The new news 24 thread

[vulgalour]

According to the melted numbers on the cover, it had belt, tensioner and pump done at 54k.  Car is now on 104k.  I've put all the paperwork in a Safe Place so I don't know whether or not it's due or not due so I'm erring on the side of caution by pricing it up and figuring out if I can do it.  Is it a 75k interval on changes, or have I made that up?  I've certainly not done it during my ownership.

 

There's all sorts of little things that aren't quite right on the car that I can't diagnose easily.  Ride height continues to be an irritation, some days it's level and fine and no bother and then other days it insists on being a hot rod.  Some days the brakes behave perfectly, others they squeak and squeal like buggery.  Some days it won't start - diesel or veg or mix - and others it starts without bother.  Sometimes the blower fan doesn't work, sometimes it does.  Sometimes the central locking doesn't work, sometimes it does.  The coolant low light sometimes comes on regardless of how much coolant is in.  The engine management light comes once every few weeks and then goes off again for no reason.

 

It's charmless and anodyne, it's all the things I hate about modern cars.  It's practical and competent and trouble free, it's all the things I like about old cars.  Bloody thing.

[sofarsogood]

Pitched new invention to Apple today. The i funnel, wear this when working under hopeless old cars to ensure all small particles of rust/crud etc can be funneled directly into your retina. 

[vulgalour]

If your invention isn't white, fragile and demands constant updates that don't work, Apple won't want to hear.  Remember to make your iFunnel a very pretty abject failure to ensure success.

[rml2345]

Also remember to market the iDoctor as an essential upgrade that costs four times the ridiculous iFunnel price.

[purplebargeken]

Vulg - it's French and therefore perfectly normal.

[M'coli]

XUD belt interval is about 50,000 miles, IIRC.

 

I did the belt and waterpump on the TU in the 106 on Monday, it was last changed in 2007 about 50,000 miles ago. I'd only had the belt kit and pump for the last two years or so, I reckoned I'd left the roulette long enough.

Waterpump was the original, and as usual the worst part of the job was bleeding the cooling system afterwards - it's a right pain in the arse on the little Pug, if you get an airlock and can't crack a bleed valve in time it's hot coolant spilling onto hotter exhaust manifold.

[twosmoke300]

An xud td cambelt isn't the nicest job tbh . Mainly due to lack of room against the inner wing / bulkhead area . Xantia might be a bit better than most due to larger vehicle

[doobietoo]

I thought all French cars were like this......

[M'coli]

A 1/4" socket set helps greatly, I've found.

[dollywobbler]

Official interval is 72k, but many snappages mean 50k is more sensible. I've managed it before, so it must be fairly easy. Just frustratingly tight for access, as explained.

[jonathan_dyane]

Vulg, unlike lesser engines the XUD rarely needs the timing belt tensioners replacing because they're actually made out of a proper mental roller and a decent bearing rather being a load of plastic crap.

 

It's well worth doing the water pump while it's in bits though and doesn't make the job much longer or harder.

[Lacquer Peel]

I've not known an XUD to break a timing belt. I'm fairly sure my last 405 TD was on its original belt at 135k, the tensioner, rollers and water pump were still perfect.

[angle]

I got my Xantia's cambelt done at 50k / 10 years since the last one - my tame Citroen specialist told me that the tensioners and water pump both seemed fine and not to worry about changing them. Shame he couldn't say the same about my (stupidly expensive and allegedly ridiculously fiddly to change) aux belt tensioner...

[tooSavvy]

Im in York.

 

Going to Pret a Manger about 10:45

 

STAY AWAY !!!!

 

 

TS

[Lacquer Peel]

I got my Xantia's cambelt done at 50k / 10 years since the last one - my tame Citroen specialist told me that the tensioners and water pump both seemed fine and not to worry about changing them. Shame he couldn't say the same about my (stupidly expensive and allegedly ridiculously fiddly to change) aux belt tensioner...

The timing belt tensioner doesn't have a lot to do, the aux belt tensioner has to cope with accessories and varying loads.

The aux belt tensioner body broke in two on my Octavia. VAG quality*.

[vulgalour]

So... I'm probably okay to leave it be but since it's at about the 50k mark it's sensible to get it changed.  It's an arse of a job (just like everything in the engine bay on this thing) but when it's done I can forget about it for probably the rest of my ownership of it.  Got ya.

[Coprolalia]

Throttle body gasket ordered for Octavia direct from VW. Collect tomorrow am.

 

That'll be £3.20 sir.

 

It's tinkering time.

[dave21478]

non car related, but some fabrication work....

 

A customer asked me to build them a decent sized tipping hand cart.

 

Yesterday was spent getting sweaty in the garage and dropping hot metal down my socks.

 

I made the swivel from the bearing from a heavy duty castor and an old Vauxhall wheel rim. I ran out of square tube after doing the body so the chassis is made from leftovers of round tube and angle iron.

