The new news 24 thread

[Bear]

I have reached a new low. Not mine and actually I shouldn't be mean about it because it's a good, clean car.

I helped my friends get a Saab 9-5 3.0 Griffin estate. It was lush and I wanted it myself, can't believe how cheap and well specced it was. COOLED bloody seats FFS!

In return, I am looking after/selling* their Xsara Picasso and the cluster of broken cars means I actually really appreciate getting a clean, FWD, low-mileage, MOTd and not-broken car to pootle about in for a couple of weeks.

But.

Xsara.

Picasso.

Shoot me now. Please.

(* year's MOT on sale given how clean it is, 1.6 petrol, A/C, that blue colour they all seem to be, 68K miles, very clean inside & out, 2004. Aiming for £1500 but probably won't get there - they paid £1795 from a dealer 7,000 miles ago in March and I think would be happy with £1200 but naturally going to try to get as much as I can back for them. Too expensive for me to want as a no-love runabout no matter how logical it may be).

[Bren]

Tonight I actually won an auction on ebay.

 

I actually bid more on an item than anyone else.

 

I was beginning to think that no matter how obscure (read shit) the item, somebody would still want it more than you.

 

I would'nt be surprised if I listed one of my own turds and somebody bid more than me.

 

Why do these people Never bid on cars?

[dollywobbler]

car SOS tonight are doing a 1967 lancia flavia coupe 8pm on more 4. I'll set the video

 

Was on the other night. I introduced my parents to the programme. They didn't thank me for it.

 

Lancia was actually quite solid. They thought...

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Thoise 1.6 petrol picassos are fuggin dismal

[fordperv]

Was on the other night. I introduced my parents to the programme. They didn't thank me for it.

 

Lancia was actually quite solid. They thought...

Ahh yes the structural repair of silicone sealer and pop riveted patches, timeless

[Bear]

Thoise 1.6 petrol picassos are fuggin dismal

 

I'm shopping for a 1.6 New Beetle in yellow, with a sunroof. I need exposure to dismal.

[dugong]

I'm shopping for a 1.6 New Beetle in yellow, with a sunroof. I need exposure to dismal.

Get a 1.0 Corsa Life if you want dismal.

[Richard]

I replaced the bottom gearbox mount on the Polo today in an effort to stop it shaking like a shitting dog on idle. It was a nice easy job and seems to have helped.

 

Then I decided to change the fuel filter. Priming it turned into a bit of a battle, eventually I decided to do it by towing because the starter was getting a bit hot. It turns out the Polo uses one of those stupid screw-in towing eyes, which was missing. I ended up towing it by the corner of the bonnet landing panel and after nearly a mile it started to run. A good thrashing for a few miles after that had it properly primed and it seems to be running a lot better.

 

I have a new fuel filter for the 850 too, but I decided against fitting it today.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Get a 1.0 Corsa Life if you want dismal.

 

'Get a life'

[Bear]

Get a 1.0 Corsa Life if you want dismal.

 

Dismal. Not suicidal.

[320touring]

I replaced the bottom gearbox mount on the Polo today in an effort to stop it shaking like a shitting dog on idle. It was a nice easy job and seems to have helped.

 

Then I decided to change the fuel filter. Priming it turned into a bit of a battle, eventually I decided to do it by towing because the starter was getting a bit hot. It turns out the Polo uses one of those stupid screw-in towing eyes, which was missing. I ended up towing it by the corner of the bonnet landing panel and after nearly a mile it started to run. A good thrashing for a few miles after that had it properly primed and it seems to be running a lot better.

 

I have a new fuel filter for the 850 too, but I decided against fitting it today.

It had a new one a while back- used an old taxi to start it

https://fuguttycars.wordpress.com/2014/12/18/who-needs-a-starter-when-you-have-a-fairway-driver-aka-listen-to-dom/

 

good effort on the gearbox mount!

[stuboy]

Nipped into tkmaxx and saw this book...

