Schaefft's Bargain Barge Extravaganza - One In: Alfa 156 Sportwagon

[Schaefft]

With the MOT for the Alfa 166 due tomorrow I've been using it here and there to make sure I won't encounter any surprises in the bay. So far so good!

I received a few parts from a seller breaking an X300 Sovereign on Ebay today, I was originally only looking for a keyfob but as usual the savings really come from buying as many little bits as possible in one go and negotiating a decent price for them all.

Well, you can't expect all that much for 25 quid, right? As worn as they might look, all they needed was a fresh pair of batteries to work again. The programming procedure was a bit of an odd one (open the boot, driver door, ignition on, press central locking button OR valet button 5 times and press the fob's lock button) but it all worked in the end. And since the lock button always seems to wear out much quicker than the unlock button for some reason you can get OEM Jag ones for £3.50 posted.

Result! I got two sets of keys and fobs now, constantly setting the alarm off whenever you open the door is making you appreciate the little things. Another major quality of life improvement for the Jag.

The car also didn't come with the NS interior taillight cover and boot lamp for some reason. FIXED:

The glue has failed on the surprisingly flimsy bezel it clips into though, so glued that back together while at it.

Next, broken driver vent:

Transfer wood trim over from old to new vent. Held in by these garbage round metal clips that like to break.

FIXED:

Next, the unacceptable situation under the bonnet. Look at this sorry sight:

Bam, original Jag toolkit (minus the pliers and a spanner...). These were actually optional equipment, I just wanted Jag branded tools the next time I break down in it.

Aside from a few more trim pieces and a little bit of surface corrosion I need to clean up we are making some good progress on this one. I think getting some standard XJR front springs (and a working radio) will be all this car will need (for now) to be mostly "done". Not something I can claim very often.

[DVee8]

I think you drove past me this morning in Sunnyside. I don't suppose there's another 166 in that colour up here.

 

[Schaefft]

1 hour ago, DVee8 said:

I think you drove past me this morning in Sunnyside. I don't suppose there's another 166 in that colour up here.

 

That's right, on my way to the MOT! If the exhaust was as obnoxious as it could get then it was definitely me😂

Good news though, the Alfa did pass! I'll see if I get the chance to book it in with a well known 166 specialist sometime this year, the cambelt will need doing and that bag box needs to go in the bin. I want decent sound but not at the cost of constant droning below 3000rpm.

In other news, the Cadillac is back! It doesn't wanna go in 3rd anymore so I'm hoping it's just low on ATF or has an electronic issue (battery won't hold a charge), the low oil pressure warning at idle is a little concerning as well but fingers crossed neither of these are terminal.

This angle makes the little Fiat look monstrous!

[Schaefft]

A double whammy of unrealiable V8s.

Both BMW's N62 and Cadillac's Northstar aren't exactly known for their long-term dependability. So far so good with these two!

Took the Jaag into town for some tasty Korean yesterday evening, that keyfob really is revelation. The more I look at it the more I feel like the front just isn't sitting right. Those springs need to get sorted sooner rather than later.

MOT time for the Infiniti tomorrow. Aside from checking the usual things and replacing a dome light I haven't done much on it (mostly cleaning and de-chaving). If I can fit it in I will replace the tyres with a decent set of used ones that came with the car in the morning. They'll definitely be better than the aging and cracking ditchfinders that are on it right now. Fingers crossed low mileage and Japanese reliability will see more through this one just fine.

[Bradders59]

How many cars do you own Schaeft ?

I keep losing track of all of them. 😄

[HMC]

I love your fleet, fantastic range of vehicles!

[Schaefft]

1 hour ago, Bradders59 said:

How many cars do you own Schaeft ?

I keep losing track of all of them. 😄

More than can fit into my signature at this point😂 Hence the need for a little more space. Even with only taxing/insuring half of them (parked on the road over night) it adds up quickly.

