What makes you grin? Antidote to grumpy thread

[beko1987]

Canary Wharf is full of Bankers who accentuate their individuality by driving a dark grey Audi, Bmw, or Mercedes. But today ladies and gentlemen I found this in the Cabot Square car park. Feast your eyes on this slice of fried WIN!

 

This man or woman is truly a Master of the Universe!image.jpeg

https://totalcarcheck.co.uk/FreeCheck?regk=FVF415T

 

Doesn't seem to have been taxed for 2 years though, 1979 isnt tax exempt is it?

 

Brand new clean MOT though

[Lord Sterling]

Siiiik! Just scored myself some free parking.

Well, that didn't last long. This morning I went out to my car and saw a chap I speak to regularly, he told me that the land was owned by some businessman who owned the building and does clamp cars who are not authorised to park there. However, I spotted a spot that is rarly occupied, apparently its a free space according to one resident so have put my car there, it's only a few steps away from the private parking area and off the main drag.

 

What did make me grin was KV6 Sterling making more friends around here. Whilst on my way to an appointment I spotted a Rover 800 a couple of cars ahead of me, luckily, it turned into a Tescos/petrol station, I got speaking to the lady owner who'd owned it since the Rover 75 was first launched. The lady told me that years ago she had gone to Clarks Rover to buy a new car, she'd tried the 75 but didn't like it but spotted the 800 on the forecourt and bought that. It looks very well looked after, only 64k miles and garaged always. Though it is used to transport her dog and there are signs. But it's great to see another 800, I've yet to still find the Stourport Silver Sterling and a Green Sterling Fastback I saw in Kidderminster some time back.

 

[fordperv]

I needed a boot seal for the saph so popped to the local kit car suppliers that I use for parts, he came out with a seal that was almost the exact profile, where the ford one has a 45degree angle lip of rubber on the top, this one's rubber lip goes straight up, because it wasn't quite spot on he charged me roughly half price for it just incase it didn't do the same job on the car, that's great customer service,

 

whilst driving around I saw this.

 

 

Its the first car I've seen for a long while to be driving around with trafficators, mrs fordperv was awwwing at the little car

[scaryoldcortina]

While googling for answers (I need to get the sparkplugs out of a 1.2 clio...) I found this reply on a forum somewhere.

 

14MM tinplated boxspanner does mine.... and the points of the box are a neat fit in the plug tube, making the plug a cinch to re-thread [with a blob of Coppaslip]

:loser:
knownClone

 

 

Writing style looks kind of familiar. TooSavvy?

 

Also a grin, the owner of the on three pots clio thought his head gasket had gone. It hasn't but he did K-Seal the engine. Through the oil filler cap!

 

 

[D Spares & Tyres]

Clamping is illegal now.....

[strangeangel]

Bounced through one of West Yorkshire's many potholes on the way home tonight, and the CJ's clock and the one dead dash light started working again, neatly crossing two jobs off my To Do list

[eddyramrod]

I dropped into a couple of local scrappies today after work, with Hyacinth, in case they had one in that I could pillage.  Very strange experience to be told at both that they had nothing in that old!

[MarvinsMom]

I dropped into a couple of local scrappies today after work, with Hyacinth, in case they had one in that I could pillage.  Very strange experience to be told at both that they had nothing in that old!

 

did you get any helpfull* hints where to go looking for parts?

 

Beamish museum?

 

Jurassic park?

 

these and others are amongst the suggestions i've had when looking for metro bits.

[eddyramrod]

You know what, I'm thinking Hyacinth and Marvin need to have a playdate, they'd make a lovely couple!

[MarvinsMom]

yes, they do represent 2 of ARG's greatest hits from the 1980's and both models are now very rare.

 

rust, apathy, the scrappage scheme and been dirt cheap for years have sadly taken their toll.

 

and they are (mostly) white.

[hairnet]

saw a red c15 somewhere on the road today between man u warrington chorley and rochdale.........

 

no idea where and too slow for a photo

 

fek im getting old

 

(yo @sixcylinder )

[hairnet]

oh - found out where the jack was for the visa

 

under the bonnet

[andy18s]

Logbook for the 214 arrived today........Not bad seeing as I bought it on the 30th last month so includes the New Year weekend

Who says the DVLA are shit ?  

