The new news 24 thread

[FakeConcern]

Walter Becker of Steely Dan died today. RIP. Radio 6 playing a lot. Loved them. Songs that told a story rather than " I love you, all night long woo woo baby yea yea," Repeat endlessly.

I saw that too, what a pisser.

[17-Coffees]

Yesterday I finally got rid of my Civic...

 

Made cash, then went on the piss. Life is good.

[Eddie Honda]

Fucking shit twat wanky bollocks.

 

Fuck. That. Shit.

 

^^^^ Young whippersnapper in OMGRWD incident...

 

Glad you're okay, even if your trolleys are brown.

[georgeinabz]

I would love one of them, the best modern* car in my eyes.

you wouldn't love the bills

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[phil_lihp]

The honourable member Mr Phil_lihp came to visit Skizzer HQ today.  We drank tea, chatted a lot about shite, did some test driving, kicked some tyres and tinkered with the lumpy Vauxhall.  We didn't exactly fix it but it was good to have an extra pair of hands and a brain to rule out some reasons for the dodgy running.  

 

A grand afternoon - hope you got home safely and comfortably, great to see you, hopefully next time there will be more stuff running/legal to play with.

 

Thanks for a cracking day with too many nice cars to mention, shame the 2300S wouldn't play but it was worth a try, sorry I couldn't be more use.  Much props to Mr Skizzer, Mrs Skizzer and especially SkizzerDog for exceptional hospitality, tea and cake, it was a great day.  Having never driven a V8 before today, I've now driven two Rover ones, the SD1 is every bit as glorious as it looks and the Discovery is still in my head rather too much.

 

Best of luck getting the Glorious Golden Gamma running and the Vauxhall running nicely, hopefully it'll be something simple on both.

 

The Hiace did well on its longest outing and first motorway trip in at least a decade, it really needs another gear for less frantic cruising speeds and probably better MPGs (it consumed an entire tankful in 350 miles which is not great going really) but it was comfortable enough.

 

Also top marks to TRW for a swift and easy transaction in taking the Rover 45's door and wheels off my hands while I was in the area, another top bloke.

[wuvvum]

Almost had an aborted collection mission today, for only the second time ever.  I'd arranged to pick up a van from Derby this afternoon, so jumped on a train at Norwich this morning and headed westwards and slightly northwards.   We ground to a halt just outside Ely and sat there for about 40 minutes due to a signal failure.  Eventually got into Ely just as the Norwich - Liverpool train was supposed to be pulling in, so ran over to the customer service desk to ask if I should jump on that train and change at Nottingham or wait for the next Leicester train.  I was told the Leicester train would be my best bet.  Then the Liverpool train was delayed a bit more so I went online to check train times and ascertained that what I had just been told was bollocks.  So I got on the Liverpool train, which thanks to some nifty driving and curtailed waiting times at stations left Ely 29 minutes late and pulled into Nottingham 12 minutes late. 

 

Got to Derby about 50 minutes later than planned, then set off to walk to the seller's house.  Now I'd looked on Google maps and found his road, and it didn't look too far from the station,  What I didn't realise at the time was that the road was about two miles long and his house was right down the far end of it.  Got there and no sign of life whatsoever.  Gates all locked up, and no van (well three vans actually, but not the one I was going after).  Couldn't get hold of the seller so had a wander round to see if I could see the van parked up somewhere, hung around for about half an hour and then it started raining so I was just about to say "fuck it" and head back to the station when he pulled up outside - turns out he'd given me the wrong address, the van was at his Mrs' place (where he lives) and the house I had gone to, which he owns, is now just used for storage.  It was just fortunate that he happened to nip over to fetch something while I was still in the neighbourhood.

 

Anyway, got there in the end, and had an uneventful drive home in the van, apart from how having a headache from the noisy front wheel bearing.  It's a model of van I've had several of in the past, but not in this particular flavour before (2.2 HDI LWB).  I thought it'd be a bit gutless but thanks to sensible gearing and the 2.2 HDI being quite high-revving for a van engine it manages OK.  It's also a slightly more manageable size than the Movano, which is really a bit too big to take to supermarkets etc.

 

 

This means the Trafic is now surplus to requirements - if anyone is in the mood for some weldage and fancies it for 150 quid let me know.

[worldofceri]

About eight years ago I lent my mate a pair of ramps.

 

This weekend I finally gave up hope of ever getting them back.

 

So I went to Machine Mart to get some new ones. They'd got none in stock, so I tried Ebay and there was some listed locally for £18 b.i.n. They're ancient, obvs. I picked them up this morning.

 

I knew I would have to improvise extensions of some sort for Mrs_WoC's Golf (because VAG_shite and also possibly knackered shocks), so I found some timber and fired up the circular saw.

