Pat Earrings

3 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Glad you got it back. It's like having a new car again eh?

I have to say, I'm done with giving my cars to garages for jobs like this, they seem to have some actual physical inability to muster the words  "That job is too much ramp time and not worth our while" (which I would understand completely).

That’s the best way of describing it. I got it late December and drove it a couple times and totally forgot how it felt.

my garage are ace, great bunch of lads that don’t shy away from a challenge and are more than happy for you to come and have a look etc. rarity these days. A bluebird with a working heater is rare I’d imagine, always seen them not working or bypassed. 

I have driven it a lot today (Bluebird) and it feels like it’s stretched it’s legs so to speak. Engine is healthy, gearbox lovely and snicky and to top it off it’s nice and warm again. Full cooling system renewed and it’s great to enjoy it. 
 

here’s a picture of it dismantled during its long stay away

It’s back!

THE BLUEBIRD IS FINALLY READY

it went in my trusted garage near the end of December last year and owing to delays sourcing stuff etc, it’s finally done. It hasn’t even been driven yet in 2023.

Heater matrix that was given was correct but had the adjusting rod the opposite way on, and we couldn’t do anything about it. We agreed on having it have a constant flow of heat so it’ll always blow hot air, at various speeds but only hot which is a compromise I can live with. I have heat! So it now has a new heater matrix, new radiator and new thermostat and fresh coolant. The final bill isn’t too disgusting either. 
 

celebratory picture to follow tomorrow when it returns. 

11 hours ago, grogee said:

@Ghosty

£400 (or £800 if you want an MoT), Quinton

https://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/clean-classic-honda-civic-14-sport-5-doorgood-enginegearboxdriveaway-or-delivery-or-good-export/1453844219

“Middle part of exhaust is missing”

that’ll be the cat converter then 😂

1 hour ago, Ghosty said:

Yay. 

Where did you get these reproduced Max? I’m looking to do the same for the Bluebird when it eventually returns

43 minutes ago, Matty said:

EV Drivers UK? Really? Ffs

I didn’t think people could get sadder, but there you go. 

On 2/5/2023 at 10:55 AM, HMC said:

Mid engined, rear bicycled 

Curious..that tape on the front of the plate..have you put it there? We usually tell people to do that if they’ve had theirs cloned, just so we can differentiate from the genuine.

Love this, what a way to come back to BMW. Dibs when you sell 😂

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/266086036588?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=6F4lWD2-SfK&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=KCW16zwOSD-&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

BEHOLD. An item as rare as hens teeth; a new Nissan Bluebird heater matrix!

1 hour ago, Pat Earrings said:

So update on the Bluebird. Matrix is out and the radiator place can’t find a core for it. A lot of digging done by me and it seems it’s cross compatible with Audi 100 cores of the same era and the measurements are pretty much identical, and I believe the pipe work is too.

He said he’ll attempt a repair but it’s close to the metal fin so isn’t sure but fair play to him for wanting to try. I think, fingers crossed my digging and research will prove fruitful as I am fairly confident so long as the sizings are there or there about a it should be a good replacement. 
 

He’s advised to just get a new radiator which he’s sourced for around £90 which is good too as the core was too expensive. My garage have been absolutely sound. Just hoping it all comes together nicely as I’ve not seen it for a couple weeks!

Well it isn’t lol. He’s just sent me the matrix and the pipe work is different entirely, pointing outwards.

fuck sake.

praying he can repair it.

I’ve stuck a thread on ask a shiter with the photos of it 

So update on the Bluebird. Matrix is out and the radiator place can’t find a core for it. A lot of digging done by me and it seems it’s cross compatible with Audi 100 cores of the same era and the measurements are pretty much identical, and I believe the pipe work is too.

He said he’ll attempt a repair but it’s close to the metal fin so isn’t sure but fair play to him for wanting to try. I think, fingers crossed my digging and research will prove fruitful as I am fairly confident so long as the sizings are there or there about a it should be a good replacement. 
 

