The weather is crappy and I'm stuck indoors with both grandsons that have been on screens all morning. Grandma is an enabler on this. So far, I made them breakfast that they didn't finish, fixed a Nerf toy, and hung a shelf. After I post this, I'm going out to the garage and do the plugs and the annual valve adjustment on the Ural. If my granddaughters were here, they'd be getting dirty in the garage with me.
Currently reading:
What's made you grumpy today?
Neither of my boys have shown particular interest in working on motor vehicles but my daughter isn't at all worried by a little dirt, quickly became proficient at wheel changing, doing regular checks - oil and coolant levels, screenwash, tyre pressures etc, etc, and she makes sure the car is serviced regularly - lives at the other end of the country to us.
My 3 children, between them, have so far given us 5 wonderful grandchildren. 3 boys and 2 girls. The girls and first 2 boys have shown little interest in motor vehicles but the latest addition, a boy now just over 2.5 years old, is showing considerable interest and has surprising hand skills already. I serviced their lawnmower last week and he stayed with me right through it. Fascinated watching me do the oil change, he unscrewed the air filter screw (3.5 Hp Briggs side valve engine) and removed the filter entirely by himself. Then, after I did the initial break away on the spark plug he unscrewed it the rest of the way himself and watched with great interest while I cleaned and gapped it. After refilling it with SAE 30 (I don't like multigrade in small air cooled engines) he spent nearly half an hour walking up and down the garden, hanging on to the handlebars while I mowed the lawn. It's given me a very real and strong reason to live a long time as I think he's inherited my love of motor vehicles. I think I'll have to steer him towards Classics though if he gets to like IC engines as I do!
Grandma knew I was a little miffed when I went out to the garage, so she made them put the screens away before I came back in.
Valve adjustment and plugs aren't due yet, so I traced a small oil seep on top of the engine instead. I think it's the o-ring between the valve drive case and the alternator drive hub or the seal on the alternator drive shaft. I'll do both. I'll order the seal from Amazon and take the o-ring to my local hydraulic shop to get it matched. I went to clean the crud from the top of the engine with Brake Kleen and of the three cans I had on hand, not one functioned. I went with some citrus cleaner in a bowl and dumped that all over the floor. Profanity then ensued. I had one last can of ether, aka, Start, Ya Bastard, and that got most of the crud off so I could see where it wasn't leaking.
I'll go in the house now and convince the little monsters to go outside.
Valve adjustment and plugs aren't due yet, so I traced a small oil seep on top of the engine instead. I think it's the o-ring between the valve drive case and the alternator drive hub or the seal on the alternator drive shaft. I'll do both. I'll order the seal from Amazon and take the o-ring to my local hydraulic shop to get it matched. I went to clean the crud from the top of the engine with Brake Kleen and of the three cans I had on hand, not one functioned. I went with some citrus cleaner in a bowl and dumped that all over the floor. Profanity then ensued. I had one last can of ether, aka, Start, Ya Bastard, and that got most of the crud off so I could see where it wasn't leaking.
I'll go in the house now and convince the little monsters to go outside.
Citrus Cleaner? Do you guys have Elbow Grease over there? https://elbowgreasecleans.com/ My wife (Granny to us) buys it to use for general house cleaning and also to shift really grubby clothing stains. I read on the label that it can be used for engine cleaning and thought to myself "Oh yea"? anyway I tried it and it works very well indeed. I'd rate it not far short of Gunk in it's ability to shift oily greasy muck. Wonderful stuff, if you come across it I'd strongly advise you to try it and even if you don't like it for use in the garage you can always make a present of it to Grandma? - maybe not as convenient as brake cleaner because it doesn't evaporate, being as it's water based.
Is that a real product? I read it as yo uwere taking the **** until I clicked the link.
It looks like I can get Elbow Grease at Amazon or Walmart. It will have to be Amazon because I won't walk into Walmart.
I'm getting some sweet revenge today. Mrs. Cheest volunteered to look after our daughters' pup while her and her family went to visit our older daughter in Maine for her birthday and the holiday weekend. I told her it wasn't a good idea because the pup isn't quite a year old and the kids can afford to board her for a few days.
