I need a couple of issue's sorting out and was after some quick advice please. Sorry if you've read this in the welcome section already, as someone pointed out it probably wasnt the right place to ask.

1) despite it sayin 70k in the handbook for a cambelt change and not specifying a timescale. Reading on here it seems like its a good idea to get done ASAP. Am i right in thinking about £300 all in with a metal water pump thingy (not technically minded at all) is a sensible bench mark? Has anyone in the essex area had this done and if so who buy. I want someone to do the job properly.

2) I need some new tyres shortly i think i've narrowed it down to three after reading thro some post's what do u think?

TOYO T1R PROXES TOYO T1 R - 205/45R16 87W XL £61.60

KKUMHO KU31 ECSTA SPORT KUMHO KU 31 - 205/45R16 87W XL £50.00

HANKOOK K104 HANKOOK K 104 - 205/45R16 87Y XL £54.00

I'm expecting to pay approx £8 fitting per tyre all in at a local garage.

Hopefully the two new tyres will cure the slight vibration/pull/wobble thing that goes on at about 90mph (in germany of course) as the tyres currently on it seem to have worn slightly unevenly and although i've had them balanced/tracked it doesnt seem to of solved the problem.

3) Finally whats the cheapest way to cure the understeer/body roll (i don't need a touring car, but the current set up doesn't seem to match the performance again the front boots probably arent helping i know.

Thanks for your help.

Ben

3)

Uprate front arb bushes (cupra bushes) £15

Eibachs with koni dampers £400/500?

Jabbasport RARB £200

Seatsport strut brace.

Most tires are good if you buy quality, just avoid pirelli's as there nasty, im running uniroyal rainsports and they are the best tire ive ever used, suits the furby down to the gound as we all know they like to spin the wheels in the wet..... well no more (in moderation obviously)

thanks. I'm assuming rarb stands for rear ant roll bar.

Can u tell i'm a novice??

thanks. I'm assuming rarb stands for rear ant roll bar.

Can u tell i'm a novice??

Yes, i dont have one but they get raved about on here, i run the eibachs on standard dampers (£150), seatsport strut brace from seat (£44) and the uprated Ibiza PD160 front console bushes (£15)

And it has transformed the car completely, im happy with this set up and will stick with it, wont bother with the arb as its a bit pricey and the standard shockers are fine with the eibachs as there progressive, obviously the life span of the OEM dampers will suffer but when that happens i'll just upgrade to the koni fsd dampers:thumbup:

Ive got toyo's on the mrs vrs and I recommend them. Last night coming back from the airport at stupid-o-clock in the peeing down rain they were excellent.

Ive also got a Jabba RARB. Again I highly recommend it. Look out for a group buy and add your name to the list for a discount. It makes a huge difference, more so than the front (Seat) ARB which hasnt made that much difference IMO.

Just so you don't get blank looks when you ask for them, the Cupra bushes are for the rear suspension console bushes, not the front anti-roll bar!

As for tyres, I had several sets of Proxes and have PZero Neros on now. I don't agree that they're 'nasty', just different. The Proxes were very very grippy, but noisy and stodgy. The PZero Neros aren't quite as grippy, but a lot quieter and feel more responsive to steering input.

An RARB will help reduce body roll at low speeds (think hairpins and roundabouts) without affecting ride quality, and fitting stiffer springs and dampers will help with body roll in fast corners. As you admit to being a novice, I'd recommend you shy away from anything cheap to do with suspension lowering, as simply dropping the car to the floor without taking care of the geometry will just leave you with a car that's bumpy on the roads and incapable of taking corners. Shelling out for a decent set of dampers and springs as suggested by jasc1988 would see you right, but it's a lot of money if you're just doing it for show IMHO...

Octimark isn't the first one to suggest that the strut brace doesn't really seem to do all that much, but then quite a few people have them so maybe they do. Can't say I've noticed the body flexing on fast corners myself, but maybe I don't drive fast enough to make it happen! :P

Eibachs and FSD's Cupra bushes and powerflex bushes all being fitted next week at Awesome for around the £850 mark currently running proxes on the fronts and the std contis on the rear.

Rather strangely, when i rang up my local dealer to order the console bushes and gave them the part number they didnt reconise it and asked for a chassis number!

Something fishy going on there!

Rather strangely, when i rang up my local dealer to order the console bushes and gave them the part number they didnt reconise it and asked for a chassis number!

Something fishy going on there!

Seat dealer?

Seat dealer?

Yep.

I think i'll approach the servicing guys at the SEAT dealer and ask them to actually change them. If they are the only VAG cars that just replace the bush rather than the whole console bracket they should know how to do it properly.

I asked for a set once from a SEAT dealer and they wanted a chassis number... I told them I didn't have it because it was for a Fabia and they wouldn't sell them me knowing they weren't going on a SEAT.

So I thought 'charming' and found a pair on ebay instead...