The new news 24 thread

[Popsicle]

We made it!

I was rudely awoken from my slumber at the ungodly time of 0907, am I free, yes, nice one get yersen loaded up at 1030 for Filton and Corsham.

So a little later on, about 3 miles north of Strensham Services on the M5, this happened.

I took many photos, so as not to miss the occasion, they all turned out pretty crap.

But thats it, the couriering Caddy has covered 500k miles, thats over 800k kilometers for our European readers.

 

[auntiemaryscanary]

3 minutes ago, Popsicle said:

We made it!

I was rudely awoken from my slumber at the ungodly time of 0907, am I free, yes, nice one get yersen loaded up at 1030 for Filton and Corsham.

So a little later on, about 3 miles north of Strensham Services on the M5, this happened.

I took many photos, so as not to miss the occasion, they all turned out pretty crap.

But thats it, the couriering Caddy has covered 500k miles, thats over 800k kilometers for our European readers.

 

Hooray! Well done chap, and Caddy.

[Momentary Lapse Of Reason]

21 minutes ago, Popsicle said:

We made it!

I was rudely awoken from my slumber at the ungodly time of 0907, am I free, yes, nice one get yersen loaded up at 1030 for Filton and Corsham.

So a little later on, about 3 miles north of Strensham Services on the M5, this happened.

I took many photos, so as not to miss the occasion, they all turned out pretty crap.

But thats it, the couriering Caddy has covered 500k miles, thats over 800k kilometers for our European readers.

 

Well Done both of you!

What is the next target mileage? 555,555 ?

 

[Popsicle]

4 minutes ago, Momentary Lapse Of Reason said:

What is the next target mileage? 555,555 ?

I suppose it must be, I've not really thought much about life beyond 500k. 

I've always wanted to get a vehicle to a million miles, I probably don't have the time left* to start again, so part of me is thinking just see how the old girl keeps going and make any calls as/when things break.

The trouble is newer things keep winking at me seductively, so I'm really not sure what to do.

* not being morbid, but I'll be 55 later this year, so only 12 and a bit years left before I can take the governments golden handshake.

[24vdiamond]

1 hour ago, Popsicle said:

We made it!

I was rudely awoken from my slumber at the ungodly time of 0907, am I free, yes, nice one get yersen loaded up at 1030 for Filton and Corsham.

So a little later on, about 3 miles north of Strensham Services on the M5, this happened.

I took many photos, so as not to miss the occasion, they all turned out pretty crap.

But thats it, the couriering Caddy has covered 500k miles, thats over 800k kilometers for our European readers.

 

Excellent, isn't that what motors should be capable of not like all the dross manufacturers have been churning out of late 

[Momentary Lapse Of Reason]

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/tt-2026-marias-road-to-recovery/

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/tt-racer-maria-costello-facing-lifelong-impact-from-injuries-suffered-in-sidecar-crash/

"A fundraising page has been launched by Maria Costello MBE's racing team following a crash during sidecar qualifying last week.

The rider, who this year marked 30 years since she first raced on the Mountain Course, is said to be facing a 'lifelong impact' from her injuries.

Along with passenger Shaun Parker the pair came off at Brandish, last Tuesday (26 May), leading to the session being red flagged."

 

 

Details of the Fund Raising pages for Maria and Scott are in the Manx Radio links above.

 

 

[Split_Pin]

And hame.

19.08 train from Stirling to Laurencekirk and back home to Bonnybridge by road by 11.30.

Drives perfectly,  very pleased. 6 gears and cruise means its a skoosh.  Feels very fast at 70mph though , need to get used to a wee car again 🤣

[BorniteIdentity]

On 01/06/2026 at 23:08, 24vdiamond said:

Excellent, isn't that what motors should be capable of not like all the dross manufacturers have been churning out of late 

Call me contrarian if you so wish, but I’m fairly confident most stuff would get here with the requisite servicing and repair.

What actually happens is people refuse to spend £1500 repairing a £1000 car so spend £5000 instead on someone else’s problems. 

My old Avensis is now on 307k and, fundamentally, there’s nothing wrong with it. But outside of This Place no sensible human would buy it. It’s scruffy, it’s a bit smelly, it’s tired and - frankly - so am I. 

We live on a small island and are a nation of consumers. Otherwise it’d happen a lot more.

