The new news 24 thread

[richardmorris]

I’ve just been out for a quick run in the x1/9. Ran fine, but I have a mystery fibre optic in the footwell. I must have caught it and pulled it out, but can’t see where from. Switches illuminate, heater panel is lit, dash lights come on.

any ideas?

 

 

Edit. It was the headlamp switch optic. Nice quick reply on the owner’s club forum. No idea how it got down there though, it should be looped over the column at the back of the dash. It is entirely possible it’s not been connected from new.

fitted now anyway. And in good news, the switch itself shows no signs of burning out which is common on these.

[richardmorris]

 

 

 

Also, there was some veteran car run going on along the a30 towards Sunningdale. Lots of nice motor vehicles.

 

edit, just spotted this post from Beaulieu,

 

 

https://www.ellisjourney.co.uk/

 

first ever motor journey in the uk.

[bramz7]

1 hour ago, MondeoBlues said:

Lovely shite acquired! Many thanks to Bramz for selling said lovely shite to me. Great to meet you mate

Glad you went to that petrol station I recommended too, it's always quiet and the shop sells tons of (slightly overpriced) food and drink. 

 

Hope it serves you well. 

[Ghosty]

Went out.

[DVee8]

From yesterdays wedding.Not truly a barn find,yes it is in a barn covered in shite and cobwebs,but i didn't find it as they new it was there.

 

Yep it's a Z3M coupe. That's been in the barn for 5+ years

 

[RayMK]

Today, with my son's help, I (he) cleared my garage loft and took the junk to the recycling yard.  There were nearly empty cans of paint (why the hell did I keep them???), waxoil pumps that never worked properly, utterly knackered small mechanical bits of Citroen Dyane and a small number of Volvo 66 bits in similarly useless condition, my mildewed crash helmet from the 1970s, bent tent pegs and assorted worn out/completely broken household stuff. Some items were wrapped in local newspapers dated 1989.  Anyway, it all filled the V70 with rear seats folded and was duly transported to the yard.  The only item that I kept was my Peugeot moped's original saddle.  It looks worth a scrub and refurbishment so, for the moment, it will provide me with something to do on a rainy day.

To get the ladder up to the garage loft, my 1961 Reliant Regal had to be moved.  I had not touched it since mid August 2018 when I went around the block once.  Today, I connected the battery which has not been charged since its last outing, sat in and turned the key.  It started after 10 seconds of turning on the starter which primed the fuel system and settled to a stable tickover. My son apparently recorded the event to shove on to FB.  He had never driven the Regal and expressed a wish to have a go.  With his 6'2" 16 stone frame and size 12 feet somehow installed, I then levered my 5'10" elderly inflexible frame in to the passenger seat.  This took some time.  I left the internal engine cowling off to prevent fuel vapour lock problems - it's a hot day.  My son then familiarised himself with the controls.   The clutch can be used progressively but, to the initiated, feels like an on/off switch.  He mastered that ok.  Gear selection is very positive provided that it is not rushed.  He was too quick once or twice, causing a slight crunch.  The brakes work fine.  He was not convinced.  They require a firm shove and are nothing like modern brakes.   1st gear has no synchro.  I advised him to use 2nd, 3rd and 4th only.  We hurtled* around the estate at speeds approaching 20mph.  He said the car felt as though it would fall over.

We got back safely, he got out and declined a repeat trip with me driving.  I went round the block at 30mph and enjoyed the vintage feel of the car.  It's now parked in the garage again. 

  

[stuboy]

Nearly got wiped out by a volvo closely overtaking...

 

https://youtu.be/SnBNJYQb9dY

[richardmorris]

17 minutes ago, stuboy said:

Nearly got wiped out by a volvo closely overtaking...

 

https://youtu.be/SnBNJYQb9dY

The Sod you I’m Perfectly Safe ( sips) equipped version.

[clayts450]

5 hours ago, Cavcraft said:

My mate at work just got himself a Zaf - after me mercilessly mocking him all day, he presented the car to me and admitted it was soulless and the very definition of 'an car'.

I trust you'll be punting that heap of misery on, Billy ?

[Cavcraft]

Oh yes!

 

To be fair (insert own Vauxhall apologist comments here) these Mk1s are brilliant cars. The later (2006 on) newer shapes are  incredibly dull and uninspiring, not a patch on these.

[clayts450]

Yes, he had the Mk 2.

