greengartside

Right. I did a thing. 


Pre MOT prep started with the annual (I’m not kidding) wash. 
Alf892, myself and his mate spent a couple of hours fixing an endless torrent of niggles. A new issue has developed through the winter where only half the fucking fuse box works. We’ve backfed it from another supply so we have wipers and blowers, and I’m planning on getting it tested this week. Once passed it’ll be off to the @Angrydickycarehome for elderly motor cars.

Nice purchase. Also nice to see it repatriated back to Scotland - ‘SP’ is a Dundee area code.

Been a while since I posted on here! Did a collection thread for a Volvo S90 back in 2019. Which was sold and replaced with A Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Which was sold and replaced by a Tesla Model Y.
Anyway, the new beater! Wifey's leased Ioniq is soon to be handed back, and with changed usage needs we decided to buy something older and cheaper. We'll need a second car less than we have done, so had a think about what we have owned in the past that was good and might be suitable for buying again. And having run a Hyundai i30 from new for 6 years without any issues, we started having a look for one.
One in a lovely* part of Bolton stood out. £2,195, 110k miles, the correct engine (1.4 petrol) and trim (Comfort *with* the armrest), which looked tidy enough on the advert from a dealer who had positive reviews. Nothing scary showing on past MOTs, 11 months left on the current one, what the hell lets do this.
Saturday morning had me at Aberdeen airport boarding a Loganair Embraer 145 for the hop down to Manchester, then train to Bolton and a walk rather than the bus as it was a sunny morning! Turn up at the dealers and he's a bit confused as I'm an hour earlier than we'd originally said (though had changed the time on text messages he'd replied to. Profusely apologetic, heads off in a Kia Venga to their off-site storage and comes back 10 minutes later with the car. Which was plastered in bird crap despite their best efforts to keep their cars clean!

They also own a valeting place so the inside was pretty spotless (considering its 14 years old). A few minor dents, some pre-curbed alloys and one headlight has condensation. But apart from that the sills are rock solid, there's a few very minor bits of surface rust, and the engine looks and sounds tidy. A quick run around the block and I'm happy to get on and buy the thing. 
Off I go down the hill towards town to stick fuel in at Sainsbury's. Haven't driven a manual in 10 months so stalled it a couple of times (and nearly got wiped out by a lunatic in a battered Prius). Anyway, fuel in, then into the main store car park to investigate the rattle from the passenger door pocket - a huge bunch of car keys left by the guy from the garage! OK, lets go back and hand those over, but no it refused to restart! Pretty clear the battery wasn't having it, so ring them up. 5 minutes later a guy comes down with a battery booster pack, restart the car and follow him back where they fitted a new battery without a quibble.

I'm in Bolton, I live near Fraserburgh, and I still have friends on Teesside I'm going out with that night. Reset the trip and head down St Peters Way towards the M62. Car is doing high 40s MPG, running very nicely - until we cross the pennines  at which point it drops power and the EML comes on. Arse. Too far to go back, and I wonder if its just been sat a while as EML and the power drop comes and goes a few times. So off the motorway and lets do an Italian tune up. Nope, that doesn't solve it. Could it not like E10? Petrol has changed since I last bought some, so stick £20 of E5 in. That doesn't do much either...

I knew I had an OBD dongle at home, car drives just burning more fuel and down on power, so with the planned stopover in Teesside I bring the thing back. I am not mechanically minded, so if I describe the symptoms can you guess what the issue is?

I reckon it'll stink of  B.O...

Tipo?

Previous owner:

I didn’t need to replace my car y’know (Bobby Chariot ©️)

 I have been astride this for almost exactly nearly a year, the 1998 C250TD with elegance, in factory Mercedes colours too, nice. Only bothers have been leaky ones, gearbox needed a new wiring plug and got a filter and fresh oil whilst at it and o rings on the fuel side got replaced, unshockingly faultless aside from those. Speaking of faults, the o/s/f door mirror can electrically move in some directions but not all, the o/s/r window doesn’t open, there are cosmetic scabs and the interior is not mint. Them last two could have described me at 25 so I don’t doubt this car will last at least another 16 years.

