My New Zealand Shite - Yet Another Car Added

[Spottedlaurel]

Very nice. Certainly one of the quintessential cars of my teenage years.

 

My dad had just a 1.6L, which wasn't anywhere near as exciting.

[STUNO]

I don't think you lot are really getting this. It is not just a Cavalier, it is the only Vauxhall Cavalier SRi  known to exist in this part of the world. Nobody's father had one and the Holden Camira equivalent was not made in the hatchback style. This is a seriously rare car, and in good condition. 

My photos of the collection.

 

The reason Jon cannot buy any more cars, the garage to the right is also full.

 

Not this, but useful for tip runs

 

 

A Triumph was one of my thoughts because of earlier discussions that had also included an Isuzu Piazza

 

This was ready to go for paint

 

the garage contents, last time there there was a Lambourghini shaped item there but since sold.

 

 

 

There was also a very rare Rhodesia/ South Africa only BMW under a tarp (cats piss challenge failed) which stayed under wraps. so no pic. Think Glas 1700 saloon ?

 

First look at a Vauxhall Cavalier

 

[M'coli]

That's awesome!  I am soooo envious.

[Jon]

That really is a thing of beauty - nicely bought!

 

I'll never forget being driven around in a mate's Dad's Cavalier SRi in the late 80's. He was taking us home from the cinema and had to start it with a screwdriver as he'd just got it back after being nicked. Again.

 

Thankfully, this is super incognito over here, as no-one really knows what it is. A lot like driving the Visa - no-one gave it a second glance whilst I was out and about in it yesterday. Therefore, I'm hopeful that it won't suffer the fate of a lot of 80's Vauxhalls in the UK...

 

 

Best alloy wheels of the '80s!

 

I was lucky enough to drive SRis as company cars when they were new. Quite an upgrade over the 1600GL Cortinas they replaced where I worked.

 

You know what? I have actually ruminated about swapping the wheels for something else, as I don't love them that much. I'm thinking it's the lack of centre caps that let the show down. I can't even imagine how difficult they'll be to replace... Fortunately, these are 4 x 100 pcd - maybe Mrs_Jon won't miss her Ronal Turbos on her Clio!

 

 

Super stuff! The scene is strong in the UK with these, I love spotting them at shows.

 

Fatha_Pin had an estate in the 1980s, which I believe is made in Australia?

 

I won't reveal how little I paid for this as I don't want to be too cruel but suffice to say, it was below UK market value! My love of Mk2 Cavaliers came from the 1983 estate which was our family car from new when I was a nipper. Despite keeping for over 20 years (and even locating a NOS bodyshell to replace the rotten old one with!), the whole sorry mess was given away when I emigrated, so there's a bit of unfinished business here for me. In fact, this is part 3 of my personal GM J-series saga, as I bought this within a couple of months of arriving in NZ:

 

 

 

A first series (JB) Camira, which again was left languishing for years before eventually outstaying it welcome at free storage, so was given away. Presumed dead now, so I'm basically one of those guys when it comes to these things. However, hopefully no more, I really want to turn over a new leaf with this one at it's by far the best of the three, condition-wise, so I'm off to a good start.

 

And yeah, you're right - the estate was designed by Holden and the bodyshells were shipped over to the UK from Australia!

 

 

Very nice. Certainly one of the quintessential cars of my teenage years.

 

My dad had just a 1.6L, which wasn't anywhere near as exciting.

 

I'm not sure I'd call this exciting to drive but I rather think I've been spoilt by the 205, which being much lighter, more powerful and much lower geared, is a veritable hooligan in comparison. The main difference I see with this SRi is how quiet it is compared to our 1.6L estate - I'm guessing the hatchback body cuts out a lot of noise and perhaps SRi sound deadening was a bit better? At anything over about 20mph, I could barely hear the engine over the tyre and wind noise - really weird!

 

 

That's awesome!  I am soooo envious.

 

It's funny how the Autoshite mindset works but I'd be lying if I didn't think this'd be right up your alley! Come over and give it a test drive!

