Snows gone!

[SteveGales]

Well the enforced temporary hibernation of the evo came to an end today and took the car out for a blast, mainly dodging the potholes
that have appeared! Still blown the cobwebs off and good fun!

There was still plenty of salt around ,I was hoping most of it had been washed away overnight but a good clean/ pressure wash when I got home has hopefully got rid of most of it. I've always taxed my car all year round but as usual after a long break the car felt horrible for the first 10 miles or so until everything warmed up, brakes graunched, alternator belt squealed etc !
I think overall they are much better being used and after 11 years mine hasn't turned into a pile of rust flakes as legend would have you believe.

Anybody else been out in theirs?

Stuart, have you had chance to use your Blu Lagos yet? I bet you've been 'chomping at the bit' during the bad weather. I see you also have a quattro, it would be interesting to hear how they compare. I've been trying to persuade Margaret that an original quattro would make a great everyday car! We both loved 'Ashes to ashes' as that was our 'era' or it could be just a 'blistered arch thing'!

Regards Steve

[Stuartmmcfc]

Hi Steve,
managed a little run out between Christmas and New Year when it was dry and had a great 1/2 hr before I had to return home for "family duties".
Since I've only managed to mess with it in the garage. just got in after fiddling with the seat runners. A seat squab rebuild is imminent but I've just discovered a seperate amp under the passenger seat I hadn't known about   Also done a bit of detailing/paintwork under the bonnet, replaced carbon fibre grill with original and messed with alarm with no real success. All in all gagging to get it out for a proper run !
Compared to the quattro it's surprisingly chalk and cheese.  I described the grale as being a bit like a pit bull- eager, aggresive, good for strutting about with (in some eyes ) but not very relaxing.
You could get in the quattro and just drive for hours. thats why I had it for a daily for 4 years. Its fast, but not as quick as the Evo, handles well, but maybe not as good on the twistys.
Which one do I prefer? luckily I dont have to make a choice yet!
but use a quattro as a daily?- You'd have to be a bit mad with the costs and nla situation with so many basic parts the way they are!! The only thing going for it is that the Audi IL5 will go on and on even when loads of things have gone wrong with it
As a CE 25 years ago it would have made sense , best kept in the garage until dry days now IMHO

ps when its salty and generally dirty and I've got to drive around town and find somewhere to park it's  hard to beat the fester!!

[sparehead3]

Not yet ... was waiting for another few showers of rain.
There's also alot of grit around from the pot holes and I worry about that. It did go out on New Year's Day before the snow and had a wash.
The news today was that the Passat had it's annual wash and I discovered it was still blue (and rust free of course )

[lancialulu]

Messing with the HF in garage which is in the way of the Sport (bad planning)!

But having had to clean and polish the MX5 after all the salt I just dont have the enthusasm for cleaning another car - even a Lancia. Waiting for more down pours then a dry Feb!!!

BTW I agree with Steve that cars that arent driven take a while to supple up again. And this applies to moderns as well as classics.

All the best for 2010.

Tim

[SteveGales]

I thought that may be the case Stuart, pretty much the same situation as the Delta I suppose.

I keep coming up with 'interesting' choices of cars for Margaret, a couple of notables being a Thema 8.32 and a Maserati 3200(boomerang lights)!!! Needless to say I get the same answer, a 'tut' with a roll of the eyes and then some un-repeatable words!
The 'Maser' did get the thumbs up from my 15 year old daughter Emma however, she quite fancied being dropped of at school in it!

What do you need to do to the seat? I think the side bolsters are still available, I seem to remember Tanc Barratt had some a while back.

I agree with the way you describe how the integrale drives ,sometimes the ride can get a bit tiring when you're 'not in the mood'.This is partly due to the atrocious condition of our roads, we took our car to Italy (2500 mile round trip) in 2008 and the difference was incredible, not wearing at all and when we got to the Alps.....

Looking forward to March and the Great Northern Weekend for a proper run-out on some(hopefully not too damaged) good driving roads
in North Yorkshire. Will have to pop into Walkers of course!

