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I'm Back - Fleet update!

R9UKE

By R9UKE
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R9UKE Rank: Citroen Ami

R9UKE

Posted
Posted

I have a bottle of wine, I'm alone, and have my first free evening in quite a while - it's time to get back into the beige pages!

 

I've been posting a bit on Facebook as it's quick and easy from my phone but have neglected and missed the proper community on here.  I've finished uni, found myself in a proper grown up relationship and am having to actually be responsible for once - all factors of my absence, but don't worry, I'm still swimming in shite (more than ever in fact).  Thanks Cav for the message, you gave me the kick up the arse to get back over here.  

 

I'll kick off with a list of the current fleet and we'll see where it takes us....

 

This is going to be VERY pic heavy, apologies.  The red 2.2 dCi Vel Satis has been in daily service since I got it at the start of April.  It's since racked up 6k very pleasurable miles without a single dCi meltdown or violent explosion.  The leak from the inlet manifold has got progressively worse, and the patch where it sits overnight is a definite health hazard with the amount of oil that's been lost   :P   As much as I love jumping into a Vel Satis every morning, I just feel violated driving a diesel everyday so it's being retired within the next few weeks in favour of my latest purchase which will take over daily service until it inevitably breaks.  
 
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The V6 silver sisters are all faring well....
 
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I've had the Laguna II Dynamique V6 for a year and half now, in which time it's done 3000 miles.  This is one of those cars that just reeks of having been pampered all it's life, and doesn't have a single one of the common Laguna niggles they all get.  It drives like the day it left the factory, no rattling trim or clunky suspension (as normal on the Laguna II) and puts a huge smile on my face every time I drive it, it just likes to spend a lot of time here ;)
 
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I treated it to an oil change last week, along with the Avantime, which is living an equally leisurely life at the moment - It's been out only 3 times over summer.
 
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The SLY Xantia V6 has settled in well.  It brought back to me how quirky a Citroen can be - keypad immobiliser, the suspension adjustments, and of course a big V6 to surprise everybody!  The smell of petrol in the car with the climate control on is becoming a bit of a concern, if anyone has any ideas I'd appreciate it.  No visible leaks, but the smell is strong!  The cooling fans are now on constantly as well, so I need to replace that sensor at some point.
 
The 406 V6 Estate, I hate to say, may be in limbo.  I need to be realistic (and we know I don't do that very often!) and weigh up whether it's worth ever MOTing again.  It will need quite a lot of exhaust and some front suspension work at the very least.  It;s then got a pretty violent battery drain to diagnose and has been resprayed pretty horribly up one side.  It's never a car that will be worth very much and I'm reluctant to spend proper money on it.  It is rare though, and when I do take it out for a cheeky run it does make me smile.  It is, however, currently sitting packed with tools and parts and has sat unstarted in the corner of the yard since those photos were taken.  Still - not very many can say their garden shed is a 3 litre V6 ;)
 
I finally got round to picking up a panel donor car for my black Mégane Convertible 1.6 Auto. which I bought last October covered in marks, scratches and dents.  The worst parts on it are the bonnet, two front wings and bumper.  I figured picking up a black coupé for next to nothing, swapping panels and stocking up on parts would be much more sensible than paying to get it resprayed etc.  The convertible also needed a suspension strut and few other interior bits, my Super Luxe coupé has benefited from the project as well, getting a few parts it needed to be almost completely mint.  Here's the three together.
 
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The stripping of the black coupé....
 
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It getting picked up for scrap when I'd got everything I needed - along with my old Clio with the dead auto box, hence the 406 becoming the shed!
 
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The Convertible should be presentable and ready for MOT just in time for winter  #-o 
 
Thought I'd share a few of these pics as well, taken by a friend who's pretty into photography and has produced some pretty cool shots of my fleet :)
 
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The CX looks particularly cool in those pictures.  It's been a really enjoyable car to get to know, especially seeing how differently Volvo and Citroen were thinking at the time, my 1979 244DL just feels the total opposite of the CX!  It has sh*t on me already though, leaving a nice green puddle underneath itself after a run, dripping out right below the LHM tank, it has since emptied itself and has been parked in a corner on low.  Bad Citroen!   [-X 
 
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Now onto the new additions....
 
One sunny evening in May I logged on for my daily flick through Gumtree.... well if you'd have seen my reaction at seeing an ad posted just five minutes earlier for a 1987 Phase 1 Volvo 760 GLE with the PRV 2849cc V6 petrol!  Last on the road in 2009 and requiring a bit of love, it was home that same evening. A remarkably fresh and original car, it had been in the one family from new.  Power steering and alternator belts being tightened cured the original hiccups we had.....
 
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....and now it's cruising around faultlessly showing off it's 80s chrome wheels and throwing two fingers up at modern emission controls while it drinks it's way through petrol at a scary rate.  Just need to secure a front indictor/DRL cluster and it's ready for MOT!
 
