Nick's Daily Driver 2 Diaries

[Flibby]

I have decided to keep myself to task now that i'm commuting around 25 miles a day in my fairly new found love.

You lot have been extremely helpful with advice since joining. Whilst i couldn't come to Ding Day 2019 due to a delayed (2 years after) Honeymoon in the states, i'm hoping to make myself known to more of you in person. Whether that is a good thing for you yet, who am I to say...

I'm going to return here whenever I do a job, in the hope that it may help someone down the line who experiences other niggles, and to give myself some more work as insurance law doesn't quite occupy my entire waking existence. (if anyone is unfortunate enough to need any informal advice on that most boring of subjects, send me a message and i'll bore you to tears).

So to start:

Car details:

55 Plate Silver Rocket 1zz standard two. Seems to have been fairly well looked after, albeit probably not garaged. I like to think that as an dog kept outdoors, this will have instilled some hardiness...

Jobs done thus far:

• Replaced lower UJ and booted it up with a miscellaneous rubber potentially from a suspension part from one of my dad's many project cars from the past.
• Oil and Filter change. Quite why there are so many different styles of bolt on my nappy i know not. But i'll get around to that.
• N/S Caliper replaced. New front pads on either side. There was some binding and a hot wheel. Now sorted. I'd recommend Brakes International to anyone. https://www.brakesint.co.uk/ Refurbed caliper with £25 back for the old one. And what a sorry state that looked. I was embarrassed taking the rusty thing in to the shop 
• Front tyres re-sealed as they were losing pressure, the guys recommended a full refurb of all 4. If this often done/needed at this age?

Jobs to come:

• New roof. Probably next year as i'll have managed to pay off the honeymoon by then.
• Find the source of my (potential) intermittent starting problem. Only happened twice in the last week, but I get a decent sounding crank but doesn't catch until the second go, or takes longer than usual. I'm slightly paranoid, but i'm either thinking the battery could need changing or a bad earth. I've read Carolyn's responses to a poor chap who had starting issues in the past. Hopefully i'm not going to disappear down that particular rabbit hole. I've got myself a OBD2 reader and nothing's thrown up there.
• Worth changing the plugs?
• Give the rear subframe a proper check over. I think i was falsely reassured by the MOT the car passed just before buying it. They would have checked the frame near the suspension parts as i understand it but not the rest. I've had the nappy off and didn't see any holes, but i was getting wet trying to do an inclement oil change, so didn't have a real poke.
• TTE Exhaust. It just looks better...

Tools I'm yet to accumulate and need to invest in:

• My own jack, axle stands and chocks so i stop bothering the old man using his garage.
• A 3/8ths socket set. I've got 1/2 inch and 1/4 inch but this would make so many jobs easier to do myself.
• A dremel. Seem to have many uses
• whatever you are about to suggest that will help me in my amateur mechanic career

Thanks for reading if you got this far. Wish me luck. And if anyone has any thoughts on easy things to check with the starting issue i'd be very much obliged 

[Chilli Girl]

Nice looking clean car that, looks like an exact Foxy bog standard sibling!  Look forward to reading up how you get with it.  Awesome little cars! 

[jvanzyl]

Welcome!
If you want, I've got a spare halfords 2.5 tonne jack that's sitting in a box... I'm in herts

[Flibby]

Welcome!
If you want, I've got a spare halfords 2.5 tonne jack that's sitting in a box... I'm in herts

Extremely grateful for the offer. I'm up t'other end of the Country so it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense but I appreciate it!

I did get a pressie in the post today though...