Sierra 24v Estate - Ongoing project

[cossie04]

I thought i`d put up a thread about my estate for those that are intrested in something slightly different. In June this year, i bought this estate which had been standing for about a year. When i come to collect it, the battery was flat so connected a decent battery and it started and purred like a kitten. So on the trailer and take it home. It started as 2.9 V6 4x4 Ghia in mercury grey, came with 16" alloys, full stainless exhaust, front Koni Adjustables, air-con, strut brace and loads of spare parts... First job was to get it booked in for an MOT and see what it needed. Meanwhile, i had bought a set of Momo Arrows with a decent set of tyres and a cossie front bumper, so the wheels and bumper were fitted while waiting for the MOT. A few days later, it went for its MOT and it failed mainly on one plate of welding, seized brakes and few silly little things. The only bit that needed welding... So then it went to my local mechanic, and a few days later it was MOT`d again! 8) Once the Mot was done, i started to get bits together for the 24v conversion. Luckily, i had a 24v engine in my garage from a previous 24v project Viscous fan removed Cleaned up So I ordered a new sump gasket set, 6 individual head to manifold gaskets, and 2 manifold to downpipe gaskets... I also ordered some Vectra V6 injectors, these will be fitted at a later date... Then i started by draining the oil from the 24v engine in order to remove the sump... And off came the sump It was at this point i was expecting to see loads of bits of tensioner blade in the bottom of the sump but to my amazement there was no bits at all, so i checked the oil pickup pipe and it was all clear with no bits stuck in it. Next we removed the oil pick up pipe and fitted a 12v 4x4 item which is slightly shorter and has a slightly different angle on it to clear the modified 4x4 sump, and removed the windage plate so the sump would fit. Then the gasket and sump were fitted along with the modified oil return pipes, front diff and a new oil filter... Then the i started removing the engine and gearbox from the estate. My method for removal was to unplug wiring and pipes from engine, unbolt the exhaust and 2 props, remove starter motor and gearbox, remove front driveshafts, and lift engine out the top. Had a couple of problems along the way but found a way round them. Couple of pics of car being dismantled... Nearly out... And out... The next day i started off by refitting the 2.9 clutch and flywheel, then fitting the gearbox, front prop,starter motor and crossmember The crossmember needed modifiying to allow clearance for the oil return pipe so a small bit was shaved off on one side Once that was all ready, i set about removing the existing crossmember and anti roll bar so that i could fit the new engine and gearbox by laying the engine in front of the car and carefully lifting the car over the engine... And all bolted in... And that is how it sits at present. Today i fitted the steering rack, anti roll bar and lower arms, front bumper and the rear prop. Now i am ready for the wiring loom which will be fitted shortly, so tommrows job is to tidy up the engine bay and do what i can for the moment.

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[JohnnyB]

good work mate

[Daveysaff]

Looks good

[wess-rs]

Good job!!

[the youth]

doing a good job m8, I remember doing my 24v conversion last year, enjoyed doing it.

steve

[Northants Ford Fan]

looking good mate, reminds me of my old 4x4 estate that used to surpise a few people especailly at mk doing donuts on the spot, people were like that wont do anything, soon made them eat their words

[cossie04]

Thanks for the comments.

Well, today i just sorted the odds and sods out. Also spoke to Simon who is doing my loom and he says he should be able to come and fit it in the next couple of weeks. So meanwhile, i hope to get the exhaust fitted. I`ll be using the top halfs of the 24v downpipes cut just below the lambda sensors and then it will be welded to the bottom halfs of the 12v downpipes. So i`m on the hunt for a standard 4x4 exhaust to use with the downpipes as the current exhaust is a bit too loud at times.

So i ftted the n/s manifold...



Then fitted the power steering bottle...



Then connected the fuel and water pipes and fitted the airbox using the original bracket and cutting the lug off the side of the box. Then i connected the accelerator cable along with the clutch cable, and refitted the gearstick gaitor and trim. Starting to look good at this stage







Tommorow, i`m going to do the oils. Top the gearbox and front diff up with oil and also put some engine oil in. Will also look into fitting the electric fan for the cooling.

