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50 minutes ago, chodweaver said:

....scoured a section of motorway hoping to recover parts of your vehicle that earlier fell off, bouncing several times before disappearing under the vehicle behind you, as you watched in horror in the rear view mirror?

It was an A road and about 3 weeks after it flew off but I found it

Progress is going to be slow on the scooter as it’s a rather low priority at the moment. Had a play with it last night. It runs for about a minute then dies. Fuel seems to be getting to the carb ok but I noticed the air filter cover had come off at some point. Hopeful that refitting it will sort it but I’d already had a chewing for waking the baby up by riding it up and down the back yard.

A working E50 Elgrand?

Two is probably plenty, so I'm guessing Subaru Legacy of some sort

5 hours ago, taranaki said:

Can you still buy a 1990 Skyline GT-R in the UK? Guy is trying to sell one  here in NZ, from the blurb, it's a bit of a shitebox... He wants just under 28 thousand quid for it. It's due for the equivalent of a MOT in January.

 

Pretty much still factory has had radiator replaced due to a blockage in the previous one and air-con has been removed. Drivers side door has small gap doesn't quite close flush. Interior is still pretty tidy for its age. Had oils and fluids replaced not long ago along with fuel filter.

Just in the last week started having an issue where revs will fluctuate and will sometimes cause it to stall. Its currently being looked at and will update when I get it back. Seems to be missing every so often so potentially something like a dodgy coil.

If you want any more pictures or info just ask. Had a few requests for more pictures so will try get as much as I can. Sorry its a little dirty right now.

 

For the age of them and the fact that they were never available new, there’s always a few for sale here. Prices have gone up pretty steeply, but 28 grand would get a pretty good one 
 

6 hours ago, bub2006 said:

My last escort van. 

The only thing more miraculous than your survival was that of the fuel filler neck

5 hours ago, Cavcraft said:

You've bought an oil refinery?

Something had to give, I don’t think I can run this one on veg

Bonus cosseh action on the way out of Manchistoh. My passenger* isn’t a very good photographer

And home. Set cruise at 77 and mpg seems decent considering one of the back brakes is dragging a bit

No pes station shot as it’s got plenty in. Drives lovely, only issue is the oil light flicks on, seller mentioned this to be fair and said it’s a sensor issue rather than oil pressure. More research needed into that one

And the second for the last train (hopefully) of the day

First connection made. Never been on a class 331 before. Lucky me

Scran that I can’t have because mask. 
Just realised I’ve made it sound like I’m out for a jolly during a national lockdown. I do actually have a need for a car that’s road legal and fits all 5 of us in it. Also had no intention of having the winning bid on eBay 

Tren 1 of 3. Shite but comfy

With a scooter needlessly added to the fleet of mostly unrequited vehicles there’s only one logical next step. I’m hoping this one will make it home under its own steam so the journey starts on foot to the station, so have a picture of my local church 

2 hours ago, Austin-Rover said:

Ten years ago I rescued a Maestro from a pensioner's garage in Huddersfield. The house and garage stood on the junction with a bit of a rat-run road, so we drove past it regularly. It was the only house in the area that remained largely original, which pointed immediately to an older owner. This gave rise to comments of 'I bet there's something old and interesting in that garage' when driving past. Little did we know at the time...

A relative of the owner got in touch with the Maestro Club offering the car to a new home; Location Huddersfield. I offered to go take a look as the car was cheap, and about five miles away and I was pretty stunned to find the address was that actual house!

It had been in the garage for thirteen years. The owner was moving round the corner to a bungalow.

The car wanted for nothing apart from a service, a polish and an MoT. I ran it for a couple of years and it's since found a long-term home in the Midlands with another pensioner who takes it to shows.

As for the house, the new owners were 'property developers' (you know the sort, obnoxious pick-up truck on the driveway) and the house is no longer a period property suitable for a Maestro.

My second 'barn find' was this;

Exhumed from that garage in 2013. It went in there when Thatcher was still Prime Minister!

Unlike the Maestro, it needed a lot more work to return to the road;

However, when I came to sell it in 2018, it was pretty damn fabulous!

