Astra Mk1 in glorious poo-brown. SOLD

[John F]

Judging by the unholy and embarrassing screeching that it has just made, it might be worth me checking the tension of the belt

 

Aye, maybe...

[vulgalour]

I continue to be educated and inspired by this wee thread. I have to buy some essentials tomorrow... or today if you've already been to bed... and I think I'm adding a can of petrol to the list so I can tinker with the Polo engine. From what has been going on with the Astra I'm more convinced than ever that the problem is actually something super-minor with Polo engine now and I just need to bolt it all up and get him running to find out what.

 

For fear of hijacking your thread, since the knowledgable chaps are already here, if I try and burp the air out of the coolant system on the Polo while he's parked on an incline, will that make it easier than if he's parked on the flat? Every time we've refilled/changed the coolant the system has airlocked and it seems to take a while to get it to clear.

[vulgalour]

I continue to be educated and inspired by this wee thread. I have to buy some essentials tomorrow... or today if you've already been to bed... and I think I'm adding a can of petrol to the list so I can tinker with the Polo engine. From what has been going on with the Astra I'm more convinced than ever that the problem is actually something super-minor with Polo engine now and I just need to bolt it all up and get him running to find out what.

 

For fear of hijacking your thread, since the knowledgable chaps are already here, if I try and burp the air out of the coolant system on the Polo while he's parked on an incline, will that make it easier than if he's parked on the flat? Every time we've refilled/changed the coolant the system has airlocked and it seems to take a while to get it to clear.

[Louise2cv]

Hijack away, it's a free world on the interweb!

 

He didn't have to jump start it last night,somaybe it is the radio...?

[Louise2cv]

Hijack away, it's a free world on the interweb!

 

He didn't have to jump start it last night,somaybe it is the radio...?

[Louise2cv]

Ok so Matt has just got back from work, he tells me smoke came out of the general steering wheel/column direction when he turned the key.

 

He carried on regardless, I'm liking his style.

 

Weird though? No?

[Louise2cv]

Ok so Matt has just got back from work, he tells me smoke came out of the general steering wheel/column direction when he turned the key.

 

He carried on regardless, I'm liking his style.

 

Weird though? No?

[Ian Nexus]

I remember that fault on my old Cavalier Estate, the contacts in the ignition switch are faulty causing them to overheat - often gives problems with starting ect. a replacement ignition switch will fix it fine.

[Ian Nexus]

I remember that fault on my old Cavalier Estate, the contacts in the ignition switch are faulty causing them to overheat - often gives problems with starting ect. a replacement ignition switch will fix it fine.

[Louise2cv]

Thanks, I just so happen to have one lying around, will pop it on tomorrow.

 

Or maybe now seeing as I still can't get to sleep... hmmm with my 5am steering column change last week, any other nocturnal neighbours are going to think I'm a proper weirdo...

[Louise2cv]

Thanks, I just so happen to have one lying around, will pop it on tomorrow.

 

Or maybe now seeing as I still can't get to sleep... hmmm with my 5am steering column change last week, any other nocturnal neighbours are going to think I'm a proper weirdo...

[Morgan84]

Thanks, I just so happen to have one lying around, will pop it on tomorrow.

 

Or maybe now seeing as I still can't get to sleep... hmmm with my 5am steering column change last week, any other nocturnal neighbours are going to think I'm a proper weirdo...

 

 

I let people say and think whatever they like about me,so long as they can't prove it !!

[Morgan84]

Thanks, I just so happen to have one lying around, will pop it on tomorrow.

 

Or maybe now seeing as I still can't get to sleep... hmmm with my 5am steering column change last week, any other nocturnal neighbours are going to think I'm a proper weirdo...

 

 

I let people say and think whatever they like about me,so long as they can't prove it !!

[Louise2cv]

So far so good!

 

Got 14V with a bit of revs too, I haven't adjusted the belt as it seems tight enough, and over doing it can cause probs can't it?

 

Still screeching every now and than so I might revisit the belt soon.

[Louise2cv]

So far so good!

 

Got 14V with a bit of revs too, I haven't adjusted the belt as it seems tight enough, and over doing it can cause probs can't it?

 

Still screeching every now and than so I might revisit the belt soon.

[John F]

So far so good!

 

Got 14V with a bit of revs too, I haven't adjusted the belt as it seems tight enough, and over doing it can cause probs can't it?

 

Still screeching every now and than so I might revisit the belt soon.

 

Yep, over-tightening can put strain on the alternator bearings.

 

Are you getting a definite increase in volts when you rev the engine above tickover now? If so, everything's good (for now, lol )

[John F]

So far so good!

 

Got 14V with a bit of revs too, I haven't adjusted the belt as it seems tight enough, and over doing it can cause probs can't it?

 

Still screeching every now and than so I might revisit the belt soon.

 

Yep, over-tightening can put strain on the alternator bearings.

 

Are you getting a definite increase in volts when you rev the engine above tickover now? If so, everything's good (for now, lol )

[Guest]

Signed up after reading this thread, That and being up at this time of the morning bored stupid fixing a customers server.