The desire for more “redundant clutch leg” room is the only thing that has brought about it’s demotion, my lengthy foot and leg don’t appreciate the dimensions it has to offer.

MOT'd with 7hrs to spare.

Arrived at Pitlochry with a rhythmic howl which intensified when turning right and vanished under braking.


That'll not help... 
Needs more investigation as the car still pulls to the left, as it did before, with no signs of the front brakes binding and being retracked not long ago. I also think the "doughnut" that supports the propshaft is tired as there is substantial drivetrain vibration.
Overall it's just not driving as well as I'd like...

Still getting the job done though.

The attached photos are all from a Practical Classics supplement which was published in June 1992.


Citroen CX is an interesting vehicle to have L-plates on. NSU looks tiny in comparison.

If I had a time machine I would love to go back and save the Granada. Ultimate spec for me estate and DVLA check comes back showing it had a 3.0 litre V6.
 

After buying a 525i and having to deal with BMW lack of maintenance issues to replace my sensible daily Octavia 1.6 TDI, I knew I should have bought something I could care less about. I decided I wanted something petrol and modern (by my standards at least) for daily duties. 
Cars usually choose me and not the other way round, so I wasn't looking for an Insignia, nor was I really aware of the 2.0 turbo petrol which inexplicably completed the quick petrol line-up below the VXr and 2.8 Turbo. They were avialable with Haldex AWD and with an auto box, but this is a FWD manual. It uses the Astra VXR engine is a lower state of tune and once I'd seen this I knew it was the car for me.

 
Some giffer mods helped to keep the price reasonable, but did make me look a bit of a berk on my 300 mile trip back from Durham. It seems a well cared for car with lots of service history (although oddly no MOT history for the first owner )


 
It's wearing BBS style 216s as found on some BMWs

The tyres? Yes they are Radar Dimax 4 seasons. This review tells you all you need to know.

It's quite nice inside, loads of adjustment on the seat in this SRI spec which is an odd mix of niceties and poverty (windy windows in the rear seems very mean)

It idn;t take long for me to crack out the heat gun


So far I like it, it's a good cruiser and has plenty of poke. No steering feel whatsoever, but that's not why I bought it.
 

yes indeed.  Welcome to AS to this very late G reg Skoda Estelle 120 5 speed in regal red.  Its was old couple owned from new then off the road for a number of years. Recommissioned in 2013 but has only done about 1000 miles since and off the road since late 2021.  Its all solid straight and original with only 30k on the clock and minimal rust, but the paint has seen better days . Interior is good apart from the rear seat tops
Runs and drives but roughly 
 

If you have read any of my posts on other parts of the forum you may know that that lovely man Sadiq Khan is putting the kabosh on my hobby in August by expanding his fresh clean air Eutopia to my house. I currently own 4 non compliant cars and have been debating what to do about it all
Well in true AS style my answer is to bury my head in the sand and buy another non ULEZ compliant car
Not only that, but a car that's been off the road for a few years, has done less than 1000 miles since 2013
Throw in the fact that whilst I have seen it in person it was a bit of a ten minute glance over it rather than a full inspection, and I haven't driven it due to no MOT. I also haven't seen the paperwork as the seller had COVID when I went to view it. 
Finally, due to some time and logistic constraints I wasn't able to arrange for Ceri to collect so have booked the cheapest Shipley bloke with a Beaver tail Iveco to bring it half the length of the country
WCPGW, folks 😳

