Another shite mission - AS 220 slag now in the North!

[JohnK]

It's a windy Sunday morning up here on the North East coast; perfect time to think about completing one of the two chod missions I've got planned for December.

 

Three main things to achieve by the end of today:

 

1) A few weeks ago, I was asked by Tam if I knew anybody who could collect and store a Rover 214 interior. Tam won my old blue 214 in a raffle and obviously isn't a great fan of the all beige interior and this blue effort I must admit will go better.

 

I duly obliged and trailed over to pick it all up:

 

 

I've looked after it for about 3 weeks and it is getting collected by somebody today, however I won't be here. Need to get that sorted before I leave.

 

2) Head off to meet shiter No. 1

 

 

3) Then off to meet shiter No. 2

 

 

Will be starting soon and will try and keep up to date, although this sodding iPhone is doing my head in today and playing silly beggars.

 

 

[Tam]

Good luck the day! And thanks for helping with interior! 

I don't mind the cream and it's original to Raffa so ideally I would want a good cream interior. But getting 3 door interiors is hens teeth territory   The blue interior is pretty rare and he said he would include a couple of good black door cards so worth a punt. 

Lucky your heading south it's pretty flooded up this way 

[DeeJay]

That's a fat looking wallet, I hope it's not much thinner by this evening.

[JohnK]

Storage centre now open for business. Cars breaking for parts make great sheds. Tam, both passenger doors unlocked but tell him not to damage the Omega trying to get through lol.

 

 

Hate having a choice of car - after a bit of debate a decision was made

 

 

Let's get the fuck out of here

 

 

 

DeeJay - I'm hoping today that fuel + refreshments will see me no more than £100 lighter.

[fatharris]

Top motor choice, love my E38!

 

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk

[JohnK]

Now fed and watered, popped up to Big_JK's...

 

 

Bit of a shuffle ...

 

 

Game on!

[ruffgeezer]

Team 3 ready and waiting...

 

[DeeJay]

It's gone a bit quiet.

[JohnK]

What an absolute cunt of a day. Yes that's a strong swear word and no I don't give a shit.

 

2 horrendous traffic jams, a minor altercation with a lorry driver that could easily have ended in fisticuffs and a minor, self fixing FTP on the slag 220 has seen me home. Eventually.

 

It was all going so well. Stopped for a minor toilet break at Trowell Services, spotted some more Rover shite about

 

 

Hit the M1 again making good progress. Phil text me 1.30 (due to meet 2pm) saying he was there, I reckoned I was due in 2.15. Then the signs of doom - 'Accident Jct 15-14' - where I needed to be was just off 14.

 

Tried my very best to avoid it...

 

Fuck.

 

3.35 arrives and I get to Eastlake where I'm meeting Phil. Did I mention I was due to meet Ruffgeezer some 5 mins prior to that, 3.30 around 50 miles away? By this point I'm slightly irritated and conceding to Mrs JK that yes we should cancel our plans for this evening.

 

One white 220 located:

 

 

Some good chat with Phil, a look over both cars and then it was a swift move on to Peterborough. I rang Tim to let him know the score and then shuffled on. Around ten mins into the journey I picked up a text from Phil asking what the horrible scraping noise was? This raised my blood level more as the bastard thing had been spot on all the way down (I was chuffed to bits I could evidence there was no OMGHGF due to the time spent in traffic) and I hate anybody feeling I've pulled a fast one.

 

Got to Peterborough some 2 hours late, abandoned the Rover on some hatched markings as there was no parking spaces and did a swift delivery of wheels. Temper slightly reduced reading a text from Phil to say the noise has gone. We feel it's a stone or some grime in the brake disc. Fingers crossed and I will make the necessary arrangements to see Phil right with this one.

 

Peterborough pez shot

 

 

Got back to South Yorkshire - A1(M) - fuck a duck!

 

 

Yes, I think you're a 'PLONK'er as well

 

 

So the day ends, as the day starts

 

 

 

Pleasure to meet both Phil and Tim; 2 more sound guys from AS.

 

The minor FTP was a refusal to start; it just wanted to join in with pissing me off I think.

 

Fin!

 

[trigger]

It makes you wonder if it's worth all the hassle sometimes!

[JohnK]

I've had that thought a couple of times today mate. Worth it though; the 220 is a different car completely to the 214 and I can see why so many on here rate this one highly. It's scabby and rough looking these days but nothing that can't be kept at bay. The 2.0 engine makes such a difference.

 

Hopefully the 214 will be as good to Phil as the 220 has.

 

Going to have to psyche myself up for this Sierra collection now mind!

