The new news 24 thread

8,688 · February 10

Tramper van has progressed.

Pretty much some soft furnishings away from complete.

8,688 · February 10

The old caravan cushions even match the paint scheme what.

They are however a little overlong.

Can fix that though this will do for now.

13,481 · February 10

So, the Vectra has had an MoT pass after some rectification work. It's had tie-rod ends etc... and the power steering pipe issue was traced to a split in the pipe which has been rectified.

Still got advisories mainly for 3 tyres that are close to legal limit on the inner edge and some underneath.

The tyres I'm hoping to change soon as they are wrong size. The underside can be cleaned up and undersealed at some point.

I also need to get the oil leak sorted and the air-conditioning system working again.

10,172 · February 10

3 hours ago, Rustybullethole said:

Tramper van has progressed.

Pretty much some soft furnishings away from complete.

Your bi-folding seat/bed looks great. Do you mind if I nick the idea for the hearse? Too many camper/caravans have vertical seat backs which are uncomfortable - your design with the piano hinge allows for a raked back. Shuttering ply too keep the budget reasonable too. 👍

8,688 · February 10

18 minutes ago, Sunny Jim said:

Your bi-folding seat/bed looks great. Do you mind if I nick the idea for the hearse? Too many camper/caravans have vertical seat backs which are uncomfortable - your design with the piano hinge allows for a raked back. Shuttering ply too keep the budget reasonable too. 👍

Thanks. Don't mind at all. Its a bit rough and ready though serves the purpose and as you say budget friendly. Main downside is weight though at some point i'm sure i'll load more weight on top of it when the Citroen gets used as a van. I'd of liked some better quality ply ideally though it's chuffing expensive these days.

Don't they know it grows on trees.

Edited February 10 by Rustybullethole

10,172 · February 10

@Rustybullethole the only thing with using a "solid" sheet of ply for a bed base is that it doesn't allow your mattress to "breathe" and it can end up damp/going mouldy. Might be worth putting some holes in it with a hole saw - will make it lighter too.

8,688 · February 10

47 minutes ago, Sunny Jim said:

@Rustybullethole the only thing with using a "solid" sheet of ply for a bed base is that it doesn't allow your mattress to "breathe" and it can end up damp/going mouldy. Might be worth putting some holes in it with a hole saw - will make it lighter too.

Indeed and that it shall. Funnily enough my caravan seat bed decks have no holes in them. The caravan ones get damp though no mould. They are vented slightly by having a lift up panel though have been meaning to add more air flow.

The bed in the Berlingo will get the same lift up panels and some holes added too.

63,079 · February 10

Got a message from the accident repair place today saying the Ampera has been inspected and they are awaiting authority to proceed with repairs. So presumably that means it's not a write-off, unless that's a pattern text they send out to everyone...

33,987 · February 10

More BMW fun in the scheißhoosen that is my garage.

I am hoping that the code for the o2 sensor might be a bit of a red herring as I also got one for the throttle position sensor. On a normal* car, accessing and removing the throttle body is easy. Not so on an M54.

The TB is buried under the air intake paraphernalia, the DISA valve, the idle control valve (twat), some loom and it sits on the side of the inlet. It's an absolute hoor to remove, especially the hose clamp that attaches the last bit of intake to the TB (cunt). It's so tight that the worm drive can only sit at one position and it's hell to get to.

Anyway, got it all off and cleaned up the TB.

As you can see before cleaning it wasn't too bad so I reckon it might be the o2 sensor after all. Oh well, free fixes must be tried first.

Disa valve also looked decent.

Someone's been in before me and snapped a 10 mil that holds the idle control valve on but I don't think it matters as it's still secure.

17,674 · February 11

On 09/02/2025 at 09:25, davehedgehog31 said:

Visiting The Netherlands, Germany or our Nordic neighbours really highlight how neglected, outdated and unfit much of our transport infrastructure is here. Properly depressing returning to the UK

I enjoyed reading your travelogue Dave, and yes to the above. Increasingly I can't be bothered doing any significant mileage in this country, and would much rather just book a Eurotunnel crossing and have an easier time on the continent. Being only 1 hour 20 from Folkestone helps with that obviously.

24,116 · February 11

3,072 · February 11

Panic over, you can all stop searching now. I went on the hunt for a knackered compressor out of my Mercedes last night and found the security remote from a Kenwood car stereo l have been trying to find for 25 years. 😁

The battery is original and still holding 3.2V. 🫢

13,907 · February 12

I purchased this... anyone used it before? I was looking for a corrosion remover for electrical plugs etc and seen this. Wernt cheap.. shiter in me now don't wanna use it as cost lots more than wd40 does.

21,243 · February 12

A tear in the space-time continum this morning.

As with all Rootes products beautifully detailed design exuding quality.

Manufactured at their Dunstable plant - then converted to a camper by someone professional (maybe Dormobile?). Now a food truck - but not ruined to convert back sometime.

A rare sight - hardly ever see them - at one time they were everywhere.

