The new news 24 thread

[MarvinsMom]

And you were spotted at Sainsburys Redcar this afternoon!

well we are pretty distinctive!

[captain_70s]

Took the mighty Doloshite out for a spin today. Did a small video walk-around and a driving video as I've been meaning to do forever.

 

Naturally the car broke down on camera for the full BL experience.

[BorniteIdentity]

Week two of the kitchen project is complete and we’re justn about ready to start reassembling it. Plasterer coming tomorrow to skim the ceiling and then we’re all systems go.

 

I’ve seen it all in this place. Spurs being run by just twisted wires, exposed wires directly under a dishwasher drain, half the sockets in the bungalow being on one ring and the rest on another (but with no rhyme or reason that we can fathom)

 

Anyway, we’re getting somewhere.

 

Main reason for the post? We have a genuine early 60s Bakelite Oven Switch with 3 pin socket and a couple of Bakelite light switches that we’ve now taken out. There is, I’m sure, someone on here who is collecting this stuff for their own 60s flavoured home. Can anyone remember who it is?

 

It’s a proper cool box - and is branded Siemens and Something from memory.

[DodgeRover]

Mercrocker?

[Guest Hooli]

Mercrocker?

 

Sounds likely.

[xtriple]

I have an oil leak!

 

Well, not me exactly, more the Mercedes of small dollopness   I noticed a stain on the road where the car is always parked (handy having a cripple spot) and upon inspection, there are many stains thereon. Now for all its fault BGD didn't leak so it has to be LGB. I shall have to look... this means I may get my mitts mucky. I don't like having dirty mitts anymore - so who is going to volunteer to come and fix my car, not urgent, tomorrow will do!

[Guest Hooli]

One thanks you for such a kind offer, but unfortunately circumstances force one to decline.

[trigger]

I took my 2600 across to the excellent BL show at Gaydon today, left mine at 6am, picked up some friends and got home at 10pm! Its been a long but brilliant day, I've took lots of photos which I'll try and get up on here in the next few days but I'm over the moon with the car, 350 miles without even the slightest hiccup (other than trying to do up all 4 windows at once and blowing the window trip)

 

It did cost me about £60-70 in fuel though! Not a cheap car! Although it's running far to rich at the moment which won't help, I must get it booked into a SU carb specialist to get them adjusted properly.

 

[Mr_Bo11ox]

My friend Alan used to get decent mpg withn his 2300, he reckoned he could average mid-late 20's and nudge 30 on a motorway run! Theyre super high geared these arent they so upper 20's sounds like it ought to be achievable.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Actually £70 to do 350 miles is not too horrific, I make that about 30mpg! Decent!

[trigger]

Your probably right there Bol, and you have to remember fuels now touching 130p a litre so it isn't going to go as far as it did before, I think if I can get the fueling right on the carbs I should see a extra 5mpg out of it, it's should have a co% of 2.50 but it's running at 9.50%!. Its revving around 3000rpm at 70mph, barring in mind it's a 3 speed auto too.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Ah yes I forgot it was an automatic

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Waved goodbye to the Sherpa today. Owned for a year; net progress one new set of heater plugs. Sold for £250 (I think that's about how much I paid) to a local truck mechanic dude who just took a shine to it.

[Jon]

I had a missed call from my cousin on Friday and he sounded very dour in the voice message he left, so I was not looking forward to the return call, fearing that someone had passed away.

 

 

That probably explains why I was relieved to hear that it was car, rather than person damage he was calling me about; namely, he'd pranged our 205 he's been borrowing, into the back of a Mini Cooper S:

 

 

Bugger.

 

 

 

I'm hopeful I can find a front bumper insert section, as presumably these were shared with non-GTI models? I reckon I'll have a job finding a headlamp in NZ, so may well ask a UK Shiter to mail something out to me. I do have a set of new headlights but stupidly I ordered online from Europe and had them mailed to my folks who then brought them out, so am 99% sure they're LHD ones! What a plonker. Oh well, hopefully a beam deflector will pass muster in the short term.

 

 

 

However, no-one can deny that my cousin is enterprising, as he's come up with an immediate temporary solution to allow him to get to work. Behold this effort!!!

 

 

 

Mad Max/Federal spec 205! That's the front driving lamp in place of the original and I'm posting him a spare indicator and probable LHD lamp to dick about with today. We have a family in-joke about my cousin's 'robustness over aesthetics' repairs and this falls squarely into that category.

 

The element I'm most upset about is that as a kneejerk reaction to his embarrassment of hitting the other guy, he called the insurance company over what was superficial damage to the Mini. I'm not sure what that will do to my premiums for the next few years but I doubt I'll be getting this insured for £90 or so I'm paying for it annually....

[bramz7]

 

This is what I drove down from Darlington on the weekend. I figured I may as well spend ££££ on a car less likely to be worth zero when I do sell it, although the aim is to keep it for as long as I can.

It performed well. £50 of fuel has lasted nearly 400 miles which seems way better than I expected the four pot to do, which is an insanely rapid thing at higher revs, I know it's not a super car but it has a really nice feeling of speed to it.

 

Obviously it's an Alfa and does what they do best, the ABS light has come on and off, as has the rear lights warning, and the speedo stopped working for half a day too. Body wise it looks okay, but annoying I didn't spot the iffy rear arches until later on. It isn't falling apart in any case though so it could be worse.

It also gets so much attention. I've never owned a car (perhaps the BX was similar) that has got strangers so excited.

 

 

And in other news I viewed something old and French on the way home to replace the 605 and it was spot on. Another one ticked off the list when it is collected.

[wuvvum]

I've always found 4-pot Alfas to be incongruously good on fuel on a run.  Well bought.

[dollywobbler]

My weekend. Friday started with some work, but then I saw this.