 

 

I know what you're thinking; I'm astonished by my own ingenuity sometimes as well.

 

Then it started raining and I decided I couldn't be arsed to change the oil after all.

[vulgalour]

I have bought another supposedly correct catalytic converter for the Rover.  Let's hope it's not more money pissed up the wall!  Seriously, buying parts for this car is almost as bad as a 70s Renault.

[stuboy]

thought id change the stereo on the focus as the original seems to be not working, spare cd6000 fitted and this keeps losing signal..found a tape player from old mondeo thats locked, so lobed them in passenger footwell and huffed alot alot.

[DodgeRover]

Fucking shit twat wanky bollocks.

 

The 740's previous owner had replaced the front tyres a couple of years ago, but sadly they're Wanli ditchfinders. The rears are Avons with early 2000s date codes.

 

Coming home from Chumley on the A49 behing Krujoe, Conrad and watagongcorporation, we're bobbing along at 50mph, it's been drizzling all day. Come to a crest, after which there's a short swoop down to some traffic lights. Start braking on the crest, and as I go over it a short, shiny patch on the road comes into view - concrete? Not sure, but not tarmac.

 

As soon as it hit the different surface, the car hydroplanes to the left, countersteer, hit the verge and bounce back the other way, slide over the centre line, then the surface is back to normal, it bites and normal service is resumed, quick correct to get the fuck back to the correct side of the road, and stop at the lights.

 

Fuck. That. Shit.

 

New tyres going on ASAP.

More likely diesel on the road. Nothing short of a lot less speed or not braking would have made a difference.

[Ghosty]

A big perfectly formed rectangle of diesel that was the precise width of the lane from the outside marker to the centre line, with perfectly straight edges?! It was definitely a bad surface (as far as shit ditchfinders are concerned). 

 

I refer you to JohnK's Nexen-clad Vectra: http://autoshite.com/topic/25423-nexen-tyres-a-review/

[andy18s]

Just popped in a local page if you want to get away from it all

[M'coli]

About eight years ago I lent my mate a pair of ramps.

 

This weekend I finally gave up hope of ever getting them back.

 

So I went to Machine Mart to get some new ones. They'd got none in stock, so I tried Ebay and there was some listed locally for £18 b.i.n. They're ancient, obvs. I picked them up this morning.

 

I knew I would have to improvise extensions of some sort for Mrs_WoC's Golf (because VAG_shite and also possibly knackered shocks), so I found some timber and fired up the circular saw.

 

 

I know what you're thinking; I'm astonished by my own ingenuity sometimes as well.

 

Then it started raining and I decided I couldn't be arsed to change the oil after all.

Handy things lumps of wood, aren't they? Here's mine in action.

https://youtu.be/3WTz8D8xDKg

https://youtu.be/3WTz8D8xDKg

[alcyonecorporation]

Fucking shit twat wanky bollocks.

 

The 740's previous owner had replaced the front tyres a couple of years ago, but sadly they're Wanli ditchfinders. The rears are Avons with early 2000s date codes.

 

Coming home from Chumley on the A49 behing Krujoe, Conrad and watagongcorporation, we're bobbing along at 50mph, it's been drizzling all day. Come to a crest, after which there's a short swoop down to some traffic lights. Start braking on the crest, and as I go over it a short, shiny patch on the road comes into view - concrete? Not sure, but not tarmac.

 

As soon as it hit the different surface, the car hydroplanes to the left, countersteer, hit the verge and bounce back the other way, slide over the centre line, then the surface is back to normal, it bites and normal service is resumed, quick correct to get the fuck back to the correct side of the road, and stop at the lights.

 

Fuck. That. Shit.

 

New tyres going on ASAP.

 

Did wonder WTF that was. Saw you fishtailing in the mirror and was a bit worried - but you carried on going so assumed you'd swerved and over corrected. 

[alcyonecorporation]

Handy things lumps of wood, aren't they? Here's mine in action.

 

I thought he might turn up on the day you finally decided to go to Machine Mart. 

[DodgeRover]

I honestly don't buy all this it's the tyres fault type posts. Having run part worns or remoulded ones including finding better ones from the dump to stay legal, I've never had a moment when I've thought "oh it's a bit out of shape, that's the tyres fault"

[Ghosty]

Eh...

When I bought my old 216 it had three decent tyres and a ditchfinder, a pair on the rear, a winter tyre on the driver's front and the ditchfinder passenger front.

The steering wheel was off centre to the left by a significant amount where in the time the car was laid up the shit tyre had flat spotted, all the other branded tyres were fine.

As soon as I binned the shit tyre and put the spare on, it was fine...

