Zel's Motoring Adventures...Volvo, Renault, Rover, Trabant, Invacar & A Sinclair C5 - Updated 13/11.

[Zelandeth]

Having seen the first evidence of salt on the road today I'll probably be formally taking it off the road for the winter once the festivities of this coming weekend are out the way.  Not sure whether I'll actually de-tax/insure it as it's costing me buttons compared to the Xantia, and being able to take it out once or twice if we always a dry winter isn't necessarily a bad thing.   Tasks for while it's off the road will be:

 

[] Given the obvious coolant loss visible in the photo taken today, figure out where the heck that has gone.  Doesn't usually use a drop, so that needs to be investigated.

 

[] Dismantle pretty much the entire fuel system in the engine bay and tidy it up.  Everything now works, just need to trim and shape the pipework to suit.  It's a bit scruffy at present, intention is to have it eventually looking as though the car had left the factory with injection fitted.

 

[] Replace rotoflex coupling on the propshaft.

 

[] Replace brake flexible hoses.

 

[] ...Swap the wings?  ...still undecided whether I fancy doing battle with four million spot welds...

[Fumbler]

Thought the wings are bolted on. Seems the fronts always like to bubble up like a Ka.

[Zelandeth]

Thought the wings are bolted on. Seems the fronts always like to bubble up like a Ka.

Nope. Front wings on the Riva are spot welded on in about a million places. There's no wheel arch liners fitted as standard, and there's a shelf at the top corner that crud collects on. So it never dries out and they rot from the inside out. Oh...often not painted in there from the factory either.

 

The fact they're welded on is why they were often not repaired properly back in the day.

[LightBulbFun]

welding is one of those skills id like to pick up/learn from what people describe its like big boys soldering and I have quite a bit of experience soldering

 

so if welding 4 million spot welds aint daunting enough

 

im more then happy to come along and be that person who tries to be helpful but just ends up getting in the way/holding the light 

 

(im guessing if/when ya do fit new wings you will be fitting some wheel arch liners to prevent a repeat event?)

[Zelandeth]

It's Halloween...so it's an excuse to play with a bunch of lighting stuff...

 

 

 

 

[DodgeRover]

Lighting is cool! How is your other half now, hope everything is well.

[LightBulbFun]

Lighting looks Awesome escpailly with the added fog, Would of loved to have seen it in person

 

you should of brought the invacar out and stuffed something inside of that with maybe a wheel chair covered in cob webs next to it 

 

I like the green 8W T5? in the Camper too

 

(I always get weary when firing up a bright sodium lamp as im worried someones gonna either call the police thinking im growing special "tomatoes" or the fire brigade because they think somethings gone up in flames LOL luckily I have not had that happen yet...)

 

(BTW I sent ya a PM a few days ago just a heads up incase it flew under the radar )

[Zelandeth]

Currently we've got a Philips MA90 with a Thorn 90W SOX pointing at the front of the house in the Atrium, 400W mercury black light by the tree flooding the front of the house, in the van is a 30W T12 Atlas Double Life green tube, and a couple of coloured Osram 9W PL CFLs out back in addition to the pair of 18W SOX floods that are fitted out there. Oh, and two red 16W 2Ds in the Atrium too and a pair of red 2' 40W tubes just inside the front door.

 

Next year I think I'll try to get a couple of things in the other cars too...

[Zelandeth]

So, aside from faffing around with lighting kit (which has now been packed away again until next year), with the knowledge that the Activa has a 300-ish mile trip tomorrow I wanted to give it a once over. Also wanted to finish the service I started the other day.

 

Okay...first off drain the oil, five minute job with no mess because I'm lazy and use a pump. Oil filter required 15 minutes of faffing around to get off simply because it's a royal pain to get at, even when you've already done it twice.

 

 

It would be easy if there wasn't a boost pipe in the way to the left and a million high pressure hydraulic lines to the right.

 

Once I convinced it to move it was a simple matter of spin it off, spill oil all over the front of the engine because it's mounted the wrong way up, and stick the new one on. Then fresh oil in, start up and check the level. Having measured what came out, this was where we were first try.

 

 

While I was in there I checked that the crankshaft pulley bolt hadn't unscrewed itself, it looked fine. So put the wheel arch liner back in.

 

 

While giving things a wipe down I spotted something that obviously wasn't as it should be...

 

 

So *that* would be why a little while ago I suddenly started to be able to hear the turbo wastegate going *pssschooo* on every gearchange.

 

Nothing for it with a trip halfway up the country the following day, pulled it off, got some good quality duct tape in there and wrapped some cable ties around it so the tape can't unravel.

 

 

Better solution would have been self amalgamating tape, but I couldn't find it. So duct tape it is. The hose has gone very hard, so replacement is probably the only long term solution. It's basically just a glorified elbow though, so I'm sure a silicone replacement could be sorted easily enough (as knowing PSA the original hose will be long since NLA).

