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THE GUBBERMINT ALWAYS KNOWS BEST


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Right, Escort gone and not missed but other shite needs my attention...

 

Passat taking in water in large quantities, found main fault was a bung the previous owner had removed. Piss arsing about with plastic bags and tape made shite all difference so today we masticated over the hole and I'm now waiting for the rain to come to see if works on account of the fact I cannot be arsed to run a hosepipe over it.

 

Next on the list is a cheap shit Chinese scooter I bought as a non-runner. Plug was completely bollocksed so got a new one, lobbed some fuel in and it fired up.

GR8 for about a minute or two wehn I turned it off and it wouldn't start again. Some more piss arsing about and it decided to start again but still revved quite high at tickover and won't rev cleanly/pull well. Suspect the old fuel is the problem or possibly a bit of shit in the tank but will crack on again tomorrow and see what happens.

 

Astra Mk3 continues to start/run no matter how long it's left and has been jump starting a couple of other snotters recently.

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Just bought this old heap with a last minute bid on t' bay:

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... _500wt_947

 

Not really sure why. It was cheap for a 50's car, it was local and I just fancied it. It is in pretty desperate need for a new clutch, and the handbrake doesn't work, apart from that it's not too bad. It is also a local car from new, and I'm hoping I might be able to get the original number allocated back to the car. Exciting times!

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Well done Dicky!, That doesn't look bad for the money, I saw this one on ebay earlier and quite liked it, Though yours is a bargain compared to it.

 

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Oh and Spottedlaurel, If your reading this, you need to check out the yard this car is at, It's up your way and is full of old tat, I looked at a Vitesse there last year.

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Excellent Dicky. I had a look at that ad when you (?) linked it earlier in the week. Looks like a real good honest car. :D

Thanks! I'm quite happy with it, it's seen a fair bit of welding underneath but it's mostly to a decent standard, and it drives very well, really nippy as well! I think it has the later 1622cc engine fitted, although I couldn't decipher the engine number (started with AH). It has a Morris Minor type SU carb in place of the original Zenith, and an electric fuel pump (I think these had a mechanical pump from new?

 

Trig, I saw that A55 as well, looks really tidy but I don't like how he's holding the numberplate to ransom. The car looks really tidy though, and that shade of blue with those rostyles really set it off well 8)

 

Not cheap though.

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If you can tell me the engine number then I've got a list of all the B series numbers here. But the capacity is also cast in to the block under the front tappet caver (below the manifold). SU carb will be a definite advantage though if it is an A60 engine, that's what they came with. That might also explain the conversion to an electric pump (again standard equipment for an A60)

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Don't know what's happened with my latest purchase. There's no movement on the throttle pedal yet the cable is attached both ends. If it were snapped I should be able to pull it through yet it seems solid. Maybe I should get the person who broke it (after doing an endo) to actually pay but I need it fixed. Since the engine is under the floor makes it harder to trace the cable as well. Sigh.

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Nice one Dicky! We seem to be emulating each other's fleets still as I got my hands on this a couple of months ago (sorry for the radio silence so far - didn't think it was very shite!).

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It's a blown-up version of your car, A90 Westminster. That means a 2.6 six pot shared with the Austin-Healey, and it also sports an SU conversion - two of them rather than the usual single Zenith. Sprightly!

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Nice old motah, d-w. I remember Mike McCarthy having one when he wrote for Classic & Sportscar years ago. He had endless problems with it, even after an expensive restoration.

 

Was there a 105 Westminster too?

Hopefully this one won't be too much trouble...

 

The A90 was the first Westminster, with the short arse. Then It became the A95 with a back end more like Dicky's Cambridge. The 105 was the jazzy one with two-tone paint and twin carbs as standard. There was even a Vanden Plas version.

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The Herald lost some of its Lucas smoke earlier, leading to a mild panic for Mrs_Seth who had Ickle_Seth in the back.

 

Fortunately I discovered the source of the leak and have manged to stuff some fresh smoke into the indicator circuit.

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The Herald lost some of its Lucas smoke earlier, leading to a mild panic for Mrs_Seth who had Ickle_Seth in the back.

 

Fortunately I discovered the source of the leak and have manged to stuff some fresh smoke into the indicator circuit.

Oh, tat*.

 

Hope things are OK now sir.

 

(*other exclaimations are available, just not around Ickle_Seth).

