Poisson's Motoring Mishaps
Discussion
AgentM said:
My then girlfriend bought a 1962 convertible 23 years ago as she couldn't afford the Golf convertible that she wanted at the time. I still have both although neither have been particularly cheap to maintain!
Enjoyable thread - always happy to read about Minors as each has a story and a personality.
I close my eyes, open the wallet and let the money flow out Enjoyable thread - always happy to read about Minors as each has a story and a personality.
Poisson96 said:
Worth it in the end though, puts a massive smile on my face when driving
This is exactly what it's about. One day (probably) it no longer will, and that's when it's time to get out. I arrived at this point with my Triumph Spitfire when I was due to go to a party and I had to spend the day replacing the clutch first. I did the work, then caned it across the country and went to the party. Next day I reflected on who was in charge, me or the car, and at that point I moved on. These days, many years later, I have a hobby car in the garage and a workhorse that I can use as a tool. This may one day be you, but if a 1960-something Minor fits the bill for you right now then carry on enjoying it.
So Saturday was...unreliable XD
On the rather chilly morning, one off for restoration and one off to Alton Towers
So far so good, yes? Well it went downhill as soon as I got there. The Monorail I was on broke down, I was evacuated off Galactica which kept going down and had no VR all day, Spinball Whizzer went down just before we got to it, The Smiler was down all day and isn't going to open until at least tomorrow, TH13TEEN was on 2 trains as the 3rd was toast, Rita went down to one train (more on that later) and all the software for tickets died (thankfully wasn't to deal with that). The Skyride died whilst I was onboard, however that did have some upsides....
Secret Weapon 8, coming 2018. Speaking of working sites, got a lift in this not long back having never been in one before. Not comfortable crouching over the handbrake whilst the police went past XD
Anyway, back on track. I mentioned Rita earlier. Ya know, this thing, 0 - 62mph in 2.5 seconds, so approximately 3,575 times faster than the Mog
It was down to one train when I did it last ride. No big deal, says I, I'll do it, get in the car and drive home. So I did, ish.
I'd lugged it up the hill from Star Cross and onto Ellastone Road before as I went to slow down the pedal didn't want to come back. Throttle return spring in pieces on the road, I decided to kill it immediately.
After calling the AA, I headed to FB to put out an APB for a throttle return spring. When the AA decided to say they'd be an hour, I got the suggestion of detaching the throttle cable, attaching the (solid) choke cable and having a hand throttle home. Sadly some bolts didn't want to play ball. After the contractors for the AA arrived, they bodged a spring they had to get me home. It was smaller in both dimensions so I had to drive with my foot almost vertical home as the pedal was so light.
After investigating the bodge, it became clear it wasn't long before it'd fail so I'm swapping to a proper spring ASAP.
Old cars, who'd have 'em
On the rather chilly morning, one off for restoration and one off to Alton Towers
So far so good, yes? Well it went downhill as soon as I got there. The Monorail I was on broke down, I was evacuated off Galactica which kept going down and had no VR all day, Spinball Whizzer went down just before we got to it, The Smiler was down all day and isn't going to open until at least tomorrow, TH13TEEN was on 2 trains as the 3rd was toast, Rita went down to one train (more on that later) and all the software for tickets died (thankfully wasn't to deal with that). The Skyride died whilst I was onboard, however that did have some upsides....
Secret Weapon 8, coming 2018. Speaking of working sites, got a lift in this not long back having never been in one before. Not comfortable crouching over the handbrake whilst the police went past XD
Anyway, back on track. I mentioned Rita earlier. Ya know, this thing, 0 - 62mph in 2.5 seconds, so approximately 3,575 times faster than the Mog
It was down to one train when I did it last ride. No big deal, says I, I'll do it, get in the car and drive home. So I did, ish.
I'd lugged it up the hill from Star Cross and onto Ellastone Road before as I went to slow down the pedal didn't want to come back. Throttle return spring in pieces on the road, I decided to kill it immediately.
After calling the AA, I headed to FB to put out an APB for a throttle return spring. When the AA decided to say they'd be an hour, I got the suggestion of detaching the throttle cable, attaching the (solid) choke cable and having a hand throttle home. Sadly some bolts didn't want to play ball. After the contractors for the AA arrived, they bodged a spring they had to get me home. It was smaller in both dimensions so I had to drive with my foot almost vertical home as the pedal was so light.
After investigating the bodge, it became clear it wasn't long before it'd fail so I'm swapping to a proper spring ASAP.
