petrolhead

Yes, mine is a more door with a 145bhp-ish xflow on 45's. Never garaged and used all year round. Occasionally goes wrong but 95% of the time it can be fixed with a basic tool in 10mins (eg bad connections, fuses, bolt dropping out!)

I'm pretty sure it was 1.6mm. Tougher to get into shape than the more common thinner stuff but once its welded in place it is strong as F**k.

Absolutely, James is one of the most selfless generous guys I have met. Now I've moved out he needs to get his 4 door done and tearing up the tarmac round our way.

Hello all, I've been away for a while, working away. My car (Gaby) had to come off the road in November and I was quite depressed about it at the time. It had performed amazingly at North Weald Sprint circuit in November, but had chewed up a dizzy drive and ring gear shortly after. There was nothing for it but to pull the engine out and sort out a few other issues along the way. I took some Arty photos so I hope you like them: This is at North Weald, and here is the little xflow-powered Subaru scarer that some of you will recognise: A chewed up dizzy drive is Oh-so-Not-Cool. I suspected there may be fragments in the sump so that had to come out. The problem is I don't have a garage. Jamesmk1 came to the rescue. I said it would only be for about 3 months. Lack of time and a few other issues came into play. Needless to say, a big thank you to him because it was in for 5 months keeping his Mk1 project company! The engine bay was grotty. (Naughty dirty little crossflow) So I decided to give it another rattle can respray (cos I'm cheap). I had a nightmare with paint reactions and hand to sand it all back and use a isolator primer. Laquer still to go on: James had a collection of friends, neighbours and beers to mostly help and sometimes distract. Thanks to Tom and my brother who also lent a hand (didn't really need an engine crane with those two). Engine out for sump modifiying/cleaning, new clutch, new ring gear and a general spruce up. Lucky for me James is a complete insomniac. The following late night photos will probably strike a chord in a few of you! A left a visual clue for the next morning! What could it mean?! The finished article, just have to get it taxed and MOT'd now: Its not perfect but as my brother says, "its an engine bay" Now I've just got a crusty arch to sort out and use it for what it was built for - driving hard!

I think of myself as quite a grounded tolerant person but this is what I think..... It is fantastic news and has made a great weekend. As for a Matyr - well he was already a figurehead/demi-god to extremists. What the US have done is very clever, they have kept to Islamic tradition of burying the body within 24Hrs by dumping him at sea. At the same stroke they have denied any grave being made into a shrine while effectively turning him into fish food - beautiful. There is no use tip toeing around this issue in my opinion. Extremists values are so evil, warped, ingrained and cancerous that the effective solution is simply to kill them. He's responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent men, women and children of all races and religions. I hope he felt some of their terror as the molten lead passed through his body in his final moments. Pure scum, I'm having a BBQ to celebrate this weekend

Agree with the above. That is even better than the last time. Good job all round to those involved, well done Darren.

Pics would help but I would not be surprised if it went above £2500. It sounds in good condition for a 30 year old car and that very low mileage is a big selling point if you can verify it.

Beautiful, I've always really fancied doing a V8 Granada

Is it at Anglesey Tom? Another option to consider for long journeys is to get some cheap laser 4 spoke alloys and fit some cheap 60 or 70 profile tyres to the rear. If you move from 50 to 70 profile I think I worked out the revs will drop by 15%. So doing 3400rpm instead of 4000rpm for example. Saves fuel, mechanical wear n tear and wear on your more expensive tyres. Then change them around when you want to get some serious driving done. Just an idea......

The answer to the original question is yes I used 45's daily Just get them set up properly. You won't get as many mpg as a DGAV but that's the compromise you make should you decide to go for them.

Two fitness freaks having a chat You'll either get it or you won't

He had the 8v version and it did go very well. I think that was more to do with the rest of the car weighing as much as my breakfast.

That is cool, but this is much better. None of this namby pamby F1 electronic wizardry. You need to set aside a beer or a cup of tea and watch this. So much better than modern racing. The thundering 5.7 litre V8 Camaro getting hassled by the little Vauxhall Viva driven by Gerry Marshall and the little RS1600 which yap at its heels like angry terriers. Outstanding driving from a long gone era

Yes you could. Do you know what diff ratio is in it at the moment? I suspect it will be something like a 3.9:1. You can get a 3.54:1 from a mk2 Escort Ghia or RS which will give it longer legs but it will feel slower off the line.

That is superb! I've never seen a Capri handle so well, what was the spec?

A 5 speed type9 box will reduce the revs by about 20% in top gear. It is a fairly straightforward conversion. PS welcome to OSF

I read that the Capri FF's actually had very slightly different final drive ratio's for the front and back! I also read that although they had great acceleration on dirt they were awful to drive. For the Zodiac's I seem to remember a few getting comissioned for trials by the Police either the budget was cut (some things never change eh?) or the advantages of 4wd were deemed not worth the cost because they were twice the price of the equivalent 2wd Zodiac.

What a fantastic clip Gary, thanks for that!

Why did I have to watch that to the end? Save youself the bother, it starts as it ends - what an idiot.

I have used VHT and BBQ paint. Prepped both on a good surface and they both burnt off. VHT was the worst it burnt off with the engine at idle. Ceramic coatings work but are very expensive. Nickel plating works and is cheaper.

I agree, Darren is a pleasure to deal with

Collins Chemical Blacking in Sutton/Carshalton. They do plating and I'm pretty sure they do powder coating too.

Yes I am up for it, that was a great day. Yes the Kent 244 does seem to be very similar to the piper 285. The next step up would be Kent 254 but I think that would be a mistake especially if you are using cast pistons on your new build. That cam's rev range exceeds the stock internals safe limits (unless your name is FiestaSteve) and you'll lose mid-range torque - the worst of both worlds Not sure what you are on about Sliverstreak but I wish you luck in the OSF Patronising Award . I was refering to the fact a lot of people think that 'Hot' cams have a very lump idle, the 244 is one of them.

Sorry to hear that Steve, I really enjoyed seeing that go around North Weald. I can recommend a Kent 244, if its properly set-up it will idle fine and be very tractable.

Love it, thats just sorted out any doubt about my dream garage collection