Fleet update - Will the wheels fall off? - Cookie's adventures in shiteing

[Cookiesouwest]

CRV was ready Friday for pick up. Ball joint replaced under warranty.

Went to pick it up this morning.

Flat battery and once jump started the back box is rattling its tits off lol

Battery was weak anyway, so will chuck one in on Monday when the motor factors opens.

Will be booked back in to garage for exhaust to be replaced.

This is starting to get a bit tiresome.

[Cookiesouwest]

The garage had a cancelation and got the CRV in today. 

Despite them warming it up and inspecting on a ramp, they could find nothing !

While it was there, got them to chuck a new battery on it. 

By the time it was home, it was blowing again

So 180 quid lighter and the CRV still hates me lol

Onto the i30, with its blown light seal.

Replacement already prepped.

Easy to change. Two 10mm bolts

Give it a good tug, to pull the unit off the retaining lug.

Then pull out the grommet to acces the electrical connector.

The old unit had its own swimming pool. The water line circled in yellow.

The indicator, which sits in the clear lens above the red, also had a smaller swimming pool of its own.

The tail / brake light clearly did not like sitting in water.

Replacement unit plugged in and bolted back in.

The replacement has damage on one corner. Ive used silicone to seal it. If it were not for this, I would just leave it.

I will try and dry out the original unit and then seal it up.

But first I need to find a replacement for the offside unit, as that is misting up, but no swimmimg pool yet.

 

[Cookiesouwest]

Took the CRV for a drive tonight.

Took awhile, but eventually it started making noise.

Starts as a metallic scraping sound, then gets a bit blowy.

I think the baffles in the back box are disintegrating. When the garage inspected it, I dont think they ran it long enough.

[Cookiesouwest]

Offside light replacement on i30.

The new to me unit turned up from the scrappy.

The original unit has some condensation and water droplets in it - nowhere near as bad as the nearside 

Bulbs in tact, so swapped them over to replacement unit.

Even though the unit is temporary, I practised my silicon skills again.

I'm getting better at it.

New unit in. Wont be permanent, as its got scratching on lens. But looks ok.

I didnt drill any holes in the original unit, as I learnt my lesson from the first one.

Luckily a hot day, left it out in the sun and all the moisture is out. Will silicone it tomorrow night.

The i30 got a wash and wax.

I really like it.

 

[Cookiesouwest]

Well the wax proved worth doing when it rained today

A few more waxes needed to get the water bubbles smaller.

Between showers, the rear bumper protector was fitted, that arrived from Germany.

Only available in Black. 

Bit smaller than I expected, but will provide some protection when loading the wheelchair.

[Cookiesouwest]

In fleet news, the longest serving member left the fleet today. Parked up for nearly 7 yrs, waiting for me to find 1) the money 2) the time 3) the enthuiasm to restore her.

Never managed to get all 3 at same time.

Heres what she looked like when she joined the fleet. One of the first ZS 180's off the production line.

No pic of what she looks like now. Amazingly no mould / damp inside her, despite being parked up for so long.

Sold to a local enthusiast, who has been regularly knocking on my parents front door, for the last two years, politely enquiring about it.

His persistence and politeness paid off. Mum wants her driveway back, so they can have some work done.

I filled her boot with all the spares I had as a going away present.

[Cookiesouwest]

Jr has had first small accident.

Driving round a roundabout, someone didnt see her and pulled out.

She swerved, missed the car, but hit the bollard island rather hard.

OSF wheel slightly dinted, tyre now has a developing bulge.

Sadly, this brings forward the sacrifice of her old blue polo and my current pub / local shop / run around.

Wheels and interior to be swapped.

Will be making a start this weekend, weather permitting.

[High Jetter]

8 minutes ago, Cookiesouwest said:

Jr has had first small accident.

Driving round a roundabout, someone didnt see her and pulled out.

She swerved, missed the car, but hit the bollard island rather hard.

OSF wheel slightly dinted, tyre now has a developing bulge.

Sadly, this brings forward the sacrifice of her old blue polo and my current pub / local shop / run around.

Wheels and interior to be swapped.

Will be making a start this weekend, weather permitting.

Just change the wheel & tyre?

[Cookiesouwest]

9 hours ago, High Jetter said:

Just change the wheel & tyre?

Her car has two alloys that leak due to corrosion.

Mine have steelies with no leaks and good tyres.