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This came along at the end of June.  Not a car that was on my list, but I do love an uber rare special edition with a "love it or hate it" interior ;)
 
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It's a 2000 Renault Mégane Coupé 1.6 16v "Super Luxe".  I have to say, even being the Renault nut I am, it's a special edition I had never heard of and was slightly weary of it's originality.  Thankfully it turned up at auction (after being traded in to Renault) complete with a handbook pack full of history, including the original factory order form spec sheet confirming it as a "Série Limitée Luxe". A bit more digging and it seems it was exclusive to the Irish market.  Basically the highest spec completely smothered in BROWN.  It had two owners from new and has worn it's 131k miles extremely well indeed - even the drivers seat is only very lightly worn.  The AC is ice cold, the sound system is brilliant and everything electrical works, including the rear windows which electrically "pop" out.  It's been sharing the "daily" title with the diesel Vel Satis over summer and has been pretty much worry-free, apart from a lazy starter motor which has required the need to give it a helping push from time to time (girlfriend LOVED that......), it's earned it's place in the permanent collection - especially since it only cost £290 with four months tax and MOT   :)
 
This was my 1st September purchase, a 1995 Peugeot 306 Convertible 2.0 AUTO Roland Garros   :grin:
 
 
 
 
 
 
What a car.  So tacky in a way only a 90s French car can be, and yet SO cool at the same time.  Green paintwork, white/green seats, RED seatbelts, and a dash caked in "walnut effect" - it's just brilliant!  It's also had a very easy life, just 71k miles, one owner since it arrived on this side of the water in 2010, two in England before that where it has Full Peugeot Service History.  The paintwork gleams, the roof is in brilliant condition and the interior even boasts the original Roland Garros mats.  The roofs been down quite a bit, it's just SUCH a good looking car, I've already had people purposely come over to ask me about it.  The gearbox changes beautifully, the 2.0 engine is nice and nippy but just over the past few days I've noticed we may have an airlock in the cooling system.... I'll be giving it a change this week hopefully.  It has a few little 306 niggles - the central locking doing the "bounce back" carry on that they do, and the roof sometimes requires a helping hand - worn elastics apparently, but nothing major enough to take away from the love I'm feeling for this very special little car.  I sold the 206 Roland Garros today in favour of keeping this. 
 
As you can tell from the registration plates, I had to go to Dublin for this one, but well worth 3 hours of public transport to get there! 
 

 
 
 
 
 
It's been a Dublin car all it's life, I bought it off the gentleman who bought it new in 1997. I did ideally want a phase one V6 Safrane, but numbers are down to single figures and I've pretty much given up hope. This is definitely the next best thing, with the 2.5 20v Volvo engine and a more reliable non-Renault auto box! The spec of this car is what completely had me sold - fully loaded Executive version with the ultra rare "ergonomic pack"
 
 
Renault 25 owners may be familiar with this, though it was only ever a pretty exclusive option. It consists of air pockets all over the seat which you can inflate and deflate to create a lumbar effect everywhere. Needless to say its the most comfortable car I've ever sat in. It drive home without issue, ticking over 100k miles right on the border between the north and south of Ireland. 
 
 
Having driven it for the past few days, I really can't understand why the car is so forgotten, even in French car enthusiast circles. It feels so French! Especially with Celine Dion's French album on the upgraded Alpine sound system - I've never felt so much like a distinguished French gentlemen who reeks of garlic.
 
It feels totally massive, and very different to the Laguna of the era, which I was a bit sceptical about. The auto box changes so smoothly and the Volvo 5 cylinder roar is a nice unexpected bonus (thirsty, mind!). It's got the usual French executive quirks as well, the voice synthesiser randomly said "to maintain desired cabin temperature, switch on the air conditioning" while we were sitting in the sun in traffic yesterday - made us laugh! 

 

How Much or how little that lot will change over the next few months is anyone's guess, but it's definitely time to start mopping up the little jobs I've let slip and get a load of MOTs done.  

 

I had a few near misses at auction, which had I not bought the amount I have recently, would definitely be in the above section.  

 

A 2001 Alfa Romeo 166 3.0 V6 Super.  In from We Buy Any Car, who probably paid about £110 for it.  Looks absolutely superb, but to be honest I was mega disappointed with the interior and the drive.  Real heavy clutch, not particularly comfortable, but the engine noise was superb!  Sold for £420 with MOT until next March, not bad.

 

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A 1995 Jeep Cherokee 4.0 Petrol.  Exactly the kind of ridiculous, gas guzzling shit I love.  Ã‚£440 with no tax or MOT.

 

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This ones I did buy, and sold on for a profit, amazingly.  We'll start with the most credible, after which is takes a nose dive to the very bottom of the barrel of SHIT.

