Sensible car maintenance advice?

[Kajjal]

And did the loser have to serve you?

 

[tyred]

My favourite garage story concerns a friend of my uncle's who used to work in a garage years ago when someone left in a 3 wheeler Reliant to get the exhaust welder. Bob went to drive it over the pit and forgot about the single front wheel so ended up with an unhappy customer and a Reliant wedged in the pit, causing a considerable amount of damage to the front bodywork in the process.

 

[Levo-Lon]

My favourite ghilariouse story concerns a friend of my uncle's who used to work in a garage years ago when someone left in a 3 wheeler Reliant to get the exhaust welder. Bob went to drive it over the pit and forgot about the single front wheel so ended up with an unhappy customer and a Reliant wedged in the pit, causing a considerable amount of damage to the front bodywork in the process.

My boss when i was working in a body shop did the same..hilarious

 

[Mr Celine]

Absolutely. Whatever four wheeler you drive, keep the best boots on the rear. Understeer may be bad for your Y fronts - oversteer is a killer.

Unless you spent years driving tail-happy cars like Cortinas and Sierras. The oversteer either wrote the car off or instilled in the driver a life-long reflex ability to control a rear end slide.

 

[Drago]

Yes, the reflex is there we me having had everything from Carlton GSI' s through 7 series Bimmers, but the typical Sierra rep spec version never had the power to straighten itself out when they let go. Back end comes out, steer into it, nut not as much as instinct tells you, and stamp on the gas
Didn't work in a 80BHP Sierra!

In FWD cars you have no drive to the rear at all, so once the arse end let's go its in the lap of the gods as to whether or not they regain grip - there's nowt the driver can do about it, hence best to keep the nearest boots in the back.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Unless you spent years driving tail-happy cars like Cortinas and Sierras. The oversteer either wrote the car off or instilled in the driver a life-long reflex ability to control a rear end slide.

Or a Morris Minor on cross-ply in the wet.............


I used to have a Bedford Rascal van, many years ago (bike-carrier, & changing-room)
That was scary on roundabouts, it swapped ends on me, a few times!! - even with good tyres

 

[subaqua]

Unless you spent years driving tail-happy cars like Cortinas and Sierras. The oversteer either wrote the car off or instilled in the driver a life-long reflex ability to control a rear end slide.

Capris were the same. To me Capri pants means the one with the brown mark in them ! The alleged solution was to load the boot . Which loaded the brake load sensing distribution valve . Which made it worse. Until the actuator was removed to the valve . Then a bag of sand in the boot helped immensely .

 

[Tanis8472]

Or a Morris Minor on cross-ply in the wet.............


I used to have a Bedford Rascal van, many years ago (bike-carrier, & changing-room)
That was scary on roundabouts, it swapped ends on me, a few times!! - even with good tyres

Bloody scary things those are. Had the same happen to me

 

[perplexed]

Unless you spent years driving tail-happy cars like Cortinas and Sierras. The oversteer either wrote the car off or instilled in the driver a life-long reflex ability to control a rear end slide.

Sierras, blimey...

I never owned one, but had one on loan for about a week many years ago - I went round a steady curve, which I'd been round thousands of times in dozens of different vehicles in all conditions.

It was dry, I was pootling home. I still ended up doing a 180 degree spin in the road

 

[Drago]

Mind you, you were pished as a fart.

 

[raleighnut]

My favourite garage story concerns a friend of my uncle's who used to work in a garage years ago when someone left in a 3 wheeler Reliant to get the exhaust welder. Bob went to drive it over the pit and forgot about the single front wheel so ended up with an unhappy customer and a Reliant wedged in the pit, causing a considerable amount of damage to the front bodywork in the process.

When I worked in a Garage the Gaffers Son drove his Dads E-Type V12 on to the 4 poster ramp and ripped the back box and tailpipes off the back.

 

[Oldfentiger]

My favourite garage story concerns a friend of my uncle's who used to work in a garage years ago when someone left in a 3 wheeler Reliant to get the exhaust welder. Bob went to drive it over the pit and forgot about the single front wheel so ended up with an unhappy customer and a Reliant wedged in the pit, causing a considerable amount of damage to the front bodywork in the process.

The Reliant Robin van (as in Trotters Independent Trading) is not very heavy and will stand quite happily on its back door with nose pointing upwards.
Don't ask me how I know

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Bloody scary things those are. Had the same happen to me

And in the snow, or on the M-way, when a National Express coach came past (in the days before limiters)



Mindst you, a friends 101FC was almost as bad, particularly as he ran it on Bar-Grips (horrible military tyres)
Given its relatively light back end, & load-apportioning valve, it could be made to lift the rear end, under heaving braking (if brakes in good order)
But, with a petrol V8, it sounded glorious

Yes, we did strip his down, like that in summer!!


This beauty wasn't his, & is still on bar-grips

 

[Profpointy]

And in the snow, or on the M-way, when a National Express coach came past (in the days before limiters)
View attachment 131948


Mindst you, a friends 101FC was almost as bad, particularly as he ran it on Bar-Grips (horrible military tyres)
Given its relatively light back end, & load-apportioning valve, it could be made to lift the rear end, under heaving braking (if brakes in good order)
But, with a petrol V8, it sounded glorious

Yes, we did strip his down, like that in summer!!


This beauty wasn't his, & this example isn't on bar-grips

View attachment 131949

that's probably top of my dream car list - at least of anything I might realistically get as the 6x6 Alvis or Scammell are really only on the fantasy list.

 

[Drago]

Aye, Alvis Stolly for me please!