[Jon]

Easter break's over for Mrs_Jon, so this managed to grace the driveway for an hour or so today:

 

 

It even gained a backhanded compliment from the mate who's storing it for me, when he text me: "OK, that's not actually too bad", after I'd dumped it on his lawn whilst he was out at work. 

 

 

 

Er, yeah, um, seems my brain totally blanked the worn down bolster, to go with the threadbare seat back and squab. Ah well, at least there's not great big chunks of seat missing, or owt. Interesting that the grey paint continues on the bodyshell behind the doors, all the way up the pillars!

 

 

 

Passenger side one is good, though. I'm guessing these seats saw service in the Astra GTE too? The seat belt hides it here, but these seats have the side lever to tilt the seat back, for 2 door cars. I gave the driver's side one a go to see if it worked but the back didn't move and then the plastic handle end came off in my hand, so I just put it back on and forgot I'd even seen it.

 

 

 

Here's most of the useless bumf that was sat in the glovebox. Owner's manual is dated April 1983, so I'm guessing this was a Y reg, assuming the book is the original one. No service book in the holder in the driver's footwell like I'd hoped, as I'd love to know what the UK reg of this was. Interesting to see it'd racked up almost 50000 miles by the time it landed in NZ in December 1986, so it was likely some privileged rep's hack.

 

Other interesting* points of note: the 'Vauxhalls towing stuff' brochure is from 1982, where the SR is listed, as the SRi hadn't been invented yet. Good to know also the towing capacities of Chevettes and the 2-dr 1300 Cavalier (over 900kg braked, from memory!). And that paper pamphlet top left is the old registration papers, which lists the names and addresses of previous owners - last filled out in 1992, when its 3rd NZ owner took it on. That and another bit of paper told me that Dorothy Jean Umfreville and Power Ffarington Ranulf (!!) were past owners. With names like that, I feel like I want to learn more about these people!

 

 

 

Looking quite clean already, so a welcome bonus, as I'm not one to detail engine bays. I checked the air filter element and it was nice and clean, so I assume it's shared with something actually sold over here (a Camira, maybe?). It's things like that that make owning obsolete interloper chod a little bit easier, though I am amassing a mental note of wish list items to be sent over from the UK at some point.

 

 

 

Nice clean strut towers. That said, I don't recall these being problem areas like they were on Carltons. I wonder why?

 

 

 

 

Seems it was made in Belgium, not Luton. Am guessing this was something to do with it being an SRi? Either way, every day's a school day.

 

 

 

 

Yeah, the headlining isn't too flash, though I'm hopeful that it'll clean up well with a bit of care. No rips, at least.

 

 

 

 

Sunroof shows evidence of being taped up in the past, resulting in lacquer peel and rust as a consequence. In hindsight then, it probably wasn't the greatest idea to touch the sunroof lever, as even though I didn't dare turn it, I did hear the roof move a little. Here's hoping I haven't broken the seal...

 

 

 

As if that wasn't bad enough, here's some ominous bubbles sub-surface on the NSR door skin. Do I let these things keep me awake at night, or do I just assure myself that these have been generated but haven't yet popped in 35 years? Yeah, I'll try and think of the second one.

 

 

 

Bonnet could do with a tidy, too. As could that front valance, although it seems to be impact damaged rather than rust ravaged, so hopefully efforts to make it look a bit better may well be within my scope.

 

 

 

 

Then I went and took it out for a quick drive and nip to the post shop, to get it transferred into my name. On the way home, I thought I'd park it up in the spot where I'd taken a pic of the Commodore before, to do a bit of a compario (the Commodore is partly dismantled at the front at the moment) but I'd got the wrong spot. Oh well.

 

 

 

Nevertheless, the family resemblance is pretty clear - way more than the Camira was to the Commodore, at launch. Please don't ask me why I've not pulled my finger out sorting out the V8 transplant, by the way; that's certainly what I'm thinking, when I look at this photo.