Full history of these vans here:

https://www.allpar.com/d3/squads/spacevan.html

40,336 · February 12

On 10/02/2025 at 22:39, Split_Pin said:

More BMW fun in the scheißhoosen that is my garage.

I am hoping that the code for the o2 sensor might be a bit of a red herring as I also got one for the throttle position sensor. On a normal* car, accessing and removing the throttle body is easy. Not so on an M54.

The TB is buried under the air intake paraphernalia, the DISA valve, the idle control valve (twat), some loom and it sits on the side of the inlet. It's an absolute hoor to remove, especially the hose clamp that attaches the last bit of intake to the TB (cunt). It's so tight that the worm drive can only sit at one position and it's hell to get to.

Anyway, got it all off and cleaned up the TB.

As you can see before cleaning it wasn't too bad so I reckon it might be the o2 sensor after all. Oh well, free fixes must be tried first.

Disa valve also looked decent.

Someone's been in before me and snapped a 10 mil that holds the idle control valve on but I don't think it matters as it's still secure.

Did you clean the ICV when you were there? They should rattle when disconnected and off. If it doesn't then it needs cleaning.

33,987 · February 12

19 minutes ago, SiC said:

Did you clean the ICV when you were there? They should rattle when disconnected and off. If it doesn't then it needs cleaning.

I went as far as spraying brake cleaner in it and letting it run through but due to my ignorance I didn't want to go any further. Very easy to take off again if my problems persist though.

23,030 · February 12

Might have agreed to purchase a new car.

(edit: it's not totally shite)

4,867 · February 12

The new bolts and washers for the couriering Caddys fuel filter housing turned up earlier.

Went out to fit them and the fuel filter housing is bone dry - I have done over 600 miles since I serviced on Sunday, so its had a good run.

I did nip the bolts up and put a slather of vaseline around the rubber seal, must have done the job.

As I have a habit of doing jobs that don't need doing and everything going wrong, I decided to leave well alone and put the bolts somewhere safe for the next service.

Top computer desk drawer, in the study. Remind me please folks when I can't find them in a few months.....

4,867 · February 12

I've also been playing with a new toy. I decided to put a cheap tracker on the van, more for seeing what I've done/places I've been, than for security, its far more in depth than I expected and there are quite a few reports that it can run - very impressed so far. Fitted over the weekend and so far.

Routes I've done.

Miles, cost and co2.

It provides events for harsh acceleration (not possible in my van🤣), harsh braking and aggressive cornering.

The idling score was probably caused by two things, rush hour on the M42 and a crash on the A50 near Stoke, but maybe I need to corner a bit more sedately.....

32,139 · February 12

Oooh, link?

12,557 · February 12

6 hours ago, lesapandre said:

A tear in the space-time continum this morning.

As with all Rootes products beautifully detailed design exuding quality.

Manufactured at their Dunstable plant - then converted to a camper by someone professional (maybe Dormobile?). Now a food truck - but not ruined to convert back sometime.

A rare sight - hardly ever see them - at one time they were everywhere.

Full history of these vans here:

https://www.allpar.com/d3/squads/spacevan.html

Ahhh.... P.O. Vanning 👍

I chopped the 'waistline' strip out of one, in the scrappies, using a bolster chisel.. to get welded into my IMP (front lower panel) .. good job too ✔️

🚙💨

4,867 · February 12

22 minutes ago, loserone said:

Oooh, link?

https://www.trutrak.co.uk/

Strangely the trackers were a bit cheaper, with discount codes, on ebay https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/184337269963

32,139 · February 12

£60 a year. Not bad!

4,867 · February 12

5 minutes ago, loserone said:

£60 a year. Not bad!

Yea seems decent value, I used to pay £15+ the tonic per month about 10 years ago for similar.

32,139 · February 12

Pretty sure there will be no harsh cornering or heavy braking events for the express

10,842 · February 12

7 hours ago, lesapandre said:

A tear in the space-time continum this morning.

As with all Rootes products beautifully detailed design exuding quality.

Manufactured at their Dunstable plant - then converted to a camper by someone professional (maybe Dormobile?). Now a food truck - but not ruined to convert back sometime.

A rare sight - hardly ever see them - at one time they were everywhere.

Full history of these vans here:

https://www.allpar.com/d3/squads/spacevan.html

That's not a Dormabile roof.

13,360 · February 12

12 minutes ago, barefoot said:

That's not a Dormabile roof.

Go on then, tell us what it is, he did say maybe, and it's quite similar.

1,287 · February 12

I purchased this... anyone used it before? I was looking for a corrosion remover for electrical plugs etc and seen this. Wernt cheap.. shiter in me now don't wanna use it as cost lots more than wd40 does.

A lot of the U.S. youtubers I watch swear by it and I have used it before and rate it.
Just do not like spending £20+ on a can when isopropyl alcohol is so cheap and good at cleaning electrical contacts.
Think it's only 5% deoxit secret blend, mostly white spirit and then the propellent in the can.

20,263 · February 12

well, that's getting into Newcastle from the south basically fucked then !

13,907 · February 12

Thought it was time to change the pollen filter.

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