You may have seen @Stinkwheel recently sold his Ami to a member of this forum and  delivered over the bank holiday but as documented here Bank Holiday Delivery Caper. The  details of who purchased it and where it ended up were somewhat of a mistery.
Well I can now reveal that I didn't buy it!
However @DaveDorson(my brother) and my parents did as a surprise birthday present for me. The surprise element certainly worked! My birthday isn't until July and as someone who doesn't do much to celebrate birthdays I certainly wasn't expecting a car.
Dave had been trying to convince me to buy this as whenever I've seen one for sale I've expressed an interest that they look cool. I do that with a lot of cars as we were bought up around old cars and it's something we've always done. I bought a house in late 2021 and house maintenance and the general cost of living had meant that I didn't have the money spare to buy the Ami. I'd said to Dave that if I did have the spare cash I would have been interested in buying the Ami as it looks like a great starter classic.
I've no experience of anything based on the Citroen A series platform baring a friends mum having a 2CV when I was in school, but I've been looking into then since Stinkweel listed the Ami and they seem straightforward enough to work on.
I was down in Rutland visiting my parents on Tuesday and yesterday as I'd booked this week off work and had volunteered to run some family errands. Whilst I was there Dave popped by so we went over to his unit. He'd called me on Monday and broke the news that they'd clubbed together and bought the Ami for me, but I wasn't sure what to expect and hadn't really had much down time to process it.
Overall I'm really pleased and excited about it. It needs a few bits doing like the brakes and a bit of welding etc, plus a few bits of tidying up and the seats recovering or replacing. Dave's going to take care of most of the mechanics and bodywork side of things, and I'll pop down again in the near future to help out with this where I can. It's as described though and driveable as is, it just makes sense to go over it whilst it's in the unit. I live 150 miles from where the car is currently, so the plan is to go over it all, ensure it's solid and refresh anything mechanical that's looking like it need replacing before attempting to get it back to mine. Meanwhile I need to get a shed and clear out my garage so I can store it safely and protect it from the less than ideal Lancashire weather. Long term it's never going to be a show winner and I love it's character so it'll be subjected to regular maintenance and rust proofing etc. If I find any wings etc in good condition I'll probably look to replace the rusty or dented parts with less rusty ones but I don't have the budget for a full resto and respray so it'll remain as a survivor. The car came with some spares and Dave's been gathering up a few bits on the side so hopefully we can get it sorted and enjoy it for a bit this summer.
Thanks again to @Stinkwheel and @DaveDorson. I'll either update this thread or start one to cover this and my other cars. I've currently got a W203 C270 CDI and a Peugeot 307 1.6 HDi. I've never started a thread for them as I wasn't sure they warranted it.

Went to a local meet tonight and the first time I had a chance to really drive it in anger. Yes this rattles more than a toolbox, flexes more than a soggy shoebox, a roof like a toupee, darts around like squirrel and has as much refinement as a horse carriage with every bump transmitting through your arse. But the drive there was absolutely A*. Thoroughly enjoyed myself. The Rover P4 is such a superior built car but this ramshackle bunch of parts is so much more me. I don't regret the change.

Before setting off I needed to tend to a few things. Felt weird that the car pretty much sorted after I keep buying broken things. It almost felt I needed to fix something.

Anyway ND warned me that the fan was playing up. I had a look around and it seemed to work okay when I turned the temperature control. I did find this crimp that had been a bit through the wars. I replaced it with one that I can connect the other to easily. This allows me to short out the switch and let it run constantly easily.



The thermostat switch runs through a relay. At the moment it's just dangling about and was naked. So I wrapped insulating tape around it for now. I plan to rewire all this so I can put an override switch in. But I may remove the thermostat completely if it continues to play up. Then put a mechanical fan on with a switch under the dash to allow the electric fan to run if things get too toasty in slow traffic. The fans would be offset so may work quite well.


In the event, on the drive back home the temperature gauge started to creep up and not stop. I pulled over and turned the thermostat switch to nearly minimum and the electric fan kicked in. I set it to 70c (was 85c) and it seems to be cutting in/out at the mid point now. I definitely do not have a huge amount of trust in this thermostat switch.


It's been sitting outside for the last few days and it's been throwing it down. Not unexpectedly the footwell had a pond in it.


