The new news 24 thread

[DodgeRover]

The test centre can not stop you driving the vehicle away, the only people with the power to do this are the police and VOSA/ DVSA.

All they can do is say in their opinion the vehicle should not be driven until the faults are rectified, the point of this is to protect the motorist from the unscrupulous garage owner preventing anything from leaving the premises until you have paid them to fix faults.

If a garage tries they you can tell them to FRO as long as you have paid for the test.

This comes up regularly and it is still absolute bollocks.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Apologies for the unrelated subject but I’m currently bombing along the A303 in the passenger seat and took a quick snap of the top rock shite.

[richardmorris]

Apologies for the unrelated subject but I’m currently bombing along the A303 in the passenger seat and took a quick snap of the top rock shite.

 

Giant sheep time for the Spinal Tap sized henge!

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Giant sheep time for the Spinal Tap sized henge!

It’s not your job to be as confused as Nigel!

[Coprolalia]

Continuing to go through house sale shenanigans. Off to look at somewhere this evening that has a 3 car driveway and a garage. The future Mrs likes it, and jokingly mentioned about extending the garage to accommodate more cars.

I take this as license to proceed.

[egg]

When my other grandad died last year, he left his 306 Sedan, and my uncle decided to export it to France. A year later it's doing sterling service on French plates (can't be many RHD 306 Sedans on French plates!). My Uncle came over to Kent for a family event over Easter, drove from Brittany up to Calais 'like a dream' apparently.

 

Was:

 

 

Now:

 

 

 

[xtriple]

Having whinged and whined about the 'dreadful' treatment I received at the hands of Hasting insurance (to be honest, it was pretty dire and they compounded the issue by losing my complaint and then ignoring me) I have just had a chat with a lovely lass from there who has restored my faith somewhat. Cancelled the £50 cancelation fee etc so I am all square with them. I still think I should have got a refund, but hey, nothing is better than spending right?

 

Just washed the car, how's that for news? 

[vulgalour]

I would like to apologise to the cyclist that I gave a fright to today.  I would also like to thank them for speeding up when they realised I couldn't safely pass and we were holding up traffic a bit, achieving 20mph on a slightly uphill road is pretty good going!  the reason for the apology is the duration and volume of the horn blast I gave the van that decided to overtake me when I was overtaking the cyclist, especially since the horn was on the cyclist's side of the car.   Said van then proceeded to do considerably more than 30mph through a residential and school zone.

 

It's not like the van driver couldn't see the cyclist, the island in the middle of the road, the parked cars or the oncoming traffic.

 

In better news, I found that my local motor factor can (and has) supply me with decent quality bullet fuses that aren't made of tin foil so once I find out why the cigarette lighter/hazard circuit on the Princess is permanently live (there's a loose wire somewhere, I'm sure of it) I can get those fully operational again.  No battery drain or damage at the moment as the fuse did its job and blew, cutting the circuit.  I'm hoping it's not a  carpets or dash out job.

[wuvvum]

I've just driven 260 miles back from Somerset in the Rover of Doom. I'm now on a train going approx. 3/5ths of the way back to Somerset to pick up an accidental eBay purchase. I have a fun life.

[chatsharris]

Apologies for the unrelated subject but I’m currently bombing along the A303 in the passenger seat and took a quick snap of the top rock shite.

I fucking hate those lumps of granite. That road constantly slows down to a crawl because people slow down to look at it.

[They_all_do_that_sir]

The test centre can not stop you driving the vehicle away, the only people with the power to do this are the police and VOSA/ DVSA.

All they can do is say in their opinion the vehicle should not be driven until the faults are rectified, the point of this is to protect the motorist from the unscrupulous garage owner preventing anything from leaving the premises until you have paid them to fix faults.

If a garage tries they you can tell them to FRO as long as you have paid for the test.

This comes up regularly and it is still absolute bollocks.

Over here they can and do because govt run test centres.

 

It's OK for them because there is no financial incentive to do dodgy things and it's OK for everyone else because I've heard some horrors like a car driven to the test centre with only a handbrake for slowing said vehicle.

 

Sent from my F3211 using Tapatalk

[GrumpiusMaximus]

I fucking hate those lumps of granite. That road constantly slows down to a crawl because people slow down to look at it.

I agree with the traffic issues...  The A303 is a dream when it's the middle of the night but around Amesbury during the day it's a fucking mess.

 

However, neolithic man didn't know that trying to do 60 in a Ford Cortina past it would ever be a problem.  I like the stones.

 

In more, unrelated news I did a thing!  I'm quite new to the idea of maintaining my own vehicles besides from very minor things.  This is also a minor thing but I changed the air and oil filters and changed the oil on my Golf this afternoon (after getting back to Kent from Devon).  Seems to idle smoother and we'll see how it drives when I go to Cambridge tomorrow night...

 

I'm genuinely amazed at how the little Lidl oil pump worked.  I was expecting it to take more than half an hour but it only took about 10 minutes to get all the oil out (just under five litres) and I didn't make a mess of the floor, the car or myself.

 

It's only been 20,000 miles since the last service.  Oops.  Fuel filter on order.