 

 

 

One final comparison, for now.

 

 

Stone chip protectors have now been removed - I'll admit they did look crap but worked very well.

 

 

Anyway, I called my insurer to get the Cav insured today (no insurance is compulsory in NZ but it's obviously strongly advisable), knowing they don't insure cars this old. I thought it was worth a try and it turns out that the lady on the phone was able to talk to a broker in person, who was able to make an immediate decision and decided they'd be willing to take £6 a month from me, to insure this 3rd party only. It's a shame I wasn't able to get at least TPFT as I'd like windscreen cover but it'll do for now, at least. In an ideal world I'd got for full cover but realistically, what kind of payout would I expect on something so obscure, over here?

 

I'll probably bosh up some driving impressions at some point, when I've had the chance to actually use it properly. I think it's still sinking in that I own this, tbh!

[dollywobbler]

Excellent. Very early Cav Mk2, as they soon switched the rear wiper position for RHD. Odd panel gap at the front though - looks like you can fit your hand between headlamp and bonnet...

[hairnet]

why is it not an ascona?

 

how official is it?

 

commodorehnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnngggggggggggggg

[Jon]

Yo hairnet, not sure what you mean by official? It certainly wasn't a car sold here and is defo ex-UK, though from memory, Asconas were still being marketed there in 1983. You'll have to make a return trip to see the Commodore in use! Don't book a ticket too soon, mind....

 

 

Excellent. Very early Cav Mk2, as they soon switched the rear wiper position for RHD. Odd panel gap at the front though - looks like you can fit your hand between headlamp and bonnet...

 

GR8 wiper info, as usual DW. However, your two comments have led me down a Google search wormhole this morning, in relation to the rear wiper and front panel gaps. Let's look at the wiper, first:

 

 

 

Here's a Cavlier SR with the same set-up as mine. But....

 

 

Here's an SR with the RHD wiper set-up. And it's an A reg, which by this time would make it mild late reg madness, as the SRi would've replaced it by then. Could the LHD wiper of mine therefore have something to do with it being Belguim built? And is this one above perhaps an SRi masquerading as an SR? Or maybe the 'i' has just fallen off?!

 

 

Now, the panel gaps up front. The headlights seem to match up with the bottom profile of the wings and there does seem to be a relatively large gap on many Mk2 Cavaliers, between the top of the light units and the bonnet. I'm just wondering if the illusion of the gaping chasm is highlighted by the fog light spec grille? Here's what I mean:

 

 

First up, standard grille. Lovely stuff, great fit and much neater, IMO. Quite gappy above the headlights, though.

 

 

 

Credit to trigger for the above photo - I hope he doesn't mind me using this one to prove the point I'm trying to make, as this one looks similar to mine, i.e. gappy.

 

So, in my mind that's another reason to add a standard grille to the parts list, as I don't think the fog lights work, anyway.

[Jon]

But wait, there's more. It turns out that I don't have the only Cavalier SRi in Australasia, as I once thought. Check out this one, in Aussie!

 

 

I'll admit that I prefer the saloon styling to these but the hatch is way more practical, I suppose. But that's not all...

 

 

 

There's a flipping 1983 Cavalier L estate in South Australia, which is the spitting image of our family one!! What an utterly bizarre thing to have imported, if you factor in that not only is it a DIESEL one, it's essentially a re-import of a load of Aussie panels, too! And in this case, there's defo something up with that grille.

 

I know of the existence of 2 other Mk2 Cavaliers and an Ascona in NZ, all of them hatchback; a very early (1981) GLS in metallic green (saw on Trademe years ago, presumed now dead), a late CD in the south island and an Ascona GT in the south island too, which was actually imported new but as far as I know, was the only one brought over. I'm not sure if the Ascona still survives, as the owner was sick of paying storage fees for a while back it but was more inclined to scrap it than let it go for buttons, as he wanted to try and recover some of the storage fees....

[adw1977]

That looks lovely and even in the UK would be pretty rare now.

