The Car Thread.

[DougK1]

These thugs are parasites.

I've got a different name for them but I can't write it here. Baseball bat round the back of head is what they need and then a good kicking when they're down.

 

[DougK1]

I am reminded of a true story told to me by by nephews some years ago. The small town they lived in was being terrorised by a gang of teenage thugs. Some local "heavies" decided to act, six of them in a transit van went looking for the two ring leaders of the gang and found them, hooded and bound they bundled them into the back of the tranny and took them for a "ride". No violence took place in the van, the heavies just discussed loudly what they should do with them, the teenagers broke down in pieces at the thought of their impending doom! Ten miles away from home they dumped them out of the tranny and warned them if they carried on with their anti-social antics the next "ride" would be worse and they'd need more than a change of underpants. It had the desired effect!

 

[plastic penguin]

Not been a great month for Alfa Romeo.

 

[JDL]

There are some right aholes about. Mindless vandalism by ruddy morons.

Yeah it's terrible that some folks can do stuff like this.
Not quite in the same category but someone ran a key along the bonnet of my Chrysler while it was parked in Llandysul high street. It was broad daylight. Why? Not sure, I have no enemies that I know of.
Spite perhaps.

 

[JDL]

I am reminded of a true story told to me by by nephews some years ago. The small town they lived in was being terrorised by a gang of teenage thugs. Some local "heavies" decided to act, six of them in a transit van went looking for the two ring leaders of the gang and found them, hooded and bound they bundled them into the back of the tranny and took them for a "ride". No violence took place in the van, the heavies just discussed loudly what they should do with them, the teenagers broke down in pieces at the thought of their impending doom! Ten miles away from home they dumped them out of the tranny and warned them if they carried on with their anti-social antics the next "ride" would be worse and they'd need more than a change of underpants. It had the desired effect!

Direct action.
Way to go!!

 

[DougK1]

Yeah it's terrible that some folks can do stuff like this.
Not quite in the same category but someone ran a key along the bonnet of my Chrysler while it was parked in Llandysul high street. It was broad daylight. Why? Not sure, I have no enemies that I know of.
Spite perhaps.

Sorry to hear that John, but I think you're giving them too much credibility as 'spite' requires brain cells, I seriously doubt these twats even share one between them

 

[JDL]

Sorry to hear that John, but I think you're giving them too much credibility as 'spite' requires brain cells, I seriously doubt these twats even share one between them.

Cheers Doug, I guess so, I hadn't thought of it like that.

 

[Ethics Gradient]

PP, should we rename this the car thread or somesuch?

 

[JDL]

Great idea. My brother's Alfa Brera 2.4 diesel sprung a leak. The one piece steel pipe, that runs from the high pressure pump to the fuel rail at the injectors was leaking at the pump end union.
He removed it, we both inspected it. Could see nothing wrong. Cleaned it, put it back. We assumed the union wasn't sealing and it just needed re-seating.
Fast forward after several times of doing this procedure, with much head scratching and I called a friendly garage bloke to explain the problem.
He very kindly jumped in his car and came down to the farm.
After inspecting it carefully, he thought he could see a minute hole. It looked like a rust spot. He passed it to me. Alas, t'was a hole induced by metal fatigue.
Yesterday, replacement pipe arrived. The car leaks no more. Hoorah!

 

[plastic penguin]

PP, should we rename this the car thread or somesuch?

You can do. No issues with that.

 

[plastic penguin]

Great idea. My brother's Alfa Brera 2.4 diesel sprung a leak. The one piece steel pipe, that runs from the high pressure pump to the fuel rail at the injectors was leaking at the pump end union.
He removed it, we both inspected it. Could see nothing wrong. Cleaned it, put it back. We assumed the union wasn't sealing and it just needed re-seating.
Fast forward after several times of doing this procedure, with much head scratching and I called a friendly garage bloke to explain the problem.
He very kindly jumped in his car and came down to the farm.
After inspecting it carefully, he thought he could see a minute hole. It looked like a rust spot. He passed it to me. Alas, t'was a hole induced by metal fatigue.
Yesterday, replacement pipe arrived. The car leaks no more. Hoorah!

Those Breras are lovely looking cars but can be a real pain, especially the petrol JTS versions. They are built by GM, based on the Insignia platform. The issues range from fuel injector issues to the cam chain that tend to jump a cog. Besides they are heavier than the older Alfa-built power plants. The only Alfa petrol engine in the Brera was the 1750 TBI, the same engine fitted to the two seater 4c.

I had the 1750 TBI in my 159 Sportwagon, very reliable but the 159 cornered like a tug boat, very un-Alfa like. That was why reverted back to the older 156, far more agile than the equivalent Brera and 159.

