Good thread fluffy. Lots of stuff I didn't know, but was doing anyway, thankfully.

Don't be too rough with the pliers on the hoses. They split more easily than one might expect.

 

Great thread guys, especially for mechanical numpties like me.

Best advice I can give is, if possible, to get someone to show you how to do things first.

 

My mate now stocks a small led torch with a magnetic rod that extends out of the centre of the beam, so so handy. I use zip loc bags for the bolts keeping batches in different bags. Cardboard for lying on and an aluminium sheet for lying parts on, it's also handy to have a container or of gunk or similar to clean parts as they are removed.
And lots of digital picces, would never have remembered the way a v8 rover cam belt went back otherwise.

 

A dishwasher is also very handy for de-greasing parts.

 

Copper grease is great to use on your bolts. I certainly apply it liberally

However, not all bolts should be greased up, infact some should be threadlocked.

A breaker bar is a fantastic tool to crack off bolts/nuts (NEVER use it to tighten). Never struggle with a spanner/ratchet, use a breaker bar when you can as it allows more control and prevents bashed knuckles.

Some of you may wear overalls when working on the car, but most I imagine not. Either way, check your clothes for any metal (zips/rivets/buttons) that may scratch the car inadvertently.

Safety Glasses are a good idea. When working under the car, sh1t will not doubt be loosened by all your adgitating. When it goes in your eye, it really hurts.

People have mentioned about the correct tool for the job. The correct tool for the job is nearly always a SIX SIDED SOCKET

 

The Sealey 2500 LE trolley jack will easily go under an S2000 and lift it high enough to get axle stands under it. It's a right royal PIA using one of those silly little jacks that won't.

 

Lefty Loosey Righty Tighty

 

Bit of DIY investigation work has just reminded me of a couple.

Diagnosing a misfire:
If your engine is running roughly/misfiring and you want to do some basic trouble shooting you can try systematic disconnection of the electrical feeds. Example from tonight is my car developed a bad misfire yesterday. Suspected a failed IG coil (well no signs of fueling problems, and I was placing my bets there first but injectors weren't far behind).

Release the bolts holding the IG coils in place and with the engine running lift coil one out of place and off the plug. The engine should try to stall or get worse. Repeat until you lift one that doesn't cause a problem and chances are you'll have found that one that's a problem. Can do the same thing with injectors too if needs be


As a follow up to the above there's also confirming your problem is correct. In the above example I identified that #3 coil was the probable faulty coil. Once that was done I stopped the engine and swapped it with #1 and repeated the diagnostic procedure. In this case the problem moved with the part.

It isn't absolutely fool proof but could save you a lot of money if an electrical connector has come loose for example

 

All you spanner monkeys....

And NONE of you mentioned a bloody TORQUE WRENCH yet.

Tsk tsk.

 

We don't like to any more...