 

Yo hairnet, not sure what you mean by official? It certainly wasn't a car sold here and is defo ex-UK, though from memory, Asconas were still being marketed there in 1983.

 

 

I don't think this generation Ascona was marketed in the UK.

 

Certainly by 1983 the only Opel on sale in the UK was the Manta, through an integrated Vauxhall-Opel dealer network.

[hairnet]

you can get the centre caps 3d printed

 

car sos had them done for an astra gte they were restoring

 

official?

 

as in new import to kiwi but you said itd been there since 86 - how old is it? (missed that)

 

not enough nerd here seeing as you been talking about rear wiper positions

 

return ticket?? ok but its the visa i would like to be chauffeured in first

 

commo after

[Jon]

That looks lovely and even in the UK would be pretty rare now.

 

 

I don't think this generation Ascona was marketed in the UK.

 

Certainly by 1983 the only Opel on sale in the UK was the Manta, through an integrated Vauxhall-Opel dealer network.

 

Yeah, I think you're right on the Ascona not being marketed in the UK, though I do remember seeing the odd one, back in the day. Presumably ex-Irish. That said, I've just consulted my library of important knowledge (a load of old car mags) and according to What Car? July 1984, no Ascona but Manta, Monza and Senator all represented in the UK. Am guessing the integrated network came about in the 1970's?

 

you can get the centre caps 3d printed

 

car sos had them done for an astra gte they were restoring

 

official?

 

as in new import to kiwi but you said itd been there since 86 - how old is it? (missed that)

 

not enough nerd here seeing as you been talking about rear wiper positions

 

return ticket?? ok but its the visa i would like to be chauffeured in first

 

commo after

 

Cool news about the centre caps being 3D printed, though I'm guessing these aren't something freely available?

 

It's a 1983 SRi, imported late 1986, hence the very early white plates, which despite my penchant for black plates, I don't actually mind. Maybe it's because they hadn't changed the fonts yet, like they did later on; check out the groovy shape of the number 4, for instance. Nerdy enough for you?

 

Sadly, the only way this will legitimately be allowed driveway space is if the Visa goes, so hopefully it'll stay in the fold.  

 

 

Anyway, let's have a gripe, to redress the balance of my happiness. It goes thus:

 

 

Seriously, Vauxhall - 3 fonts?! Perhaps 2 but all in different font sizes, with mismatched spacing and not even that well aligned. I've always been bugged by the tacked on 'i' badge, as if it would have been financial suicide for Vauxhall to make a new badge for their flagship of their best selling model, when they stopped selling SRs. Kind of endearing in a way though, as this kind of stuff wouldn't make it past a focus group in the 21st Century.

[stuboy]

didnt know they was sold out in NZ.

[STUNO]

didnt know they was sold out in NZ.

 

Them wuzznt sold ere. This was brought here because someone wanted an exotic foreign car 

[Jon]

Word up Shiterz, I wasn't aware there had been such a long bout of radio silence on this thread, which just goes to show how little I've done shite-wise in the last 9 months.....

 

Anyway, I did take this on a weekend break away way back in April and it partook the 300-odd miles with ease, as it well should I suppose, being a car designed for such things. In being able to do this, I first had to reveal its existence to Mrs_Jon, which I did so by slipping up on the insurance front; the policy details got e-mailed to her e-mail address, despite me asking the insurance lady NOT to do this!

 

Anyway, Mrs_Jon is an amazing wife, hence no blazing rows etc. over my hitherto hidden purchase. I did promise to rid her of the Visa though (which, erm, is still taking up her car's spot in the garage...) and also organised said weekend away together as a fun distraction to my terrible ways. Here's the Cav soaking up some rays in the Coromandel:

 

 

Some kind soul nominated the above pic above as a calendar contender in the April Calendar thread, so feel free to vote for it!

 

Apologies for the upcoming wordy stuff but I'd love some collective help!

