Xbolx tat blog, Jan 2016 'FLEET UPDATE'

[155ringman]

Doblo looks good for shifting stuff around.
I wonder was it in the design brief that it should be able to accomodate a driver with a stovepipe hat?
Maybe they were trying to pre-empt future H&S legislation for protective headgear in the workplace..
Pehaps they were thinking of a bulk order from Tefal..

[phminiman]

Feb 17, 2012 23:29:04 GMT xbo11ox said:

What-ho gang, heres a crummy little update!

1) the CROMA. I taxed the Croma at the beginning of february and racked up 600 miles in a week. I stuck it up for sale on a few forums on the Tuesday and by wednesday night had taken a deposit on it!!!

the lad who bought it was a HARDCORE fiat/lancia lover, owning a couple of Gamma berlinas amongst other pasta-powered old cronk. He was a mega sound chap and drove it away that weekend. Mega painless!! heres the croma about to drive out of my life:

The Croma is alive and well and living 1/4 mile from me in the village of Tiddleywink. The chap is indeed a mega Lancia/Fiat nut!

[teaboy]

Mar 30, 2013 19:07:21 GMT phminiman said:

the village of Tiddleywink.

Had to google that village as I thought you had made it up. ;D

Come on XB, show us the Maser.

You must have moved house by now!

[phminiman]

hehe it's a tiny hamlet, maybe 10 houses - in the summer it's quite hazardous as you regularly come round a corner and find a car abandoned in the road and a load of people taking photos of the name board. Not a problem at the moment though... both name boards were stolen a few months ago

[chip83]

Yatton Keynell, I know the place well having grown up in the village. The Olds still live their. Used to deliver the papers in tiddlywinks.

[phminiman]

What are their names?

[keithyboy]

Quality.

Man buys Maserati in need of shedloads of work
Man buys house in need of work
Man buys van in need of work to help with work on house

It's genius.

[xbo11ox]

Got a full day on the Maz tomorrow and a new old crock joining the fleet on Tuesday - Watch this space!

[Macoli]

Mar 30, 2013 21:03:50 GMT phminiman said:

hehe it's a tiny hamlet, maybe 10 houses - in the summer it's quite hazardous as you regularly come round a corner and find a car abandoned in the road and a load of people taking photos of the name board. Not a problem at the moment though... both name boards were stolen a few months ago

They make superb brackets those signs do...

[xbo11ox]

Alright gang

I've had a FULL DAY in the garage today, this never happens! Heres what happened:


Started off with the usual scene which greets me as I go in there. TBH I'm starting to find this scene a bit boring and repetitive, its like flipping groundhog day man.


Lets start with the easy bits - put the bonnet catches back instead of having them dangling on their cable tripping up passers-by!


These brake pipe unions needed fastening back into place properly:


Filled the gearbox up with crisp N dry. The manual said use 20/50, but I didn't have any so tipped a load of 10/40 in. 10/4 ROGER THAT GOOD BUDDY, OVER! KSSSHHHHT


Next fed the fuel pipes up the bulkhead and clipped everything into place as best I could. Need to chop these under the floor anf make some new ones, I welded some captive nuts into the floor just for that so should be able to do a reasonably neat job.


Expansion bottle in, power steering reservoir in... last thing to do before the engine can go back in is to undo the brackets holding the steering rack in and kick it out the way as its just too tight a gap to get the engine through!


Skipped forward a bit. I dropped the car on its chin to help with the 'entry angle' (always key to get that right)

While the engine was going in I took the chance to connect the clutch hydraulic pipe as it is SERIOUSLY inaccessible when the engine is in. I believe it was marooned here ('Inaccessible island') for a long time in an earlier life:




Here it is in the 'installed' position.Fun and games trying to bleed that later!


Used another trolley jack underneath to get the angles right:


Its in!!!!! COWABUNGA!


Can't remember the last time I saw that bit of floor.


Start connecting up the random gubbins.


I was thinking 'I'm sure there was a lot more wiring than this' Then I found this load of spaghetti trailing over the side.


More random connecty shiz - Battery wiring this time.


Up in the air to connect the propshaft and whatnot! I always look forward to this bit, scrabbling about in the muck and oily patches.


Once I'd got underneath i didnt come out till i'd done everything (propshaft, gearbox mounts, refit steering rack) so no interim snaps, however heres it is 'done'. Exhausts still need to go on but thats for later.


Steering rack boots are kippered. Pukka maserati ones are too posh for me, so I bought a pair of universal ones from my favourite car tat shop for a tenner instead.


These looked like they were going to need fire to get them to play the game, but in the end i got em with a pair of moles and an adjustable spanner!


NEW BOOTS


ALRIGHT! This is the view when I come in the garage now. OK it looks much the same I admit but the engine is in the right hole now which is a big step forward! Before I can start it up I need to:

1) replace some fuel pipes in the engine bay that have gone hard.
2) Fit the radiators (got some new rubbers for those, but I left them at home today) and fill with coolant
3) sort out the underfloor fuel pipes
4) fit the exhaust pipes
5) fit the gearlever and put the centre console back together.

Not bad eh?

