83C's Shite-esque Fleet: I can see the light!

[Jazoli]

Very nice is that a V8 then?

[bezzabsa]

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH

[Asimo]

Bathurst really did get under your skin! 

[Ghosty]

14 minutes ago, Jazoli said:

Very nice is that a V8 then?

Yep, LS in those!

Absolute winner. Like that a LOT.

[Bren]

Jealous. Very nice.

[Matty]

Somebody had to eventually and by God I'm glad! 

[Bren]

16 and 32 please.

[Schaefft]

Anything with an LS is a win, well bought!

[83C]

11 hours ago, Bren said:

16 and 32 please.

Probably be the most expensive roffle in AS history! I make it around £204 a ticket…

[83C]

Anyway, first impressions.

It sounds mega. This is largely thanks to the Walkinshaw exhaust. However at idle there is a definite rasp from the drivers side rear, so a blow to be investigated. 

Outside is pretty good, a few different shades of red obviously but it’ll do. Inside is fairly tidy. 

Suspension and possibly brakes are the problem areas. The front droplinks are shagged, as are some of the bushes. There is some vibration under braking but the discs and pads appear new, so either track rod ends or bushes are the prime suspects for that. The ride is firm, which is expected but there are a good few rattles and clonks from underneath. 

Electrics: ABS light on. Previous owner reckoned it was the front o/s ABS sensor as that was what his garage had told him. Quick session on the diagnostics reader in live data mode gave the result that the rear o/s ABS sensor has failed, the other three showing identical speeds whilst being driven. 

The clutch has a bit of vibration, so that might need sorting. 

To begin with a new ABS sensor and droplinks are on their way from MWP in Chester, and I’ll see what it needs over the next few weeks. I’m quite prepared to put some money into it, my guess is most of the bushes are shot. I’d like to have the alloys refurbished in silver, put some decent tyres on it and then maybe look at a few improvements.

[83C]

New year but business as usual here. 

The VXR8’s alternator has packed in, so along with a load of suspension bits I ordered one from Rock Auto in the states. Getting VXR8 bits here is a bit expensive, so if it’s not time-critical it makes sense to order from overseas. Two big boxes turned up a couple of days ago with lots of suspension goodies, but the alternator is coming in a separate package and seems to be on quite the adventure. From ordering on Monday it has visited a couple of FedEx depots in Connecticut, then over to Memphis in Tennessee, back to Connecticut, then back to Tennessee. From there it came over here, went through three of FedEx depots, and is now apparently back in Memphis 🤨

I’m hoping it’s just a tracking glitch, as there’s a few repeat visits back and forth between parcels depots on the tracking page, but I could do with having the alternator here ideally. Still, it’s apparently a genuine GM 140a alternator with no core exchange required for £150, so as long as it gets here it should be worth the wait.

The L322 is getting fairly desperate for some TLC on the air suspension, I’ve been seriously contemplating buying another L322 but really I’m still waiting to see if the Maxus T90 ever actually arrives. Knowing my luck I’d buy something and then the next day get an email saying the truck is arriving the week after, and I’ve not got the space to be dealing with that.

I need a garage of some sort.

[stuboy]

On 02/11/2023 at 19:52, 83C said:

I’m no stranger to the fuel station, and neither is this. Weather was looking distinctly sub-optimal so I filled up and got back home before it got any worserer.

very nice

[83C]

Last week three big boxes arrived from the States, containing most of the suspension stuff I need for the VXR8's suspension overhaul. I'm going for almost complete replacement as its already rattly, I know the car has had a hard life and piecemeal replacement of related parts becomes very tiresome when the car is being jacked up for the third time in as many months chasing yet another rattle. The only outstanding items are the dampers and springs, ARB polybushes, rear ARB links and the steering rack polybush. All the control arms, track rods and other bits are here and ready. What I am having trouble tracking down are standard dampers and springs, I don't really want to lower the car as the exhaust already touches the speed bumps in the village if it goes over at the wrong angle. I'm also trying to maintain the ride quality as something suitable for the cratered moonscape that passes for our roads here in Shropshire - for that reason only a few polybushes are going in and the rest will be standard rubber so should last well and not compromise the ride quality too much.

The rest of the fleet has had a bit of attention too, my wife's Mini Countryman has received a new ARB bush on the n/s/r to cure a clunking noise over bumps and the Range Rover has has the rear upper arm eccentric bolt adjusted to try and stop the tyre wearing the outer edge off. 

[83C]

First stop, the n/s/f front:

I reckon the easy solution is to unbolt the brake caliper, unplug the ABS sensor, undo the track rod end, unbolt the rest of the suspension kit at the body-end of each part and then take the whole assembly to the workbench. This will also allow a bit more space for a job I have to do on this corner only which is replace the alternator, most of the access for which is under the car.

Also, I fucking hate locking wheel nuts part 94: 

Key element sheared flush, with the torque wrench nowhere near the 95ft.lbs I’d set it to. Guess who’s having a trip to the local Mini dealer tomorrow morning for a replacement key and 4 plain wheel bolts?