How big's the injun, mister, and is it diz or petrol

[EssDeeWon]

London to Southend classic car run today that ends up in the hell hole that is Southend seafront. Took a gander and only two cars of interest and worth papping

One owner 1988 Escort Estate and the star of the show, this Allegro was mint and on raised digits. Lovely. 

 

 

[LightBulbFun]

3 hours ago, RayMK said:

Today, with my son's help, I (he) cleared my garage loft and took the junk to the recycling yard.  There were nearly empty cans of paint (why the hell did I keep them???), waxoil pumps that never worked properly, utterly knackered small mechanical bits of Citroen Dyane and a small number of Volvo 66 bits in similarly useless condition, my mildewed crash helmet from the 1970s, bent tent pegs and assorted worn out/completely broken household stuff. Some items were wrapped in local newspapers dated 1989.  Anyway, it all filled the V70 with rear seats folded and was duly transported to the yard.  The only item that I kept was my Peugeot moped's original saddle.  It looks worth a scrub and refurbishment so, for the moment, it will provide me with something to do on a rainy day.

To get the ladder up to the garage loft, my 1961 Reliant Regal had to be moved.  I had not touched it since mid August 2018 when I went around the block once.  Today, I connected the battery which has not been charged since its last outing, sat in and turned the key.  It started after 10 seconds of turning on the starter which primed the fuel system and settled to a stable tickover. My son apparently recorded the event to shove on to FB.  He had never driven the Regal and experessed a wish to have a go.  With his 6'2" 16 stone frame and size 12 feet somehow installed, I then levered my 5'10" elderly inflexible frame in to the passenger seat.  This took some time.  I left the internal engine cowling off to prevent fuel vapour lock problems - it's a hot day.  My son then familiarised himself with the controls.   The clutch can be used progressively but, to the initiated, feels like an on/off switch.  He mastered that ok.  Gear selection is very positive provided that it is not rushed.  He was too quick once or twice, causing a slight crunch.  The brakes work fine.  He was not convinced.  They require a firm shove and are nothing like modern brakes.   1st gear has no synchro.  I advised him to use 2nd, 3rd and 4th only.  We hurtled* around the estate at speeds approaching 20mph.  He said the car felt as though it would fall over.

We got back safely, he got out and declined a repeat trip with me driving.  I went round the block at 30mph and enjoyed the vintage feel of the car.  It's now parked in the garage again. 

  

did you manage to find that 180W worklight you mentioned in the Lightbulbfun thread?

im still quite curious what that was/what lightbulb it used exactly

 (as I mentioned 180W is not a standardized wattage for normal light bulbs so im quite intrigued!)

[SiC]

8 minutes ago, EssDeeWon said:

London to Southend classic car run today that ends up in the hell hole that is Southend seafront. Took a gander and only two cars of interest and worth papping

One owner 1988 Escort Estate and the star of the show, this Allegro was mint and on raised digits. Lovely. 

 

 

So valuable that it had the police manning it?

[EssDeeWon]

1 minute ago, SiC said:

So valuable that it had the police manning it?

You'd like to think so but no thats just Southend these days.   

[MikeR]

Southend ... memories , we got rid of a old push bike ......  by just leaving it by the front gate .....

[New POD]

5 hours ago, DVee8 said:

From yesterdays wedding.Not truly a barn find,yes it is in a barn covered in shite and cobwebs,but i didn't find it as they new it was there.

 

Yep it's a Z3M coupe. That's been in the barn for 5+ years

 

Why.  Did someone go to prison? 

[omegod]

That Z3M is an escalating shit load of money getting shit on by pigeons 

[DVee8]

17 minutes ago, New POD said:

Why.  Did someone go to prison? 

Nope nothing like that,It's a North East country house and farm.I spoke to the owner about it and he is well aware it worth 30k.

There was also a Mercedes C class that hasn't moved because they have lost the keys and a 14 plate Yaris with grass at sill and wheel height.

[shedenvy]

I've accumulated a small stock of parts to sort out the Multipla's knocking suspension and also do the timing belt and water pump. Unfortunately with three kids I rarely get the time to stop everything and fit them. I'm too tight to pay anyone else so what I needed was a practical, reliable temporary car to fill the gap while I took my time over the Multi. Of course said replacement should require minimum fettling and also be quick to sell on when I'm finished.

 

Hmmm.....

To be continued....

