The new news 24 thread

[richardmorris]

This is the postcode for the aldershot tyre place.

 

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=GU11+1JG&hl=en&ll=51.247644,-0.758159&spn=0.001259,0.001979&sll=51.256275,-0.766457&sspn=0.005036,0.007918&t=h&hnear=Aldershot+GU11+1JG,+United+Kingdom&z=19&layer=c&cbll=51.247761,-0.758466&panoid=EHOTzjr8AHspqZqiJcB-Wg&cbp=12,345,,0,0

[dollywobbler]

Doblo sounds good value to me Mr Boll. I think a genuinely clean, well maintained van is still sought after.

[cort16]

There are hardly any decent vans for sale for under a grand so I don't think you'll have many problems shifting it other than the obvious postman twat jokes.

[gordonbennet]

One of the first things i look at on a daily driver type motor is the tyres and wheels, try and zoom in on pics before considering, if they're knackered mixed crap of dubious worth in the first place i usually shy away unless the car is dirt cheap, if the owner can't be bothered to spend on the most important and visible part of the car then sure as hell they haven't given a tuppeny for the unseen stuff, like oils filters brakes etc.

 

BMW on cheapo tyres meaning likely equivalent care is definately one to avoid.

[Richard]

I had a half day today to get my finger checked. It's not pretty but the nurse reckons it's not broken or infected.

 

 

I decided to spend the rest of the afternoon sorting out the clicking check strap on the Volvo. It's caused by fractured spot welds where it's attached to the door pillar, which allows it to flex. Apparently welding doesn't always last long, and there's a lot to catch fire there, so the cure is to drill out the spot welds and put in M6 bolts with large washers.

 

 

Door off first, a grub screw on each hinge, a screw on the wiring plug and the check strap bolt are all you need to undo before you can lift the door off.

 

 

First bolt in, the nylock nut held by a 10mm spanner through a convenient hole.

 

 

Both bolts in, looks shit but nobody will see it. The spanner wouldn't quite work on the second nut so some modification was required...

 

 

A massive fight ensued trying to bolt the check strap back on. I was convinced there was something wrong with it so I opened up the door to have a look. There was nothing wrong with it so I fought with it some more and won. Then I realised I'd forgotten to fit three rubber bits so it had to come off again.

 

 

All back together again and I resisted the urge to go for a drive with the door off.

[trigger]

it's not been the most productive of days, as it was nice this morning I decided to clean and polish my Focus for the first time since I've owned it, just as I finished it bloody rained covering it in that fine sand that's blowing over from the Sahara at the moment, I might as well not bothered.

Whilst I was at it I had the dash out to see if I could fix the none working LED display, it wasn't too bad to take out so I gave it all a good clean and spray with some electric board cleaner, I might as well not bothered with that either as it made sod all difference, I personally think it's a dry solder on the current board but it's not very good that a 5 year old car can lose it milometer already.



I ended up giving the Civic a really good clean and polish instead ready for a show on Sunday, at least that still looks nice.

[dugong]

I've driven a Daewoo Kalos with no doors, bonnet or boot. It was AMAZING. 
Shouty biscuit man left the keys in it and I had a spare battery. 

BRRRRROM. 

[Heidel_Kakao]

I think I will have to do that on my 940 soon Richard, I have been mainly being ignoring the loud clicking noise as it didn't really seem to affect the operation of the doors. What happens if you don't bother fixing it?

[Richard]

On the 850 it would continue to flex until the check strap mount broke out of the door pillar.

 

It might not be the same thing causing it on the 940 though, it could be a worn pin. On all the other cars I've had with noisy check straps it's been movement in the pin where it meets the door pillar, usually because the pin has broken and been replaced with a nail or something.

[Timewaster]

all down hill after 31

As someone who is older than 31, I can happily say 'that's bollocks!'

In other news DW said

"My foot hurts"

As one who is almost 41, your 30's are nothing to worry about tt.

[The Moog]

Fixed the intermittent passenger Central locking on xantia. All by accident a passenger pulled off the locking button. It seems that was tight and not allowing the button to stay down (ooeeerr). Button left off and now all works.all for the price of free

[cort16]

My lease car goes back at the end of April and I'm thinking of saving some dosh and buying something for about 3 and a half grand to get me up and down the road. Ive been looking around but can't see past Alfa 159s. A cheap Alfa wcpgw?

[vulgalour]

Today, while sorting through spares and whatnot, I decided to pull the radio out of the beige car.  Reason being, whenever I put the radio on I'm so annoyed by whatever is playing I immediately turn it off again and my old tapes don't play properly anymore either.  So I fitted the spare blanking plate I have to fill the hole in the dash.

 

I hope I'm not the only person to ever remove a radio and fit a blanking plate because if I am I think that makes me a proper sad bastard.

[anonymous user]

 

As one who is almost 41, your 30's are nothing to worry about tt.

and as one who won't see 50 again (by some margin) your 40s are nothing to worry about either

 

*any advance, I'm sure I'm not the oldest

[gordonbennet]

* nope not telling, my dad was 41 for about 15 years, seems like a plan.

[stuboy]

not much washed mates mum car..

and saw this in the shops..

[dollywobbler]

Oh gawd. I get fed up with 'hilarious' people fitting those sodding things to their 2CVs. The sort of people who would actually have a 'you don't have to be mad to work here but it helps!!!!!' signs on their desk.

