AnnoyingPentium's *an Vectra*: Business as Usual.

[AnnoyingPentium]

Right, status update.

It lapped up about 450 miles going to the lakes and back, including us all going trips to various places. Although I could begin to feel a sticking brake periodically, again. This got from bad to worse, to the point I stopped somewhere along the A75 to let it cool when it decided to heat up far too much. Limping it home afterwards.

Not to worry, just the driver's side caliper away. That's easily replaceable.

Spoke to head of parts at my mum's work. He phoned round a few places.

Dingbro? Nah pal.

ECP? No, but we can do you the other three fine.

Vauxhall? Back order. You might get one before the year 3000 but I wouldn't bet on it.

So, I took it upon myself to ring TMS. "No chance buddy. We canny get you one."

Great. 

I'll try eBay using the part number I have. I get results back for Daewoo Nexia calipers. What follows this is a fight over email with the seller of the Nexia calipers who just refuses to sell them because "its not a Nexia m9"...

Square one.

I finally find one that's allegedly meant to fit (256mm discs, 23.5mm thickness). It arrives. Nope, no dice.

Turns out said caliper is a 288mm one, which was used on the later Vectras when they all got larger brakes. They've sent the wrong one, and don't do the one I'm after. Part number once again supplied. Matches the calipers for a Cavalier 2.0 8v.

This gives me more to play with.

I message a lad from Kincardine area, who reckons the one he has will do it. I drove up today, turns out the driver's side one is indeed for a driver's side... on the LHD one. 

Great.

Nice run out in the Skoda, mind. Got it nice and warm and less damp inside. More on that in the respective thread... eventually.

ANYWAY!

This leads me up to now. I have potentially found a caliper that'll fit, but I'm waiting for photos from the seller to see for certain.

At the time of writing, the car has moved once from the Spot of Shame (TM) at the top of the road. It's been there since I came back from the Lakes.

On the plus side, it's a lot cheaper to run this way.

[beko1987]

All round brake upgrade? 

[AnnoyingPentium]

Just now, beko1987 said:

All round brake upgrade? 

Genuinely looking like my solution is moving up to 288mm discs on it.

Waiting to hear back from a company that's advertising ones that look right.

[beko1987]

Sounds like one of those jobs where it might cost the same/be cheaper but way less arse ache to do, as annoying as it sounds! 

Teach you for having a fancy Vauxhall with custom bespoke components 😂

[24vdiamond]

The calipers dont seem that special or difficult to find, this was the 1st one that came up??

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/355468798678

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 hour ago, 24vdiamond said:

The calipers dont seem that special or difficult to find, this was the 1st one that came up??

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/355468798678

That's the one I e-mailed about. I think I'll just pull the trigger and sort out the aftermath should it not fit. Just want the car back on the road again.

[AnnoyingPentium]

OAN EH ROAD AGAIN.

Trip to Asda to test it out and charge the battery.

Nae nuns or kittens plastered to the front so I'm calling that a success.

[Noel Tidybeard]

i believe the larger discs came with the 5 stud equiped cars i.e 2.0 & 2.5 and not just later cars

[AnnoyingPentium]

2 minutes ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

i believe the larger discs came with the 5 stud equiped cars i.e 2.0 & 2.5 and not just later cars

That's indeed correct, I was consulting the brochure earlier for that very reason.

[Noel Tidybeard]

my 2.0 GLSi was 5 stud

the wierdness that is vauxhall of the '90s was if you had an 2.0 LS you got the same gls wheel trims on your 5 stud wheels

[AnnoyingPentium]

31 minutes ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

my 2.0 GLSi was 5 stud

the wierdness that is vauxhall of the '90s was if you had an 2.0 LS you got the same gls wheel trims on your 5 stud wheels

The V6 Arctic uses, on the surface, the same wheels as the 1.8 version, but under those centre covers is 5 studs instead of 4. 🤔

[Noel Tidybeard]

the door mirrors are a minefield as well

chrome grille facelift mirrors are larger

pre-facelift can be plain glass or blind spot

 

[AnnoyingPentium]

1 hour ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

the door mirrors are a minefield as well

chrome grille facelift mirrors are larger

pre-facelift can be plain glass or blind spot

 

Aye, they're also noted as "enquire at parts desk" in Halfords.

[big_al_granvia]

Can you not get a set of stainless pistons and new seals. Not a big job to scrub bores,hone and rebuild

[AnnoyingPentium]

7 hours ago, big_al_granvia said:

Can you not get a set of stainless pistons and new seals. Not a big job to scrub bores,hone and rebuild

Aye repair kits are available for these, but I was really wanting it back on the road as soon as. 

I've got the old caliper sitting somewhere, so I'll have a go at rebuilding it at some point.

[AnnoyingPentium]

Okay so, this had been due a service for quite some time. So, once the weather was a bit less shit, I had another go with this.

Trust me, it was needed.

Furthermore, it's a lot easier to replace the oil filter by removing the O/S/F wheel instead of fucking about with under trays and suchlike.

Oil removed, filters changed. Oil refilled.

Ah you bastard.

Then I realised it was just down to me spilling a bit on the rocker cover. All is good. It's not leaking now.

Sorted.

In other news, mileage milestone (almost) achieved through the week.

And now it's on a wee bit more.

It's had a good effect, the service and the brake caliper replacement now.

That's with the air conditioning on as well. That's not bad at all for a big motor.

Finally, I've had a wee go of editing photos, because I can.

I'm putting a lot of mileage on it at the moment. So it's going to get some rest for a bit, as I've got *an suspension noise*, and I'll go back to running the Fabia.