MOT time for the Q45 today. At the time of purchase I had the choice between huge, probably ebay special, chrome wheels and the 17" Primera wheels the car is standing on now. Since the tires on those were rather ancient and the seller able to provide a decent set of part worns for free I took them of course. Today was the time to finally swap them over:

That gave me a quick chance to have a look at the suspension. I now know its sitting on JIC VIP FLT-TAR coilovers, not a cheap option when they made their way onto the car in Japan years ago but certainly looking their age now. More about that in a moment.

I sprayed some penetrating oil on the collars while the wheels were off.

This tire was the worst regarding dry rot but all of them were mostly junk. Their replacements are 2018 Toyos, not new either but with fresh tread and definitely better in most aspects. The goal still is to find OEM Q45/President wheels or a tasteful period correct set of aftermarket alloys. I could easily buy a set for under 150 quid on Yahoo Auctions Japan but the shipping over to the UK would kill me (probably 600 quid).

Well, the car passed its test but not without a few more advisories than I anticipated, most of which were the result of the modifications the Infiniti received at some point. Basically:

- The aftermarket LED lights are failing, need to remove lenses which are bonded to their housings

- The upper front control arm bushes are failing prematurely because of the screwed up suspension geometry after lowering it

- The rear passenger shock absorber isn't absorbing much at all anymore

- The previously junk tires are the result of someone getting rid of the OEM set, the poor treadwear on them caused by the considerable camber

- Bonus: the touchscreen radio is irrelevant to the MOT but naturally thats dead as well

The only thing I can't blame the taste of a previous owner for are the sticky front calipers, I'll see if there's an OEM upgrade available or if a set of standard replacement ones will do. Similar to Hondas 90's Nissans are a bit like Lego, a surprising amount of parts theoretically fit most of their range so a set of Z32 300ZX calipers might be an option. Since replacing a single coilover isnt an option and I'm ideally looking for OEM ride quality I'll have to check my options. Neither dampers nor springs are easily available anymore, if I am lucky I might find a set of very good used struts in Japan but I'm not counting on that... The upper control arms aren't available anymore either. The joys of owning obscure rare cars...

In other news, the electric door solenoid in the Cadillac's driver door failed in a way there it would lock but not unlock the door. Lets have a look shall we...

If you know how the door card comes off very easily, aside from 2 bolts behind the grab handle everything just unsnaps. There's a single clip behind the trim cover for the mirror bolts, once thats off just pull the whole thing up.

I could tell that the whole lock/unlock procedure works just fine when locking it, it just wouldn't unlock without a tiny bit of help by pulling on the linkage. I thought the whole assembly might just be a little stiff so everything was drenched in lithium grease:

It's only then I noticed that the plastic arm that the solenoid pushes up and down to actuate the lock had just enough play in it to slide out of the notch it was supposed to sit in, the rubber lining was torn already. Due to the design of the thing it could only slip out when unlocking, it would always have enough metal to catch on when locking:

Nothing a tactical ziptie can't fix then!

The arm happens to be shaped in a way where it can sit quite nicely without putting too much strain on the solenoid. The only alternative I'm seeing is buying a new door latch assembly.

I've also fixed the seat side plastic trim that was falling apart. Thats actually very BMW-like of it, you are pretty much guaranteed to find all of them cracked and loose when buying an E38 or E39 nowadays.

If I can be bothered I'll have a look at the height sensor on the Cadillac tomorrow. The replacement (also from Japan of all places) arrived over half a year ago, its time to throw it on the car.

[DVee8]

Were you heading southbound on the A1 around 10.30 yesterday in a 52plate BMW 540i? One passed as I came off at Ch-le-st.

 

[Schaefft]

17 minutes ago, DVee8 said:

Were you heading southbound on the A1 around 10.30 yesterday in a 52plate BMW 540i? One passed as I came off at Ch-le-st.

 

Haha no, my 540i is a T-reg Touring and I'm not planning to buy another E39 anytime soon!

2 hours ago, HMC said:

I love your fleet, fantastic range of vehicles!