A MK1 Astra and a 1.2 at that. My very first car many aeons ago. A942MWT in a very fetching shade of metallic babyshit green. Christened the vampire because it lived off bits of other astras, and not always from the scrapyard as some bloke that left his ignition barrelless estate unlocked outside our flat for over a week probably discovered. It was reported (incorrectly as it happens) as dumped but not before cries of "Oooh it's got the little plastic covers that clip over the seatbelt fixings, and oh yes! A passenger door mirror!" Oops. Anyway, I digress..

I'd be looking at the waterpump as the source of that squealing. My memory's hazy but I suspect it runs off the same belt as the alternator and I remember mine squealing like pig just before it dumped coolant all over the drive seconds after reaching the end of a 2 and a half hour journey.

The rear wiper, and iirc all the boot electrics, run through some small spring loaded fingers that live in the base of the hatch that can cause all sorts of wierd and wonderful problems if they're not making a good contact with the plates. If the plates even exist as anything other than faded memories by now.

I have a feeling that if I go look in an old toolbox tomorrow I may turn up some gems. Pretty sure the last time I looked in there I saw some points, maybe a rotor arm and possibly some leads. Think I should maybe have a clearout.

Looking forward to hearing more.

[Guest]

Signed up after reading this thread, That and being up at this time of the morning bored stupid fixing a customers server.

A MK1 Astra and a 1.2 at that. My very first car many aeons ago. A942MWT in a very fetching shade of metallic babyshit green. Christened the vampire because it lived off bits of other astras, and not always from the scrapyard as some bloke that left his ignition barrelless estate unlocked outside our flat for over a week probably discovered. It was reported (incorrectly as it happens) as dumped but not before cries of "Oooh it's got the little plastic covers that clip over the seatbelt fixings, and oh yes! A passenger door mirror!" Oops. Anyway, I digress..

I'd be looking at the waterpump as the source of that squealing. My memory's hazy but I suspect it runs off the same belt as the alternator and I remember mine squealing like pig just before it dumped coolant all over the drive seconds after reaching the end of a 2 and a half hour journey.

The rear wiper, and iirc all the boot electrics, run through some small spring loaded fingers that live in the base of the hatch that can cause all sorts of wierd and wonderful problems if they're not making a good contact with the plates. If the plates even exist as anything other than faded memories by now.

I have a feeling that if I go look in an old toolbox tomorrow I may turn up some gems. Pretty sure the last time I looked in there I saw some points, maybe a rotor arm and possibly some leads. Think I should maybe have a clearout.

Looking forward to hearing more.

[Louise2cv]

Cheers for the info, I may well look in to doing the pump when I do the rad switch (yeah I haven't done that yet ).

 

There seems to be a small leak (yeah yeah, that's still there too ) from around the water pump region, a sign of something or just coincidence?

[Danblez]

Cheers for the info, I may well look in to doing the pump when I do the rad switch (yeah I haven't done that yet ).

 

There seems to be a small leak (yeah yeah, that's still there too ) from around the water pump region, a sign of something or just coincidence?

 

Could well be a sign as they can leak when the bearings are shot!

[Louise2cv]

If it wasn't such a fabulous platform for highlighting how utterly stupid I am, I say this thread was GR8!

 

Cheers Danblez, better get myself over to the old bay of e then!

[myglaren]

Inexperienced is nothing like the same as stupid Louise.

Don't put yourself down, at least you are having ago and being quite successful with it too.

[Morgan84]

Some people can't even fit a wiper blade,or change a bulb,so you're doing pretty well

[Parky]

You are doing brilliantly Louise, Mrs P is pretty clever but she couldn't change a steering column. In fact most of my mates couldn't top up screen wash without booking their cars into a main agent reporting that the "watery splashy thing wont go splash when I pull the wotsit next to the steering thing"

 

I consider myself marginally above average on the competence front but you are still taking on stuff that I'd baulk at.

[Louise2cv]

Thanks guys. I just feel very stupid about water cooled stuff, I've never played with them before.

[Louise2cv]

Apparently this old crock of wotsit has lost the ability to idle again. What a turd.

 

ETA Actually it can't be that bad as Matt only mentioned it as an aside, he just said "oh yeah the car kept stalling today, at x junction, y junction etc. So I've little idea what the problem is and I'm going to avoid finding out for as long as I can.

[Louise2cv]

Back to square one on this. Yet again, it won't run I can start it on the choke but as soon as you touch the go pedal it stalls.

 

I'm under pressure now too as OH is reluctant to drive it to work as it cut out on roundabouts and at junctions. Where is his sense of adventure?

 

I pissed about this morning making sure everything is tight and fannied around with the carb settings again. So I've probably f*cked it right up.

 

Any suggestions?

[cort16]

Is there any garage locally that specialises in carbs/old motoes? It might be worth spending X amount of cash with them to get this back to being a reliable car else you'll probably just end up getting hacked off with it and selling it, which would be a shame.

[Louise2cv]

I'm going to have to take it in, I'm just embarrassed about having to admit to cocking up the settings

 

I wonder why it's happened again. Could the carb itself be knackered?