i did that aswell, in the end my MOT passed and it only cost me £5! Happy Days

Sounds great, lets us know how it goes will you have to leave your Zed there for a day or two?

Did you thoroughly degrease the panels you were putting it on?

Yep i used rubbing alcohol