The Chat Thread - Cold Snap - WC 18/11/24

[HoTWire]

Hey Folks!

Another week, another weekly chat, your place for stuff that may not warrant a full thread or stuff that is just going on right now that you want to share.


Well I got the updated theme live, not too much yelling so far, so I'll take that as a win. Mobile is BLAND as hell, but I've got a plan for that and I hope to have some updates on that going out asap. Although I did just realise there is a world in which not everyone may have experienced the theme update yet, so I've just changed some security stuff to make sure we're all in the same place.

Gathering details went out, I need to make a proper first post about what is going on with that. Very excited for our plans.

Porsche is in the service place, so I'm waiting for them to email me and tell me how poor I'm about to be.

Also I've not forgotten the big plans and what we're up to type thread, now the theme update is done and Gathering on the go it is back at the top of the list. I've made a Powerpoint for myself and everything!


In other news excited to see what James gets up to in this thread: forum.retro-rides.org/thread/227995/building-car-scratch-space-build


What you been up to? Anything good?

Previous Thread: forum.retro-rides.org/thread/227966/chat-thread-moving-forwards-wc

[vulgalour]

Finally had a confluence of a lovely morning, a good health day, and motivation to crack on with replacing the rear axle mount on the Princess. The old mount had partially delaminated, in that way that bonded rubber mounts do, and had been making an annoying knock. Now it doesn't.

Given where my health has been at lately, this was a huge mojo boost and has made the car just that bit nicer to live with. If I had the funds to get the suspension re-gassed it'd be a delight, I can feel there's barely any gas left in the rear displacers, it's just going to have to wait until after I move house next year most likely.

[skinnylew]

Usual stuff for me, rehab ticking over, learning to walk unaided, bit of cooking, even managed 10 minutes on a static bike last week so progress is there. Just slow. Oh and weaning certain meds that mean I can't drive for 6 months so at least they've started that now!
O
Otherwise I'm grateful I've made it to this point and this place, its infinitely more peaceful, calmer and restful which is much needed. Staff are lovely, food Is ok, and the view is nice so win win win. Long road ahead but hopefully starting my last month in hospital and get to go home on Dec 18th. Been a long journey since March 21st!

[stealthstylz]

Finally sourced some more cheap steel shelving so we can get on with organising all our tat. Came from the Bradford branch of Moss which they shut so has all sorts of retro part number stickers already. Can't wait to get everything organised I'm ready to do fun stuff now.

[adam73bgt]

Going into my penultimate week at work after handing in my notice at the start of the month. Looking forward to less stress and more time once I'm finished, before deciding my next move.

Car wise, I've discovered that after battling with isopropyl alcohol to remove the sticky coating on the 166's interior, acetone or nail polish remover seems to work far more effectively, so I shall be switching over to that! Aiming to get the interior back in the car this week and have some all season tyres fitted.

Seeing the Gathering moving back to Prescott has got me thinking about the last time I made it to a Prescott gathering, and was in my MGB at the time, thinking I should make RRG25 a target to be back in the MG..

Also been seeing the news that Motortrend is soon to be closed down, seems to be yet another story of a large automotive media group that can't sustain itself, with the hosts moving back into Youtube. Be interesting to see what happens next but I feel like I'm subscribed to too many channels on there as it is

[mrbounce]

Have to admit to being in a bit of a slump this past week or so. I have an electrical problem I have only seemed to make worse, as I don't understand what's wrong.I need my friend to fix it. It's difficult for him to get time to do this, which is frustrating.

Also, our boiler was condemned, so we have had no heating or hot water for the past 2 weeks, which puts a strain on pretty much everything. We have an immersion so there is some hot water but it's slow and expensive. Thankfully the boiler man should be coming tomorrow...

[Blown_Imp]

I've been tinkering.


Stretching the legs of our heat pump / 25kW wood boiler combination this week. After having a cold house for a long time, it is amazing how a warm one makes you feel.

Super excited to see RRG come back to Prescott too, so much so that I am planning on getting the Celica back out for it 🙂

[Phil]

Had my first weekend off in a few months last weekend, so ive sorted out the pile of "stuff" and have s small mountain to go to scrap. So I did a buy:





Bought it for the running gear to use in my mg. Feels a bit of a shame to scrap a fairly clean car, but I really want to attend rrg with a retro this year. I can't pick it up for a few weeks due to work/other commitments, and I still need to make more space, but there will be progress enough to start a build thread on the mg by January.

I've also fixed my vans power steering rack, after being messed around by a ebay breaker, except I need to adjust the alignment of the collumn...

[ironmighty07]

I'd missed the snow forecast😮

[slackerTHEpinstriper]

Autumn/winter 2024

[jimi]

Autumn/Winter 2024 in the sunny Kingdom

[HoTWire]

Nov 18, 2024 13:39:41 GMT HoTWire said:

Porsche is in the service place, so I'm waiting for them to email me and tell me how poor I'm about to be.

VERY, appears to be the answer

REQUIRED
Oil filler neck split open.
Headlights opaque and cloudy.
AC not blowing cold due to leaks.
OS AC condenser heavily corroded.
Low pressure AC line along OS sill corroded and has bad repair.
Front level link seized.
OSF drop link dust boot loose / incorrectly fitted.
NSF outer CV boot split and leaking grease
OSF securing plate for diagonal arm to body is bent / damaged.
NSR tyre cut to cords.
Both rear disc back plates corroded around fixings and OS is completely loose.
Rubber carden shaft joint to gearbox is heavily split and perished.
Coolant breather line over engine to coolant bottle is loose and has no fixings.
Coolant dripping from air oil separator.
Coolant bottle has small cracks starting to form.
Engine mounts perished and have dropped.
Exhaust single clamps near tail pipes corroded.
OS Tail pipe fallen off due to corroded fixings. NS also loose. New studs and bolts
req’d.
OSF diagonal arm knocking.
Washer bottle or filler neck leaking washer fluid.
Rear brake discs corroded and lipped, below minimum thickness of 22mm . RL
20.5mm / RR 20.5mm.
Both ignition coil heat shields missing.
Front number plate loose.
OSR outer bleed nipple seized.
NSF outer bleed nipple seized.
Heat shielding above OS silencer loose.