Anyway. Well done @Popsicle!

[Popsicle]

5 hours ago, BorniteIdentity said:

Call me contrarian if you so wish, but I’m fairly confident most stuff would get here with the requisite servicing and repair.

What actually happens is people refuse to spend £1500 repairing a £1000 car so spend £5000 instead on someone else’s problems. 

My old Avensis is now on 307k and, fundamentally, there’s nothing wrong with it. But outside of This Place no sensible human would buy it. It’s scruffy, it’s a bit smelly, it’s tired and - frankly - so am I. 

We live on a small island and are a nation of consumers. Otherwise it’d happen a lot more.

Anyway. Well done @Popsicle!

I think you've hit the nail on the head perfectly here.

I've owned this van just over 5 years, I've spent £16.9k on servicing, repair and a little bit of betterment. Seems like a lot of money? Yes it is, but to rent a van for five years would have cost £800x60 months = £48k, nobody will lease a van to you for this kind of mileage, so rental or owning are the only options. I think I made the correct choice.

[horriblemercedes]

22 hours ago, Momentary Lapse Of Reason said:

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/tt-2026-marias-road-to-recovery/

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/tt-racer-maria-costello-facing-lifelong-impact-from-injuries-suffered-in-sidecar-crash/

"A fundraising page has been launched by Maria Costello MBE's racing team following a crash during sidecar qualifying last week.

The rider, who this year marked 30 years since she first raced on the Mountain Course, is said to be facing a 'lifelong impact' from her injuries.

Along with passenger Shaun Parker the pair came off at Brandish, last Tuesday (26 May), leading to the session being red flagged."

 

 

Details of the Fund Raising pages for Maria and Scott are in the Manx Radio links above.

 

 

I sympathise with them, I really do. It's a horrible accident to have and I can't imagine how horrible it must be seeing your future change in an instant like that.

 

However, something there doesn't feel quite right. I understand fundraising for someone who is the victim of something random, but when somebody has chosen to do something incredibly risky (and understands the outcomes), it doesn't feel like asking for donations is quite right. It was a conscious choice and most people don't do it because they don't want to take on the risk. It's a responsibility in itself.

 

I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that, in her place.

[Split_Pin]

In less good Bini news relating to the silver one.

The garage phoned yesterday, the calipers I had ordered, which were definitely* correct according to Ebay, weren't. The seller is now disputing this. The brake hose fitting on the correct calipers is half the size of the one supplied. 

Correct one sourced, car ready a day late which isn't their fault. However, nearly crashed in the way home when a Range Rover forced its way past me and I had to pull in behind a parked car. The brake pedal went almost to the floor. I'm incredibly busy with my new job,  typing this during the first 5 minutes I have got in the day, so have zero time to go back to the garage. Hopefully a bleed up will sort it this evening.

Not the cars fault but I'm getting pissed off with this back brake thing now.

[Bren]

My lads astra passed it's MOT with no advisories. I do need to get him to do the brake fluid though as it looks very old.

[Split_Pin]

Brakes still shite on the Mini. A bit of air came out the new caliper and the pedal doesn't sink any more but its still quite a long pedal if that makes sense?

Could it be the read pads need time to bed in as the discs aren't new?

Getting really frustrated with this thing now.

[Bren]

9 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Brakes still shite on the Mini. A bit of air came out the new caliper and the pedal doesn't sink any more but its still quite a long pedal if that makes sense?

Could it be the read pads need time to bed in as the discs aren't new?

Getting really frustrated with this thing now.

Are the drums and shoes set up correctly?

[worldofceri]

5 hours ago, horriblemercedes said:

I sympathise with them, I really do. It's a horrible accident to have and I can't imagine how horrible it must be seeing your future change in an instant like that.

 

However, something there doesn't feel quite right. I understand fundraising for someone who is the victim of something random, but when somebody has chosen to do something incredibly risky (and understands the outcomes), it doesn't feel like asking for donations is quite right. It was a conscious choice and most people don't do it because they don't want to take on the risk. It's a responsibility in itself.

 

I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that, in her place.

I don’t disagree, but I think the expectation will be that donors are participants and fans of the sport, rather than the general public. 

[Split_Pin]

7 minutes ago, Bren said:

Are the drums and shoes set up correctly?

