St3alth's VR Calais

[HSV5L]

Looks good comeing up great.

[St3alth187]

I think you were right anyway lol. I think its Illegal to remove safety features that were factory fitted in NSW too.

I've been thinking.. It may be a while before i can get my Manual into The Calais. So i might try my hand at upholstery and slap some leather / Vinyl on my manual center console?

What do you guys think ?

[VRCALAISS]

I think you were right anyway lol. I think its Illegal to remove safety features that were factory fitted in NSW too.

I've been thinking.. It may be a while before i can get my Manual into The Calais. So i might try my hand and upholstery and upholster some leather / Vinyl to my manual center console?

What do you guys think ?

you should be able to get a factory console surround in leather off a vr gts,i've got the auto version.

[St3alth187]

Yeah ? Sounds pricey :/

Was thinking of doing a bit of glass work and put some cup holders in

[VRCALAISS]

Yeah ? Sounds pricey :/

Was thinking of doing a bit of glass work and put some cup holders in

statesman leather console lids have factory cup holders lol,you just have to do some cutting to gain access

[St3alth187]

Sounds like i need to get a hold of a Statesman console lid then
But i think I'll do my console in Vinyl. A black or shadow grey.

[St3alth187]

Got hold of a manual conversion out of a VN S1 for 450 bucks.
Its been sitting in the shed all covered up.
Just need to get a few more bits and pieces together:

Manual ECU + Loom
8 Bolt Flywheel

Then i should be good to go

Alternator died not long ago, so i've been immobile for a few days till the replacement shows up.

[St3alth187]

Just did a massive clean out of my shed. Ever since I've lived here ( majority of my life ) it has been a complete mess. Now I'm old enough to have a use for it I've cleaned it out and its become my cave of rage.
So I thought I'd give you guys a tour

Before










After









Cheers,
Jake

[St3alth187]

New fuel tank + sender is in !
It no longer dies around corners!

Turns out that my fuel gauge was correct ! It would read half a tank; however driving it seemed like it was running dry. To the point where right hand turns were impossible without stalling.
Pulled the tank off today expecting it to be empty and it was half full!!Pulled about 20 litres out of it and chucked in the new tank after i got it in and there's still a bloody large amount in there.

Im hoping that the dieing on right turns and it not starting randomly are related.
One of the major problems I've had is now sorted !

Cheers,
Jake.

[VR38]

So what was wrong with the old tank, had the return hose broke free from the swirl pot?
I have not long put a new pump in now I am having the right hand turn below half tank problem too.

[St3alth187]

I'm not entirely sure at this point, but yes it definitely had something to do with the return line / Swirl pot inside the tank.
I recommend installing a new tank + Sender; Was only $240 to my door from Scotts Parts Plus-Dubbo.

[St3alth187]

Still intermittently doesnt start :/

[VS 5.0]

When you turn the key does anything happen or nothing at all ?

If nothing at all it could be either the key or the silver contact ring around the ignition barrel. These can stuff up and prevent the signal from the key being received, thus preventing the car starting.

[DAKSTER]

When you say it doesnt start, do you mean the key doesnt work or it cranks over and wont start?

Seems to be a consistent problem with VR/VS if its the key not working. I've read a hundred threads on it and even asked a couple of sparkies and seen a lot of suggested fixes, some of which worked and most didnt. Different things seem to work for different people though, it might be a combination of problems.

The silver contact ring has certainly come up too in a lot of threads, if its worn you can replace it or try to put some pressure behind it (maybe with some packing on the other side of the plastic? ) so it makes better contact with the key.

In my case, for the VS, I just started using a different key. Had a old original spare key, virtually unused so in perfect condition. As soon as I started using that the problem almost went away. Its happened again very occasionally, but only usually takes a second attempt to work now, and its rare.

The wierd thing for me was that it never happened when the motor was warm, only ever when cold. Since it is clearly an electrical problem, that seemed strange to me. Its been suggested to me that extra heat in the engine bay might in some way affect a dodgy connector or wire, which connects when hot but doesnt when the wire contracts when its cold. Maybe worth looking into? I havent bothered now since my problem is mostly gone.

[St3alth187]

cranks over and wont start?

Yeah mate it just cranks but wont fire, like it has no fuel / spark.
Im in the process of replacing the BCM and with a new key.
Ill see how it goes

[St3alth187]

Heres a link to my thread regarding this whole issue.
If you have the time to read it
VR Calais Ignition Problem !

[UW1SH]

Just did a massive clean out of my shed. Ever since I've lived here ( majority of my life ) it has been a complete mess. Now I'm old enough to have a use for it I've cleaned it out and its become my cave of rage.
So I thought I'd give you guys a tour :)

Before










After









Cheers,
Jake

F**K yeh wish my shed was this big to work on my car.. (and to disappear from the missus at times lol) :rofl2: Nice ride btw

[St3alth187]

Haha It's a nice place to be.. When things are going to plan.
Im really thinking about putting an electronic hoist in and opening up the little shed into the bigger shed. ( they are built onto each other )
But all this would depend on whether or not the folks intend to sell it or not. And if they do .. Im opening up a loan and buying it.
Its where i grew up

[UW1SH]

Haha It's a nice place to be.. When things are going to plan.
Im really thinking about putting an electronic hoist in and opening up the little shed into the bigger shed. ( they are built onto each other )
But all this would depend on whether or not the folks intend to sell it or not. And if they do .. Im opening up a loan and buying it.
Its where i grew up

Sounds like a good idea. a hoist would make your life so much easier when working on your car or even just inspecting it sure beats hydraulic jack and car stands in your driveway lol

[St3alth187]

Yeah would be great.

This pit was made for trucks, so its just not deep enough for cars. I've got to tilt my head sideways or bend my knees. I could use a ramp over the top of the pit. But thats getting dangerous xD. Considering the pit is illegal as it is.

[UW1SH]

Yeah would be great.

This pit was made for trucks, so its just not deep enough for cars. I've got to tilt my head sideways or bend my knees. I could use a ramp over the top of the pit. But thats getting dangerous xD. Considering the pit is illegal as it is.

i say just fit a hoist in there it would be so much easier to do everything.. cant wait to get one get to start working on my car at my height im over pulling boxes and engines out from the ground lol iv pulled my engine out twice and now pulled the vs engine out and now i haft to pull the buick out AGAIN and re fit the ecotec grrrrrr all in my F***ing driveway

[St3alth187]

Hey, at least i know who to come to when i need advice on removing my engine

[UW1SH]

Hey, at least i know who to come to when i need advice on removing my engine

LOL do you plan on removing yours soon or something??

[St3alth187]

At some stage lol, Its got an oil leak somewhere .. and if its the rear main im not going to be happy !

[UW1SH]

it probaly is.. i had a oil leak once aswell and replace the rear seal but then it turned out to be the sump gasket so those 2 would be good seals to replace. and might as well do the front gearbox seal while its out since its only like $5