THE GUBBERMINT ALWAYS KNOWS BEST

[The Moog]

Fixed the Micras drivers window. Used metal putty stuff to bond the white plastic bit to the window and so far so good!

[barefoot]

A little embarrassed about this, but my camper van needs doors.

 

Just Kampers supplied two lovely brand spanking new cab doors without the nasty

new moulding and all the lovely new rubber and alloy bits to fit them.

 

Unhappily it appears to be nigh on impossible to get hold of a rhd sliding door

at anything less than, 'Is that the gold plated or the solid version?'

£500 plus VAT and postage I'm going to have to pay for an imported old door.

 

This is scene tax gone mad.

 

Unless anyone in the glorious world of shite has one....

[trigger]

The only photo I've found so far Dicky of your A35, if thats of any good to anyone.

 

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

^ nice

 

Mini wouldn't go because it was flooding. Cleaning the float valve etc seemed to cure that.

Meanwhile I'm waiting for the Triumph to be recovered after it failed to proceed this afternoon. Cut out while accelerating, keeps doing so

[wuvvum]

I had my first proper go on icy roads in the Subaru this morning on the way into work - main road into Norwich was jammed solid, so cut through the back roads, which hadn't been gritted at all, so I pressed the magic red button. I've had other selectable 4WD vehicles which I've used in snow in the past (Frontera, Fourtrak), but the Justy doesn't seem to have the same tendency towards terminal understeer on icy roads - in fact when I gave it a bit too much welly pulling out of a side road I had an OMG DRIFT moment. Don't know if this is due to the Justy being FF4 rather than FR4, although I don't see why this would make a difference. Means I'm going to have to be a bit careful though as the steering has about 25 turns lock to lock and is therefore GR1 4 catching unintended slides.

[Lukas]

Subarus tend to have a very light back-end, so OMG DRIFTIN is really easy with them when 4WD is engaged. The Leone where the same, even new Subarus without VDC are prone for drifting.

[AlsoMike]

Bought myself another Peugeot 205, this time in Turbo Dizzle flavour. Hopefully I can now say goodbye to the lowly em-pee-gees I was getting from the Auto and no longer be a slave to the demon petrol station. I'd put up a photo of the new one, but everyone knows what a red 205 looks like...

[wuvvum]

Turbo diesel 205s are GR947342.

[Pillock]

 

Unhappily it appears to be nigh on impossible to get hold of a rhd sliding door

at anything less than, 'Is that the gold plated or the solid version?'

£500 plus VAT and postage I'm going to have to pay for an imported old door.

 

Have ya tried Volksheaven?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Passed the 1500 mile mark in my revitalised Rover today, averaging 37 mpg and not a drop of oil on the drive. GREAT! It does burn a little oil, nowt like the old engine though which I have now swapped with my pikey neighbour for a few cans of beer.

[Mike D]

Good work Reg. BollXXX, i'm glad the Rover is behaving itself for you, you've certainly put the effort in with it!

 

I changed the front tyres on the Merc yesterday, i think I can safely say that I squeezed every ounce of life out of them in the 22K they managed!

 

I also took the flushing ATF i got from work to the garage doing the 'box on the 928 yesterday, told them there's no rush but i should still have it back by next week, I can crack on and give it a drive to my mates then to see the braake pipe situation, although at 43 quid for a full set of braided hoses, it leaves me with only the hardship of the solid lines to contend with. I think i'm going to have to lose the rear silencer at least too, I needz more burblez!

[j-j]

Aphrodite the CX is dying... fairly large oil leak and very slow churn over this morning - not enough to fire up and now I fear the beginnings of engine seizure..

 

To be fair though, it's been getting slowly shiter in the engine department for the last 18 months' use.. and at £700 5 years back, she owes me very little.. I've been all over the UK in this 33 Y. O CX but I think the crank seal is going into retirement.....

 

Any advice? If you reckon your engine is a ball hair away from seizing, any shiter have a tip as to how to stop the motor seizing? Or to unseize it? Wee bit of diesel fuel in each cylinder if the thing jams up?

[Mike D]

If it's the oil seals leaking then it's more likely to be bearings seizing than the cylinders, diesel in them won't help!

 

Can't you just whip the motor out and replace the crank seal?

[j-j]

I would but since the mighty break up with the EX, I no longer have my nice garage facilities and now have a street with a hefty gradient. How do you do an insurance job on a non runner that's right outside your house?

[Mike D]

It might get towed by a hired van with covered plates?

[Mr_Bo11ox]

engines dont gradually seize up so don't worry about that, theyre either seized or not seized. I suggest getting a new crank seal to fix the leak, and a new battery to fix the starting, the cold weather is probably chinning the battery.

[fiatdaft]

is the escaping oil getting anywhere near the starter?

[j-j]

Cheers dudes.

 

The battery is registering a 12.6v rest and is less than 2 years old - surely it's 'good'?

 

The starter motor is a reconditioned ducellier fitted about 4 years ago and I hoped it might be OK still..