[Hertz]

Had a day out a the seaside (Southport) yesterday with the tribe. First long run in the camper since we bought it just after Christmas. It's slow, I'm not used to getting constantly overtaken! Never missed a beat though to be fair and the kids loved it. No pineapples involved I promise.

 

[simmo]

Local totters are running around in this, its on foreign plates, what is it please?

 

 

[cobblers]

hey hertz, that looks like a nice van! it's the right colour for a start. I'd guess it's a 1.9 petrol - they are a pain to upgrade the engine on, but shouldn't be "dangerously" slow really, just a bit sluggish. the carbs are absolute wank though so swapping to a weber apparently is amazing. 

[vulgalour]

I think that funny looking truck is a TATA but I couldn't tell you which one.

 

EDIT:  It might be a Super Ace.

[Hertz]

hey hertz, that looks like a nice van! it's the right colour for a start. I'd guess it's a 1.9 petrol - they are a pain to upgrade the engine on, but shouldn't be "dangerously" slow really, just a bit sluggish. the carbs are absolute wank though so swapping to a weber apparently is amazing. 

 

Yes it is a 1.9 (had a new VEGE engine last year and the carb was apparently rebuilt). It's OK performance wise for what it is, sits on the motorway at 55 to 60 with little fuss, inclines are a different story.

 

The van itself is a RHD Caravelle converted in the late 80's at a guess using a Westfalia "Mosiak" kit. Must be really un-desirable with the VW T25 aficionados not being a genuine Westfalia and also the colour being Beige. That's why I bought it.

[Jim Bergerac]

Local totters are running around in this, its on foreign plates, what is it please?

 

 

IMG_4114.JPG

 

Kia Bongo: http://www.ilkemotomotiv.com/images/cars/kia-bongo-yedek-parca.jpg

 

Funnily enough, this morning there were some rag and bone men going round my street. I honestly can't remember the last time there were any round here. They were announcing their visit via the means of a megaphone as they drove round. Annoying, as I was trying to sleep.

[vulgalour]

I'm wide awake because I'm anxious about the welding assessment the beige car is having tomorrow.  There's one small area on the floor where it meets the inner sill that needs putting right for the MoT and while it should be a £40-60 repair I have these waking nightmares of it becoming a hideously expensive repair that I can't afford because we all know what old cars are like.  I've also been having this absurd repeating horror in my imagination of them accidentally setting my car on fire when doing the repairs or even refusing point blank once assessed because the car is regarded as too low value to warrant doing it.  That last worry is probably a valid one, I've been turned away by bodyshop and repair places just because of what the car is.

[Angrydicky]

That's why you should save up for a MIG welder and have a go yourself Vulg. All a garage will do is slap a plate over the rot and in a year or two it'll need doing again. Harsh but true, and having plates on the underside is not great for the long-term survival of the car either. I could never have afforded to pay a bodyshop or garage to do all the bodywork the Maestro needed - it probably would have cost £1000 or so to do it properly, which of course is far more than the car is worth. With old, shite cars, the only way to do it cost-effectively and properly is to do it yourself. Give it a try - MIG welding is very satisfying, and actually very easy to get the hang of.

[Lukas]

I made the same experience. My 87 Pajero had a small rust-hole in the boot-floor. Easily accessible. I don´t have a welder (yet) and don´t know ho to weld (for now), so I brought it to a garage to have it welded.

 

When I got it back, the mechanic showed me the plate they welded in. Looked very nice and well-done. I drove of and was well chuffed. Until I got under the car and saw the rust-hole, just with a plate welded on top of it from the inside of the vehicle.  

 

I phoned the garage and they told me I should spray some waxoyl on it from the underside and it´ll be fine.   They never see me again!

 

This was the day I swore to get me a welder and learn welding myself.

 

Lukas

[dollywobbler]

The alternative is to try and find a proper old-school fabricator who works for peanuts. Took me a while, but I've managed to do that. My mate Dave doesn't charge the earth, but does a proper 'cut the rot out' job. Plating sucks, and the underseal they'll slap on it will keep the rust at bay for about two months max. Ask them not to underseal it, then at least coat it with zinc primer and some proper paint. It'll still rot from the inside out eventually, but that'll hopefully slow it down a bit.

[cort16]

I think having a MIG is an almost mandatory tool for working on old cars. I use mine all the time not only for welding up rust holes but for putting in captive nuts, repairing broken brackets and making up little tools.

[vulgalour]

Just got back from dropping the car off and having a pleasant* walk home.  I would do this repair myself but to be perfectly honest there isn't the space or spare cash for a MIG and once I've moved I'll have access to a very nice MIG and a nice workshop space so this is very much a stop-gap measure to see me through an MoT so that once I've moved I can do the bodywork restoration properly on the rest of the car.  I've got a welder, but the stick is not well suited to the area or the thickness of metal I'd be working and I don't think I'm of a high enough skill to weld upside-down yet.

 

I'll find out what the damage is in a couple of hours.  Once this is repaired I can get on with the other MoT jobs, I reckon I've got all the parts I need now with the possible exception of spare bleed nipples for when I bleed the brakes.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Good luck Vulg!!!! Fingers x'd for you.