ADVISORIES
Instrument cluster clock button and trip button missing/damaged.
1 of high-level brake light sections is not illuminating.
Multiple spoiler brake light sections out/not illuminating.
NS bonnet fixings loose.
Front & Rear ARB heavily corroded and D bushes badly perished and split.
Front subframe support braces heavily corroded.
Fuel tank tensioning straps corroded.
Front diff mounting plate to subframe starting to corroded.
Clutch slave cylinder flexi metal ferrells slightly corroded.
Exhaust manifolds to heads heavily corroded.
Exhaust flange fixings heavily corroded.
Both exhaust silencer brackets onto head are corroded around fixings.
B1 variable cam solenoid slightly damp.
B2 variable valve solenoid wet.
Rear main/ IMS weeping oil – dripping.
Front under tray damaged.
Front to centre brake pipes are copper.
Brembo front brake discs – incorrect vent holes.
Inner rack joints both side slight knock.




Looks like I'll be breaking out the tools and doing some of those myself. Getting a quote for the rest.

In related news the (big boy) service cost £776... which isn't so bad as that is all I've spent on the car for the last three years.... maybe if I did that more often these jobs would have been spotted earlier, spread out and not so ridiculous all at once.

*sigh*

[HoTWire]

Nov 19, 2024 8:14:48 GMT mrbounce said:

Have to admit to being in a bit of a slump this past week or so. I have an electrical problem I have only seemed to make worse, as I don't understand what's wrong.I need my friend to fix it. It's difficult for him to get time to do this, which is frustrating.

Electrical problems are THE WORST, robbing you of momentum and motivation too.

[jimi]

HoTWire
liked for sympathy not "quite" as bad as it looks, some things are related so the process of clearing one fault will clear others ... hopefully

[mrbounce]

Nov 19, 2024 13:32:03 GMT HoTWire said:

Nov 19, 2024 8:14:48 GMT mrbounce said:

Have to admit to being in a bit of a slump this past week or so. I have an electrical problem I have only seemed to make worse, as I don't understand what's wrong.I need my friend to fix it. It's difficult for him to get time to do this, which is frustrating.

Electrical problems are THE WORST, robbing you of momentum and motivation too.

Especially if you have the amount of knowledge that I do! 

I will get there, but I agree 100%. Next time I will buy a project that WORKS...

Also I feel you pain re the Porsche - my Merc went in for a Merc MOT with a fractured spring. 2x springs at Merc prices with Merc dealer fitting charges too. £500 for an MOT 

[ironmighty07]

Nov 19, 2024 13:32:03 GMT HoTWire said:

Nov 19, 2024 8:14:48 GMT mrbounce said:

Have to admit to being in a bit of a slump this past week or so. I have an electrical problem I have only seemed to make worse, as I don't understand what's wrong.I need my friend to fix it. It's difficult for him to get time to do this, which is frustrating.

Electrical problems are THE WORST, robbing you of momentum and motivation too.

I'm finding electrical problems are the bane of my car work at the minute. I'm looking I can do the work myself(trained as an instrument technician as a youth) but it's like a 3 stage project....
1. What should it be?
2. What is it currently?
3. Can I revert back to the correct circuit, or what other options can I make work safely and logically.
The first 2 stages are quite soul crushing... the 3rd one just makes my brain hurt.


This job started with changing the indicator switch and replacing the door hinge pins😬

[Blown_Imp]

Not a terrible outcome; as you say, lots of it can be done on the driveway in fits and starts when you get time. A few big ones on there, but nothing insurmountable.
If that is all built up over the past three years, I think it is pretty good tbh. For comparison, my working driving E46 M3 (similar age) has required:

Rear trailing arm bushes
Rear shocks
Rear ARB mounts and drop links
Lots of preventative rust treatment
Connecting rod bearings
Sump gasket
Exhaust clamps
Six ignition coils
Gear position sensor (cost more than the bloody engine bearings!)
Engine mounts
Servicing items (20L of engine oil, 5L of gearbox and 2L of diff)

Still to do:
Vanos rebuild, preventative head gasket replacement, diff rebuild, discs and pads all round, front shocks, proper alignment and more.

Old car stuff really, keeping them on the road isn't easy, but it is cheaper and more interesting that having a '24 plate appliance.

[misteralz]

Aye, that looks quite a list until you look closelier. I'd farm out the IMS and the pipe over the back of the engine, but I'd probably sort everything else myself. With an eye on upgrading and future proofing. RS mounts make more sense than hydro ones, and titanium exhaust studs are cheaper than you'd imagine...

[b18lou]

I discovered another hole in my Civics sill when putting her away while the roads are salty, going to take this as a positve and going to learn how to weld due to funds needing to be saved.

Logo is running strong as my daily driver and allowing me to sort my civic out and keep her off the salty roads.

[jimi]

Nov 19, 2024 13:32:03 GMT HoTWire said:

Nov 19, 2024 8:14:48 GMT mrbounce said:

Have to admit to being in a bit of a slump this past week or so. I have an electrical problem I have only seemed to make worse, as I don't understand what's wrong.I need my friend to fix it. It's difficult for him to get time to do this, which is frustrating.

Electrical problems are THE WORST, robbing you of momentum and motivation too.

In my case I'm rubbing my hands, get out the way and let me at it on the other hand bodywork/paint