Kuroneko

Before:



Battery isolator:



New high / low relay sets mounted where start relay used to be, mounted in-line with low (red/blue) and high (red/white) feed line and length left in original loom wires to allow conversion back to stock if anyone wants to in the future:



New in-line fuses, as relay input fed direct from battery:



[/url]

New, hopefully now no longer sealed-beam feeble, but with 'the brightness of the invincible', as described by the Yafuoku seller:



Koito nicely supplying the beam adjustment diagram:



New face. Not too modern looking, unlike the squid-rings (BMW-style) or HID conversion kits sometimes used:



Country night driving now beckons... Neko.

Bromwich

Great looking work as usual Neko. Very jealous!

Sadly, I haven't got to take mine out much this year as it wasn't starting and was in the body shop for 6 months!

Now I have it back I'm tempted to look at doing the same with my headlights so I can at least do some night driving before winter sets in.

I know its very cheeky, but could you maybe let me know what you ended up buying for this job? I'm assuming it's a lot easier to acquire parts over there, but at least if I know what they are...

Kuroneko

Not cheeky at all, as I suggest this is what Honda Tech is about. They are Koito H4 semi-sealed beams (PN: HSSB-16-12HP). They come standard from the Yafuoku supplier with 55/60W halogen bulbs (total cost was \6000 something). The combined housing & insert price was pretty good! They swap straight into the standard S-series mount, but you will need to replace your hot-wire feed with a switched relay feed as otherwise you will fry the switches. The Yafuoku supplier lists them as compatible with:

☆　ホンダ（本田）Ｎ３６０　Ｎコロ　Ｚ　ライフ　ステップバン、　Ｓ８００　Ｓ６００、アクティ、　旧　 シビックＲＳ、　旧　シディ　

☆　スズキ　ジムニー　ＪＡ１１　ＪＡ１２　ＪＡ２２　ＪＡ７１　ＳＪ３０　ＪＢ３１　ＪＢ３２　シエラ、 　セルボ、　キャリー、　エブリー、　アトレー、　

☆　スバル　　サンバー　ディアス、　Ｒ３６０、　レオーネ、　レックス、　サンバーバン　サンバートラッ ク、　

☆　ダイハツ　ミゼットⅡ、　ハイゼット、　アトレ－、　

☆　日産　（プリンス　ダットサン）　　フェアレディーＺ　Ｓ３０Ｚ　Ｓ１３０Ｚ、　　サニトラ、　　サニ ー　Ｂ１１０　Ｂ２１０　Ｂ３１０、　　チェリーＸ１Ｒ、　　ＡＤバン、　　パルサー、　

☆　トヨタ　　カローラ　スプリンター　ＫＥ２０　ＴＥ２５、　　ＴＥ２７　ＴＥ３７　ＴＥ４７　ＴＥ５１ 　ＴＥ５５　レビン　トレノ、　　ヨタ８（トヨタスポーツ８００）、　　ＫＰ６１　ＫＰ４７スターレット、 　　ガッツ　パブリカ、　　コロナ　マークⅡ　チェイサー（ ＭＸ４１、　ＭＸ３０）、　　ランクル　６０　７０（２４Ｖ車は、２４Ｖ用バルブ交換必要）、 　

☆　マツダ　（ユーノス　アンフィニ）　ロードスター　ＮＡ６ＣＥ　ＮＡ８ＣＥ、　ＲＸ－７（　ＳＡ２２Ｃ ）、　　ボンゴバン　ボンゴトラック、　　　

☆　三菱　ジープ（２４Ｖ車は、２４Ｖ用バルブ交換必要）、　パジェロ　パジェロジュニア　パジェロ　ミニ 、　デリカ、ミニカ、　ミニキャブ、　旧ランサー、　

☆　いすゞ　ジェミニ（ＰＦ６０）、

☆　フィアット　　Ｘ１ー９、　ロータス　ヨーロッパ、　トライアンフ　ＴＲ７、　ミニ（ポジシ ョン無し）

So, you should be able to source similar even if Honda S-series not listed. Neko.

purgat0ry

iTrader: (3)

Amazing.

Kuroneko

I know! Who would have thought the S800 used the same headlights as Lotus Europa and Fiat X1/9?



Thanks... We took a three-day weekend, and spent some time touring the Boso Peninsula. Despite the all the massive room under the hatch, you still need to pack tight! Neko.

Kuroneko

More S800 touring here: GRAND TOURING: Boso Hanto, Part 01 | Japanese Nostalgic Car Stay tuned for Part Two... Neko.

Kuroneko

No work on the Hachi this last month or so, but some decent drives all over Kanto. There's a small tappy-tappy noise coming from the cam box though, so the next job will be the checking of tappet clearances...



Looks fun, if a little complicated. Neko.

Kuroneko

Cam-box tear down... Remove distributor - driven by intake cam (top), and water-pump, driven by exhaust cam (lower):



Cam-box cover removed, and cams and followers all in good order. However, clearance on number three and four exhaust valves was approaching 1mm. Spec is 0.18 ~ 0.22mm with 0.20mm target value.



Cam shims, collets, and all other top-end hardware in good condition:



Cam and cam carriers in good condition, with cam oil feed holes into carriers visible:



Cam followers, and top-right, the o-ring for cam carrier from lower oil gallery feed:



With the source of the noise IDed, the next step is to resolve why valve clearance has extended itself from the spec 0.20mm to 1.0mm. Possible cause - with engine burning oil at high rpm - is carbon build-up on valve faces, preventing proper closing of valves, leaving excessive clearance at the cam. Head pull down next, and possible piston and ring checks as well.

