Soundwave's selection of scabby stuffs - solo Southern SEAT sojourn

[Soundwave]

Sooo... haven't really done much with the gooner for one reason or another, so here's a quick run down of what's occurring. 

Changed the drop links... with 3 out of the 4 bolts needing "assistance" from the grinder... 

The electrics are mostly functioning but the remote locking and heater fan are... a bit temperamental. The latter in particular seems to work when it feels like it. 

Now has a period Pioneer CD player installed... which I need to remove again so I can try it with the wiring harness I got off @Datsuncog. Currently doesn't work with the column controls.

All it really needs to be legal now is welding in the front jacking points. This is why it's ground to a halt, I need to arrange moving it to my friend's place so it can be welded, because the lockup I'm storing it in doesn't have power. 

Crispy... 

Finally - and I appreciate this is a trivial detail - I got some NOS Renault wheel trims off ebay, so I can Frisbee those gaudy aftermarket ones. Technically these are for a Scenic, but same era so it'll do for me:

 

So... TLDR version is that I've done a few little bits, but am waiting to get a big bit done. Hopefully I can then look at an MOT. 

[Soundwave]

Haven't done a whole lot with my fleet as of late... Mazda passed its MOT last month, and the Laguna has been moved into my storage space to free up room (still wanting to get that done for FoTU, but need to have my welder friend take a look at it first). Skoda is... well, being as uneventful you'd expect from a modern, and I still haven't seen the Beetle in over 2 years.

But, had a bit of an adventure in shite this week. My brother got in touch with me, saying he was looking for a stopgap car and could I assist him in finding one, since I do like to play around with cheap rubbish. He doesn't currently have a car of his own, hasn't for a few years now as he hasn't needed one due to being able to work remotely. The brief was...

- Sub £1000
- MOT'd
- Able to transport him, his new partner and her kids/dog.
- Ideally with a towbar for a camping trailer
- No major problems, looks aren't important but needs to be mechanically sound

And the kicker... he needed it within the next few days due to a surprise change at work, which will need him to have his own transport. Don't ask for much, do you bruv? Honestly, that's a tall order at the best of times, but with a short timeframe and in a pretty hostile market, this was going to be difficult.

After hours of wading through absolute garbage, such as an £800 B5 Passat which ticked all the boxes but had galloping rot on the subframes, a £925 Mk1 Focus with more mayo under the bonnet than a Hellmann's factory and an actually fairly nice Meriva which sold within 15 minutes of the ad going up (such is the market!), I was beginning to wonder if it was possible.

Then, this appeared at £790, a part ex being cleared by a trader.

I got a good vibe from the ad, so I asked my brother what he wanted to do... he lives 90 miles away, and the car was far closer to me than it was to him. He phoned the seller and had a chat, then asked me my experiences of buying a car blind. I explained I'd had mixed success, but if I were in his shoes I'd buy this without a second thought. So that's exactly what he did, paid the seller over the phone and I went to go and get it for him.

And you know what? It drives really well! It's the 1.6 pez, so never going to win any awards for speed. Body is pretty decent, just a few little nicks and scabs here and there.






The interior is a bit grubby, but it's all there and nothing is broken or missing. Nothing a deep clean can't sort. It's a bASe model (or "Authentique...") so no air con or sunroof, but honestly I wouldn't want a sunroof on a Renault of this era anyway. My old Clio's functioned more as an in-car shower...


 

It does have a few foibles - the rear tailgate struts are weak, and the old Megane issue of the tailgate release button being missing is present here. Replacements for both are on order along with a replacement aerial, as the radio's FM reception is poor (another known issue with these). If the aerial doesn't solve the radio issue, my brother says he'll just put a phone cradle on the dash and stream radio from his phone.

Oh, and the air intake hose is made of gaffer tape, but doesn't seem to affect the running at all. Nothing else runs off this intake, it's literally just a tube to stop the airbox filling with crap from the engine bay.