Old cars, who'd have 'em
Edited by Poisson96 on Wednesday 29th March 22:04
you wait till you hear a clunk and some banging noises, stop, investigate and realize you just lost the camshaft pulley for the fan belt...and you're still 25 miles from home ! I called my father to let him know what road I was one in case I didn't get home, well I did, but by then the headlights were candles and I am pretty sure the water pump was on its way as well.
Edited by wibble cb on Wednesday 29th March 03:04
So, an update.
The lower bracket for the throttle spring had gone, so a new one was made roughly and a new spring fitted. Also the car is now in daily use, so it has received a few choice security upgrades and as of today, another new flasher motor as the other one has failed after 2 years (pathetic quality)
Here it is on Drive It Day.....
The lower bracket for the throttle spring had gone, so a new one was made roughly and a new spring fitted. Also the car is now in daily use, so it has received a few choice security upgrades and as of today, another new flasher motor as the other one has failed after 2 years (pathetic quality)
Here it is on Drive It Day.....
A err small update.....
Late May saw some paint being thrown at places where there was none on the back
IMG_20170527_131631 by . ., on Flickr
Damaged the National Rust sticker :/
IMG_20170527_131708 by . ., on Flickr
Finished look
IMG_20170527_150458 by . ., on Flickr
Door catch failed 3 days later, had to hold the door a few miles of dual carriageway before bodging outside a Chinese takeaway XD Took an hour to change and broke a bit which wasn't the persons doing the job
IMG_20170530_131821 by . ., on Flickr
Saw my dad's car for the first time in a while
IMG_20170530_130548 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170530_130607 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170530_125444 by . ., on Flickr
Early June saw me do some digging of a baaaaad kind
IMG_20170603_105348 by . ., on Flickr
And some front end love
IMG_20170603_114635 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170603_105316 by . ., on Flickr
And done
IMG_20170603_122459 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170603_122453 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170604_125945 by . ., on Flickr
East Coast Run in June saw the car facing its toughest run yet. simply huge queues saw it a tad upset
IMG_20170611_101401 by . ., on Flickr
Mid June saw an idiot not grease his nipples enough...wonder who was it that did that hmmm?
IMG_20170621_084916 by . ., on Flickr
IMG_20170621_090235 by . ., on Flickr
July saw this shot, bonus points if you can name the advert that uses this road
IMG_20170709_073701 by . ., on Flickr
And a PH meet, think it's DJCs car in this shot.
20170730_105200 by . ., on Flickr
Early August saw the horn fail
20170812_104733 by . ., on Flickr
And a new push fitted but using the old disc
20170812_115209 by . ., on Flickr
And the new push motif disc stripped as it was knackered and resprayed blue because why not?
20170812_114709 by . ., on Flickr
Filter swap urgently needed, along with an unbroken housing
20170812_121313 by . ., on Flickr
20170812_121318 by . ., on Flickr
September the 1st saw the car celebrate its 52nd birthday, and the 2nd saw me take a belated birthday shot and be rudely photobombed by D8 Penyghent
20170902_131718 by . ., on Flickr
And the 10th saw Crich being visited
20170910_101743 by . ., on Flickr
20170910_114533 by . ., on Flickr
The Minor Million register turned up, 9 Millions in total. A special edition to celebrate the Minor being the first British vehicle to sell 1,000,000 cars featuring a white interior and lilac paintwork. 350 were produced, and the 1,000,000th Minor was in attendance (Plate 1 MIL)
20170910_161032_22_01 by . ., on Flickr
Today saw the poor looking washer switch replaced by a much better looking example
20170914_161005 by . ., on Flickr
20170914_163357 by . ., on Flickr
20170914_163406 by . ., on Flickr
Late May saw some paint being thrown at places where there was none on the back
IMG_20170527_131631 by . ., on FlickrDamaged the National Rust sticker :/
IMG_20170527_131708 by . ., on FlickrFinished look
IMG_20170527_150458 by . ., on FlickrDoor catch failed 3 days later, had to hold the door a few miles of dual carriageway before bodging outside a Chinese takeaway XD Took an hour to change and broke a bit which wasn't the persons doing the job
IMG_20170530_131821 by . ., on FlickrSaw my dad's car for the first time in a while
IMG_20170530_130548 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170530_130607 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170530_125444 by . ., on FlickrEarly June saw me do some digging of a baaaaad kind
IMG_20170603_105348 by . ., on FlickrAnd some front end love
IMG_20170603_114635 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170603_105316 by . ., on FlickrAnd done
IMG_20170603_122459 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170603_122453 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170604_125945 by . ., on FlickrEast Coast Run in June saw the car facing its toughest run yet. simply huge queues saw it a tad upset
IMG_20170611_101401 by . ., on FlickrMid June saw an idiot not grease his nipples enough...wonder who was it that did that hmmm?
