The new news 24 thread

[xtriple]

I parked up at the Daddyhole carpark and I was next to a red 5 series BMW - 69 reg. It looked okay to be honest. Then I noticed that some twat had put Alfa Romeo centre caps on the wheels  

Then I noticed that it was an Alfa Romeo Guilia Voloce and it looked really nice - much nicer than it had 10 seconds before when it was a BMW!

Seriously though, cars these days all look the bloody same and this from a man whose proudest boast was that I could tell any car, what spec it was and when it was made just from a glance.

[Cavcraft]

Despite an earlier warning a couple of week ago (by which it dumped fuel all over the place after I tried the petrol tap for the first time), and the odd bit of clutch slip, the Lambretta has been surprisingly un-Lambretta. Until Tuesday, that is, where it went a bit  Lambretta-y by coughing and farting and only holding high revs. Luckily I was quite local and coaxed it home. Checked a couple of days later and the fuel's leaking again, this time without prompting from moving the petrol tap. Lobbed it into the van and dropped it off a scooter place that's opened fairly recently and left it with them. Had to prise myself away as they had a couple of really nice looking Vespa T5 square tails for sale. Anyhow, waiting for a quote for clutch plates, re-cable and a look at/strip down of the carb. Had already ordered and received a new air box rubber from eBay, hopefully that'll help it further. Prior to it coughing on Tuesday though it's been running great.

 

This afternoon though, perhaps coming out in sympathy, my daughter's (modern) 500 threw a 'yellow or orange light that looks a bit like an engine' up and went it to limp mode on the A55. She got into a lay-by, the light went off after she re-started the car, so I went down and followed her home through town. Mrs CV says Miss CV now wants a new/er car.   

[Six-cylinder]

I have just been reading about the new Audi RS7 being a vastly improved car, 591 bhp with great grip and dynamics, but where do you use such a beast? I have been out today in the 190 bhp Alfa 156 and managed a very satisfying overtake of a car doing 45 mph in a 60 mph with plenty of shove and a great sound track, but not long and I was stuck behind the next one with solid oncoming traffic.

[Shep Shepherd]

Discharged from hospital at 1500. Signed off sick for two weeks from today. Fun times.

I'm glad that I have The Volvo handy, as I have no real desire to operate a clutch pedal for at least a few days.

[Spurious]

Getting out of the Jimny and straight into a Hydropneumatic Citroen after a long drive is something else. The level of waaaaaft and velour is just right

[wuvvum]

I bought a car off Gumtree today.  This is a rare occurrence for me, as Gumtree sellers don't seem to average much higher in the IQ stakes than Gumtree buyers, but this advert was well worded and the replies I got to my messages were intelligible and written in full sentences.  So I went round to have a look this evening.  Seller turned out to be a nice, well-spoken (and, if I'm honest, not entirely unattractive) lass in her 20s.  Her boyfriend was a bit of a lad but seemed decent enough.  Most importantly the car was as described (far from perfect, but cheap for a car with 10 months' test).  So I left a deposit, and I'm going back to pick it up tomorrow.

Also, the Renault 6 now has a working heater.

[clayts450]

Was the deposit an Xbox360 2nite m9 ?

[wuvvum]

Believe it or not it was actual cold hard cash.  That's how unusual this whole transaction is.

[Skizzer]

Some smutty-minded child will be along in a moment making an off-colour remark connecting ‘not unattractive’ with ‘left a deposit’.

But not me. Oh no.

[Tadhg Tiogar]

On 10/11/2019 at 5:38 PM, Cavcraft said:

....my daughter's (modern) 500 threw a 'yellow or orange light that looks a bit like an engine' up and went it to limp mode on the A55. She got into a lay-by, the light went off after she re-started the car, so I went down and followed her home through town. Mrs CV says Miss CV now wants a new/er car.   

Might be one of the fuses. Similar thing happened to a friend who also runs a 500. Turned out to be fuse 37, which cost all of 20p to fix.

[hairnet]

On 10/11/2019 at 5:40 PM, Six-cylinder said:

I have just been reading about the new Audi RS7 being a vastly improved car, 591 bhp with great grip and dynamics, but where do you use such a beast? I have been out today in the 190 bhp Alfa 156 and managed a very satisfying overtake of a car doing 45 mph in a 60 mph with plenty of shove and a great sound track, but not long and I was stuck behind the next one with solid oncoming traffic.

yeah you have form being a hooligan in that car

 

[SiC]

Bought this ready for the winter period in the garage now that the nights draw in next weekend. 25 quid and packs a decent punch. Same thing in Machine Mart is 40 quid.

 

[MikeR]

woman comes up to our little group who are talking ... her car on the way to the centre hit a pothole ..and loads of steam came out of the front of the car .

so she continued driving and parked up down the lane ... it was a Suzuki jeep

we went out and the coolant was gone ...and the engine block ... you could fry an egg on it , in fact you could smell the heat 10 meters away ..

and the help full guy offered his  help by pouring his watering  can full of cold water into the filler ,

thats when the water hit the block and the steam shot out of a ruptured pipe ..

