Ask a Shiter

[nebuchenezer]

Stupid question.   Can I repair the bottom of a Mercedes wing by bonding in a non-rusty section from another that I happen to have spare?   I bought a wing but it turns out the facelift type are slightly different around the headlights.   The rusted part at the bottom is the same.

 

So my plan would be to cut off the bottom 6" and replace.   The replacement section would be joined with a stiffener section on the back glued with panel bond adhesive.   Skim of filler over the joint and spray - jobs a good 'un.

 

I can weld but have no welder and don't want to pay someone else who will likely warp the panel anyway.   The wing is not structural so should be no structural issue.

 

Is this crazy?   Will nuns and kittens die?   Anyone done this?

Kitteh's and nuns will waft in pleasurable splendor when you do this.

 

I can see no good reason why this would not work admirably

[cros]

Springs settle, ie get shorter with time surely?

 

I don't think it is possible for them to elongate due to the effects of being compressed for years.

 

That would be a new kind of magic that has no place in this universe.

 

Isn't the lack of headlamp adjustment because the rear springs have settled so much?

They do get longer, no doubt about that. Bits fall off occasionally but not enough to make it two inches higher. I don't expect to be believed so I've grubbed about and found this from one of the Rover P4 Gurus Stan Johnstone-

 

 

"Oddly, while rear springs sag with age front springs get harder,

which makes the front actually rise up – explaining the fact that some

P4s look like they are accelerating flat out, even when standing still."

 

Both of my cars have done it, you just have to wait about 50 years. Getting back to my question, can I just chop 'em off; Taff's second reply is my preferred one...

[scdan4]

I listen to american pod casts, some are about cars and others not but normally when discussing cars the Toyota Camry alwats comes up.

In the states they sell shit loads of them (like 400,000 a year) yet it's not even in Toyotas range over here? I wonder why? 

 

Too big maybe?

 

they don't do the new ones here, sadly. Americas best selling car apparently.

 

I have an old one and it is flipping brilliant. Seriousy comfy and seriously reliable. It's got 180K on it, is used as a builders van, dog and family transport and everything, absolutely everything still works.

 

I guess they never managed to sell enough of them here becos omgwrongbadgeneighbourssneeringnotabmw.

[xtriple]

Isn't the reason it could nick sales from Lexus?

 

I had a Camry V6 years and years ago that I got cheap 'cos it had a slight vibration that no one could find. To be honest, it wasn't really worth worrying about but I did and discovered a circlip missing in the offside driveshaft that was letting it move a bit - pinched one from the scrappy and all was good. It was a bloody lovely car in super smashing giffer condition and I should have kept it.... but there was a large profit in it so it went.

[Lacquer Peel]

I need to up my trolley jack game, I've had enough of these shitty £20-30 ones that don't last.

What does autoshite suggest?

[scaryoldcortina]

I bought the £50 3 tonne version (probably sealey branded) about a decade ago and put it into daily garage use. It's about knackered now but still works.

 

Only downside is that it's a big heavy SOB.

[Lacquer Peel]

Is it this one?

https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/sealey-trolley-jack-3tonne-long-chassis-heavy-duty?gclid=CO7EofaG8scCFQEIwwodCywEkQ

[scaryoldcortina]

https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/sealey-trolley-jack-3tonne-with-safety-lock

 

It's more like this one (but a bit more basic looking). Looks like the price might have gone up a bit in the last 10 years...

 

Having said that, the one you posted looks like a good compromise - it looks sturdy enough to avoid the usual everything goes sideways fail of the cheapo 1.5t ones.

[cort16]

That one looks very like the AA 3 ton one I have other than mine is yellow. It's been good so far.

[Honey Badger]

Stupid question.   Can I repair the bottom of a Mercedes wing by bonding in a non-rusty section from another that I happen to have spare?   I bought a wing but it turns out the facelift type are slightly different around the headlights.   The rusted part at the bottom is the same.

 

So my plan would be to cut off the bottom 6" and replace.   The replacement section would be joined with a stiffener section on the back glued with panel bond adhesive.   Skim of filler over the joint and spray - jobs a good 'un.

 

I can weld but have no welder and don't want to pay someone else who will likely warp the panel anyway.   The wing is not structural so should be no structural issue.