 

 

[They_all_do_that_sir]

I agree with the traffic issues... The A303 is a dream when it's the middle of the night but around Amesbury during the day it's a fucking mess.

 

However, neolithic man didn't know that trying to do 60 in a Ford Cortina past it would ever be a problem. I like the stones.

 

In more, unrelated news I did a thing! I'm quite new to the idea of maintaining my own vehicles besides from very minor things. This is also a minor thing but I changed the air and oil filters and changed the oil on my Golf this afternoon (after getting back to Kent from Devon). Seems to idle smoother and we'll see how it drives when I go to Cambridge tomorrow night...

 

I'm genuinely amazed at how the little Lidl oil pump worked. I was expecting it to take more than half an hour but it only took about 10 minutes to get all the oil out (just under five litres) and I didn't make a mess of the floor, the car or myself.

 

It's only been 20,000 miles since the last service. Oops. Fuel filter on order.

 

IMG_0820.jpg

 

IMG_0823.jpg

This is encouraging as I've just bought one of those lidl pumps but haven't used it yet....

 

Sent from my F3211 using Tapatalk

[GrumpiusMaximus]

This is encouraging as I've just bought one of those lidl pumps but haven't used it yet....

 

Sent from my F3211 using Tapatalk

Didn't have any issues with mine at all.  Make sure the filler cap is on so you get a decent vacuum and the oil is warmish (but not hot) and you're good to go.  First time I switched it on, it had a lot of bubbles in the line, they went when I put the filler cap back on.

[richardmorris]

The ZX went back to the Citroen garage this afternoon. Sadly the merc is not fixed. It’s definitely the bottom ball joint but they can’t get hold of the correct sized spring compressor tool.

I need to try and rouse a local guy again. Or try the dealer who still haven’t phoned since the first enquiry.

 

Lee thinks he’s found the reason for the noise in that the rubber bellows are loose and moving with the wheel and not fixed any more. He has packed it with grease which really made the noise a lot worse!

 

Grrr.

[davehedgehog31]

I agree with the traffic issues...  The A303 is a dream when it's the middle of the night but around Amesbury during the day it's a fucking mess.

 

However, neolithic man didn't know that trying to do 60 in a Ford Cortina past it would ever be a problem.  I like the stones.

 

In more, unrelated news I did a thing!  I'm quite new to the idea of maintaining my own vehicles besides from very minor things.  This is also a minor thing but I changed the air and oil filters and changed the oil on my Golf this afternoon (after getting back to Kent from Devon).  Seems to idle smoother and we'll see how it drives when I go to Cambridge tomorrow night...

 

I'm genuinely amazed at how the little Lidl oil pump worked.  I was expecting it to take more than half an hour but it only took about 10 minutes to get all the oil out (just under five litres) and I didn't make a mess of the floor, the car or myself.

 

It's only been 20,000 miles since the last service.  Oops.  Fuel filter on order.

 

IMG_0820.jpg

 

IMG_0823.jpg

The extraction method is good, particularly for me covering big miles and changing oil regularly. My 407 has the paper type oil filter easily accessible from above so it's a breeze.

 

Seems to work better on some cars than others, on the 407 it seems to leave about half a litre behind - figure it's probably more than most moderns get in the garage so happy to live with it. 1.9 TDI Skoda Superb I had, it got the lot out.

[holbeck]

I mentioned on here before that my RAV4 was having alarm problems.

 

It comes at a time when it has less than a months MOT and it does need money spending.

 

In an attempt to get the alarm problem sorted I contacted a friend who does a bit of trading and knows RAV4s. 

 

Cut a long story short. he made me a very fair offer, I'm dropping it off tomorrow.

 

 

The ex HMC 205, now stepped up to frontline commuting duties.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

The stated capacity of mine is 4.8 Litres and it seems to have got about 4.6ish.  Hard to tell but the two bottles in the picture are 5L each and one is has about 500 mL of space and the other one has about 300 mL in it.  The oil filter is accessible from the top so it was very noob-friendly.  To be honest, I'm surprised that I didn't learn how to do this earlier.  It's so straightforward.

 

I've noticed quite a big difference.  I've been out for about an hour this evening up and down so A-roads and the throttle response is better and the engine definitely feels a lot more torquey.  That's probably just having a new air filter - the old one was filled with insects!

 

Thinking about the MOT advisory I had for CV gaiters and getting hold of some axle stands.  I have the Haynes manual and according to their ratings, it's about as difficult to do as a job I did last year without instructions...

[Parky]

The stated capacity of mine is 4.8 Litres and it seems to have got about 4.6ish.  Hard to tell but the two bottles in the picture are 5L each and one is has about 500 mL of space and the other one has about 300 mL in it.  The oil filter is accessible from the top so it was very noob-friendly.  To be honest, I'm surprised that I didn't learn how to do this earlier.  It's so straightforward.

 

I've noticed quite a big difference.  I've been out for about an hour this evening up and down so A-roads and the throttle response is better and the engine definitely feels a lot more torquey.  That's probably just having a new air filter - the old one was filled with insects!

