THE GUBBERMINT ALWAYS KNOWS BEST

[the barefoot chef]

Whitby & back - no problems - 2 hours 40 min each way

295 miles - filled up at the same pump and got...

 

...36 mpg - Ah well, it was touching 85 on the way back.

 

A sight better than the camper van though.

[barrett]

So the £150 from that will be used to transport a free Lotus Eclat home.

 

Excellent work, I'm going to have to come and have a look at that! Is it totally dead or does it actually move under it's own steam?

[warren t claim]

Replaced the missing 3 pointed star off the E200 bonnet.

 

The neighbours are now having a sweepstake as to how long this will last before it's stolen.

[Mike D]

I bought some awesome new rims for the 928 yesterday, and then have flushed the coolant and refilled it with antifreeze as it's getting proper freezing here and don't fancy a cracked block!!!

[Claypole]

Sold 3 more bits off my spares BMW 2002 so it's now cost me nothing and I've some handy bits for mine for free.

[Tayne]

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[Mike D]

I had a couple of spare minutes earlier, so did this...

 

 

Needs to lose a coil or 2 from the front, and the rear wants to wind down a snadge, and lose 5mm or so from the spacers.

 

Much better though

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

Question.

 

My sister's diesel Fiesta (1.4 TDCI) was making a tapping noise, rising with engine speed. Once I'd checked there was nothing loose in the engine bay, I took it out. Revving it hard a few times made the noise vanish. On the return journey the noise came back, and again, revving the engine made it go away.

 

What's that then?

[Richard]

Dodgy hydraulic tappet?

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

That's what I guessed, but I don't know enough about modern engines to really know.

[M'coli]

The Imp's engine is back together, full of water and no bubbles in the coolant so far. One of these days I'll put a head back on an Imp and not have the cam 180 degrees out.

[Rocket88]

That's what I guessed, but I don't know enough about modern engines to really know.

 

 

Oil change sometimes does the trick..........

[dollywobbler]

Still barely got internet, so here's a quick update.

 

2CV - I'm currently stripping the spare engine to hopefully make it good. It's then going back into the car as I'm fed up with huge clouds of blue smoke everytime I go for a drive. 2CV currently covered in mud after I went hooning about the forests when I watched the WRC on Friday (a good way to get muddy and cold and see famous rally drivers for about five seconds).

 

BX - Has been doing a ridiculous amount of mileage. Glad I serviced it before we moved. Sellotape holding the passenger mirror surround together needed replacing. Serious stuff.

 

CX - Took it to Oxford on Monday. Quite a long way from our new home! Didn't miss a beat, though the heater blower motor kept packing up which was cold, the passenger door inexplicably refused to open for a time and there was a rather nasty whiff of coolant (not overheating) when coming back over the mountains. It does seem to get through coolant - I fear a leak on one of the heater pipes. No HGF signs.

 

Mini - Hasn't really moved. Still needs a new temp sensor.

 

Seems I missed a lot of you lot at the NEC show, but it was good to catch up with Boobydoo and his GORGEOUS 1100.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

That's what I guessed, but I don't know enough about modern engines to really know.

 

Oil change sometimes does the trick..........

 

It started the day after an oil change!

[Rocket88]

That's what I guessed, but I don't know enough about modern engines to really know.

 

Oil change sometimes does the trick..........

 

It started the day after an oil change!

 

What grade did you use?

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I don't know, she took it to a garage. I'm not trusted to service cars other than my own

[Rocket88]

I don't know, she took it to a garage. I'm not trusted to service cars other than my own

 

I bet they've put something in with the viscocity of bloody Perrier water......

[barefoot]

Rather exiting news today - I had to spend £130 odd pounds on a single bloody tyre.

Nevertheless it gives me an excuse to post a photograph of the '87 models on the fleet.

 

 

.

[Rusty Pelican]

The Imp's engine is back together, full of water and no bubbles in the coolant so far. One of these days I'll put a head back on an Imp and not have the cam 180 degrees out.

No you wont , guarenteed to get this wrong , to top this off some of the 25d4 dizzys are set 180degrees from each other , so swapping one dizzy for another of the same type can have the same effect , I HAZ THE T SHIRT

[Negative Creep]

Starting to look around for the next car now, will possibly have enough by next week. Criteria is basically something interesting that has works and isn't red. I was about to say no Vauxhalls however there is a Carlton estate that belongs to a neighbour and never moves. My parents know him so they will enquire next time if he wants rid

[Gompo]

Rather exiting news today - I had to spend £130 odd pounds on a single bloody tyre.

