new cars & a dead Volvo

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

One a 1993 Honda Accord EXi manual (old shape with only 83,000kms &
Honda service history). Good thing and only one owner, but the previous
owners 25yo son has been driving it for the last 2 years and although
it looks like an old mans car, (black with the standard chintzy alloys
/ sunroof / mud flaps / weathershields etc), the son saw fit to put a
so-called 'sports muffler' on it........a nasty device that's
loud for the sake of being loud. In a way though it is contributing to
good fuel economy of around 7-8 L/100kms urban because I'm always
changing up early rather than waking the dead by exceeding 3000rpm.
This highlights the lack of torque though. Can't complain for $3900.
The other a 2006 Suzuki Swift S. Tried the Yaris (5-door 1.5), Mazda2,
Jazz & Getz (5-door 1.6) first, all in auto; all good cars but a few
factors swung it Suzukis way. Got a free upgrade to the 'S' model
which has curtain airbags, fog lights (I'm going to remove the
globes!) and alloys, but this was on the condition the dealer could
swap the alloys for same size (15inch) steelies/hubcaps and we took the
only colour in stock (I'm guessing the dark grey metallic isn't too
popular in this type of car).
Unbelievable how far small cars have come as it feels substantial &
solid, and the standard-across-the-range leather steering wheel is, I
think, a masterstroke! Over the first month have averaged about
9L/100kms in peak hour driving.
Finally, the old Volvo wagon has died. Brother in law had a leak in the
exhaust fixed (somewhere near the emission gear) and it blew the
head-gasket within 100kms of highway driving. Shame, as we'd just
spent $600 on re-co'd brake callipers and new booster. Soon to hit
eBay with $1 start & no reserve. Has anyone had any experience with
that gasket repair goo (I think it's called 'chemi-weld') that
you add to the coolant to repair blown head gaskets?
jackbadger.

[Ext User(athol)]

450slc@gmail.com wrote:

> Finally, the old Volvo wagon has died. Brother in law had a leak in the
> exhaust fixed (somewhere near the emission gear) and it blew the
> head-gasket within 100kms of highway driving. Shame, as we'd just
> spent $600 on re-co'd brake callipers and new booster. Soon to hit
> eBay with $1 start & no reserve.

What model Volvo, and where?

--
Athol
<http://cust.idl.com.au/athol> Linux Registered User # 254000
The state of infrastructure in New South Wales is a disgrace.
I'm a Libran Engineer. I don't argue, I discuss.

[Ext User(Andy)]

450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> Has anyone had any experience with
> that gasket repair goo (I think it's called 'chemi-weld') that
> you add to the coolant to repair blown head gaskets?
> jackbadger.


A mate of mine had a slight head gasket leak on an EB (I think) SVO 6
cyliner. Used the Chemi-weld and it seemed to sort it - for a little
while, at least. I think it's designed more for small cracks, but it
can't hurt to try for what, $15 for a bottle?

Your mileage may vary (quite literally.)


Cheers,

Andy. (the other Andy.)

[Ext User(Marco)]

450slc@gmail.com wrote:
Got a free upgrade to the 'S' model
> which has curtain airbags, fog lights (I'm going to remove the
> globes!) and alloys, but this was on the condition the dealer could
> swap the alloys for same size (15inch) steelies/hubcaps

Why?

[Ext User(ant)]

Marco wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> Got a free upgrade to the 'S' model
>> which has curtain airbags, fog lights (I'm going to remove the
>> globes!) and alloys, but this was on the condition the dealer could
>> swap the alloys for same size (15inch) steelies/hubcaps
>
> Why?

I'm never sure if it's a stunt or not. When I bought my first new car
(Daihatsu Charade), they had a red display one up on a platform, and I
wanted the car immediately, and red. It had very fancy wheels on... and I
wanted a better price. So we haggled down to a good cash price, on the
condition that they could put the original wheels back on and keep their
fancy wheels.

