The new news 24 thread

[Barry Cade]

Yay, I'm now a tester again. All shite cars welcum. MOT's are a tenner as a special opening deal too !

[ruffgeezer]

I sat in a Xantia hdi exclusive today, I'd forgotten how much nicer they are inside than the C5, even with a galactic 240k on the clock *sigh*

[wuvvum]

I've done 410 miles in a new Peugeot today, and it didn't break down once.  The trip did take 11 hours though, but that wasn't really the Peugeot's fault (although it was gutless as feck), it was more to do with the five separate sets of roadworks I encountered and the lorry that had broken down in the middle lane of the M25.

 

The Peugeot in question was an Expert van that I'd hired for the purpose of picking up my latest scootershite purchase from Ashford (which is a lot further from Norfolk than I'd thought ).  I'd actually booked a smaller van (VW Caddy was what the website said), but it was probably a good thing they gave me a bigger van as I think I might have struggled to get the scooter into a Caddy without removing the luggage rack.

 

The new Partners seem quite a lot bigger than the old ones - the MWB version I hired was about the same sort of size as a Renault Trafic, and same seating height too.  In fact it was much too large a vehicle for the little 90bhp 1.6 HDI engine that Peugeot had lumbered it with.  My dad's C4 has the same engine and that's not exactly quick, so you can imagine what it's like in a van.  It's weird, because near the top of its travel the throttle feels quite responsive, but then pressing it down further makes no discernible difference.  Of course the fact that the van only had 761 miles on the clock when I picked it up might not be helping, but I still feel it's far too little engine for the job.  Other than that it's much as I'd expected a new Peugeot to be - fugly front end, rubbery gearshift, over-servoed brakes and interior trim that feels like it's about to snap off at any moment.

 

This is the scooter I've bought:

 

 

It's a 1986 Yamaha Beluga 125.  I don't know why, but I have a bit of a thing about '80s scooters at the moment.  This one's been off the road since 1995, and has only done 4,000-odd miles from new.  It still has its original dealer plate and two sets of keys; the plastics have Pogweaseled slightly but other than that it seems in fine nick for its age.  It turns over with jump leads (the battery is as dead as you'd expect it to be after sitting for 16 years), and fires up with a whiff of Easystart - the pez in the tank dates from 1995 as well so the chances of the bike running on that are pretty much zilch.

 

So jobs for the weekend are nick the battery off the Spacy to get this one turning over on its own, drain and refill the tank, and try to work out why the feck the front wheel is locked solid - I think someone might have applied the front brake whilst bringing the bike out of storage and the shoes have seized on.  The brake lever, cable and the operating arm on the drum are all free, so it must be something inside.

 

I also took advantage of the fact that I was down south to pick up the new bumper for the Stanza.  I felt guilty paying 99p for a NOS bumper, so I gave the seller a tenner; he then gave me a set of NOS brake pads that he'd also put on eBay but which hadn't sold, so we both ended up happy.  If I get a chance over the weekend I'll take the knackered bumper off the car and see what damage (if any) is lurking behind it...

[Ratdat]

Up at the crack of sparrow fart once more. It must be chod collecting time. w00t!

[beko1987]

Would I need a new sump gasket for when I drop the sump in the meriva? It doesn't leak from the sump at the moment, and I have some hylomar.

 

But a new gaskets only £8, do I buy one just in case and just wang it on or re use the old one. Wcpgw?

[Sloth in a bowl]

Would I need a new sump gasket for when I drop the sump in the meriva? It doesn't leak from the sump at the moment, and I have some hylomar.

 

But a new gaskets only £8, do I buy one just in case and just wang it on or re use the old one. Wcpgw?

 

I tend to take the view that somewhere that can pressurise probably deserves a proper gasket if one is available, so spend the £8 and the job won't need doing a second time.

[RobT]

Just taxed the Metro, so am off for a drive in a bit whilst the sun is still shining. I'll miss not having a tax disc, assuming they are getting rid of it. The most expensive bits of paper in Britain but atleast you've got something tangible to show for it.