Discs all round on this one.

[Bren]

3 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Discs all round on this one.

I have no idea why but I assumed it was a classic mini.

[davehedgehog31]

Took the Estelle through to visit @320touring's unit, its about 65 miles each way, so the longest journey I'd undertaken in it. 

All was going well until I noticed coolant in the drivers footwell. I was about 15 miles from the destination so after a bit of initial investigation which determined the leak to be from the heater matrix area I decided to press on. 

Arriving at the unit we set about dismantling the interior and eventually narrowed it down to the heater control valve area. Options were discussed including bypassing the matrix but given I was 60 odd miles from home and the coolant reservoir was still sitting basically right on max, we decided to leave it. The heater is on a separate circuit from the main cooling system, given the length of pipes with the engine at the rear and radiator at the front it holds around 13 litres, so this drip was inconvenient but not drastic. We were concerned about introducing air and struggling to bleed it. 

Made it home no bother, so it was the right call. Although it was a cold drive in the pishing rain with a window cracked to stop the windscreen fogging up as I wasn't keen to use the heater. I reckon it probably lost 100ml tops over the hour and a half drive.

This is actually the third leak I've dealt with on that heater circuit so I think it's probably due a bit of an overhaul with new hoses, clips etc. Thankfully the main coolant circuit looks in better health.

I suspect the clutch master cylinder has  a small leak given the corrosion on the bottom of the pedal that you can see. I think I'll put together a bit of a shopping list and order some spares from Czech Republic. Great little car though, even if it is keeping me on my toes, it has tons of character and is so unlike anything modern that it makes every trip interesting. 

 

[Zelandeth]

I'm going to assume that the green fabric braided bleed line that runs between the top of the heater matrix and the radiator has already been replaced, given that they basically all decomposed about 30 years ago.  Likewise the balancing pipe made of the same stuff that joins the bottom of the two halves of the fuel tank together (it's a saddle shape where it goes over the nose of the gearbox).  If you see ANY of that stuff anywhere, just replace it on sight - as mentioned, it was a pain in the tail 30 years ago!  

I'd be surprised if there's any of that left though by this point, but I've learned never to assume anything.

[davehedgehog31]

Just now, Zelandeth said:

I'm going to assume that the green fabric braided bleed line that runs between the top of the heater matrix and the radiator has already been replaced, given that they basically all decomposed about 30 years ago.  Likewise the balancing pipe made of the same stuff that joins the bottom of the two halves of the fuel tank together (it's a saddle shape where it goes over the nose of the gearbox).  If you see ANY of that stuff anywhere, just replace it on sight - as mentioned, it was a pain in the tail 30 years ago!  

I'd be surprised if there's any of that left though by this point, but I've learned never to assume anything.

Funny you should say that, that is exactly the stuff I have replaced, both the bit in the bulkhead and a bit that bridges two coolant pipes on the heater circuit in the engine bay. I went to take it a run the other week and thankfully noticed coolant running out the scuttle drains, this pipe had a pinhole leak in it.



I have noticed a fair amount of the stuff, it's still on the return lines for the brake/clutch reservoir, like you say it all wants ripping out as it's all going to go the same way. 

[davehedgehog31]

On 02/06/2026 at 23:36, Split_Pin said:

And hame.

19.08 train from Stirling to Laurencekirk and back home to Bonnybridge by road by 11.30.

Drives perfectly,  very pleased. 6 gears and cruise means its a skoosh.  Feels very fast at 70mph though , need to get used to a wee car again 🤣

Well bought!

Get 15 inch steels on it without delay 😅

[Zelandeth]

14 minutes ago, davehedgehog31 said:

Funny you should say that, that is exactly the stuff I have replaced, both the bit in the bulkhead and a bit that bridges two coolant pipes on the heater circuit in the engine bay. I went to take it a run the other week and thankfully noticed coolant running out the scuttle drains, this pipe had a pinhole leak in it.



I have noticed a fair amount of the stuff, it's still on the return lines for the brake/clutch reservoir, like you say it all wants ripping out as it's all going to go the same way. 

I'm astonished it's lasted this long!

Bleed procedure at the front is a bit unusual.  You need a pair of pliers to clamp the hose on each side of the little valve and basically just open it with the heater side and the radiator side clamped off in turn until you get a steady stream of coolant without any air in it coming out.  

