project Broadsword's Fleet Thread

[Broadsword]

1 hour ago, Shirley Knott said:

I must admit I keep an eye on the Lupos MOT results each year (A bit like stalking a former partner on social media- Only more creepy?)

I pretty much do this with all of my old cars, and out of a list of a dozen there's somehow only two of them that aren't still on the road 

Either way I was delighted to see the clean pass on Monday! It's a great little car and it honestly used to attract favourable comments wherever we went in it.... Surely it's earned a new timing belt/pump by now?

 

Yes I do think the Lupo deserves a new timing belt and water pump now. I still don’t like the idea of doing that job myself for fear of messing up the injector pump timing. There is a VW specialist just a couple of miles from me, I’m minded to get a quote to change the belt. The shell of the the car is still ok somehow even at this advanced age, which is nice. The brakes are still the horrible spongy items they always were, but I can manage that. Maybe some fresh control arms would be in order too.

[AnnoyingPentium]

7 minutes ago, Broadsword said:

The brakes are still the horrible spongy items they always were, but I can manage that.

Mine were really bad. Had the rear cylinders replaced and they're miles better, even if I'm not used to it. Lol.

[Broadsword]

2 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

Mine were really bad. Had the rear cylinders replaced and they're miles better, even if I'm not used to it. Lol.

You have a point regarding the rear brakes. I’m not sure whether the cylinders are bad, one was replaced just before I got it. I find the rear brakes hard to get to auto adjust, and that might be a clue. I remember seeing the MOT tester check the rear wheel bearings. Tight as a drum, but absolutely zero drag on the brakes. I’m quite used to the brakes now, but driving anything else does provide a stark reminder that yes, they are not good. I’m actually more keen to make the suspension less loosey-goosey. The amount of lean on the thing is truly hilarious at times! I never got round to replacing the rear shocks and they are still sitting in the shed. I should probably start there!

 

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, Broadsword said:

You have a point regarding the rear brakes.

I'm just going off of what mine failed on today. Mind you, mine were really diabolical.

2 minutes ago, Broadsword said:

I’m quite used to the brakes now, but driving anything else does provide a stark reminder that yes, they are not good.

Now that mine are sorted I've been swinging from the seat belt and stopping miles away from junctions. Lol.

2 minutes ago, Broadsword said:

I’m actually more keen to make the suspension less loosey-goosey. The amount of lean on the thing is truly hilarious at times!

Mine is a bit like that. Good tyres help a lot if you're on the 185/60/14s like I was on, I'm now on 195/50/15s and it handles much better. Still like driving jelly at times, but a good laugh if you know how to drive it right.

[Broadsword]

Many, many things have been happening! First thing's first. I only own one car as of about 30 minutes ago. What's worse the one car I own is the Range Rover P38 (still the same LPG 4.0 manual from earlier), what could be more dangerous?! Everything else has been liquidated, even the Lupo (sorry @Shirley Knott). The fun thing about the Lupo is that it was bought by someone very local and it is now a delivery vehicle on the weekends, so it's having a proper Norse funeral, and I think a very appropriate endgame for it. I see it dashing in and out of the local pizza takeaway every weekend.

The P38 wouldn't sell, but one does actually need a mode of transport. There is a little runabout I get to borrow lots, which take the pressure off it a bit.

So, there is no fleet, no Jaguars either. Briefly there was a black XJR6, but it is making way for a very exciting project.

[Shirley Knott]

1 hour ago, Broadsword said:

 Everything else has been liquidated, even the Lupo (sorry @Shirley Knott). The fun thing about the Lupo is that it was bought by someone very local and it is now a delivery vehicle on the weekends, so it's having a proper Norse funeral, and I think a very appropriate endgame for it. I see it dashing in and out of the local pizza takeaway every weekend.

 

That's awesome- It's probably the perfect car for such things and the idea of it being used to bring people joy via the medium of pizza makes me smile.

Good luck with running a P38 as a daily, WCPGW?