 

Is this crazy?   Will nuns and kittens die?   Anyone done this?

They bond chassis together now so a non structural wing will be fine, try to get a stiff adhesive as a soft one may allow some flex mucking the finish up.

 

Good prep is a must, good clean metal and make sure you degrease it before you bond it, acetone tends to be the best thing as it leaves no residue.

 

Could you joddle the wing instead of strapping behind it as it makes a stronger joint.

[skattrd]

The trolley jack I use at the garage is like one of these ... https://www.toolstoday.co.uk/draper-2-tonne-light-duty-trolley-jack

 

Quite a few of my cars I have had trouble with normal jacks so if I was buying another I'd be looking at low entry ones, iirc even my S80 was tight with a normal jack.

[dave21478]

If I had a time machine - apart from the usual stuff with lottery results, mkI Escorts, shares in Apple and stuff like that, I would buy up a few Halfords 1.5 ton trolley jacks from about 20 years ago. Mine is indestructible and has outlived many "replacements" by several years. Only some extreme abuse with a laden LWB Transit stuck in a ditch caused it any harm, sadly twisting its chassis slightly, making it a bit unstable.

 

I am sorely tempted by one of the wide alloy race jacks or this sort of thing....

http://www.sealey.co.uk/PLPageBuilder.asp?gotonode=ViewProduct&method=mViewProduct&productid=17511&productdescription=&productcode=&category=1&catgroup=354&catmicrogroup=1233&analysiscode=&requiredresults=16

but its a fearsome amount of money for something that I might find rather disappointing.

[Bear]

Really daft question.

 

When radios have removable front panels - particularly Blaupunkts - were they coded to the head unit or could they be interchanged?

[Pillock]

Interchangeable and thus rendered completely useless by the availability of faceplates.... As eBay grew in popularity, removable fascias declined.

[Bear]

Awesome, you've just earned a chap on eBay a tenner. Now to steal buy a mid '90s Blaupunkt RC148.

[Danblez]

The motors seize for a pastime - have you tried taking the door card off and twatting the motor with a hammer? Worked for me.

Yep it was seized, twatted it long and hard, eventually dismantled it and broke it completely. New one now required!

 

My original confusion was around the fact I thought the two wires running to it would be power and earth but are actually two power leads with a presume different polarity for making it to up and down. I presume earth is from it being supplied by it being bolted to the door.

[DeeJay]

Yep it was seized, twatted it long and hard, eventually dismantled it and broke it completely. New one now required!

 

 

You are me and I owe me £5.

[Pillock]

Awesome, you've just earned a chap on eBay a tenner. Now to steal buy a mid '90s Blaupunkt RC148.

The only Blaupunkts that were more difficult were the ones with the keycards. But this came up on a thread here last week and there's a bloke that can clone those too now.

[skattrd]

Battery chargers - I've got a crappy one and need a better one.

 

I have borrowed a big flashy ctek charger from the garage in the past and it has "fixed" what I thought were dead batteries, so my thoughts are maybe the more expensive ones are worth the money. That said, as I'm on autoshite I don't want to pay  the same price for a battery charger as a car. What does autoshite reccomend?

 

Actually the mid range ctek doesn't look like a bad bet: http://www.amazon.co.uk/CTEK-MXS-5-0-Temperature-Compensation/dp/B00FC42HAA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442132686&sr=8-1&keywords=MXS+5.0

[cobblers]

No battery charger can really "fix" a battery, long term. A dumb charger will just aim for 14.8v but bad things happen if you put it on a battery with a shorted cell, a 6v one or the wrong polarity.

 

Smart "ish" chargers sense the above faults and won't charge. But they also won't charge a dead flat battery.

Very smart chargers will trickle charge into the above faults or a dead battery, not causing damage and slowly bringing the voltage of a dead battery up before charging it normally

 

They won't work miracles, if a battery is fucked then it's fucked and if it's been flattened dead flat then the damage is already done. Some claim to "desulphate" the plates but I've used them and never had them make any real difference compared to a decent charge.

 

That said, the Ctek chargers are pretty decent and I would trust leaving one of them on and connected for months on end without worrying about burning the place down, the same can't be said for many other chargers.

