Amelia's Automotive Adventures - Backup vehicle Swiftly purchased

[hairnet]

9 minutes ago, Rustybullethole said:

Me too.

The nasty surprise of finding a massive gapping crusty hole is a better found with an exploratory finger rather than...

the mot man

[Rustybullethole]

32 minutes ago, hairnet said:

the mot man

Indeed though there's worse ways to find the structural rigidity has worn off a bit. 

A case in point. 

 

 

[Amelia]

It's finished. 

FTP happened on the way into work - it's absolutely fucked, but entirely my fault as I pressed on with my journey in spite of knowing it was broken!

Here's what happened.

Auxiliary belt started squealing last Friday AM, I revved the engine and it shut up. I think perhaps it snapped because a little way into the journey the battery light came on,  as well as the brake warning light. 

My first thought was 'Oh, that's not good - I'd best turn off any electrics I don't need.' And I carried on. 

A short while later... I realised the heater wasn't hot anymore.  At that point it dawned on me that the water pump was on the same belt and that meant the water wasn't pumping.  At this point the lights were dimming and electricity was definitely running out. So I took it easy and kept an eye on the temperature, because work was only 5 or so miles away.,,,,in East London.... 

Needless to say, I got to within 1.5 miles of work and the temp shot up, the car started smoking out the exhaust badly and spluttering. It died just before the North Circular junction, and I coasted to the side of the road and bumped up onto the pavement. Car completely dead - luckily I have breakdown cover. It took an hour to get collected and dropped off at work, where the car has remained since.

Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

 

PS. I managed to fix the heater on the Mini, so at least I have reliable warm transport!

[Amelia]

Rio has been collected now, a sad close to a rather pathetic chapter in my car ownership saga.

 

Just for shits and giggles, I got the jump leads out and attempted to start it.

The noise was most horrible, it sounded really weird, a whirwhirwhir type noise with no catching at all - like only half of the engine was turning over - cambelt snapped maybe? 

Whatever the case, I wasn't exactly heartbroken to see it being dragged onto the back of the truck. 

[Amelia]

[Rustybullethole]

Some burn bright though not for long. Or something. 
Looking forward to further adventures. Can't wait to see what you pick up next.

[Amelia]

Apologies for not doing a collection thread, but here is my latest addition, hurriedly purchased after my mini decided all it's coolant ought to be deposited on the road!

It's the ex @garethj Suzuki Swift which has been pushed into daily service, and I've done nearly 600 miles in already. 

Observations: Noisy AC pump pulley is now noisier than ever, but I think I can just take the belt off completely for now. Water pump and alternator are on a separate belt. 

Driving position is horrid for a tall girl like me, I'm used to the mini which is a lot lower.

It zips along nicely and is good on fuel, averaging over 40mpg on my commute.  

Gearbox linkages need attention as sometimes 1st and 2nd are tough to find,  you have to wiggle the stick in neutral and then you can select them. I've stalled it so many times attempting to pull away in 3rd gear. 

Verdict? I'm going to  try to fix Bella.

[Amelia]

Other life updates:

I'm off to Turkey again in about a month, and I'll be returning with a VAG 🤣 (no not a car). I just hope I don't get a check engine light... 😬

Job is going well, didn't know I had it in me to be a sales girl! 😳

 

[Amelia]

Of course it was never going to stay stock...

Mini steels with 20mm spacers

Kinda had to make a custom exhaust after the back box fell off!