[wuvvum]

I've been playing with the new* scooter today.  As the seller said, it fires straight up on Easystart, and, um, it would appear that it's a 2-stroke.  I was convinced these things were 4-stroke .  Still, being a smoker should make it nippier I suppose - although that'll have to wait until I've given the carb a bit of a clean and drained the 19-year-old varnish out of the petrol tank.  I also managed to free the front wheel off - it does appear to have been stuck brake shoes, as beating the shit out of the brake drum with a rubber mallet had the desired effect.  All the electrics work and the tyres hold air, so once it's back together I should be able to take it for a buzz round the block and see if it feels like it'd be up to commuting duties in the summer.

 

I also swapped the battery from the Toyota onto the S60.  The Volvo battery has been losing charge over the course of a couple of days, and I'm not sure whether it's a current drain somewhere or a dying battery, so I decided the easiest way to find out was to fit a different battery.  The Volvo's one should be OK on the Toyota, as that a) gets used every day and b ) takes less cranking over.

 

It was a slightly more involved process than I'm used to - the battery is buried under the boot floor, and the HBOL carried all sorts of dire warnings about allowing enough time before disconnecting the terminals for all the electronics to sort themselves out, and then once the battery is reconnected apparently one has to "initialise the upper electronic module by unlocking the vehicle using the remote control", which I don't have, and also "after reconnecting the battery the engine may run erratically until it's been driven for a few minutes to allow the ECM to relearn".  There was also more bollocks about recalibrating the heater fan and the sunroof.  I thought "fuck that for a game of soldiers", so I cut two bits of wire, stuck an alligator clip on each end and used them to connect the battery off the Spacy to the Volvo's terminals so it didn't lose its 12v feed.  Appears to have done the job, but what a PITA.  ALL MODERNZ R SHIT etc.

[trigger]

I've just made inquires about this...

 

 

 

 

 

2 owners, 31k and MOT till August, it's the 1500 GL model, He's after £500 and it needs taxing, Apparently the 1st owner parked it up in 2001 until last year after damaging the mirror, the current owner bought it, had a bit of welding done and a new fuel pipe and has been using it since.

 

I wonder if this is a step too shite even for me, i only wanted it for Shitefest. 

[hairnet]

acclaim or honda

 

or else

[tooSavvy]

 I thought "fuck that for a game of soldiers", so I cut two bits of wire, stuck an alligator clip on each end and used them to connect the battery off the Spacy to the Volvo's terminals so it didn't lose its 12v feed.  Appears to have done the job, but what a PITA.  ALL MODERNZ R SHIT etc.

 Top $hiteing, mon ami!!

 

TS

[Ratdat]

 All your Cherry Europe GTI's R BELONG 2 ME.

 

[Skizzer]

I wonder if this is a step too shite even for me

 

Only one way to find that out...

 

 Must say, the interior looks a much more pleasant place to be than I'd have expected.  And JRG suits it better than the red or white these usually came in.

 

 All your Cherry Europe GTI's R BELONG 2 ME.

 

 

 

Wahey!  Congratulations.   

[cort16]

The Jag always has an annoying wobble around 80mph, which I didn't do anything about because I'm lazy. It's getting picked up next week so thought I'd get 4 wheels balanced even though I wasn't 100% convinced it'd make any difference. It did, £16 later and it's now super smooth right up to the erm legal limit. I'm gonna miss it.

[RobT]

Go on Trig, as Skizzer says it looks ok inside and those seats will probably be comfy for a long run. I'd pay closer to 400 though if possible.

[trigger]

I'm tempted but i think I'm going to have to pass on it, It's not really "me" plus it's too expensive for me even at £500, once you've factored 6 months road tax and had to live with all the piss taking from the blokes at work...

[Micrashed]

I can Haz a nu road cloggeration device.

6 Berth for all my offspring.

 

Cherry Europe is teh Tits.  Well done that man.

[Ratdat]

Man alive, that's a HUGE caravan for a single axle jobby! What'll you pull it with?

[RobT]

I see what you mean. Fancy a 416GTi? You could try and convert Mrs Trig to autos!

[trigger]

I've been using the Civic this afternoon to drive to Mistley in so that i can take look at this 604 in the other thread, I do enjoy driving this little car, mind you It disgraced itself tonight, after having to brake sharpish for some idiot there's now a grinding noise coming from the brakes, but not all the time strangely.

 

I'm guessing that maybe one of the shoes has come apart in the back, I'll have to take the wheels off again and take a look, bum.