 

[dome]

2 hours ago, Broadsword said:

So, there is no fleet, no Jaguars either. 

If sir would care to step this way 😉

https://autoshite.com/topic/49245-domes-resurrected-1991-jaguar-xj6-for-sale-81k-miles-mot-october

 

[Broadsword]

The one car fleet nonsense didn't last long. Let me explain... The Range Rover broke down. I said this would happen, and then for some reason I let it happen.

Thursday evening, the Rangie starts to get bouncy, it keeps trying to top up with air without success. Still upright, but quite bouncy. By the end of play the air compressor was making an almighty sound. Quick diagnostic check to confirm, then 5 mins to remove the pump. It's spectacularly broken despite being relatively new (2016). I now know the modern Dunlop pumps aren't particularly reliable. By now the EAS had thrown a hard fault and the suspension deflated. Driving a P38 like this feel like what I'd imagine Lewis Hamilton has been experiencing in his Merc wheeliebin this year..

The P38 is actually a very easy fix and diagnosis only took 5 odd minutes. It's really not a problem as such. If I had a spare pump I would have been sorted that evening. However I think the Rangie is giving a clear signal not to daily it. I agree. Also LPG supplies are too much of a headache to be relying on them.

Thursday evening and Friday all day looking for cars and yep it's a really tough market for a cheap daily. Many of small hatchbacks that were £600-£1000 in 2021 are double that now. I kind of wanted a 107/C1/Aygo mainly for simplicity's sake, but good luck with that for sensible money at short notice. Also travel to very far away was not an option.

So here's what I've got now. A 2007 Saab 9-3 convertible 1.9 TiD 150 flavour. Cheaper one of these than a decent 107/C1/Aygo ironically. It's reasonably tidy and drives lovely and even has service history. Engine excellent, nice to have a six speed and the handling is quite a lot better than the last Saab convertible I had. It feels slightly heavy, so I like to think they strengthened the chassis a bit after chopping the roof off. So far it's revealed two foibles. The airbag light came on as soon as I adjusted the seat to my position and there are a couple pinholes in the EGR elbow  pipe (apparently a common fault). Other than that it just needs a service and good clean. I like it.

In other news Ceri will be delivering something very special on Monday. Annoyingly I'm out of the country till the weekend, so can't get my hands on it.

 

 

[Zelandeth]

What the heck has happened in that compressor?  Bearing collapsed and let the rod move?

[Broadsword]

I’m told there can be a little end float on the rod with these Dunlop units just due to poor quality. The bearing itself seemed ok. A really strange failure overall. The replacement I’ve ordered is the older Lucas pump, which apparently is better quality. I’ll rebuild the replacement pump before chucking it in the car.

[Broadsword]

The Saab is currently still running well and quite enjoyable to drive. It's a stopgap though. I'll part it for something very cheap to run when I trip over something. Better not to be too pushed to find what you are looking for like when all your cars have broken down!

Now may I introduce what might just be peak Jaguar for me..

Not long ago @worldofceri (many thanks again!) dropped off this very ratty looking Jag XJR. Looks terrible I hear you cry. Have a peek underneath...

Every part of the underside has been refreshed. It's a rust free shell, factory manual XJR6, which is basically a new car underneath. Engine and gearbox have been out in the process and have everything attended to (the engine internals were obviously fine this being an X300, the supercharger had been rebuilt just prior to taking off the road). Subframes have been dropped and and all new joints, bushes, springs, shockers, every nut and bolt, all the brakes, exhaust. Everything has been done. I took it for an MOT yesterday and the guys there were suitable impressed. Suffice to say it passed. The car has been off the road since 2007 so the first drive was terrifying. So much work done and completely untested. It was all fine though amazingly! Still loads of dialling in, adjustments, alignment etc, but it's all there. The car needs a full respray now. I'm open to suggestion on someone to do the respray, it's very difficult to get a good dialogue going with anyone. There are some good places near me, some too expensive and not available for a long time, others on budget but again booked for quite a long time. This should become one of the best X300s out there once the cosmetics are attended to!