He’s advised to just get a new radiator which he’s sourced for around £90 which is good too as the core was too expensive. My garage have been absolutely sound. Just hoping it all comes together nicely as I’ve not seen it for a couple weeks!

Just bought my ticket! Looking forward to it

5 minutes ago, Fumbler said:

They're alright but I got fed up having to constantly retune it. Then again, if you're only going to listen to cassettes, they're fine. No Dolby though.

It’s literally just to maintain the period look tbh. I probably will get a shitty cassette Bluetooth adapter if I get really bored.

Bluebird won’t be ready till the new year as it’s a dash out job for the matrix. It’ll be worth it as it’ll return with a fully recored matrix and heater and new thermostat so at least the cooling system gets a welcome renewal. 
 

in other news I’ve just purchased this stereo for it. Fully working and with a code, seems about period correct I’d say. Not too much either 

I’ve never been to a proper show so I think I’ll debut finally and I’ll take the Bluebird to FOTU. 

13 minutes ago, gm said:

worth sending the main radiator at the same time ? could be just as full of gunk 

That was my thoughts, will speak to the garage in the morning

15 minutes ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Have you tried a radiator repair shop to see if they can re-core the matrix?

Well what a result. G A T radiators in Brierley hill can recore it, and he clearly is an old school chap who knows his stuff. My garage are happy also to remove it and send it to him. 👏👏👏

3 minutes ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Have you tried a radiator repair shop to see if they can re-core the matrix?

That’s not a bad shout tbh. There’s a company called Readyrads in Birmingham I’ve used before. I will link in with the garage tomorrow and see if they’re happy for me to get this sorted.

47 minutes ago, puddlethumper said:

Can you get the matrix apart ? I've taken mine apart to clean it. Dunno if yours is similar but mine is plastic fixed with tabs to the metal rad part. I just levered up all the tabs, carefully so as not to break any, and separated them. Then you can clean all the innards with a pokey thing. When apart I could see the plastic bit had a rubber seal so when putting it back together I made sure they went together the same way round as they  had come off, in case of discrepancies in the seal, with a bit of good sealant and the tabs bent back I haven't had a leak.

 

When apart there was a rubber seal between the two.

Not entirely sure as I’m not the one doing it. They’re good guys and spent a while flushing it hence a lot of crud and crap coming out, especially the stop leak stuff that has been put in there. They were able to see some witness marks to the carpet which showed a previous leak. Doubt it will be fixable like this current state tbh. 

So verdict from the garage re the Bluebird non heating. Looks like in the past the heater matrix has been leaking so someone used a stop leak type fluid which helped but ultimately blocked it all up. Will require a new matrix which of course is tricky to find, although I’ve done a lot of digging and there’s plenty of cross compatible similar matrix from other cars that are still available to buy. I’m hoping the garage can source one otherwise they are happy for me to get one but it’s the wait and extra labour which is a downer. Will be getting a new thermostat too. 

 

9 minutes ago, grogee said:

No shame in farming it out if you don't have somewhere indoors to work. I imagine they'll change the stat and reverse flush the rad and matrix, hopefully that'll clear it. 

I bought a Bluetooth cassette receiver for my Maestro, which means I can run a period correct cassette player but zap my tunes from phone into it wirelessly. It charges via the usual micro usb port.

For the Bluebird I'd say yes drop in any stereo you like but keep the original for eighties addicts like us... That era car usually has decent labelling on the stereo telling you which wire does what which will help with install.

Yeah that’s my guess too, seeing as it runs perfectly and no overheating etc. I’m on the lookout for something so won’t rush it, enjoying the sounds of the car itself tbh. Yeah happy to let them tinker with it, it’s unbearably cold. Almost froze my hands doing the EGR delete on my TDi polo the other week.

33 minutes ago, N19 said:

Which one is it? Blaupunkt or Clarion?

Blaupunkt