Dollywobbler's Consolidated Tat Thread

[Longbridge Apologist]

3 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

Bloody hell, that was quick!

Definitely worth getting the bindy brakes sorted, if only for the increase in MPGs - every little helps when you're having to feed a 4-litre engine.

I was also about to say the same about the speed on the parts!

[N19]

2 minutes ago, Longbridge Apologist said:

I was also about to say the same about the speed on the parts!

Next time a supplier claims there's absolutely no way they can get you a part from five miles away in under a week, this is a great comparison...!

[bobdisk]

Glad first and important, you are ok and Bet Pud (Short for pudding)(will explain on 28) is back on the road!  Hope to meet you and Betty on 28 at Brooklands!

[Eyersey1234]

10 hours ago, dollywobbler said:

Finally made it home in the Fairmont after a week and a bit from the first attempt. Folk were amazed to see it at the HubNut Social, and so was I to be honest! Seeing it drive in, after repairs by RatDat, was amazing. 

We wafted for an hour back to our AirBNB yesterday evening and it was just delicious. Continentals leave it feeling a fair bit more secure, not that I was in any mind to push things. I've not 100% got my confidence back in this car yet.

Today it was over 200 miles back home and that was also lovely. It just cruises so well. But, the rear brakes are still sometimes a bit sticky, even with new pads. RatDat reported that the sliders and pistons seemed ok, but that the pistons pushed out all on their own when pushed back in. No residual pressure in the hydraulics it seems. Will investigate next week. They don't get so hot you can't touch the wheel, but they do get hot enough to make it painful to touch the disc hub.

 

Chodtastic news about Betty 

[Eyersey1234]

On 8/14/2021 at 11:41 PM, Eyersey1234 said:

This came up on my Faceache feed tonight

Presumably this ad was from the 70s, what would £2674 equate to now? 

[New POD]

14 minutes ago, Eyersey1234 said:

Presumably this ad was from the 70s, what would £2674 equate to now? 

Looks like 80s snd depends what you are buying. but at a guess: 

Wages? £10k

Food? £11k

Computers £350

House prices £30k

Cars £13k ( cheapest car you can buy) 

 

[dollywobbler]

Can confirm it'll be early to mid 1980s. 82-84 at a guess.

[Cookiesouwest]

I've deleted my figure above because it was wrong.

2,674 in Jan 1984, is now 9,479

[egg]

I've mentioned this before, but my dad was looking at buying a new one in the last year of production, but bottled it. Damn shame! We kept our MK2 escort for a few more years instead.

[dollywobbler]

Returning to the Fairmont, tomorrow I'll be investigating the rear brakes. RatDat expressed surprise that the pistons seemed to push themselves back out unprompted, so I think this will be the focus of my investigations. Never had anything like it before but it suggests pressure where there ought not to be any, so might try bleeding through the rear lines - it has ABS which slightly complicates matters, but we'll see what happens. Front brakes are fine and aren't binding at all.

[twosmoke300]

Make sure the pedal isnt over adjusted .

[dollywobbler]

10 minutes ago, twosmoke300 said:

Make sure the pedal isnt over adjusted .

Thanks. Good thought. The pedal feels rather wooden as it happens. 

[twosmoke300]

It needs some freeplay to allow fluid to return to the reservoir when it expands due to heat etc.

The rears are often affected first as they have smaller pistons in the calipers/ wheel cylinders than the fronts.

[Tommyboy12]

22 minutes ago, twosmoke300 said:

Make sure the pedal isnt over adjusted .

I had something along that line on a motorbike. I was adjusting the rear brake master after I replaced the pads and brake line and didnt have a manual. I assumed the pedal needed to rest against the stop (as it was before I swapped parts) but it actually needed a 2mm gap. So by me adjusting it to the stop it kept residual pressure in the system which built up every time I pressed the pedal to the point it locked up the rear brake.

[wuvvum]

7 hours ago, New POD said:

Cars £13k ( cheapest car you can buy)

Huh?

[colino]

The only time I've seen anything similar in a simple brake set up, was when the brake dust covers (not the seals themselves) were cheapo replacements and exerted enough force to pull the piston out to a "neutral" position.  Shouldn't be any residual hydraulic pressure in the system at all, over-adjusted or otherwise.

[twosmoke300]

There actually is supposed to be some residual pressure in brake systems but not enough to move the pistons out to cause binding .

[PhilA]

1 hour ago, dollywobbler said:

Thanks. Good thought. The pedal feels rather wooden as it happens. 

We had a Taurus at work (which appears to be cousin), and the brake feel was as you describe. The brakes inspire confidence in their ability to halt motion and the ABS isn't bad, but the assistance always felt like you were the one doing the work.

The steering was a bit like that, also. The ride waa marvelously compliant, like riding on memory foam springs. 

Glad to see it mended and back on the road!

[New POD]

1 hour ago, wuvvum said:

Huh?

What is the cheapest new car you can buy with 5 seats? 

Different products have different inflation rates. 

[wuvvum]

39 minutes ago, New POD said:

What is the cheapest new car you can buy with 5 seats? 

£7,995.

[dollywobbler]

Fairer to say the 2CV is a four-seater though. They only ever had four seat belts and there's a huge metal bar down the middle of the back seat. Dyane seats five in more comfort, though they never had more than four seatbelts either.

[chaseracer]

Did the Dyane ever have rear belts (from the factory)?

[dollywobbler]

2 hours ago, chaseracer said:

Did the Dyane ever have rear belts (from the factory)?

Interesting question. Of course they went out of production before rear belts were a legal requirement, but I'm now wondering when Citroen started fitting the rear mounting points?

[chaseracer]

Mine's got the mounting points, but has never had belts.  Doesn't have a back seat now, either!

[Schaefft]

7 hours ago, PhilA said:

We had a Taurus at work (which appears to be cousin), and the brake feel was as you describe. The brakes inspire confidence in their ability to halt motion and the ABS isn't bad, but the assistance always felt like you were the one doing the work.

The steering was a bit like that, also. The ride waa marvelously compliant, like riding on memory foam springs. 

Glad to see it mended and back on the road!

Taurus is a completely different architecture although similarly sized. Funnily enough Ford tried to sell it in Australia around the time Betty was built, and failed miserably.

[PhilA]

13 minutes ago, Schaefft said:

Taurus is a completely different architecture although similarly sized. Funnily enough Ford tried to sell it in Australia around the time Betty was built, and failed miserably.

Likely similar design spec for the era though. Foot pedal pressure per braking force, all have a corporate "feel", hence "cousin".

[Eyersey1234]

I wonder how much info Ford Etis has on Betty. 

[dollywobbler]

In other rare car news, Oltcit's turn today.

Fuelling issues - pump and needle valve in the carb we suspect. Did a lot of experimenting and dismantling. Time will tell whether it all worked.

[St.Jude]

23 hours ago, wuvvum said:

£7,995.

What's the cheapest car you can buy with 5 seats that sucks the joy out of life from you while leaving your twitching corpse capable of driving it with a modicum of skill?

That'll be the Daewoo Sandero. 

[wuvvum]

The Sandero I test drove (admittedly a posh Comfort rather than an Access) was actually quite a nice little thing to drive.  Admittedly I've always been a sucker for a 3-pot engine, but it was more fun than I expected it to be.