 

[HMC]

Lovely! I’d be tempted to leave it just like that to add to the sleeper/ pub landlord vibe.

[dome]

Excellent. I knew it wouldn't be long before another Jag hoved into view. This looks like a cracker 

[stuboy]

14 hours ago, HMC said:

Lovely! I’d be tempted to leave it just like that to add to the sleeper/ pub landlord vibe.

great idea

[Schaefft]

Awesome, kinda jealous as these are still on my radar.

[horriblemercedes]

Good luck! I've always, always, always wanted one of these but I don't know if I'll end up with one now.

[straightSix]

New Jag looks like an absolute cracker! Glad it's finally arrived and got an MOT pass! How's it feel to drive, bet its lovely on all new suspension. Has it been rebuilt with all standard bushes/original spec bilsteins or upgraded?

Are you going to keep it on the pentas? I've got a spare set of the correct wheels if you wanted any, going to fit the BBS rims from the donor car onto mine 

[Broadsword]

1 hour ago, straightSix said:

New Jag looks like an absolute cracker! Glad it's finally arrived and got an MOT pass! How's it feel to drive, bet its lovely on all new suspension. Has it been rebuilt with all standard bushes/original spec bilsteins or upgraded?

Are you going to keep it on the pentas? I've got a spare set of the correct wheels if you wanted any, going to fit the BBS rims from the donor car onto mine 

I've got the correct wheels but they were on ancient tyres and the wheels need a refurb, so I put on this emergency set of Pentas just to get me through the test. The car hasn't had its alignment done or been tested on proper rubber so I can't say how it really drives just yet. Even in it's compromised state though it's nice. It's all original spec parts underneath, all brand new. I'll get a few more miles on it this weekend to for a shake down. The plan is to run by a few bodyshops near my to get quotes for the respray. 

By the way. Is anyone here planning on selling a cheap Aygo/107/C1 in the near future?

[horriblemercedes]

I am horrifically envious of this car. I've wanted one since they first came out. I've tried to buy a few over the years but never managed. Then one day, it didn't really fit into my life any more. Still looking out though 

[Broadsword]

Took the Jag out again for more shakedown driving (any excuse!) and popped to a local body shop for a respray estimate. Apparently it takes a day or so to get an estimate after looking round the car.. 

The clutch pedal will still stick down once in a while and the clutch fluid is a little cloudy. I'm saying it needs at least a clutch master cylinder. For the Getrag 290 they are NLA, but Simply Performance sells a kit that fits with minor modifications. Other than that still keeping in mind the tracking hasn't been done and the tyres are rubbish, it's still amazing to drive. I can't quite get over how fast it is, and it doesn't even have an Andy Bracket yet. It's a bloody missile of a thing. My thinking is that the supercharger rebuild just before being laid up has made a big difference. It sounds quite a bit different when it spools up and just propels you along. I've tried to video it, but you can very quickly get up to 80-90 and it looks/sounds like it's barely trying.

Here's hoping a reasonable quote comes through for the respray the Jag deserves and things can move forward. It's just as exciting to drive as I hoped.

The Saab is only doing 36 MPG in mixed driving, which isn't good enough. A quick survey on the Saab Facefriend group suggest it should do a minimum of 40 MPG and lots more on a long run. Someone did point out a leaking EGR elbow pipe might bring the fuel economy down massively. I need to fix ASAP. I might do that next weekend. I did manage to reshell the key, very easy and the old one was falling to pieces.

The Range Rover bust the main inlet hose to the LPG tank (don't ask what that looks like when filling up). I removed the pipe today. Really shocking, it has completely disintegrated. The mistake is that the pipe mostly runs on the outside of the car and will eventually rot.

 

[Broadsword]

The Saab has gone to a happy new owner (cheers @loserone for facilitating). This was quite a slick set of transactions really since the replacement car (Citroen C1 of former @theshadow and @comfysofa ) arrived Friday, and work was done on it Saturday, tentatively usable Sunday afternoon just as the Saab drove off!