 

£2.99 i couldnt resist

[phil_lihp]

A successful day changing the gearbox fluid and fuel filter on my mate's 406 3.0 V6 Coupe.  It'd been in storage for nearly 10 years until a couple of months ago so we're gradually working through the list.  It had an oil change last week and the seller had already changed the cambelt, it's still in need of a set of new brake pads all round and some handbrake adjustment plus a new set of spark plugs which should get done next weekend, weather allowing.  The plugs are a pain as the inlet manifold and all manner of fixtures and fittings have to be removed to get to them but it doesn't look impossible.  One rear light is letting in water but that has now hopefully been fixed.

 

Further off it'll probably get a coolant flush as well but it drives nicely and sounds very good, it's only done 70k and looks almost brand new, piles of service history and no expense spared while it was on the road, he's done well for £800!

 

My lot are being slowly fettled as well, small steps when time and weather allow but hopefully the 940 is now watertight, I've run a bead of clear silicone around the windscreen as when I pried the trim surround off it looked like the original sealant had dried out and split away from the bodywork slightly in a few places.  The tub of cat litter in the footwell does seem to have helped dry the seats and carpets out which is good.

[wuvvum]

I made my annual December convertible purchase this week.  Well I actually bought it last week, but didn't get round to picking it up until Thursday night.  In the meantime I'd acquired the MGF so this one is kinda redundant, but that's by the by.

 

 

It's one of those strange Mk3½ convertibles that are basically a Mk3 with a Mk4 front end grafted on and a different bootlid to try and make it look more modern.  I had a (Mk3) convertible before, which I quite liked, although it'd been lowered and had a silly exhaust on it.  This one's rather more civilised - and rather more sedate too, being a 1.6 8-valve it ain't quick.  It's undergeared as well - 70 in 5th is about 3,600rpm.  Still trundles along OK though.

 

It has two irritating faults (the reason why it was cheap) - it needs a MAF sensor as it has a tendency to stall at idle, and the alarm has a fault so goes off every time you open a door / switch on the ignition, and the only way to turn it off is to lock and unlock the driver's door from the outside.  There's plenty of tutorials online on how to disable a Mk3 alarm, but I think the 3.5 has a different system as I pulled the dash apart this afternoon to get at the alarm module and it looks nothing like the photos on the tutorials.  Bollocks.  I might just snip the wires to the alarm horn - although that'll be a mission in itself as it's under the scuttle panel and to remove the plastic cover the wiper arms have to come off.  That might have to wait until after Christmas now - I don't have any immediate need for the car anyway.  I picked the car up after work on Thursday and didn't get back to mine until about 1am - I'd been racking my brains for a way to get out of the car without setting the alarm off and pissing off the neighbours.  In the end I wound down the driver's window, climbed out Dukes of Hazzard style, then leaned back in and nabbed the key out of the ignition, locked and unlocked the driver's door, then opened it, switched the ignition back on and buzzed the window up.  To my relief it worked.

 

 

I'd been planning to try and fit a 7-pin socket to the back of the Movano to replace the 13-pin one that's on there, but the latter didn't seem to be interested in being separated from the van.  For some reason it took a while for it to occur to me that someone might have invented an adaptor to go from one to t'other.  Quick look on eBay, £2.99 later and one was on its way to me.  Fitted it today, plugged in the trailer board and all works fine.  Well worth £2.99 to avoid all that faff I reckon.

[vulgalour]

Other day I went out in the Rover to do some shopping.  Came back to find the car all fogged up and drove home with the sunroof open at night in the rain with the blower on max because it was the only way to keep the glass clear.  After doing this (and shutting the sunroof, obvs) the car isn't damp inside and doesn't fog up.

 

I wonder if my damp problem was just that the sunroof hadn't seated exactly right?

[Cavcraft]

Here is our 2014 Nissan Navara Genocide pick up. This is with the keys out and the engine off, obvs.

 

 

 

Here's how it looks 75% of the time (i.e when I'm not driving it for three weeks)

 

 

Here's how many miles it's done

 

 

 

The clock time and tripometer reset themselves when you take the key out and the lights on buzzer only works as often as Cameron Diaz rings me for a bunk up.