[Matty]

Lovely thing

[AnnoyingPentium]

3 minutes ago, Matty said:

Lovely thing

Thanks Matty. I've been trying to keep it well tidy.

[Noel Tidybeard]

an suspension noise could be the bottom 1/2 turn or front coil- i had to do both on mine for one mot

[AnnoyingPentium]

21 minutes ago, Noel Tidybeard said:

an suspension noise could be the bottom 1/2 turn or front coil- i had to do both on mine for one mot

Quite possibly! Been thinking shock absorbers too, since they're the 1998 originals.

I'm currently waiting on an alternator for it before I can crack on with repairing the rest of it.

[AnnoyingPentium]

Off and oan eh road, once again.

That'll do, Donkey, that'll do.

Alternator could have been farmed out, but being a tiny* bit of a masochist I thought about doing it myself...

 

And it's done.

 

Overall, could have been so much worse, but not great either. Few other wee jobs to do but nowt serious, as they say.

Ideal, considering the Fabia has spat the dummy out.

[AnnoyingPentium]

I still have this (clearly) and it's been doing sales rep miles... so it's due another service. 

I'm going away with the Fabia soon, so this will sit for a bit, meaning I'll service it once I come back, as it'll now be tucked away for a bit yet, gives it a good break.

Since April, this has been doing furniture shifting, scrap/tip runs, and other various shite shifting. Someday I'll leave it after a scrap run...

Here's the fun* parts though

Fog.

Dog(s).

Dealer plates.

Made some friends.

And that's all I can remember, possibly selectively, depends who you ask.

[Wibble]

Mk 3 Escort in Caribbean blue, ace!

[AnnoyingPentium]

A few things, that I had forgotten to add:

The car got a new* set of Falken All-Seasons on the front as the other ones were down to about 2mm and scary in the wet.

Further, it's got new boot struts to prevent beheading, since it had the originals which were leaking.

Finally, I've whacked on a set of SRI taillights for the sporty' appearance.

And after:

There are a few more jobs to do yet, as it needs drop links (I have the bits, just need the weather), an exhaust (current one is rotten in a few places), and could do with a set of shock absorbers as they've still got their Opel stickers from 1998 on them - and do not absorb shocks.

[Lord Sterling]

As spoken about recently, love the Vectra Ryan. In fact, I like the earlier ones more than the later ones, particularly with smaller bumpers.

The thing I love about these Vectras is that they do 'an car' so much more well than other cars that try so hard to be status symbols or lifestyle cars, then you've got others that are generally modified "cuz yeah man loik 🤘" etc...

In one way or another (mainly thanks to Red5) I've often found myself in Vectras. The first Vectra I ever drove was a 1.8 LS (not a 1.6) that belonged to a mate's brother;

It was honestly such a nice and soft car to drive, something to pootle about in for a bit. I drove it from Birmingham to Telford and back again, it was honestly just a nice leisurely thing to drive.

Some years later I after picking this up for @red5, I ended having it off him;

It was a 2.2 SRi DTi. Sadly, despite how utterly clean and rust-free it was, I didn't appreciate it enough as I never gelled with it, also because I wanted the Vectra C he had which I gelled with much more;

Sadly the C ended up with a knocking bottom end, I was told it's own engine would eventually implode.

Still, I'm now back in a 'B and I love it. Its a 2.6 V6 SRi, sounds amazing (much like an old 6-cyl BMW)

Oh yeah, and my fave mod;

[AnnoyingPentium]

Brilliant! Absolutely love the history there too. There's something about this car - I've really gelled with it.

[Noel Tidybeard]

LS please tell me you've been through Queensway tunnel in 2nd with the window down

[AnnoyingPentium]

It's still with us... here's some stats:

600 miles/13 hours driving

9 compact discs

8 suicidal Nissan Jukes

7 moments of screaming at Google maps

6 service stations

5 Fabia seats

4 cans of diet Pepsi

3 times getting lost in Carlisle Tesco

2 Co-op meal deals

1½ tanks of E10 petrol

1 McDonalds cheeseburger

And a Rennie for the cheeseburger too.

Met up with my mate in Penrith on the way back. His Fabia sitting to the left. Bloody moderns.

Valuable* cargo. Will need to clean them up (as they're rank) and fire them in the Skoda.

Despite my hatred for smart* motorways, this small trip back in time was nice. The M6 is horrible though.

[Lord Sterling]

On 12/09/2024 at 21:20, Noel Tidybeard said:

LS please tell me you've been through Queensway tunnel in 2nd with the window down

No, but I intend to (just not when it's busy which seems to be always)

I did go through a tunnel in Dover and in Brussels when I took the Vectra over last time, it sounded glorious. 

[AnnoyingPentium]

MOT booked... for Tuesday!

I've a list of things that it will fail on, so let's see what else goes. Gives me a list to work on. 

I'll be truthful, I've not been able to maintain this as much as I'd have liked. My usual assistant (my Granda) when it came to jobs like this, took unwell last month. Not to worry, he's on the mend, but it's not been the easiest time for any of us. Not had the time really to fettle with the car. Been let down by a lad (mobile mechanic) who is meant to be really decent but his timekeeping leaves much to be desired so I won't bother.

Things are a bit better now, thankfully. I've more time to fuck about with cars, at least on smaller jobs. I'm going to tackle the idle control valve sometime next week hopefully. It's not stalling as much now, but the idle is pretty uneven at times.

I drive this car, and despite its tendency to AVAS, it really will do everything I need it to, and more. I've not really had any desire to change it for anything else, there's nothing that takes my fancy (unless a Vectra CDX 2.0 preface saloon in black turns up) so it'll just keep doing an car things for now.