[BillyCabrio]

[cossie04]

Managed to get some downpipes today and a half decent centre section. The back half has been cut off but I have a couple of back boxes and bits of pipe to try when it comes to be fitted...





Also painted a set of sideskirts i had in the garage, will fit these in the next day or two...

[SOO]

looking good mate!!

[marky_g]

cool

[Roosie]

looking good mate

[cossie04]

Bit of an update...

I`ve now had the exhuast done thanks to rob at my local garage. We used the system above which was modified to fit the 24v, the downpipes were cut and mated to the 24v downpipes just below the lambda sensors.

Drivers side downipe modded and rewelded...



Then fitted...



Then the passenger side pipe was modded and welded. On the 2.9 12v exhaust, you have a slide on mount on one pipe and a coupling mount on the other, so the slide on mount was modified to take a coupling to make fitting/removal easier and then was all fitted...







Then it was just a case of fitting the centre section and modifying a granada backbox to fit it...



With that done, i started to remove the dash in order to fit the new wiring loom. Most of the dash is now out with only the main bit still in the car ready to come out tommorow...





Then the loom can be fitted as and when my sparky can get round to it. Theres also a couple of odd jobs i have to do tommorow so will update again shortly...

[gainzo]

looks sweet mate keep up the good work

[cossie04]

Small update. Today i managed to get the cooling fan fitted. I used the air con fan which was modified to fit the radiator and fits nicely...

Air con rad + fan removed...





Fan then fitted using a modified bracket at the top and cable ties around the sides, lol...



Mangaged to take the clocks apart and fit the 24v rev counter, forgot to take pics while doing it tho...



My HID kit also turned up in the post...



Went for the 8k bulbs in the end and what a difference they make...



All fitted...



The kit was so easy to install aswell and was completely plug and play, took about 30-40 mins fitting...





Also made up a little bit of extension pipe for the power steering fluid return, used from an old bit of fuel pipe...

[cossie04]

Last week, the old 12v engine loom was removed ready for the new 24v loom. Yesterday, the new loom was fitted, along with the EGR bracket and EDIS 6 module. On the first turn, it didn`t want to start, so i changed the fuel pipes round and she started straight away!

With that done, i`ve started fitting the dash back in, bar the drivers lower dash part as some wires still need connecting. Still plenty off things that need finishing off, that will be done over the next couple of weeks. I`m also pleased to report that i`ve done 183 miles towing a car and trailer since the conversion, and pleased to say, didn`t miss a beat once!

Photos and another small update to follow...

[boothy]

good stuff mate, bet it sounds cool.....

[Glenn.]

What a spot on b there mate.I thought it was ilegal to work on your car at the side of the road.I friend of mine had an estate with the same engine in and he said it went like fook.

[James]

very impresssive stuff!

i want one!

any further update?

[cossie04]

Originally Posted by James

very impresssive stuff!

i want one!

any further update?

Not just yet, apart from it`s covered in filth and needs a bloody good wash lol

Fitting Vectra injectors soon, photos to follow...

Ed.

[kev 3dr]

Im likin this alot and making me want another 4by estate !!!

[cossie04]

I`ve just realised i havan`t updated this thread for a while so i`ll give you a quick summary...

I`d done 15k miles on the new 24v engine and was really pleased to say the least. That was until the front prop snapped while in motion causing a split in the sump and putting a hole in the gearbox. I then decided to convert the car to 2wd as this was the easiest option as i already had most of the parts. All fitted back together, 150 miles later and the engine decides to eat itself internally . So another donor car was sourced and the engine was robbed out of it, then fitted to the estate. Then almost immediatley after, the rear diff decided to die so its been parked up ever since.

I`ve decided to pull my finger out of my arse and get it done now, the car has gone for an mot today so will update soon...

How it looks at the mo...

[S1 Combi]

sorry to hear of the bad luck mate,hope its sorted soon

[m4tt274]

this looks really cool m8. and good man for driving it.
what went wrong with the engine?

[escort van s.n]

very cool car

[mk3_escort]

great stuff, havent seen a Sierra estate on the road for ages

[cossie4i_]

Suprised i have never seen this thread before

I do miss my old 24v 4i

Sorry to read about your current troubles.

Steve

[johnandhissaffy]

looks nice mate good work love this