Her scrape has just brought forward the wheel swap.

Plus the blue polo has height adjustable seat. Her current polo doesn't. So she has to sit on a cushion, as shes a bit of a short arse.

I cant just swap seats, because then it wont match the rest of the car, which she wont be able to put up with. So that necessitates a full interior swap.

[Cookiesouwest]

7 hours ago, MrGTI6 said:

Even thought it's been a typically ungrateful little VAG bastard, that seems like a real shame. 

It's got to be worth a fair bit more than scrap value, surely? Small autos tend to go for silly money. 

I agree re value of small autos, but mine is a 30 footer with EML and a slightly shunty auto box.

A very small pool of people would want it.

Best to make one good one from the two.

[Cookiesouwest]

This morning was wheel swap day. Which turned into a teaching session for Jr.

Wheels to be taken from my (Jrs ex) 9N polo and swapped with her current 9N facelift polo as her alloys are knackered due to corrosion and the small accident last week.

Both jacked up at same time. Front drivers side first.

The alloy waa not put on the blue Polo OSF as it was the damaged one, with bulging tyre. So I used the spare from my Polo.

Silver Polo gets stealies.

Repeat 3 more times.

Blue polo now has a 3/4 set of alloys.

As the original wheel trims were knackered, a 19 quid set of Amazon Value trims were ordered and fitted to Jrs. By chance, very similar in style to the original alloys.

Two zip ties added per trim, later.

Her boot rams were leaking and struggling to keep the boot lid up.

Blue Polo had newish rams, so they were both swapped over.

Jr has now changed 8 wheels. Training complete. Plus 4 boot rams. She told her mum she enjoyed it.

Ive not torqued up the nuts yet, so kinda wishing Id not ziptied the trims on

They will need to come off in the week for a checking of the nuts and torquing.

Interior swap will be tomorrow, weather permitting.

[Cookiesouwest]

Jr asked if the car was ok to take out tonight.

I said of course and did you tighten the bolts up, once the wheel was on the deck, like I showed you on the first one.

I 'might' have done.

So, zip ties cut and trims removed

Entirely the teachers fault. I should have checked them.

Well the one I used for demonstration purposes was fine.

The other 3, not so fine lol

All tightened and trims back on. Only 2 zip ties left, so both fronts got one zip tie each.

Except after zipping up the OSF, I heard a hissing sound

The trim put the valve under a bit of pressure  i.e. getting pinched slightly at the base. Weird. 

Trim on with no zip tie causes no issue.

Suspect the valve has a split that only leaks, when the valve is under compression. Its never caused an issue before.

Neglected to mention this to Jr, as she would panic and not drive the car again.

Will get it to tyre fitter, when they reopen and get a new valve fitted.

[Christine]

The 15 quid you'll be charged  , tyre off   , new valve , tyre back on ,   will get you a  super dupa  tool,  that pops them in without dismounting the tyre....or even taking the wheel off !   

They're ace ..

[Cookiesouwest]

14 minutes ago, Christine said:

The 15 quid you'll be charged  , tyre off   , new valve , tyre back on ,   will get you a  super dupa  tool,  that pops them in without dismounting the tyre....or even taking the wheel off !   

They're ace ..

Where do I get this super dupa tool and a tyre valve from?

[Cookiesouwest]

18 minutes ago, Christine said:

The 15 quid you'll be charged  , tyre off   , new valve , tyre back on ,   will get you a  super dupa  tool,  that pops them in without dismounting the tyre....or even taking the wheel off !   

They're ace ..

Ignore my last. I used Google lol

[Christine]

Ive got the posh Sealey one...

 

Cheapy one ...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/22Pcs-Repair-Change-Trucks-Motorcycle/dp/B0FG32MQBP/ref=asc_df_B0FG32MQBP?mcid=2b703a815c4a3945bffbef35ff02fc5d&tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=798236021441&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=17566110490188678297&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006666&hvtargid=pla-2443766104275&hvocijid=17566110490188678297-B0FG32MQBP-&hvexpln=0&gad_source=1&th=1

[Christine]

Use a bit of lube in the taper tube , it's much easier  then

[Cookiesouwest]

In a spur of the moment decision yesterday, I bought the C-Max that @DanGleables advertised on here.

