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Father Ted

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Fiamm air horns? Loads of connections next to the battery. Just clean everything with contact cleaner and Vaseline them.

Not Fiamm, but Sona. There's a story behind this one, because the previous owner had trouble with the compressor, so he disconnected it and used the feed wires for a new electric horn. This was working normally last weekend, but not today!

 

When the weather warms up in a few months, I will take out the old compressor and dismantle it - want to see what state the internals are in before spending fifty quid on a Fiamm one.

 

 

It’s a 25gti auto? Not one I’ve had, but I cleaned everything on my cars with autoglym engine cleaner and then saw what leaked fresh oil.

Yes, 25 GTi Auto. Automatic suits the car, but really could do with a 4th/overdrive ratio.

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Not Fiamm, but Sona. There's a story behind this one, because the previous owner had trouble with the compressor, so he disconnected it and used the feed wires for a new electric horn. This was working normally last weekend, but not today!

When the weather warms up in a few months, I will take out the old compressor and dismantle it - want to see what state the internals are in before spending fifty quid on a Fiamm one.

 

Yes, 25 GTi Auto. Automatic suits the car, but really could do with a 4th/overdrive ratio.

That’s what I thought. My first cx drive was in 1998- a prestige gti auto. fantastic, but busy over 60.

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That’s what I thought. My first cx drive was in 1998- a prestige gti auto. fantastic, but busy over 60.

Citroën only got round to the idea of a 4-speed auto with the XM, and I think they had problems with it (ZF 4HP18). Shame really that there doesn't seem to be a 4-spd auto box out there that could marry up with a CX.

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Cresta van*.

 

Saw this on the tat thread and was intrigued enough to call the seller

to see what the craic was, as his description was  a bit thin to be honest. 

After a call to elicit a bit more info, which was still a bit vague, I got a postcode 

and went for an hour and a half drive on one of our wonderful* motorways known as the M6.

 

A bit of a minus point came when the postcode turned out to be a traveller scrap yard.

So I decided not to discriminate and at least have a look.

I've had a couple of dealings in the past with travellers and I never had a problem, which is not to say others may have.

 

It was sitting forlornly in the corner on a trailer and I thought it looked fuckin brilliant. 

 

At this point I would suggest purists go look at something else as this is not for them. 

I'd rather not hear about it being ruined etc.

 

First of all the alteration has been done extremely well imo. From the outside it looks as though it was built as a van, not a converted estate. 

 

The story is that it was in a Hotrodders unit who unfortunately succumbed to illness or possibly worse, and the unit was then bought, along with a couple of other classics, and this was one of them. 

Yeah, I know, a bit vague.

 

After having a good poke around I came to the conclusion that it sort of sounded about right. 

The sills had been replaced and a lot of good welding had been done. The sills are very brown with a thin surface rust and do look as though somebody suddenly stopped and didn't go any further. 

The body has been sort of stripped as though on the way to paint at some point, and then no further, which sort of reinforces the suddenly stopped story.

The seller said it did run but with a poxy little battery and then jump leads from a Tranny it wasn't enough to crank over 3.3 straight 6. So didn't hear it run. Engine turned over ok so at least not ceased. Upshot of that is he's going to get it running and send me a vid early the coming week.

There are lots of parts in the back and he says it may all be there but he can't guarantee it.

 

I took some pics, more for my spannerman than for the Beige, so not comprehensive.

Sills, both sides, are like this.

 

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Next a couple of wheel arches. The other two are in the same state.

Nice hubcaps.

 

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Next a view of the side panel, other side same.

 

post-20317-0-74097700-1519502627_thumb.jpg

 

Looks very van like.

Next engine department. 50 odd thou on the clock, possibly true. A very red and clean, eat your lunch off, block, and the rest looked good if not quite so usable as a plate.

 

post-20317-0-18761500-1519503256_thumb.jpg

post-20317-0-12409800-1519503325_thumb.jpg

 

Believe it or not, I couldn't find any rot at all. Underneath had signs of welding but again, as far as I could see, no rot. A couple of more pics of body work.

Bottom of rear wing, no rot, the rest were the same.

 

post-20317-0-18626900-1519503811_thumb.jpg

 

A bit of arse. Didn't get a full frontal. Fnar.

 

post-20317-0-41062100-1519503925_thumb.jpg

 

Finally a shot of the top of the wing with signs of weldage and good old RED LEAD. Nuns and kittens have probably been sacrificed in the name of rust control. The other side is similar.