 

 

[Ratdat]

It might be a caliper starting to stick and just holding one pad against the disc a bit. They are buggers for seizing on those, even when the car is in regular use. Same calipers as a Datsun 1200 and they did it too.

[trigger]

Cheers, I wasn't aware of that, I had problems with the brakes when i bought it due to the lack of use over the years so that's quite possible. They do work well still, there just this deep, harsh grinding noise every now and then.

[Ratdat]

It could just as easily be shoes but it is something to watch on them. One of mine decided to seize up when I was out and about one day. It got worse and worse until it started overheating badly. When I pulled over, it had siezed so hard that I couldn't move the car and had to wait an hour for it to cool before having to free it at the roadside. Lucky I had some tools in the car as normally old Japanese stuff is reliable enough to not bother carrying any!

[stuboy]

decided to spice up my rockery with some free bricks and rocks..

[Angrydicky]

had to live with all the piss taking from the blokes at work...

You shouldn't let them influence your choice of car Trig! I've had blokes at my work take the piss out of my cars too, I really don't care. Buy and drive what you want to, and ignore the piss-taking. I understand your frustration though, I'm sure if it was a Capri instead of a Civic you wouldn't have a problem. Although you say you're a Ford man I must say it is refreshing to see another Essex enthusiast actually trying out cars from different manufacturers, and long may it continue.

[trigger]

I just take the piss back! I'm not bothered about pisstaking, especially in my job but I don't want something horrifically shit as I'm pretty fussy with cars and get fed up easily.

 

Although I like Ford's there's plenty of other cars I like too!

[Angrydicky]

Do you still want to sell the Acclaim, if so how much for it? Someone I know is looking for one.

[trigger]

I have two buyers already lined up, one in particular already has 3 of them including a stunning brown one that he's restored himself so he already processes fully fledged shite credentials, he wants it as a daily but needs to sell his ex police Focus first, it's like being in a house buying chain!

 

I've told him I'm after £600 no offers as I think it's worth that all day long, even with its shabby bits.

[wuvvum]

Trig, FWIW, I'm not sure that Samara's necessarily a good idea.  I didn't like mine at all, and I'm not exactly fussy.  Shit as well as shite.

 

Ratdat, that Cherry looks a proper stunner.  Nice work!

[outlaw118]

Spent the afternoon tinkering and cleaning parts of the fleet this afternoon.

 

First job (and ongoing) was to get the inside of The Shed dried out a bit. As some of you similarly afflicted will know, Seats of a certain age leak like bastards from various points. First up was to make sure the drain holes under the plastic dubrey at the bottom of the windscreen were clear. They weren't, thus allowing water to take the path of least resistance through a hole in the bulkhead where wires and stuff go through. I cleared all the crap out, reattached the bits, and gave everything under the bonnet a clean with WD-40 and silver colour magic. LAAAARVLY!! Then i took the sodden mats out, dropped the back seat, and put a heater in there, and a dehumidifier in the front passenger footwell. At the last check, about 45 minutes ago, there's about 2 liters of water in the bucket of the dehumidifier. Blimey!

 

Then, using a dent puller that I bought for about £2 at North Weald market I attempted to prettyfy the dent that I managed to put in the side of my works van; no real need, estimates have been done, just wanted to see if I could make it look a bit better. MORAL: You get what you paid for, tools wise, the suction puller, was totally fucking useless.

 

Mrs_Outlaw's Fester up next, cleared the boot of an unbelievable amount of detritus, took the carpets and soundproofing out, removed the spare wheel and tools etc, and cleaned, swept, hoovered everything, then slapped some polish into the spare wheel well, and put some tyre dressing on the spare. Then colour magic on the inside of the tailgate, cleaned the inside of the window, and sprayed all the plastic trim with some cockpit shine that smelt lovely. Refitting was reverse of removal.

Removed rear number plate, took toothbrush to the crevices round the rear window, and then washed about half the roof, all the tailgate and two drivers side doors. chamois leathered off, OSR wheel cleaned with toothbrush. Colour Magic used round door handles, AutoGlym Super Resin everywhere else. Inside door shuts cleaned and waxed, windows cleaned inside and out.

Other half of the car to be done tomorrow, I ran out of arsed-ness/ Kelly Brook came round and wanted scuttling*

I R VULGALOUR IN DISGUISE.

 

 

*This may not be true.