My car history since April.

[twazzock]

This is what I've been up to cars-wise:

April this year, bought a Fiat Cinquecento Sporting. Haven't got any pictures but you know what it's like:


Here's a Streetview pic of it languishing on a drive a while before I got it:

A bright yellow box on wheels. It cost me £400 on eBay, from (allegedly) a Fiat mechanic of 12 years. Not bad condition; scraped arch, scabby wheels and a worn driver's seat but bearable. First car so I LOVED IT. It was great fun to drive: wonderfully zippy engine and nice steering feel, but bugger me did it roll. Even with lowered suspension it felt like it was going to fall over on mini-roundabouts, even without any particular enthusiasm. It also fell apart quite a lot. Turning on the interior light blew the fuse for the hazards, repeatedly. I hadn't even got it home when the exhaust baffling started making a bid for freedom... Slightly unnerving to see a length of 'hair' waving around in your rear view mirror. Gave the exhaust a crap drone too. Thankfully that didn't last long as the headgasket failed shortly after

I'd owned it for a grand total of three and a bit weeks. I did contemplate fixing it (even bought the parts!) but being as mechanically competent as the average elephant I ended up taking a few bits off then scrapping it.

So, I was pretty desperate for a replacement, and being a keen drinker and internettist, I spotted this and arranged to view it the next day:




Excuse the quality of the pictures, I don't usually take any unless I'm selling up. For the princely sum of £450 I bought this lovely Peugeot 205 from a nice chap in Newcastle. It was originally a 'Junior' 1124cc (that is, absolutely pov spec - the sort of thing even the average Ethiopian would be dismayed at). Thankfully it had had an XS lump (1360cc, 85bhp) dropped in at some point so it was rather lively (also had a few sportier suspension/brake stuff to match). The handling 'upgrades' were a bit of a bodge, especially the silly low rear-end, but fk me was it fun. Compared to the Fiat it felt even more direct and rather planted even! Engine was hilariously eager and a fair chunk quicker too... until the headgasket went .

This time it was rather sudden, at motorway speeds rather than the 2-day degradation of the Fiat. A couple of hours waiting for the RAC, wallet lightened by £90 because I was outside of the zone I was entitled, one very dead car and me feeling rather glum. Lifespan in my hands: dead on three weeks. Again, thought about fixing it, bought parts but then decided against it. Couldn't bring myself to scrap it so I sold it for £150. Gutted.

Now after this I decided to be more 'sensible', by which I mean 'turn into an old git'. I bought a diesel estate.

Citroen ZX to be precise. £425, eBay. Quite tidy, even had service history (a first!) In hindsight I should have looked a bit more closely at the history before buying it as it had been crashed twice in five years and there was no evidence of servicing in the last 8 years. No sign of a cambelt being done at all so I thought " I can do that!". So off I toddled to ECP and bought myself nigh-on £200 of various service parts, a Haynes manual, borrowed some tools and got cracking. Well, I think the right term is 'unmitigated disaster'. It took me the best part of 3 weeks thanks to my ineptitude. I won't go into too much detail though, let's just say I fked something up and the belt 'fell off' 8 miles later and took my engine with it.

Remains of cam:

Oh dear. Quite annoying. That one lasted about 5 weeks all in, but more than half of that was on my drive in pieces...

Didn't really know what to do with myself after that, eyed up an awful lot of crap on eBay and generally moped... until I did this:

YEAH MOTHERfkER, ANOTHER ONE! Spotted it in the remaining hour of an eBay auction. Nearby, looked OK and well-written ad. A steal for £300. Not really much to say about it; exactly the same as the last one (1.9 non-turbo diesel, as quick as Usain Bolt with his legs cut off, bland bland comfyish bland handles alright bland bland bland!) just with more life left in the clutch and working central locking. Oh, and it smelt like dogs.

Decided not to touch anything on that one, as I had travel plans which I'd already fked right up due to time and money spent on other crap cars!

