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View Full Version : Well, she's finally dead.



Oddball
21-10-2007, 09:50 PM
It's official. The shed has bought it.

First of all, the rear wheel cylinder went. Bad enough the car is dribbling brake fluid like a bullmastiff in front of a giant steak. Then the rocker cover gasket went. So the engine is now absolutely PI**ING oil onto the exhaust, which then turns it into vast clouds of smoke which make pedestrians run for shelter in case my car explodes. I think you could say she's having a rough time of it. :zx11:

I've had 4 offers to set it on fire so far, and i'm seriously thinking of it. Can't believe it. I quit my job, then this happens, starting the very day I would have been paid if I hadn't quit. :aargh4:

Bad karma methinks.

onzarob
21-10-2007, 09:53 PM
Both sound like straight forward fixes, I would say a couple of hours, no more than £30 parts and your shed lives:D

Oddball
22-10-2007, 04:46 PM
Righty ho, I'd already bought a new gasket with a view to replacing it. So I took the rocker cover off today, and the gasket was really perished. It took me about 20 minutes to take it off withough getting any peices into the head.

Now I've hit another snag, the new gasket is one of the metal reinforced rubber ones. The bolts in the head are the right size, but just before they meet the head they get slightly larger in diameter. So there's about 2mm between the gasket and the head. Looks like i'll have to do some drilling on the gasket to widen those metal holes.

Why is it always the simple jobs? :aargh4::1zhelp:

Or maybe i'll get a cork one?

onzarob
22-10-2007, 05:15 PM
I bought a rubber gasket for my MK1 GTI and it came with new studs:confused:

maybe for that reason:D

I would widen the holes being carefull not to melt the rubber;) they seal better than the cork ones:D

Oddball
22-10-2007, 05:37 PM
Didn't get any bolts with mine.

Where do you get your spares by the way? I've seen a couple of places on the net but I'm not sure.
Got my gasket from AVS car parts by the way.

Oddball
23-10-2007, 09:41 PM
Well, just wanted to say thanks onza. New brake cylinder on the way, and the gasket it now doing what it's supposed to do.

It seems those metal reinforcements are stronger than I expected. Blunted 3 drill bits on them (maybe soon i'll afford better tools:D), and in the end one popped out on its own. 10 minutes and some fancy scalpel and screwdriver work, and it was sorted. Just call me Jim.;)

onzarob
24-10-2007, 07:57 PM
Well, just wanted to say thanks onza. New brake cylinder on the way, and the gasket it now doing what it's supposed to do.

It seems those metal reinforcements are stronger than I expected. Blunted 3 drill bits on them (maybe soon i'll afford better tools:D), and in the end one popped out on its own. 10 minutes and some fancy scalpel and screwdriver work, and it was sorted. Just call me Jim.;)

Well done, happy motoring with the satisfaction you fixed it:beerchug:

Oddball
07-11-2007, 01:31 PM
New update, the alternator has gone now. My guess is the bearing, started shrieking a bit like a loose belt, but now it's making a nasty screechy grindy noise.

Gonna bimble around the scrappies and see if I can get one until I can afford a new one.

Torsten
30-12-2007, 09:45 PM
when you feel down about the cash you're spending just think about how much it costs to service a new car!

Oddball
01-01-2008, 01:25 AM
Hell yeah, amen to that. I'm thinking of getting the car to, ahem, "disappear".

I went back under the rocker cover, mainly because there's nothing else to do, not with no road tax and the alternator sounding like a supercharger. I never noticed before, but one of the camshaft bearing blocks isn't there!?!? It's the second from right. The base of it is still there, but it looks like the metal has been (pretty well done though) ground down, past the bolt holes. This is a very worrying thing to me, I'm not a mechanical genius, but I would make a pretty sure bet about compromised structural strength, and all that.

I was having a discussion with my dad the other day, and he mentioned a curious theory of his. He observed that after owning several of the same model of car, back to back, same age, some ran for absolutely ever, and some were just inexplicably faffed. Perhaps the shed isn't cursed. Maybe it's her time.