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

Cheers. The issue over here is that there's nothing old. I have no idea what they do with them and the bloke at the BMW dealership almost collapsed when I told him what I had and that I wanted an E39 M5.

So I thought fuck it, buy a newer Golf that the missus can drive easily and will still put a smile on my chevy chase.

I did forget to put that whilst the MK4 is good, I'd obviosuly rather have the MK5. Newer car plus mk5's got better write ups and seem to handle a bit better. Even my mums old GTTDI 170 MK5 was a fun car.

Finished...

Needs dropping about 3". Not sure if the Partner sits that high when unloaded or if the chassis is higher up. Should be able to do that tomorrow.

Collapsed in a good or bad way?

If it's got to be newer don't hot hatch it, no manual e46s? Surely they've got cheap CSLs out there?

Collapsed in an "Are you taking the piss?" kind of way.

There's an expat selling an E30 M3 which came over from Japan, but there's no AC etc which is essential here.

I've had a look about from some newer CSL's, but they're just not popular.

Finished...

Needs dropping about 3". Not sure if the Partner sits that high when unloaded or if the chassis is higher up. Should be able to do that tomorrow.

Love the 405. It's on the list for a cheap runaround when I get back to Aus. Would love a Mi16, it'll be that or a 205. Figure since I've had 2 x 306s and a 505 I should try something different!

Re the ride height on yours... Did the partner van just have more weight over the axle? as it sits right now that is a recipe for extreme lift off over steer. Will you be able rotate the torsion beam enough to correct the ride height?

Well ner ner ni ner ner.

Dammit, I think I have said this before about another paint issue but the only thing to rescue that fading red is respray. polish and wax will only do a certain amount and judging by your other bike related threads I'm not sure you would have the time needed to maintain the paint in decent condition i.e. 45 mins a week on a quick wash and light coat of something like meguires NXT tech wax to the roof/upper exposed areas. PITA, i'd rather go riding.

I know this from experience, trying to keep a cars paint from fading in aussie sun and living on the coast was a weekly chore, and one I have been glad to leave behind.

Love the 405. It's on the list for a cheap runaround when I get back to Aus. Would love a Mi16, it'll be that or a 205. Figure since I've had 2 x 306s and a 505 I should try something different!

Re the ride height on yours... Did the partner van just have more weight over the axle? as it sits right now that is a recipe for extreme lift off over steer. Will you be able rotate the torsion beam enough to correct the ride height?

So far this is only my 3rd car. First was a 306DT - written off last year, then a Saxo toy which is in hiding until I can afford to pay someone to weld, then this 405 was bought to replace the 306. I'll be swapping this with my brother's 306DT soon.
I'd love a 505 saloon. My parents had the 8 seater estate GTi when I was a kid. Loved it.

If anything the Partner has less weight over the rear due to the lack of windows and less overhang. The partner is rated to take 600kg, the 405 estate is rated to 500kg. Not sure how much mine is rated to carry. I'm mildly worried about how easy it will be to find the oversteer as I'm confident that I won't be able to power out of it, and the non-PAS steering rack has a lot of turns.
Correcting it will be easy. The beam is identical to the 405's just a few different bolt on brackets for the brake lines.

This car is far from perfect but it's cheap enough if you don't have to take it to a garage. Costs to far have been: Car £200, tyres £20(!!! not the grippyest), rear beam £50, brake hoses £13, glowplugs £18. My only wish is that insuring and taxing a car wasn't so costly.

delicious. saab body kit on a dodge viper.
http://4minuten.eu/2011/06/29/bastler-setzt-saab-karosserie-auf-eine-dodge-viper-1-video/

Dammit, I think I have said this before about another paint issue but the only thing to rescue that fading red is respray. polish and wax will only do a certain amount and judging by your other bike related threads I'm not sure you would have the time needed to maintain the paint in decent condition i.e. 45 mins a week on a quick wash and light coat of something like meguires NXT tech wax to the roof/upper exposed areas. PITA, i'd rather go riding.

I know this from experience, trying to keep a cars paint from fading in aussie sun and living on the coast was a weekly chore, and one I have been glad to leave behind.

Yep, I remember you mentioning this. I've washed the car once (1 time) in the past 12 months- it is fair to say that it's not high on my list of priorities.

However, I don't want it to keep getting worse. I'd be ok with the idea of dedicating an entire weekend to polishing the damn thing if there was some sort of cunning wax/sealant/snakeoil that could be slapped on then maintained.

We don't have quite the amount of UV that Oz has - and I imagine that that is the main cause of the fading?

Well ner ner ni ner ner.

Sorry, didn't mean to be all, "look at me!"

Collapsed in an "Are you taking the piss?" kind of way.

There's an expat selling an E30 M3 which came over from Japan, but there's no AC etc which is essential here.

I've had a look about from some newer CSL's, but they're just not popular.

Just be done with it and get a Fezza.

Yep, I remember you mentioning this. I've washed the car once (1 time) in the past 12 months- it is fair to say that it's not high on my list of priorities.

However, I don't want it to keep getting worse. I'd be ok with the idea of dedicating an entire weekend to polishing the damn thing if there was some sort of cunning wax/sealant/snakeoil that could be slapped on then maintained.

We don't have quite the amount of UV that Oz has - and I imagine that that is the main cause of the fading?

I'd say it's a combination of UV and corrosive rain plus poor maintenance in the past. If the car used to go through a car wash then in it's possible that the wax gets stripped, and then the car gets driven around for a few months with the paint exposed to the elements. Thats when the oxidisation starts.
Really the best course (and cheapest) is to devote 1 weekend to a wash, clay bar (to remove all residues and stuck on contaminants) then a 3 stage machine polish, and a good coat of wax. Or just pay someone!
After that you could maintain reasonably with the NXT tech wax (or similar) once a month - that should only take about 40 mins for the whole car. wont be perfect but will slow down the degradation. If i had all my gear over here I'd like to attack the ovlov to see how well we could restore paint.

I know a guy down in Farnborough who's done a few paint restorations. Want me to ask him if he's be up for it?

That'd be great, thanks Oz.

Lowpug- depending on what Oz's mate comes back with, but I've always preferred buying the tool rather than paying someone else to do the work, how much would a machine polisher and all the gubbins be?

I've sent him a message. See what he comes back with.

Bonza, I'll delay purchasing 60kg of assorted stickers from eBay.

I'll hand-paint it in Hammerite for £100. Any colour you like (as long as its black).

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=63859

and enter a world of OCD and insanity....

If you get a machine buffer it has to be an oscillating one. All up with machine, pads, compounds, waxes and cloths you'd be in at least 120 quid.

^^ Dulux special. Paint it on with a 6" roller then flat it back.

My first car (and the only one I ever owned personally) was a Fiesta. The bumpers and bits underneath (valance?) were made of filler and Hammerite.

I used to work with a guy that painted his HK Holden in yellow house paint with a brush. Streaky, but from 30ft it looked OK

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=63859

and enter a world of OCD and insanity....

If you get a machine buffer it has to be an oscillating one. All up with machine, pads, compounds, waxes and cloths you'd be in at least 120 quid.

That's a lot less than Nurse Holidays mate and his £400 charge.

Plus, we could use the kit again, for nowt.

I painted this a few years ago. 5 cans of Monster graff paint in Hearing Aid Beige. Took an afternoon to do it. Didn't look too bad from a distance.

^

DIY is cheaper. Get a paint depth reader thing too so you can get even coverage for a better finish.

Lowpug, do you know what kit we'd need, or is it a case of surfing that forum for the lowdown?

Detailingworld is a good way to lose 5 hours without noticing.