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Stanza has a new cambelt on it, nice one Uncle Albert K Ross!

 

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Just needs a tax disc and it'll be ready to roll as the car for my new job.

 

Considering one side of it is painted in two-tone grey primer, how long before someone whinges about it?

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To expand on my previous entry, I received a rather panicked phone call from Mrs Seth to say "car! fire!" etc. Smoke had started appearing so she'd stopped and got ickle_seth out and got the car into a safe position. They were close to home so left it there for me to investigate when I got in. Down I walked having been worrying that it was something I'd done during the engine conversion.

 

I opened the bonnet, couldn't see anything obviously singed, neither where the new ignition wiring is fitted under and behind the glovebox. SO I risked turning the key. The indicators started flashing and didn't stop whereever I put the stalk. Then smoke appeared from behind the steering wheel. Ah. That'll be the problem then. Removed the cowls (two screws) then the screws holding the switch to the column. Where three wires should enter the switch there were only two, the bare broken end of the third shorting direct to the column I think.

 

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Drive the few streets home with the switch hanging by which time a second of the three wires also broke off. I was pretty sure I had the switch from the car I'd broken for its engine and box several years ago and managed to dig it out of the shed without much difficulty.

 

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Bit fiddly extracting the wires from the column and getting the new ones through but with that sorted and the new switch in place all seems hunky dory once again.

 

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I get annoyed by people slating Lucas electrics. I don't understand the problem they have with them. That old indicator switch has only lasted 40 years and perhaps 1/4 million miles (100k in our ownership) Can't really grumble.

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I get annoyed by people slating Lucas electrics. I don't understand the problem they have with them. That old indicator switch has only lasted 40 years and perhaps 1/4 million miles (100k in our ownership) Can't really grumble.

Their early stuff like starter motors last decades as does the wire itself , they fall fowl with switches and ignition parts , now made 100 times worst by getting stuff made in India or where ever thats totally useless and sticking them in Lucarse boxes , theres a spate of rotor arms about at the mo that short streight to earth after a mile or so.

Not helping maters really,

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I don't have that much experience of Lucas, but the Mini works fine for most of the time. The Citroen's also don't play up much. Well, apart from the CX which is a pain in the bleedin' arse! Maybe that's to make up for the fact that my Alfa 164 was generally fine in the electric department...

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Well that's about 25 litres of water hoovered out of the fucking Passat interior now.

 

Tonight we sealed the pollen filter housing, next on the list is a new filter and fitting the heater bushes when they arrive.

Got to love 'VW quality' :roll:

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Hopefully the mate who broke my van will come round tomorrow and fix it. Gear selector has broken off the box though and I'm not sure where I can get another one at such short notice. Need it fixed seeing as I'm leaving on Monday and at the moment I have a $1200 garden ornament

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Well that's about 25 litres of water hoovered out of the fucking Passat interior now.

 

Tonight we sealed the pollen filter housing, next on the list is a new filter and fitting the heater bushes when they arrive.

Got to love 'VW quality' :roll:

Not sure if the disesel is the same but the petrol ones have their ECU under the carpet in the passenger footwell. We had a leaky one a while back that had all manner of weird electrical faults. Lifted carpet and found optional indoor swimming pool with ECU sat in the middle of it. Brilliant piece of design VW

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I think it does actually thanks Peter, though I found an ECU under the windscreen so hopefully (as no eletrical faults have reared their ugly heads yet) I'm o.k.

 

The use of silicon sealant so far seems to have worked, have a new pollen filter (old one is cabbaged) but was going to hold fire fitting it until the heater bushes arrived. They should have been here Monday/Tuesday but haven't shown up yet :(

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I think it does actually thanks Peter, though I found an ECU under the windscreen so hopefully (as no eletrical faults have reared their ugly heads yet) I'm o.k.

 

The use of silicon sealant so far seems to have worked, have a new pollen filter (old one is cabbaged) but was going to hold fire fitting it until the heater bushes arrived. They should have been here Monday/Tuesday but haven't shown up yet :(

Cavette hope I am not teaching you to suck eggs but here are a couple of useful links for you

 

http://www.ukpassats.co.uk/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=4066

 

http://www.passatworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=230249

 

Multiple ingress points on the Passat I am afraid you might end up like the little boy with his finger in the dike :lol: .

 

HTH

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