So, I stacked it full of camping crap and took it round Scotland with a mate. Then we met another couple of chums in the Lakes. All very good fun and the car handled it superbly. It even made it over Wrynose pass (hilarious road, steepest in England) not once, but twice! The only time it caused any trouble was down to human error, like getting it stuck in an abandoned quarry whilst drunkenly arsing around...

Some pics:




Applecross^

Once that was done and dusted I crammed it full of my personal belongings and moved to uni. I also pilfered a load of parts off the old one that was sitting derelict on my mum's drive, and sent it to the great scrapyard in the sky (it's actually on the A1306):


Since then it's not really done a lot. I put some snazzy wheels on it though (but it still looks crap). Now on ebay if anyone's interested...


Even though I didn't drive it all that much by now, it was still boring me to death just knowing I owned a diesel estate at the age of 19, so I was going on eBay a fair bit more than is advisable, trigger finger itching for a bargain (well, it would be after just under 2 months of ownership!)

I investigated a lot of ste. Thankfully my last-minute bid on a Mk4 Escort estate was unsuccessful, as was the one on the Talbot Horizon. Spurred on by the recent SOTW (which I frantically tried to buy) I stuck a bid on a 106 Rallye just before it finished (at 11pm on a Monday )

£600 and it even has MOT. AWESOME. Went to Newcastle today to collect it and it's rather more sheddy than I imagined. Not too fussed about that (apart from the driver's seat which won't stay upright - no fun for 2 hours down the A1), but I think it's showing the early signs of headgasket failure

More info & pictures tomorrow.

That is my history of sheds. Hopefully it hasn't been too dull (christ, it's longer than I thought...)

Edited by twazzock on Wednesday 5th October 21:37

Edited by twazzock on Wednesday 5th October 21:38

Edited by twazzock on Wednesday 5th October 21:43

[twazzock]

vrtrooper said:

Going off your short history and money wasted, have you considered a bus pass?
Keep us all informed, I see trouble ahead.

Funnily enough I used to have a bike as my 'reliable' backup transport. Except every single time I ride it it gets a puncture on the rear tyre

[twazzock]

It's actually an S2 (1.6 8v) - this one to be precise:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/280747481022?ssPageName=...
(and yes, it screams, 7000rpm+ after a few months of dieseldom is fantastic

It doesn't look too terrible in the ad pictures, probably thanks to them being taken in the shade and on a camera phone, but reassuringly it's far worse in real life I've just realised that the ad has been written in the Rallye colours - classy touch.

I must say the seller was a nice enough bloke, certainly into his Peugeots. Bit dim though, he seems to have a habit of buying cars without checking the insurance first - this is the 12th he'd owned (he was 19) and he'd not driven a single one of them (no surprise as he was quoted £6k to insure the 106!)

I did absolutely kack myself at one point during the sale though. Shut the door on the car and -zzzzpp-, it locks. With the key and both fobs inside. bks. We all just look at each other dumbly, seller suggests I go and sort the tax out and he'll get it open. So I jump into a manky Transit with two of his workmates to go to the nearest Post Office. A few minutes into the journey something clicks in my head and I think 'st. st. He's got my cash, and the car, and the keys. st. What if he just locked it with a spare fob? Are these two grubby s going to kick the st out of me, take the tax and docs back and leave me in an alleyway? fk! st' Thankfully all was well, they were indeed uncouth bds but nice uncouth bds. I got back in one piece, car and seller still there. Apparently Peugeot 106s are laughably easy to break into without causing any damage.

Here are some pictures. Ostensibly it looks not bad but when you step a little closer it's pretty shoddy.



Pretty sure there should be something in that hole (and no paint on the gasket)...


Yes, that's a Ford (Fiesta) dipstick. I've got a new one on order.


And that pipe should be bolted to something too


Hmm, my ZX has a clippy/bracket thing holding the rad in place, this just wobbles around as it sees fit.



As does this


Lovely bit of grot.