[beko1987]

I fixed* the wheel shake on the gooner by swapping the wheels around!

[Ghosty]

Also, the Volvo's front tyres howl like fuck when you're navigating supermarket car parks and other such low speed manoeuvres. Go figure they hydroplane.

[Guest Hooli]

If you understeer a RWD ya doing it wong

[Kiltox]

I fixed* the wheel shake on the gooner by swapping the wheels around!

TADTS - wheels will be slightly buckled

 

I had it on a 17k mile 3 year old one

[Cleon-Fonte]

Ditchfinders do make a difference, my Sirion had them fitted when I first bought it and it was horrible, trying to accelerate quickly out of junctions on to fast roads in the wet resulted in lots of pointless wheelspinning but no forward motion and I had two instances of snap oversteer. Neither problem re-occurred after I put some decent tyres on. 

 

I imagine if the same tyres had been fitted to something a bit powerful with rear-wheel drive it would have been a bit of a handful, even if driven tamely.

[Guest Hooli]

Shit tyres are shit aye, I won't argue there. It's still a good excuse to wind Max up though...

[Supernaut]

I think my best* experience of shit tyres was accelerating out of a roundabout, in the wet, in 3rd gear in an MX-5.

Wheelspin from about 25mph all the way to 50mph. I managed to keep it in my lane, although I'll admit I kept the foot in because it was very gentle and actually quite amusing. I was also on a dual carriageway and the other lane was empty.

 

I bought a set of wheels with much better tyres on them the following weekend.

[Guest Hooli]

I swapped ends in a Volvo 340 along a dual cabbageway due to nearly new shite tyres, that was fun*

 

 

 

When I had a MG Midget I used to run Goodyears on the front & cheap shit on the back, it made it so much easier to drive sideways in the dry (I was early 20s).

[bramz7]

Old tyres are also pretty lethal. Got some 20 odd year old Pirellis on the Tipo and it nearly span (from the rear end) on a roundabout.

The ride is also awful.

 

Hence why a fresh set is going on it next month!

[Lacquer Peel]

I honestly don't buy all this it's the tyres fault type posts. Having run part worns or remoulded ones including finding better ones from the dump to stay legal, I've never had a moment when I've thought "oh it's a bit out of shape, that's the tyres fault"

I partly agree with this.

My Xantia 1.9D was bought with Landsail tyres fitted, they were fine most of the time but I had a couple of scary moments including snap/lift off oversteer in the wet.

I swapped them for a set of Goodyears and ended up parking it in a ditch when I stood on the brakes.

 

Know your limits, some cars might be okay on ditchfinders, others not so much.

My Inca van has a horrible mix of legal tyres but it has inherently neutral and stable handling, it never bites back.

Not all ditchfinders are equal either, and some premium and mid range brands are awful.

My friend just fitted BFG all terrains (not cheap) to his Hilux, apparently they've changed the compound and it's twitchy to drive now.

 

As pointed out already, ancient tyres can be lethal regardless of their appearance

[danthecapriman]

Glad you didn't stack your Volvo Max, although I'd love to have seen you 'drifting' it!

 

Mines got two not very old cheapies on the front, they're ok to be fair but one keeps going down over time, probably the valve.

On the back however it's got a pair of very old 'Camac' tyres, they suck! They're really badly cracking and perished and they're like driving on shiny plastic tyres instead of rubber, especially in the wet. They need changing asap really but money is going elsewhere at the mo and I'm getting the alloys refurbished first. You can feel them slip and slide in the wet when pulling away from standstill or going around bends.

 

My Transit was wearing it's original Michelins until a few years ago! Dated 1984! They were lethal. First thing I changed on the van.

 

 

No idea what brand I'll go for on the Volvo when I get around to it? It'll be brand name rubber though. My old saloon had Pirelli tyres which were good so I might stick with that.

[DodgeRover]

Knowing your (and the vehicles) limits is the key and not spending your time driving at those limits.

 

Let's face it banger racers can manage decent lap times running one or more corners on the rims and still keep it all under control.

[danthecapriman]

Knowing your (and the vehicles) limits is the key and not spending your time driving at those limits.

Let's face it banger racers can manage decent lap times running one or more corners on the rims and still keep it all under control.

Knowing your limits is definitely true.

But old and/or cheap rubber won't help your chances. If there's a choice between brand name rubber that's had loads of cash spent in its development or cheap Chinese crap that hasn't I'm spending my cash on the good stuff thanks.

Old rubber goes hard with age and grip is lost. It matters not if your a driving god when it blows out on you without warning.

Tyres are the one thing sticking the car to the road, why run the risk with shit tyres if you can afford not to?