The new news 24 thread

[Ghosty]

I received the sad news today that one of my old headgasket heroes, the ex- @RobT  and @MrDuke 416GTI has been scrapped  
 

The chap that bought it off MrDuke had given it to his brother that loved it, alas this week someone opened a door and scraped down the passenger wing and doors - all cosmetic damage. However the car was insured by Direct Line, and apparently their small print states that any car insured with them over 25 years old will not be repaired, the only option is that it's taken away and written off. 

Keep an eye on Copart, I guess. 

[fatharris]

I received the sad news today that one of my old headgasket heroes, the ex- [mention=5013]RobT[/mention]  and [mention=3698]MrDuke[/mention] 416GTI has been scrapped  
 


The chap that bought it off MrDuke had given it to his brother that loved it, alas this week someone opened a door and scraped down the passenger wing and doors - all cosmetic damage. However the car was insured by Direct Line, and apparently their small print states that any car insured with them over 25 years old will not be repaired, the only option is that it's taken away and written off. 

Keep an eye on Copart, I guess. 

That's odd, I insure Herman with DL and the salesman told me that they won't be insuring him in a couple of years because of the 25 year age threshold.

Sent from my VOG-L09 using Tapatalk

[barefoot]

2 hours ago, fatharris said:

That's odd, I insure Herman with DL and the salesman told me that they won't be insuring him in a couple of years because of the 25 year age threshold.

Sent from my VOG-L09 using Tapatalk
 

Same here, I no longer insure with DL.

[RobT]

Sad new, but the 416 had a good run I suppose.

As for Direct Line, one for the ever growing c**t list.

[LabRat]

We're still fighting with Ageas over Mrs LabRats shunt in the Tivoli a few weeks back. The repairs garage that they use initially refused to take any cars from Oldham, then relented and said that they would send us a link to email them photos of the damage, to enable them to order parts. (Apparently we're looking at 12-18 weeks parts shipping from Korea, so they won't take the car away until they have them)

They've now stopped answering the phone and Ageas are about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Only the claims handler that Mrs LabRat spoke to can deal with the claim and she's "not available" and hasn't been for the last week.

In the meanwhile, the Tivoli can't be driven as the headlight falls out, front wing has exposed edges is now out of MOT and has thrown an ABS light as well just for the hell of it. It's also got a flat battery, because can't get near it to jump it thanks to arsehole neighbors.

It's tempting to sack them off, flog the fucking thing to WBAC and use the cash to pay off the last of the finance on it (she still owes £1500 on it)

[Spottedlaurel]

On 12/3/2021 at 9:03 PM, stuboy said:

On way back from Dartford spotted 2 teslas on back of recovery trucks.   Are they not reliable??

Is there a depot or dealership down that way? Pretty sure when my boss got one it had to be collected from that area.

I doubt the customer has any choice about who ferries them around, so Tesla or their dealer just using cheap quotes off Shiply or the like?

[GrumpiusMaximus]

There's a big Tesla dealership just underneath the bridge in the Crossways industrial park - so could be that.

[grogee]

10 minutes ago, LabRat said:

We're still fighting with Ageas over Mrs LabRats shunt in the Tivoli a few weeks back. The repairs garage that they use initially refused to take any cars from Oldham, then relented and said that they would send us a link to email them photos of the damage, to enable them to order parts. (Apparently we're looking at 12-18 weeks parts shipping from Korea, so they won't take the car away until they have them)

They've now stopped answering the phone and Ageas are about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Only the claims handler that Mrs LabRat spoke to can deal with the claim and she's "not available" and hasn't been for the last week.

In the meanwhile, the Tivoli can't be driven as the headlight falls out, front wing has exposed edges is now out of MOT and has thrown an ABS light as well just for the hell of it. It's also got a flat battery, because can't get near it to jump it thanks to arsehole neighbors.

It's tempting to sack them off, flog the fucking thing to WBAC and use the cash to pay off the last of the finance on it (she still owes £1500 on it)

But then... No car? But I suppose you could treat* her to something affordable from the Shite for Sale section. 

A shame because I imagine the Tivoli is a good car once the headlight is sellotaped back in.

[New POD]

17 hours ago, Zelandeth said:

Today I learned that the first several search results stating that a type 096 battery is correct for the XJS are talking rubbish.  It's a good 3/4" too wide to fit in the battery tray.

What fun.

That's the size that Euro crap parts says is right for an Astra J.  

Having bought an 096 in the last year for an omega, I knew this was ballocks. 

I've found that the Tanya website is usually accurate. 

[catsinthewelder]

1 hour ago, LabRat said:

We're still fighting with Ageas 

Time to start talking about the  ombudsman I would say.

[LabRat]

I think it might be heading that way, she can't afford to wait a minimum of 3 months just to get her car into a garage. I'll see what she thinks.

WBAC have offered £2300 for it with all the damage declared, but we all know what they're like for gouging even more off once it's in front of the "sales" people. 