I know I said it's a doss to break into them but whoever had a go at it before was clearly a fking mong:


That's the one and only position for the driver's seat. It's a instrument of fking torture on the motorway, I tells ya (fully sik around town though ) Need to fix/bodge it asap as I've got 350 miles to do over the weekend!


The puddle it left in 10 minutes parked outside GSF:

The spot I parked in last night looks like the gulf of Mexico...

No wonder the oil light is on:


I have topped up the oil since I got it home but it's not really gone out. It's either flickering or fully on. I have no idea how accurate it is thanks to the lack of dipstick. It's certainly leaking somewhere, but it also seems to be leaking upwards! After the first drive there was an arseload (or is it sumpload?) sprayed on the underside of the bonnet, enough that it had dripped down on to the airthingybob behind the cam cover. There was a little bit when I parked it up today but I only drove a few miles. Any idea where it's forcing its way out? I would have said dipstick but the top of the tube and place on the bonnet don't really seem to match up.

I bunged some K-Seal in it with the hope of nipping any potential HGF in the bud. Not sure it's done much. The only sign that the HG was going at all was moisture coming out of the exhaust. Now when I put my hand under it it doesn't feel damp as such, more sticky-ish? Smells like petrol too, maybe just running rich? Apparently it's got a 'chip' but there's a 'thing' in the engine bay which I suspect is a crappy fuel pressure regulator which is overfuelling it. Idles crap but they all do that, I need to clean/replace the ICV. Probably be the first thing I sort as it's a pain in the arse trying to idle through traffic, it's like having a learner driving what with all the kangarooing... Otherwise seems to run well.

As ever, apols 4 st pickhers. It was cold and windy and wet.

Edited by twazzock on Thursday 6th October 19:52

[twazzock]

omgus said:

OP, this has really cheered me up. I forsee a little fun in the 106 then a trip back to the dark side (ZX).

I'm so glad to meet another person who has done the ZX thing twice, voluntarily.

I came pretty to close to doing it 3 times actually! Spotted a 16v for sale as spares/repairs (all it needed was new windows as some little stes had smashed them) for just £250, I'd offered to have it off him but the bd sold it to his mate for a track car That was just one of a string of cars I missed out on thanks to being too far away to shove cash in hands.

[twazzock]

vrtrooper said:

Keep us all informed, I see trouble ahead.

Astonishing prescience...

Got a call from a friend to say the window had been smashed. Had a look and found this:



Of course as soon as I got in and shut the door it became this:


And by the time I'd driven it off the road it looked like this (hard suspension + crappy car park):



fking wonderful. I'm all for a 'raw' experience but I've got 350 miles of non-fun A-road driving to do this weekend and this takes the piss a bit. If only whoever tinted the rears had bothered with the screen as well it might still be in vaguely one piece.

Probably shouldn't have parked it so close to the entrance to my uni halls (that's the gate on the right - the main entrance/exit route for hundreds of students in varying stages of inebriation) but it was the only space available at the time. If my uni actually had a vaguely fking logical policy on parking it would have been safely tucked away in the car park itself. Permit pricing is based on the tax band of the car in question and the bloke I spoke to wasn't even aware of the pre- and post-2001 system, let alone how to deal with my car, so just fobbed me off to a higher upper but I haven't had time to go and see them.

Oh, and my dipstick hasn't arrived yet so I've still no idea how much oil I have.

Edited by twazzock on Friday 7th October 14:45

[twazzock]

RevYob said:

No 106s in the local scrappers? I imagine a rear tailgate wouldnt be anymore than £40, won't be matching colour but will do until you can get a new screen fitted at least. (And you can do your long journey at the weekend, more importantly)

Didn't even think of that, cheers mate - just phoned a bloke who had one on eBay, going to collect it at 5.


I'm pretty sure it wasn't a failed robbery; even a malnourished student would have had the strength to push through the shattered window. Not that they'd have had much use a few 106 parts (you can't exactly wear them on your head). I wouldn't be surprised if it was just a couple of drunkards dicking around, falling into my car in their enthusiasm. I know of someone who's had that to happen their car, and may or may not have broken my own computer screen in a similar fashion

Anyway... No I don't deliberately buy stters! It's just a combination of meagre budget and no self-control! There is something about the challenge of a 'fixer-upper' too, even if I've yet to fix a single thing.