Lol

[Lord Sterling]

Clamping is illegal now.....

That's what I thought, but I can't really be arsed with getting into trouble/causing upset and so I thought fair enough.

[bub2006]

ECP in parts fuck up shocker. Massive grin followed though. Ecp website has a 3 piece clutch kit luk branded for 37 quid but non in stock. Rang derby branch to be told Internet prices are discounted but they can get one for 39 quid for half 3. Went to branch,paid up and chap scurried off to fetch my order. Cones back with a battered box with Sachs branding so open it to find rust on pressure plate. Refused it and said have they got any more.

Yes sir we have a luk heavy duty clutch kit for £84 but seeing as we've inconvenienced you we can let you have it for £68. Bollocks,too much money so ask for refund. Refund takes 3 days. Oh fucksticks I need van as its got a towbar on. Ask to speak to manager. Manager cones out,I explain the situation so he over rides sales assistant and lets me have the luk kit for 39 notes all in for 3 piece kit. I'm happy at that and the vans on the road again. ECP probably not so happy but hey ho. Big thanks to dcd1979 for changing clutch for me. Still feel bad for the gearbox dropping and smacking him square in the mouth though. That bastard was heavy.

[beko1987]

When I got the zx service parts from ecp I opened them straight up. Out of 3 things I only got one incorrect part, an internal oil filter rather than spin on external...

[LC Torana]

whilst driving around I saw this.

 

DSC_1776.JPG

 

Its the first car I've seen for a long while to be driving around with trafficators, mrs fordperv was awwwing at the little car

What is?

[fordperv]

Austin 7 iirc

[cobblers]

That's ECPs best trick.

 

Yeah, we have the "ok but cheap kit" in stock. Great! Off you trot with said kit and take the car massively apart.

 

Kit is of course quite wrong.

 

You sprint 2 miles on steel toes to your aunties house and borrow her car to drive down to ECP at 150MPH to try and get there before they shut on sunday, only to get

 

"Sorry, but we only have the very very expensive  kit that will actually fit your car but you're obviously hugely in the shit now and have to fix it this afternoon to get to workso you have more or less no choice"

[Eddie Honda]

I can't complain about ECP yet. Despite their best efforts, I did actually manage to get the correct rear silencer for my Volvo first go and it was shipped to Ireland for a mere £9.50 or summat stupidly cheap (compared to the normal arse-ripping for getting stuff over the water). It was for a 1.4, but labelled as a 1.7, but under the mis-labels it was for a 1.4. Phew!

[vulgalour]

I'm going to play Devil's Advocate here, for all ECP are very good at getting the wrong part it's not that easy to get the correct part for cars of a certain age.  Look at just about any braking system for any late 80s to late 90s car and you'll likely find three variations for each model.  Then there's the variations between model years on top of that, the obsolete parts, the parts your car should have but doesn't because someone at some point put different ones on, the misinformation when the car was new and the wrong build sticker information as put on... it's a wonder ECP and other suppliers get the parts correct at all!

 

I've had issues with radiators, gaskets, brakes, clutches and more because what's on my car is not what The System says it has and often what the owners clubs and enthusiasts know for a fact about a car is at complete odds with what a manufacturer or supplier believes to be true.

 

In The Good Old Days it was easier because so many of the important parts were shared between so many cars meaning you didn't so often run across the ECP Problem.  Well, unless you were in America and wanted a trim item for a car that changed its trim annually and your car just happened to be the one year that was both rare and expensive and all the trim items are owned by tinfoil hat wearers who don't understand how buying and selling works.

[twosmoke300]

No , Ecp are just useless .

Put it this way I spend about 2000 a month with each of the 3 local factors I use but don't spend a single penny with Ecp despite them being within 5 miles and doing delivery every hour .

It's not just getting the right parts either , their admin is terrible too . It takes months to get credits for surcharges etc .

[twosmoke300]

Another thing is that their trade price is often dearer than what's on the website for joe public and you have to haggle with them every bloody time to even match it .

And their parts are shit .

Never mind tho , they are cheap .

[michael1703]

I rarely use them, my localish motor factor delivers 4 times per day, if there's a choice of 3 pads they send 3 boxes on a suspended ticket and only bill me for the set I need.