A long job, but one needed to ensure proper high rpm capabilities are not impaired. Work to follow in the new year when I can get some shop time with helpful hands. Neko.

Kuroneko

Step One in getting your Honda twin-cam rebuilt professionally - find a shop with door-to-door pick up and twin-cam delivery process:

Kuroneko

Weekend work includes tweaking a friend's GT-B triple Webers and shipping off the Hachi...



Step Two: small shop expert with racing S800 rebuild experience. Full tear-down & rebuild with appropriate new parts - new valves, seats, pistons, piston coating, rings, and a bore honing are planned. Overhauled oil-pump and a few other secondary parts likely to be considered too.

The mechanic is also working a 993 Turbo gearbox overhaul at the same time, and in sharing Porsche stories, I discovered he used to work on Vern Schuppan's 962 in Japan. I figured he was OK on a measly S800 accordingly...



If you ever wonder how an S800 can rev reliably to 10,000 look at that crank! Modular, with solid rods, it is a massive work of art. All bearings and tolerances here look OK which is good, as crank work isn't in my budget. You can see carbon / oil deposits on piston heads, the source of the valve clearance problems. Neko.

redr2

very nice. Why is the hood black?

Kuroneko

Race / rally cars from sometime in the 1960s sometimes had black hoods to reduce reflections to the driver:







Different hood colors were also used to differentiate cars in the same team, which otherwise looked the same:





In my case, it is simply because black covered FRP is easier than trying to color match FRP... Neko.

Blue-Civic-Hybrid

iTrader: (1)

Get your S800 back on the road, keep us updated on how everything turns out!

Peter Davis

Good luck with the motor Neko. It appears your in good hands. Since you started with a running motor it should be OK. Also I guess NOS parts are a little easier to source in Japan. While it's apart its best to renew as many parts as possible. You don't want to leave something small that'll take another full strip down. Regards
And I must say the transport is hilarious. Who'd think a S800 would fit in a van!!

Nate13

Your clock looks like the same one in an SR-71 cockpit, #stealth:
http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/sha...-1234S-010.jpg
(hint: top right)

love the car! Such a cool period correct build!

Kuroneko

Thanks! All parts have arrived, and we're replacing anything that seems worn. As well as valves & seats, there's a new cam chain, oil-pump, clutch lining, throw bearing, clutch spring, pistons, rings, full gasket set, and a few other sundries.

Hopefully all together in a week or so. No Hiace needed for the delivery this time... Drive home!

As much as I would like a Waltham A-13 from an SR-71, mine is a mere Auricoste from a 1970s jetliner... See ya!

Kuroneko

Engine out:



Cleaned head & old cylinders:



Gearbox cleaning:



Newly honed cylinders, bolted nicely in:



New coated pistons - love that gray skirt color:



Crank:



New clutch lining on old plate:



Cleaned cambox getting ready for installation:



Work proceeding nicely, with completion expected next week. Neko.

Kuroneko

All done! Only 6000rpm for 1000km is going to kill me. But with new pistons, rings, valves, valve springs, possibly the best for a while. On the way home:



Neko.

Kuroneko

Shakedown time... horns needed re-location, exhaust needs re-alignment, battery needs re-tie down, oil needs topping up, revs need to be kept below 6000 rpm... Damn! Nice day for a drive though, especially with adjustments on a friend's GT-B to go with it. I love winter in Tokyo. Neko.



[/url]

[/url]



[/url]

Kuroneko

Some pics from a friend on the day we drove his Skyline GT-B to pick up the Hachi:

Blue-Civic-Hybrid

iTrader: (1)

I need an S800 in my life.

Kuroneko

Though serviceable, the manky battery terminals always bothered me. So, with the old battery having problems cranking the higher compression new pistons, rings, and valves, a new battery - 65B24R - was installed. As the OEM UK market used DIN terminals, I had to convert to JIS terminals to buy an off-the-shelf replacement battery.

A new battery cut-off switch was needed too, and I also replaced the positive terminal boot, and as the regular spec battery was the correct height, I was also able to re-install the proper battery hold-down frame. Instead of the usual bolts though, I used all stainless hardware and some captive nylon ***** to secure.



All over better, safer, faster...

Kuroneko

The OEM indicator relay was operating slowly, so I replaced it with a Hella unit ages ago. It worked great, but the S800 sounded like my old Karmann Ghia, so in looking for a clicky-clicky Honda sounding unit, I bought a cheap (300 yen including postage), three terminal relay from China. It lasted two or three weeks, then failed.

The original Mitsuba S600 / S800 Honda relays are over 6000 yen each (if you can find them), so I went back to the Hella with a DIN to JIS conversion diagram:



I might try and source a Lucas or similar old-style sounding unit...

Kuroneko

... and from a stop on Honda day at my local Tsutaya. Neko.

Kuroneko

Japan's Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) is one of the better systems I've used. Notably as the reader is smaller & less obtrusive than many other similar systems used elsewhere in the world. Transit through the toll-booths is at 20km/h, or faster of you want a foam boom-gate to windscreen kissing thrill.

The card reader is installed under the dash, and as it is not much larger than a credit card, even in an S800 there should be no problems. I just need to choose an easy location. The wired antenna & speaker can sit on the dash, or windscreen. Its integral speaker announces the toll charged as you transit the gate.

The second-hand, Honda branded, reader was only 1700 yen, and the toll discounts are very steep. Cash charge for the Tokyo Wan Aqualine for example is 3000 yen, but with a reader only 810 yen. The next little job for the S800...