James I

Looking superb Josh, sorry about the seats mate but if you hang on until January my rally car seats are out of date, they are OMP with the head side guards, proper looking seats, will look great in that BMW.

An update on life with the GTE, I have now done 13,000 miles in it and have to say I think it is a great car, it goes well, is a nice place to sit in, although a little thirsty for a 1.4 petrol car it is on the whole not bad, returning 44 mpg. There has been one problem, after the car had been on charge the indicated mileage would only be 12 or 14, I called the dealer who told me to call VW assist, this I did and the guy came out, plugged the computer in and it showed 101 faults all to do with the electric part of the car, he shut his laptop and said this is a job for the dealer, in the car went, a courtesy car was waiting, Skoda Octavia Greenline Poverty Spec, the door handles weren't even painted!! Anyway, after two days I got a call, I was told the charging lead was the problem and one had been ordered, it would be replaced under warranty, out of interest the guy said, how much do you think the lead is? No Idea I replied and guessed at about £200, he replied with £894+VAT, I couldn't believe it. Lead is now in my possession and the Golf is back too, problem sorted. I do wonder how this type of car will continue into the used car market and how a second hand car buyer will cope with the high costs associated with any repairs!

I had a 2004 BMW 3 series, when the button was pressed to unlock it would activate my next door neighbours door bell and you've guessed it, when the door bell was pressed the car would unlock! After changing a few jumper switches in the door bell, problem solved. I now have keyless entry on my Golf, not too bothered about security as there are millions of cars out there, odds of getting nicked are probably similar to that of winning the lottery. Media Hype.

Thanks Richard, I have my BARS test booked and then I can get a licence, once I have that a single venue event needs to be found so I can give it a go! Rally Crossing last year at Castle Coombe in the Yeti was all the inspiration I needed Good luck with the tin tops

Great result, you must be happy with all your hard work, was this at Melbourne Trev?

A lot of hard work has gone into that bungalow :p , it is made from mostly salvaged/recycled materials, only the slab was paid for! Got my doors to make, 20 ton of aggregate around the outside to cover the mud up and put a ridge on the roof then it is done :clap: Story in pictures so far. PICTURES

I have to agree the thought of stage rallying is more exciting than a track day (I enjoyed trackways but did not like the scrutiny if you had a spin or went wide on a corner) but the whole thing is still a bit daunting. There is a lot to do with respect licences and stuff and the car need to be looked over too, it is still on the trailer as I have been garage building all weekend and the weather is not good today to finish off my roof!

We have eggs most days from our hens, we haven't bought an egg for months, we are now planning on keeping more chickens, hatching eggs from an incubator and growing on. I would recommend to anyone who has a garden to get a few hens and collect your own eggs, so much better than supermarket eggs and you have the added bonus of hens in your garden. Duck and Quail eggs are also nice. Hens were helping build the garage today.

After a few years running the Golf VR6T and enjoying every minute of every track day attended with the Brisky guys I have decided enough is enough, spending more and more money on the Golf to make it faster, lighter and more powerful I realised that on a track day I would never really benchmark myself competitively against another driver in a similar car, I have also taken a lot of stick from mates of mine who stage rally Escort Mk1's and MK2's, they would say that track racing is like ploughing, just going around and around, I did not agree with this statement at all, I enjoy the track! I had my Golf advertised for a few months and no interest, I re-advertised on Car & Classic, within three days I had interest in the car and a lad from Dartford came to look at it, he bought it and has plans for more power and a roll cage, I then had a few grand in my hand, the wife was looking at holidays and I was looking at log booked rally cars with in date seats and belts, I won and today collected the car I bought last weekend. I have a 1986 Peugeot 205 GTi, it is not the tidiest car I have ever owned but it has good mechanicals, all brakes are new, suspension is Bilstein all round, nearly new, engine was rebuilt by a PUG specialist and has done two rallies since rebuild, it has a big cam that sounds great when ticking over, like it is hunting but with the taps open it pulls well, in addition to the engine bits it has a diff, close ration box and all new brake pipes etc. In short it is ready to go, just needs me to enter it into something. First picture here on the trailer when I collected it today, I have my BARS test booked with Phil Price rally school to get things moving and hope to get a few single venue events in this year before entering a full two day forest rally maybe next year.

