Glad to see the back of it
Discussion
Hey, CallThatMusic, just remembered, going back to the Triumph TR7, did you experience the good old throttle cable stuck wide open trick.
I found this a little disconcerting whilst travelling at “ahem” a decent speed on the motorway. Decided to slow down as rapidly approaching downhill to a service station where the boys in blue were usually based.
Foot off the accelerator and just kept on going so I panicked and dipped the clutch, engine revs went ballistic, pulled over to the hard shoulder which was covered with ice, squegged a bit, managed to slow down with engine screaming and switched off ignition. Trimmed a hairy strand of Bowden cable off with pliers and went on my way. All character building stuff, but just another day in the life of British Leylands’ finest !
I found this a little disconcerting whilst travelling at “ahem” a decent speed on the motorway. Decided to slow down as rapidly approaching downhill to a service station where the boys in blue were usually based.
Foot off the accelerator and just kept on going so I panicked and dipped the clutch, engine revs went ballistic, pulled over to the hard shoulder which was covered with ice, squegged a bit, managed to slow down with engine screaming and switched off ignition. Trimmed a hairy strand of Bowden cable off with pliers and went on my way. All character building stuff, but just another day in the life of British Leylands’ finest !
The one I was glad to see the back of was a 1997 Mercedes SL320, R129 with straight six engine. Bought at 80k miles and taken to about 150k miles. The number of repairs required coupled with the waiting time for a slot at the Indy meant I was forever driving/nursing a car around with problems. And it rusted, badly, in unseen structural areas. The interior was squeaky and rattley too. I would have persevered for a few more years had MB not decided parts support was over - "oh, that parts still available" was the Storeman's response on my last visit and the clincher for me.
Itsgrimupnorth said:
Hey, CallThatMusic, just remembered, going back to the Triumph TR7, did you experience the good old throttle cable stuck wide open trick.
I found this a little disconcerting whilst travelling at “ahem” a decent speed on the motorway. Decided to slow down as rapidly approaching downhill to a service station where the boys in blue were usually based.
Foot off the accelerator and just kept on going so I panicked and dipped the clutch, engine revs went ballistic, pulled over to the hard shoulder which was covered with ice, squegged a bit, managed to slow down with engine screaming and switched off ignition. Trimmed a hairy strand of Bowden cable off with pliers and went on my way. All character building stuff, but just another day in the life of British Leylands’ finest !
I dodged that particular feature of TR7 life….I found this a little disconcerting whilst travelling at “ahem” a decent speed on the motorway. Decided to slow down as rapidly approaching downhill to a service station where the boys in blue were usually based.
Foot off the accelerator and just kept on going so I panicked and dipped the clutch, engine revs went ballistic, pulled over to the hard shoulder which was covered with ice, squegged a bit, managed to slow down with engine screaming and switched off ignition. Trimmed a hairy strand of Bowden cable off with pliers and went on my way. All character building stuff, but just another day in the life of British Leylands’ finest !
It did happen to me going down a steep twisty hill when I was showing off in my Montecarlo…
Passenger took the wheel while I got down into the footwell to pull up the accelerator which somehow stuck to the floor….scary days…lucky to be alive…ha
MB E63 AMG. Was quick but ride was poor, horrible interior, big bill looming for engine work (out of warranty by one week), sunroof cassette dropped, front end drifted a bit in corners even though it had been checked several times.
I was actually relieved when it was stolen as it saved me a considerable sum. Also got a good payment from the insurance company as well. Glad to see the back of it.
I was actually relieved when it was stolen as it saved me a considerable sum. Also got a good payment from the insurance company as well. Glad to see the back of it.
Ford Mondeo Zetec TDCi - was an absolute dog and I shouldn't have bought it (long story...). Kept it 8 months, it cost me £700 in repairs and I lost another £800 when I sold it. Good riddance.
Range Rover L322 4.4 V8 - spent £2000 on the cooling system of the crap BMW V8 engine to get it working properly, only to discover a few months later that it needed a gearbox overhaul and a new torque converter. Was sold as needing attention pronto.
Mercedes S211 E200k estate - I'd never heard of an SBC pump when I bought it but i soon learned all about it. I had a couple of scares that suggested it was gone during my time with it, but both turned out to be false alarms. After a couple of years, i decided it was time for a new car but 2 days (TWO FECKIN' DAYS!!!) after I listed it for sale on eBay, the b
d SBC pump reached the end of its life for real.
Range Rover L322 4.4 V8 - spent £2000 on the cooling system of the crap BMW V8 engine to get it working properly, only to discover a few months later that it needed a gearbox overhaul and a new torque converter. Was sold as needing attention pronto.
Mercedes S211 E200k estate - I'd never heard of an SBC pump when I bought it but i soon learned all about it. I had a couple of scares that suggested it was gone during my time with it, but both turned out to be false alarms. After a couple of years, i decided it was time for a new car but 2 days (TWO FECKIN' DAYS!!!) after I listed it for sale on eBay, the b
d SBC pump reached the end of its life for real.Rob 131 Sport said:
You must of had some great cars if an E Class hits such a list. Try owning 
a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is.
You cheeky scamp - don't leave us hanging! What could possibly be disappointing about a mighty 827 Vitesse? a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is. Clearly I never owned one. A colleague had a Billy-Basic 820 (Montego engine?) on carbs which (drumroll please) could provide more than 1mph for every bhp available, but that was about it.
The Don of Croy said:
Rob 131 Sport said:
You must of had some great cars if an E Class hits such a list. Try owning a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is.
You cheeky scamp - don't leave us hanging! What could possibly be disappointing about a mighty 827 Vitesse? a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is. Clearly I never owned one. A colleague had a Billy-Basic 820 (Montego engine?) on carbs which (drumroll please) could provide more than 1mph for every bhp available, but that was about it.
Isn't it a Honda V6? I assumed it'd be reliable.
Pebbles167 said:
The Don of Croy said:
Rob 131 Sport said:
You must of had some great cars if an E Class hits such a list. Try owning a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is.
You cheeky scamp - don't leave us hanging! What could possibly be disappointing about a mighty 827 Vitesse? a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is. Clearly I never owned one. A colleague had a Billy-Basic 820 (Montego engine?) on carbs which (drumroll please) could provide more than 1mph for every bhp available, but that was about it.
Isn't it a Honda V6? I assumed it'd be reliable.
They were ok for a mid 80s car I suppose, you forget how crap everything was, and of course Rover were trying to sell a mediocre 1986 car in 1997.
I once had to buy a Lada 1500 estate just so I had some transport. The reason for this sorry state of affairs was a bloody Lotus Eclat, which, I worked out, cost £2 per mile not including petrol, insurance, tax or anything really!
I had a Bentley RT, last of the 'Proper' Bentleys and it pretty much bankrupted me as it just went wrong in strange and unpredictable ways. Finally, at 80.000 miles (it's always 80.000 apparently) the head gasket on the passenger side went and hydrolocked the engine. By golly, that was expensive!
I currently have a Mercedes SLK which, apart from a rotten rear subframe (thanks MB for declining my claim) which cost a couple of grand and its utter propensity for new batteries every couple of years, the odd and occasional electrical gremlin (came out the other morning to find the passenger side window partway down... in a torrential rainstorm, interior is still wet and so steamy mornings are the rule).it's been faultless
I had a Bentley RT, last of the 'Proper' Bentleys and it pretty much bankrupted me as it just went wrong in strange and unpredictable ways. Finally, at 80.000 miles (it's always 80.000 apparently) the head gasket on the passenger side went and hydrolocked the engine. By golly, that was expensive!
I currently have a Mercedes SLK which, apart from a rotten rear subframe (thanks MB for declining my claim) which cost a couple of grand and its utter propensity for new batteries every couple of years, the odd and occasional electrical gremlin (came out the other morning to find the passenger side window partway down... in a torrential rainstorm, interior is still wet and so steamy mornings are the rule).it's been faultless
There are cars that you're glad to see the back of not because they're unreliable but because they are just plain terrible in every respect. Kia Shuma, boring in every single aspect, terrible to drive, drank petrol like a Bentley but never put a foot wrong, still glad to see the back of it.
Morris Ital, again never went wrong, didn't cost anything but hated every single mile in it, Lada Samara ditto, apart from the W210 the car that I was most relieved to see the back of was a 1997 base spec Escort that I got at 3 years old on finance. Got rid of it a week after it was paid off, truly hateful in every respect.
Morris Ital, again never went wrong, didn't cost anything but hated every single mile in it, Lada Samara ditto, apart from the W210 the car that I was most relieved to see the back of was a 1997 base spec Escort that I got at 3 years old on finance. Got rid of it a week after it was paid off, truly hateful in every respect.
GeniusOfLove said:
Pebbles167 said:
The Don of Croy said:
Rob 131 Sport said:
You must of had some great cars if an E Class hits such a list. Try owning a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is.
You cheeky scamp - don't leave us hanging! What could possibly be disappointing about a mighty 827 Vitesse? a Rover 827 Vitesse and you would know what utter automotive misery is. Clearly I never owned one. A colleague had a Billy-Basic 820 (Montego engine?) on carbs which (drumroll please) could provide more than 1mph for every bhp available, but that was about it.
Isn't it a Honda V6? I assumed it'd be reliable.