[trigger]

That will be a doddle, it drives lovely for a Sierra!

[phil_lihp]

Just got home myself, absolutely shattered and off to bed soon.  Hideous weather, bad traffic on the M1 and M25...we both had a day of it I think.

 

First thing's first, I really like the 214 and I do not in any way hold John accountable for the problem with the brakes - just good luck for him that it occurred just after the handover!  Basically a dreadful, and very loud, metallic scraping noise whenever the brakes were applied, which gradually started happening after I left John and then progressed to being constant.  I persevered as it was dark, time was getting on and it was raining cats and dogs.  After the traffic cleared up, I found the noise abruptly stopped after getting up to motorway speeds and came back the instant the brakes were next used, mostly pulling into services and petrol stations so not the end of the world.  This pattern continued until I got to Tiverton where I braked for a roundabout and the noise didn't come back.  Yay.

 

Something's not right as a result, they're now very mushy and vague with too much pedal travel although they do work OK with a shove and don't shake or pull to one side, I suspect a scored brake disc, mullered pads and boiled brake fluid are some of the potential results and the driver's front wheel was quite warm compared to the others.  

 

It'll get sorted in due course, nothing to worry about, the main thing is I really like the car, the little 1.4 K series is a lovely, revvy peach of an engine and had a surprising amount of power considering, it didn't feel like I'd lost 600cc, it was a bit revvy at motorway speeds but nothing more than I'd expect.

 

John's a top bloke and a credit to the forum, yet another genuine chap I've met through here and I hope he'll enjoy being number 7(?) on the 220 owner list, I think it's in good hands.

[lincolndanny]

Can vouch for John being a top lad. Didnt know him through Autoshite when we met but did make me snigger when he turned up on here

[trigger]

Sounds like one of the pads has broke up. Should be a cheap enough fix hopefully.

[phil_lihp]

Good shout, I did wonder about that, it won't be anything complicated though so I'll have a fiddle with it next weekend.  

[JohnK]

It's been parked up since end of October so maybe a few weeks off the road + long journey has shocked into submission.

 

Hopefully fairly easily sorted.

[ruffgeezer]

Good to meet you John, albeit briefly, but I suspected by that point you were as keen as I to away, I made it home with enough time to shovel down my tea and straight out again to see Sarah Millican in Skeggy.

 

Thanks again must go to Phil for him keeping custody of the wheels that are now nestled in the sparkly rouge blancmange until I can find Trig's thread of reconditioning tips. 

[JohnK]

Now officially taxed following 'keeper change' and then it will be into use tomorrow and I can sort some of the Peugeot's niggles without having to rely on it for the daily grind.

 

340 mile round trip to Staffordshire and back on Thursday. I'm sure it will be a piece of cake!

[HMC]

^ definitely.......

The old bus lapped up 2,000 miles in 4 days with me in April.

[JohnK]

In typical Rover T-Series fashion this thing is now pissing oil out literally all over the fucking place.

 

I think the run from Devon, round trip to Staffs and back and my hammering it around has not given the poor 220 the best impression of its new life in the North.

 

Once I'm back home after my couple of pints I will be laid in the pissing rain trying to find out where this is coming from. I've sorted the foibles with the 405 and the other half is using that whilst I get a few more bits sorted on the Civic, so I really need the Rover sorted for Monday.

 

Mrs JK is not happy at the state of the locations where the 220 was parked yesterday and today.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Fucking T Series!!!! They are thunderously shit at keeping their oil in admittedly.

[phil_lihp]

Bugger let me know what's happening John, it sounds like you've not had much luck with that car so if I can help out I will.

 

It always leaked the same amount for the two years I had it and the new cam seals did help keep more of the oil inside. To be honest I never really had too much of an issue with it marking its territory as it mostly seemed to congeal on the block.

 

If you've been topping it up what oil have you been using? I always used 10W40, anything thinner might speed up any leaks.

[JohnK]

Using the same Phil. I've had a quick look yesterday but it's that grimy down there from years of minor leaks it's impossible to tell. I started cleaning it up a bit yesterday and will finish it off today if I get chance. Then it will be some clean cardboard and a waiting game!

[Mr_Bo11ox]

owt happening with this??

[phil_lihp]

I think he's got other things going on right now but last I heard from John it was much more oil tight with a new sump gasket which was good news.

[JohnK]

Pretty much as Phil says, new sump gasket has improved its oil storing capabilities by OMFG££££SAVED.

 

Exhaust blowing a little now, a quick skeg hasn't revealed much so it will be looked at in detail over the weekend to see if I need new metal or just a generous amount of paste around a joint.