Not sure what to do about the rust. AFAIK it's not structural (going to have a more thorough check) and as it's covered by the arches shouldn't fail an MOT based on sharp edges. Cosmetics don't really fuss me but I'd like to see it gone if it can be done quite cheaply. But it'll probably cost me £70ish for two wings, plus the welding, and then paint. But then again, the boot has split where it meets the arch (again! Apparently it was fixed for the last MOT, must have been a great job...) so if I'm getting that welding done I might as well go all out. I may just pour all my money into making it handle sweetly instead.

Oh, and who said a varied collection? It's been PSA hatchbacks of the 90s ffs

Edited by twazzock on Friday 7th October 15:50

[twazzock]

If I have two more this year then I've had more than my dad has in his 30-year driving career

Got the tailgate on fine, thanks to a couple of friends helping. Wrong colour, dark green, but it doesn't even look that bad.

May be looking for another car but I'll update you all on that tomorrow/Monday...

[twazzock]

Nice safe way of transporting the new hatch:


New dipstick and oil level:


(oops, slightly over-enthusiastic filling, pre-MASSIVE LEAK)

I was thinking of selling the 106 because (predictably) it's suffering from a major mechanical fault, namely a failed head gasket (I think). Not bad eh, only took 3 days this time, rather than the usual 3 weeks

It is pissing oil all over the place, and a good chunk is going straight on to the exhaust manifold, creating a fair amount of smoke. I don't think any is coming out of the exhaust, just moisture. The smoke's only noticeable at slow speeds though, so I've still done 350 miles this weekend (not that the tripmeter has acknowledged that), just topping the oil up A LOT. 27 quid I spent on oil today On the plus side I got a free gift:

lovely DIY-tat-majig.

Oddly it still drives absolutely fine, except the clutch is slipping, presumably thanks to being covered in engine oil

Here are some more crap photos:

30 secs I'd been parked!

Being stationary with the engine running quickly turns the inside of the 106 into a mobile disco, what with the noxious haze and the flashing dash lights...

No idea what that is supposed to be.


I don't think I will sell it after all. There's no chance of me getting another one for this sort of money ever again, and the prices will only go up so I may as well hold on to it while I can. The only dilemma now is whether to pay a pro to the HG or save a bit of dosh and risk ballsing it up myself

Anyone know a good mechanic in/near Leeds...?

[twazzock]

I used a Haynes to do the cambelt on the first ZX and cocked that right up

Looks like there's a good guide on the Rallye forum so I think I'll have a crack at it.

There's actually no oil/coolant contamination oddly, but I found the same thing happened with the 205 which is a vaguely similar engine (TU-series). Could it be anything else if the only major symptom is heavy oil leakage?

I'm going to bang a thread up on the Rallye forum as they seem like a knowledgable bunch, it looks a bit quiet over there though.

[twazzock]

RevYob said:

Are you cursed? Serious question.

Quite possibly. Just had my camera stolen by two fking s who distracted me whilst I was fiddling with the car. I can handle the mechanical maladies but being stolen from is a deeply unpleasant feeling. I am fking furious.

[twazzock]

I hope it's that too! Many thanks Phil, I will get on it tomorrow.

[twazzock]

Thanks a lot for those bolts Phil, really appreciate it!

Popped them in (and lots more oil) when I got back and they seemed to fix the problem... until the engine warmed up and the leaking/smoking returned worse than ever Had to drive all the way into the centre of Leeds in quite an impressive cloud of smoke. And the same on the way back, except the gear linkage broke (came off?) so I could only select third. Hilarious fun with loads of traffic lights and an engine that makes no power below about 4k. Girlfriend not best pleased (had to pick her up from the station).

Cam cover gasket still leaking, will change that tomorrow and see if it's any better after that. Fingers crossed but not expecting much.