 

The oil leak is well below the starter so I am fairly sure it's not getting on the starter.

 

 

As for getting the thing pikeyed away on a HiAb, I think it -might- be OK as it's outside my parents' wee culdesac in central Scotland and it's not as big a threat here (tho still a threat.. always need to keep alert for hired van!)

[Mike D]

Oh, i completely misread the situation and thought you were thinking of ways it could get 'lost' !

 

12.6 is good not running, what's it give with the motor going?

[j-j]

Hi Mike, It's pretty good- 14v at 1500 rpm (usually - not checked since today's shite episode)

 

I should add: the starter ring gear has some teeth missing and this makes 'problem starts' a wee bit of a shite experience... it cranks a good few times then reaches the shite bit of teeth whereupon it goes "wheeeeeee!" and I have to stop. It always engages on the next start attempt but the cranking is not very brisk.. I might also check the connections of the battery to the starter as an aside.

 

As for the ways it could get 'lost'! : well, it is just my initial reaction to the trouble: wanting to do a 'job' on the bitch ..

[barefoot]

 

Unhappily it appears to be nigh on impossible to get hold of a rhd sliding door

at anything less than, 'Is that the gold plated or the solid version?'

£500 plus VAT and postage I'm going to have to pay for an imported old door.

 

Have ya tried Volksheaven?

 

That mob in Doncaster?

I have tried everywhere & I've been looking for the last year.

I know you lot laugh at scene tax*, but it is well beyond a joke.

 

 

*& I know you might look at mine & think that I've had it lowered, but the back was sagging

in a fashion that could only be interpreted as alarming, so dropped (or in fact raised) front

spindles were added** in an attempt to counteract the bizarre attitude the van was taking.

 

**I was alarmed to find that although the ride remains comfortable, the 'handling' (although I

believe that is far too grandiose a term for the way it wallows through the merest of bends)

has taken a severe and unmentioned (in the scene) turn for the worse.

 

 

.

[Pillock]

It's not really scene tax though, it's just rare parts. Scene tax is more "stuff you don't really need, but some bloke on a forum reckons it's FTW so I'm gonna spunk a load of cash on it".

[nigel bickle]

Thank Godthe ''scene''dont recgonise my reasonablysimilar Barkas. I got my replacement (solid) rear door -delivered from central Germany -£50.

Marvellous

[mattblack]

*Might* be going to look at a Pug 306 1.8 GLX estate at a garage today.

 

EDIT: Pug was sold, sounded like a good one as well. 74K, one owner, FSH. Only other estate they had in our price range was a 406 with 155K on the clock and a crusty bonnet...

[The Moog]

Bernard is properly fixed. Bled all the brakes through today and gave her a tootle out. She is happy as larry. Going to tidy the inside up and get her sold ..

[Negative Creep]

Still car hunting. Looking locally though the problem with where I am is that setting a 30 mile radius will include all of London and Essex which aren't as straightforward to get to. Now I know this still isn't far to look at a car but I'd have to get a lift from my Dad to view it and he won't go that far as it's too much on fuel

[Mr_Bo11ox]

^^^^ What a tightwad! Offer him the choice of a) giving you a lift to look at some old snotters, or being put in a nursing home.

[Pete-M]

*Might* be going to look at a Pug 306 1.8 GLX estate at a garage today.

 

EDIT: Pug was sold, sounded like a good one as well. 74K, one owner, FSH. Only other estate they had in our price range was a 406 with 155K on the clock and a crusty bonnet...

 

S'funny that, my 406 has a crusty bonnet. Only rust on the thing.

[j-j]

It lives!

 

stuffed some new oil in CX and gave it another jump start. No joy for ages. 14v at the donor car batt, 13.98 at the CX batt but cranking on CX initially strong for 2 churns then dies off like the batt is duff (dash lights dim per churn) so kept checking the Vs at both ends of the jump leads and 14v or thereabouts. I had the -ve lead attached to the engine block but when I moved it to the batt terminal instead things improved. Does this mean the engine block and all the leccy things on it are not earthed properly? Maybe the battery lead to the gearbox needs cleaning up - do that every year.

 

Anyway, it eventually fired up and ran. Trouble is it now has too much oil in it - more than double the level of the dipstick as I was a wee bit over zealous with the top up thinking it had all leaked out.

 

Oddly, it is not showing signs of the same major oil leak now that it has ran for a good bit. Wonder if the cranking over yesterday morning but not running did something to the iffy crank seal that isn't as bad when and after it has ran round the block a few times.

 

Anyway, it is alive and seemingly OK - gunna do the plug gaps and points to tighten it up for the winter.

[TagoraSX]

Anyone from the Cambridge area?

 

I want to get a car looked at.

It's been in a garage for 10 years and I just want to know if its a complete nail or not.

It's being sold by 2 women who can't get me pictures or give me a proper description and I don't fancy a 600 mile round trip to find out its a dog (again!)

 

If anyone can help or give me the details of someone who can I will pay them for their time.