If I were in the market for a charger I'd just choose a budget and pick something from the Ctek range that I can afford, they all do the same thing just at varying speeds.

 

 

BTW If you are struggling to get a dead battery to take charge with a smart ish charger, put it in parallel with a good one, attach the charger to the bad  battery, leave it 5 minutes then disconnect the good battery.

[Bear]

Battery chargers - I've got a crappy one and need a better one.

 

I have borrowed a big flashy ctek charger from the garage in the past and it has "fixed" what I thought were dead batteries, so my thoughts are maybe the more expensive ones are worth the money. That said, as I'm on autoshite I don't want to pay  the same price for a battery charger as a car. What does autoshite reccomend?

 

Actually the mid range ctek doesn't look like a bad bet: http://www.amazon.co.uk/CTEK-MXS-5-0-Temperature-Compensation/dp/B00FC42HAA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1442132686&sr=8-1&keywords=MXS+5.0

 

I reviewed the battery fighter, £36 BFS1215WR. So good it's in use constantly rotated between the stored cars, and I'm buying another. No fancy displays or buttons, jut plug it in and ignore it.

[The Moog]

What coolant should I use in 2001 9-5 ?

 

Internet doesnt give a clear answer. Euro carp artz say blue but others say nuns will die.

[Richard]

I think you can use either but you have to make sure the system is well flushed if you are going to change from one to the other, otherwise it turns to stone. I believe green and blue or orange and pink are compatible.

[The Moog]

I don't know what was in it as I didn't look until it had emptied.

 

It has an official Saab coolant tag around the neck of the bottle so I assume it has always had what it was supposed to. But I don't know what that is

 

Will flush it and bung pink in as I think the tank has a slight orangey hue

[twosmoke300]

Should be orange/ pink but use what was in before

[nacho man]

What coolant should I use in 2001 9-5 ?

 

Internet doesnt give a clear answer. Euro carp artz say blue but others say nuns will die.

 

Mines got blue in it, and the engine hasn't ran off or fell out.

[greengartside]

Apologies if this has been asked a trillion times before.

 

Thinking of a potential new greengartside-mobile and if it goes my way then I'll be travelling to go and see it in the next few weeks.

 

The car in question, according to the advert, has no tax - yet is taxed until April 2016 on the DVLA website.

 

Obviously I'll need to test-drive the car, so where do I stand on taxing it? Do I tax it for a month on DD, test-drive, then cancel it if the car is shit?

[omegod]

If I had a time machine - apart from the usual stuff with lottery results, mkI Escorts, shares in Apple and stuff like that, I would buy up a few Halfords 1.5 ton trolley jacks from about 20 years ago. Mine is indestructible and has outlived many "replacements" by several years. Only some extreme abuse with a laden LWB Transit stuck in a ditch caused it any harm, sadly twisting its chassis slightly, making it a bit unstable.

 

I am sorely tempted by one of the wide alloy race jacks or this sort of thing....

http://www.sealey.co.uk/PLPageBuilder.asp?gotonode=ViewProduct&method=mViewProduct&productid=17511&productdescription=&productcode=&category=1&catgroup=354&catmicrogroup=1233&analysiscode=&requiredresults=16

but its a fearsome amount of money for something that I might find rather disappointing.

I'd heartily recommend  the allie one from Costco for about £90

[The Moog]

Apologies if this has been asked a trillion times before.

 

Thinking of a potential new greengartside-mobile and if it goes my way then I'll be travelling to go and see it in the next few weeks.

 

The car in question, according to the advert, has no tax - yet is taxed until April 2016 on the DVLA website.

 

Obviously I'll need to test-drive the car, so where do I stand on taxing it? Do I tax it for a month on DD, test-drive, then cancel it if the car is shit?

 

 

I think what they mean is that when they sell the car it wont have tax (due to new rules). But if they have it taxed right now you can test drive it, its just dont expect it to be transferred to you when/if you buy it. 

 

They are pointing it out as not everyone knows the new rules, perhaps because not many people change their cars so often as us! 

[oldcars]

Can parking sensors on a Rover 75 be switched off? Only reason is when reversing with the caravan on the things blare at you and its hard enough reversing a caravan without the noise as well.