The new news 24 thread

[The Moog]

Bought a 95 estate, which is just out of MOT. Had it delivered yesterday and bosched in for a test at halfords today.

 

Failed on

Exhaust blow

Low tyre

Handbrake efficiency rubbish on NSR

Sidelight bulb and wiper blades.

 

Hoping it won't cost that much. Going to have to get a garage to do it as moving house means no time.

 

[twosmoke300]

I'm breaking two of those if you need owt

[Shep Shepherd]

^

Watch out for rusty PAS cooler pipes, which on an 9-5 are expensive to buy and a bastard to replace. Guess how I know?

 

Lovely cars otherwise; I wish I'd bought one sooner

[Shep Shepherd]

I'm breaking two of those if you need owt

 

I could do with a couple of obscure trim bits for mine; I'll make a list

[Bren]

Wife's fiesta lumped on ebay. A second child due in october means that even as a second car it's about as much use as a tax disc holder.

[Angrydicky]

The Somerset is still in the garage, they've had it nearly a month now. Latest problem is that the good secondhand rear springs I gave them turned out to be A40 commercial ones which are beefier with extra leaves, so the securing bolts are an inch too short. I'm having to have new bolts custom made by a company in Birmingham because I couldn't find any, anywhere. The correct shock absorbers have been fitted now, so the front suspension is looking much better, with the correct camber, but the car is now stuck on the ramp awaiting these bolts as the axle isn't attached to the leaf springs.

 

The Maestro is back on the road. The problem with the autochoke turned out to be nothing worse than a dirty contact where the ECU is plugged into the carb. It starts first time now, and runs better than it's done for months. To celebrate I've been running it around loads recently! I've been shifting tat around with it and the ex-Des trailer, done a couple of tip runs and I'm off to Maldon tomorrow morning to collect an Ebay A frame purchase. Coincidentally, I looked on Google maps and the seller's house is pretty much opposite the original dealership the Maestro was sold new from. I'm thinking of popping round to see the original owner while I'm there, and actually knocking on her door this time - what's the worst that can happen?

 

The Victor has been my daily for the last month and I've done around 1000 miles in it. The only problem was when the clip holding the wiper blade on disintegrated and the wiper blade fell off, in heavy rain. I moved the good blade and clip onto the drivers side, then sellotaped the broken one onto the passenger side, which lasted until I was able to get a replacement clip.

Being a 2300 slant four I wasn't expecting it to be economical, but it's seriously thirsty - I think it's only doing early 20s MPG. It goes well though, and gets lots of attention. Unfortunately I have a bad left knee, and the Victor clutch was making it worse. It has a very long travel and a very high bite point, and when I got stuck in stop-start traffic on the M25 for two hours last week my knee was agony. I'm hoping it will be more manageable once I get the new clutch fitted, which came yesterday. The Maestro clutch is so much easier for me to use!

I'm still on the lookout for the propshaft from an overdrive-equipped FE VX4/90, to go with my new overdrive gearbox once it arrives from the Isle of Lewis! It should be going into the bodyshop next week to have one wing and the bootlid resprayed due to old naff repairs letting the car down, then it'll be time to sort out the mechanical side. There's still a lot of oil leaking out of the engine, most of which seems to be coming from the front camshaft seal, so I'll probably get that done as well, and the cambelt at the same time.

[scdan4]

Bong. 

 

Top up coolant fluid.

 

 

 

CUNT!!!!!!!!!1111!!11!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully just the air working its way out.  No mayo in oil. Water still clear other than K seal flakes.

 

He seemed such a nice man.

[twosmoke300]

Saab ?

 

Heater control valve on the bulkhead ?

[scdan4]

Saab ?

 

Heater control valve on the bulkhead ?

 

Done last week. All dry there now.

[twosmoke300]

Rad went on mine last month !

Something

Almost

Always

Broken

 

I've found it's best to leave one fault on the car to prevent new faults occurring

[scdan4]

Rad went on mine last month !

Something

Almost

Always

Broken

 

I've found it's best to leave one fault on the car to prevent new faults occurring

 

Gremlin Theory:

 

There are a certain number of gremlins, always, in a car. As it gets older they breed.

 

Either they work individually - each one makes a niggling fault somewhere. Smeary wiper, rattle or creak, sticky switch.

 

Or (and this is bad) they all team up and work together on a much more impressive* fault somewhere else (meaning that everything works remarkably well for a bit before the Clank Rattle Bang Wallet).

 

 

Apart from the coolant loss and overly intrusive health and safety BONG BONG BONG shite, it's running very well.

 

 

I'm not confident! 

[Lord Sterling]

Radio seems to have stopped working in the Merc, all other stuff on the sound system works, CD/AUX but the radio just isn't picking up any stations, can't see an obvious problem anywhere but will have to try and source and try a new arial

 

Merc is going back in soon for another viscous fan change + fan clutch and general service. The power steering fluid is Black.

[catsinthewelder]

Would it not be easier just to drag one of your 800's out of hibination?

[The Moog]

I'm breaking two of those if you need owt

What colour?

 

Only issue is rust on petrol filler flap, so could do with swapping it for a good one at some point. Oh and what alloys have you got for on the ones you are breaking?