 

Anyway, I sorted a few small issues for the WOF (MOT) and continued sporadic use of it, until I hit a starting issue; namely, it didn't. Got stuck out shopping one day when there was no action when turning the key - not even the click of the starter solenoid. Tried a few things, including checking for dirty connections in the engine bay, rocking the car back and forward in gear, giving the starter a tap, crossing my fingers for good luck etc. and eventually after giving it a bit of a rest, it started up, so I drove it home.

 

Didn't use it for a few weeks, so thought I'd give it a run. As I turned the key, our fire siren went off, so I drove it down to the station and went on a fire call, leaving it resting in the car park for an hour or two. Of course, it wouldn't start at all this time, no matter what I tried, so I towed it home and didn't do much else.

 

A mate came over to visit in September and since he's a handy guy, I asked for assistance, so we decided to test the connections and also take the starter off and give it a once over. I honestly can't remember what we connected to and from in the engine bay (I hate electrics) but we managed to get the solenoid to engage the starter, although the action was a bit erratic. We opened up the starter motor and according to him, it was in great nick, though there had been evidence that some water had been sitting in parts at some time but all was dry now, so we cleaned what we could up and reassembled. 

 

Still no joy, so later on, when back on my own again I took the starter and solenoid off and gave the solenoid a once over, checking for any visual telltales and cleaning connections. Today I took a look again and decided to replace the spade connector that goes from the ignition to the solenoid, as it was a bit manky. Anyway to my surprise, it turned over, not super-quickly but OK sounding but it didn't catch and start. Tried again and back to no joy - not even a solenoid click.

 

For a TL;DR summary, here's the issues I have, or had, leading up to this:

 

• Starter used to engage but has always 'over run' momentarily before disengaging.
• Now there's not even a solenoid click when turning the ignition - except for 3 separate occasions; once when the car was left alone for an hour or so and another when left for several weeks, with the battery disconnected.
• Fuel pump seemingly does not pre-engage automatically when ignition switched to ACC or whatever, like it used to, though does now operate when ignition switched on fully.

 

What I've done:

 

• Checked and cleaned all connections under the bonnet, including battery connections and battery earth.
• Had the starter motor assessed as in good nick, by a mate who knows what they're looking at.
• Looked at the solenoid by myself (non-trained amateur) and nothing seemed untoward.
• Checked the battery today, when at rest and with the lights switched on. Verdict: 12.3v resting, 12.06v lights on. I'll admit that I've recharged it once, probably about 2 months ago

 

A quick Google seems to think my battery could be more charged and I'll admit it's had long bouts of sitting about (it was nicked from the Visa, so has had a very sedentary life, which I know is bad) but the telltale light does show green, at least. 

 

My fuddled mind seems to think I have two issues: one is a slightly dicky starter that runs on, possibly due to historic water ingress but possibly cured by my cleaning efforts. The other may either be ignition switch related or I'm having all sorts of wars due to a duff battery. I'll see if I can get it hooked up to the Jondeo with a set of jump leads tomorrow and see if that helps start the bugger but in the meantime, it's a nice evening here so I'm off out on my bike.

 

If you managed to read all that shiz and if it's at all made any sense, then please give yourself a hearty pat on the back. Any Shiter's pearls of wisdom much appreciated!

[Timewaster]

The ignition switch on the end of the lock barrel is a weak point on these.

First place I would look.

[Jon]

That's some good info! Will take a look, although this time I'll actually consult my trusty* Haynes manual, as taking a peek at the ignition lock barrel yesterday with the steering rack shroud off didn't give me much clue as to how things disconnected, even after staring at it really hard.

 

In my (very weak) defence, it was a bit rainy at times yesterday. 

[Timewaster]

From memory there is a multiplug that pulls off and the switch is held onto the barrel with two grub screws. These may or may not be Allen key fixings.

 

The column shroud is 6 screws I think, all accessable from under the column.

 

The switch has grease inside which either hardens or attracts dust and fluff.

 

If the switch is dirty then you often get a little wisp of smoke from the steering column - most un-nerving!