I exited stage right and buggered off in my car  in case  the block had cracked ......  

[stuboy]

Bugger clicks drive shaft on the shalaxy has got worse, so I've parked it up till I can order new shaft..

 

https://youtu.be/89_t1p_LdWs

[Six-cylinder]

1 hour ago, hairnet said:

yeah you have form being a hooligan in that car

 

I don't think you have every been out in Black Beauty? 

[wuvvum]

Gumtree purchase successfully retrieved. 

[320touring]

Enjoy the misery.

I doubled back when walking the other day, just so I could give "the finger" to one that was parked up.

 

[catsinthewelder]

It's grim today but wasn't actually raining so I thought I'd best fit the headlight I bought for the 405 six weeks ago.  Hadn't even unwrapped it so was happy it was in one piece.

Oh FFS, checked eBay and yes I'd ordered the wrong one.  So put that away and ordered a driver's side one.

Ah I remember a job that's too noisy for an evening.  Impact driver, check.  17mm socket, check. Brew, check.  Gearbox from 6 cylinders ATV check.

And much noise later the CVT thingamybob is off.

Which means I can take the cracked casting off.

I've texted the blacksmith to see if I can leave the bearings in as I can't see myself getting them out in reusable condition.

It's almost progress ?

 

[Six-cylinder]

I went to a car show this morning at Turweston airfield organised by the Silverstone Social group but it was rather wet, about 50 cars normally 300+.

Oddest went to the Mazda 323!

Favourite to the 405 Le Mans, yes 155 bhp and I did not remember it either.

[HMC]

I dumped a fridge freezer

[Six-cylinder]

32 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

It's grim today but wasn't actually raining so I thought I'd best fit the headlight I bought for the 405 six weeks ago.  Hadn't even unwrapped it so was happy it was in one piece.

Oh FFS, checked eBay and yes I'd ordered the wrong one.  So put that away and ordered a driver's side one.

Ah I remember a job that's too noisy for an evening.  Impact driver, check.  17mm socket, check. Brew, check.  Gearbox from 6 cylinders ATV check.

And much noise later the CVT thingamybob is off.

Which means I can take the cracked casting off.

I've texted the blacksmith to see if I can leave the bearings in as I can't see myself getting them out in reusable condition.

It's almost progress ?

 

I now see what you are working on!

[catsinthewelder]

I don't fancy dismantling your Daimler gearbox on my dining table

[LightBulbFun]

17 minutes ago, catsinthewelder said:

I don't fancy dismantling your Daimler gearbox on my dining table

of course not! thats a job for @PhilA 

[egg]

Can anyone please point me toward's the ex- @TheDoctor Mazda 323 thread - I can't remember what happened to that? Ta.

[LightBulbFun]

7 minutes ago, egg said:

Can anyone please point me toward's the ex- @TheDoctor Mazda 323 thread - I can't remember what happened to that? Ta.

this thread?  https://autoshite.com/topic/36028-saved-mazda-323

 

[dozeydustman]

crap weather means I've been unable to prep the Saab for incoming collection soon - clean out, wash etc.

went through the wardrobe with the mrs; we now have 7 bin bags of clothes to take to a charity shop.

[brownnova]

Pulled the front of the Mazda into the garage... let’s get this shit sorted! 

[HMC]

Shit just got real

[brownnova]

Finally the Mazda’s back in action! 
 

Turns out it WAS a case of wrong tools not lack of skills! 
 

Full story in my thread. 

[wuvvum]

5 hours ago, 320touring said:

Enjoy the misery.

I doubled back when walking the other day, just so I could give "the finger" to one that was parked up.

 

Ooh, did you have a bad experience with one of these 320T?

It doesn't seem too bad so far.  It's an earlyish one in a lowish spec so no aircon, keep fit windows in the back and a boggo 1.4 Polo engine under what passes for the bonnet - none of your fancy direct injection stuff here.  So it's not exactly quick, but it's adequate, helped by the light weight.  The roads were far too wet and far too infested with Sunday drivers for me to be able to give the handling a proper test, but initial impressions aren't too bad - it certainly turns in a lot more keenly than any other Audi I've driven.

It has two main issues - a knocking from the front over bumps which sounds like it could be a drop link, and a tendency to stutter a bit when driving at a constant speed on a lightish throttle.  I've plugged my laptop in and it's come up with a MAP sensor fault, so that'll be my first port of call.  Hopefully it won't be too difficult to access.  Interestingly the lass selling the car actually knew how to take the bonnet off and put it back on again - I suspect she's probably in a minority of young female A2 owners in that respect (not wanting to stereotype or owt...).  Other than that the seats need a good clean (she had a smoll child which probably spilled things), but that's more or less it.  For what I paid I'm not disappointed.  Yet.