I'm seeing that as high praise coming from you! It's all trending towards "the biggest and best X manufacturer could do in the 90s" but having driven so many of them by now its clear that an 166 feels very different to an E39 which feels different from an XJ which feels different from an S-Class and so on. There's a surprising amount of diversity of experiences in what might appear like a very same-y vehicle segment, even just looking at the big 3 Germans. They all have their own character and ambience reflecting each company's mindsets and ambitions. That might have been still more so the case in the 90s than it is today. But I haven't driven enough 2010+ cars yet to really be able to make a judgment there.

I think the Z3 is the biggest diversion from my typical purchases in a long while. Also happens to be the car most non-car people seem to like the most, so buy Z3s if you want to appease the neighbors!

[Schaefft]

After the advisory for one of the dampers on the Q45 I wanted to have a quick look to see whether these had adjustable damping rates or not. Turns out they do, and the rear ones are easily accessible behind the trunk liner:

Both of them seemed to be set to "damp little to nothing", as in let the springs do their job. That doesn't explain why one acts differently from the other. Since I have very little info on these JIC coilovers I wanted to see what effects I'd get turning all 4 corners all the way up (clockwise) as the fronts seemed to be set to just that already. Well, the ride certainly was affected, much firmer.

Turning them all down (anti-clockwise) certainly made a difference although the springs are just too firm to get a factory-like ride quality, unsurprisingly it all was a little bit more bouncy this time. I settled for 2 clicks clockwise which should give a bit of a damping effect while keeping things as smooth as the springs allow. I won't know whether I can "fix" the damping rate this way until I get the car in the air but with shocks and springs near impossible to find for this gen Q45 nowadays I will need to make the most of it.

At the time Infiniti launched the Q45 a lot of auto journalists liked to call it's design somewhat inspired by Jaguar. Back in 1989 that would have been the XJ40 or what people believed would be it's replacement eventually. I could always see why they would say that, parking them side by side I'm not sure if the comparison holds up entirely though. The X300 is obviously a lot rounder and classical in its design but maybe a more streamlined, conventional exterior styling approach during development could have resulted in something close to the Q.

Size wise they actually feel quite similar, like the Jag the Q45 doesn't quite feel as large or heavy as an E38 or LS400. Then again at the time the closest German competitor would have been an E32 735i which might again feel similar sized to both the X300 and Q45. Sitting lower to the ground and suspension setups being firmer than normal doesn't help either car.

Back to a really big car. Unless the Caprice suddenly gets its test sorted (and import paperwork completed) the Cadillac will be my choice of car for a roadtrip back home and to the Paris Olympics this year. With its front bench seat its the only car I own that seats 6 (aside from the Caprice) which will be needed when my better half's family join us in Paris (they wanna cycle/take the train) in early August.

That means I need to sort pretty much all of it's issues over the next couple off weeks to have any chance of completing the 2000 miles plus journey. One was the aforementioned error code for the right front height sensor.

Fortunately GM made it extremely easy for owners to retrieve fault codes from all control modules long before OBD2 was mandatory, most other manufacturers could have really learned a thing or two from Cadillac back then. You can check them all via the digital cluster, no proprietary diagnostics software or code readers needed.

And there it is. The rod that makes the sensor arm pivot is attached to the lower control arm, just like your fuel pump sender unit (or the rear air suspension sensor I replaced on the 540i Touring recently) different angles result in different voltage outputs. Im actually not sure how much of a difference this makes while driving but fingers crossed it's a little less boat like in corners with this replaced.

Out. No visible damage to the wiring or connector, it must have just gotten wet for long enough to fail eventually. I installed the new one and took the car for a quick spin. Success, no more ride control warnings!

I've also found the time to finally use my grease gun to grease the newly installed drop links in the front on both sides, certainly not a maintanence job I needed to add to the list. In the end the cartridge was just about empty enough to put the lid back on...

Unfortunately I found way more grease than I expected on the other side:

The rubber boot for the front axle is torn. I cannot remember if I have myself to blame there from when I installed the droplinks or whether this is just due to age but it's another thing to add to the list.

