Ask a Shiter

[Albert Ross]

I used to earn a fiver a weekend and buckets full of maggots cleaning out "Tonibells" when I was about 12ish..... I sold the maggots to mates who fished, and I bought Airfix kits and Hornby shizz with all the extra cash!

[scaryoldcortina]

I used to earn a fiver a weekend and buckets full of maggots cleaning out "Tonibells" when I was about 12ish..... I sold the maggots to mates who fished, and I bought Airfix kits and Hornby shizz with all the extra cash!

This probably counts as a stupid question, but where did the maggots come from? I'm really hoping the answer isn't "under the freezer in the ice cream van"

[myglaren]

This could be an incredibly shit/ dangerous idea but how hard would it be to run a road car on methanol......only ask as it seems to cost a third of the price of pump petrol and i have a source of supply ( mate runs his grasstrack bikes on it )

Just throwing it out there, feel free to hurl abuse and/or rotten veg at me for being mongtarded.

Volvo had a fleet of Methanol fuelled cars and buses running around in Gothenburg in the mid seventies, a trial of some sort.  Never heard what the result was but the motive was that Methanol was cheaply available from the wood industry - lots of wood there - the wood train used to pass our building on a Tuesday night, took two hours to pass by which will give an indication of the size of it - building would rock enough to spill water from a very full glass.

The Volvo train would go in the opposite direction on a Thursday night but only took about forty minutes to pass by.

 

The whole town was and is supplied with hot water that is a by-product of the power station.  It is nominally run on oil but also on all the flammable rubbish the town generates that gets rid of the rubbish, enough to generate the electricity without using oil, the steam turbine's wast heat in the form of boiling water is distributed throughout the town for central heating/hot water for commercial and domestic properties and some of it to keep the street snow and ice free in winter.

In the latest development they are also using Methanol from timber manufacturing waste and Ethanol from food waste - using bacteria to convert crap into vodka

 

While this doesn't actually answer your question specifically it does show that it is possible.  May not be practical.  Looks as though Ethanol in fuel can be damaging to engines not designed to use it.

 

On that note, SAAB had an engine designed to run on Ethanol only that developed 1000BHP and was emission free.

[wuvvum]

Does anyone know how to decode NGK spark plug codes?  I need a new set of plugs for the Xedos; the "correct" plugs for the car are PZFR6F, but they're fugging expensive so I want to find a cheaper alternative.  Would a ZFR6F be the same size and shape but just not platinum-tipped, or is it not that simple?

[Sigmund Fraud]

Does anyone know how to decode NGK spark plug codes?  I need a new set of plugs for the Xedos; the "correct" plugs for the car are PZFR6F, but they're fugging expensive so I want to find a cheaper alternative.  Would a ZFR6F be the same size and shape but just not platinum-tipped, or is it not that simple?

 

There's a decoder here, which I've found useful in the past.

 

It's usually worth finding the part codes of similar plugs from other manufacturers and shopping around. Someone on ebay is bound to have an unused set that has been gathering dust in their shed.

[Richard]

I'm going to take my car for an MOT today and the EML is on, is that now a fail? I know it's been discussed before but the new items seem to change by the week.

[Station]

I don't think it is, it's airbag and ABS which is a fail. Unless EML is affecting emissions.

[Richard]

Thanks, I managed to extinguish it with a scanner anyway. The emissions test isn't a problem because the lpg test is quite lenient.

[cort16]

Anyone know a good place to buy trim clips? I need some the female parts of the clips the door mouldings on my Saab goes into and ebay's been useless.

[KruJoe]

How about...

http://autoshite.commlm/topic/11930-the-limeflower-pages/?p=437542

[cort16]

That looks just the ticket. Cheers!

[Wilko220]

Start car, switch on indicators (either direction), nothing happens.

Stop the car, restart ignition, suddenly they work again.

Happens regularly so seems to be some link to the ignition switch. Hazards are always fine.

Any ideas?

This is on the Sceptre, by the way.

[SambaS]

Are there any restrictions on the number of cars one can export?

 

Is it just a case of loading them onto a container and sending the V5 off as "exported"?

 

Are there any taxes or anything to pay? Any other difficulties?

 

Not at all interested in the importing / other end bit, just the getting them off UK bit.

 

Thanks.

[Mr Lobster]

Not sure on the legalities but I reckon HMRC might take an interest if you were doing it regularly.

[SambaS]

I'm thinking 5-10 cars per month, or more...

[SambaS]

Is the Corsa B 3cyl, any different to the Corsa C Ecotec? They look pretty much the same.