What's really pissing me off is she has crippling anxiety and really struggled with all the repeated phonecalls and general arseholery that's occuring.

[Cord Fourteener]

Life with Mondeo estate is good, it's comfy, no more back ache. Going round corners is fun, there's nothing i haven't managed to get in the boot. It pulls great, even if the turbo yawns then starts boosting. Actually I've read that Ford shipped these with torque limit on purpose for some reason. Another reason i think the hatchback we have might have had a remap. That and the fact the hatchback is borked in many many ways. 

I've booked the Volvo in to get the heater control valve out and retrofit a generic one as pattern replacements are unavailable. Oh well, I want it running and I don't have time or mojo to do it myself. 

Hatchback Mondeo is for the chop before it runs away, which could happen any time soon, its been trying. Replacement purchase will have to happen soon, especially as the Volvo is not road legal until it gets an mot and see above heater control valve issue. 

[andyberg]

Just brought the Xedos to Heathrow, my wife arrives from Hong Kong in the morning. I haven't seen her in 2 years ☹️. An absolute joy, wafting along, cruise control on, leather armchairs to sit in. For a 23 year old car it's a peach. And I can keep an eye on it from my hotel bedroom😁

[Leyland Worldmaster]

Saw this on my News Feed:

https://www.autocar.co.uk/slideshow/axed-great-cars-cancelled-last-moment-3#21

[Bren]

Started plumbing the SD1's front brakes.

My mate leant me a professional sykes pickavant flaring tool - but it needs to be mounted in a vice. It's a cold as fuck and i'm not working in the shed. So I used my cheapo sealey kit 'cos I can use it in the kitchen.

I'll do the other side during the week.

[beko1987]

3 hours ago, andyberg said:

Just brought the Xedos to Heathrow, my wife arrives from Hong Kong in the morning. I haven't seen her in 2 years ☹️. An absolute joy, wafting along, cruise control on, leather armchairs to sit in. For a 23 year old car it's a peach. And I can keep an eye on it from my hotel bedroom😁

2 years! Hope you've tidied the place up before you bring her back... 

[Dan29]

3 hours ago, Leyland Worldmaster said:

Saw this on my News Feed:

https://www.autocar.co.uk/slideshow/axed-great-cars-cancelled-last-moment-3#21

Surprised they didn't include the Lotus M250.

[Leyland Worldmaster]

Just now, Dan29 said:

Surprised they didn't include the Lotus M250.

Good point! 👍 

[Liggle]

New ABS ring fitted to the Clio and the light has gone out and no more pulsing brake pedal.

The airbag light is peeing me off, I've checked and cleaned all the connectors and tried 2x new modules from breakers to no avail. Was hoping to avoid bypassing the airbags but might need a temp fix for the MOT

[andyberg]

12 minutes ago, beko1987 said:

2 years! Hope you've tidied the place up before you bring her back... 

That's all I have been doing all weekend! 

[High Jetter]

7 hours ago, andyberg said:

I haven't seen her in 2 years ☹️. An absolute joy

Sounds heavenly! 

[Vince70]

I put a jump pack on the 1997  £150 Ford Ka yesterday as it hadn’t been used since it’s last MOT  and my Mrs wants to give it to her son for a birthday present as hopefully he will pass his test in a few weeks.

It went straight through the ticket advisory free yesterday  and the tester couldn’t believe the condition of it and the old girl has only done 19000

Next thing is to service it and it doesn’t miss a beat but I’m not sure I’m brave enough to risk doing the plugs as I hear that they have a habit of snapping and I imagine these will be the originals but the old girl is most definitely a survivor.

 

[wuvvum]

Another relatively unproductive weekend due to weather and general lack of arsedness.  I did get the replacement rear fog lamp fitted to the Scénic - the "rivet" holding it in turned out to be a large screw with a very small and very corroded Torx socket in the head - it took some persuasion to come out but got it eventually and then it was the work of a couple of minutes to wangle the new unit into the hole and fix it in place.  It's actually a reversing light from a LHD car so it has a clear lens, but I'd already fitted a red bulb to the broken light to pass the MOT so it's all good.  I was going to investigate the glow plugs as they are getting a little tired, but looking under the bonnet, just to get the plastic engine cover off you need to remove an intake pipe which goes over the top of the engine, and it's held in place with those horrible spring clips, so I decided I couldn't be arsed.  It still starts in cold weather, it just takes a bit more cranking than it otherwise might.

Not done much on the Mazda other than slap some Gun Gum on the obvious holes in the down pipe.  The thermostat I ordered for it has arrived, but that's not a job I fancied tackling on a cold, windy and frequently rainy day, so that'll have to wait.  The wheel bearing hasn't turned up yet, it was supposed to have been delivered by now but I suppose we're starting to get into the Christmas rush.  If we get a reasonable weekend over the next few weeks I'll try to get both the bearing and the 'stat done - then the car will be a lot more usable.