[panhard65]

Had an interesting weekend. Went to Bristol Friday night to collect a BL suspension pump from a lovely old garage. I was gutted the garage owner wasn't there as it is a superb timewarp. If you get the chance check out Frenchay garage in Frenchay village. I do hope it doesn't get bulldozed, this little minor was sat outside with another inside on a lovely old ramp.

Then on Sunday I whipped the seats out of the 807 and set off to deliver my old Peugeot 125 bike to a chap in Braintree. A very uneventful and boring trip with only one spot of this MK3 on the A120.

Then had a trip down memory lane by driving back through a few old haunts. Most of the old garages have been knocked down now and turned into houses but this one in Great Sampford is still there but looks like it is no longer active. There used to be loads of shite outside it but all gone now. I also had a look round Radwinter as there were loads of old motors rotting away on a farm many years ago, but they are all gone now. I picked up an engine from a 2cv there probably about 20 years ago and there was a row of old buses with the hedgerow growing inside them. All you could see was the fronts with the screens still intact but just full of hedge.

Anyway the 806 ran absolutly perfect and after 450 miles it is still showing between 1/4 and 1/2 a tank of diesel which is bloody good for me as most of the motorway work was at slightly* above 70

[dollywobbler]

Other day I went out in the Rover to do some shopping.  Came back to find the car all fogged up and drove home with the sunroof open at night in the rain with the blower on max because it was the only way to keep the glass clear.  After doing this (and shutting the sunroof, obvs) the car isn't damp inside and doesn't fog up.

 

I wonder if my damp problem was just that the sunroof hadn't seated exactly right?

 

I think at this time of year, cars can just steam up very rapidly. The XM is dry these days, but it was still super-damp inside last week - you know, so wet that the blowers can't actually clear the windscreen because it's not just a mist of water but ruddy great drops. Sometimes air con really is desirable.

[Sigmund Fraud]

It's one of those strange Mk3½ convertibles that are basically a Mk3 with a Mk4 front end grafted on and a different bootlid to try and make it look more modern.  I had a (Mk3) convertible before, which I quite liked, although it'd been lowered and had a silly exhaust on it.  This one's rather more civilised - and rather more sedate too, being a 1.6 8-valve it ain't quick.  It's undergeared as well - 70 in 5th is about 3,600rpm.  Still trundles along OK though.

 

It has two irritating faults (the reason why it was cheap) - it needs a MAF sensor as it has a tendency to stall at idle, and the alarm has a fault so goes off every time you open a door / switch on the ignition, and the only way to turn it off is to lock and unlock the driver's door from the outside.  There's plenty of tutorials online on how to disable a Mk3 alarm, but I think the 3.5 has a different system as I pulled the dash apart this afternoon to get at the alarm module and it looks nothing like the photos on the tutorials.  Bollocks.  I might just snip the wires to the alarm horn - although that'll be a mission in itself as it's under the scuttle panel and to remove the plastic cover the wiper arms have to come off.  That might have to wait until after Christmas now - I don't have any immediate need for the car anyway.  I picked the car up after work on Thursday and didn't get back to mine until about 1am - I'd been racking my brains for a way to get out of the car without setting the alarm off and pissing off the neighbours.  In the end I wound down the driver's window, climbed out Dukes of Hazzard style, then leaned back in and nabbed the key out of the ignition, locked and unlocked the driver's door, then opened it, switched the ignition back on and buzzed the window up.  To my relief it worked.

 

I would really fancy one of those facelifted Cabrios, they're so bad that even the VW scenesters seem to dislike them !

 

Your idling problems could be something as simple (and cheap) as a mucky throttle body - disconnect the battery, take the air filter housing off and clean the throttle body liberally with carb spray.

 

The gear ratios sound all wrong - assuming it's an 085 box, it sounds as if it has the 1-litre ratios. Good for acceleration, shite for noise and consumption. If it had the correct 1.6-litre ratios, 70mph would be well under 3000rpm in 5th.

[dollywobbler]

I may have got distracted by period ads during research again.

