ruffgeezer

Stopped in on the way home for a quick photo op, same spot many hours later; and finally, home, I shall have a good look around it tomorrow afternoon work. Thanks to Les and @Jollyfckr/ @jollyfkr2 for setting the deal up - did it always have just one key or is there the possibility it may resurface?

Well, it's not often you're right @sdkrc, but you're wrong again! I picked up my smelly old friend... Plus the obligatory: Half time report from Cambridge Services is that it still pulls very well, the starter mootr sounds rough and there is something very worn on the suspension, possibly the rear, as the car occasionally wants to steer passively.

Time to hit the shoe leather across London Bridge and to the next train... Time for lunch too...

I elected to have a quick stroll from Bank to London Bridge, quite a few sights to be hand on a short walk, if you'll ignore the fat baldy dickhead who keeps spoiling them! Christ what a terrible loooking fellow!

Whoops, I've upset his royal Charlieness!

That face when the train is running late and you could have gotten away with a free wee.

Just passing through the Manor of the Patron Saint of Acquiescence, pop; 89,400.

Sadly not, I'm swore off of Vitara 'Fatboys' after some bellend with coke bottle bottom glasses in my GCSE art class, whose name escapes me, would argue every lesson that his mum's pink on was less shit than my folks' Skoda Favorit.

On more modern service now, and can I say what a pain in the arse it is doing battle with everyone as they all head to the pre-booked seats. On a priv rate ticket, as far as I can establish, I don't get seat reservations so it is pot luck. Thankfully I have a nicely upholstered park bench for leg 2 of the journey.

First change, and time for an expensive coffee and a visit to the cash machine. Seat chance, slim.

A peek at the local, listed signal box. Oh joy, a 170 painted like a bin lorry for the next hour. Featuring some fantastically grim seats. I believe these units were second hand when EMR got them, but they havent even bothered to paint them in company livery!

Foot patrol next to avoid the morning rush... I hope the clouds arent an omen! Now I am here, sadly not enough time to go to Maccy's for a turbo gut buster.

Heading South, PC 1 Breakfast 0 CURRENT mode of transport; shonky, multicoloured, Expert Van.

Today's task then, is to attach the replacement knuckle in the hope of curing the toasted wheel bearing. I've used a complete second hand one as I was fairly sure it would have cooked the wheel hub as well as the bearing. I enlisted an assistant on this one, and removal didn't go too badly at all: Old vs New, i was a little nervous that the replacement would be different but i spent a few hours trawling part numbers to ensure the casting was the same. Halfway done, and and time for a well earned brew, my eldest has been assisting today: Drawing the driveshaft through the hub; because the replacement part had been off of the car a while, we spent a good time wire brushing everything but it the shaft was still tight to get in. Here we've got a smallish ratchet on the hub nut to pull the shaft through. A bit of satin black on the exposed bits of tinware. I'm not sure how well it has come out, but you can see the heat discolouration of the bearing inner race and the hub itself...

Playing with your balls? I don't think we needed that announcement! 😁

Nice little gift from amongst the filth!

Got the rear seats cleaned and the leather fed. I'll have a look are the fronts another day... Bleugh. Did find a rather nice pocket knife tucked down beside the seat though! @beko1987 Do you remember where the big secret binocular hiding place was?

Still waiting for parts, so this morning I started the job I'd been putting off for as long as possible... That minging interior. Inside, under the seats and everywhere is covered in dust and hay, as if someone had carried out a controlled explosion on a Shetland pony. The boot was filthy even under the industrial spec boot liner. Some time with a slightly asthmatic parkside vacuum and the Bissel spot cleaner, got the rear carpets looking far happier. I'm going to sponge down the seats and treat them to some leather feed when I next get a bit of time. This is the filth soup from the boot and rear carpets... A couple of blasts with the pressure washer and the boot liner can be reinstalled.

There is a complete second hand hub on route for this. Historically we've found when the wheel bearing is as cunted as this one, it'll bugger the hub up too, almost certainly seeing off the bearing in short order.

OK so in spite of a high level of cuntitude from the ParcelForce fuckwit, I now.have both windo regulators for the Laguna. The rear one went back in with no bother, which left repairing the front one. Having been 'modified' by Big Bobby Sausage Hands, the previous control unit looked like this: Which lead to a burnt out control unit and a multiplug looking like it lived at the bottom of the fishtank. so how best to clean up that multiplug? A bit of a tickle with a stiff wire brush and the the secret weapon; a soda blasting gun: Which left a rather happier looking connector: When I When the replacement mechanism off of the cables, it still didn't work, but on replacing the fuse, the motor moved -reluctantly- at this point I noticed one of the cable channels had broken, and no about of bodging it about would rescue it. As this was the only higher spec mechanism, ive ordered a rebuild kit from ebay, because I just don't have enough aggro already! Still need to sort that wheel bearing though.

Useless lazy parcelforce walker not ringing the doorbell, or indeed leaving the parcel with any of the neighbours whom were all in (indeed those opposite were in the front garden) He'd better leave it tomorrow or it will be another strike against the workshy cunt.

Two window regulators ordered and on to the front suspension this morning:- This corner failed the MOT as the spring was rubbing the bodywork. So the scene is set, and the foreman is on duty so I'd better get it right. Droplinks can be a right bastard of a job, and can add unwanted costs if you have to resort to carving them up with the angry grinder. When I need to remove one, I use a thread cleaning kit before attempting to undo the nut. Sometime heat is required too, but in this case, cleaning the thread was sufficient. Thread cleaning set - I'm sure you can get cheaper than snapon these days. With the strut removed, you can see the spring has caught the arch in several places... Also the locating lugs on the top mount had been sheared off by some uggerdugger merchant. Even when looking at the strut off of the car, you can tell the spring is not a happy one, I suspect it has either the wrong spring, or the spring has been fitted upsidedown. It's flattened the locating tab on the shock absorber too! - I fitted a good, used, strut as i wasnt sure what the issue was until I got the car stripped. This seemed the quickest way to rectify this issue. The foreman agrees that we have done enough for today, so time for some lunch before I go to work: Mmm, that'll do!

Offf, someone will be sore about that, around £25 off the truck to replace it!

So whilst letting the paint harden, I thought it'd look at the non working windows... Firstly the passenger front - this worked when I applied live to the motor, but I'm not sure this is an original fitment... I'd better have a closer look at that... Yes, that doesn't look ideal does it? The multi plug looks terrible too, but I am hoping i can rescue it with the soda blaster. As for the rear door, well that is different again... Yep some fucker has pulled the mech out and cable tied a metal pole in it's place. I shall give the paint a cut and polish tomorrow as there is a bit of oversprsy to remove...

I'm definitely not a bodywork man, but after wiring brushing, rust proofing and a couple of primer coats, I went to VRS Boston for a can of Bleu Azul 472, which has come out a great match to the Frogdollop's paintwork.