 

[Ethics Gradient]

You can do. No issues with that.

Done - though if there's a title you think up that you would prefer, just let me know.

 

[JDL]

Those Breras are lovely looking cars but can be a real pain, especially the petrol JTS versions. They are built by GM, based on the Insignia platform. The issues range from fuel injector issues to the cam chain that tend to jump a cog. Besides they are heavier than the older Alfa-built power plants. The only Alfa petrol engine in the Brera was the 1750 TBI, the same engine fitted to the two seater 4c.

I had the 1750 TBI in my 159 Sportwagon, very reliable but the 159 cornered like a tug boat, very un-Alfa like. That was why reverted back to the older 156, far more agile than the equivalent Brera and 159.

I don't know how you feel about what I'm about to talk about or what your experience is, but every time I have a car that's around 15 to 20 years old I seem to end up with ECU problems. Whether it's just 'local' sensor problems or the central ECU or ECUs I don't really know, or perhaps I was just unlucky.

 

[DougK1]

I don't know how you feel about what I'm about to talk about or what your experience is, but every time I have a car that's around 15 to 20 years old I seem to end up with ECU problems. Whether it's just 'local' sensor problems or the central ECU or ECUs I don't really know, or perhaps I was just unlucky.

Yep, electrical gremlins start causing issues with age

 

[JDL]

Yep, electrical gremlins start causing issues with age

Yeah, I've had a few cars now that were mechanically fine, but electrical problems forced me to scrap them.
Now my current car, that's still off the road is playing up. But I love my old Chrysler and hope it can be resurrected.

 

[plastic penguin]

Done - though if there's a title you think up that you would prefer, just let me know.

That's fine. If I think of an alternative title, I'll run it past you.

 

[plastic penguin]

I don't know how you feel about what I'm about to talk about or what your experience is, but every time I have a car that's around 15 to 20 years old I seem to end up with ECU problems. Whether it's just 'local' sensor problems or the central ECU or ECUs I don't really know, or perhaps I was just unlucky.

Yes, depends on the car. My Alfa often coaxes the engine management light, that's down to iffy cats or Lambda sensors.

The ma-in-law's 2013 Mini ECU light came on. That was due to the oil filler cap not placed on correctly.

It could be anything that uses a sensor, the only way to know is to get a garage diagnose the problem. It shouldn't take a Chrysler garage longer than 20 mins to suss the issue.

 

[plastic penguin]

Test drove a 2006 Alfa GT 3.2 a couple of weeks ago. Used to own one but forgot how good it is to drive. Awesome acceleration, but so it should with only 42k on the clock. It has the obligatory Quaife limited slip diff (or known as a Q2). The price was heavy at 12k, especially when a previous owner tried to paint the N/S front wheel blue and the drivers seat won't tilt forward. The off-side front tyre had a chunk taken out of it... and the colour is non-descript. Its a strange champagne.

But the interior is gorgeous Momo black leather. And when it comes to cornering my smaller engine Sportwagon feels more agile.

This is the actual car.

 

[Ethics Gradient]

Saw one of these during the week:

Lotus Eletre - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Supposed to be a good car, and finished to the very highest standards - might even be the start of Lotus becoming a viable business, but it's a pity that couldn't have been done with the Elise/Exige.

 

[plastic penguin]

Saw one of these during the week:

Lotus Eletre - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Supposed to be a good car, and finished to the very highest standards - might even be the start of Lotus becoming a viable business, but it's a pity that couldn't have been done with the Elise/Exige.

For me a SUV isn't a Lotus. To me Lotus will always remain a low slung sports car. A few weeks ago I clocked in a railway car park this gorgeous Evora.

 

[Ethics Gradient]

Whilst I agree with your sentiment, an SUV isn't a Porsche either - or at least it wasn't...

 

[Leon74]

Boys and their cars Sorry, men and their cars.
Just accidentally saw the topic making me wonder whether like soccer it's a predominantly straight male topic.
I have no idea whether it is.

 

[Friesiansam]

For me a SUV isn't a Lotus. To me Lotus will always remain a low slung sports car. A few weeks ago I clocked in a railway car park this gorgeous Evora.

A Lotus should also be simple and lightweight but, that founding principle is well and truly dead.

 

[plastic penguin]

Whilst I agree with your sentiment, an SUV isn't a Porsche either - or at least it wasn't...

Concur. It wasn't Alfa Romeo either until they decided to ditch the Giulia Sportwagon in favour of the Stelvio.

 

[plastic penguin]

A Lotus should also be simple and lightweight but, that founding principle is well and truly dead.

That's how I always think of Lotus. It was Colin Chapman who coined the phrase "add lightness".