I was right. The pup kept Mrs. Cheest up all night by not settling down. Buster and I slept downstairs(her idea) and we both slept soundly. Mrs. Cheest came downstairs a bit after 5 am and started to chastise me about her being awake all night. I just put up my hands and told this was all on her. Then she stormed upstairs and slammed the door.
I'm probably going to pay for this down the road but it will be worth it.
I'm getting some sweet revenge today. Mrs. Cheest volunteered to look after our daughters' pup while her and her family went to visit our older daughter in Maine for her birthday and the holiday weekend. I told her it wasn't a good idea because the pup isn't quite a year old and the kids can afford to board her for a few days.
I was right. The pup kept Mrs. Cheest up all night by not settling down. Buster and I slept downstairs(her idea) and we both slept soundly. Mrs. Cheest came downstairs a bit after 5 am and started to chastise me about her being awake all night. I just put up my hands and told this was all on her. Then she stormed upstairs and slammed the door.
I'm probably going to pay for this down the road but it will be worth it.
Yeh, an absolutely "serious" product. It really has replaced a number of similar products we used to buy. You definitely need to try it, especially for household use.
There's usually a price to be paid for this sort of thing!
Christ, pick up after yourselves.
First time this year at the walk in spot where I go fishing. Kind of pissed me off finding this crap. I took it out with me to dispose of but, hell, there is a trash can right at the trail head to this side of the lake.
First time this year at the walk in spot where I go fishing. Kind of pissed me off finding this crap. I took it out with me to dispose of but, hell, there is a trash can right at the trail head to this side of the lake.
Wednesday there was a card in the door from Royal Mail. They have something for us, but needs postage paid, as the sender didn't pay.
Options.
Pay online and have it delivered. No way of knowing what it is, so why pay for something you may not want?
Visit the local delivery office and pay. At least that has the opportunity to see it before payment, and decide whther to receive or not.
Wednesday, arrived home 10pm, so couldn't sort it then. Thursday, out early, home late. Friday, their office has very short opening times, so not possible. Saturday, off to the delivery office. Small envelope with a pink card inside. This is an appointment card for my partner, for the podiatry clinic, quite important as she has circulation issues (diabetes) and has already lost one leg. So I paid. Just in that office they've seen quite a few of them, so someone made a mess of sending them out.
Got it home and openend it, appointment for Friday 17th. Missed that then.
So one NHS department is sending out very short notice appointments, without paying the postage, so delivery is delayed as a result. Pure genius. Even if we'd received it on Wednesday, we could not have made that appointment. So tomorrow, I have to phone and see what hassle it is to sort it.
Options.
Pay online and have it delivered. No way of knowing what it is, so why pay for something you may not want?
Visit the local delivery office and pay. At least that has the opportunity to see it before payment, and decide whther to receive or not.
Wednesday, arrived home 10pm, so couldn't sort it then. Thursday, out early, home late. Friday, their office has very short opening times, so not possible. Saturday, off to the delivery office. Small envelope with a pink card inside. This is an appointment card for my partner, for the podiatry clinic, quite important as she has circulation issues (diabetes) and has already lost one leg. So I paid. Just in that office they've seen quite a few of them, so someone made a mess of sending them out.
Got it home and openend it, appointment for Friday 17th. Missed that then.
So one NHS department is sending out very short notice appointments, without paying the postage, so delivery is delayed as a result. Pure genius. Even if we'd received it on Wednesday, we could not have made that appointment. So tomorrow, I have to phone and see what hassle it is to sort it.
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2009
- Messages
- 19,899
- Points
- 3,414
Laundry liquid is a fabulous degreaser but it has to be FULLY washed off. Regardless, it's got me out of a hole a few times when my cans of gunk/Jizer/Brush cleaner/whatever turned out to be (shall we say) depleted.
Day 3 of 83bhp C3 courtesy car...up to about day 7 of it since May.
The novelty of the new super duper padded seats and L.E.D. headlamps wore off around the third time I came up the hill to mine flat out at 24mph.