So the Lupo replacement is a 06 Citroen C1 with many dents and a fuel leak. I haven't actually at any point seen it leak fuel even with it on the road now. All I could spot was a fuel pipe half seated on the sender. It pushed back in with a satisfying click and since then no leak, even driving in anger and pointing it up and down steep hills, driving up on ramps etc. A very strange fault and it was quite a worry the car arriving reeking of petrol.

With the fuel leak addressed and fear of fire receding it was time to make the car slightly less terrible to look at. The interior was a mess but only took 20 mins to remove. Followed this up with a hose down, shampoo and wet vac, it all dried very quickly in the sun. At this point I noticed there was next to no rust on the car, which was unexpected. Given the red (matching the red of the now gone Lupo) hasn't faded or lacquer fallen off, I conclude it must have been garaged. Someone also did some undersealing, so must have liked the car to some extent. The car had the best giffer bodge I have ever seen, a Poundland* aftermarket alarm!! Wired direct to the battery (with a fuse though) and with some natty key fobs. After laughing for a while I ripped it all out. There were many things I could put right with a quick trip to the scrap yard and a few more things to pick up later when I get a moment. Now the car is clean-ish and ready to use.

At this point I hadn't driven the car. It clearly ran beautifully, but on the road... Actually it's absolutely fine. Tight as a drum, pulls as well as possible for one of these. It has a recent full exhaust so no need to worry about the hanger falling off. An exotic mix of tyres, but that's a problem for later. They all have tread. It's clearly a car that will pass another couple of MOTs.

There is one problem though. It needs a new clutch. No problem for the price. Weirdly the clutch bite feels ok, but the release bearing is making interesting noises and I'm having to double declutch to get into gears smartly. With a fresh clutch I reckon this will be an absolute gem in the winter when the economy is in real trouble, which was the whole point of the exercise. Some more of the dents I think will pull out and the headlights will look 100% better after wet sanding and lacquer. Did loads this weekend, just not enough time to do everything.

In other news the Jag is off for paint at the end of the month (I'm 99% it will be coming out in Aston Martin Mendip Blue). The P38 is fixed, but will end up being sold to fund the Jag project.

Also, long shot but if anyone has a spare clutch kit going spare for one of these, let me know. This is a serious low-budget car so I'm shopping around quite heavily for anything I put on it!

[comfysofa]

11 hours ago, Broadsword said:

The Saab has gone to a happy new owner (cheers @loserone for facilitating). This was quite a slick set of transactions really since the replacement car (Citroen C1 of former @theshadow and @comfysofa ) arrived Friday, and work was done on it Saturday, tentatively usable Sunday afternoon just as the Saab drove off!

So the Lupo replacement is a 06 Citroen C1 with many dents and a fuel leak. I haven't actually at any point seen it leak fuel even with it on the road now. All I could spot was a fuel pipe half seated on the sender. It pushed back in with a satisfying click and since then no leak, even driving in anger and pointing it up and down steep hills, driving up on ramps etc. A very strange fault and it was quite a worry the car arriving reeking of petrol.

With the fuel leak addressed and fear of fire receding it was time to make the car slightly less terrible to look at. The interior was a mess but only took 20 mins to remove. Followed this up with a hose down, shampoo and wet vac, it all dried very quickly in the sun. At this point I noticed there was next to no rust on the car, which was unexpected. Given the red (matching the red of the now gone Lupo) hasn't faded or lacquer fallen off, I conclude it must have been garaged. Someone also did some undersealing, so must have liked the car to some extent. The car had the best giffer bodge I have ever seen, a Poundland* aftermarket alarm!! Wired direct to the battery (with a fuse though) and with some natty key fobs. After laughing for a while I ripped it all out. There were many things I could put right with a quick trip to the scrap yard and a few more things to pick up later when I get a moment. Now the car is clean-ish and ready to use.

