Cheap Chimaera - What Could Possibly Go Wrong
Discussion
I was looking for an economical family car but I then saw a cheap Chim and unlike the usual suspects it wasn't green so I went to have a look.
The seller had owned it for 4yrs and had listed a few niggles.
However as always he'd "forgotten" even more.
However as I'd driven 2.5hrs to get there and the body, hood, chassis looked ok and it was cheap (£4500) and had PAS and the T5 box I decided to take the risk on the following problems I'd spotted:
Massively down on power - felt like 80bhp but sounded ok
Water leak from rad and I could see K seal in the water system
Clunk from diff mount
Nankang tyres - must admit I nearly walked away at when I saw them
No hot air from heater
I had a decent test drive to check it didn't overheat then bought it and started home.
The seller had owned it for 4yrs and had listed a few niggles.
However as always he'd "forgotten" even more.
However as I'd driven 2.5hrs to get there and the body, hood, chassis looked ok and it was cheap (£4500) and had PAS and the T5 box I decided to take the risk on the following problems I'd spotted:
Massively down on power - felt like 80bhp but sounded ok
Water leak from rad and I could see K seal in the water system
Clunk from diff mount
Nankang tyres - must admit I nearly walked away at when I saw them
No hot air from heater
I had a decent test drive to check it didn't overheat then bought it and started home.
hope it's not too ruinous!
In fairness compared to my RX7 it should be economical. 
Driving home in the cold and rain with no heater and not much power I was thinking "what have I done"
However I am handy with a spanner and have a few knowledgeable mates too.
I took to to my workshop and discovered it was only on 6 cylinders a set of HT leads later it was back on 8 and it had gained about 100bhp so felt like 180 now - the sun also came out for 10 minutes and suddenly it seemed like a great buy.
Didn't have a chance to do anything else for a week but I noticed it was rather quiet (the engine/ exhaust rather than the wind noise.
Driving home in the cold and rain with no heater and not much power I was thinking "what have I done"
However I am handy with a spanner and have a few knowledgeable mates too.
I took to to my workshop and discovered it was only on 6 cylinders a set of HT leads later it was back on 8 and it had gained about 100bhp so felt like 180 now - the sun also came out for 10 minutes and suddenly it seemed like a great buy.
Didn't have a chance to do anything else for a week but I noticed it was rather quiet (the engine/ exhaust rather than the wind noise.
sturobturbo said:
I wouldn't have got to the k-seal point after seeing the tyres...
At least tyres are fairly predictable cost, just estimate what a newt set of rubber + fitting costs, add it to the price of the car and ask yourself if you'd be willing to pay that for this car, but with a fresh set of tyres of your own choosing.Engine gremlins on the other hand..
Update to today (I've had it a week now)
I changed the plugs as the wrong type were fitted - I'm guessing the PO tried to fix the power issue with a set of plugs (as they were new) and just took what his garage had in stock. From their colour it seems to be running about right.
I pulled the Y pipe to remove the pre cats, only to find someone had done that already.
I was considering buying a Decat and whilst I had it apart I thought I'd take a look at the CAT to see whether the misfiring had taken it's toll - I borrowed a mate's snake camera and yep - blocked and broken - I'm guessing that's why it's so quiet and where my remaining 30-50bhp has gone.
I was hoping to smash it out today but I simply haven't had time (did I mention I'm also building a new house)
So far so good as I'm now confident I've found all the lack of power issues.
I changed the plugs as the wrong type were fitted - I'm guessing the PO tried to fix the power issue with a set of plugs (as they were new) and just took what his garage had in stock. From their colour it seems to be running about right.
I pulled the Y pipe to remove the pre cats, only to find someone had done that already.
I was considering buying a Decat and whilst I had it apart I thought I'd take a look at the CAT to see whether the misfiring had taken it's toll - I borrowed a mate's snake camera and yep - blocked and broken - I'm guessing that's why it's so quiet and where my remaining 30-50bhp has gone.
I was hoping to smash it out today but I simply haven't had time (did I mention I'm also building a new house)
So far so good as I'm now confident I've found all the lack of power issues.
Edited by redgriff500 on Sunday 20th May 19:21
Oh I forgot I fixed a few more things:
Had it on a ramp - chassis is fine which is always a plus and no sign of any accident damage either.
Starter sometimes used to just click - so I fitted a new one.
Heater - I found both metal control wires were disconnected - reconnected them - works fine.
Radio - had interference - new HT leads sorted that but it only plays from one speaker
Fuel gauge doesn't work - checked out sender - it's fine, will check gauge next.
Oil leak from sump - all bolts were 1/2 turn loose - apparently it's a common issue.
I can never understand why owners let all these little jobs build up.
Had it on a ramp - chassis is fine which is always a plus and no sign of any accident damage either.
Starter sometimes used to just click - so I fitted a new one.
Heater - I found both metal control wires were disconnected - reconnected them - works fine.
Radio - had interference - new HT leads sorted that but it only plays from one speaker
Fuel gauge doesn't work - checked out sender - it's fine, will check gauge next.
Oil leak from sump - all bolts were 1/2 turn loose - apparently it's a common issue.
I can never understand why owners let all these little jobs build up.
Local fabricator cut open the CAT and it slipped straight out then welded it up, only took 15 mins - pleasantly simple job.
Re fitting the Y piece was a pain but after some swearing and cuts and bruises it was persuaded back together (not due to the welding, the manifolds spring apart)
It sounds glorious and I've maybe gained another 20bhp and a fair bit of torque but not as much as I expected - I'll post up a pic but I'm shocked it even ran which such a blockage.
I'll try to get time to check the mixture and timing tomorrow and maybe free up the brakes which are currently, terrible.
However I took the long way home around the lanes in the sunshine and it was fantastic.
Re fitting the Y piece was a pain but after some swearing and cuts and bruises it was persuaded back together (not due to the welding, the manifolds spring apart)
It sounds glorious and I've maybe gained another 20bhp and a fair bit of torque but not as much as I expected - I'll post up a pic but I'm shocked it even ran which such a blockage.
I'll try to get time to check the mixture and timing tomorrow and maybe free up the brakes which are currently, terrible.
However I took the long way home around the lanes in the sunshine and it was fantastic.
Vitorio said:
sturobturbo said:
I wouldn't have got to the k-seal point after seeing the tyres...
At least tyres are fairly predictable cost, just estimate what a newt set of rubber + fitting costs, add it to the price of the car and ask yourself if you'd be willing to pay that for this car, but with a fresh set of tyres of your own choosing.Engine gremlins on the other hand..
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff