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Reginald Nutsack's K-series Kapers - ROVER 623 MOT GUFF


Mr_Bo11ox

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  • 2 weeks later...

ROVER 600 News

 

Can't understand why the MOT lot failed it on this. Miserable bastards!!!!

 

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I never buy part worns any more as, thanks to mytyres and tyreleader and whatnot, new hoops are so cheap that part worns seem like needless mingebaggery. However I saw a pair of Michelins on eBay with 7-8mm tread, from a supposed tyre dealer on ebay, for £40. I liked the idea of having decent matched tyres on the front of the 600 so I bought em.

 

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I had a right war fitting em and it was because they seemed as hard as a bastard. I read up on how to check the age of em. 2001!!!! Flippin 15 year old tyres FFS. They do have plenty tread and no cracks and that, but the rubber is well hard and shiny, I am sure they will have zero wet grip. I chucked em on anyway as I am running oiut of time to get my free retest, but I have complained to the seller who says 'Ok ok I will sort it' but what he's gonna do I don't know. I am not fucking about waiting in all day for a courier to send these back. I guess the lesson is 'don't fanny about buying secondhand tyres' which is a lesson I have already learned in the past FFS.

 

I was annoyed by the dashboard in the 600 as when you press the heater controls the whole control panel wobbles about 4-5mm, it was not fastened in properly. I hate stuff like that so I spent a while taking the centre console to bits to fix it. What I found is that these things have the most horrible flimsy brittle plastic mouldings this side of a Skoda Favorit. The centre console already had about 3 cracks in it and despite being super careful by the time i got it out is had about 4 more and half of its tangs missing that click it into place. It was a cold night admittedly and the placca was mega brittle. All the mounting holes for the heater controls were broken so I drilled some new ones and cable tied the bastard into place which firmed it up nicely.

 

I 'repaired' the centre console cracks with this stuff:

 

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3M '425' aluminium speed tape. Its good stuff this, it is actually a thin metal ribbon with self adhesive on one side. You can repair a bit of cracked trim with it and if you put 2 or 3 layers on its like having a metal bracket or fibreglass repair or somthign as it moulds well to the shape of whatever it is, aand with zero stretch in the tape itself. If you 'polishi it up' after applying it to get all the air out and get good adhesion its pretty sticky too. At work they call it '600mph tape' as you can supposedly use it to secure instrumentation on the outside of an aeroplane and it will hold it on up to 600mph!!!! Anyway its highly reccomended for the shiters toolkit, you can get it off eBay for about £15 a roll. I put a few layers on the back of the busted centre console and 'fixed' the cracks. Also replaced a missing hinge pin out the ashtray lid.

 

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I would have preferred not to have any speed tape visible but in the end I did have a few bits showing, I thought it was a price I'd just have to pay to avoid squeaks and visible cracks on the console. Anyway with it back together iit seems much sturdier even if it looks a bit wank.

 

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While I was 'on it' with the tape I condemned this coin tray thing too as it was all rattly and broken. Classy job eh? Seriously these things are properly chatty even by Rover's low standards of 'percieved quality'.

 

Anyway Its now back with the garage for a re-test and tracking adjustment - fingers crossed it will finally get that elusive certificate!!

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I recently got a set of second hand Brdidgestone winters that were only dated 08 but were lethal.

 

As you already know it's a false economy really, part worns are 20-30 each, new ones about 40-50 including fitting for a mid range brand purchased online, provided you're on shite sizes like 185/65/15 etc.

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I've had a mixed bag with them. I've had really good continentals for £20 each and another time something that looked like it was pulled off the side of a tug boat before it was scrapped in 1981.

When I got tyres for the Panda recently they cost £32 each, which means you'd need to be a proper minge bag to put part worns on (I thought about it).

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Flippin 15 year old tyres FFS. They do have plenty tread and no cracks and that, but the rubber is well hard and shiny, I am sure they will have zero wet grip. I chucked em on anyway as I am running oiut of time to get my free retest, but I have complained to the seller who says 'Ok ok I will sort it' but what he's gonna do I don't know. I am not fucking about waiting in all day for a courier to send these back. I guess the lesson is 'don't fanny about buying secondhand tyres' which is a lesson I have already learned in the past FFS.

 

Meeechaalin Understeers

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My Bini had lovely new tyres when I got it, except after two weeks they practically disintegrated. The wheels were in great condition too so I wondered whether the original owner had taken the standard wheels off and pottered around on another set.

 

Car built 2001, tyres made 2001, car bought 2011 so ten years old when I got it. Car drove very strangely and all kinds of odd noises emanated from it on the motorway. When I fitted new ones at vast expense, the noise went away and by 'Eck it didn't half drive better.

 

Quite paranoid about tyres now

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  • 2 months later...

Well after 2 years off the road, most of which was spent sitting in a Lincolnshire field, this old heap is back on the road!!!!!

 

 

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It seems to go pretty well, gearbox behaves well, engine is lovely and smooth and most stuff seems to work apart from the drivers window whch is a bit haphazard. CD changer, cruise, electric seats, roof all do the biz and the heater is good. It 'feels' alright, certainly doesn't feel like its going to cough to a halt at the side of the road any time soon and has good visibility with its slim screen pillars etc. The engine is really lovely despite its 146k. I like it!!!

 

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I would say it has quite good 'car park appeal' in that I don't think 'oh, no' when I see it across the car park at the end of a day in the office. The seats are nice and the colour/wheels/interior really make it. I do have too many cars though, so I think I am probably gonna rumble round in it for a month to make sure its all OK and then see if I can re-home it, if anyone wants to give me £425 for it I'd let it go, failing that I might have a crack at a roffle at the end of March, £7/ticket. Lets see how we get on!

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I always liked the 600, pity about the chronic rust in the wheel arches and the drivers window regulators made out of cheese though.  Should have kept my last one.  (Just like every other car I've owned that turns into a classic three minutes after I've fixed and sold them).

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Aye the 600 is a clean unfussy design, light and airy inside as well, 75s are just cluttered both inside and out.

 

600s really are the only late Rover after the R8s were phased out that I would really want to own, I have no need for this car and nowhere to keep it but I bet i know how much it will be to insure tomorrow......

 

Hows the Honda 2.3 in comparison to the other Rover engines you have owned Mr Bollox?

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Aye the 600 is a clean unfussy design, light and airy inside as well, 75s are just cluttered both inside and out.

 

600s really are the only late Rover after the R8s were phased out that I would really want to own, I have no need for this car and nowhere to keep it but I bet i know how much it will be to insure tomorrow......

 

Hows the Honda 2.3 in comparison to the other Rover engines you have owned Mr Bollox?

 

I'm led to believe the 2.3 powertrain is silent as a fish, and it pulls like a great.

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I would buy a new regulator for this if I could find one cheap!

Have you tried a Honda breakers, or even a dealer? Should be the same as a contemporary Accord I would have thought. I did an Accord one in about 2005; cost around £40 from the dealer.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just waiting for the RAC as the Rover 623 will not start this morning. Engine spins over but no hint of a fire. Don't get it as it was working perfectly last night. Do these have some sensor in the distributor that fails without warning or something???

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