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

Dunsfold Park

I drove an R8 there a while back. It was good, but I wouldn't bother with it again. It's not very intimate. You arrive and park up with all the other hundreds of people doing it that day and get shuttle buses to a paddock. You go into a tent and watch a safety video, then sign on, at which point they try and sell you additional insurance and other extras like driving an Ariel Atom or being a passenger in a drifting Vauxhall VXR8 - which looked and sounded like the best thing going to be fair.

You can buy expensive chips and coffee while you wait - and there's a lot of waiting for both your drive and the safety drive they take you on as a passenger in an Octavia VRS beforehand - I think that was an extra, though, which was included in whatever voucher I had. It also included a passenger ride in an Atom, but I just left after the R8 as it was raining and my wife and child were having to wait around for me.

I would say look up plenty of reviews for the ones you're considering and see if there's any pictures. Also try and pick a day when there's going to be as few people as possible.

Was just driving though Cambridge and saw a silver Honda NSX covered in mud, dust and moss, rotting in someone's front yard.

A fucking NSX!

Been on two of these things and wouldn't bother again, just take your own car to a track day. Having to be told to up shift at 4k to 5k on every car gets old very quick. Great if you've never driven something with more than 200hp and or been on a track though

Is the clutch that old? Its hydraulic, so how is the line?

Look at this. The spare engine rebuild is underway.

Sump fucked. Head stud sheared. Main cap was on backwards too.

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London has been shit today for lots of reasons. This g v e some smiles

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Did you stop and make an offer?

Would it be cheaper (money and time wise) to get another block/engine?

Similar thing to @J0nathan, I 'won' a virgin supercar day. Very similar experience. Didn't feel that special or awesome.

Maybe see if you can hire a classic lambo for the day/half for your dad to drive around on the roads.

There’s one particular version of block you can use (the first version of the the five main bearing) for fia reg. the earlier ones are valid but three brg. The one we need was around for a year or two.

Cheers. That's useful.

I think I got one with the passenger extra.

Bumping my previous post. If anyone has any ideas I'd appreciate it. Cheers.

So the noise in my car...

The sound is coming form the rear driver's side (if you drive over the passenger side there's no noise).

• The sound is like the noise made when you drive over a manhole cover - sort of heavy metallic du-dum.
  
• The sound is made when going over bumps.
  
  

The garage had a good look at the car - taking the underside protective covers off and giving the wheels a good shake. They couldn't spot anything visibly. My OH said that they gave it a pretty thorough looking over.

We took everything out of the boot (except the spare tyre). I had a good look at the spare and found some loose bolts that I bagged up.

How old, and what mileage, is/has the car?

It’s good to have the passenger extra - I think I remember that more than the actual driving. It’s all over very quickly and there’s a lot to take in and a lot of other cars driving all around you to be aware of.

That sounds like it’s maybe a shock problem. Is it fairly consistent? Or does it get louder/different depending on how big the bumps are? Can you recreate the sound by rocking the car with the clutch or just man handling it?

Was it an independent garage? Dealer garages and the chains are less than useless.

• ~35k mk6 golf 4 door auto
  
• consistent in the sense that if you go over a bump on the driver side at a moderate speed it makes a noise
  
• idk if the size of the bumps makes a difference, I'll check. Going over them slowly enough will prevent the noise.
  
• Haven't tried trying to recreate the noise, but apparently the garage gave it a good shake - things like grabbing the wheels when lifted and checking for play.
  
• Indy garage. Mrs. H felt they were legit.
  
  

I know noises on cars are notoriously difficult to locate, but it really does feel like it's coming from the rear driver side corner. I still wonder if whatever she drove over it stuck somewhere.

Cuanto dinero por favour?

Brother in law had one, Series 3. 8 mpg. He'd fill the tank in Croydon, drive to Brighton, half way back he'd have to fill up again. Lovely car though

Wheel trims or alloy? If the car has wheel trims is something stuck in there?

Think you are in the right direction with something trapped.

I'd look at a loose bump stop or shock shroud.

Exhaust heat shield?

I'm due back up there soon so will investigate

Is there a navigation application that allows you to specify waypoints, for the iPhone, that people have used and can recommend?

Google maps?

Yeah google maps. I used it driving to Denmark and back, quite a weird feeling setting a destination thats 900km away at a time. Also lets you decide if you want to avoid toll roads etc. I prefer it to Waze and so do many of the uber drivers I've spoken to

Problem with Google maps is I want to go a specific route, and it won't allow you to specify a route - just a destination (or series of destinations).

Now, I can put in "Dreux, Rambouillet, Troyes, etc", but it will then bring me to the centre of each of them, when I really want to go straight past them.