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[darklord]

 :)Thank you all for your welcome. I've read a lot of posts and had some of my questions answered already thanks to the wealth of information on this site. Couple of questions that I hope you won't mind me asking:

1. Are all mechanical parts pretty much identical for Smart /Colt, ie will pads for the 1.1 Smart fit the Colt of the same engine?

2. On that same note, are suspension parts the same, ie strut mounts etc?

3. I'd like to bleed the brake, since they are a bit rubbish - I plan on using an easybleed. Anything I should be aware of?

4. I'd also like to bleed the clutch hydraulics, on the basis that it's probably never been done - is this possible?

5. My gear change is a bit stiff in cold weather, I had the oil changed last year with the correct grade, but wonder if I used the wrong brand. Any recommendations?

6. I'd like to fit a larger oil filter as the standard one is really small, and I do a lot of motorway miles. There seems to be plenty of room to fit a larger one - anyone tried it? I've read that the Smart has limited space, but I recon I could double the size on the Colt, as there is plenty of clearance.

Many thanks and apologies if I've missed any of the answers to these questions in my research so far!

[Brabs]

Hi there.
Mechanically, pretty much all of the parts are interchangeable. In fact many of them are branded Mitsubishi/smart even if you buy them from MB/smart.
I have used an Easibleed kit with great success. Brilliant piece of kit and highly recommended.
The stiff gearchange will be due to the linkage at the gearbox end. A common moan and well documented fix is available. Search the child boards on the site.
Crack on then! 

[CrazyG]

Addition to Brab's comments....
The manual clutch shares the same fluid as the brakes, so bleed it at
the hydraulic slave cylinder attached to the gearbox...after you've done
the brakes.

Re the oil filter....if you use a genuine Mitsi one then it is perfectly
adequate for your driving. However, if you are still determined to fit a
larger genuine Mitsi one, then be 100% sure that you have sufficient ground
clearance so that it doesn't then hang out lower than any part of the belly
of the car chassis. with the car on the ground, check (by sight) to see how
low it hangs now, and if the chassis is lower than the standard oil filter...
and by how much.  Basically, any taller filter should not protrude/stick out
lower than the lowest part of the chassis of the car. And if you do fit one,
ensure you use either a Mitsi filter, or a really good aftermarket one
from the likes of Mann or similar. Cheapy filters usually are rubbish and
are known not to have non-return valves !

(We do know that on the Colt CZT-CZC turbo/Smart 454 Brabus the taller
 Mitsi filter cannister that they use on the EVO can be fitted...B U T
 it then hangs lower than the sump and can easily be smashed/ripped off
 by almost any speed bumps in the road...and/or even if the car
 'drops' a wheel into a pothole...all with disasterous results.)

[Alex]

Hello and welcome to forfouring

Pads disks wheel bearings are interchangable , all normal forfours and colts have 256mm fronts, while brabus and czt have 282mm. Rears are all the same across the board, with 250mm discs where fitted (some had drums)

Struts and anti roll links and bars are not, as they differ in design. Colt use the brabus style short links that connect the ARB to the whishbone, whereas normal forfours link to the strut. Colt struts are missing the necessary mounting point for the Anti Roll Links, but are otherwise identical. So you can use smart struts on a colt but not vice-versa..

The stiff gearchange comes from a stiff selector as previously stated by Brabs.

When bleeding, start with the wheel furthest from the brake fluid reservoir.

I would not fit other oil filters, if you do motorway miles than that's very good and not at all hard on the engine or the oil. Short trips are harmful for the engine oil, because it does not get up to temp it can't get rid of water and cannot properly clean or suspend and trap contaminants. I've used the MANN W67 (not w67/1) filter for the 9 years i've had the car, changing the oil once a year or every 20.000kms and i'm over 240.000kms with no problems (and at 13 years old still on 0w40 "New Life" oil). 

[darklord]

Thank you all for the helpful replies.

I actually broke one of the suspension links on a pothole but it was only £6 for a new one!

I've been running the engine on 5W40 fully synthetic from Eurocarparts, but this oil change I'm using Shell Helix 10W40. The sites such as Eurocarparts list every oil as being suitable, from 0W30 right up to 20W50 - ridiculous!

The engine produces an irritating loud whine which builds in intensity from cold, seems to be from around the drive belt area. I've replaced the belt, and the alternator with a nearly new one, to no difference. I was minded to change the water pump, but the honest garage I was using said not to waste my money, as it seemed fine. So I wondered if a slightly thicker oil would help, hence the change in oil.

Is there anywhere online I can obtain a genuine Mitsubishi filter, if the Eurocarparts ones are not recommended? A lot of eBay stuff is fake.

[Alex]

Thicker oil would not help i think.

At cold, all oil is much to thick to do anything in an engine anyway, and a warm 10w40 will not be any thicker than a warm 5w40 ( as they are both 40 weight)

Thicker oil therefore would be 5w50 or 10w60 which i've seen put by mercedes in a 1.3 forfour but i would never run that in mine.

Can you tell us more about the whine, and how it manifests? Nothing related to clutch release bearing, as that's a much more common cause?

[darklord]

I had the clutch assembly including release bearing replaced 10000 miles ago, and it's absolutely fine. And with careful operation, I almost never crunch reverse!

The engine starts from cold, and just sounds like an engine for the first 3-4 min, but then you hear an increasing loud "whiiiiiinnnneee" that rises and falls with engine revs. It has a very belt like tone, yet the belt was replaced - that helped a small amount for a short time but it's louder than ever now.

When the engine is really hot, it can take on a "waw waw waw waw" tone, almost as if there is a wobbly pulley, yet all appears visually fine. This car does not have air con before you ask.

It gets so plaintive that around town it can drown out the engine, and it grates on my nerves after a while. It's done it since I got the car, but I can't believe it was like that from new!

It would make a huge difference to refinement and noise if I could quieten it. Any solutions win a bottle of wine - seriously.

[Alex]

Normally the first order of business would be to fire up the warm engine with the aux belt disconnected. If the noise is still there it's engine side.

Because the AUX belt also drives the water pump, this has to be a brief test.

[darklord]

Normally the first order of business would be to fire up the warm engine with the aux belt disconnected. If the noise is still there it's engine side.

Because the AUX belt also drives the water pump, this has to be a brief test.

I'll add it to the overall list!

I presume that whining is not common on the 1.1?

[cecil]

With the aux belt disconnected see if there is any play in the pulleys.
Have you tried the long iron bar trick as a stethoscope to listen to (highlight)individual parts. It will at least help us eliminate parts of the engine.
Run a video and post to utube and guide us to it?
These might narrow it down a bit.