The tyres I had always seemed pretty good, and when I shopped for new ones
years later, discovered that these Dunlops cost more then the equivalent
Pirelllis and Michelins. I wonder if the fancy ones they had on were as
good? I think I did quite well, either way.


--
ant

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

athol wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
>
> > Finally, the old Volvo wagon has died. Brother in law had a leak in the
> > exhaust fixed (somewhere near the emission gear) and it blew the
> > head-gasket within 100kms of highway driving. Shame, as we'd just
> > spent $600 on re-co'd brake callipers and new booster. Soon to hit
> > eBay with $1 start & no reserve.
>
> What model Volvo, and where?
>
> --
> Athol
> <http://cust.idl.com.au/athol> Linux Registered User # 254000
> The state of infrastructure in New South Wales is a disgrace.
> I'm a Libran Engineer. I don't argue, I discuss.

1982 245 GL Auto + spare tranny in Bilgola NSW. You're welcome to it
Athol; I've checked out your page and have always harboured dreams of
converting it to a V8 manual.........but life is too short!

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

Marco wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> Got a free upgrade to the 'S' model
> > which has curtain airbags, fog lights (I'm going to remove the
> > globes!) and alloys, but this was on the condition the dealer could
> > swap the alloys for same size (15inch) steelies/hubcaps
>
> Why?

The other car on the showroom floor (with a SOLD sign) at the time was
a standard model, and the buyer wanted alloys. To order them through
spares would have cost more than simply swapping them. Besides, curtain
airbags are more important to us than a set of dinky little alloys, and
the tyres were exactly the same.
If you were referring to the fog light globes, it's just a referrence
to how much I hate the fucking things being used in clear conditions
(I.E. any time there is no FOG, including just when it's raining!)

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

Andy wrote:

> can't hurt to try for what, $15 for a bottle?
>
> Your mileage may vary (quite literally.)
>
>
> Cheers,
>
> Andy. (the other Andy.)

I will, seeing as it's only $15 (was expecting much more), but I also
expected to hear that it is crap & does FA to any engine.
Thanks for the tip.
JB

[Ext User(athol)]

450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> athol wrote:

>> What model Volvo, and where?

> 1982 245 GL Auto + spare tranny in Bilgola NSW. You're welcome to it
> Athol; I've checked out your page and have always harboured dreams of
> converting it to a V8 manual.........but life is too short!

Thanks but no. I've recently disposed of a '78 parts car. I still have an
'82 264GLE, an '82 265GLE and an '88 240GL sedan. Add to that the Bedford
bus and the good Volvo plus the work Falcon and the yard is fuller than I'd
like already. For another Volvo to be of use to me, it would have to be at
least an '85.

On an unrelated topic, I'm doing an informal survey on an idea that came to
me last year some time.

What would your opinion be of a railway line (heavy rail) running from
around Milson's Point or North Sydney, across somewhere near the spit
(whether above or below ground is open to debate as other people have
published various ideas), then going underground to run all the way up the
northern beaches to Palm beach? If the geology permits, it would then
continue under the mouth of the Hawkesbury to surface in the middle of Woy
Woy station. Hence, a direct link from Woy Woy (and hence Gosford &
Newcastle) through the northern beaches to North Sydney and the city.

--
Athol
<http://cust.idl.com.au/athol> Linux Registered User # 254000
The state of infrastructure in New South Wales is a disgrace.
I'm a Libran Engineer. I don't argue, I discuss.

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

D Walford wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> > Marco wrote:
> >> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> >> Got a free upgrade to the 'S' model
> >>> which has curtain airbags, fog lights (I'm going to remove the
> >>> globes!) and alloys, but this was on the condition the dealer could
> >>> swap the alloys for same size (15inch) steelies/hubcaps
> >> Why?
> >
> > The other car on the showroom floor (with a SOLD sign) at the time was
> > a standard model, and the buyer wanted alloys. To order them through
> > spares would have cost more than simply swapping them. Besides, curtain
> > airbags are more important to us than a set of dinky little alloys, and
> > the tyres were exactly the same.
> > If you were referring to the fog light globes, it's just a referrence
> > to how much I hate the fucking things being used in clear conditions
> > (I.E. any time there is no FOG, including just when it's raining!)
> >
> Fog lamps are excellent if used correctly and that includes heavy rain
> or any other conditions where visibility is reduced eg smoke from a
> fire, no need to remove globes just learn how to use them properly.
>
>
> Daryl

Heavy rain is fine, but if the rain/visibility has cleared and the
roads are still wet, broad-beam foggies still glare and the effect is
doubled as they reflect off the wet road. I have seen them being used
inappropriately so often that I don't trust anyone in Sydney's metro
area to get it right, including my wife.