 

They fit most Vauxhalls of that era and are still available on eBay.

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VAUXHALL-ASTRA-CALIBRA-CARLTON-CAVALIER-IGNITION-STARTER-SWITCH-GENUINE-90052498/202103992068?epid=1527382385&hash=item2f0e562f04:g:S48AAOSwevlZ~lYz

[Ohdearme]

I don't think this generation Ascona was marketed in the UK.

 

Certainly by 1983 the only Opel on sale in the UK was the Manta, through an integrated Vauxhall-Opel dealer network.

Grew up with Vauxhall/GMs in the family, my dad had a Mk2 Cavalier L and my grandad had a B Reg Opel Ascona SR somehow in 1985. Cool uncle had a Manta Berlinetta until he broke ranks with an MG Montego.

[AMC Rebel]

I seem to recall a common annoying non-start issue with these being down to a dodgy relay under the bonnet somewhere - see also the Mk3 I think.  This is just from memory though.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

Not able to help with ignition woes, but feel compelled to comment. I don’t think I’ve stumbled across this thread before... intriguing reading, and fantastic find with the Cav. They still look good now, and were so damn strong mechanically. A mate’s father had three mk2s on the trot when he worked as a rep in the 80’s. He used to rag the living hell out of them 1600 8vs I believe) and they always took the abuse.

Yours did very well to escape our damp, salty isle so early on. I’d imagine it would be long dead otherwise.

I’m sure I remember reading that the ratio of mk2’s built to the ratio of Mk2 Cavs scrapped in a short space of time was huge. Shame the rust-proofing was so Ford Ka.

Good luck with the foibles with yours, anyhow!

[Burnside]

I had a similar problem on my 1993 MK3 Cavalier 1.8i LS where on occasion it would decide not to start. You would try and turn it over and it would seam as if there was nothing happing from the starter i.e trying to engage. Sometimes by wiggling the two wires on the end of the starter it would then start. If it wouldn't start after doing that if I then just left it for a hour or two, it would then start fine again for a week / month. Replaced the starter with a used one after 3/4 time of it happing and all was well.

 

I wouldn't like to swear to it that the starter motor is at fault as others have also suggested the lock barrel, but if you can get one cheap enough it might be worth a try.

 

Your SRI looks fantastic by the way and I quite like the foglamp grille too if I'm honest. Think they were possibly made by Hella?

 

A friend still has a similar foglight grille on his Mum's 1984 Escort MK3 Estate which they have owned from new. It's currently stripped down to a bare shell awaiting restoration that hopefully one day they will finish.

 

I always remember a friends Dad MK2 1.8i LXI and my Dads friend MK2 1.8i GLS growing up which convinced me to buy my MK3 nearly 10 years ago and I've gotta say it was one of my best decision's I've made!

[Noel Tidybeard]

The ignition switch on the end of the lock barrel is a weak point on these.

First place I would look.

 

i was going to say ignition switch as i'm sure i have a distant recollection of them being "a little bothersome" on ashtrays & chavaliers of this vintage

[Bren]

The ignition switch is plastic and wears out. Me and my wife had two of these - hers was stolen twice - I know they are a bit flimsy as I had to starts my wifes' with a tin opener.

 

I had a 1984 sri hatch in black - sold to my brother who sold it again with 140k on the clock in 1996. It still wore its original sills and camshaft - probably some kind of record for a mk 2.

[sutty2006]

Sounds like that battery is fubar. 12.3v isn’t great. Personally I’d try jump starting it off a known good battery and see what happens.

 

Great car by the way. I envy life over there, especially with all those old GM tanks about

[barrett]

I have no practical advice to offer beyond my usual aesthetic judgement: these things look flippin' brilliant I reckon. I think the rationalisation of Vauxhall and Opel ranges from the 1970s was the best thing to happen to the marque. Vauxhall built some of Britain's ugliest vehicles in the 1950s and '60s (yes, they also built the two most attractive family cars of the latter decade, too, but that looks like fluke more than anything) but when the corporate look derived from the big Royale took over and trickled down to the Carlton, Astra, Mk2 Cav, even the Nova, they were consistently the most handsome things on the road for a good 15 years. Also the OEM wheel design was second to none.