What attracted me to this car is the fact it's been looked after - was owned by an old boy for 16 years, who had it serviced religiously every year. As attested by the pile of receipts and the service book stamped all the way up to 2020...! Also all the handbooks are present, and it's got a set of nearly new Falkens on it. That was something I noticed in the advert, that it was wearing tyres that probably cost more than half the car's value. An indicator that the last owner wasn't afraid to spend on it.



(Pic displays upside down for some reason!)

My brother's coming up today to fetch it, really hoping it fits the bill for him since it was me that cajoled him into getting it! I may well post periodic updates on the car, since I dare say it'll be me who does some of the work on it from hereon out.


All in all, I think we've had a bit of a result given the tough initial brief!

[Soundwave]

Decided to pay the laguna a visit today, and start poking at some of those bubbles on the sill. It went about as well as you'd expect... many bran flakes, and many large holes as a result..! 

Front of o/s sill:

 

Rears of both sills (after initial cutting) :

Resulting in lots of these:

 

Just as I was dialling up cartakeback to come and bale it, my friend rocked up, the same friend who did the welding on the MX-5. He reckons it's all fixable and looks worse than it is... I'm sceptical but I trust him, so I'll be ordering panels (which amazingly are still available!) and he'll be helping me get it sorted. 

By which I mean he'll be welding and I'll be holding his mug of tea. 

Is it worth it? Probably not. But, this is AS and this is the kind of nonsense we do...

[stuboy]

13 hours ago, Soundwave said:

 

[High Jetter]

Fiber? Fibber? Oh, FIBRE!

[Soundwave]

So I've been cutting away at the rusty parts of the Laguna arches and outer sills. The more I cut, the more rust I find. Inner sills around the jacking points look like this:

And this is with the outer already cut away. Also going to the rear of the sill on the driver's side, with the outer removed we can see a seam of rust that extends right into the sill:

And on the arches, with the bubbled outer bits cut away we can see the inners aren't much better:

God knows what's under the stone chip. 

It's a similar story on both sides, the passenger side is slightly better around the jacking point but worse around the rear arches. 

I must admit, I'm now questioning if this one is worth saving. It's rare, but not unique - other survivors are about, most of them in better fettle than this. Plus my heart's not really in this one for various reasons. Even fixed it's still going to be a 185k mile 90s Renault. 

I feel bad, but I'm thinking about weighing this one in, it's got a lot more rot than I'd anticipated. What does the rest of AS say..? 

[PhilA]

On 5/22/2022 at 4:54 PM, High Jetter said:

Fiber? Fibber? Oh, FIBRE!

Feebray? Fi-bree? Talk sense!

[PhilA]

14 hours ago, Soundwave said:

. What does the rest of AS say..? 

If there's still more welding to do when you run out of gas, weigh it in.

[JMotor]

Came to the same thoughts with the Vectra B I have.

Yes. It's fixable, anything is. But do you want to put the time and money into it? 

I didn't because, I have other projects i'd rather do. Also will I be back to the same position in a few years when I've discovered another section that has rotted away.

However. It's up to you. 

[Datsuncog]

They can rot. Maybe not as badly as most of their contemporaries, but the tinworm can still get in there.

Gutted for you, dude.

Pro tip: don't go out and buy a Subaru to replace it.

[grogee]

Let's say you did completely fix it up, welding, rustproofing, paint, the lot. What have you got at the end?

Then, ask yourself if you put the same effort into a ratty [insert 80s or 90s interesting car], would you be better off?

[Soundwave]

27 minutes ago, grogee said:

Let's say you did completely fix it up, welding, rustproofing, paint, the lot. What have you got at the end?

Then, ask yourself if you put the same effort into a ratty [insert 80s or 90s interesting car], would you be better off?

As much as I'm not in it for the money, I looked at this as well. It won't be worth all that above scrap even when it's fixed; certainly wouldn't come close to covering the costs involved. 

And I do like that Saab 9000 that was for sale here recently, although the seller hasn't been online for over a week... that might be a more worthy candidate for fettling. 

