Thinking of getting 106 GTi. Final Tips & Advice?

[BadBanshee]

I'll get some more pictures Ponk and I'll pm you snotrag (funny names lol) but quick question, I've just been to halfords and they're gonna do the free battery check then sell me a battery if I need one, and they offer 3 types of battery. Which one do I go for?

A: 360 amp - Halfords - Lead Acid battery - 3 year guarantee - £59.99
B: 440 amp - Halfords - Calcium battery - 4 year guarantee - £69.99
C: 520 amp - Bosch - Silver battery - 5 year guarantee - £89.99

He said A is recommended for my car but that if I'm going to install a subwoofer, I should get a 440 amp. But he's trying to sell me it so I don't wholly trust him I might get a subwoofer in the future (I'm not a sound polluter, I just like the sound of it. Plus it should double the price of the car when I go on to sell it hehe)

Got any opinions on which battery to go for?

[Luke.]

BadBanshee said:

I'll get some more pictures Ponk and I'll pm you snotrag (funny names lol) but quick question, I've just been to halfords and they're gonna do the free battery check then sell me a battery if I need one, and they offer 3 types of battery. Which one do I go for?

A: 360 amp - Halfords - Lead Acid battery - 3 year guarantee - £59.99
B: 440 amp - Halfords - Calcium battery - 4 year guarantee - £69.99
C: 520 amp - Bosch - Silver battery - 5 year guarantee - £89.99

He said A is recommended for my car but that if I'm going to install a subwoofer, I should get a 440 amp. But he's trying to sell me it so I don't wholly trust him I might get a subwoofer in the future (I'm not a sound polluter, I just like the sound of it. Plus it should double the price of the car when I go on to sell it hehe)

Got any opinions on which battery to go for?

A - Don't get a subwoofer

[rallycross]

I would suggest you buy one from your local motor factor it will save you 40% for exactly the same product.

[Mastodon2]

rallycross said:

I would suggest you buy one from your local motor factor it will save you 40% for exactly the same product.

good advice. And for god's sake, I know you are but don't fit a subwoofer.

[HereBeMonsters]

Get the cheap one from GSF. Buffalo or something.

[Baryonyx]

BadBanshee said:

I might get a subwoofer in the future (I'm not a sound polluter, I just like the sound of it. Plus it should double the price of the car when I go on to sell it hehe)

I wouldn't bother with a subwoofer. You'll never get the benefit of it in a 106, with it's paper thin construction. All it will do is pump out flabby, ungainly bass sounds. Even with the benefit of a few decent speakers and a good amp thrown at it, the 106 is never going to be a good platform for a decent sound quality so I wouldn't even go to the trouble of adding the extra weight.

You'll also never get your cash back for any car stereo. My Impreza had a decent MTX subwoofer in the boot, and a good Alpine iDA-X313 stereo in it (with the aux port/iPhone connect wired through the transmission tunnel into the centre storage bin. It added nothing to the value of the car when I sold it. If I'd had the time and inclination I would have been better removing them and selling them on their own (and still making no more than a pittance back).

[BadBanshee]

Good news, the car started although it did take a second to think about it. Got it straight to halfords. The test showed the battery was at 42% efficiency and unserviceable. I went with the calcium one. And a miracle happened. The fuel gauge fixed itself. Told the better half who goes "I told you it was because of the weak battery!" I said to her "Did you?" Obviously wasn't listening

Bad news, there is infact an oil leak all around the front of the engine:

Edited by BadBanshee on Monday 10th December 18:10

Edited by BadBanshee on Monday 10th December 18:12

[Dave^]

That's just (hopefully) the rocker cover gasket (a little more than weeping.

Could be cause by a blocked breather, or a knackered gasket.

Gasket is £25 from ECP before discount, not sure if these have a valve on the breather.

Have you got a proper service manual or Haynes etc?

[snotrag]

BadBanshee said:

Bad news,

Don't panic.

That looks like the cam-cover gasket, which are notoriously leaky on all sorts of cars.

Check the oil level (Cold), top up if neccesary, and keep checking it to see if much is actually being lost. That, really, is probably just a little bit of weeping round the gasket, and something easy for you to fix.

[BadBanshee]

Yeah, the guy at halfords (very helpful) did say it's probably the rocker cover gasket and that it should only cost £20 approx. Oil level was dead in the middle of the min and max markers, so I need to find some quality oil to top it up with I was thinking Bertolli?