Lets do another quick an easy one. The rubber insulation around the cabin air duct is crumbling on all these Cadillacs. On many a blower motor resistor is located in that rectangular hole, on later models this was integrated into the blower motor (fun times when it dies, the engine needs to move out of the way to extract the blower motor). Well, mine doesn't have the resistor but still has the hole now that all the insulation is gone.

This stuff crumbles in your fingers like half baked dough:

Nothing a piece of duct tape can't fix:

I even took the time to glue the label back where it belongs. We now have full airflow again (until the blower motor decides to quit again).

Next up, good old battery tray rust:

I already cleaned it up a bit there. Rust Anode should be perfect for this.

Professional masking job right there.

This should do. I could put on another layer of paint but Im not sure if theres much to be gained there.

Next, these drain channel trim pieces annoyed me since I got the car. The sun warped them over the years, time to do something about it.

Bending them back and holding them in place takes a bit of force.

I don't think this will do it.

That should. Come back in a few hours to watch me clean up half a dozen liters of paint after the wind knocked them down.

[Schaefft]

I'll call that fixed:

Filled up the E65 tonight, not a sight I'm seeing very often:

It'll take us to Edinburgh Airport tomorrow, with work being extremely busy recently I need some warmth and sunshine.😂

[DVee8]

Where are you going?

[Schaefft]

17 minutes ago, DVee8 said:

Where are you going?

Sicily, never been in Southern Italy so hoping to see some shite, if not at the same levels I've seen in Athens last year.

[Schaefft]

And there we go, Edinburgh airport achieved. Unfortunately the passenger side wiper arm decided to become dysfunctional, will have to investigate when I'm back. Hopefully it's not going to rain...

Very interesting spot in the car park, certainly not what you usually see in Scotland. Dually 3500!

[Schaefft]

Not all that much to report other than really enjoying the holiday! After a first night in Palermo we crossed over to Lipari to stay 4 nights here. We are now on our way back to Sicily (another 4 nights) but not without having documented the most interesting shite the small island (as well as neighboring Volcano, the island the term came from, definitely worth a visit!) had to offer. I think the B3 Passat is the only car I'm regretting not being able to get a photo of.

Oh and naturally I agreed a purchase of one of the cars you can find below (unfortunately back in the UK). Which one could it be...?

[Schaefft]

This was our rental from a small family run place. I was surprised to see a Punto on the list of available cars, I was even more surprised to see that this might not even be a "Punto Classic" that was continued to be sold here after the MK3 was launched. Even being what must be at least 15 years old it was in better shape than 99% of any Fiat you'd find in the UK. 60hp 1.2 powerhouse, gutless especially uphill but not bad otherwise for a few days.

Lipari still has Mk1 Punto convertibles you can rent everywhere as well. Limited spare parts availability probably means running fleets of similar cars ensures the quickest turnaround if something breaks.

[mk2_craig]

7 hours ago, Schaefft said:

I agreed a purchase of one of the cars you can find below

Alfa Estate surely? 

[hairnet]

X5

unless its the truck

[bramz7]

That's exactly why I always have to have an Italian car prior to a trip to Italy, as it always ends the same way. 

 

[Schaefft]

51 minutes ago, bramz7 said:

That's exactly why I always have to have an Italian car prior to a trip to Italy, as it always ends the same way. 

 

I know right? Must be the Dolce Vita that makes you want these things.

1 hour ago, mk2_craig said:

Alfa Estate surely? 

Bingo! It's the ex- @bramz7 soon ex- @HMC 156 Sportswagon! I just need to figure out how to get it up to Newcastle now.

Plenty of diesel 159 around here but the 156 seems to be nearly extinct (timing belts only last so long without replacement). The blue one above and a rare 156 Crosswagon are the only ones I've seen so far.

[Schaefft]

Until then, this is the second Italian steed for the holidays. Brand new Lancia Ypsilon with less than 600 miles.

Must be poverty spec with the weakest engine (with some kind of electric recuperation) available as the infotainment system screen is 2005-ancient and the car pretty much gutless at anything over 20mph.