[grogee]

4 minutes ago, Soundwave said:

As much as I'm not in it for the money, I looked at this as well. It won't be worth all that above scrap even when it's fixed; certainly wouldn't come close to covering the costs involved. 

And I do like that Saab 9000 that was for sale here recently, although the seller hasn't been online for over a week... that might be a more worthy candidate for fettling. 

Erm, I dibsed that 9000 although I've not collected it yet and haven't given a deposit. I could have my arm twisted if you really wanted it. It's in Sunderland and I've already bought an advance ticket to collect...

[Soundwave]

9 minutes ago, grogee said:

Erm, I dibsed that 9000 although I've not collected it yet and haven't given a deposit. I could have my arm twisted if you really wanted it. It's in Sunderland and I've already bought an advance ticket to collect...

Ooh, I didn't realise. Good purchase. You take it, you got there first!

[grogee]

3 minutes ago, Soundwave said:

Ooh, I didn't realise. Good purchase. You take it, you got there first!

We'll see. It's got to get from Sunderland to Warwickshire under its own steam first. Given there is no A/C, it's a fair bet the 12th will be hottest day of the year

[Soundwave]

3 hours ago, grogee said:

We'll see. It's got to get from Sunderland to Warwickshire under its own steam first. Given there is no A/C, it's a fair bet the 12th will be hottest day of the year

I was struggling with the logistics side too (also Warwickshire based!), and I'm super neurotic about wasting sellers' time. Which means I won't even enquire about a car until I'm 90% certain I can commit... unfortunately this can often take some time, so by the time I enquire the car is usually long gone.


Still... in other news, my mate who bought my Rover 216 as a stopgap doesn't need it any more and is giving me first refusal. Hmmm...

[grogee]

23 hours ago, Soundwave said:

I was struggling with the logistics side too (also Warwickshire based!), and I'm super neurotic about wasting sellers' time. Which means I won't even enquire about a car until I'm 90% certain I can commit... unfortunately this can often take some time, so by the time I enquire the car is usually long gone.


Still... in other news, my mate who bought my Rover 216 as a stopgap doesn't need it any more and is giving me first refusal. Hmmm...

Above all it's a Rover. Except the Honda bits. 

At least you know how good or bad it is. 

[Soundwave]

38 minutes ago, grogee said:

Above all it's a Rover. Except the Honda bits. 

At least you know how good or bad it is. 

I'm under no illusions, it's a Honda Concerto in a tweed jacket. Sushi with gravy. It's actually a pretty decent car all in. Yes, it left most of its lacquer somewhere in the early 2000s, but was pretty solid. I was quite relieved when I sold it, meant I could get out of doing the cambelt. Which my mate still hasn't done, and the kit I included is still in the boot, unopened.

[Soundwave]

Well, the Laguna is gone. Wasn't prepared for how bad it would feel... first time I've sent a car to the scrappers. I know, economically it was the right thing to do, but I feel like I've failed. Which shouldn't be a new feeling, I fail all the time, but this just hits different. It was just a car in the end though, just need to keep remembering that. 

But, as one heap departs, another arrives. Specifically, the one I sold back in January - yes, the lacquer-peeled, lacking-appeal R8 is back! 

I have a weird relationship with this car. First time I bought it, it was an impulse purchase because I'd dithered on a Volvo 900 and missed it. Now it's shown up shortly after I dithered on a Saab and missed it. Its role seems to be as an eternal consolation prize when buying a Swede doesn't go to plan. 😁

Plan? Use for FotU, see what happens from there. 

[Cord Fourteener]

27 minutes ago, Soundwave said:

Well, the Laguna is gone. Wasn't prepared for how bad it would feel... first time I've sent a car to the scrappers. I know, economically it was the right thing to do, but I feel like I've failed. Which shouldn't be a new feeling, I fail all the time, but this just hits different. It was just a car in the end though, just need to keep remembering that. 

But, as one heap departs, another arrives. Specifically, the one I sold back in January - yes, the lacquer-peeled, lacking-appeal R8 is back! 