[sal]

Hi. Regards your starting issues it could well be the ignition switch or battery charge as already suggested but couple things that spring to mind from experience on these cars for non starting are the braided earth from gear box to passenger side chassis leg. They can look good but provide really poor connection. There's also another earth at the wiper motor under the scuttle that can cause non starting issues.

 

Dont worry about fuel pump / injection etc until you know you have reliable electrics.

[Timewaster]

That earth on the scuttle sends the wipers doolally when it fails too.

Good call on the engine earth.

 

Lots to check out this weekend Jon.

[Jon]

Jeepers, did I really not reply to the many helpful posts above, or even post anything in this thread in the last 15 months?

 

Well, things have happened with the Cav in that time, both for the better and for the worse - or at least, I still have some niggling faults.

Despite radio silence here, straight after the above replies, I set to with the fixing*, as I wanted to have a stack of things done in readiness for a car show I wanted to take it to in March.

First up, the non-starting issue turned out to be a duff starter motor. I can't remember what I did to properly diagnose this but in the process of concluding, I fitted a new starter switch, checked/swapped the large relay under the bonnet, near the NS strut (conveniently shared with a Visa GTi, it turns out) and found out that the replacement fuel pump I'd bought had failed, which had led to the cranking but not starting issue. This was compounding the diagnosis by me, as it turned out that both the starter and fuel pump had failed at the same time.

Anyway, I looked at getting the starter refurbished locally, whilst another bit of the car was being repaired at the same time (more of that, later). The firm I tried were mega helpful but their quote was quite high, since they'd need to stock bits from the UK, apparently. Having successfully saved hundreds of dollars replacing Mrs_Jon's Clio 172 alternator with an Ebay UK sourced one versus buying locally (or should I say, getting ordered from Aus, which would include shipping and import duty, due to high price), I did the same again, getting it landed here for less than half the price of a refurb. And of course, that means I've got a spare broken unit sitting about, as you can't throw these rare broken things away, can you?!

Service resumed with a replacement fuel pump under warranty several weeks later, before the replacement fuel pump failed, too. If you see the sentence above, you'll not be surprised to know that I'd kept the original old fuel pump, replaced simply because it was super noisy, in a death knell kind of way. So back on it went, to prove that despite its sounds, it can still pump fuel about the place nicely enough. I know @Skizzer has had aftermarket inline fuel pump woes in the past, so it's good to know I'm not the only one and it seems that the only solution is to buy a genuine Bosch one at super $$ - but again, I think that Skizzer found people marketing cheap knock off ones as genuine Bosch items. Can't win, can you?

 

[Jon]

Anyway, I mentioned wanting to have the Cav up and running to take to a car show in March 2019. Running is of course an absolute must but I'd also wanted to spruce it up a bit and had run into a bit of luck. Mentioning on the Mk2Cav forum that I'd like to refurbish the driver's seat, one member PM'd me, offering to send a good second hand Recaro cover from a passenger side seat over to NZ from the UK. Other than recouping postage costs, he wouldn't take any other payment than the assurance that I'd donate some toys to a local dog's home - what a kind man! Not only that but he posted EVERYTHING from the seat, barring the frame and foam, including all the metal clips holding the bits together, etc. Everything was so carefully packed - I've never encountered so much care and attention in a package, let alone to someone he doesn't know.

Anyway, here's a before and after:

 

Severe apologies for potatocam shot - I really should take a better shot later as recompense.

 

Slightly less King Edwards but I think you get the idea - money very much well spent in getting an upholsterer involved! It certainly wasn't buttons but makes such a big difference! There's plenty more bits to update but I'm getting quite tired now, so will waffle on some other time.

L8TRZ.