biggerbigneil

Yeah I know lol, I had actually done all of that before I spoke to you... The handbrake cables linking to the actual hand brake are comedy! The cables are done up at different strengths causing the hand brake to tilt towards the drivers side, thats quite easy to fix though. I'm good at bodywork, okay at electrics and very basic when it comes to diagnosing engine and chassis problems - good learning though! No idea how to work out whats wrong with the ABS, might have to take it to the garage for that

I think what I achieved on the body work was the only time well spent, using 400 and 800 grades of wet and dry around the laquer and paint peel then some G3 compound afterwards has improved the state alot! There were stains in the body work that looked like paint stripper on the roof, rear bumper and front bumper, which I have managed to get out, needs a bit more work on the front. Cleaned the engine bay and every part of the car Got the locks and sunroof working properley without any squeaks I think it's going to need a new exhaust and as everything is standard, I'd like to get a VW exhaust - any ideas on the cost for a cat back? Haven't finished doing the matrix yet, need to get a new expansion tank, change the oil, filter and sort out the horrible ride and ABS light, then get an MOT!

tricky, How cool would that look on a set of BBS RS's !

This is true, can you see the trail of coolant lol

Few pics after some polishing and attempting to do the heater matrix... I've got a feeling it is the expansion tank after all of that... Alloys are a complete mess - does anyone have some really good condition speedlines with good tyres they want to sell? I like the colour, need to polish out a few more areas and get some dents removed, the chassis is actually in better condition than my old one, which was a nice surprise! Oh there is also a sony CD player, which looks very factory, a tape holder in the center console (where VDO gauges go) and the sun roof works!

Cheers Guys, got the surround off and then the whole tape unit just came off without any screws? I thought I had to take the center console out to do the matrix? started at 13:00! Lots of cuts and grazes later and still no where near...

how the bloody hell do you remove the tape holder - same place the vdo gauges are - trying to do my heater matrix - I am about to kill someone! Any help is much appreciated, thank you! Also - Becks, good boy!

Ah Potato head, one for the invisible fuel crew! Do You Have What It Takes To Drive a BMW? A BMW is a special kind of car, and it takes a special type of person to drive one. The company has therefore devised an aptitude test to identify those of the required calibre. Answer these simple questions to find out if you've got what it takes to drive a common-as-muck German repmobile with scowling bonnet and weird headlights: 1. Your BMW is equipped with four orange flashing lights, one at each corner. What should you use them for? A: To indicate my intention to turn at an approaching junction B: Nothing: they are entirely decorative, and have no practical purpose C: To enable me to park wherever and whenever I choose, regardless of disruption to other users of the footpath. 2. When might you use a hand-held mobile phone whilst driving your BMW? A: Never, as it is inconsiderate to other road users. B: Strictly in emergency situations only C: All of the time: I need to keep calling people up to remind them how great I am. 3. You are doing 100 miles an hour in the outside lane of the motorway, when you come up behind another car. What do you do? A: Slow down to a safer speed, and pull into the lane to my left B: Ease off just a little to keep a safe distance between the other car and mine C: Drive right up to the car's bumper and keep flashing my lights until the idiot gets out of my way. 4. Which of these best describes the kind of work that you do? A: Caring for other people B: Making something of practical use C: Selling houses or drugs at a big profit 5. Your latest sales bonus / drug deal leaves you with an extra couple of thousand pounds to spend on your new BMW. What features might you add to its specification? A: A full leather interior for comfort and durability B: Satellite navigation to help me get to important meetings on time C: A set of enormous alloy wheels that make the car look like a giant Tonka toy. 6. You drive your grandmother to the supermarket to do your shopping for you. Where do you park your BMW? A: In a standard parking space, with all the ordinary cars B: Parking spaces? I've got those orange lights, remember! C: Supermarket? The old bat can take the bus and like it. 7. Because of a poorly-designed bend in the road, your BMW mounts a kerb, causing you to run into a group of schoolchildren, and almost drop your mobile phone. Your first words after the accident are most likely to be: A: "I am so sorry, it's all my fault!" B: "Stay calm everyone, I'll call an ambulance." C: "I'll have to call you back, mate, some stupid kids have ... Oh, my God! Look at the state of my car; I paid more than 25 grand for this, you know!" 8. Somebody says that you have such an ego that you think any criticism of you or your BMW can only be motivated by envy. What do you do? A: Give consideration to what they say; maybe they have a point B: Have a reasoned discussion to try and change their point of view C: Ignore them: they are obviously jealous. Scoring For each question that you answered 'A' give yourself 0 points For each question that you answered 'B' give yourself 0 points For each question that you answered 'C' give yourself 10 points Your Total 0 to 30 points: Get back to your Nissan Micra, loser! 40 to 50 points: Get back to your Nissan Micra, loser! 60 to 70 points: Welcome to the world of BMW! You need never let anyone out of a junction ever again. 80 points: You take smugness to a new level, and you have no mates. Well done! You qualify to drive that most BMW of all BMWs, the 3-Series Convertible. More than 80 points: Not only are you smug and friendless, but you tell fibs too. Brilliant! You have landed yourself a plum job on our sales team, where you can talk about yourself to other BMW drivers all day every day. Congratulations, it's no less than you deserve! We kindly ask that you pass this test on to prevent ordinary people from clogging up BMW showrooms and distracting staff from the important job of polishing their egos. Thank you for your co-operation. Now, leave us alone, and get back to your Nissan Micra, loser!

If not £9k...