 

 

 

That montego looks the dogs bollocks with the alloys and high level brake lights. Both your finds remind me of my first roadworthy car, a Rover sd3 213S bought from lovely giffers (the founder of Startright motorcycles in Leeds no less) and run without major fault for a year and about 12,000 miles. It was so pure and virginal  that it completely died the first time I took it over the M62 to Manchester (both of our first time on a motorway), which I can only put down to shock seeing as it fired straight back up after having a short rest. I did a lot of preventative maintenance but it didn’t live much past my tenure, no doubt falling victim to galloping rot after living the first 20 years of its life in a dry garage. They’re objectively pretty shit but the 12-valve Honda motor, once I’d rebuilt the carb and dizzy, is the sweetest running engine I’ve ever encountered

On 9/17/2020 at 6:09 PM, Conan said:

 

Yup. They'll be together for exactly one night (in Bangkok).

 

Come to think of it that might as well have been an Abba song. Well, Bb.

It was Murray Head, taken from a concept album about a chess tournament 

2 hours ago, stripped fred said:

I was looking for a diesel estate a few years back. I found an older Octavia estate advertised and rang the chap. He told me the village where it was located but he did not give me the exact address. This was setting off some alarm bells but I supposed it was because the property was difficult to find.

He pulled up and asked me to follow him. We drove up the road and turned off up a side road. Now, I would not say it was a gypsy encampment but it did feel a bit gypsy. There was a prefab building and lots of land with various items scattered about. The car looked presentable and it drove well, up and down the lane. The only minor issue was that none of the guages on the dashboard worked. The seller had neglected to mention this and he stated that it would not take too much to fix. I knew then that I did not want it. Took me another half an hour to get away as I felt awkward saying no as he was convinved I would be buying it.

If only saying “give me a ring when you’ve sorted it then” was as easy in real life as it should be. 
Can’t recall any instances of me walking away, mainly due to most purchases being ebay wins that weren’t hiding too much, cars I’d already fallen for before seeing and a bit of good luck. I don’t tend to bother with traders though, browsing for cars is best done from the comfort of one’s armchair or toilet

On 11/4/2020 at 10:41 AM, Talbot said:

Did a quick poll of some of the staff where I work.  Less than 50% of people could answer what engine size they car was.  Almost no-one knew what type of brakes they have, and only one person knew what style of suspension their car has (and he's a car nut).

I work for an Engineering company.

I was going to ask people how long it was since they last checked their tyre pressures.  I didn't dare.

Same experience here. Worked in engineering since my first proper job and have probably known a handful of people that really knew their way round their cars. I’d have thought that people who design, repair and maintain machines  For a living might have some inclination to attempt work on their cars but the vast majority aren’t interested

Does look good being all one colour. Is your second one a diesel? 

32mpg is fantastic economy for any elgrand

1 hour ago, SmokinWaffle said:

Well bought. What is the story behind it? Love how they look.

On a side note - I have literally never rented a van from enterprise as they've always wanted at least 2x the amount as a competitor - are you minted or am I missing something? 😛

I have no use for a scooter but also like the look of them and would like to restore and customise it in a loosely similar style to how they were done in Japan. 
enterprise were a tiny bit more than the cheapest in the area but I can’t get to Any of the others on foot, which was the only option This time

4 hours ago, clayts450 said:

Oooo - the new Combo. Autoshite test report required please once you've got over the excitement* of your purchase

I don’t have a lot to compare it to, seeing as the only proper  van I drive regularly now is a 2007 Transporter, but I liked the combo. Perfect size for the job, civilised and quiet to drive, and it did 50mpg over about 500 miles mostly at decent speed. Cruise control was a welcome surprise but the stereo was fiddly and difficult to use with weird touch buttons. Luckily the steering wheel takes care of most controls  Performed well enough, I was expecting 6 gears in something so new but 5th is long enough for motorway cruising. Cup holders are small and oddly placed compared to the Ford vans I used to drive, and the mirrors seem a little bit small for lane changes. I’d happily do another 500 miles in it tomorrow though

6 hours ago, spartacus said:

Ideal for the sunny* days next summer!

Well bought 11/10.

Does it run?

It does, for a minute or so but dies, seemingly of fuel starvation

Worth the 500 mile round trip I’m sure you’ll agree. I love it already 

Wish I was getting this

4 hours ago, spartacus said:

Are you buying something two wheeled, like an RD350LC?

(Other nostalgic deathtraps are available).

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