The Dolomite is going up to storage in a few weeks and then I can use the space in the garage to store the BGT or this out of the elements and swap it around when I want to.

Decided to drop the roof. First attempt went very wrong.


I had to go in for tea anyway so I read the manual over food. Then tried again. I don't think I got it quite right as I basically shoved the detached roof behind the seats. Worked good enough to go out with the hood down though.


Put £20 of petrol in (took it to half way) and then went for a drive up to the meet.

What have I found?

Busy day at the SiC household. With the Rover gone, it was time to pick up it's replacement. Due to an insurance timing fuck up on my part, @N Dentressangle kindly delivered this for me. 

Just done four hours of driving going back and forth so I'm now a bit knackered. I'd usually sit in it and have a fiddle but I might end up falling asleep in there. 

Please don't flame me, I just couldn't unsee it

Holy thread resurrection Batman!
Here’s a very early Mk7 Fiesta on an ‘08 plate. They were launched on a ‘58 plate so this one is a pre-launch model. I’ve only ever seen one more ‘08’.

on eBay…
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166083823234?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=z4E5EFEsTfu&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=2OenAfhOTCK&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

Current functional car status 0/3.

So the Acclaim ran out of MOT at the start of Feb and rather than fixing the handbrake I decided to sort the Volvo first. This ran out of MOT at the end of March.
It had a binding front left brake. Strip, clean, reassemble, sorted.

Looks quite crusty...




Oof.
Caliper bores were corroded, pistons were corroded and seized, slider pins were completely seized, massive lip on the discs, brake hoses perished. Same on both sides.
Naturally these calipers are now rare and expensive so I borrowed a drill hone from @juular and cleaned up the bores. I think a lot of the crud was actually bits of piston chrome that'd stuck to the sides as the pitting was pretty minimal.
Then I borrowed a vice from @320touring and some strength from @jaypee and with a combination these, a blow torch, a big hammer and a massive locking wrench the slider pins were freed from the carriers. The bores for these were then cleared out with a Dremel.
New seals and pistons were fitted and a blast with high temp silver paint I had lying about, because it'd be rude not to...

This brake union on the driver's side wasn't playing ball:

So I went out and bought the proper spanner for the job and then rounded the fitting anyway. Clamped it with mole grips and set at it with the blow torch having forgotten that I'd only drained the passenger side of the system... The resulting explosion took out the hose and left me slightly deaf in one ear.

Anyway, got it freed off and put a new flare on the end of the old pipe.
This disc retaining pins were also good fun.

Back together.


I probably should have replaced the backing plates, but couldn't be arsed...
Bled the system and ran it up and down the street, stops in a straight line and nothing seems to be sticking. MOT is booked for Tues...
 
In Dolly engine news:
Fitted new thrust washers, measured the end float, buttoned the bottom end back together. Nothing really much to show there.
Most of what I've been doing is cleaning ungodly amounts of sludge off/out of everything...

I also acquired this:

The massive socket only, the impact was borrowed from @dome
With this I could remove the crank pulley...



This meant I could get the cam out...




Ouch.

Gross.
I did the sensible thing for a budget engine build and bought a new cam...


So, back to scraping gaskets and scooping sludge...

Refitted oil pump and front plate and installed new cam. I also waved some black rattle cans around.

Restored*


 

Next stage is to get it flipped over, head back on, get the cam/crank/dizzy timing all locked in, then fit the new water pump, back plate, drop in the car and run in...
Mildly bricking it as this is the first engine I've built solo.
 
 
 
 

I have not been arsed with the Volvo and have just been starting it on easy start when it's hot. Now the weather is getting a bit nicer and the days a bit longer I'll try and spend an evening testing shit to pinpoint exactly what's not working.
The Acclaim continues to be the turn key car of choice.
Lawn mowing season is approaching so I really need to get my arse in gear and fix the lawn mower... Pressingly it had no compression, so the engine was popped open and, as suspected, one of the valves was stuck.

