The new news 24 thread

[Mike D]

Managed to get an hour on the mini, rear end has now had a thorough coating in dynax UB, just need to ebuild the new subframe and pop it in now 😁

[brownnova]

Roads really were dead yesterday. Did the dart to see my parents (for the first time since August we took advantage of the one day of being allowed out of Wales) which is a 2 1/2-3 hour drive normally. I drove there and did it in 2hours 10, wife drove back, managed 2 hours 20... (I win)

It was the furthest I’ve ever traveled on a Christmas Day... normally I don’t go far at all. 

[vulgalour]

2 hours ago, Supernaut said:

Totally, it's not my image! I found it ages ago somewhere on the internet.

The artist is Stefan Koidl, they do lots of this sort of stuff, they're very good.

[Cavcraft]

[stuboy]

On 12/24/2020 at 11:39 AM, EssDeeWon said:

No, that's the only snag, its in Kent

avoid north. west kent best id south,,,biased

[Volksy]

On 12/25/2020 at 3:22 PM, richardmorris said:

The trick with xm headlights seems to be to remove the plastic lens thing in front of the bulbs. Improves them to at least 50% of a 2cv.

 

series 2 cxs with main beam separate were worse than original single lens types too. I’m not too keen on the Mercedes’ Either considering it can do 140mph. Perhaps my night vision is getting worse.

The dipped beam on my C180 are crap also, it doesn't even have the normal* frosted lenses. 

Main beam is like a death ray however. 

 

[egg]

redbubble have 20% off everything today (no affiliation from me etc) if you have a few pennies from a great aunt to spend after Xmas.

https://www.redbubble.com/

[Supernaut]

2 hours ago, egg said:

redbubble have 20% off everything today (no affiliation from me etc) if you have a few pennies from a great aunt to spend after Xmas.

https://www.redbubble.com/

Aye, if a few folk could look at the 'what I make' link in my signature that would be grand!

[Craig the Princess]

6 minutes ago, Supernaut said:

Aye, if a few folk could look at the 'what I make' link in my signature that would be grand!

For those on phones who can't work out how to see a signature can you put the link in a post?

[Supernaut]

1 minute ago, Craig the Princess said:

For those on phones who can't work out how to see a signature can you put the link in a post?

https://www.redbubble.com/people/supernautbb

[stuboy]

Splash of rain in the air at work..

 

[omegod]

Early morning walk and discovered a Mk2 k reg MR2 T-bar sitting in a car park of some local flats, flat tyres and not MOT's since 2018. MOT history shows mega corrosion failure's in 14 and 15 but last 2 were clean ................was major welding completed ???  Should I pursue it???? Damn right I should !!!!!

[EightMegs]

3 hours ago, omegod said:

Early morning walk and discovered a Mk2 k reg MR2 T-bar sitting in a car park of some local flats, flat tyres and not MOT's since 2018. MOT history shows mega corrosion failure's in 14 and 15 but last 2 were clean ................was major welding completed ???  Should I pursue it???? Damn right I should !!!!!

https://www.fensport.co.uk/pages/fensport-corolla-sr-3s-gte

Even if the body is unsalvageable, it would make an interesting donor car.

[egg]

This guy - 205hp - is worth following on Instagram for stuff like this.

 

[N19]

An actual day off without any pressing householdy jobs to do, and no big desire to sleep all day. Tidied up in the garage and got the Capri jacked up ready for oil/points/plugs tomorrow, fitted a new battery to the Bluebird (still not firing, need to do some looking at) and topped up the power steering fluid and coolant on the Mondeo. The latter should never really need routine coolant changes since it seems to continually leak and therefore gets topped up plenty. I can't identify any leaks at the moment but it seems to have lost some. Hmm. Sigh.

[Mr Laurence]

I got an electric polisher for Christmas, so I spent Boxing Day detailing the MX5. It’s amazing what a difference it’s made. It’s hard to believe it’s done 164000 miles; it practically looks like a new car again!

[SiC]

1 minute ago, Mr Laurence said:

I got an electric polisher for Christmas, so I spent Boxing Day detailing the MX5. It’s amazing what a difference it’s made. It’s hard to believe it’s done 164000 miles; it practically looks like a new car again!

You need to get the headlights polished up. I find crystal clear headlights make a massive difference to the freshness of a car. 

[Mr Laurence]

3 minutes ago, SiC said:

You need to get the headlights polished up. I find crystal clear headlights make a massive difference to the freshness of a car. 

Yep that’s the next job on my list! I did them with some T cut when I first bought it at the start of the year, but they’ve started yellowing again. Is there anything you’ve used that’s worked well?

[SiC]

3 minutes ago, Mr Laurence said:

Yep that’s the next job on my list! I did them with some T cut when I first bought it at the start of the year, but they’ve started yellowing again. Is there anything you’ve used that’s worked well?

