DieselMonte's 2012 Monte Carlo Project.

[AnnoyingPentium]

14 minutes ago, HeavyMetalRich said:

What tyres have you gone for?

 

Also interested in this...

[DieselMonte]

Nothing fancy, Aplus A701 is the name of the tyre. 65 each fitted. 

No rim protectors to speak of, but plenty of sidewall. Treads on them certainly make them seem like they're fit for purpose, i'll grab a photo of the tread pattern next day.

 

And I take back what I said a few hours ago, it would seem that the brace has made a difference after all, not by much but I was out in the car on some backroads and the car certainly felt a bit sharper turning in, and going through some S curves it certainly felt more planted.

Should note it was a much tighter fit in my mk2 compared to my mk1 for whatever reason, had to employ both a scissor jack and a rubber mallet to wedge it into place.

[HeavyMetalRich]

Yeah the tread looks decent enough from the first pic of them. Are they just All Season or full blown winter?

[AnnoyingPentium]

Also got a question, are they any good in rain?

[DieselMonte]

29 minutes ago, HeavyMetalRich said:

Yeah the tread looks decent enough from the first pic of them. Are they just All Season or full blown winter?

Full blown Winters, hence why they arent on the car just yet, I reckon they'll go on in a week or two though.

31 minutes ago, AnnoyingPentium said:

Also got a question, are they any good in rain?

I'll only be able to tell once they're on the car. Look like they'll be decent though.

[DieselMonte]

Pics of the tread as promised.

[HeavyMetalRich]

12 hours ago, DieselMonte said:

Pics of the tread as promised.

 

Is that 195/50R16 size? I've just received a set of Goodyears for my Fabia in that size, so I'll have to get them stuck on in the next few weeks even though we probably won't get any kind of frostyness until into the new year if current trends are followed.

 

I got three winters out my last set of Goodyears on my Octavia two of which involved a lot of commuting which the set on the Fabia will be doing too.

 

Also the standard 205/45R16s are coming on impossible to get as I'm sure you found too.

[DieselMonte]

Yep 195/50 R16 tyres.

I didn't know 205/45 was a hard size to come by but I don't doubt it. I think I got these rims with 195/45 tyres on them, guessing thats because thats the easiest size to get that would fit? Looked fine on the mk1 but when I put then on the mk2 a while ago they looked very rubber bandy.

 

I cannot see these lasting for 3 winters, I'll be happy if I get this winter out of them .

 

It got down to 2°c last saturday here, in the daytime its about 10°c but I do most of driving most in the morning and evenings so its due time to get them on I think.

[DieselMonte]

So I put them on this evening:

They're a touch larger than the 17s, I think they look good with a chunky tyre on. 

Seems to be plenty of clearance in the wheel wells anyway so won't rub, hopefully.

The 312s are a tight fit but not touching.

 

[HeavyMetalRich]

The Spiders look really good on the Mk II! I like that. Bet they look good on the Mk III as well. The Octavia ones did. I might need to experiment.😁

[AnnoyingPentium]

22 minutes ago, HeavyMetalRich said:

Bet they look good on the Mk III as well. The Octavia ones did. I might need to experiment.😁

 

I shall await with bated breath.

[skomaz]

Looks better with the silver wheels...

[AnnoyingPentium]

34 minutes ago, skomaz said:

Looks better with the silver wheels...

 

Agreed. Really makes it look smart.

[DieselMonte]

On 02/11/2021 at 13:16, skomaz said:

Looks better with the silver wheels...

I wouldn't go that far, prefer the 17s on it myself.

Been driving on them for a while now and when the weather had been cold they were definately better at holding the road. Now the weathers dried up but its giving this week warm and very wet, I think they'll do fine. 

Certainly a different feeling with these on compared to the 17s, I can feel a lot more the tyres squirming around when entering a turn. Accelerating and braking takes a bit more caution, but nothing too bad and it seems to be less of a problem the more miles I put on them. Amazing how soft the tread blocks are on these tyres, probably explains a lot of the squirming.

