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

Thanks, yes looks to be slim pickings, going to see how I get on with the sale of the current car.

Thought I could save a bit on insurance too but whenever I pop the learner driver on it bumps the price up considerably. For example the mk3 golf I posted earlier...

Quoted
£322 - just me
£1321 - me plus learner driver

That's more expensive than both of us on the Merc for some reason.

Still, I got a quote on the private plate included with the mk3 and got a valuation of £400 so it's still tempting me.

Just found a photo from just after I got it.

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And one from yesterday, the bodywork man has done the rear quarter, that was repaired.
He was happy with the welding and fitting, which was pleasing as it was a worry that we’d got it right.

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Bilstein B12 kit will be much much better than BCs, there's a reason Bilstein make shocks for OEM manufacturers.

I was going to suggest a Wavetrac LSD but if he's got to change the shock absorbers anyway.

Definitely fluid and pads. I've found braided lines help, but it's probably the same deal as bushes, changing 20 year old rubber lines for new rubber lines will probably feel just as good as fitting braided lines.

As @jambon said, Rodders pads are good, I've actually had a positive experience with EBC yellows on Minis and MX5s, also inspect your vacuum line and check valve to the brake booster. Stoney racing (I think) do a silicon one for about £20 I think and that made a big difference for me.

Yeah - these have bumped the planned changes down the list for now - probably till next year. I was going to do shocks and brakes at some point anyway, I'll just do them now instead :).

Thanks for the recommendation - very helpful. Currently erring towards the B14 kit

C55 feels nicer to drive, unsure how much is new bushes and how much is alignment, but it’s great to have Herman back.

Where would I find those pads? I'm not having any luck on Google. Also can you point me to any instruction about the vacuum line. Ta.

The problem (or perceived problem) is that putting your foot down on the brake doesn't do much. I would say it was spongey. I also don't know if I'm just expecting too much of an old car.

If you're going to increase your budget up to that, I'd see if you can get some 2nd hand KW V3 coilovers. They'll be very very good.

You can contact Roddison Motorsport direct, or Bofi Racing do them here:

https://bofiracing.co.uk/brakes/brake-pads/

With brakes, here's some quick checks:

If you press the pedal and the pedal feels firm but nothing happens no matter how hard you press, generally that's a pad or disc issue.

If you press the pedal and it's long and spongy, that's a fluid/brake fluid hose issue.

If you press the pedal and it feels like nothing happens but if you really push hard the brakes work well, it's a brake booster/servo issue.

Thanks for that. It's simple enough for me to understand. Would you go ebc or rodders pads for driving about Country roads?

I think it's sounds servo like.

Rodders I think, I did really like them, I just found they wore out a bit quicker than expected on track, but not on the road.

Carbotech are my favourite pads for track but they're spicy pricing and overkill for the road.

Sorry I didn't finish answering your question, the servo vacuum hose is just £15, I checked, it's worth replacing anyway as the rubber might have perished a bit or the check valve degraded. If that doesn't improve it then you can start investigating other things. If it makes it a little bit better but not totally, it's worth replacing all the vacuum hose in the engine bay, again it's cheap, but can be a bit time consuming.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/173439849240

One of these? You don't appear to be able to buy an oem one anymore.

I'm finally in the habit of running an extension lead out of my window and across a path to charge my car. All high viz and cable cover, weatherproof, locked box for safety... And it's great.

Electric use of the V60 Polestar is now around 95% of all usage. My runs from North to South London are 13 miles each way, a single charge does the return journey and ends just above empty - which is greater than the advertised 20 mile range. Petrol only kicks in on honor Oak hill and crouch hill when the car decides the gradient would drain the battery too fast I guess.

Also, Volvo are refunding all electric in the first year, so even though electric works out to be 1/4 the cost of petrol, it's actually free for a while.

My current mpg is averaging 93mpg, but as this is still based on a rolling average I expect it to carry on increasing.

Is it the attached photo? I tried giving you a link yesterday but for some reason when I click on that on eBay, it gives me an error.

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That's the one I linked.

Old (and probably new) Mercs have a lot of compliance in the subframe and suspension mountings. It's amazing what swapping old rubber for new will do. I had the front-end bushes done on my old car and it was like night and day.

Yeah that's what I've got on mine.

I've went for one of those. I need to order some axle stands, a jack, and some brake lines now. Might go oem for those as they are half the price of the braided kit. Thanks for the help.

For braided might be worthwhile to speak to a hydraulic place like pirtek.

Oh and get stainless steel fittings. DO NOT GET ANODISED ALUMINIUM.

I've got Mocal braided lines on mine and had them on a previous MX5 too. They're good, made in conjunction with Skuzzle Motorsport (now closed MX5 specialist). Had good experience with Goodridge lines too.

Where are you based? Give me a shout if you want a hand or feel free to come to me in Hackney.

Spotted

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If you are using mocal lines might as well use think automotive.