mac11irl

yip, it is (was) so popular they kept making mk1s in a diesel "taxi spec" up to 2010 that you had to supply your cabbie license to be allow to order..

work away and copy whatever you need ask about - water leaks at doors, cabin filter, bonnet cable grommet, boot hatch hinges. "bouncy" idle (if its not smooth the maf is dying, has to be a genuine replacement) turbo condition. has it had the coilpacks recall carried out? when was the timing belt, thermostat and water pump done last. what was the repair work done on it after the insurance write off. suspension condition - including bushes etc. .

mot history isnt going tell all the stories though... what condition is the turbo actually in.. sticky vanes is common, but easy enough to sort. it almost a given that at least one door card will have been off for a lock mechanism repair. that can be done with subtlety, or with a lump hammer... and if the hammer option a good chance the membrane wasnt replaced properly = leaky boi.

well, its definitely a mk1. honestly, noone can say its a good car without physically looking at all the oily bits - should they be oily? should they not be.... being an uneconomical repair write off, it could mean anything or nothing - its old, so a smooshed bumper could be enough for insurance to say good bye to it. in general if its been minded reasonably well and hasnt been overly abused or tinkered with by anyone who thinks they know more about what theyre doing than reality, it should be alright. it could be the photo angle but image 4 of the rear it looks like its sitting down on the driver's side rear? might need a suspension refresh if it is - thats trickier on the estate vrs as getting proper rated springs and dampers is getting harder, with a lot of misadvertised (through ignorance not malice) kits on the like of ebay etc. sellers listing them for estate vrs but they're actually for a mk4 golf gti and the rears wont sit properly other than the above - look for evidence of leaks everywhere. go through the service history if available and look for any big or odd parts being put on

when your finished your house arrest you'll have to post some piccies of the new beast

in keeping related to the original thread title, but down a few rungs on the power ladder, how does this video make people feel? i have chest pains watching it... 82eca4410274a3b95fee5ad728ac8af6.mp4

you feel free to p in your adblue tank or top it up with water. let us know how how u get on.

adblue is made using urea. urea is a nitrogen based chemical. nitrgoen production uses natural gas extract. nitrogen is also used for agri fertiliser. fertiser has has been hitting a supply issue for over 12months now, so pre Ukraine, but the situation regarding gas supplies since Ukaine started is going to have a massive impact on nitrogen production and all the stuff that needs it - farming especially as Ukrainian grain is of such high importance for global supply. therefore it also makes sense that adblue is going to be harder to get and more expensive..

given its an 09 A3, id probably have a look for similar issues in the mk2 Octy section? they would share a decent amount of electrical gear as the later mk2s. not sure if the 09 A3 had moved to the mqb platform? if it did then the mk3 octy would be the hunting ground.

dry ground all round today on my Long Hill jaunt. the amount of hill climb condition ive lost over the winter is staggering.. despite the running! 48mins to the top, i could do it in 40 last summer . no coffee shops at my rest stop i put the deer sigting video in the joy thread, if anyone managed to see them! i have my eye on the next challenge though, next peak to the south is another 75m odd higher than long hill, it then drops down to the "Powers the Pot" road, which leads back to Tickincor woods which has some nice trails to drop down, and then a 4-5k riverside tramp to get home should make a nice circuit.

i get to join properly now... father in law's set uo from his youth, MIL found someone who could fix it, arrived back the other day and set up today.. i have no additional info beyond the pics.. havnt seen it yet. FIL reckons its about 51yrs old, he'll be 71 in August..

the used one you were offered has the carpet that runs out under the rear seats included with it in the photo, but they are separate sections.

eh, yeah, the previous last post pre dates my joining by 19months !

keep a bar of emergency chocolate in there with less melting

i would suggest steel trunking to prevent accidental through drilling? similar to whassisname's thread about the kitchen unit.

managed to get a terrible little video of the final approach 20220324_211131.mp4

out last night, ran the hill climb again.. and just kept going. absolutely heaving by the top, but... 3.5km of pretty constant uphill plugging on. had to stop once for a car coming down, and the 10sec gave enough of a refresh to get back up to speed for the last bit of road section. then said right im too close to not finish this and hopped the stile and pressed on to the top. even better was discovering last night that i actually tagged the 9th fastest time on the off road bit, and id gone a slightly longer way than the segment route. reckon i could get to top 5 just by going the shorter route! nice view from the top in the dark too, with the whole town lit up (it was about 2115hrs when i git there)

it got to me... i went... i hill climbed... i got to the first junction on the climb... ignore those pr times, that first km has a data issue... no way i did a 2m 11s km! i wouldnt cycle it in that! the 8m for km3... yeah, thats accurate... i was practically crawling towards the top. it was good push though, think i needed it, hoping it will help blow out my lungs and reset this f'ki g covid cough...

oh lord this is overdue an update... not much to report, i havnt been out since Sunday 2 weeks ago.. i did a different kinda run that night, chancing a run up the 15-25% grade hill i cycle up to get to the hills, to see how far id get.. made it about a km up the hill, after about a k to get there. also held a reasonable pace up it too. given the gradient etc. then swmbo had a couple of work things that stung me for the start of that week, and the weather was appalling, and then i got covid! been down since. really want a good cycle, but feel like my lungs might split if i try.. fingers crossed for later this week thougj.

i presyme you sorted that out Crasher? at a guess the steering position sensor was out of calibration with the new rack?

yeah, i think once the seals get blown out on these racks thats it...

if the door membrane is okay on the rear door - the floor pan slopes to the rear so water will gather there naturally if parked on the level. so, check the front door membrane and door seals. check behind the wheel arch liner for blocked scuttle drain. if its clogged, clear it out. water probably getting via the firewall grommet for the bonnet release cable

a normal grade Sachs or Luk clutch and flywheel kit will absolutely do perfectly fine in that car.

probably a leaking joint somewhere on the exhaust side of things inside the engine bay - could be on the turbo pipework. or, a minor teeny oil leak thats worse u der heavy load (higher pressure) and the oil is burning on a hot surface in the engine bay.

as above - turbo vanes. what engine code is in the car? ALH/ASZ etc?