I'd always expected these cars to be a pain to bleed the systems on but honestly they've never been a problem.

The temperature gauge is always quite alarming in traffic I found because the temperature sender is at the engine end but the coolant fan switch is on the radiator so there's quite a distinct lag between the two.  I'd always thought that adding an inline temperature switch at the engine end would be a good upgrade to keep temps down, especially as the head gaskets are a bit of a weak point to start with and the heads will warp if you so much as look at them funny.  On the plus side changing a head gasket is a doddle on them.

My usual plug for Cohline fuel line if you're replacing any of that.

https://www.glencoeltd.co.uk/cohline-fuel-vacuum-hose/

Note that you'll want EPDM hose for the brake/clutch pipework as brake fluid will eat through normal fuel hose.

[wesacosa]

46 minutes ago, davehedgehog31 said:

Took the Estelle through to visit @320touring's unit, its about 65 miles each way, so the longest journey I'd undertaken in it. 

All was going well until I noticed coolant in the drivers footwell. I was about 15 miles from the destination so after a bit of initial investigation which determined the leak to be from the heater matrix area I decided to press on. 

Arriving at the unit we set about dismantling the interior and eventually narrowed it down to the heater control valve area. Options were discussed including bypassing the matrix but given I was 60 odd miles from home and the coolant reservoir was still sitting basically right on max, we decided to leave it. The heater is on a separate circuit from the main cooling system, given the length of pipes with the engine at the rear and radiator at the front it holds around 13 litres, so this drip was inconvenient but not drastic. We were concerned about introducing air and struggling to bleed it. 

Made it home no bother, so it was the right call. Although it was a cold drive in the pishing rain with a window cracked to stop the windscreen fogging up as I wasn't keen to use the heater. I reckon it probably lost 100ml tops over the hour and a half drive.

This is actually the third leak I've dealt with on that heater circuit so I think it's probably due a bit of an overhaul with new hoses, clips etc. Thankfully the main coolant circuit looks in better health.

I suspect the clutch master cylinder has  a small leak given the corrosion on the bottom of the pedal that you can see. I think I'll put together a bit of a shopping list and order some spares from Czech Republic. Great little car though, even if it is keeping me on my toes, it has tons of character and is so unlike anything modern that it makes every trip interesting. 

 

word of advice, the replacement coolant Matrix taps you can buy seem to be shite, when the handle is in the fully closed position they are still partially open. If its not seized solid I'd buy the internal O ring the external seal on to the matrix and lube it inside with waterpump grease (Which you'll need a tub of if its got the original water pump on anyway)

I really must do something with mine soon before it rusts away 

[Somerset Suffolk]

Local car show at Andersea Somerset  last Sunday with the first born - small but lovely selection of stuff - starting with the "heavy Haulage" at the gate 

 

cracking p6 V8 

Ford stuff - old and new(ish) 

 

 

 

 

yank

 

 

Bikes ...

and tractors of course - fab Field Marshall (start me with a shotgun cartridge)

£5 entry and £5 for a lovely pint of 6X  - these local shows are just great 

[Snake Charmer]

On 16/05/2026 at 21:15, Snake Charmer said:

Cinderella shall go to her Prom......

Mkl Escort gearbox cross member for a 5 speed conversion. Plenty more work to do, metal needs adding and hidden welding then cut that hole out. Basic shape done.

 

Nearly finished this gearbox cross member, fits a treat on the car. 

[Wibble]

2 minutes ago, Snake Charmer said:

Nearly finished this gearbox cross member, fits a treat on the car. 

Looks amazing!

[andy18s]

So this happened today,goli boobs2 ftw.  ..

Fyi the boss took the pics

And then spotted some chod just being used as a car 

[Snake Charmer]

1 hour ago, Wibble said:

Looks amazing!

Thanks, all made from scratch with 2.5mm sheet steel, 4 sections in total Tig welded together.  Tried to make it look like a factory Ford pressing on the outside to confuse the purists. 😁

[stuboy]

it looks like im moving bases... at the end of the year, in a restructure.. 26miles away.. so definetly the hondura is going.. in place of a diesel.........

[High Jetter]

Can you reveal where you'll be based?