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

Yep, looks like a pair of SU cars, with air filters, to me. If they'd used a later EFi lump the plenum should fit under the bonnet unless it's a twin plenum job.

Dunno about that, put out an oil fire after a decent amount spewed out on manifold, took all 0.6litre of it but saved the car.

Have a larger one now as they aren't expensive, £20?

Friend of mine is taking a sabbatical from work and is going to live in the French Pyrenees for four months next summer. He's going to drive down with his girlfriend and everything he needs, including two bikes. He was planning on getting something like a Volvo estate - having owned such a car I reckon it'd be very tight, I'd go for something like this: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201810041168495?onesearchad=New&onesearchad=Nearly%20New&onesearchad=Used&model=TRANSPORTER&advertising-location=at_cars&radius=1501&make=VOLKSWAGEN&postcode=se233un&sort=sponsored&page=1

What do people think?

Also, what does it mean when an advert says "£12,999 no VAT"?

My Passat estate with two bikes on the roof and a top box would be plenty. Particularly if only two humans in it.

How would you feel about leaving the bikes and box on the roof whilst camping as you go down through France?

Van definitely better. Transit or sprinter even maybe. Those VW transporters are not that big.

My friend has a licence but doesn't drive, nor does his partner - I thought a smaller van might be less of a learning curve.

Transit or similar should be easier for a beginner in some respects. You are sat higher up and have more road presence than a smaller vehicle.

They're not going to take £10,832.50 as the no-vat price from a trader.

i.e. the £12,999 is a fixed price, and they won't accept a lower bid (that by some mechanism I don't understand) doesn't have to pay VAT?

On a different note- would LHD be a good idea?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2007-Mercedes-Benz-Vito-3-0-CDI-AUTO-LWB-LEFT-HAND-DRIVE-LHD/153230975973?hash=item23ad4723e5:g:D1gAAOSw4idbjqlq:rk:17:pf:0

I'd be happy with the stuff on the top. They lock on pretty secure.

YMMV

If it states no VAT, you don't have to pay VAT ;)

Reason being, commercial vehicles often advertised with the pre-VAT price, as business purchaser will reclaim the VAT therefore wants to know the pre-VAT price. Private buyer will have to pay the VAT on these vehicles.

https://www.rac.co.uk/drive/news/motoring-news/law-change-for-uk-drivers-in-french-cities/

Boring old vans to one side, if I want to make some complex shapes (three trumpets to a plenum) is a good technique to use to carve a block of foam into a slightly undersize version of the form that I want, then wrap that in CF fabric, bag it and pull a vacuum to draw the resin through, then use acetone to melt the foam out?

Transit or similar should be easier for a beginner in some respects.

IME modern Transits are supper easy to drive. Drove a mid-'00s Renault Espace once and found it harder to drive than a Transit.

On the vehicle choice, my main question is whether they are going to be mainly static once they get there. If so then a car would be nicer. Something like a diesel passat estate with a roof box would be fine.

Too centrist dad

Not sure about the vac-bagging and resin infusion side of things, but I've used a similar technique with wet lay carbon around a foam buck. You'll need some barrier between the carbon and the foam otherwise the foam will absorb the resin. Packing tape makes a good barrier and has the advantage that it works as a release agent so you can remove the foam by just cutting it up and then removing the tape without having to dissolve out the foam.

This is an this an intake, so a smooth surface is important. Maybe I should make it in two parts, maybe using plasticine or wax over the foam?

As a keen vannist I'd say the Sprinter is the only van worth buying. They're actually nice to drive and comfortable. They're super reliable once you buy one that's been looked after and if you lob on a reversing camera they're absolutely easy to drive, even parking sensors will do if you're a capable enough driver (coming from an owner of Extra-LWB variant).

Tell them to get a MWB with a high roof and they won't go wrong, it's nice being able to stand up in the back.

Apart from headgaskets, rust, fuel pumps.

I've never had a head gasket or fuel pump issue in hundreds of thousands of kilometres.

They do rust like a bastard though.

Apart from headgaskets, rust, fuel pumps.

Party pooper.

What do people think?

For two people a well kitted out Transporter is a better bet than a full estate with shit on the roof. They are absolutely roomy enough for two people, two bikes and their gear. And like you say you can park them up anywhere without advertising your kit to the world. The only reason to go bigger would be you are carrying a crazy amount of stuff or sleeping in the van.

Bought an audi s6 c5 for family duties as volvo is off road for foreseeable. Am trying to chase down a possible cam chain/sensor issue. Any advice appreciated (@danstuff realise its totally different engine but maybe you have heard rumors) . Car is throwing this code through VCDS:
4.2 v8 s6 c5 avant 4B

17748 - Camshaft Position Sensor (G40) / Engine Speed Sensor (G28): Incor. Correlation

        P1340 - 35-00 -   -

Engine is belt driven from crank to inlet cam, exhuast linked via chain to fixed inlet. This chain has a hydraulic lifter. These can get stuck closed, the solenoid can fail or the shoes can wear.

Normally however if this happened there would be various other timing related codes, I've not had any, and none are saved. I've used VCDS to measure cam angle, and both banks seem to be within tolerance set by VAG. I can hear them prime and click when key is turned. Before I take cam covers off to visually inspect am I missing anything obvious? I am also getting some unrelated and almost certainly sensor based codes from transmission, it had a bad battery when I first went to look at it, it has a new one now but its a cheap one, although it does seem to work as it should.

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