Discussion
hi i`ve just put a deposit on a 96 p reg cerbera.i need a bit of info,after reading some of the forums i`m aware that things are bound to go wrong with it,but can anyone tell me what to look out for.I`m thinking of getting it on a rolling road to tune it,can anyone recommend one in the north west.Also when i took it for a test drive,it shuddered through the steering wheel under braking.The owner told me it was common on the cerbera and the discs didn`t need replacing.Is this true.It has full s/history and the next service is due in 1500 miles.Has fitted a 4 point harness in one and where do u mount the rear points?
neil0205 said:
hi i`ve just put a deposit on a 96 p reg cerbera.i need a bit of info,after reading some of the forums i`m aware that things are bound to go wrong with it,but can anyone tell me what to look out for.I`m thinking of getting it on a rolling road to tune it,can anyone recommend one in the north west.Also when i took it for a test drive,it shuddered through the steering wheel under braking.The owner told me it was common on the cerbera and the discs didn`t need replacing.Is this true.It has full s/history and the next service is due in 1500 miles.Has fitted a 4 point harness in one and where do u mount the rear points?
Ensure engine has good oil pressure (see old threads).
Ensure owner is a good owner.
It is a 4.2 and so why put it on a rolling road - should be well set up without a rolling road.
Service History is normally counted in time not miles on cerbs (ie most dont do 6k pa).
Shouldnt shudder under braking.
New disks required (no point in skimming etc) - knock off £500?
>> Edited by gazzab on Tuesday 2nd May 21:36
gazzab said:
hi i`ve just put a deposit on a 96 p reg cerbera.i need a bit of info,after reading some of the forums i`m aware that things are bound to go wrong with it,but can anyone tell me what to look out for.I`m thinking of getting it on a rolling road to tune it,can anyone recommend one in the north west.Also when i took it for a test drive,it shuddered through the steering wheel under braking.The owner told me it was common on the cerbera and the discs didn`t need replacing.Is this true.It has full s/history and the next service is due in 1500 miles.Has fitted a 4 point harness in one and where do u mount the rear points?
Ensure engine has good oil pressure (see old threads).
Ensure owner is a good owner.
It is a 4.2 and so why put it on a rolling road - should be well set up without a rolling road.
Service History is normally counted in time not miles on cerbs (ie most dont do 6k pa).
Should shudder under braking.
New disks required (no point in skimming etc) - knock off £500?
Not necessarily so. If the car is not running correctly then this can often be diagnosed by running it on a RR to see if it is down on power, if the fueling is ok then this can often point to a mechanical defect that requires attention.
It would be an unwise person to assume that a 4.2 is always well set up. I think what you meant was that a 4.2 nearly always achieves to within 5% of the factory quoted bhp figure as opposed to a 4.5 which can be miles out.
Jules.
neil0205 said:
hi i`ve just put a deposit on a 96 p reg cerbera.i need a bit of info,after reading some of the forums i`m aware that things are bound to go wrong with it,but can anyone tell me what to look out for.I`m thinking of getting it on a rolling road to tune it,can anyone recommend one in the north west.Also when i took it for a test drive,it shuddered through the steering wheel under braking.The owner told me it was common on the cerbera and the discs didn`t need replacing.Is this true.It has full s/history and the next service is due in 1500 miles.Has fitted a 4 point harness in one and where do u mount the rear points?
There's no need to go to rolling road to find out the state of tune. Get a copy of the ECU software (email someone nicely when you've got a piccy up in ur profile) and either make a serial lead (the diagram is somewhere on here) or buy one from maplin/pc world (a search will bring up plenty on that). From that you can at least determine if anything is really amiss first and deal with it before going on a RR which won't tell you if anything is wrong until summat goes bang.
As for the shudder under braking, "warped discs" are unlikely. A skim will help very temporarily but you'll need discs soon. Knock off £500 for the discs and before you finalise the deal, take a final test drive and note the oil pressures for:-
Cold Start
Normal Driving
Under Acceleration - but do keep looking ahead for this one
Hot Idle
imho I'd like to see at least
50-60, preferably 60-70, for cold start
45-60 under normal driving
60-70 under load
no less than 30 on hot idle.
The rear harness points go to the centre section of the rear shelf and hook onto the exisitng rear seat belt points.
hth.
From reading that link (if you subscribe to his interpretation of what constitutes a warped disc) then you would say that the pads are uneven if it is causing vibrations. In which case, why are the pads uneven? Do the calipers need overhauling due to variation in the pistons moving in and out. Either way, the brakes aint right!!!
purpleheadedcerb said:
From reading that link (if you subscribe to his interpretation of what constitutes a warped disc) then you would say that the pads are uneven if it is causing vibrations. In which case, why are the pads uneven? Do the calipers need overhauling due to variation in the pistons moving in and out. Either way, the brakes aint right!!!
Agreed, they aint right!
imho, between the pad shaped imprint I've seen on my discs and reading that article a few years back, the judder is caused when brake pad residue is left on on the disc when the car is being "held" on a hill for lights etc particularly after heavy braking. The pad residue forms cementite when the brakes are subsequently applied and the heat transfer to the disc becomes uneven.
It only takes a thou or so of cementite to start feeling it through the wheel. Mine juddered like hell when I bought it. Fitted new discs + pads and I broke them in using the suggestion in that article and now am as careful as possible about not leaving my foot on the pedal when stopped. I felt it come back very slightly a few months back so did a few high speed brakings to try to scrub off the worst and it solved it fairly well but they'll need replacing at some point in the next 6-9 months. They've been on for 17 months now so I think 2.5 years for discs is a cost on the Cerb I can live with.
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