Edited by twazzock on Friday 14th October 23:15

[twazzock]

Phil, I replied on the 106Rallyeforum thread. Anyone else wishing to follow it, it's here: http://www.106rallyeforum.com/forum2008/showthread...

Essentially: big oil leak, sorting the obvious problems haven't solved it. Gear linkage has now decided it doesn't want to work either. So err... I've given up.

Bought something else off eBay, updates on that when I get it.

106 is now on the 'Bay itself should anyone be interested: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/220875803095?ssPageName=...

[twazzock]

Do you mean... thinking before bidding on eBay tat?

YOUMAD?

[twazzock]

This is what I bought on eBay yesterday:













Picked it up today and it's lovely. Forgotten how much I love the induction sound of carbs.

[twazzock]

TotalControl said:

Well, it's a another PSA'er.

Well I could hardly resist could I! I actually had my heart (head) set on a 306 D Turbo as a sensible decision (reliable, economical, fun-ish) but this is much cheaper and tidier than 306, with lots more charm so I couldn't resist. I've looked at loads of cars but keep coming back to old French tat for some reason

Hopefully it won't die on me. There's very very little to go wrong - no PAS, no rear wiper, no sunroof, no electric windows, no central locking, no rev counter, no clock, not even a radio! Just 1294cc, 8 valves and 1 carburettor.

[twazzock]

It's dead steady Wobbled like mad in pretty much every other car I've owned though.

(why do you ask? - is it the sign of an impending catastrophic mechanical failure?)

[twazzock]

TotalControl said:

Which reminds me of the fun I had when taking my 205 XS POS round corners.

'Hey look, I have more petrol!'

haha, I have exactly the same memory! Cane it in a straight line and you'd lose about 1/4 of a tank!

I think I will own a D Turbo at some point, but as I don't currently have a commute or any other compulsory miles I may as well stick to a petrol. I'd love something silly but insurance is more limiting than MPG.

Edited by twazzock on Monday 17th October 23:51

[twazzock]

Thanks all

I had a little poke around the car today and was delighted to find it even has the original jack and wheel brace! I forgot to check the number plates and rear window sticker but I think they're original, which is somehow really exciting (and I thought I wasn't the sort of deviant to enjoy this sort of thing)

The handling is a bit... wayward. The tyres all have plenty of tread but they are truly dire brands. Even with double-digit bhp figures I had the tyres spinning with fairly modest applications of the 'loud' (it's actually pretty quiet) pedal on wet tarmac. Handily, I've spotted a suitably retro set of alloys with good tyres all round to cure that

Thinking of doing a bit of tinkering, namely servicing the carb, and, dare I say it, changing the timing belt...



And yes, the 106 is probably the worst car I've bought yet. A good one would be utterly superb, but mine is just a mobile ecological disaster combined with a massive H&S hazard. Now on eBay, soon to be palmed off onto someone (hopefully) more capable than me!

Edited by twazzock on Tuesday 18th October 23:15

[twazzock]

Emeye that is a brilliant write up, I'd love an 11! What could be better than quad headlights? And yellow fogs, fantastic.

Sounds like you're doing a great job of bangernomics too, very jealous of your 2 most recent buys. I really fancy a change from my staple diet of 4cyl French hatches but my insurance co don't really want to let me loose on the sheddy V6 Alfas and I6 BMs of this world so for the time being I'm stuck. Shame. Did get a good quote on a Saab 96 V4 though


vit4: I LOVE the wheel trims! As far as I'm concerned they're second only to the football-style ones on the Fiat Panda Italia 90:

I have no shame in admitting I tried to buy one of these not so long ago...

The little pink bits in the stripe/trims do nothing for my streetcred but they're uber 80s and I love them!

The Astra and Escort you're nurturing are looking great! I imagine they're both objectively terrible cars (much like my lot) but there's something I like a lot about the Astra shape, and my late great uncle had an Escort so I can't not like it. Great work. I'm occasionally in Rainham so if you ever need a hand and I'm nearby...