scruff

Cheers fellas I will do just that

Hi gang. I’ve done 3000 miles in this now and I love it, we will see how the MOT goes in the summer but I’d like to keep it I reckon . There’s been a few things of note. It can get a bit fumey in traffic so maybe the exhaust is blowing somewhere, and occasionally a message saying “engine power reduced” or similar but no EML on. I went and got an OBD reader from euro car parts and it came up as glow plugs, that looks a shite job to do but we shall see. Anyone here done it? I got the graunch of doom last week so yesterday chucked some new pads in it. Been to the Nene Valley Railway today and the bit of sunshine was enough to try the air con properly, works a treat.

It would be great to see any older pics of it. The thing is even in 2002, it wasn’t that unusual to stumble across some old 50s chodbox parked on the street, nor find people sleeping in their cars, and this one was off the beaten track a bit. Taking the above article at face value if it wasn’t for the new nimby in the area it might have stayed put a while longer. I well remember people living in their cars on the seafront, a mix of homeless and workers away from home saving on digs. There’s a house round the corner from my parents that has featured on here before. ‘69 Transit rotting into the road, two fifties yanks and a ur Quattro on the drive in comparable “naysmith” condition full of cats and rubbish. Part of me hopes they will be there for years to come, but I don’t have to look or smell them every day.

Fascinating story. I do wonder if one of Miss Smith’s friendly neighbours took it upon themselves to register it at some point and has just plodded on with it in her memory?

I remember seeing some DAFs of theirs but that was some years ago. They’ve run Volvo since the days of F7s, F10s etc at least.

Fair play. They are definitely getting rarer!

Just playing catchup, what a superb result (as usual). Wonderful Waggon hope to see it somewhere, Beamish maybe? Still a fair hop, maybe I ought to do a Scottish rally!

There's always ERFs coming out of the woodwork. The cult following of 143 Scanias must have given them an reasonable survival rate, its certainly harder to find a nice F12 of the same age that isn't an import.

Excellent Intel SF. I know absolutely nothing about them. 5w30 is like water isnt it?!!

Greetings Shiters, hope all are well. Found myself in urgent need of alternative transport, last week. Long story cut shorter, after just shy of ten years I changed jobs and the new role involves a fair bit of training up and shadowing, plus some cab hopping as my designated truck wont be ready until March. Thus, my commute has gone from a 3 mile round trip to 60. For nighttime shifts it's been OK as I have borrowed the wife's Puma, but for day work all I have is my Series 3 Landy. Now this is fine on paper and I can, have and probably still will do mega miles in it, but sub-30mpg a shit heater and general Landroverness has lost its appeal very slightly. The cost alone isnt amusing any more. Also I'm 40 this year, and aching for a excuse to buy something as I haven't bought a car for myself for fuckin ages. Last Thursday I had a paid day off sorry standing down shift (this new job is the tits) so decided to go car shopping. Budget a grand, targets: 45 to 50mpg, cheapish tax and ability to seat four a bonus - originally was gonna get a van but the RFL LOL and lack of child carrying capacity quickly ruled them out. An hour on autotrader and three phone calls I had my target. The guy sounded like a normal human being and was genuinely surprised I hadn't just ghettoblasted his inbox with stupid offers. Mrs Scruff was at work and unlikely to want to ferry me about after doing the school run etc etc so I decided to be totally self sufficient and get the train. Worse case scenario, if the car was shiter than I expected, I could walk to work and borrow a van to get home. First job was route planning. Took the Land Rover to the yard where I keep all my old kak and left it there: Next a pleasant walk to the station. Here i punched my destination into the ticket machine, and once id got myself off the floor went on the interweb and got a ticket twenty five quid cheaper: Stamford station looking a little shabby in the cold. It's not far to Northampton, but my cheapo ticket meant changes at Nuneaton and Rugby, no matter I had plenty of time and it was a nice day for window gazing. coffee rating 3/10 It was pitch black by the time I got to Northampton, and very cold so I got all extravagant and got a taxi. Nice Passat in case you need to know. I shit you not, the driver was on his phone the whole ten minute or so, on some live cam bonking chat with a Eastern European (I assume from the lingo) sort. He must have sent her fifty quid by tapping his screen on the journey, she didn't even get her bits out. By the time I was about to say something we were there anyway, I told him to keep the meagre change as he will need it if he's addicted to bongo chat while driving. Anyway the car was much better than I dared hope, it was the cheapest example I'd seen and been described as having "more dents than a golf ball" but mechanically sound. Fortunately the guy had floodlights on his drive but TBH I didn't look that hard, you just know don't you? I went round the block with him and it felt tight as a drum, everything worked and after handing over 800 notes I was the tenth owner of this beauty. I insured it sat outside his house, taxed it (swearing a little it wasn't a 35 quid tax one as i smugly thought i'd researched but its not too bad) and then drove it home. Been going to and fro work in it for a week now and its great, I really like it! It is rough, but that's fine as I can leave it anywhere and not worry. It is absolutely mint inside and everything works. I have NO history of anything except what the guy I bought it from had done (DPF, various sensors, shockers etc). Its got 188k on it, I'm going to do the belt ASAP and then just see how we go with it.

