The new news 24 thread

[brownnova]

On 29/05/2025 at 11:23, Dyslexic Viking said:

on the car stereo is a song about a bloke named Reidar who has bought a new manure spreader

The Norwegian Wurzels? 

[brownnova]

8 hours ago, JJ0063 said:

Just laying in bed and had one of those moments where something dawns on you.

 

@brownnova, did I speak to you on the phone this morning? 😂

I didn’t twig at the time, but just saw your name on here and put two and two together.

Do you work for a well known classic car insurer and your name begins with J? If so… there’s a strong possibility that you did!

Good reduction in quoted premium, would use again… if only the seller of the vehicle in question was as inclined to drop his price… 

[JJ0063]

57 minutes ago, brownnova said:

Do you work for a well known classic car insurer and your name begins with J? If so… there’s a strong possibility that you did!

Good reduction in quoted premium, would use again… if only the seller of the vehicle in question was as inclined to drop his price… 

Yes 😂 

How funny. I didn’t put two and two together at the time 😂

[brownnova]

3 minutes ago, JJ0063 said:

Yes 😂 

How funny. I didn’t put two and two together at the time 😂

Wish I had opted for the call back now! 😆😆

I’ll have to ask for you specifically next time. 

[Dyslexic Viking]

3 hours ago, brownnova said:

The Norwegian Wurzels? 

Not sure if they can be compared to those, but is similar.

[lesapandre]

Fleamarket haul today. The most valuable are the Austin A105 and Singer Gazelle - as more expensive versions of other cars neither sold particularly well in period and probably few models too.

[stripped fred]

Myself and my two sons have been doing a bit of work on the MR2. Brake calipers now removed and will be sent off to be refurbished. I was planning to use a company called Bigg Red butt they no longer replenish brakes so on there look out for someone else. My son gave it a wash too.

Next job, replace the fuel pump which means dropping the tank. Just working out the best way to get it high enough in the air.

[horriblemercedes]

Bigg Red no longer does brakes? That's the thing the company was known for....

[Sunny Jim]

Mama, I just sold a car

The man had already paid, now he's trailered it away

Mama, regrets have just begun

But I'm already at n + 1 

Mama, ooh, didn't think it would make me cry

I guess I can always buy another car tomorrow

Carry on, carry on as if nothing really matters to me

(Bah da da dum)

I see a little puddle of LHM
BX,  BX, will you do the hydropneumatic?
Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening me
(LHM) LHM, (LHM) LHM, LHM Fluid marvelleux
But I'm just a poor boy, nobody loves me
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this jalopy

Easy come, easy go, it's time to let it go

 

Staying in the fold, I'll let the new owner reveal themselves if they wish.

[loserone]

Did it drive on the trailer? Do you reckon the new owner will be bringing it to Twixfest?

[IronStar]

19 hours ago, bramz7 said:

It's back!!!!

So 4 weeks and a day after dropping it off, I went to Ferndown today to collect it. The bill was absolutely stunning but they had made it as low as could be without sacrificing the work. It's still not absolutely perfect, the rear brakes are going to need doing next MOT and the back box looks like it'll need to go too, but it drives so well. I was a bit concerned at the temp gauge on the way home but 156s do not have gauge damping, the level shows the actual temperature and fluctuations between 80-100 are supposedly normal according to forums. The garage reckon the water pump was original too, which is madness given it's on its fourth cambelt. 

Best photo I can get of the sill now:

This is what they had found:

They've absolutely coated it with dynax underneath, I was shown all the work they'd done and it's proper top quality. 

I'm getting the tyres done the week after next as they are all perished. 

In other news, annoyingly, I absolutely HATE the Corolla. I really liked my bug eye 1.3, so this is unusual. Can't get comfy, can't seem to enjoy it at all. Can't really sell it until I've got the V5 though. I've driven hundreds of cars and never had one that I've detested so quickly. Odd!

Temperature gauges on 156 are notorious for being unreliable and over/under reading. They are reliably unreliable, so once you know where to kinda expect them, they will always be thereabouts. I replaced sensors, thermostat and a set of gauges trying to cure it, and it’s still not fixed. OBD gives the correct reading.