Valve freed up and, as any pro mechanic will recommend, reusing the gasket it was thrown back together. It now does that proper "chuff chuff chuff" thing out of the spark plug hole when you spin it over with a drill.
Next issue is that it has no spark despite nice clean and gapped points/plug. Enough electricity is being generated to zap me if I hold the end of the HT lead while turning it over but nothing great enough to jump to the casing unless it's about 1mm away. The HT lead on these is apparently soldered onto the magneto and the fact it can spin 360 degrees suggests that this is no longer the case. It's all a "sealed for life" type thing but nothing that cutting the casing apart and recovering with copious electrical tape can't overcome... Then I just need to do the carb, for which kits are cheaply available, and unstick the clutch.
In Dolomite news this occurred:


Yes another boat anchor added to the collection, complete with direction selector machine, courtesy of @SiC. It was very cheap and I really wish he'd have acquired the car for breaking a couple of years ago. 😂
Stock Dolomite engine, under 70k on the clock, been sat for years though. Fuck me it was grotty, may have had some small* oil leaks.


Cleaning revealed a big "M" and orange splodge on one side of the block and a "42" and green splodge on the other side. Presumably this meant something to some bloke on a factory production line in 1982 but I've no idea what any of that refers to!




"G" stamped pistons are stock, so it's never been bored out and there is no sign of piston slap or bore wear at all. No signs of burning oil (although the oil that's in it was akin to chocolate fudge cake). No immediate signs of worn out bottom end shit although I've still got to yank the sump and measure everything properly.
Plan is to throw bearings and thrusts at this if it looks like it needs them, clean the fuck out of everything and chuck it back together and dump it in the car to run this year.
The current engine that's in it will get pulled out and rebuilt properly on the bench rather than swapping bearings upside down underneath the car. To be honest I think it might be better to save up the pennies and buy another crank for it rather than risk making a cunt of it running oversize custom thrust washers. Reckon I'll also get my twin carb manifold dug out and have that ready to go on.
Hoping to get the new lump built up and dropped in over the next couple of weeks, I need it bedded in and proven for this year's grand attempt at bullshit...

Bonus pics from scenery that's deceptively not that far away. 
 

 

 
 
 

 
 
 

 
 

It's officially the one year anniversary of fine silvery green Rexton ownership. 
 

 
 
In the 12 months that it's been regularly zooming but not travelling very far, it's generally been a very good boy. One issue with the nearside front caliper sticking is the worst issue it's thrown up until recently. 

 
 
Of course, even Rextons occasionally require some *squints* main-tain-ance, and very recently it began starting like some type of grumpy french bastard. 
 

 
This of course, will not do. 
 
I tried changing fuels, thinking it might have been a bad batch of veg oil, but the issues remained. I tried changing the fuel filter but the issues remained. Frankly, that was me 100% out of ideas so I consulted with a real grown up. @Jimbob McGregor kindly scanned it with his olde worlde diagnostic device (eyes and hands) and diagnosed glow plugs what have got too bad at hotting and rotten old leak off pipes. Fast forward through a good few hours of fucking around and the old slut is back in fine form again.
Field report from the lift, post fixing:
 
 
Back on song and starting like a petrol engine again, even on the veg. 
 
While it was getting attention, the dogshit LED headlights were yanked and replaced with good old fashioned analogue bulbs. 

 
Bin.
 
Back on form, with a clean MOT pass, the old hound is ready for another years veg hauling. 
Only one thing left to do........

 

Yay! I have fuel again! 
 
 

Perfect. 
 

 
fitted. 
 

 
got it down. Flicked the ignition on. Nothing. Needle doesn’t move. Check for resistance, 0.00. Ok, maybe there’s no fuel in it? It’s been running ok? Chucked a gallon in it, now the gauge comes up to the bottom of the empty mark. Dodged a bullet there me thinks! 

Looking forward to fitting this tomorrow 
 


 
and I’ve got this to use, it’s a game changer!!!!