IMG_20170621_084916 by . ., on FlickrIMG_20170621_090235 by . ., on FlickrJuly saw this shot, bonus points if you can name the advert that uses this road
IMG_20170709_073701 by . ., on FlickrAnd a PH meet, think it's DJCs car in this shot.
20170730_105200 by . ., on FlickrEarly August saw the horn fail
20170812_104733 by . ., on FlickrAnd a new push fitted but using the old disc
20170812_115209 by . ., on FlickrAnd the new push motif disc stripped as it was knackered and resprayed blue because why not?
20170812_114709 by . ., on FlickrFilter swap urgently needed, along with an unbroken housing
20170812_121313 by . ., on Flickr20170812_121318 by . ., on FlickrSeptember the 1st saw the car celebrate its 52nd birthday, and the 2nd saw me take a belated birthday shot and be rudely photobombed by D8 Penyghent
20170902_131718 by . ., on FlickrAnd the 10th saw Crich being visited
20170910_101743 by . ., on Flickr20170910_114533 by . ., on FlickrThe Minor Million register turned up, 9 Millions in total. A special edition to celebrate the Minor being the first British vehicle to sell 1,000,000 cars featuring a white interior and lilac paintwork. 350 were produced, and the 1,000,000th Minor was in attendance (Plate 1 MIL)
20170910_161032_22_01 by . ., on FlickrToday saw the poor looking washer switch replaced by a much better looking example
20170914_161005 by . ., on Flickr20170914_163357 by . ., on Flickr20170914_163406 by . ., on FlickrAnother big glut of photos, the car continues to be my daily transport but due to the fact I work weekends, runs out to shows have been limited.
The steering rack clamp failed not long after my previous post. This was due to a bolt failing and it snapping on me during my commute. That wasn't fun to say the least.
On a trip to Skegness I went and found a fellow piece of slow, old technology
There hasn't been much to update on really with regards to this thread. The car has done me well taking me to and from work as and when with a few small faults. In the mild snap in the start of this year I took the chance to get some extra boot space by rearranging the boot using the space under the boot floor that isn't obviously there and added a slip proof matt to the floor of the boot.
A photo from when times were less mild
And finally last night, things came grinding to a halt. The carb had been slowly dying so I had sent one away to be refurbished. Sadly the old one died a day before I could get the new one fitted so a call to the big yellow taxi was needed. Bugger. (Shout out to the AA patrolman, I know you browse around these parts)
Hopefully I'll actually do more of interest this year.
Tom
The steering rack clamp failed not long after my previous post. This was due to a bolt failing and it snapping on me during my commute. That wasn't fun to say the least.
On a trip to Skegness I went and found a fellow piece of slow, old technology
There hasn't been much to update on really with regards to this thread. The car has done me well taking me to and from work as and when with a few small faults. In the mild snap in the start of this year I took the chance to get some extra boot space by rearranging the boot using the space under the boot floor that isn't obviously there and added a slip proof matt to the floor of the boot.
A photo from when times were less mild
And finally last night, things came grinding to a halt. The carb had been slowly dying so I had sent one away to be refurbished. Sadly the old one died a day before I could get the new one fitted so a call to the big yellow taxi was needed. Bugger. (Shout out to the AA patrolman, I know you browse around these parts)
Hopefully I'll actually do more of interest this year.
Tom
So a day of trials and tribulations. Chaos and success. Ish.
A veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery quick catchup to the present time:
Mainly bumbled on, kept rolling. Changed job, new more flowing commute should be better for it. Lovely.
Picked up a pair of seats. Bought for cheap, expected to be nothing but turned out to be leather Cobra buckets in decent nick. Treated and in storage for now, due for fitment probably in the near future.