However with so many of these around here this is really the last straw that's keeping the entire make afloat and I believe Italy is the last market you can drive a brand new Lancia in so Im quite excited about this one. It really feels like a slight more substantial 500.

[bramz7]

I'm not sure if this is still the case but up until very very recently, the Ypsilon sold more units in Italy than Alfa Romeo did in the entirety of Europe. 

New one coming out shortly. 

[Schaefft]

3 hours ago, bramz7 said:

I'm not sure if this is still the case but up until very very recently, the Ypsilon sold more units in Italy than Alfa Romeo did in the entirety of Europe. 

New one coming out shortly. 

I can easily see that being a thing, Ypsilons are everywhere! This is apparently the 1.0 mild hybrid, it barely makes it up an incline at 3000rpm in sixth, it's actually losing speed on the motorway. I'm somewhat used to a little more torque!

And yes, so glad Lancia will be launching a new Ypsilon in more markets again. The car looks great and the world really needs a make with Lancia style. I'm still keen on trying a mid-90s one.

You can see in this photo that the "alloys" are just very fancy wheel trims. Definitely bargain basement spec.

[Schaefft]

More shite spotting of the last 2 days. The diesel powered 164 had around 260k km on it, not bad going, it looked well cared for.

[Schaefft]

Last day of Italian shite spotting. Our return flight is delayed by so much that we'll miss our connecting flight now, lovely.

With the rental returned now we covered a total of over 700km. I can't say I would recommend the 1.0 mild hybrid.

Unless something was seriously wrong with ours it was terribly underpowered for pretty much anything over 20mph. I don't know how the electric drive assisted with anything, the battery would charge via recuperation within seconds and deplete just as quickly. It cruises nicely on the motorway (aside from being a little twitchy due to the short wheelbase) but 70hp (around what most versions of the Ypsilon have) just aren't enough, you constantly have to ask for more which you are never getting, and that's in a stripped out base model. The TwinAir 2-cylinder up to 2018 seems by far the best choice. The new Ypsilon should be quite the change of pace.

[Schaefft]

Got home yesterday night at 20 past midnight, 20 hour day in total. Thanks Ryanair for zero compensation. At least overstaying in the Edi airport carpark only cost us 6 quid, the new 170 quid tickets (x2) did sting a little though and that flight was over an hour late as well. It did allow us to briefly explore Naples though (haven't been there yet), so have some more Italy shite (and an S14 from an Edinburgh McDonald's):

So we are back to my cars then. 345hp is quite the change from 70hp, it felt good to be back in the comforts of the E65!

However, as previously mentioned an Italian acquisition has been made while in Italy and temporary insurance booked. I'll hopefully confirm transport for a collection mission tonight, this should be an exciting one!

[Schaefft]

Took the XJ for a quick grocery run, certainly the most regal looking vehicle in the Tesco carpark tonight.

Something for the XJ lickers:

When pressing the throttle pedal all the way down throttle cable pulls on the throttlebody lever enough for it to hit the bumpstop, as shown here where my thumb sits:

Result is the throttle valve being maybe 60% open:

The lever sitting above however can move much further:

Resulting in the throttle valve to go beyond wide open throttle:

I'm having the feeling that I hardly ever get wide open throttle when I should have it. Whats controlling the top lever to open the throttlebody all the way?

[wesacosa]

Did you end up seeing that Xedos you were planning to view?

[Schaefft]

1 hour ago, wesacosa said:

Did you end up seeing that Xedos you were planning to view?

With flights so delayed on Sunday I couldn't unfortunately. I can send you a list of things the seller mentioned to me it'll need though if you are interested.

[wesacosa]

5 minutes ago, Schaefft said:

With flights so delayed on Sunday I couldn't unfortunately. I can send you a list of things the seller mentioned to me it'll need though if you are interested.

ah ok.  I can't take it on myself sadly so probably best I don't start asking questions that might lead to it appearing on my drive 😂