It was delivered tonight. No Wollard shot as I was on my own. No pez shot either, as it has half a tank

Why did I buy it? Primarily because its Morello Red. My favourite Ford colour of this era. I wanted it last time it was available on the forum, but didnt pull the trigger. Wasnt going to make the same mistake this time.

It's come home. Owned by @grogee sister in the past, in Bristol and at some point sold by Staple Hill Motor Co, just up the road from where I use to live.

My only worry, is that I will like this more than the Hyundai i30.

4 on fleet now. 2 too many.

CRV will be properly roffled, once i've washed it and found all the service history. Ive put a placeholder on the Sale board.

Blue polo of doom, in a surprise twist, will not be scrapped. A member of this parish, has asked to buy it. Once ive done the interior swap with Jrs, it will leave for pastures new and hopefully a long or at least longer life. Will leave them to identify themselves at a time of their choosing.

[grogee]

8 hours ago, Cookiesouwest said:

Bristol

WESTCOUNTRY LA LA LA! WESTCOUNTRY LA LA LA! 

Great buy Cookie, you won't be disappointed. I will tell Sister Grogee to keep an eye out for it. 

[Cookiesouwest]

Despite being sold on 24th April, the ZS was only collected today. I thought the car had gone a couple of days after sale, as agreed with the buyer. Until mum phoned me a few days later, to ask why it was still on her drive.

Took that long for the buyer to fix his truck.

Mum very happy she has her drive back.

As I now have 4 on fleet, it may be too tempting to leave the space empty for long

Nice touch that the truck is the same colour.

[Sigmund Fraud]

On 05/05/2026 at 22:31, Cookiesouwest said:

Blue polo of doom, in a surprise twist, will not be scrapped. A member of this parish, has asked to buy it. Once ive done the interior swap with Jrs, it will leave for pastures new and hopefully a long or at least longer life. Will leave them to identify themselves at a time of their choosing.

I can now reveal myself as the mystery buyer of the blue Polo, which is now safe* with me at Fraud Towers.

It was an absolute pleasure to meet @Cookiesouwest, who I can confirm is a gentleman of the highest order.

His description of the Polo was definitely pessimistic, and I expect it to require very little work before I can press it into daily use. Stay tuned !

[Cookiesouwest]

2 hours ago, Sigmund Fraud said:

I can now reveal myself as the mystery buyer of the blue Polo, which is now safe* with me at Fraud Towers.

It was an absolute pleasure to meet @Cookiesouwest, who I can confirm is a gentleman of the highest order.

His description of the Polo was definitely pessimistic, and I expect it to require very little work before I can press it into daily use. Stay tuned !

Likewise a pleasure to meet you. Hope the Polo gives good service. 

She is definately in safe hands.

[Cookiesouwest]

A long overdue catch up.

Been somewhat hetic at home, hence a lack of updates.

08 May

Following the Polo wheel swap, Poppy got a puncture (unconnected). As she has no mechanical sympathy whatsoever, she drove it across town dead flat.

She called me, saying car was making weird noises and steering was heavy.

Bunked off work to go rescue her. Yep very very flat. Only the one picture, as Poppy was having a anxiety induced meltdown at the time.

I put the spare on.

Got a new tyre on the loose wheel a couple of days later and then fitted it.

13 May

The C Max had a boot light, held in with tape, as the plastic tab on the back of the light was broken.

One of Amazons, finest Chinese LED's was ordered. Came as a pair. First one did not work.

Luckily the second one did.

No tape. Bit bright, but good at night.

21 May

Hyyndai Upholstery.

The bolster of the drivers seat, had slight wear.

As I had some self aghesive cloth left, after bodging fixing the Polo of Doom, it got patched. Looks terrible, but it stops the small hole, getting bigger.

Noticed I'd left the sunroof open on the CRV, so went to shut it.

Found a note under the wiper blade, apologising for crashing into the car!

They did leave a telephone number, offering to pay for the damage.

Light damage. Amazingly, a lot of it polished out.

Bumper clip damaged and sticks out slightly, but could have been worse.

Phoned the bloke up. Thanked him for the note. Told him, its an old banger, it had polished out and I didnt want any money.

 

[Cookiesouwest]

An expensive June.

Hyundai had developed a squeaking sound, particularly on start up.

I solved this by turning up the volume on the excellent stereo.

Mrs Cookie was less than impressed with this fix and politely suggested, that I get the most important car on fleet, fixed properly.