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

athol wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
> > athol wrote:
>
> >> What model Volvo, and where?
>
> > 1982 245 GL Auto + spare tranny in Bilgola NSW. You're welcome to it
> > Athol; I've checked out your page and have always harboured dreams of
> > converting it to a V8 manual.........but life is too short!
>
> Thanks but no. I've recently disposed of a '78 parts car. I still have an
> '82 264GLE, an '82 265GLE and an '88 240GL sedan. Add to that the Bedford
> bus and the good Volvo plus the work Falcon and the yard is fuller than I'd
> like already. For another Volvo to be of use to me, it would have to be at
> least an '85.
>
> On an unrelated topic, I'm doing an informal survey on an idea that came to
> me last year some time.
>
> What would your opinion be of a railway line (heavy rail) running from
> around Milson's Point or North Sydney, across somewhere near the spit
> (whether above or below ground is open to debate as other people have
> published various ideas), then going underground to run all the way up the
> northern beaches to Palm beach? If the geology permits, it would then
> continue under the mouth of the Hawkesbury to surface in the middle of Woy
> Woy station. Hence, a direct link from Woy Woy (and hence Gosford &
> Newcastle) through the northern beaches to North Sydney and the city.
>
> --
> Athol
> <http://cust.idl.com.au/athol> Linux Registered User # 254000
> The state of infrastructure in New South Wales is a disgrace.
> I'm a Libran Engineer. I don't argue, I discuss.

Like most Northern Beaches dwellers, I'm pretty bloody selfish when it
comes to visitors, and would rather not have trainloads of extra people
arriving on weekends. Although the buses aren't exactly quick (minimum
75 mins to Wynyard from Bilgola), they are still effective and
reliable.
A line to Central coast via beaches wouldn't be any quicker than via
Hornsby anyway, so difficult to justify the 3km tunnel needed to get
past Broken Bay. The real transport problem from here is getting to
anywhere other than the city; to get to Artarmon my wife had to catch
one bus to Neutral Bay, change to another to St Leonards, and still
walk 2 km to her office (the industrial area of Artarmon is exactly
half way between 2 stations), which is a real struggle for her when
suffering from MS. A Northern Beaches line won't fix this.

[Ext User(450slc@gmail.com)]

D Walford wrote:
> 450slc@gmail.com wrote:
>
> >
> > Heavy rain is fine, but if the rain/visibility has cleared and the
> > roads are still wet, broad-beam foggies still glare and the effect is
> > doubled as they reflect off the wet road. I have seen them being used
> > inappropriately so often that I don't trust anyone in Sydney's metro
> > area to get it right, including my wife.
> >
> It is possible to train a woman how to operate a vehicle correctly, it
> takes a long time but it can be done:-)
>
>
>
>
> Daryl

My wife had her learners permit for 7 years, and has been on her "red
p's" for a further 4 years! I tried to teach her how to drive a manual,
but nothing worked, including drawing a simple diagram of how engine
power eventually gets to the road via clutch & gearbox, & likening it
to how to ride a geared bicycle. This started about 2 years ago.
6 weeks ago, she desperately wanted to get to the Hunter Valley for a
'hen's weekend' and the only car available was the Honda (manual). I
ended up throwing her the keys and reminding her she had no other
option..........& whadya know! She drove it there and back and spent 2
weeks driving it around commenting on things like how much better it is
up & down hills etc etc.
Then the Swift arrived and we're back where we started!!!