Nevertheless it gives me an excuse to post a photograph of the '87 models on the fleet.

 

 

.

 

..That's quite a lot of money to lay out on a single tyre, was it a metric one or something?

[Pete-M]

XJR+MOT=WIN

[Pete-M]

XJR + MOT = WIN.

 

The carphone works again now as well. I'd tried about a billion different combinations trying to unlock the keypad. 0000, 1234, 1111, 2222, 3333, 4444, 5555, 6666, 7777, 8888, 9999, 0000 etc and random ones. Eventually went to a local phone repair specialist, after using about £20 in fuel trying all the usual suspects, Carphone Whorehouse etc found this bloke who, after being amazed there's still a working International 2200 said "You need the Motorola Test Sim, and I bet you've not found anyone who's got one..., I have, you can use it for a fiver".

 

The pin? 123. Bollocks.

[Tayne]

.

[barefoot]

Rather exiting news today - I had to spend £130 odd pounds on a single bloody tyre.

Nevertheless it gives me an excuse to post a photograph of the '87 models on the fleet.

.

 

..That's quite a lot of money to lay out on a single tyre, was it a metric one or something?

 

No it's a 225/50 ZR 16 N1

 

where N1 is the compound.

 

I know, I also thought, 'what a load of of old bollocks'

& spent about 5 years (& a lot of money) taking no notice of the N1 rating.

 

I could get through a set of tyres in 8,000 miles.

 

Apparently they now do N2, N3 & N4 -which get progressively harder & harder

It's a Porsche thing...

 

& just to make me really happy the Scirocco broke down - towed to garage...

it appears that all the bolts that connect the drive shaft to the gearbox have come out.

 

Hey, that's a new one on me!

 

.

[M'coli]

The Imp's engine is back together, full of water and no bubbles in the coolant so far. One of these days I'll put a head back on an Imp and not have the cam 180 degrees out.

No you wont , guarenteed to get this wrong , to top this off some of the 25d4 dizzys are set 180degrees from each other , so swapping one dizzy for another of the same type can have the same effect , I HAZ THE T SHIRT

I didn't mean that I'd do it intentionally - I think that it's entirely possible that if we reassemble them to be 180 out, at some point it'll be correct!

[M'coli]

XJR + MOT = WIN.

 

The carphone works again now as well. I'd tried about a billion different combinations trying to unlock the keypad. 0000, 1234, 1111, 2222, 3333, 4444, 5555, 6666, 7777, 8888, 9999, 0000 etc and random ones. Eventually went to a local phone repair specialist, after using about £20 in fuel trying all the usual suspects, Carphone Whorehouse etc found this bloke who, after being amazed there's still a working International 2200 said "You need the Motorola Test Sim, and I bet you've not found anyone who's got one..., I have, you can use it for a fiver".

 

The pin? 123. Bollocks.

Twatflaps. The Motorola test SIM sounds interesting, however, and would be interested in speaking to this guy. I would also love to have a look at the 2200...

[Pete-M]

Twatflaps. The Motorola test SIM sounds interesting, however, and would be interested in speaking to this guy. I would also love to have a look at the 2200...

 

 

I need to replace the hands-free speaker, which is buried under the dash somewhere near my feet, and find the hands-free mic because I don't know where the hell that is and sound quality ain't brilliant on it at speed.

 

It's ace for signal, always full strength pretty much everywhere I've been. Right across Europe. Obviously wasn't looking at it all the time, but everytime I've ever looked at the thing it's been full on. I keep a p.a.y.g sim in it so if I ever need to make a call there's a good chance I'll be able to. The handset still sounds pretty good, but it's a shitload more obvious than a tiny little modern mobile so I don't use it like that unless parked up, it's great for passengers though.

 

The Motorola test sim just puts the phone into an advanced mode where the bloody thing will do all those little things modern ones do anyway, but it won't do calls.

 

Place that had the sim was these guys. Appeared to be a very professional operation, run by decent folks, and they appear to be cheap. A replacement screen for my Sony C902, fitted, for £35. I've been getting quotes of £60 to do that.

[barefoot]

Scirocco broke down.

 

Nearside driveshaft bolts all fell out!

 

.

[Mike D]

I removed a coil out the front springs on the 928 today... What a swine of a job! fingers crossed when it settles it will have sorted the heinous anti-rake it was displaying