My usual garage (used for last 7 years), did not want the job of investigating the issue

So I had the anxiety ridden job, of finding another garage. Finding a garage is a piece of piss. Finding a good one is more difficult. The internet was consulted and many, many reviews were read. I selected a garage.

Very good reviews, but the Disco 3 experience has taught me not to believe reviews.

Popping in put my mind at rest. Could tell straight away they were a professional outfit. So booked the car in.

Car went in on 3 June.

Alternator belt frayed. They could tell that Alternator had been done recently and belt was new (Previous owner had mentioned this). But the tensioner had not been changed.

Also asked them to give the front suspension a check, as lots of road noise into the cabin. 

They found a knackered track rod end, so did both.

427 quid in total. Not too bad and their labour rate is pretty good.

I was happy, so booked it in for a minor service and AFT change, as no evidence in the service history, that it had ever been changed.

Done on 12 June. 297 quid. Not as bad as I expected.

An expensive month. 

And the C Max needs 3 tyres. Hyundai needs at least 1.

As im off work this week, I need to get that sorted before Friday.

 

[Cookiesouwest]

An expensive June, just got more expensive.

As I'm off work this week, took the Hyundai out for a cross country thrash, to burn off some soot.

On the way back, I stopped at one of the local pubs for a Pepsi Max.

Promptly reversed into a low wall, while parking

The wall

Luckily, after confessing my sins to the landlord, he told me someone had already hit it this week, i'd only made it a bit worse, so no charge. Bit of a relief.

The car - Paint damage

Two broken lugs for the fog light. Bit of scratch damage to the unit.

Kind of a relief, as the main lugs for the bumper itself, are all ok.

Drank my pint, then headed to the local body shop with the best reputation.

If they can melt the lugs back on, plus paint - 400 ish plus vat

If it needs a new bumper - 750 ish plus vat.

They will try to save the bumper with the first method.

Booked in for Monday 13 July. Get it back late Tues / Early Weds.

Most expensive pint of coke, i've ever had.

Slight good news, all tyres on the Hyundai are ok, so I only need 4 for the Cmax. Will get that sorted tomorrow or Thursday.

 

[Cavcraft]

The land lord not wanting  compo for hitting his wall is karma for you telling the person who knocked into your car you didn't want any money off them.

A good deed that's rightfully come back to you.

[Cookiesouwest]

9 minutes ago, Cavcraft said:

The land lord not wanting  compo for hitting his wall is karma for you telling the person who knocked into your car you didn't want any money off them.

A good deed that's rightfully come back to you.

Maybe. Hadnt looked at it that way.

It helped that I hit exactly the same place as a previous cutomer

 

[Bear]

It's a shame you're not nearby, I can do the melty bumper repairs to a passable standard

[Cookiesouwest]

Fleet Update

Poppys Polo - Its been playing up for a few weeks. Reluctant to start, sometimes struggling on hills and twice in last month, EML flashing 3 times. This indicates ignition issue. My generic code reader would not connect, my merc icarsoft did, but couldnt do a full scan.

Additionally I could feel a bit of a clonk when turning lock to lock.

So it was booked into the new garage - who had sorted my Hyundai.

Both front strut mounts and coil packs for no 1 and 4 cylinders were done. 429 quid. 3.5 hrs labour at 65 plus VAT.

Advisory for front flexi brake pipe. Will get that done, when she comes back from her holibobs in a few weeks.

Poppy happy. 

Although im now under orders to find a mk2 C70. For 3.5k or less.

Hyundai is behaving.

CRV also behaving.

C Max is not. Since day 1, its had slight hesitation under acceleration, which I ignored for awhile. Now worsening, but still driveable. Blow from exhaust and a weird noise from engine when blipping accelerator, that sounds a bit like a dump valve. Except it has no turbo. Maybe a vacuum leak? 

Also slow air leak from NSF tyre / wheel. No idea which. But as the previous crash was that corner, I suspect the wheel.

So a bit of parts darts iro engine. These duratecs are known for ht leads / coil pack failures. So ive ordered a ignition service kit - plugs, leada and coil pack.

Also ordered a wheel off ebay.

 

[Cookiesouwest]

The i30 went to the bodyshop yesterday to fix my little accident.

Picked it up this evening.

They have done a great job.

Before

After

I did buy a new fog light too, which they fitted.