I made a start on fitting an air horn to the Daihatsu.  The horn itself is fitted, and the relay is ready to go, but a lack of spade terminals stopped play (I had a big packet of them somewhere, but I've not been able to find where I put it) so that will need to wait - it's just a case of cutting and plugging in half a dozen bits of wire though so should be able to do it in my lunch break one day, weather permitting.  I also need to get some working speakers fitted so I can have my choonz.  I did treat it to a litre of Dexron III as the gearbox fluid level was extremely low - the fluid wasn't the healthiest of colours either so I might have to do a full change at some point.

The Volvo is still suffering from fuel starvation - the new fuel pump and filter haven't cured it, so the next port of call is the in-tank filter.  Of course the setup shown in the HBOL is nothing like what is on the car - Mr Haynes said the filter is integral with the fuel sender, but I took the sender out and it's literally just a float with a wire attached, the fuel flow doesn't go anywhere near it.  I looked under the car and the fuel line comes out of the front of the tank near the bottom - the unions look quite rusty (understandably after nearly 50 years of road muck being chucked at them) so it's unlikely they'll come undone without something snapping, but there is a bolt going through the bottom of the tank below where the fuel line goes into the tank - I'm assuming this may give access to the filter?  Daylight (or lack thereof) stopped play before I had the chance to investigate fully.

[Minimad5]

Have we ever rebuilt a P38 high pressure pump ? 

No me neither, but I've GOT to do it tomorrow, in the pissing rain, before work.

Tune in tomorrow to see how it has gone 😅

[New POD]

7 hours ago, Vince70 said:

I put a jump pack on the 1997  £150 Ford Ka yesterday as it hadn’t been used since it’s last MOT  and my Mrs wants to give it to her son for a birthday present as hopefully he will pass his test in a few weeks.

It went straight through the ticket advisory free yesterday  and the tester couldn’t believe the condition of it and the old girl has only done 19000

Next thing is to service it and it doesn’t miss a beat but I’m not sure I’m brave enough to risk doing the plugs as I hear that they have a habit of snapping and I imagine these will be the originals but the old girl is most definitely a survivor.

 

Wd40 down the plug wells now. 

[SiC]

On 12/4/2021 at 2:46 PM, Kiltox said:

What do Tayna say it needs? Never had them get it wrong yet, but there's a first time for everything.

They're wrong for our A4. Wrong size, wrong capacity and wrong battery type as they don't think it's stop/start. 

[Kiltox]

4 minutes ago, SiC said:

They're wrong for our A4. Wrong size, wrong capacity and wrong battery type as they don't think it's stop/start. 

Looks like I’ve just been lucky. Fair enough. 

Halfords can be a good source of battery info too but they sometimes give theirs weird names. 

[SiC]

On 12/4/2021 at 4:31 PM, Ghosty said:

However the car was insured by Direct Line, and apparently their small print states that any car insured with them over 25 years old will not be repaired, the only option is that it's taken away and written off. 

Keep an eye on Copart, I guess. 

Have they asked to buy back after they write it off? Admittedly a decade newer, but DL were more than happy to sell my written off Civic back to me. 

In some ways I can see why they wouldn't repair any car over 25yrs old. They are a mainstream insurer and don't specialise in classics. Parts are going to be very hard to get for something over that age. Unless a traditional classic but they really need a body shop who knows how to deal with such vehicles. 

DirectLine Group own their own repair centres. So instead of farming it out, they deal with the repairs themselves. 

Have to say when my Civic was written off, they were excellent to deal with and had no hassle. 

[Leyland Worldmaster]

On 12/5/2021 at 7:58 AM, LabRat said:

We're still fighting with Ageas over Mrs LabRats shunt in the Tivoli a few weeks back. The repairs garage that they use initially refused to take any cars from Oldham, then relented and said that they would send us a link to email them photos of the damage, to enable them to order parts. (Apparently we're looking at 12-18 weeks parts shipping from Korea, so they won't take the car away until they have them)

They've now stopped answering the phone and Ageas are about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Only the claims handler that Mrs LabRat spoke to can deal with the claim and she's "not available" and hasn't been for the last week.

In the meanwhile, the Tivoli can't be driven as the headlight falls out, front wing has exposed edges is now out of MOT and has thrown an ABS light as well just for the hell of it. It's also got a flat battery, because can't get near it to jump it thanks to arsehole neighbors.

It's tempting to sack them off, flog the fucking thing to WBAC and use the cash to pay off the last of the finance on it (she still owes £1500 on it)

Sorry to hear this. I found this lot very useful when getting fucked about:

https://www.motorclaimguru.co.uk/

I got my car back and repaired despite the useless cunt insurance company wanting to scrap even though it was non-fault and the TP admitted liability. 

All the relevant information to do it yourself is on their site, or one can pay their fee- £250 in 2019- and they'll handle it for you. 

Good luck getting it sorted. 😎👍

[Spurious]

Watched this video by BigClive, this seems like an handy bit of kit for odd jobs, and if Clive likes it, then it's hardly bad. The last time I needed a soldering iron I'd to plug an extension lead in and drape it across the garden and then it was still a faff.