[crepello]

Clutch is taking some getting used to and the cable and/or pedal needs some adjustment to be spot on.

Looking a lot better without the grille. (But Hyacinth Bucket would be appalled.)

Clutch cable on a R65 box is stated to be self adjusting. Which seems to amount to having that spring round the outside of the cable where it exits the firewall.

Can't get my head round how it works, as the spring feels softer than the pull on the clutch release arm.

[Montegoman]

Is the cable in the bonnet catch to activate a microswitch for the alarm?

[220 GSi turbo]

Is the cable in the bonnet catch to activate a microswitch for the alarm?

Indeed it is.

If Vulgalour cuts the multiplug off the original bonnet lock, solders the two wires together and then plugs it into the loom on the car, it should fool the alarm system into 'thinking' that the bonnet is permanently shut

Just to wade in to the debate over the choice of wheels, I am not a fan of them. But I am a fan of us all doing what we like with our own cars

[Vulgalour]

I do not care for lattice alloys. They do suit the car if you go a particular way, but I'm more Street Machine than Readers Digest in my car styling choices. The reverse is often true of my wardrobe. Make of that what you will.

Does the wire in the latch complete/break the circuit with the latch itself then? I've not looked at it that closely so I wasn't entirely sure.

The clutch feel has improved, it's certainly good to have a biting point and reliable gear selection now, but the pedal does feel a little high compared the rest. I'm not sure if this is normal or not for the R8 which is why I think the adjustment might be off.

[engtmitc]

vauxhall is never the solution.

EFA.

Reminds me of that old Unipart slogan:

"The answer's not Vauxhall, now what's the question?"

[Vulgalour]

Today my bonnet badge arrived which I'm looking forward to fitting once I've finished sorting the paint on the bonnet. I fitted the new brake pads too and it was a relief they were the right ones this time. The brakes feel great now, I hadn't expected so much of an improvement over what was on there. Clutch is improving with use, so that self-adjusting thing it has must be doing its job. I also discovered that brake fluid tastes like Angostura Bitters, though I wouldn't recommend using it to create delicious cocktails with.

[gbs100]

Any updates

[Vulgalour]

To be honest, no. The car has just been totally reliable and easy to live with which, given how crazy-busy work has been lately, is a massive blessing! First weekend off in a while meant I took my 14 year old dog to the beach today, possibly for the first time in his life.

I've not had chance to do any more cosmetic work to the car and it's not asked for anything mechanically at all. You just get in, turn the key and off you go. Superb stuff. See, still looks pretty smart even outside a fairly drab house at the seaside.



Blake-dog really enjoyed playing in the sea, it was a fantastic day for it. He also finds the back seat to be just the right size to lay out on and go to sleep.





My brother did shampoo the driver's seat recently very quickly and it highlighted that they're all actually pretty dirty so that's on my list, along with finishing the polishing on the bonnet and dealing with the paint blemishes. I am really enjoying this car, it's a joy to own.

[GTiJohn]

Two happy Rovers

[Vulgalour]

Little bit of an update on the car here, because there are a few things of note.

Clutch - this is now perfect. After an initial 'tight spot' on the clutch pedal travel it's gradually smoothed out and now feels right, not ridiculously feather light and not so heavy it's a nuisance in traffic.

Brakes - brilliant, the stopping power is quite good. Now that everything is bedded in at the front I had to put a smidge of brake fluid back in. The handbrake still isn't great but then I still haven't got around to adjusting it to sort that out. I imagine it would pass an MoT and it does hold the car in hills so it's fine for now

Windscreen - at night it can be a bit of a chore, there's a lot of micro-scratches on it which some modern headlights in oncoming cars turn into horrible starbursts. I don't drive at night that often as I have little need to but with the nights drawing in this is going to become more of an issue I'm sure.

Engine and gearbox - absolutely fine. Amusingly torquey, and steady on the temperature, if anything it runs a little cool. I'm losing no coolant or oil, this car still doesn't mark its territory which, I think, is a first for one of my cars. Gearbox doesn't always like to select reverse but this is a problem I've had in quite a few of my cars now and one I live with. Reverse works fine, it's just occasionally you think you've selected it and then it pops out into neutral, a reselection of the gear always cures the issue. The gearbox itself has quitened down completely now and when the engine is at idle the loudest thing under the bonnet are the injectors.

Suspension - when wet (raining or just washed the car) there's an occasional creak from a bush at the rear. There's an occasional clonk from the front somewhere but I can't replicate it and it's only on full lock. My front tyres (Attracta Lassa, what a name) appear to now be square and are going to need replacing soon, that's not a fault of the car though, that's purely down to the rubbishness of the tyres.

Niggles - There's some niggles. Central locking doesn't work on the driver's side, so it's button to disarm and key to unlock. I've not opened up the doors to find out what's broken, it'll be something plastic no doubt. The wipers don't come on when you use the washer jets, I'm certain this is how it is from the factory but it is a bit annoying in a car of this age, I can forgive that sort of thing on something like my Princess. You can turn the headlights off by accident when indicating, as I found out today. The car will, and has, spun up the front tyres when changing into second gear. I'm putting this down to a combination of rubbish front tyres and occasional exuberant driving.


All in all though, it's a great little motor and one I'm more than happy with as previously stated. It's a very good fit. I'd like to tell you what my fuel usage is but I'm not getting through enough fuel to work it out, try as I might! So I guess it must be pretty good on the liquid dinosaurs.