 

post-20317-0-22265300-1519504293_thumb.jpg

 

Sooo, seller says he will take 1800 for it. Yea, I know, for that I could buy shit loads of dubious chod that I would be constantly trying to keep on the road. See Autoshite for further information.

I think it could be made roadworthy for not a lot of dosh, I'm budgeting a grand or so. Pessimistic or optimistic ? Dunno.

Going to see if the vid gets done and then maybe have another look to see exactly whats in the back. 

Then maybe an offer.

 

 

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Been out today and helped a neighbor check on his lock up. He’s had it nearly 30 years but not been inside for the last 4 or 5 years!

He’s thinking about clearing it out and getting rid of the lock up but wanted to see what, if anything was still inside. He’d been putting it off as someone had told him it’d been broken into and the locks changed. Got there and it was just as he’d left it fortunately.

 

Aside from the years old tools and bits & bobs, we found a really old belt driven air compressor, pre 80 Yamaha RD250 (couldn’t find the number plate but keys still in the ignition!), and an old stripped down pre 63 registration Triumph motorbike of some sort. It’s frame is still sat there and the engine was on the floor at the back, the engine has been stripped and rebuilt but never been used!

 

Always interesting to see what’s been sat in garages for years.

Please can you ask about the RD for me, my DX was a massive disappointment and I would like to be re disappointed!

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Fitted some Bosch Aerotwin wiper blades to my Mirca today, while the screech is massively reduced when they're in operation it does remain a little bit, whats my next option? 

 

YouTube recommends clay baring the windscreen, already hit it with a glass cleaner today, may have another bash tomorrow.

Twist you wiper arms a bit and clean the windscreen with alcohol. Seems to do the trick.

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what a fruitless, and cold friggin' couple of dayd dickin' about with that shitbox mini......

 

we have pulled the car back to bits in an attempt* to get the side lights working. they didn't work before, and they still don't.

 

had the grill off, the headlamps and connectors off, and even putted the switch to bits. i didn't do that, kerry did, but even so we till need another switch. ffs.

 

then decided that we should have a go at connecting the brakes back up, after kerry cut through the old brake flexi's. and they are rusted up solid too, with kerry now rounding off one of the brake pipe unions.

 

finally i've had a go at loosing off the track rod ends, and they won't budge either, so, all told we've gotten as far as we can with that little turd, and can do no more. its going to have to be shipped off someplace to finish cos we cannot do anthing else to it.

 

joy.

 

hatefull little turd. i wish i'd never seen the rancid little fucker i'd never ever bought the fuckin' little shit box.

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Drove The Volvo to work this evening, which was the first time it had been driven since it ran out of electricity last week.

 

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No problems at all  :mrgreen:

 

The car sounds great after I removed the loose exhaust heat shield and seems to go better after all the attention I have given it over the past week, with more to come in the near future. It seems that in the case of The Volvo at least, holistic car maintenance works :)

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Just returned from Skiing holiday in Bulgaria with my 15 year old son-wife didn't want to go. I haven't skied in 23 years-but as they say "it's just like riding a bike". Only fell over twice. Problem was my son is a very good skier and kept trying to get me on more and more deadly runs-but I survived!

 

As previously mentioned-I took the old Sierra to Stansted which is 200 miles away. Cruises effortlessly and did a shade over 38mpg-so not bad at all.

 

Here I am-and the slopes are a lot steeper than the pictures show!

 

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B3qCeE4.jpg

AckR1CZ.jpg

 

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Just been and got the battery out of the dollop again to charge, it goes flat in a few weeks if left on the car, even with the battery cut off turned, er, off. It is a useless piece of shit as so many things on the car stay 'live' (alarm, seat memories, radio etc) that it may as well not be there. But, if you don't turn it off, it goes flat inside a week!

 

Mazda service and MOT tomorrow, actually nervous! Not worried about an MOT in years but.... I am quite skint and if anything fails, I will be too poor to fix it. Then tax and insurance is due as well. Woe is me, times is hard!

 

:(

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Gotcha, ya bugger

 

post-20951-0-24006800-1519576482_thumb.jpg

 

Yup, after a lot of swearing, dismantling, contortionism, more swearing (and I swear to god some made up cuss words) and a mashed up terminal block which would not free itself, and some swearing, this little magic box of tricks is heading off to Brighton for some electro-wizardy by a Pektron SCU expert, hopefully to restore my horn to on/off operation rather than full on never turn off mode. Am getting the relays swapped out, plus a new fob too.

 

Thankfully the PTSD is now operational again, so will be my commuter wagon for the week

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