[DieselMonte]

Small update, saw a set of Fabia 2 floor mats, brand new being given away so I asked for them and...

A mere 150 odd mile trip to get them but it was worth it.

The original mats are now in the mk1.

 

Its not much on camera but I think its made the interior look a bit fresher.

 

They even came with these mounts for all 4 mats. Basically just screw them into the carpet, dead easy to do. The front of my car had the standard clips but the rears never did so the mats would always end up getting scrunched up. Oddly the rear mats themselves had the holes for clips to go through but the car didn't. You should be able to make out the screw in mounts in this photo.

 

I only needed to use 2 pairs of them for the rears so I have 2 more pairs I can use to secure the old mats properly into the mk1.

 

Averaged just under 59mpg for the whole trip, not terrible.

That brown down the sides is just from todays driving, by the time I got it home it was even worse

So its getting a wash, even if it will be just as dirty come tomorrow.

[DieselMonte]

Not much of an update but

Went on a short spin to wicklow this evening and had this Mk1 vRS SE running alongside us over the M50. Thing was amazing to watch, shooting sooty flames out of it and went like stink.

 

Had a hard time hearing eachother on the motorway though, might be prudent for me to get some sound deadening and have a go. 

[DieselMonte]

Had a mysterious power steering fluid leak:

 

 

The pump fell off, compared to the mk1 we can see it pretty clearly.

 

Managed to get it back in and its not leaking so far

, 

Looks to have been replaced at one point so most likely just wasnt put in right.

 

Saying that, I don't know when it was changed, and I'll have driven the car 20000 miles since I got it in the next week or so, most of that done this year alone. In other words its held up for quite a while and taken quite a lot of abuse before coming apart. 

Happy the pump and all is still ok and it just took a bit of persuading to go back on.

 

Edited 31 March, 2022 by DieselMonte

[AnnoyingPentium]

8 hours ago, DieselMonte said:

Had a mysterious power steering fluid leak:

The pump fell off, compared to the mk1 we can see it pretty clearly.

 

Managed to get it back in and its not leaking so far, 

Looks to have been replaced at one point so most likely just wasnt put in right.

 

Saying that, I don't know when it was changed, and I'll have driven the car 20000 miles since I got it in the next week or so, most of that done this year alone. In other words its held up for quite a while and taken quite a lot of abuse before coming apart. 

Happy the pump and all is still ok and it just took a bit of persuading to go back on.

 

 

Glad that you've got this fixed.

[HeavyMetalRich]

You might be worth having a check of the big clip around it too if you haven't already. That is all that holds the tank on and I would think that might be slightly loose if it's fallen off. A little nip with the o-clip pliers or side cutters might be all it needs.

 

Edit: Nevermind, I've just seen your thread in the MkII forum. 👍

Edited 3 December, 2021 by HeavyMetalRich

[DieselMonte]

Yeah that clip should be tightened up enough.

Have been under it this evening and cant see it leaking so good chance it will hold.

 

Been meaning to change the gearbox oil as I've noticed it being quite damp around the drain plug, been like that for as long as I've had it to be honest.

Pit is a good job, if a bit sketchy. Might be worth doing spacers if nothing else to make it easier to get onto the pit.  

(Tell a lie this pic was taken yesterday when I was finding that power steering leak, point still stands though) 

 

You can see the grime thats built up around it, I  brake cleaned that all off when I put the drain plug back in.

 

Gearbox oil looked ok, bit darker than the new stuff but otherwise fine. Not a lot came out though.

 

All back together and no leaks, shifting feels a bit nicer.

 

Wasnt the only thing I did tonight, I have something i've had for a while and finally decided to put them on. Have had to hold off for a bit as I'll need bigger bolts and much better drill bits to make it work here.

Edited 3 December, 2021 by DieselMonte

[DieselMonte]

Got around to putting on the bits I mentioned last post, a pair of led spotlamps. I'm really not a fan of leds but for my purposes I couldn't really go with

normal spots.