I have a weird relationship with this car. First time I bought it, it was an impulse purchase because I'd dithered on a Volvo 900 and missed it. Now it's shown up shortly after I dithered on a Saab and missed it. Its role seems to be as an eternal consolation prize when buying a Swede doesn't go to plan. 😁

Plan? Use for FotU, see what happens from there. 

Good to see the Rover, i have a bit of a soft spot for them!

Sorry that you feel cut up over the Laguna, i recently 'failed' over a Mondeo but sometimes you just can't afford to give it everything it needs.

We are swimming in a sea of crap cars to buy, even if they've gone up in asking prices, so hey ho!

 

[Soundwave]

Thought it was time for a bit of a fleet update... 

The biggest news of course is my recent acquisition of the Saab of many shiters. I've been after this car for ages, but I was never quite in a position to get it during the numerous times it's been for sale. I wasn't this time either, but took the plunge anyway! 

Needs a few bits but I'm loving it so far. So smooth and solid feeling, and carries its bulk very well - it's a big car, spacious inside but doesn't feel unwieldy. 

Meanwhile, the Skoda passed its MOT last month, and I've decided to SORN the MX-5 for winter. It's far from pristine, but I barely use it during the darker months so there's no point paying to keep it on the road. 

The Beetle... still exists, ostensibly. Really should do something with it at some point. 

The arrival of the Saab means the Rover's time with me is coming to an end. Depending on the outcome of its MOT later this month, its time on this earth may be coming to an end too. 

Meanwhile I'm making good use of its bedraggled appearance, helping my parents clear out their garage and it makes a surprisingly effective tip car! 

[Noel Tidybeard]

well at least the wheel trims for the guna will fit the scenic!

[Soundwave]

5 minutes ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

well at least the wheel trims for the guna will fit the scenic!

... which is also bean tins after eating one of its own pistons a few months back, not long after we got it. Forgot to mention that! Made a fair bit of the money back on scrap though. My brother is now driving my dad's old Laguna 3, which he had going spare after buying his Mazda6 during the summer.

[inconsistant]

Fab thread and a fine selection of AS gems, had gone un noticed up to now but have just read from the start. I’m sure there are more great threads like this that get hidden by all the politics bollocks on my  ‘unread content’ page. Will keep a close eye on your further vehicular escapades!

[Soundwave]

Meanwhile, the Rover did this today. Just keeps on keeping on, even though it looks shabby. I can relate..!

It's going to be more of a wrench to part with this thing than I thought! 

 

[Soundwave]

Having used the Saab and Rover sparingly over the winter, with the Skoda doing the lion's share of the work, I've SORNed the Saab for the time being. Just so I can have a crack at the bodywork, and also to reduce costs - as I'll be paying tax on the Mazda again from next month.

Yes, the scruffy little MX5 has been overwintering in a lockup, and now Spring is ostensibly here it's time to wake it up! MOT is about due too, so let's start getting it ready...



It rather grumpily fired into life, but soon settled down into a happy idle. The tappet noise on start-up was quite horrific, like the garage was suddenly haunted by the ghosts of a thousand 80s Talbots. An oil change soon settled them down, though. Checked all the fluids, the bulbs, the tyres... all looks good, MOT booked for Saturday.  

Ooh, the passenger side mirror is folded in. I'll just adjust it and... it's snapped off its mount and come off in my hand. Fucking terrific. Took the mount off the door and stripped it all down... also please excuse the state of the table, I was potting up some plants just prior to this.  

A known issue with these apparently, the bolt that holds the mounting ball joint together rusts and then breaks. I.e: this one:

Fortunately, apparently almost any 50mm bolt of M4 or M5 diameter will suffice as a replacement, the flat bit is largely unnecessary. Got loads of odds, sods and bolts around the place, this shouldn't be too hard... except I've apparently got everything except the size I need. Great. Emergency run to Screwfix after work tonight, then...