 

Last task for the day was to clear the detritus out of the boot and to give the leather a quick skim over with the leather conditioner.

 

Looks better.

 

 

 

If I've got to spend several hours stuck in a queue on the M6, I may as well do it in a clean car interior that smells nice.

[Zelandeth]

So a few hours and 368 miles later we're safely at the hotel.

 

 

Still never had a car that is so blindingly effective at dispatching miles on the motorway.

 

Had a bit of cross country road action at the end though, was hilarious watching the Audi in the mirrors...while it might be well set up for the 'Ring, not for lumpy, bumpy Scottish back roads. Body control was best described as like watching a drunken hippo on a space hopper. I very much kept having to slow down to wait for them to catch up...despite the Audi being brand new.

[dozeydustman]

Still on the lookout for a suitable tank for your Invacar, Zel. Not come across anything in the dimensions you've provided so far though.

[Zelandeth]

Filled up this evening, managed just over 32mpg on the way up. Probably would have done a bit better were it not for the stop-start traffic on the M6.

 

Fair bit better than the low to mid twenties I usually see day to day blasting it around Milton Keynes!

[Zelandeth]

Back home now.

 

That's just under 800 grubby, grimy motorway miles done over the weekend. She needs a wash.

 

 

Unsurprisingly didn't miss a beat, and has demonstrated that the Xantia can still hold its own against the best today as a motorway cruiser.

 

Folks who travelled up in the 2 month old Audi A5 look shattered, we're fine!

[Zelandeth]

So pulled the engine cowl off the van today to see if I could find the heater fan from underneath.

 

 

Balls. That would be a no. Dash out again it will have to be it looks like.

 

Well while I've got things apart I may as well do something useful. The one oil leak which is actually detectable has been from the timing cover. Mostly from the offside front corner.

 

 

Nice and easy access as expected, and cover was off.

 

This is one of those rare cases where I'd actually believe the usual story of the original owner having spared no expense and changed the oil every two weeks regardless of mileage etc.

 

When did you last see an engine with a top end this clean?

 

 

 

New seal in place (the old seal had indeed turned to plastic), and back together.

 

 

The spaghetti at the top is the hands free mic for the stereo. It will eventually be run up to the top of the windscreen pillar probably. I will attack it with a couple of cable ties though. It was previously wedged at the top of the cowl, but has obviously escaped now it's been moved.

 

Engine has been run for a while and there's no sign yet of any leaks...will get some carb cleaner involved tomorrow and clean up the front of the engine so I can see if it's still leaking.

[Zelandeth]

Hmm...

 

So much for that being easy. Front fogs on the Xantia are dead. Tell tale on the dash works, however no power is getting to the lamps. Fuse is fine. Guessing there's a relay involved somewhere which should be the first suspect. If I can find it...there are a few hundred of them in this car after all...

 

The Invacar has been running like crap again, my guess is the carb has gunked up again. Went out to investigate today, and it was off a cylinder. Offside cylinder was flooded and had fouled the plug. Pulled it out, blasted it with the blow torch until it was just glowing, stuffed in back in and started up - off she went with a huge cloud of blue smoke.

 

I reckon the biggest issue here is that I can't give her a run under load to "clear out the pipes" so to speak. I've had problems with cars that have been off the road for a long time loading plugs up...not much else to be done there really until she's on the road. I suspect the trip to the MOT station when booked will involve several circuits round the neighborhood before actually breaking away to head towards the garage...if she's going to play up I'd rather it happen just round the corner than on the far side of town.

 

One thing that I've not looked at is the ignition system...I confess to not even having had the distributor cap off as far as I can remember... really should check it over sometime before actually driving it beyond the driveway.

[SierraMikeHotel]

Zel, I'm really sorry if I somehow missed an important update.

 

How is your husband?

[Zelandeth]

Zel, I'm really sorry if I somehow missed an important update.

How is your husband?

Generally he's doing okay. Having had a look at the scans myself now, I reckon far, far, far better than he's any right to be. Only real issue we're having is that roughly a month after the event, he's started having (relatively) minor epileptic fits affecting his face and right hand. So currently playing medical bingo with a few different anti seizure meds to see if we can control that. On the plus side, it did give us a pathway into being seen by specialists before January when this started. Downside, we've had to stick with specialists in MK Hospital rather than the JR in Oxford. MK Hospital is a bloody dive, and the first consultant we saw had us both foaming at the mouth and wanting to punch the guy... I've never met such a rude person in all my life. The actual neurologist at least was better. Still waiting for appointments with the cardiology and epilepsy specialists next month.

 

Overall though, he's doing a lot better than expected or hoped, even if the fits starting over a month after the event, out of nowhere was a bit of a blow. Usually that's something that will start a couple of weeks in at the latest.

 

No driving until at least a year after the last fit though, which is a pain. So obviously took him off the insurance when we notified the DVLA. ... insurance went up by £45 a year on the Activa plus a £30 admin fee...Cheers Adrian Flux.