They were ok for a mid 80s car I suppose, you forget how crap everything was, and of course Rover were trying to sell a mediocre 1986 car in 1997.
Mine suffered from this issue together with rust at the bottom of the doors. The interior was very cheaply put together and the doors felt so light and tinny after my E30 BMW 320i that I had stupidly parted with to buy this. The body work and interior quality reminded me of my Fiat Mirafiori Sport that was from a class below and a much earlier design.
The other major problems in addition to the rust were numerous electronic faults affecting the starting, gearbox and clutch failure. It left me stranded no less than 6 times in the 10 months I owned it.
When I bought it I was considering a Lancia Thema, but was concerned (wrongly) about spares availability as they’d just pulled out of the UK market. I also considered an Alfa 164, but was again wrongly concerned about reliability. I subsequently owned an Alfa 155, 159 and Mito. They have all been great and totally reliable.
It did look quite nice with the standard body kit, unlike the super ugly fuddy duddy 75 that replaced it.
They did look sharp in Vitesse trim.
I think it's very telling that after the XX/HX project Honda gave Rover very little input into subsequent "joint ventures", which doesn't suggest the Japanese engineers and managers were particularly impressed with the Austin Rover Group contributions.
I think it's very telling that after the XX/HX project Honda gave Rover very little input into subsequent "joint ventures", which doesn't suggest the Japanese engineers and managers were particularly impressed with the Austin Rover Group contributions.
With the arrival of No.3 child I was talked into gettign a Discovery 3 from my dear lady wife, unfortunately it was the 2.7 manual version (very rare) and my god it was a pain in the backside.
It spent 3 weeks at an LR specialist to try and sort out one of many faults with it, I had the pleasure of driving around in a 15 year old Astra loan car, although at least it worked!
It drank diesel and on a good run it struggled to make 30mpg!
I was glad to sell it on and its temporary replacement was a 2001 Volvo V70, although one owner and FSH with a folder full of every £1 spent on it including the original purchase receipt! What a change to move from LR to Volvo....
Was going to say that I wouldn't buy another LR product but replaced the 'stop gap' V70, after 12 months, with a Discovery 4 which is a completely different car to the 3, and reliable as well!
It spent 3 weeks at an LR specialist to try and sort out one of many faults with it, I had the pleasure of driving around in a 15 year old Astra loan car, although at least it worked!
It drank diesel and on a good run it struggled to make 30mpg!
I was glad to sell it on and its temporary replacement was a 2001 Volvo V70, although one owner and FSH with a folder full of every £1 spent on it including the original purchase receipt! What a change to move from LR to Volvo....
Was going to say that I wouldn't buy another LR product but replaced the 'stop gap' V70, after 12 months, with a Discovery 4 which is a completely different car to the 3, and reliable as well!
GeniusOfLove said:
They did look sharp in Vitesse trim.
I think it's very telling that after the XX/HX project Honda gave Rover very little input into subsequent "joint ventures", which doesn't suggest the Japanese engineers and managers were particularly impressed with the Austin Rover Group contributions.
Did they really look sharp in Vitesse Trim or just a bland car with a typical 80’s body kit. I personally didn’t mind the styling. Not brilliant like an Alfa 164 or 5 Series, but acceptable. I think it's very telling that after the XX/HX project Honda gave Rover very little input into subsequent "joint ventures", which doesn't suggest the Japanese engineers and managers were particularly impressed with the Austin Rover Group contributions.
However they certainly didn’t look brilliant on the back of (yet another) Green Flag breakdown truck with another big bill looming.
OK, I’ll admit to a not very PH-friendly car experience……
Back in 2000 when I had a family and a job, I opted for a Renault Espace on the e company car scheme. Sorry.
It was like driving an armchair and, at the time, one of the most spacious cars on the market.
However, I parted company with it after 25 months and 24 garage visits. A multitude of electrical and fuelling issues made it difficult to live with, even thought the V6 diesel engine was nice when it worked. We were once refused boarding on the Eurotunnel due to excess fuel on the underside and when we got to the ski resort, the tailgate was covered in diesel. At least France was a good place to get it fixed.
Except for the Alpine, a Renault product has never darkened my door again.
Back in 2000 when I had a family and a job, I opted for a Renault Espace on the e company car scheme. Sorry.
It was like driving an armchair and, at the time, one of the most spacious cars on the market.
However, I parted company with it after 25 months and 24 garage visits. A multitude of electrical and fuelling issues made it difficult to live with, even thought the V6 diesel engine was nice when it worked. We were once refused boarding on the Eurotunnel due to excess fuel on the underside and when we got to the ski resort, the tailgate was covered in diesel. At least France was a good place to get it fixed.
Except for the Alpine, a Renault product has never darkened my door again.
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