Holy thread resurrection batman! Apologies, once again. Life seems to have left little time for ye olde foruming but here's an update. The long drawn out engine swap on the 2a is finally done, a couple of things happened to spur me into action and i ended up taking it to work and doing it under the crane in the factory one Saturday morning, as otherwise I'd have just faffed around and found excuses. Post mortom on the dead petrol engine was amusing It did still run, I drove it out the garden and onto the trailer 😁 The engine I fitted was a 5 bearing 2.25 diesel that came from a friend in France, I know it's a good one and after swapping the clutch for a diesel one and new engine mounts and downpipe, it looks at home in there I then took it back home, on towing duties was one of the reasons I was spurted into doing something with it, I had acquired another Land Rover I'd known this wagon for nearly twenty years and along with friends and my wife, have had some proper good adventures and fun with it, so when my good mate Steve said he was looking to move it on we had to have it. It hadn't moved since before the pandemic but with a fresh battery and a dust off away it went and drove 50 miles home no sweat. That was last October and I've been using it every day since, only problem has been the starter motor packing up. Front hitch is handy !

I've always run older stuff daily. A35 was the oldest and was fine, the salt did get it though. 😔 Though to be honest if I'd had the skills and facilities I'd have mended it and carried on. Currently use my 1979 Series III Land Rover daily, in some ways still the perfect rural family transport - it's got the child seats and a dog cage in it permanently, it doesn't matter if it gets filthy inside, can chuck all my oily and sooty steam engine shite in it etc etc. It is still a Landy tho with all the quirks, I keep thinking about a baby Austin again or something like a Somerset or A50/A55

It's interesting you say that as I did think the tractor was much more substantial than a normal swather, it had a proper steering axle etc rather than trolley wheels. Still a weird thing to drive . It was a proper Fortschitt header with it. I didn't take any other pics than this, it was a H reg I think and I picked it up from a farm near Pocklington. It's just outside Edinburgh now and the guy has about 25 acres of OSR to do with it and some for his neighbours.

I see your Fortschitt tractor and raise you this beauty I moved last week. 303 oilseed swather.

Very sorry to read this

Money. That's all people seem to care about when old motors are mentioned.

I got James Brown's (journo not king of soul) new book "animal house" for Christmas. Some good KLF encounters and photos of Ford Timelord in Sweden.

Proper lorry. I got a 17 plate FH 540 at the end of September, absolutely love it.

Ellard make industrial/agricultural doors and have done since the 50s, it might be off some sort of weather protection for a barn or similar.

Done a few jobs on my latest purchase this morning. A Series III was my first car so it's great to have one again. Even smells the same (good and bad). Just off to the post office in a min to sort the change in tax status out and should be able to run around in it soon.

I have a few poo pants stories, here's a couple Had a hired mini digger on a job on the Isle of Dogs years ago. One Monday morning it wouldn't start, ignition light on but no go. No problem thinks I, I'll jump it off the van (Transit). Bit of a fiddle to get the leads on with a few sparks and then try the digger. Nothing at all.... No lights on the digger... hang on what's that smell? The friggin throttle cable was melting all the plastic off and was glowing red - and my mate shouts "there's a light on in the van" . Sure enough the battery light was glowing merrily away. Shit shit shit... Obviously a bad earth on the excavator but the van had me puzzled. Got the cables off, took a moment to weigh things up. Decided to ring the hire firm with a non start and let them sort it. Bricking it about the van I rang the boss with that sinking feeling in my stomach... "Oh it's been a shit starter the last few weeks, probably packed in totally" 👀 Barrelling along the A24 flat out in my first car, a diesel Series 3 Landy, ears bleeding and overdrive screaming when there's a sudden lurch and I see the passenger side front wheel merrily spin itself away up the hard shoulder. It was dusk so the resultant spark-show as the brake drum ground itself along the tarmac was quite spectacular. It had pulled itself hard to the left which fortunately was clear, I ground to a halt on the three remaining brakes and composed myself. Not easy jacking up a three wheeled Land Rover in the dark. Often wonder if someone ever found the lovingly painted steel rim clad with a nearly new BF Goodrich tyre 🤦‍♂️ Following a mate one beautiful sunny morning. Me in my 205 he in a rough old Range Rover. He had been having propshaft problems and so had removed the rear one. Unfortunately he didn't realize the prop held the handbrake drum in place. Into a NSL and he put his foot down, five seconds later the drum catapulted off the road like a cast iron frisbee aimed straight at my Peugeot. By some miracle it missed the car but I just caught sight of it in the mirror, hitting the kerb and shattering into pieces.

Mick Moody will import you a new Ford if you want one, there was a geezer running one on international event/music work. Ideal as I think they are only built 4x2 and LHD. Ford themselves have at least one on the road, you see it with a race/exhibition trailer behind it. I'm not going to pretend i know the in and outs of the cut throat European heavies market but it looks a good contender to me, I would have one. They look well smart I reckon and the cabs look as nice inside as anything else these days. The Brit fella who had the Moody one raved about it in one of the mag's a few years back. https://www.fordtrucks.com.tr/en/

Setting up our stand at the Royal Highland Show. Surprising yad spot. With bonus swallow

Not really a truck, but lots in common. Moved this JCB Fastrac for a bloke this week. I do a lot with Fastracs but hadn't driven one of these particular models since I was a student. This, coupled with the fella buying it to restore, meant I was surprised to find it's 23 years old! This is the smaller of the "big" Fastracs with a 155hp Perkins in it. Nice tractor, it ran well and built up air no problem, all the gears worked etc. Not quite as cool as the original Fastrac with the Austin Rover steering wheel and wind up windows, but still a pleasant place to be. Air con was ice cold. VID_20220524_095546.mp4 VID_20220524_095546.mp4

Tipped next to their older Volvo today, 09 plate and spotless. Unlike mine at the moment 😃