It would be alright as a city car, if you never travel anything other than alone, but it is wearing thin currently...have been reminded why I do not look at cars with less than 100bhp. That and it's managing 43 mpg according to the trip computer, which experience with the one in ours would say is 41 mpg.
I hope ours is right on its return as I'm ready to not drive a none-turbo one for a long time. Even things like the hill holder don't quite work right on the lower spec car, it's got rear drums not discs and it seems they don't react fast enough and it drags the brakes for a second or so, just what you need when hillstarting a car with no appreciable torque.
The novelty of the new super duper padded seats and L.E.D. headlamps wore off around the third time I came up the hill to mine flat out at 24mph.
It would be alright as a city car, if you never travel anything other than alone, but it is wearing thin currently...have been reminded why I do not look at cars with less than 100bhp. That and it's managing 43 mpg according to the trip computer, which experience with the one in ours would say is 41 mpg.
I hope ours is right on its return as I'm ready to not drive a none-turbo one for a long time. Even things like the hill holder don't quite work right on the lower spec car, it's got rear drums not discs and it seems they don't react fast enough and it drags the brakes for a second or so, just what you need when hillstarting a car with no appreciable torque.
Odd as I've got an old DS4 with electric handbrake, and it is brilliant compared to any other car I've tried, I'd have thought the same system would be across the range.
On ours which is the same system with rear discs it works fine. It's almost like it can't release the drums fast enough.
I don't mean to insult you, but do you need to drop a gear ?
I just find it difficult to believe that a modern car, can't do more that 24mph up a hill, if that's what you're saying?
That was 3rd at 2400 rpm, foot flat on the carpet.
Yes, I could have gone to second...but this isn't Sutton Bank or "the struggle" and it would have been roaring away.
To be fair it's a windy narrow hill so you cannot carry speed up it like you would in most circumstances therefore torque is required..which it plain didn't have.
Peak torque is 2700 for that engine, a massive 87lbft! surprised it struggled.
In saying that, my daughter had a 1.2 corsa C, it was a great nippy little car. We tried the 1.2 corsa D when looking to change and it felt like a slug compared to the C, all due to having so much more weight
One of these was thrust upon me as a courtesy car when my Fabia had its rear bumper replaced. I cancelled all driving lessons, a I was not prepared to inflict it on any of my learners, or myself, as the lack of any 'go' would create many really frightening situations. As Steven suggests, good only for those who need to do short slow journeys, in flatter areas.
We had the Corsas with BSM. The 'C' 1.2 was a quick little car, but the 'D', being heavier struggled to pull itself along. Early cars also had higher gearing to 'compensate' for the heavier workload, to try to regain some economy, but that made it worse. With so many BSM instructors complaining, (and some owners I guess) Vauxhall responded by refitting the 'C' lower ratio gearbox. The car was much better, but still significantly slower than the 'C', and now much thirstier. The 1.4 'D' was almost as quick as a 1.2 'C', and almost as economical. Progress. The the heater fans seized. We had about 8 of these around Swindon, all had their heater fan motors replaced within months. (Also afflicts the Grande Punto, at least they are cheap, available on Ebay, and easy to replace.)
The odd thing is...they should be OK.
83ps in a car that weighs 980kg should be more than bearable, the on paper figures are similar to the 1.4 corsa. Similar power output but is 140kg lighter.
Generally I don't mind them on a courtesy car basis, but with ours being away for days rather than the usual few hours actually had to load it up with family and shopping and child seat etc..at which point nope, not happening. If I'd used it up the A68 I'd have given up on life long before I got to the Scottish border.
Not helped by apparently the turbo having a short shift kit in it (who knew??? I always thought it was ridiculously long and not very positive). Yet both have 5 speed gearboxes, both same gearknob etc yet it just moves even further and wobbles more in the cheaper one. The clutch is also different, the none turbo has the traditional PSA clutch that only bites at the very top of it's travel the turbo heavier and bites just before halfway.
Oh well on the positive side now mines back it feels like like an absolute missile..it's not but the difference between 87lb/ft at 2700rpm and 151lb/ft at 1500 rpm is somewhat significant.
And the remember the cost of fuel, so back to driving like a granny again