At this point I hadn't driven the car. It clearly ran beautifully, but on the road... Actually it's absolutely fine. Tight as a drum, pulls as well as possible for one of these. It has a recent full exhaust so no need to worry about the hanger falling off. An exotic mix of tyres, but that's a problem for later. They all have tread. It's clearly a car that will pass another couple of MOTs.

There is one problem though. It needs a new clutch. No problem for the price. Weirdly the clutch bite feels ok, but the release bearing is making interesting noises and I'm having to double declutch to get into gears smartly. With a fresh clutch I reckon this will be an absolute gem in the winter when the economy is in real trouble, which was the whole point of the exercise. Some more of the dents I think will pull out and the headlights will look 100% better after wet sanding and lacquer. Did loads this weekend, just not enough time to do everything.

In other news the Jag is off for paint at the end of the month (I'm 99% it will be coming out in Aston Martin Mendip Blue). The P38 is fixed, but will end up being sold to fund the Jag project.

Also, long shot but if anyone has a spare clutch kit going spare for one of these, let me know. This is a serious low-budget car so I'm shopping around quite heavily for anything I put on it!

Good to see it went to the right home! ❤️

[theshadow]

i also put on front disc/pads,service,never had a problem smell of fuel...

[Broadsword]

6 hours ago, theshadow said:

i also put on front disc/pads,service,never had a problem smell of fuel...

There was a recall on these for a non-descript defect on the fuel sender that could cause a fuel leak. So far still no leak after pushing the pipe home. I have no idea what caused it. Last it leaked was when it drove on to the trailer for transporting to mine and it was a massive leak, absolutely stank of petrol.

[Broadsword]

Selecting gears in the C1 is getting quite tedious so a new clutch was bought. After some swearing the gearbox came out. Release bearing was toast as expected, but the clutch looked brand new. Lots of dust came out also. Existing clutch was Exedy flavour, made in Japan. Took it off only to find the clutch was in fact broken. On of the springs had come out. What on earth was going on here?

[Broadsword]

Big news. The XJR manual has gone in for paint. I settled on a very slightly different colour, knowing that the original Sapphire Blue does not have so much metal flake in it. I settled on an Aston Martin colour from the same period, Mendip Blue. I know it's a break from originality, but I think it will end up looking more like Sapphire Blue than the original colour if you get my drift. Also Mendip Blue is a DB7 colour, which is mostly a Jag anyway, so I'm saying its basically original! The wheels have been powder coated and look great. Can't wait to see how the car will look in a few weeks. A guy will spend a day on it knocking all the dents out properly so minimal filler will be used to level things out. Also all the black bits will be re-blacked of course.

I'm off away tomorrow for a while and I've come unstuck with the C1 clutch job. It's now stuck in the garage with the gearbox out. My shoulders are so badly injured, I just can't get the gearbox in. It's a bit of a disaster and quite embarrasing really as it's a small box.  Just not happening, an unfortunate loss of mojo on the job. In short I'll be looking for a helping pair of hands when I'm back from my travels to lift the gearbox in.

 

[Back_For_More]

Great news on the jaaaaag.... Looks worth the spend tbh. 

Iirc you're a fair bit north of me or I'd help out with the gearbox.... I'm currently down Bromley way, sorry. 

Without cbid at present so spanner hands twitching like a tweeker whose lost his pipe 

[Broadsword]

1 hour ago, Back_For_More said:

Great news on the jaaaaag.... Looks worth the spend tbh. 

Iirc you're a fair bit north of me or I'd help out with the gearbox.... I'm currently down Bromley way, sorry. 

Without cbid at present so spanner hands twitching like a tweeker whose lost his pipe 

Thanks for the offer! I’m near York so not your patch unfortunately. Anyone close to York willing to help lift a gearbox with me in a few weeks, I would indeed be very grateful! Nice Jag and Rangie to have a look at up here.

[stuboy]

i do love a jag.. cant wait for the respray

[Carl1981]

That colour will look great, close enough to original that only the anoraks amongst us will notice it’s not 😎