That black schmuck on the roof will easily remove with a razor blade or stanley knife blade, hold it flat on the roof and move slowly across whilst pulling the black stuff, it came out easy on my car.

When my lad was 12 I got him a job washing articulated tipper trucks, if he washed three on a Saturday he walked away with £20, it was good experience for him and it gave him an insight into the real world, work hard and you will be rewarded. As for washing my car, he has always been involved, brush, sponge or a cloth, never really caused any problem to the car or paint.

I took most things out of the Golf, sun visors are not necessary, replace with an external sunstrip, heater is something I left in, for what it weighed it gave great benefits when on wet track days! I went to a few trackways when the A/C was still installed, lovely and cool when all around are sweating like a pork pie seller at a bah mitzvah! The other way of looking at is this, for every gram you remove from the car to go to the track you will go quicker, if you drink a litre of fluid you add 1 kilo, eat your lunch you add weight, fill it with fuel you add weight so the question is are the gains that great for the effort involved?

Tickets arrived, Thanks Jason

I don't think I will be using it on the road much, it is purely a competition car, I may even take it to How Fast, it won't win but it will be good fun. I will get a thread started and some pictures up when I get it on Saturday.

Thank You for your efforts, much appreciated.

I pick it up on Saturday so will see how I get on around here where I live, we have miles of private farm tracks that just happen to be loose surface

It's a 1.6 Si, it has been cammed and also shifts as it is completely stripped out, it also has diff, close ratio box, roll cage and harnesses, seats etc, all log booked and read to go in the forest :peek: Could end bad or it could end good

You are welcome to come up here and use the garage any time mate, once the roof is on I have an 8k wood burner and full flue to go in there too so it should be nice and warm in the winter months :p I am also on the look out for a two poster to go in there.

Not sure about that Josh, I only collect it next week, I am still building my garage too, I have so much to do it is unbelievable. I am looking online now for some bits and pieces, an off side rear wheel arch trim for a 205 for example! My man cave is coming on well, it now has all roof trusses up and a couple of sheets on the roof too. Just the walls, 20 foot wide X 24 foot long Roof is approx 12 foot high to the ridge incase I drop on a two post lift in the future. In the dark after working late last week. The place looks like a chapel more than a garage!

Tomorrow has brought something new, I am now the owner of a 1986 Peugeot 205 GTI MSA log Booked rally car, it is not the tidiest looking car but the engine, gearbox, diff, brakes are all good, so all the expensive bits are in good order with a recent engine rebuild just a few months ago, it has completed two rallies on this engine. All I need to do now is spend more money, BARS test, race suit, helmet, HANS device, tyres and an entry fee for the first event. I may even bring the PUG to How Fast, me and Haydn can enter the rally section in ow Fast

Well after a really early start this morning I have sold my Golf to a guy from Dartford, he has big plans for more power, a roll cage and getting it road legal again, I agreed to deliver it for some beer tokens. At 03:30 this morning and with mixed emotions I set off to Dartford from North Yorkshire with the Golf on the trailer, 4 hours later we arrived, unloaded and the deal was done, I drove home with an empty trailer and pocket full of fifties but still thinking of what I had done to improve the Golf and the fun myself and my lad had driving it. Hopefully I will see it about in the future. So, tomorrow will bring something new, I am off to look at another car, all will be revealed tomorrow night.

Rear callipers would but you would need the carriers and discs, or am I completely wrong?

I do yes

My view of these apps is a dim view, or even cynical, I believe anything to do with a mobile phone is iffy, these driving apps will be linked to you as you entered your details when you installed it, your phone being the very technical thing it is will always be linked to a signal that will be transmitting data, the data from your driving will be collected and possibly used against you when you renew your insurance, as we know all insurers share data to avoid fraud and all that bull. So, I would be very careful when linking yourself to a gimmick app that may bight you one the R-Send when you were not expecting it. Modern technology is devious.

I will have a lot at the end of the month! Might need to find some steels to stand her on whilst she is stripped, I think I still have your mobile number, will drop you a text when it is here, it has to be moved before the 15th March where it is stored now, so any day after that.