General Bumble's Bee

[bumble]

I washed the car and put her away with her new cover to keep the dust off. Interestingly, the battery was flat and when I used another to jump start the car, the drivers window went down by itself - spooky or what? Now, the battery has been recharged, the drivers window works automatically - winds all the way down, and up, with one touch of the button. I know there are cars that this is supposed to happen, but mine never did. Should I start calling her Christine?

Steve

 

[paganeli panda]

my driver's window does that too.. although it always did..

 

[bumble]

We've had about 250mm of snow over last 48 hrs and, as the rear wheel drive SLK has proved itself to be useless, Christine may have to be woken from hibernation.

 

[greyB]

Incredible. The same in the Nordics. 35cm of snow in two days and -15C on top.

I just managed to buy winter tyres the day before the snow. Got Goodyear UltraGrip Ice+ studdless tyres that are made for Scandinavian winters. Yes, I am driving the B all year round. Purring nicely, and it warms up quite quickly. Happy wintering.

 

[F4usT]

10cm here, +5°c... heating is ok, but windscreen is misty every time. and that blower air router on dash is not quite usefully, because if de-mist only in the middle.

it's like this... only middle is defrosted/demisted... it looks like somebody's a$$ was on windshield. and blowers for side windows are just not strong enough all air goes to middle.

maybe pair of those inside air vents could do a job

and something like this

what about frozen door handles? a piece wooden stick?

 

[paganeli panda]

Anyone used snow chains on a B before? And if yes what do would be advisable to use?

 

[bollie69]

what about frozen door handles? a piece wooden stick?

Yup, just toothpicks will do the job. Or a rubber elastic.
Just to prevent the handels will fall into the slots

 

[greyB]

The easiest way is to oil the locks and the door handles with gunoil. Do this every now and then, especially after washing, and the handles wont freeze. The oil for guns, ie. riffles and such, is way best. You should get it in a small spray bottle that fits into a pocket.

I recommend you do not use any "lock defrost" stuff, asthey will dry and ruin the locks in no time.

 

[bollie69]

Incredible. The same in the Nordics. 35cm of snow in two days and -15C on top.

I just managed to buy winter tyres the day before the snow. Got Goodyear UltraGrip Ice+ studdless tyres that are made for Scandinavian winters. Yes, I am driving the B all year round. Purring nicely, and it warms up quite quickly. Happy wintering.

Excelent detail on the speedcamera.
Although I really miss my one and only car this winter I am happy it has a nice dry spot to rest in there for the winter.





Did I say I miss the car terrebly?

 

[bumble]

Anyone used snow chains on a B before? And if yes what do would be advisable to use?

One of the staff at school bought some snow socks for her VW Polo. There were £55. They worked really well in snow but she destroyed them when driving on clean tarmac. The same thing would happen with chains and they can cause terrible damage if they come off. In the French Alps, a couple of years ago, I watched a bloke fit some plastic chains to his BMW Z3 and the results were remarkable, however I'm sure these wouldn't last long on clean roads. I think having such things, in the boot, can really get you out of trouble but are no real solution.

I've just shelled out for an elderly Landrover Freelander off eBay. My Merc is unusable in snow, Christine wouldnt like it and I was so envious of the wife in her Volvo AWD. Vehicles in the fleet now equal four. I'm paying my bit for the roads with four lots of Road Tax.

F4ust - I like your description of the demisting issue. I was going to say "it cracked me up" Hope that ones not lost in translation.

Drive safely

Steve

 

[bumble]

Love to post a pic of Christine in the snow but, "it aint happening" Still snowing here and the SLK is almost buried.

Drive safely


Steve

 

[bumble]

Weekend is due to be fine and bright here so, plan is to get my car out of hibernation, remove the hardtop and give her a good wash and polish. I still need to fit my new rear discs and pads and I hope to get this done tomorrow. The cars been wrapped in a cover over the winter so it hasn't been started. if I get the discs done, I plan on taking some stills and doing a guide for Adam to upload on here. I saw the repeat of the documentary about James Martin in the Mille Miglia and I'm inspired to get Christine out on the road. Happy new year to all - Steve

 

[bumble]

Spent the morning getting Christine out of hibernation. Battery was totally flat but she fired up with the help of some some jump leads and, after a quick wash, I took her for a blast. The noise from the rear brakes was horrendous, so, I set to and changed the rear discs and pads. The brakes will need to 'bed in' but the difference is incredible. An easy enough task which took me around two hours. Now I need to remove the hard top and she's ready to go.

 

[desert rat]

Good to see christine out of hibernation.. She sure is looking good

Hope the sun comes out and you can get your top off

Unfortunatly my toys have gone into hiding... not worth the risk of driving them on the roads at the moment. I hope that this place will sort itself out soon

P.S. Your rear disks look much better now. were they re-surfaced or replaced? Just curious what rear pads did you go for? Origional or upgraded?

 

[bumble]

The discs and pads were replaced with Mintex products. Although badly rusty, the old discs and pads were hardly worn and probably rusted due to lack of use. Hope things improve for you mate. Stay safe.

Steve

 

[bumble]

Beautiful day here and the hardtop is off, and put away in the loft. I was going to go for a blast when I noticed the MOT has expired. Car is booked in for test on Wednesday and I'm in hospital same day for six monthly test so hopefully, we'll both be good for another few months

Steve

 

[LittleSilverBoat]

Good luck in both Steve!

Glad to hear you've got the top off and are enjoying some nice spring sunshine... Me too this afternoon, glorious stuff in the Peak District

 

[bumble]

Well Christine is good for another 12 months and my checks have been extended from 6 months to 12 months too. So all is good. Thanks LSB for your comments. One problem with the car is with the drivers side drive shaft. My mechanic has pointed out that the gearbox end retaining clip needs to be replaced, along with the oil seal. I can find an oil seal easy enough, but has anybody got an exploded diagram or part number for the retaining clip?

Best wishes to all. I'm going to have a couple of beers and put a lottery ticket on.

Steve

 

[desert rat]

Yikes!! cars can be fixed..... aftermarket parts are cheap...!!

You on the other hand are a bit more fragile... Hope it's not too serious? anyway sounds like your on top of the situation....

p.s. Sorry can'thelp with the part no....

All the best

W

 

[bumble]

Cheers Wayne. I have looked on eper but dont see a clip on the gearbox end of the drive shaft? Am I looking at the wrong thing?

Steve