 

The next day was Japfest Donington.

 

I took the Impreza on the 250m sprint course (a short drag race). 8 seconds and 63mph terminal speed, livened up by a barrier about 50m after the stop line!

 

Then I got on a boat and arrived in The Netherlands. I went to a little car show called Japan Classic Sunday. I drove a Fiat Cinquecento.

 

Then I convoyed to the home of a very nice Dutch man with Ratdat and this amazing line-up.

 

Lots more pics to deal with when I get home!

[ProgRocker]

Oops! Just tried opening the last page of Junkman's thread. As he's amended the thread title to include the word that's an anagram of 'pron' it seems that my employer's wi fi security settings blocked it!

[Steve79]

20180630_155930.jpg

 

This is what I drove down from Darlington on the weekend. I figured I may as well spend ££££ on a car less likely to be worth zero when I do sell it, although the aim is to keep it for as long as I can.

It performed well. £50 of fuel has lasted nearly 400 miles which seems way better than I expected the four pot to do, which is an insanely rapid thing at higher revs, I know it's not a super car but it has a really nice feeling of speed to it.

 

Obviously it's an Alfa and does what they do best, the ABS light has come on and off, as has the rear lights warning, and the speedo stopped working for half a day too. Body wise it looks okay, but annoying I didn't spot the iffy rear arches until later on. It isn't falling apart in any case though so it could be worse.

It also gets so much attention. I've never owned a car (perhaps the BX was similar) that has got strangers so excited.

 

 

And in other news I viewed something old and French on the way home to replace the 605 and it was spot on. Another one ticked off the list when it is collected.

Had about 8x of these in across twinspark and v6 lusso flavours. Chain driven on the twinspark for peace of mind.

 

V6 for the best engine note but twinspark was always the better overall drive and not so nose heavy. Iffy electrics - TADTS. Speedo used to drop out on mine all the time and rear electric windows only worked on 2 of the ones I had (relays failing in both rear doors).

 

Aircon can be a bit squiffy on these. The plastic gears usually start falling apart and then the unit will cycle the aircon flow from left to right hand side of cabin. There was a guy in Australia making brass cogs to replace the plastic ones. They can be got at through the inspection panel on rhs of the glovebox.

 

Rear light warning is usually a sticky brake pedal switch which can be adjusted.

 

If you ever want to sell this please let me know as i'm always in the mood for 164 ownership

[Tadhg Tiogar]

20180630_155930.jpg....Obviously it's an Alfa and does what they do best, the ABS light has come on and off, as has the rear lights warning, and the speedo stopped working for half a day too. Body wise it looks okay, but annoying I didn't spot the iffy rear arches until later on. It isn't falling apart in any case though so it could be worse.

It also gets so much attention. I've never owned a car (perhaps the BX was similar) that has got strangers so excited.

That does look very nice. Relatively early one, too, with the all-square central switches. When I started looking for an old car again a couple of years ago, the 164 was the only other one I considered. Unfortunately they were very thin on the ground at the time, and I didn't want a red (fading paint) or a black (heat absorption) one, which severely limited the choice then available.

 

 

And in other news I viewed something old and French on the way home to replace the 605 and it was spot on. Another one ticked off the list when it is collected.

A big French one?

[bramz7]

Yes a French car, not big like the 605 but it has plenty of seats in it.

 

Plan is to get it welded and the belts changed as the price I've got it for is very, very reasonable. Now just to tell my local garage they have a job to do for me.

 

 

The 164 is everything I thought it would be to be honest. Very solid build quality compared to the Fiat's and Lancias I have had, and the seats are superb.

My only gripe is the throttle pedal angle giving me leg ache...

 

 

It was a cheap 164 might I add but I paid low 4 figures for it. It's startling how much the V6 seems to be worth now.

[Lord Sterling]

[Alfa-Romeo 164]

Wow! One of the first cars I ever drive in England after the Ma_Micra was a Black Alfa 164. I drove it unaided as I was still learning to drive. I thought very seriously about buying one after I passed my test but it never happened as I thought I may aswell go after my dream of a Mk1 827.

 

I'm guessing this'll be for sale before I see any spare money but it's great to see one again.

[bramz7]

A little bit of digging tells me the 164 was brand new to Uniliver HQ.... Which bigwig got this as a company car then?

[Tadhg Tiogar]

….It was a cheap 164 might I add but I paid low 4 figures for it. It's startling how much the V6 seems to be worth now.

 

This one doesn't look too terrible

[iainrcz]

I've just eaten a full pack of Jaffa cakes before 8 minutes into the football.

 

 

 

I have another pack, would eating those be greedy??

 

Sent from my VFD 710 using Tapatalk

[bramz7]

 

This one doesn't look too terrible

Yeah it looks okay but I don't love the later front end. Shame it's been lowered really, they're low enough anyway. Comedy air filter a bit worrying..

[clayts450]

I've just eaten a full pack of Jaffa cakes before 8 minutes into the football.

 

 

 

I have another pack, would eating those be greedy??

 

Sent from my VFD 710 using Tapatalk

 

Only if you correctly answer the question - biscuit or cake ?

[Guest Hooli]

I've just eaten a full pack of Jaffa cakes before 8 minutes into the football.

 

 

 

I have another pack, would eating those be greedy??

 

Sent from my VFD 710 using Tapatalk

It's more entertaining than watching kickball.

[Shep Shepherd]

Just realised I've owned The Aero for a little over 2 years now. It has to be the most 'complete' and most involving car I've ever owned, not to mention one of the most reliable; not bad for £995!

 

 

I hope to keep it on the road for as long as I can

[iainrcz]

I take it from your negative comment you've never seen a Grimsby town game.

It's more entertaining than watching kickball.

Sent from my VFD 710 using Tapatalk