I've used Meguiars headlight cleaning kit which did the job but do the same thing of having no UV protection still. I believe a thin coat of clear lacquer paint helps a lot. Also even just regular car wax can slow down the effect too. 

[vulgalour]

Last night's rain and wind has destroyed another fence panel (who needs money anyway), and blew the cover off the Maestro.  Thankfully, the issue with the cover is that the stitches gave up on one corner and the strap pulled out, an easy repair since it was just the stitching that had failed, not the strap or the cover.  Unfortunately it did mean enough rain had got into the car that I could have probably kept sticklebacks quite happily in the boot, not quite enough water for goldfish, you see.

[brownnova]

33 minutes ago, vulgalour said:

Last night's rain and wind has destroyed another fence panel (who needs money anyway), and blew the cover off the Maestro. 

Similar here, fence panel down and cover of the Mazda... first time I’ve seen it in a couple of months.

After looking at a potential replacement a couple of weeks back I realised that I would really miss the MX5, so I made a pact with myself that I will have the Mazda back on the road for spring... plan is to get it to a local MX5 garage next month to have a good look at what is up engine wise add see if it is fix or replace time. 

[wuvvum]

1 hour ago, Mr Laurence said:

Yep that’s the next job on my list! I did them with some T cut when I first bought it at the start of the year, but they’ve started yellowing again. Is there anything you’ve used that’s worked well?

I used some Turtle Wax headlight restorer stuff in a green bottle.  It seems to have done a decent enough job on the 75's headlights - it got rid of the cloudiness and appears to be keeping it at bay a couple of months down the line, which is more than T-Cut could ever manage. 

[eddyramrod]

I don't know where else to put this but since I was talking about him in the grim cars thread...

Today would have been my dad's birthday.  His centenary in fact.  December 27 th 1920 he arrived, and was 84 when he died.

[Cord Fourteener]

20 hours ago, Craig the Princess said:

For those on phones who can't work out how to see a signature can you put the link in a post?

Turn the phone to landscape I think

[MarvinsMom]

time once again for a bit of a fleet update-

Rover 75, 202450-odd on the clock and still going. this has recently been treated to some of the finest* chinese deathrings at our favoured tyre spot, as i noticed that the tyreson the back of the car were proper fucked and waaaaaaay past their prime. it has also had the none functioning lights replaced meaning that there is currently, touch wood, no warning lamps lit on the dashboard. i think though that the thermostat in the motor is jammed open as the temp gauge barely gets off the bottom bump currently, as Rover gauges are complete liars, until the engine is fucked, and the stat on an M47R lives in a brittle plastic housing then i don't think that will be getting changed anytime, soon or otherwise. also the a/c is needing a regas,  it was working with plenty of cool air at the back end of last year, and the back parking sensors are not working either. otherwise i guess thats not too bad for a 20 ear old Rover.

The Toyota still doesn't start, not all the time anyway. there is a recon starter in the boot of the car, but as we had a cold, wet and miserable day trying to change it yesterday with no luck, then in the boot it will stay. first we tried jacking the car up, only to find that the jack doesn't want to work, Kerry thinks some seal in the mechanism has burst, no matter we'll put on the ramps instead, only it won't go up, cos the splitter, front bumper fouls on the ramps . so we added some planks of wood to lift the front of the car, and some more and then another. when we got the car onto the ramps, we eventually got the undertray off, eventually, only to find out that the starter was all but in accessible behind the exhaust and then the wiring loom, once i got a socket on it, well i couldn't friggin move it..... not with a ratchet, or the torque wrench, or the biggest breaker bar we've got...... and i was proper swinging  on them, well thats when i walked off the job. Kerry is going to find some mug to do it for us in the new year!

And everything else? well the orange mini has been started and backed out of the garage. it then got put back in the garage! still that must have been the second time in more than a year that it has actually been started up! the bikes, Marvin the metro and Rodney mini, i know that they are still in their respective lockups, cos i have seen them, but thats all that i've done with them, maybe next year, or the year after that, maybe i'll even get to use them, maybe....

[Split_Pin]

Sounds like an inline Renault 5 thermostat is required for the 75, all 3 of mine got this treatment and it works perfectly.

[SiC]

10 hours ago, MarvinsMom said:

well i couldn't friggin move it..... not with a ratchet, or the torque wrench, or the biggest breaker bar

A torque wrench is a precision instrument and shouldn't be used for busting nuts off! That's if you want to have it anywhere near correct when you use it next. 

[yes oui si]

Turns out that Dunbar is more than just a coastal junkie's paradise... 

[yes oui si]

Also spotted a Polestar 2 (much nicer in dark colours) and this. I want one. 

[Split_Pin]

Welcome to winter with a 75.