Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

So no mention of the ferrari 335....the worlds most expensive car?

http://tech-racingcars.wikidot.com/ferrari-335-s

About four pages ago

Very nice!

Yes fam!

Thanks @johnnyhotdog and @Olly398

I've never had an older car before and part of the reason for getting one was so I could better understand how it works. There's only very basic electrics in it and none of the sensors and computers that control modern cars.

I got so fed up with taking our last car to the garage and having to blindly trust the mechanic - usually resulting in a couple of hundred quid spend only to reveal another problem that needed more money thrown at it.

Touch wood the Chevy has been very well behaved so far. What little I've needed to look at I've been able to figure out myself through forums and research. Very rewarding getting greasy under the hood and tinkering with it it in the driveway. 😬😬

Yay and now you can spend the extra couple of hundred quid on petrol! :-)

$10 a barrel of crude soon, big blocks for us all

Yep. And seeing as I drive less than 50 miles a week and petrol is a third of the price here in the US compared to the UK it's doable.

Plus my Nova has one of the 'smaller' V8s, at a paltry 5 litres. 😁

Chevy Nova is so cool. I actually think everyone should adopt this attitude. Buy an old, already produced car. When it's broken, ride your bike, when it's not, take it for a cruise. Who cares if it has an inefficient V8. Overall it's better (environmentally) than buying a brand new car. AND it can actually help keep local businesses (mechanics and parts shops) in work. Plus I bet it sounds cool burbling down the road at 2o.

V12 of gtfo ;)

I'd say better than buying a new battery car as the bits to make the battery aren't that friendly. One of the things that I now enthuse about is getting an engine rebuilt to modern tolerances. Best way of serious power gains and great base to start on.

What are the MOT laws like in your state?

I thinking the same, fuel will be low for a little while, so a rough looking jag xjv8 on lpg, fully murdered out on split rims and almost straight pipes. Main thing is manual conversion, don't think I've ever seen one that isn't auto though don't have a huge interest in them, just a why not whim

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201602090870928?postcode=G11%207JD&sort=atcustom&radius=1501&onesearchad=used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew&keywords=Xj8&page=1&make=jaguar&search-target=usedcars&searchcontext=default&logcode=p
Target acquired.

Spotted in brighton: Clio V6 with two bikes strapped to roof, well played fella

What I'm keen to know is how much of Clarkson's shitty character is actually Clarkson and how much is Richard Porter's creation.

Need some advice. Long story short (as I can):

Mrs Sparky misjudged a corner and went over a concrete kerb at (what I'm told was) 50mph. Cue a phone call to me while I was in the pub saying that she'd written off the car and was waiting for a tow truck. This was while we were in Norfolk visiting my dad, so we got the car dropped there and he took it to the local garage in the morning.

In the cold light of day the garage said it was fine. Charged me £34 for their time and some realignment.

This was two months ago.

Fast forward to today. I'm on the Isle of Wight cycling and Mrs Sparky phones and says that she got bad news while taking the car in for a service. It's a Citroen C1. They say it needs £1,700 worth of work. Apparently the engine bay is so filthy with oil that they couldn't see what was going on. They need to jet wash it first.

Now. How do they know what the damage is if they can't see it? Lots of questions, but Mrs Sparky isn't very mechanical and didn't follow what they said. I'm back tomorrow evening. Car is still at garage. What to do?

She could've punctured something and there's been a slow leak. If there's engine bother then it's a write-off.

The garage has been paid to service and deliver the car at our house. I've asked them to do that. If they say no then I'll go over and pick it up myself. They can't stop you taking a damaged (or supposedly damaged) car away, can they?

It's only worth £3k. Not sure what to do. Can't decide until I know more, I suppose, and that'll have to wait until I'm back because mechanical stuff goes in one eat and out of the other with Mrs Sparky.

Ask them to tell you what needs doing.

After they've jet washed it, so they know rather than guess.

This is what needs to happen. You're right. My initial reaction was just to make 100% sure that Mrs Sparky didn't say "ok then" and we then face a situation where I'm paying almost the value of a shit car to keep a shit car.

Just got more from Mrs Sparky. Clutch needs replacing. Boot seal is leaking and boot carpet sodden. One tyre badly worn (was okay recently so maybe a result of misalignment from the incident) and also this mystery oil leak. Estimate is £1,700 plus whatever they find in engine bay that's causing leak...

Doesn't look good.

£1,700 to change the clutch and a seal? Oh, plus a tyre?

Wow. Is this a main dealer?

Peugeot dealer. Car was about £4k a couple of years and 30,000 miles ago. We don't want to spend money on it, if at all possible.

Issue is they're going to charge labour to investigate oil leak. So feel like getting car home is way to go.

But that's where my plan ends...

Is there still oil in the engine? Measurable on the dip stick above minimum?

If so take it somewhere else straight away, they are taking the piss.

Sure it isn't oild from the gearbox? Has the car been leaving oil marks on the floor.

Where is Mrs Sparky, London?

Fuck the main dealer off.

Pay for the service, assuming they did it (rookie error taking a £4k car to a main dealer for a service), then take it to a local place that knows what they're doing.

Tyre + clutch + boot seal can't be more than £400

Oil leak - have you been checking the levels regularly? If it hasn't really been going down on the stick then I'd say leave it. Oil leaks look worse than they are, a blown rocker gasket will cover a block in oil and crap will get stuck to it making it look horrific but it's probably only 100ml every 1,000 miles. If you haven't been checking it then start checking it and report back.

http://www.c1store.co.uk/store/index.php/cPath/187?osCsid=22b73247d90cc0de436286716ee32e78
Clutch is £100

Quick google gives clutch issues but you can adjust.

check out the c1oc.co.uk