[MarvinsMom]

Been over to Ormsby Hall for their Classic Car day today.

managed to catch the sun in me arms, even though it has been dull and cool here today. compared with yesterday anyway, when it was "scorcio" even in the shade.

I took Rodney Mini, Kerry the softail. met up with friends who have a mint spit screen morris minor, and jowett javelin, and saw other nice cars too. such as these.

 

[SiC]

Really struggling to find additional undercover car storage. I've tried a few places dotted around Bristol/North Somerset/South Gloucestershire and they're all full. Either go on a waiting list or the waiting list is too full.

Does anyone happen to know of any storage available within around half hour from Bristol?

[RayMK]

3 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

did you manage to find that 180W worklight you mentioned in the Lightbulbfun thread?

im still quite curious what that was/what lightbulb it used exactly

 (as I mentioned 180W is not a standardized wattage for normal light bulbs so im quite intrigued!)

I thought I had found it but alas, the wire guard* bit that I felt in a carrier bag was a much smaller camping lantern.  There is very little left in the garage loft now and certainly no large bulbed, home made work light.  It's a shame because your curiosity had aroused mine.  Perhaps I broke it or threw it away in a fit of Elf and Safety a couple of decades ago.  When (if) I see my hypnotherapist again, I'll ask her to rake through my memories for clues.  She, and subsequent NHS therapists have almost cured me of my extreme needle/medical phobia, so there is still some hope ?.

[bramz7]

Ohhh that 147 is nice. Must remind myself how much Alfa's sting though...

[DeeJay]

17 hours ago, Cavcraft said:

Birthday prezzie for Barbara?

[loserone]

6 hours ago, bramz7 said:

Ohhh that 147 is nice. Must remind myself how much Alfa's sting though...

Do you know the easiest way to do that dude? Buy one ?

[wuvvum]

9 hours ago, shedenvy said:

I've accumulated a small stock of parts to sort out the Multipla's knocking suspension and also do the timing belt and water pump. Unfortunately with three kids I rarely get the time to stop everything and fit them. I'm too tight to pay anyone else so what I needed was a practical, reliable temporary car to fill the gap while I took my time over the Multi. Of course said replacement should require minimum fettling and also be quick to sell on when I'm finished.

 

Hmmm.....

To be continued....

Is that the 150bhp version?  They shift pretty well.  Easily remappable to 190 or so, although they do then develop something of a gearbox habit.

[shedenvy]

46 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

Is that the 150bhp version?  They shift pretty well.  Easily remappable to 190 or so, although they do then develop something of a gearbox habit.

I have no idea. How can I find out. Is it on the first page of the handbook?

Basically I won it at 10am, picked it up at 1.30pm and drove 2.5miles home. I then spent the rest of Sunday pretending to the missus that I didn't want to go outside and play cars.

It went ok but the clutch is very high, the seller said it was slipping when fully laden in top gear - I can't confirm this yet. The main problem is that the gear linkage centering spring has gone which made the notchy 6 speed slightly more difficult to engage the correct gear.

Otherwise the guy selling it was a bit of an Alfa enthusiast. He had two gtvs. One was supposed to be a low mileage, barn find with a rebuilt engine. It then had some issue with the balancer shaft which he suspected put the timing out. Anyway the point is that he had been burnt on ebay from sellers giving vague descriptions or just plain lies so wanted to advertise this with no guarantees. I went to see it before hand to try to gauge how much it would be to get through the MOT. He said the tyres were probably due on 2 wheels for instance - what it actually has is 4 pirelli Pzeros with 5-6mm of tread. 

The body work needs a clay bar, cut, polish, wax but even then there's a couple of dents and scratches. It's had welding to the rear of the sills already (shock!) But the guy suspected they were due to poor quarter repairs blocking up the drain holes. They've been patched but by a reputable garage who incidently are currently restoring a lancia beta.  I'll grab a pic sometime.

It's done 164k but sounds good. The seller said it had oil changes religiously every 10k. I've no reason to doubt. 

Will try to MOT this week.

[richardmorris]

Any ideas what this supercar may be? Doesn't look too practical as there are no doors - just the side window gull wings.

 

[MondeoBlues]

7 minutes ago, richardmorris said:

Any ideas what this supercar may be? Doesn't look too practical as there are no doors - just the side window gull wings.

 

Looks like it might be that new Dallara Stradale. I'm not much into moderns though, so I could be wrong.