 

Not a mega fan of leather seats as seem to be a bit to slippery and have less support than the pug ones.

 

Other than mot failures the pixels have disappeared, scrapes on bumpers, pas groaning a bit.

 

Saab don't have gremlins... They have trolls..

[twosmoke300]

The aero estate breaker is the mid blue metallic and the se saloon is doom blue

[twosmoke300]

Std alloys 16 inch 5 spoke and multi spoke . I've already had the hammerheads off the aero !

[scdan4]

Std alloys 16 inch 5 spoke and multi spoke . I've already had the hammerheads off the aero !

 

oooooooooooo.

 

Are the tyres any good and of a known brand on the 5 spokes?

[twosmoke300]

Don't think so but will check on Monday when I go back in

[The Moog]

Tried taking rear caliper off the civic to do the brakes. After much swearing gave up and phoned fitquick. Rear discs and pads fitted £265. Ouch

 

Been back out and applied brute forcek with success. Zero friction material on one side.

 

Of course ECP have sent me wrong pads. Will have to fix it later on in week.

 

[vulgalour]

LS:  before buying an aerial, remove the radio and check the aerial is still actually plugged in properly.  For some strange reason they can work loose when other jobs are done on a car.

[twosmoke300]

Mr moog, without teaching granny to suck eggs but check the caliper sliders for seizure . Lube with cv grease or rubber grease . Also make sure you align the cross in the piston with the tit on the back of the pad before you refit

[catsinthewelder]

Ms C's Disco no longer has HGF.  I got it started up yesterday but sorting out a couple of oil and fuel leaks and flushing the cooling system through took a bit longer.  The oil return pipe off the turbo was the biggest headache,  I thought I was going to have to take the manifolds off to get it lined up but some desperate manhandling of the pipe got everything lined up in the end.

[ruffgeezer]

The rev counter in the Ax has sprung back into life, so apologies in advance for whoever's Citroen breaks today.

[JohnK]

Why is it so difficult to sell a car sometimes? I had some dickhead viewing the Merc today and he had a moan because it ha a bit of a chip out the wood on the interior and the front suspension 'felt saggy and needs bushes changing' - despite the fact I've changed them all and it's spot on.

 

After him chewing my ear off for ten mins I told him to Foxtrot Oscar and refused to sell it to him. No amount of him waving cash in my face could tempt me. He struck me as the sort person who would just constantly hassle me after the sale about how he's been ripped off or something and I really can't be chewed with them sort of folk.

[JohnK]

On the plus side, the next guy to test drive it seemed fairly chuffed with it...

 

[Lord Sterling]

Would it not be easier just to drag one of your 800's out of hibination?

No, it would be more expensive and more time consuming. Just getting the Merc the best that I can. A new viscous fan + fan clutch are on thier way plus it'll also get a service.

 

LS:  before buying an aerial, remove the radio and check the aerial is still actually plugged in properly.  For some strange reason they can work loose when other jobs are done on a car.

Oddly enough, whilst in a different part of town today, the radio started picking up stations again, but returning to my area, no stations again. This place used to be abke to pick up stations no problem. Odd.

 

Why is it so difficult to sell a car sometimes? I had some dickhead viewing the Merc today and he had a moan because it ha a bit of a chip out the wood on the interior and the front suspension 'felt saggy and needs bushes changing' - despite the fact I've changed them all and it's spot on.

After him chewing my ear off for ten mins I told him to Foxtrot Oscar and refused to sell it to him. No amount of him waving cash in my face could tempt me. He struck me as the sort person who would just constantly hassle me after the sale about how he's been ripped off or something and I really can't be chewed with them sort of folk.

This'll be the "I know my rights" brigade. The ones that take those bloody daytime "consumer" shows overly seriously and expect the moon on a stick for free.

 

People these days have got it into thier heads that they "have a right" to negotiate at least 75% off the asking price should the tinest of scratches be found. They think they "have a right" to a almost expect an almost brand new car free of age-related bumps/scratches so they can feel smug about thier car.

[The Moog]

Mr moog, without teaching granny to suck eggs but check the caliper sliders for seizure . Lube with cv grease or rubber grease . Also make sure you align the cross in the piston with the tit on the back of the pad before you refit

Will be doing that before goes back on. It's just crusty back there, I assume not been touched for a while.

 

Top slider had slightly rounded so will need to clean and file t flat before refitting

[richardmorris]

Drove the 2cv 85 miles to a little village outside Stroud this morning to pick up two seats for the X1/9. After a bit of a faff with him not answering his phone for two hours, I went for lunch in the pub and one of the locals offered to go and get him:-)

I also bought on spec a custom stainless exhaust- now a "feature" in my living room after a quick polish. For £40 I didn't think I could go wrong, given new mild steel ones ar £180. I don't plan on fitting it until the current exhaust fails so wil store it away for a few years.

[Noel Tidybeard]

... and in other news the renner 19 now has not 3, but 4 door central locking!

[320touring]

Anything Cavcraft can do, I can do better;)

 

https://fuguttycars.wordpress.com/2015/05/10/defibrillating-florence-the-fiat/