[Christine]

The little hole on the Pajero sill , that the mot man passed and told me to get it welded up before next year ...well , its a fookin big hole now i've been poking it . ...    In fact the whole inner and outer are rot..

[fordperv]

I may have got distracted by period ads during research again.

Mrs fp got me a period ad of my favourite rs500 touring car which partly sparked my love for them as a child

 

 

 

Not aloud to have it before Christmas though

[John F]

I'm now one step closer to MOT time with my stealth Land Rover 109 WIP ('stealth' in the sense of cba doing a write-up for it, soz).

 

Today's job was to replace the leaking osf top brake cylinder, which decided to fail last Friday just before its MOT. Cylinder changed, brake pipes replaced, blocked bleed nipple unblocked... now just waiting for a mate to give me a hand bleeding the brakes later on & the job's done.

 

And for a Brucie bonus I spotted that the osf bottom shocker rubbers had perished so they got replaced as well

[HH-R]

Here is our 2014 Nissan Navara Genocide pick up. This is with the keys out and the engine off, obvs.

 

image.jpg

 

 

Here's how it looks 75% of the time (i.e when I'm not driving it for three weeks)

 

image.jpg

 

Here's how many miles it's done

 

image.jpg

 

 

The clock time and tripometer reset themselves when you take the key out and the lights on buzzer only works as often as Cameron Diaz rings me for a bunk up.

 

My wonderful* Fiat did 1 and 3, cleaned the battery connections and it never did it again. Was really bizarre seeing the speedo and rev needles pointing at a number when the key was out!

 

It might have done 2 too but I'm not sure what the light is.

[320touring]

Put the Octy on Gumtree-

 

first phonecall - "what is your best price, and can you keep it for a couple of days?"

 

I said no it needs to go when paid for.

 

he asks again re price then offers 140!

 

ok says I

 

he then starts to ask re marks on bumper etc.

 

sacked off the call, and blocked the number

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

Put the Octy on Gumtree-

 

first phonecall - "what is your best price, and can you keep it for a couple of days?"

 

I said no it needs to go when paid for.

 

he asks again re price then offers 140!

 

ok says I

 

he then starts to ask re marks on bumper etc.

 

sacked off the call, and blocked the number

 

 

​"Does it have full service history, mate ?" etc, etc, etc...

[320touring]

​"Does it have full service history, mate ?" etc, etc, etc...

indeed!

 

oh the joys

[coalnotdole]

I had a trip over to wiltshire at the weekend to meet a few mates for an early christmas party* On the way home I stopped for breakfast at this quality cafe / bus, Just off the A36.

 

 

 

 

Two full english Breakfasts for under £10 and tea and coffee included. Fast service and freshly cooked hot food... not a marks and spencer, or costa coffee in sight. Fuck you MOTO this is how roadside food should be done.

[Lord Sterling]

Found a small Black Rover folder that were given to customers back in the late 90s, I reckon my car's first owner might have also had one but obviously it's been lost along the way. I transferred and sorted all of the papers relating to my KV6 Sterling into there from the random plastic folder I had all the stuff in, certainly looks the part too. I'm happy because it's nice and sorted just like a (usually elderly) Rover owner would have it.

 

Plus, today I went out to Stourport but ended up going for a bit of a drive instead. When I did eventually get to Stourport I parked up by a T-reg Rover 623GSi that had a similar colour scheme and wheels to my Rover. Oddly enough, the wheels on 600 differed very slightly in the design otherwise they were exactly the same to the untrained eye.

 

Whilst going into Stourport I found some shite to pap which included an F-plate Granada 2.0 Ghia, Honda Legend 2.7 (shares the same platform as my Mk1 2.7 Sterling) plus other stuff under cover.

[oldcars]

I had a trip over to wiltshire at the weekend to meet a few mates for an early christmas party* On the way home I stopped for breakfast at this quality cafe / bus, Just off the A36.

 

 

 

 

Two full english Breakfasts for under £10 and tea and coffee included. Fast service and freshly cooked hot food... not a marks and spencer, or costa coffee in sight. Fuck you MOTO this is how roadside food should be done.

Can you sit in the bus or is it just a takeaway?