 

Recently my neighbour wanted a new alternator fitted on his BMW e46, he says I've been on euro car parts, alternator is £140 it's a Bosch, my factors wouldn't do a Bosch so had to use ecp, I can't get it for the price he saw it at,I ordered it and fitted it and billed him an hours labour plus the alt.

 

ECP then fuck me about for two months with the surcharge, claim they've sent the cheque etc, £120+vat surcharge for a £30 job, I'd rather not have done the job than be £144 out of pocket in the run up to Christmas,then they owed me a surcharge for calipers and something else.

 

They aren't worth the hassle to save a few quid

[bub2006]

Derby branch to be fair have always (well till yesterday) been ok with getting right parts. At the end of it all though I've now got a better clutch which is right for the van for a damn good price. Sutton auto factors usually are good at prices too but even they couldn't get close with a budget clutch.

[bub2006]

Yes,dcd1979 fitted it last night. Bloody box dropped though as it was being lined up and hit him in the face. I felt awful as it made a mess of his lip. He was laughing about it though. Van drives better than it did before

[BavarianRetro]

I can't complain about ECP yet. Despite their best efforts, I did actually manage to get the correct rear silencer for my Volvo first go and it was shipped to Ireland for a mere £9.50 or summat stupidly cheap (compared to the normal arse-ripping for getting stuff over the water). It was for a 1.4, but labelled as a 1.7, but under the mis-labels it was for a 1.4. Phew!

Finally! Proof of the oft quoted theory that an infinite number of monkeys banging on typewriters for an infinite period could, in fact, produce the works of Shakespeare.

 

It'll need to be amended to "an infinite number of ECP employees working at an infinite number of branches, supplying an infinite number of car parts to an infinite number of Autoshite users, could, in theory supply the correct part first time."

 

Why I won't use ECP:-

 

They put absolutely anything on the van to get it to you in an hour or two. So long as you get a delivery, they don't care what it is. It's not just internet gossip. It's true.

 

They sell to retail customers cheaper than trade. You can't quote a customer based on ECP prices. They can buy the same thing cheaper.

 

Unless you specify otherwise, they sell you Q-Drive shite whether it is the cheapest option or not.

 

Returns and refunds are too traumatic a process to discuss at this time of the day.

[panhard65]

I very rarely bother with ECP but last week I needed a CV gaiter for a Passat 170. I tried all my usual sources and there was a choice of 2 and they all only had the smaller incorrect one. I even went to the dealer before ECP (not in stock) As a last resort I tried them and bloody hell it was only right first time !! As they didn't mention the choice of 2 I got him to measure it before sending it out. It was even decent quality which makes a change. I tend to find my customers aren't so worried about prices they would rather have decent quality so don't shop around for their own parts..

[UmBongo]

Think it's a grin but it's also a grump.

 

My Silvia wouldn't start recently, no dash lights, nowt. No response when jump start attempted, either.

 

I took the battery to my local garage and the main man tested it and got no readings.

 

He said it was goosed.

 

I charged it overnight and since then it's started several times with no ishoos..

 

I will see how it goes...

[fordperv]

I'm going to play Devil's Advocate here, for all ECP are very good at getting the wrong part it's not that easy to get the correct part for cars of a certain age. Look at just about any braking system for any late 80s to late 90s car and you'll likely find three variations for each model. Then there's the variations between model years on top of that, the obsolete parts, the parts your car should have but doesn't because someone at some point put different ones on, the misinformation when the car was new and the wrong build sticker information as put on... it's a wonder ECP and other suppliers get the parts correct at all!

 

I've had issues with radiators, gaskets, brakes, clutches and more because what's on my car is not what The System says it has and often what the owners clubs and enthusiasts know for a fact about a car is at complete odds with what a manufacturer or supplier believes to be true.

 

In The Good Old Days it was easier because so many of the important parts were shared between so many cars

I think part of it is down to the person selecting the parts actually giving a damn, when I worked at an independent factors which also supplied panels etc 3 years back the guys in the office wouldn't quote stuff below 1998, I asked why not because it's lost custom, the answer was they didn't have a clue about the parts and it was more hassle than it was worth for them, the worst part is the warehouse at the back was 80% old car panels, radiators, fuel tanks, lights and exhausts so I looked at what was in stock and I told them put the people for older cars through to me. The customers always ended up with the right parts because I gave a fuck.