[SierraMikeHotel]

A mixed like/unlike there. Glad he's mostly ok and I hope the seizures stop.

 

Insurance companies are bastards. When I moved house the only organisation that wanted to charge me was the motorbike insurance. They processed it in about a minute and wanted to charge me £30 so I calculated the hourly rate and said I'd pay if they could prove to me that they were paying their admin staff £500 per hour (or whatever it as - I showed my calculations in the complaint email). They said they'd waive it "this time."

 

Always complain!

[GrumpiusMaximus]

It sounds like he's made a remarkable recovery.  I'm pleased for both of you.

[Zelandeth]

So sounds like someone might be showing interest in the remains of the original Invacar.

 

Let's hope that goes somewhere. Both would like it off my garden, and obviously a bonus if it's either restored or useful in helping another one be saved.

 

In other news, Xantia is booked in for its MOT on Tuesday at 10, fingers crossed that doesn't cause any massive headaches.

 

Had been hoping to get a couple of things done today, but have wound up full of the cold so my usefulness has been greatly reduced.

 

Edit: I'm also putting together a plan for when TP is back on the road. This will involve finding out where all museums in the UK are which have Invacars in their collection are, then setting.off on a roadtrip to visit every one of them.

 

This may or may not actually ever happen.

[LightBulbFun]

do you know if the person interested in just the chassis and will be discarding the body work? if thats the case, would it be possible to remove and stash whats left of the body somewhere? IIRC the roof is still alright, so if someones just gonna trash the body completely, it might be worth removing it before hand and it might make their life a bit easier when it comes to transporting the chassis (also mentioning this because knowing my luck, the invacar I find is gonna have a rear end and a front end, but no Middle end  )

 

good luck on the MOT, (iv never actually watched an MOT being done, I hope to observe one at some point )

 

I see your specifically said "in the UK", because I imagine driving to Thailand in an invacar might* be a bit hard 

[Zelandeth]

This cold needs to bugger off. I've got a thousand things I need to do, feeling like death and running out of steam after ten minutes is unhelpful.

 

I managed today to tidy up the spaghetti behind the stereo a bit and wrestle the engine cover back into the van.

 

 

As an added bonus, I've not caught the speaker wires under it this time, so hopefully the front right channel won't randomly keep cutting out (having also repaired the sliced cable).

 

Have now collapsed in a heap on the sofa... that's my energy expenditure for the next couple of hours done I think.

[dollywobbler]

Well done for managing something! I thought I was getting better, but have reverted to a state of permanent collapse today. Annoying as I also have jobs stacking up.

[Zelandeth]

Well that's not a bad result I reckon!

 

 

As I'd mentioned before, there's been a bit of a clonk developing up front, so the ball joint was more or less expected.

 

Helpfully after a bit of a rummage around in my box of bits of Xantia this turned up.

 

 

Will ring up and get it booked in to be changed shortly. I'm not messing around with this, the garage have the tools necessary to make it a five minute job, I don't.

Will

[LightBulbFun]

"Monitor and repair: front tyres worn"

 

Ohh I wonder why that is... *while zel chucks it into another corner* 

[Daviemck2006]

I think it is pretty standard for a xantia activa to have worn front tyres. Espically in the capital of roundabouts, Milton Keynes

 

Sent from my SM-T585 using Tapatalk

[Zelandeth]

To be fair they've done pretty well all things considered, and are definitely getting to the point where I'd be thinking about changing them on age grounds anyway.

 

Even discounting the number of roundabouts here, she's putting down a fair bit of power through the front wheels and I do tend to drive in a spirited manner (C'mon, driving sedately is missing the point of the Activa system), so they earn their keep!

 

Definitely want them changed before we really get into winter properly, so provided that funds allow I'd be hoping to get a new set of tyres (probably just stick with what I know I like and go for a set of UniRoyal Rainexpert 3s) fitted in the next few weeks.

[quicksilver]

I think it is pretty standard for a car to have worn front tyres in the capital of roundabouts, Milton Keynes

EFA

[Fumbler]

Ahh Milton Keynes. Nice but full of roundabouts... WITH TRAFFIC LIGHTS. Anyway, on a lighter note, glad that the fail wasn't too bad. Very glad for your husband and also happy to see a 5.25 inch floppy disk.

[Zelandeth]

Ahh Milton Keynes. Nice but full of roundabouts... WITH TRAFFIC LIGHTS. Anyway, on a lighter note, glad that the fail wasn't too bad. Very glad for your husband and also happy to see a 5.25 inch floppy disk.

To be fair, they have at least made a few of the signalised ones part time now. The one just round the corner from here drives me spare though.

 

I've done signal phasing in my previous job from time to time...and the downside of that is being able to see how much wasted time there is in there. At least half the day it could flow just fine without needing the lights, though definitely needs them during the afternoon peak period.

 

As for a 360K 5 1/4" floppy disc being the first thing which came to hand to blank the VIN with, all I can say is "welcome to the madness that is my house "