Instead of putting them out on the bumper I wanted to mount them halfways hidden behind the grille so I knew I had to get something small.

They were a bit of a pain to mount, had to drill the crash bar out which took ages to do even with new bits, and then discovered they would sit too low so I had to get much longer bolts and then fashion up a spacer to lift them up enough to be seen.

 

I Tinted them yellow, made no difference except turn the light green, they are pure white normally so I didnt expect them to go green.

Pic is of just the spotlights on, even behind the grill they put out a decent amount of light.

And heres what they loom like behind the grille, should be noted that the grille isnt properly clipped on in that photo. I'll get a better photo tomorrow.

 

Wiring them was pretty easy, had to use connectors to join it all together as I don't have a soldering iron. They're wired so that they only come on with the highbeams.

 

So far they seem to be doing well.

Definately can see a lot further out than what I normally would have.

Another reason I put them on is that I think they'll make it more obvious whether or not my highbeams are on to oncoming drivers.

[VanhireBoys]

On 05/12/2021 at 22:28, DieselMonte said:

Got around to putting on the bits I mentioned last post, a pair of led spotlamps. I'm really not a fan of leds but for my purposes I couldn't really go with

normal spots.

 

 

Nice work DM... Very discreet !  Its kind of a must to have spots in a rural area .... I'm a big fan of extra lighting !!   

 

[DieselMonte]

Did some slight tweaking to the lights, added another layer of tint to try get them to look more yellow

And I adjusted them slightly, had to replace the bolt that holds one of the pods in place as it stripped trying to get it tight enough.

They aren't that yellow in person sadly.

 

Side note I've found the abs kicking on a lot more than i'd like, and this just driving normally. Never felt the abs do much up until recently and it feels like even the most minor difference in grip sends it into a tizzy.

[DieselMonte]

Not my proudest moment but felt I should share. Lately I've noticed a bit of a clunk from the front which I took to be either something with the arb, or a driveshaft going bad.

Someone suggested I check the engine mounts and I did. Lo and behold the drivers side mount (which I've only replaced a few months ago) had a lot of play in it, more than the mount in the mk1 even. I didnt want to be driving with it over christmas and I figured I wouldnt be able to get a mount for it again because of christmas. So I took it upon myself to bodge the original mount and put it in.

I put the original mount in a vice and squeezed it in to make room on the top of the bushing.

Then I got the tigerseal out and proceeded to shove as much of it as I could into the gap I made. Left it to set for almost a week like this.

And put it in.

Not the prettiest job but it has solved the clunking.Made a noticeable difference when you put your foot down too, it feels like the engines not moving about as much compared to the other mount if that makes any sense. I'll try warrantying the other mount and see what they say.  

I don't expect this to hold up for long but it just needs to last long enough for me to get another mount in. For the sake of a few euros worth of tiger seal I can't really complain .

I wonder if VW made a stiffer version of this mount, I believe the diesel mounts stiffer than the petrol ones but I wonder if there exists one stiffer than that.

[DieselMonte]

Wasnt doing anything this morning so went and did a bit of "Maintenence" on this. Really I just wanted to take another look at the egr piping and what not and give it another clean.

Fairly scummy but seems like the restrictor plates doing its job.

Took a look at the asv and said I may as well take it off for a clean too.Thats the top of it where it meets the intake manifold.

Heres the bottom side thats joined to an intercooler hose. I thought it would be worse but the only real dirt was that buildup you can see in the photo.

Took a bit of scrubbing to get it clean. I used this pink stuff paste with a scouring sponge and it came off fairly easily. 

Cleaned up the egr bits again before putting them back on. Dont need to be perfect just cleaner than what they were. A lot of the dirt I was finding was mostly oil i'm guessing from the breather, wasnt too hard to clean.

Got a shot up the intake manifold and it doesnt look too bad, I was expecting worse.

 

Happy I've cleaned up the asv even though it shouldn't make any difference to its running.

Think I've mentioned before about fitting a catch can and I think its time I actually pull my finger out and do it, it won't harm anything.