 

2003 Vauxhall Omega 2.2 CD Auto.  Felt like a proper traffic cop in this.  One owner from new, 70k miles, the thing was pure mint!  And drove beautifully.  Made me want a Signum V6, which probably won't be half as good.

 

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The next two I'm saying nothing about, it's too embarrassing.  

 

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Oh and mum bought a brand new Fiat 500 (surprisingly brilliant) leaving me to sell her fully loaded Meg.  Hard one to shift thanks to the £260 road tax.....

 

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That's all for now, the amount of wine available has significantly diminished and my arse is sore.  Look forward to catching up on what you lot have posted :)

 

 

 

 

brickwall Rank: Lancia Gamma

brickwall

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Great and detailed update. Love the 760 and the brown leather in the Megane...it's just so awfully shite.

dollywobbler Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

dollywobbler

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Good grief. Good to see you back. I thought there was no such thing as a desirable Renault Megane Coupe thing, but you found one! That brown interior is incredible! Great update. Not sure about your friend's pics - I'm not a fan of that sort of style. I'm waiting for Wat's opinion...

R9UKE Rank: Citroen Ami

R9UKE

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Cheers!  I knew the explosion of brown with the Meg would fit right in here.  Are half the photos not displaying... do I need to split the post up?

Cavcraft Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

Cavcraft

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Great to see you back, fella. If 'we' ever did awards for the scariest fleet of cars, you'd absolutely piss it. Brilliant stuff, keep it coming please.

dollywobbler Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

dollywobbler

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Cheers!  I knew the explosion of brown with the Meg would fit right in here.  Are half the photos not displaying... do I need to split the post up?

 

Yeah, but it kind of works. Just click the odd random photo! There is a limit on pics per post.

Shep Shepherd Rank: Renault 16

Shep Shepherd

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Loving the 760, even though it's powered by the dreaded PRV :)

hairnet Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

hairnet

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im going auction tomorrow

 

do we pick from focus 1.6

xsara 1.4

fiat idea

almera

 

locally theres another almera (1.5!!!!)

and an 03 civic 1.6 (100 hp roadburner :D)

rml2345 Rank: Renault 16

rml2345

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That's has to be the best Meganne spec ever created in the history of everything. It's just so brown... Love it.

You have one of the most potentially bank account emptying shite collections I've ever seen and should get some sort of Queen's medal for Industry or something for it.

Keep the updates coming PLZ. 

morris_ital_lover Rank: Citroen Ami

morris_ital_lover

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Phwoar, the fleet just gets better... that is all.

 

Well not quite all please can you go back to QUB, I miss seeing your fleet skulking around South Belfast. :P

skoda_norman Rank Morris Ital

skoda_norman

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Such a brilliant update and legendary fleet that I shall step out of the lurking shaddows and commend your efforts.

 

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

 

 

HillmanImp Rank: Talbot Matra Rancho

HillmanImp

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I would really like to be sat in that Megane, until I realised I was in a Megane. Unfortunately it would be difficult to forget you were in a Megane as you would see it was one as you got in it.

 

Also impressed to see your Mum drives (drove) Renaults too. It must be genetic.

 

It was a very good read that. Please keep it up.

R9UKE Rank: Citroen Ami

R9UKE

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Thanks very much guys, I really have missed this place. Yes, the Mégane is VERY brown, my mate said it was like getting into a bar of Bourneville :)

 

Well not quite all please can you go back to QUB, I miss seeing your fleet skulking around South Belfast. :P

Haha that made me laugh! Don't worry, my girlfriend lives on the Malone Road, you should still witness my stuff brining down the tone of the area ;)

 

Hairnet - surely it has to be the Fiat Bad Idea? I remember seeing a few of those through my local auction and wondering what exactly the Idea behind it was?? I would normally pick the Citroen of course but the Xsara is as exciting as a night with a nun.

DVee8 Rank: Talbot Tagora

DVee8

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Wonderful fleet and some big balls to run that lot

I Wouldn't fancy your fuel bill through

hairnet Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

hairnet

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bad idea heh

 

might do a sneaky to auction tomorrow - on the way home from work

 

it had flat battery on tues when we went to have a look and was flashing airbag fault on dash (eek)

 

only done 98k - bit posh for us tho :D

mercrocker Rank: Isuzu Florian

mercrocker

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I am very impressed, bit modern for me but that only adds to my awe at keeping this stuff running...

saucedoctor Rank: Renault 16

saucedoctor

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A very impressive fleet there.

 

Also, was it YOU that nicked that bin from the bus stop in Royal Avenue? :eek:

 

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Mr_Bo11ox Rank: Matra Rancho towing a Tagora

Mr_Bo11ox

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Wonderful stuff!!!! In my book you are a major league WINNER.

 

Those fancy photos are terrible mind you.

R9UKE Rank: Citroen Ami

R9UKE

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Thanks men, appreciated :)

 

Yes that's me, I find picturing my frenchies beside a bin makes them look much more appealing.

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