Also found a couple of pipes on side of engine, one was loosely connected into some port on side of engine which we could pull out completely. Another pipe had some insert markers on the end so looked like it should be connected somewhere but it wasn't, so it's just loose :s he reckoned it might just be a breather valve or something.

Oh and I'm getting the Haynes manual for Christmas, I've decided :P

Edited by BadBanshee on Monday 10th December 18:46

[carreauchompeur]

BadBanshee said:

Oil level was dead in the middle of the min and max markers, so I need to find some quality oil to top it up with I was thinking Bertolli?

Yeah, that's the one. It's what they call an "Italian tuneup" on here!

[Dave^]

BadBanshee said:

Also found a couple of pipes on side of engine, one was loosely connected into some port on side of engine which we could pull out completely. Another pipe had some insert markers on the end so looked like it should be connected somewhere but it wasn't, so it's just loose :s he reckoned it might just be a breather valve or something.

One, or possible both should be either connected to the airbox, or one of the pipes from/to the airbox....

Have a look around the net for pics of what it should look like....

[Ponk]

Excuse the terrible pic but you can make out the standard breather on the left hand side of the air box. You might also want to have a look for the plastic jp4 rocker covers I'm using. No need for sealant and a better breather set up. They can be found on 1.6 16v versions of the 206, 307, c2 and c3

[BadBanshee]

My God that looks a million miles better than underneath my car's bonnet!

What do you suppose the rocker cover on mine is made out of? Looks like concrete lol.

Yeah, you know where the breather valve thingy on your car has that mini air filter looking cylinder? On mine it doesn't have anything it's just "headless", basically the end of a rubber tube.

I need to find a headlamp back cover aswell, cuz the halfords chap pointed out the right one doesn't have one, so electrics are exposed.

[BadBanshee]

I'm trying to remember what he suggested for the rust. I think he called it "crust" and it's made by hammerite and you just apply it to rust and leave it. It doesn't take the rust off, it just stops it dead in its tracks from developing further.

[BadBanshee]

I want to clean up the oil on the engine block. If I can use any home remedies (fairy liquid and scourer?) that would be great, I don't mind if it takes some elbow grease as long as it's safe on the engine and surroundings. Then I can monitor any more weeping from the cover gasket.

Also, reckon it would be worth going down to the scrap yard for a breather filter and headlamp back cover?

[Dave^]

You could try WD40 to clean up the oil, liberal amounts, don't be shy...

Or find/buy a bottle of Autoglym Engine & Machine Cleaner, Halfords should have it, but it'll be cheaper online...

Or if you have a local EuroCarParts...

http://www.eurocarparts.com/cleaner-and-degreaser/...

PARTS25 discount code gets you 25% off too...

[Dave200]

So, all that advice about taking someone 'knowledgeable' with you, which you then ignore and buy a car with a probably:
- A knackered battery (and likely alternator)
- Visible rust
- A central locking issue
- A potentially knackered gearbox
- Electrical issues
(ETA)
- An oil leak

Are you seriously a real person, or is this some kind of wind-up?

Edited by Dave200 on Tuesday 11th December 14:03

[BadBanshee]

Dave200 said:

So, all that advice about taking someone 'knowledgeable' with you, which you then ignore and buy a car with a probably:
- A knackered battery (and likely alternator)
- Visible rust
- A central locking issue
- A potentially knackered gearbox
- Electrical issues

Are you seriously a real person, or is this some kind of wind-up?

I told you I don't have any knowledgeable people to take with me where I'm staying. I also said I don't mind having to fix up a few things with it being cheap and my first car so that I gain new mechanical know-how. Why do you seem so harassed about this?

[Dave200]

Just baffled, and slightly frustrated (re: ignoring the advice).

I'm sure if you had put up a "Newbie here - Please help" post in your regional section of the forum, you would have got an offer from someone who had actually lifted a bonnet before...

Have you thought about taking your car to a reliable local mechanic at all (again, ask for a recommendation in your regional section of the forum)? An hour of them prodding and poking, and a bit of unbiased advice, will probably be the best £30 you could spend on this car now. You are clearly quite mechanically naive, and I would rather you didn't get screwed over by some unscrupulous sod.