[Soundwave]

Mirror fixed and reattached, car drop-kicked into MOT station this morning. 

Success! The tyres I knew about, been meaning to change them for something a bit grippier anyway. Time to start shopping around... 

[Soundwave]

So... time to make a decision about the Rover. Its clutch has begun slipping, which I was sort of expecting since the bite point has been high for a while. I did investigate changing the clutch myself but decided it was beyond my ability, it's a faff on these Honda engines due to the gearbox being on the driver's side.

And speaking of the engine... a few weeks ago, I suddenly noticed the coolant looking like this:

Looking kinda... oily, and mayonnaisey. Initially the plan was to flush and change the coolant once I had a free afternoon and monitor it, in the optimistic hope that maybe just a bit of oil somehow got in somewhere and it was no big deal. Fast-forward 100 miles and the situation has.... deteriorated somewhat.

I think we can safely say it wasn't just a random bit of oil contamination - although the engine still runs and pulls OK, something is very, very amiss. Though not as prone as the K series to OMGHGF, the D-series isn't completely immune to it either and I think that's what's happened here. There's oil on plug #3 as well. Speaking of oil, it's managed to completely empty its sump in the space of 500 miles which is when I last topped it up. Still, good news is there's no mayo in the oil... because there's barely any oil.

So with the clutch, the HG, its tired interior and exterior cosmetics and the smaller issues like a few electrical bits not working and the water ingress, I'm now wondering what the right thing to do is. I mean... I sort of already know, I just don't want to do it because I hate scrapping things. But the R8 enthusiasts are usually only interested in sporty variants or absolutely minty fresh examples of cooking models, so finding someone willing to take it as a project is going to be a tall order.

What does the rest of AS think..? Is this TFFMBT?
 

[Soundwave]

So, the Rover is in one of my lockups until I decide what's going to happen with it. I don't want to scrap it, although economically that looks like it's going to be the preferable option. Actually had CarTakeBack booked, but then cancelled it because I couldn't bring myself to go through with it. I get attached to things far too easily...

So, turning our attention to the Saab... needs lots of bodywork plus a new exhaust, so naturally I decided to ignore all of that and focus on something trivial - its rear decor panel. As anyone who's owned this car will know, its rear decor panel was quite spectacularly broken and held together with an iffy vinyl wrap, with various adhesives used to try and compensate for the broken mounting tabs.



Decided to attempt to do something about it, and since new ones are made of unobtainium and cost nearly as much as the entire car when they do come up for sale, I was going to have to get creative.

First up, removed it from the car which was easy cos there was pretty much sod all holding it on. Note the gaffer tape, sealant, and various leftovers from successive repairs over the years...

After removing all the vinyl and tape, I started gluing the pieces back together using a strong, flexible adhesive...


 

With the panel in one piece again, I sanded the joins down, and used plastic bumper filler to smooth over them.




 

... and this is where it descended into a bit of a farce. The plastic on this thing is so brittle, so much as breathing too sharply next to it cause the cracks to reopen or new ones to appear. So I ended up repeating the above steps, in various ways, about 15 times. Once I'd got it up to "Meh, it'll do" status, I primed it using plastic bumper primer...

Followed by some matt black...

[Soundwave]

Looking at the car itself, there was a lot of mastic residue from the many attempts to stick the panel to the car. This ran the whole width of the boot...

So, I broke out this spinny boi. First time using one of these eraser wheels, and I've got to say I'm impressed. Took a few goes but it ate through the mastic without taking off the paint.

 

Then I used a hacksaw blade and some goo remover to take the mastic off these broken mounting tabs, before using a strong double-sided tape to re-mount them to the back of the decor panel.

 

... and finally, mounted it all back onto the car. It's not perfect by an means - the top edge looks awful still, and one of the cracks re-opened as I was reattaching it. But, now it's on the car I can afford to be a bit more robust with it when filling and sanding, with less risk of breaking it. So I'll probably have a go at tidying it up even further later on. But for now, still looks a lot better than what was there before!