Tim what car will you be taking on the GNW


Steve

[Stuartmmcfc]

Steve,
Here's an idea for you - i know plenty of people who use a Audi S2 quattro 20v turbo as a daily, especially practical and very, very fast if in the avant guise!!! never liked the curves myself though 
Right guess with the side bolster. I'm going to use a local trimmers though. They've rebuilt the ones on my quattro at a fraction of the price plus they've got the right tools.
todays 2 step forward one step back was the passenger electric window which decided to stick. got it back up again so I guess it either needs re-greasing or ,sods law, the gearings worn  I think I'll wait until its warmer to worry about that though!
Stuart

[andymc]

Hi Stuart

My passenger side window has always been slow to rise... I don't think it's uncommon. I believe the cure is to lubricate the runners with something like silicone spray..

Keep meaning to get my seats attended to but the Alcantara is difficult to colour match.

I did find these Recaro specialists that stocked replacement bolsters though which may be of some use.

http://www.capitalseating.co.uk/productdetail.asp?pid=317&type=s&appgrpid=14&appid=76&rid=

[sparehead3]

My offside window drops if you wind it down too far ... comes off the screw ... so I don't wind it down too far

[SteveGales]

Great find Andy! It's a pity they don't do the bolster covers in tan Alcantara too!

Unless the material has worn through it's amazing how the seats can be improved by 'shaving' the bobbles off. I've used Bic razors,
a pack normally as they blunt pretty quickly. Just a gentle shaving action lightly in all directions gets rid of nearly all bobbles and an occasional going over keeps them smooth. I guess eventually the material would have to be replaced but this works wonders. Some owners have also used battery operated 'Fuzz Busters' the kind of thing that used to be advertised at Christmas years ago! Cleaning wise I've found Autoglym interior shampoo works well, a spray on and then wipe off with a damp cloth.

Stuart, the door cards come off pretty easy, lots of screws though some well hidden such as under the door bins and one in particular
when you take the 'locking' knob off on top of the door, press the rod down and there is a screw hidden there attaching the top of the
door card to the door, easy to miss.The plastic covering caps on some of the screws can be prised off with the point of a Stanley knife
without damaging them,once all screws are out the card can then be eased off with a blunt screwdriver releasing the trim clips.
Had the same window problem on a friends little used evo, took the trim off ,sharp tap on the motor with screwdriver handle and back to
life! Greased everything, Silicon spray on the guides as Andy said, no more trouble after that. Great opportunity to Waxoyl the inside of the door too. Something I have done on my car is to cut up a few squares of car washing sponge and stick them to the door before I put the cards back on,gets rid of a lot of trim squeaks/rattles and the door closes now with a nice cushioned sound not a 'clang' .

Keep us up to date on the car, interesting to hear how you are getting on.
Steve

[Stuartmmcfc]

Good tip there Steve re the hidden screw. that saves some time, swearing and possible broken bit 

[lancialulu]

On lazy windows a contributor is the switch and a tired battery. Try running the engine after silcon spraying the channels. There is Holt spray that cabbies swear by which I bought which seems to work better than wd40 of silone spray alone.

Tim

[andymc]

Was at Tanc's today and they have the replacement seat squab and bolsters available in too.

I have one of those "defuzzer's" but not really had much success with it. Will have a go with the Bic razors......

[SteveGales]

How did the cost of the bolsters compare with the Recaro specialists Andy, much difference?

Have you got your car sorted now?

Steve

[andymc]

I didn't get a price Steve, we were just chatting in general about stuff and Tanc mentioned it.

I have left the car with him. Going to sort out my "mishap" plus the Windscreen surround and some other cosmetic/preventative bodywork stuff. A long list but nothing major. In fact he was pretty impressed by how solid and orginal the car is which is good news.

Btw Mark H was really helpful last week when I mailed him so thanks for the info.

Chance now to have a good clearout in the garage whilst it's empty.

[SteveGales]

 Look forward to seeing it !

Steve