IN other news:


Got this Doblo van on the road. It needed a new exhaust box and a couple of other odds and sods to get it through the test. I've serviced it and blanked off the EGR as seems to be de rigeur on the fiat forums. It does run better for that. After a trip down to Nottingham DVLA office we were 100% legally on the road. I absolutely love it!!! I'm getting 45mpg round the doors and its a hoot to drive.


The Argenta has been sitting around doing a fat lot of nowt and that looked set to continue as I haven't got the time or the money to get it on the road only to end up driving it one sunday per month. So, I offered it up on the brown forum on a loan basis to see if anyone fancied blezzing about in it for 6 months. Obviously any takers would have to be suitably philosophical about the likelihood of it unexpectedly needing something fettled at some point, and not likely to shove it straight in the local fiat dealer and send me the bill afterwards. A suitable candidate stepped up to the plate so it has gone to live in Coventry for a few months! We'll see how that pans out but hopefully it will be OK, got to be better than it sitting gathering dust outside my unit innit. The photo shows it filling up with fuel before setting off down the M6.

Finally, all being well, Tomorrow i should be dragging home a Rover 25 van with a kippered headgasket! NEXT! Its all action innit.

L8RZ T8RZ

[Blown_Imp]

Good work Balllz, lovely seeing the Vsex back in place, a big boost for the mojo

Once the engine is running are you going to spray it yourself, or take it to a man with a gun?

[Clement]

Wow that's quite an update! Given your short enough to-do list you must be nearing the end of the rebuild?

[Stu]

Super update, enjoyed that!

[155ringman]

Top work Mr B. Must feel great to have that donkey back in!!
Mmmm, Rover 25 van? Matching vans for you and the Mrs?

[stuyizz]

Lovely bit of spannering there Mr B and not a shaved knuckle in sight! Winner!

[xbo11ox]

When I was looking for a van I saw a Rover 25 van on eBay with the standard issue busted head gask for 400. Not really what I was aftre, but they're a rare and funky little thing and it was winking at me and even showing a bit of leg. I offered 300, but the offer expired after a couple of days without being accepted or declined. I left it a couple of days then offered 325. a day later still no news, and i ended up buying the Doblo and deciding to forget about the Rover. Anyway when I got home that evening from buying the Doblo, I looked at my ebay account. "Your offer of 325 has been accepted! Please pay now" CRIVVENS!

I got in touch with the seller and informed him I had no money (sure he was pleased to hear that) but that I could pay by paypal as then it would go on my credit card, which as we all know is not real money. He had listed the van on behalf of his work and didnt really want to 'launder' the sale money for it so tried to find a way for my to pay his work directly. After a while i said if he could wait 3 weeks i'd get paid and bring some cash, which he agreed with. Well, that was 3 weeks ago so today i had a trip down to Warwick:



First time I'd used the Doblo for A-framing. I wondered if a 1900 non-turbo diesel might make for a hopeless tow car. I have dollied a Matra rancho behind a Maestro 2.0 diesel van in the past, and that was not an experience i'd like to repeat. As it turned out the Doblo was top notch for the job, towed it a treat. It weighs 1300kg unladen so maybe 1500 with me in, a tank of juice and my 'recovery gear' in the back (tools, battery, jack, valium etc). The Rover supposedly weighs 1000kg so the weight balance was reasonable and it towed very well. I stayed off the motorways so as to not antagonise any motorway coppers and barrelled home at speeds of up to 62 MPH!!!!!


Lovely bright sunshine!!! Whats better on a sunny day off work, than going and buying a knackered old motor. Brilliant.

Got the rover home after an uneventful couple of hours and had a proper look:




Its actually pretty smart. No serious body damage or rust and the interior is clean and tidy. All the van shiz is present and correct:





Its even got a bluetooth Nokia handsfree gizmo fitted! Ideal for my crummy old Nokia phone.

I had a look through the paperwork and it seems it was on the road till december, when the AA brought it home with a kippered head gasket. Its got about 80,000 on so not ridiculous, hopefully there is still some life in the K-series POWA HOUSE. Anyway the plan is to fix the HG and get it running and driving properly, and then probably 'barn it' in the bo11ox museum cos I recon these are gonna be MEGA RARE in a few years.

Sadly that aint gonna happen straight away as I am SKINTOLA!!!!! and have no money to buy the HG kit. It might have to sit for a few weeks till this house project settles down a bit before I can get stuck into it.

Anyway thats all for now folks, L8RZ

[customsinc]

How did that R25 van escape my eBay-eye?! If you ever want to sell it on I need one for my work! I'd probably give you strong money for the van windows and loadspace linings and give you windows and an interior to put in it nod nod wink wink!!

[customsinc]

How did that R25 van escape my eBay-eye?! If you ever want to sell it on I need one for my work! I'd probably give you strong money for the van windows and loadspace linings and give you windows and an interior to put in it nod nod wink wink!!

[xbo11ox]

Sorry chief, theres no way I'm gonna flog the van bits off it! That would be like getting the Mona Lisa, then cutting round the face and selling that separately!

[customsinc]

Worth an ask! Like I said though if you sell it on in any state let me know!