Thermostats are also a weakspot, but they are designed to almost universally fail open unless tampered with. Renault 4 thermostat is a common bodge, because it costs 1/10th of what needs to be there, but those fail closed and cook the engine. Easy to spot even on randomness of 156 gauge, as it will stop being reliably unreliable and underread from what you expect. 

[Sunny Jim]

@loserone it set off from mine to the village for ease of loading so assume it drove onto the trailer. New owner intends bringing it to Twixfest AFAIK

[wesacosa]

another nice haul from our local Transport and Military book shop 

The Fiat one is particularly good/odd

Ever wondered what the late Hi-de-hi star Simon Cadell's opinion on the Fiat Croma was? Well,  wonder no more

 

[WillCarter]

Had someone come and ask me if I was interested in a 205 Convertible today, I nearly snapped their arm off. Disappointingly, they were a number out, but I took it off their hands nonetheless. Now sat on the yard for £795.

If that sort of thing tickles your fancy, let me know, there's always a Shiter price on these things.

[captain_70s]

7 hours ago, lesapandre said:

Fleamarket haul today. The most valuable are the Austin A105 and Singer Gazelle - as more expensive versions of other cars neither sold particularly well in period and probably few models too.

Is that a Vauxhall on the far left with glazing? I recognise the Dinky, but not that...

[IronStar]

I really didn’t want to buy this, but it’s almost June, there’s absolutely nothing in 5x110 19 for sale that I like / am willing to pay for.  The wheels I rather liked were stolen from the garage late last year, so here we are. Tad bit under 400€ for a set of 4.

I still need tyres for Yugo Cabrio this year, and probably 155 and winter tyres for Bravo. An expensive year in rubber.

[lesapandre]

4 hours ago, captain_70s said:

Is that a Vauxhall on the far left with glazing? I recognise the Dinky, but not that...

Yes. Vauxhall Cresta - interestingly both Dinky and Corgi made the same model - and there they are side-by-side.

The Corgi is a slightly better and finer rendering.

[egg]

Car manufacturer Tatra explaining aerodynamics (1934) in a simple way for anyone to understand.

[crad]

the Berlingo had speaker wiring & original speakers, so it was my job to marry them together to create choons. connectors from a breaker were found, soldering iron borrowed, and my questionable soldering skills from year 7 & 8 DT were brought to the table. speakers work now, so that's a win. I am aware the solders look terrible, but if it works then... (door speaker photos non existent)

[captain_70s]

15 hours ago, lesapandre said:

Yes. Vauxhall Cresta - interestingly both Dinky and Corgi made the same model - and there they are side-by-side.

The Corgi is a slightly better and finer rendering.

Interestingly* the Dinky is a '56 Cresta, the Corgi is a '55 Velox. Identifiable by differing side trim and a larger rear screen on the '56.

[Sunny Jim]

Went over to Ynys Mon/Anglesey today to get some new front tyres fitted on the C15. A colleague's husband has a tyre fitting machine in his garage.

He also has this rather nice Renault 5 Turbo that he's restored in there too.

On his advice rather than go back across on the island on the A55 I took the B5109 from Llandeusant to Llangefni and the B5420 from there to Menai Bridge. 18 miles of some of the most fun and engaging B roads I've driven in a while. Sure you don't have the views of some of the roads through the mountains but the variety of bends and changes in elevation means you don't really want to take your eyes off the road. With about 60hp the C15 is all about keeping up the momentum on roads like that but all the more fun for it.

[stuboy]

At boot fair.. stashed in the auction lot... renault rodeo? 

 

I'm sure I've seen these before?

[Rustybullethole]

Cleaned inside and outside as its much easier at work not needing to hoof buckets/hovers and lecky down from the flat. 

Got 80 quid out the coin tray! 

That will keep me in petrol for a bit. Looks semi respectable from ten paces. 

Fluids topped up where required and spare oil doubles up as airbox bracket as it was falling off the intake. 

Popped out to the shops and it fell victim to a fly by shitting. Oh well. 

 

[Burnside]

A few months back, I posted this on the grumpy thread. 

This was once, the rear subframe of my Sister's Panda 4x4. 

So what to do?  There was only one option, after a rather expensive purchase via Italy off eBay later. 

The Panda was sent to my Sister's garage of choice, who got the fun task of performing the operation.