[url]
Had an encounter with black ice and kissed a roundabout. Caused a bad previous repair to crack, all chopped out and fixed now. The strengthening in the chassis rail was defective and caused it to crack.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gyid]
Got 6 new wheels for very little, sprayed to silver, awaiting tyres (dropping a profile to get some winters potentially)
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gyYr]
So we get to today. Went to pick the car up and it was chaos. The tram train was dead, the train I caught instead was delayed as the door wouldn't shut. Anyway, eventually got to the garage and the car had been a pain whilst away, so the points were replaced. No big deal. So I drove it to go home and half a mile later I was down to 3 cylinders. Checked the usual suspects and nothing. Returned to the garage in time for it to start blowing white out the exhaust and it sounded like an air cooled VW combined with a cement mixer filled with metal ball bearings. Not ideal at all. I had an inkling the HG might have been on the way, didn't expect it to fail yet though. Luckily I had found a return ticket to get me to Sheffield previously when I had collected my single, a stroke of luck.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gxNv]
So I get back to Sheffield and I had arranged to view a car, quite fittingly, in Leyland today. Collected my next set of tickets and was greeted with this:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1hGgS]
Northern carrying on their great form. Brilliant. A train had broken down between Bolton and Preston, causing the trains that run to Leyland to be cancelled for the next few hours. I got to Manchester Piccadilly and messaged the seller, for I had already got on the train when the Leyland train had been cancelled and in all credit to him, agreed to meet me at Buckshaw Parkway. Northern had finally got their act together, sort of, and a service was heading that way. Eventually got there, to be greeted by the fine chariot I was to be inspecting. A bit scruffy around the edges, but a fine chariot nonetheless. After a good look around, a deal was done for very little and I was the custodian of this majestic beast.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1hHA5]
I'll add more pictures when I get time in daylight but I've just got it home. A fine way to end a hideous day.
A veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeery quick catchup to the present time:
Mainly bumbled on, kept rolling. Changed job, new more flowing commute should be better for it. Lovely.
Picked up a pair of seats. Bought for cheap, expected to be nothing but turned out to be leather Cobra buckets in decent nick. Treated and in storage for now, due for fitment probably in the near future.
[url]
Had an encounter with black ice and kissed a roundabout. Caused a bad previous repair to crack, all chopped out and fixed now. The strengthening in the chassis rail was defective and caused it to crack.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gyid]
Got 6 new wheels for very little, sprayed to silver, awaiting tyres (dropping a profile to get some winters potentially)
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gyYr]
So we get to today. Went to pick the car up and it was chaos. The tram train was dead, the train I caught instead was delayed as the door wouldn't shut. Anyway, eventually got to the garage and the car had been a pain whilst away, so the points were replaced. No big deal. So I drove it to go home and half a mile later I was down to 3 cylinders. Checked the usual suspects and nothing. Returned to the garage in time for it to start blowing white out the exhaust and it sounded like an air cooled VW combined with a cement mixer filled with metal ball bearings. Not ideal at all. I had an inkling the HG might have been on the way, didn't expect it to fail yet though. Luckily I had found a return ticket to get me to Sheffield previously when I had collected my single, a stroke of luck.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1gxNv]
So I get back to Sheffield and I had arranged to view a car, quite fittingly, in Leyland today. Collected my next set of tickets and was greeted with this:
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1hGgS]
Northern carrying on their great form. Brilliant. A train had broken down between Bolton and Preston, causing the trains that run to Leyland to be cancelled for the next few hours. I got to Manchester Piccadilly and messaged the seller, for I had already got on the train when the Leyland train had been cancelled and in all credit to him, agreed to meet me at Buckshaw Parkway. Northern had finally got their act together, sort of, and a service was heading that way. Eventually got there, to be greeted by the fine chariot I was to be inspecting. A bit scruffy around the edges, but a fine chariot nonetheless. After a good look around, a deal was done for very little and I was the custodian of this majestic beast.
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2i1hHA5]
I'll add more pictures when I get time in daylight but I've just got it home. A fine way to end a hideous day.
Edited by Poisson96 on Tuesday 17th December 06:18
So today is a day off, to reveal what monster I have bought.
Ignore the broken car on the left, failure, misery etc.
The arches are a touch frilly, if they pass the MoT they can wait, if not they may get done.
Interior is in very good nick, radio needs changing as its some ugly JVC unit and the CD part is knackered
Ticked 57,000 on my travels today
Ignore the broken car on the left, failure, misery etc.
The arches are a touch frilly, if they pass the MoT they can wait, if not they may get done.
Interior is in very good nick, radio needs changing as its some ugly JVC unit and the CD part is knackered
Ticked 57,000 on my travels today
Panda arrived today.
Super low mileage, pretty much mint condition. Dealer plates are being kept safe as I've decided to fit my grandad's private plate. Seemed rude to pass up such a low miler in such good condition. Think it'll go to storage for a bit as the Metro can face the salt and misery, bodywork matters less on it.
Super low mileage, pretty much mint condition. Dealer plates are being kept safe as I've decided to fit my grandad's private plate. Seemed rude to pass up such a low miler in such good condition. Think it'll go to storage for a bit as the Metro can face the salt and misery, bodywork matters less on it.
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