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

Very tempted

yeah the panel gaps must be for ventilation for the engine....and the hostage in the boot.

I really like it. The bonnet's presumably for cooling - could there also be something in the boot that also might benefit from being cooled (mechanical, rather than criminal)?

strong page got stronger. Volvo is a beauty. you gonna go for it?

you should be.

Is that some sort of Stromberg carburettor hiding on the left?

As nature intended mate.

You know neither of those round things are turbochargers?

I think this one would be a shame to modify in that way, a more rotten one would be more logical to drop a turbo-V8 into because you could reinforce the chassis when fixing the holes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWsxJJaaFEE&t=1026s

Yeah, it was shit

A lot of fucked fuel hose and my little helper. Highly unpleasant task.

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Well I definitely fit in a mk3 mx5 and I have someone bringing their mk1 over for me to try sitting in.

The mk3 I tried was at a local indy dealer, it was pretty horrible in the cabin with heavily worn seats, mould, standing water and a killer stench.

Looking through listings of mx5s I think I can see staining on quite a lot of the ones with cloth upholstery, is leaking just something you have to accept on soft tops?

No leakage issues to report on my MK2!

Is this in cars with soft-tops fitted or with the retractable hard-top? No direct experience with MK3s so can't help much there!

Also, while the MK3 is certainly a lot more usable as a daily driver than the 1 or 2, they are a bit of a ginger step-child of the family. Get used to lots of boat related comments from MK1/2/4 owners. They are a little more chonky looking than the other entries. Still tiny in comparison to most "normal" cars though.

Went to help with bodywork on my mates car today, stumbled upon some nice old cars in need of some love

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South East England, do I need winter tyres or should I buy all season. I'm planning on fitting something to my oem wheels now and then buy new wheels and summer tyres next year so I can easily swap.

I've never had winter or even all-season tyres, but then again I very, very rarely find myself on rural roads in the winter, it's all urban, motorways or major a-roads which are gritted. If some of your regular drives are on lanes, b-roads or even low traffic a-roads then all seasons is probably not a bad idea.

Never bothered with changing tyres and I live in deepest shitroad Sussex, just drive sensibly if it's wet/frosty.

I bought a AWD vehicle nearly 3 years ago with the justification that our baby was due in December and we might need to drive in snow the 30 miles to hospital.
It has now meaningfully snowed since. Ha! But it is what could be described as rural.
I had sidewalls on my previous XC90, fitted Goodyear Wrangler HPs which are mud + snow rated. They were pretty handy actually and didn't notice any issues it came to 'spirited' driving either- well as much as is possible in a 2 tonne brick.
Fast forward to the latest XC90... Not a lot of choice with the 275/45/20 fitted. Heaven forbid the 22s they also come with.
Think I'll chuck something like a Verde all season or Crossclimates when I replace the fronts in the not too distant future.

Wrong reply. Sorryyyyy.

I bought a set of second hand wheels with winter tyres on for the e46. Living on a hill, RWD, and a potentially snowy drive to Scotland over Christmas were my justifications. When it did dump it with snow in the new year I was very glad for having them.

On the subject of winter tyres, as is left mine on far too long, a couple of them are on what I would assume are the “winter” wear indicators. They’ve got shedloads of tread left (the depth indicators for legal tread are well buried), but should I replace them? If I don’t replace them, would you put the deeper tread on the fronts or rears?

To be fair if I had the space I'd keep a set of steelies with winter tyres. Would add peace of mind when heading up to Northumberland in winter and also allow for winter trips into Europe where I believe they're a legal requirement in some places.

this is usually parked along my dog walking route. i always have to stop and just look at it for a few moments..

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I've bought a 2014 bmw 5 series that has Bluetooth phone calls but won't stream music. Seems absolutely mental to me but I assume it was some money making scheme at the time.

I think it's got all the gubbins to do it, it just needs unlocking. Has anyone done it?

You can get tyre parking.

You can get away with tyre socks, the TUV rated ones should keep you sorted.

Spotted these lads at the Madeira ‘Legends’ rally

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