Under the little Panda now sits, a replacement rear subframe. ( Which I spent an age, cleaning and wire brushing before respraying it.)

Brand new trailing arms, ( another big expense) as the old ones were found to be beyond saving too. New rear springs and rear brake lines were changed while it was all apart. 

They even rust treated some areas at the rear. Which was a pleasant surprise, as that save's me some work. 

To help it along, I've given the outer subframe a coat of dinitrol 4941 that I had spare.

I'll purchase some cavity wax to treat the inner framework. Then over the summer, I'll tackle the underneath box sections and front subframe as well.

Hopefully that will keep it going another 19 years! 

[Lord Sterling]

Spent sometime yesterday cleaning the Jag inside. It regularly gets washed and because it's so little used, it rarely, if ever needs a clean inside. Except, you never see the debris that pass the mats down the edge onto the carpet.  There wasn't much.

The rear parking sensors have never worked in my ownership, its not a biggie, but I like things that work if theyre supposed to. I removed the spare wheel and battery cover to reveal some stuff I've not seen before:

I know there is a missing relay, apparently this is for a secondary fuel tank, which I don't have.

Not sure what the blue plug is for.

Ditto the 3-pin plug.

The small yellow wire with a covered spade connector is apparently a battery cut off that the vehicles had when they were shipped.

The issue with parking sensors is apparently down to one sensor or more that isn't working. If one sensor goes, the whole system stops. It does still self-check on start-up as it gives one long bleep which indicates the system is working, but one sensor is likely to be out.

Also, been watching on YouTube:  Authentiquesautos. A French chap who looks at old/rare vehicles in public parking areas. This pleases my love for old cars and my odd enthusiasm for parking garages. This Rover Sterling brought me out in a sweat 🥵

[Schaefft]

9 hours ago, Lord Sterling said:

Also, been watching on YouTube:  Authentiquesautos. A French chap who looks at old/rare vehicles in public parking areas. This pleases my love for old cars and my odd enthusiasm for parking garages. This Rover Sterling brought me out in a sweat 🥵

 

I've been watching him for a little while myself now. His enthusiasm for rare specs of ordinary cars is contagious.

Also Paris underground garages really hold some treasures. Probably all owned by wealthy giffers that haven't made it further than a 3 mile radius around said car park in the last 15 years.

[lesapandre]

Grauniad article this morning on "cloning" of number plates.

Not sure what they are on about really - yes a lot of people replace plates because they get damaged, are a MoT requirement, a cherished plate change, nicked, and to tidy a vehicle up or the like.

Usual hysteria comprising nuns and puppies - and seeding into the media usually indicates government is considering changes - I'd hazard charges relating to change of ownership etc. We'll see.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/02/cloned-number-plates-investigation

[IronStar]

35 minutes ago, lesapandre said:

Grauniad article this morning on "cloning" of number plates.

Not sure what they are on about really - yes a lot of people replace plates because they get damaged, are a MoT requirement, a cherished plate change, nicked, and to tidy a vehicle up or the like.

Usual hysteria comprising nuns and puppies - and seeding into the media usually indicates government is considering changes - I'd hazard charges relating to change of ownership etc. We'll see.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/02/cloned-number-plates-investigation

To be fair, I always found it shocking that you guys can just order plates off a random internet supplier, and not have them issued by a government body. Not to mention that you still run different plate types and fonts.

Our plates have multiple watermarks on them to prevent cloning, and it will be very painful and costly traffic stop if you tamper with them. 

[Kiltox]

55 minutes ago, lesapandre said:

Grauniad article this morning on "cloning" of number plates.

Not sure what they are on about really - yes a lot of people replace plates because they get damaged, are a MoT requirement, a cherished plate change, nicked, and to tidy a vehicle up or the like.

Usual hysteria comprising nuns and puppies - and seeding into the media usually indicates government is considering changes - I'd hazard charges relating to change of ownership etc. We'll see.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/02/cloned-number-plates-investigation

There is basically no control over the supply of plates though, they do have a point. 

You can order plates online with no documents yet it’ll be a RNPS registered supplier that’ll make and deliver them, completely ignoring the rules they’re supposed to follow. 

[mk2_craig]

Currently losing my shit over this photo that my mate sent to me. I have no idea when it was taken (I suppose it could be any time after about 1991)