 

My Sister's Corsa C 998cc petrol sounds like a diesel. I'm told its the timing chain in the engine. In fact I heard an engine fall apart and sound less clattery up the scrapyard.

 

Dad replaced this 20,000 miles ago with an aftermarket kit from ebay, It has got progressively worse.

 

My thoughts were that it would be easier and cheaper to swap a full engine, except I can only find Corsa B engines for the price I would be willing to spend.

[Spiny Norman]

Think it's basically the same engine, no doubt one of the Vauxhall experts will be along at some point.

Every one of these I've encountered has got very clattery after 70-80k, they just don't seem to be very long lived, whether or not you'd get one in better nick than the one you pull out is questionable.

From what I've heard  the 1.2 is an easy enough swap.

[binhoker668]

A boring tyre question.

My current tyres are 175/70 R14 84T,  and might have bagged some very sexy* alloys which have 185/65 R14s on them.

They're wheels off another 405, and the vendor says they'll be grand to throw on and use - the tyres are in good nick, and are 2x BF Goodrich, and 2x Uniroyal.

My mate at work advises me though, that the 65, rather than the 70 I have now, will mean a deficit in speedo accuracy...

Confused now. 

Anyone want to further educate me?

Cheers folks.

C

[Spiny Norman]

 Differences between Wheel/Tyre 1 & 2

Rolling Radius -2.25mm Circumference -14.14mm

Diameter -4.5mm

When your speedo reads 100km/hr you're actually at 99.24 km/hr

 

Handy wee online guide at http://www.exploroz.com/Vehicle/Tyres/SizeCalc.aspx

[binhoker668]

Hmm, can I assume that it dusnae realy make too much difference then?

[meggersdog]

SambaS try some Lucas heavy duty oil stabilizer.Give the car an oil change and whack some oil treatment in.

[Albert Ross]

Re:Corsa engines. B is a X10XE and silver top. Te C is a Z10XE and a blacktop. As for interchangeability, I would hope so , as the early engine is a better unit.  Less prone to shit chainage.

 

Re: Pugrot tyres. Lob the cunts on. Forget about the bastard speedo. It was a standard size back in the day. 165/70/14, 175/70/14, 185/65/14, and 195/60/14.... all relative to engine size and spec of vehicle, This would be a +1 upgrade. Do it, forget this conversation.

[Station]

Think the 1.0 12v is a Suzuki engine? As available in the wagon R/agila

[binhoker668]

Re:Corsa engines. B is a X10XE and silver top. Te C is a Z10XE and a blacktop. As for interchangeability, I would hope so , as the early engine is a better unit.  Less prone to shit chainage.

 

Re: Pugrot tyres. Lob the cunts on. Forget about the bastard speedo. It was a standard size back in the day. 165/70/14, 175/70/14, 185/65/14, and 195/60/14.... all relative to engine size and spec of vehicle, This would be a +1 upgrade. Do it, forget this conversation.

Good man Sir.  This was the answer I was hoping for.  My lack of knowledge gives me the fear sometimes is all!  Fingers crossed on the ebay thang then.  Cheers hey!

[Albert Ross]

Nope... All VX, "Family Zero".  Google that.

[Pillock]

Speedos are regularly up to 10% out anyway, to save reconfiguring them for different wheel sizes on different models. My Focus reads 75mph at actual 70. Bash them on and don't worry at all if it's going to affect it by less than a tenth of that.

[KruJoe]

On the tyres, lob em on, it'll be grand as others have said.

As a general rule, if you step up one width (eg 175 to 185), you'll want to step down one in profile (70 to 65), and the rolling circumference won't be far off at all (if you're keeping the same diameter rims). If you're changing wheels (eg 14 inch to 15s) it's more tricky, use the calculator.

[Cavcraft]

My lad's 1.0 chain was done a good few thousand miles ago (at a main dealers) and hasn't been any bother since. So that's that jinxed.

 

My neighbour has changed quite s few and says its a doddle. He even went to London, bought one with a knackered chain, replaced it on the sellers drive then drove it back.

They're noisy little bastards though those 1.0 motors, sound like a lawnmower with 3/4 of the cylinder missing.

[skattrd]

A 1999 Rover 620iLD - would this have the L-series engine?

[Station]

Good man Sir.  This was the answer I was hoping for.  My lack of knowledge gives me the fear sometimes is all!  Fingers crossed on the ebay thang then.  Cheers hey!

 

Some info:

 

Z10XEP is twinport

Z10XE is non twin port

if its 53 to 56 (facelift) its xep and x reg to 03 (pre- facelift) its xe