Those wee wheels.....€19 each was the cheapest I found in the DIY store, but they sold sack barrows with the same two wheels included for €23!

 

The paint dried overnight and I assembled it this morning.

 

 

 

[dave21478]

Potential new purchase coming up this weekend.

 

I spotted an ad on LeBonCoin last night that I liked. No number so I emailed the dude and he called back his morning. The car is very low mileage, giffer owned and garaged all its life. Hopefully this combined with the climate will have avoided the galloping rot these things usually suffer from. Its in my least favourite colour, but thats typical - cant really afford to be fussy about stuff like that at this price and condition though.

 

Going to view Sunday morning.

*excited face*

[Tetleysmooth]

non car related, but some fabrication work....

 

A customer asked me to build them a decent sized tipping hand cart.

 

Yesterday was spent getting sweaty in the garage and dropping hot metal down my socks.

 

I made the swivel from the bearing from a heavy duty castor and an old Vauxhall wheel rim. I ran out of square tube after doing the body so the chassis is made from leftovers of round tube and angle iron.

Those wee wheels.....€19 each was the cheapest I found in the DIY store, but they sold sack barrows with the same two wheels included for €23!

 

The paint dried overnight and I assembled it this morning.

 

P1010046.JPG

P1010047.JPG

P1010048.JPG

P1010049.JPG

Excellent job.

Did the wheels need tracking/balancing?

 

Seriously though, nice little tipping trolley that.

You could sell those to SleazyJet, for customers' luggage.

[rml2345]

Tune in tomorrow morning for a live collection thread...

[320touring]

Tune in tomorrow morning for a live collection thread...

lemme AX you a quessun?

[rml2345]

Was that an AXident? You might be on to something AXually...

[320touring]

Was that an AXident? You might be on to something AXually...

AXually, you let slip;)

[oldcars]

I almost* tipped the Reliant on the way to work. I really NEED to check the tyre pressure tonight on the way home.

[cort16]

I was tasked with going to B&Q to get a bit of decorative MDF or something to block the balustrade on our landing so cort JNR can't take a header off it. What I came back with was a bit of garden fence. It might be a hard sell.

[dollywobbler]

I think I've decided to have this shambolic Dyane. What better to spend a tax refund on? 

 

I have a few options regarding collection. 

 

1) Borrow a car trailer, drag it home with the XM as is.

2) Chuck a bit more money at the vendor. He'll MOT it. Drive it home. 

3) Halfway house. Get it welded, then fetch it home with the trailer OR swallow a brave pill, book it in for an MOT nearer home and drive home.

 

It needs a pedal box (I have spares) and wheels and tyres (I guess my 2CV would lend them). Not sure how I get them to the car yet, which is in Wiltshire. So, trailering it home does make some sort of sense. Then I can fit the pedal box and wheels/tyres at my leisure. 

 

Here's me yesterday gravity feeding some fuel into it. Sounds lovely. Even though the exhaust is like swiss cheese.

[Ghosty]

I do have to AX: is it purple? 

 

 

A4's replacement headlights arrived today. They seem to be different on the inside (new units Valeo, old ones Bosch) as well as being a bit knackered so we might have to swap the guts over and just replace the damaged casings. We were hafway through cleaning them but Old Man went to 'check his emails' when in actuality he's fucked off to do his taxes or something else involving a load of bills, so I've fucked off onto AS. 

Meanwhile these arrived too: 

 

 

Much, much better than the abominations on there at the moment - post 2001 font, red border, and a GB flag that's both in the wrong font and has both EU and union flags on it and looks like tacky shite. Not going on for a couple of weeks as they're half of Old Man's birthday present, the other half is a genuine boxed Audi keyring I got for £2.50 on eBay. 

[cort16]

I think I've decided to have this shambolic Dyane. What better to spend a tax refund on? 

 

I have a few options regarding collection. 

 

1) Borrow a car trailer, drag it home with the XM as is.

2) Chuck a bit more money at the vendor. He'll MOT it. Drive it home. 

3) Halfway house. Get it welded, then fetch it home with the trailer OR swallow a brave pill, book it in for an MOT nearer home and drive home.

 

It needs a pedal box (I have spares) and wheels and tyres (I guess my 2CV would lend them). Not sure how I get them to the car yet, which is in Wiltshire. So, trailering it home does make some sort of sense. Then I can fit the pedal box and wheels/tyres at my leisure. 

 

Here's me yesterday gravity feeding some fuel into it. Sounds lovely. Even though the exhaust is like swiss cheese.

 

Is that the engine you're holding?

[anonymous user]

^ No it is a small can of petrol, it's a bit like trying to tempt a stubborn donkey along with a carrot, Mr Wobbler walks along in front dripping the petrol and the hungry Dyane will follow him home.