[Dave_Q]

They should all be hoyed in the local river, sea or canal. 

They are an answer to a problem that I don't think really exists any more, you never hear of just wheels getting stolen nowadays. 

[cort1977]

Bloody awful things.

Somehow missed your new purchase, as said above, anything with an LS in it can't be bad.

[83C]

Right, in my quest for an addition to the fleet I’ve found something that ticks almost none of the boxes in my wanted advert, but is going to be a useful little machine. So it’s time to pack a sandwich, grab a brew and set off on yet another collection mission. 

Stay tuned for more updates.

[83C]

Stage one:

Leg power through the village.

[83C]

Stop for supplies at the shop:

[83C]

You have reached your destination:

[AnnoyingPentium]

2 minutes ago, 83C said:

You have reached your destination:

Excellent. Me, being the sad bastard I am, can tell you that appears to be a Comfort trim model.

[83C]

It all started with a conversation in the pub last night. A friend was sending their old Fabia to the bridge on Saturday, did I want to come and have a look before it went?

Bear/Shit/Woods, Pope/Catholic references appropriate at this point. 

They described the car, warts and all. The biggest problem was that the ABS light was on, and a very short MoT. Now anyone who has seen my Wanted post will know I turned down an otherwise perfectly good S211 that would have ticked all the boxes for me, but because of the ABS light being lit I didn’t want to mess around fixing it. However, with the ability to go and mess around with the car before purchase to ascertain whether it was worth saving from the bridge, and being half a mile away, it made a lot of sense to at least go for a look. 

First thing was to get the diagnostic box plugged in and see the codes. Nothing for sensors, but one for ABS Return Pump. Sounded expensive. Just for a bit of certainty I switched to live data mode, and drove it a short distance - all 4 sensors providing data without issue, so definitely not a duff sensor or ring. After a bit of a search I found a post on BriSkoda referring to the same fault code, getting all sorts of silly quotes from garages to fix, and then finding the issue was a blown fuse. Took the cover off the battery fuse box and sure enough, fuse 6 was blown:

Happy enough that it would be a simple fix I showed them what I thought the fault was, did the deal, dropped my car back home and then walked back to get the Skoda. 

Once it was home I popped down to Halfords for a new fuse, fitted it and job done - ABS light out and ready for MoT. I also removed an undertray that was loose, but I’ll refit it once I find the correct fixings. 

@AnnoyingPentium - yes, it’s a Comfort. 1.9 manual, 65k on the clock and aside from ruined paintwork it’s in tidy condition.

More pics tomorrow.

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 hour ago, 83C said:

@AnnoyingPentium - yes, it’s a Comfort. 1.9 manual, 65k on the clock and aside from ruined paintwork it’s in tidy condition.

Quality. Best one to have is that 1.9... TDI or SDI?

If you're needing any parts drop me a line as I've often got bits kicking about.

[83C]

PD100 I think. Certainly goes well enough, it should make for a good little runaround for a few months. Even has a towbar. MoT is booked for Tuesday morning, going to give it the once over tomorrow just to make sure I’ve not missed anything. Windscreen wipers were a bit smeary when I used the washers, though it might just be from lack of use. It’ll get a wash tomorrow too.

[83C]

A couple more pictures:

Its been pressed into service for a few days prior to the MoT, just to check for any odd rattles or other issues. So far though, it seems all good. It drives well, goes surprisingly well and stops without any grinding or squeaking noises.

If anyone has 3x of the hub caps buried somewhere I’d be happy to throw some coinage your way to replace the missing ones. 

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 hour ago, 83C said:

If anyone has 3x of the hub caps buried somewhere I’d be happy to throw some coinage your way to replace the missing ones.

I have a set of four from the base Fabia Classic. IIRC they're not the tidiest, but not broken or cracked. Think they're still in the greenhouse if you're interested. It's this style below.

[83C]

28 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

I have a set of four from the base Fabia Classic. IIRC they're not the tidiest, but not broken or cracked. Think they're still in the greenhouse if you're interested. It's this style below.

To be honest they look the same as the single remaining cap, they’ll do fine. PM me with the details, though I won’t say yes definitely until it passes the MoT - no point spending any more than is necessary until then.

[AnnoyingPentium]

2 hours ago, 83C said:

To be honest they look the same as the single remaining cap, they’ll do fine. PM me with the details, though I won’t say yes definitely until it passes the MoT - no point spending any more than is necessary until then.

Brilliant, that's another thing out of my shed... hopefully!

PM will be sent tomorrow most likely, as working till late.

[83C]

First test of the year, Skoda passed with a couple of advisories for the rear tyres starting to perish and front discs being a bit worn. I’ll take that as a win for a car that was supposed to be bridged a few days ago.

[AnnoyingPentium]

40 minutes ago, 83C said:

First test of the year, Skoda passed with a couple of advisories for the rear tyres starting to perish and front discs being a bit worn. I’ll take that as a win for a car that was supposed to be bridged a few days ago.

Excellent. Tyres aren't dear for these, and I potentially have some front discs for a TDI PD100 that I ordered accidentally. Will check the shed, but I may have sold them before.