 

Thinking about the MOT advisory I had for CV gaiters and getting hold of some axle stands.  I have the Haynes manual and according to their ratings, it's about as difficult to do as a job I did last year without instructions...

Good work Grumpius - it's not hard servicing a car and tremendously satisfying when it starts back up and runs better afterwards! And think of the money you just saved....

 

I would have a look at Youtube to see if anyone has changed driveshaft gaiters on a Golf (or anything similar) so you can see what you are faced with. The HBOL once told me it was easy to do on a Renault 9 so Dad and I gamely had a go. Shall we just say that when the other side went it was dispatched to the dealer

[GrumpiusMaximus]

Good work Grumpius - it's not hard servicing a car and tremendously satisfying when it starts back up and runs better afterwards! And think of the money you just saved....

 

I would have a look at Youtube to see if anyone has changed driveshaft gaiters on a Golf (or anything similar) so you can see what you are faced with. The HBOL once told me it was easy to do on a Renault 9 so Dad and I gamely had a go. Shall we just say that when the other side went it was dispatched to the dealer

The Haynes instructions aren't too bad but there's a bit where it talks about marking the position with a chalk pen.

 

Thanks for the advice.  It's a bit more safety-critical than I'd usually go for so if I'm not sure I'll bite the bullet and take it to my exceptionally good (but also slightly expensive) garage.

 

With the servicing, even buying the couple of tools I needed (pump £13, filter wrench £5, filter cap removal thing £7.99...) and parts I've easily saved £60 or so.  Will be even more next time and I want to keep this lump going.  It's only a MK IV Golf but it's only got 95,000 miles on it...

[The Moog]

Have a look at cost of driveshafts - JR ones on ebay are excellent. Quicker and easier that doing a boot.

 

Probably about £30.

[Noel Tidybeard]

In better news, I found that my local motor factor can (and has) supply me with decent quality bullet fuses that aren't made of tin foil so once I find out why the cigarette lighter/hazard circuit on the Princess is permanently live (there's a loose wire somewhere, I'm sure of it) I can get those fully operational again.  No battery drain or damage at the moment as the fuse did its job and blew, cutting the circuit.  I'm hoping it's not a  carpets or dash out job.

 

hazards should be permanent live

[SiC]

Reset the adaptations on the TT DSG gearbox. So it's driving and changing like shit now. Going to take some time by the looks of it to properly recalibrate itself. A quick 10 minute drive helped a lot, but setting off is slow and kangrooing.

 

Pushing down the nearside that thumps over bumps and sounds generally unhealthy, you can hear a kind of sloshing type noise. I suspect/fear it's the fancy magneride suspension shock leaking. I can't find a UK price, but sellers in the USA are listing shocks for just under $1000 a corner. Also the steering has started clunking when turning the wheel - most noticeable on the offside.

 

I'm getting the feeling that this may cost quite a bit to put right. Booked into my local garage for Monday to hear the pain.

 

Starting to have a little regret buying it too...

[320touring]

Most importantly, how's the oil pressure?

 

Sometimes modern cars can be scary as they're complex, but by the same token, I'm feeling the same thing reading the Haynes for the GSA..

[SiC]

Most importantly, how's the oil pressure?

 

Sometimes modern cars can be scary as they're complex, but by the same token, I'm feeling the same thing reading the Haynes for the GSA..

I saw a GS stripped down at the NEC show. Boy is there a lot of pipes in there!

 

Not sure on the gearbox oil pressure. Probably best if I don't check...

 

It's not the complexity that I fear, more so the part costs. Especially that suspension. However it looks like it's possible to get 4 springs & shocks to replace all the magneride system for less than one magneride shock. If more than one shock has gone, I may do that and reprogram out the fancy suspension using my VCDS.

[320touring]

I saw a GS stripped down at the NEC show. Boy is there a lot of pipes in there!

 

Not sure on the gearbox oil pressure. Probably best if I don't check...

 

It's not the complexity that I fear, more so the part costs. Especially that suspension. However it looks like it's possible to get 4 springs & shocks to replace all the magneride system for less than one magneride shock. If more than one shock has gone, I may do that and reprogram out the fancy suspension using my VCDS.

Aye it's a bit of a labyrinth!

 

I was maybe suggesting that "concerns over oil pressure" on an old MG are put into perspective upon encountering "magnetic Germanic shocks":)

[SiC]

Aye it's a bit of a labyrinth!

 

I was maybe suggesting that "concerns over oil pressure" on an old MG are put into perspective upon encountering "magnetic Germanic shocks":)

I see what you mean, however a rebuilt b-series is similar money to 4 new shocks on the TT! To be fair, it's an excellent system and is worth getting repaired.

 

Here is a autoshite approved explanation of what the system can do:

[Video]

 

Does anyone know if they ever did fit it as an option on the Omega? Or was it just a prototype platform they tried it on?

[wuvvum]

Just got home.  I have done entirely too much driving today.

 

 

Pez station shot:

 

[Jim Bell]

Just got home. I have done entirely too much driving today.

 

 

Pez station shot:

 

IMG_20180403_220808 - Copy.jpg

Hes been driving in his car.

It is quite a Jaguar.

Madness.

[320touring]

Nicely done wuv