This is funny, got sent this by Hugo: - Diary of a BMW driver The other day I was cruising along as usual coming onto one of my motorways, which was very busy with inferior cars. First off, I couldn't believe that the volume of traffic DIDN'T slow down for me AT ALL as I came off the slip road! I had to squeeze into a barely big enough gap between two cars in order to get onto my motorway! (The driver of the car behind me did realise his mistake though and honked an apology to me with a long blast of his horn.) Unbelievably, I had tried to do the same again before I could get into the BMW lane. (Why do underlings use this lane? Surely everyone knows it is for BMW drivers only?) Anyway, once I was in the BMW lane and posing along at 95mph enjoying the adulation that the inferior car drivers were giving me, I noticed an inferior car ahead of me which was not only in the BMW lane of my motorway, but was only driving at a ridiculous 70mph! Naturally, I got to within a foot or so from his rear bumper and flashed my headlights to remind him he shouldn't be in the BMW lane of my motorway and to get out of my way. Of course, once he realised it was a BMW behind him, he did just that, but I could hardly believe it when he pulled straight back out behind me! He also tried to keep up with me and when he realised I would out-run him, he put on some blue lights in his front grill to attract my attention and then urged me to get onto the hard shoulder so that he could congratulate me on my excellent car. Needless to say, I was eager to oblige and when we had stopped, the man gave me a piece of paper confirming what I already knew - that my car goes fast! Apparently he wants everyone to know what a superior car I have, so I had to take my driver's licence to a Police station to be sent away to have some points put on! (They're not free points either - they're £20 each and I was allowed 3! But the man at the Police station said that because I drive a BMW, it won't be much longer before I earn the full 12 points, and then I won't even NEED a driving licence, so they will take it off me! See, now THAT's the sort of respect you get when you buy and drive a BMW!'

Phil K, hehe thats a good come back I, however, don't associate with any customer service band A scum If there is a problem with your BMW, simply purchase another one and we will deal with selling your old one with minimal cash given to yourselves and maximum profit for us, oh sorry I wasn't suppose to tell lol

Hehehe I would like to offer my most humble apologies, however I must stress that I wouldn't mean it

I'm sorry, but if you were as clever as you're pretending to be, you would have a VR6 :-)

God I wanted that, would post the link but it has been removed 75k mystic blue storm advertised at £5,800 and went for £5,500! MSG: - Hi SOLD Sorry to delay my replies but I am afraid I excepted an offer less than half an hour after the upload, and the money (cash) had been transfered personally by 1.30pm the next day (tuesday) All I can say is keep trying, the car is worth it, be quick and drop everything to get the deal done the buyer was from London Robert 5,500 for your interest - bargain? The buyer was very happy

Hey Dude Interior - seats don't adjust, door pins aren't there, rear seats and trim aren't even fastened down properley. Clean everything properley! Touch up and polish up to the best I can - respray depending if I decide to keep it or sell it on Sort engine out, service etc Work out if wheels are bent lol, look out for some speedlines/solitudes in good condition with tyres Sort out electrics Get it though the MOT - ABS, calipers, brake lines and host of other problems Sort the alarm and locks out I'll start with the heater matrix and ride quality!

I can't get photo's until the weekend I'm afraid, it's at my Mum's house, off the road and away from the elements! I'll try and take some pics when I do the heater matrix - haven't one of these before What on earth does "smoke at high revs cause by oil in EX box" mean? This is on a VW service invoice after the engine rebuild. Also diagnosed misfire by fitting HT leads to correct points lol Should run ok now

Phoned up the garage Seemed reasonably normal The crank had to be replaced, so a bottom end rebuild has been done, it's just not very well documented. I think £1500 sounds about right to do everything though. Going to attempt the heater matrix this weekend!

Heater matrix = £95 less 15% for trade, fookin ell

How difficult is it to change the heater matrix? does the whole dash have to come off? any advice would be excellent! Neil

Thanks for the help offers! May need to take some people up on that Will try and get some pics tonight Haven't Vag Com's it yet, but will do!

Cheers Guys, working on it already. Does the dash have to come out fo the heater matrix or can I just remove the lower dash on the passenger side? The engine code is ABV 0007455 - this is a 2.9L, phew! After checking through the service receipts and MOT's, it is the original engine so must have had a rebuild, I'll phone the company tomorrow - London Engine & Gearbox services. It has a FVWSH and has had a serious amount of money spent on it, I just can't understand it's current condition from the expenditure and regular services.

EDIT - History of car from previous owner on the forum: - Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2004 5:30 pm NEW MEMBER TO THE CORRADO CREW! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello people, As of yesterday I am now an owner of a CVR6! At the time I was giving some serious consideration to a late spec Nissan 200 Touring which is a very useful second hand buy, thanks to consideration! On face value, the Nissan has a lot going for it, 200bhp, rwd, full leather, air con,10 stack cd. But the truth is, the Corrado is a better place to be, looks much better and is an all round better performer. I have never owned a 6cylinder car but am definitley enjoying it! It's silky smooth and has a great engine note to it. I bought the car off a woman who had owned it for 4 years, it has done 133k miles which is average for this car but high in general terms. The fact is that this car still feels miles better then when I bought a mint 205 1.9 with 69k. I am planning some minor mods for now- powerflex bushes, cross drilled brakes and an induction kit.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EDIT Maybe a lot of modding maybe not, who knows?

I am only messing, I'm sure my new VR6 cost less than most of the valvers on this site lol But seriously, get the VR6 Oh, and, you had an E36 M3 and it wasn't that bad - thats because they are bloody excellent! My 328i Sport is a lovely bit of kit, but it doesn't have the charm of the Corrado. It's very difficult to explain, I was so upset seeing my old VR6 drive off and I wouldn't even blink if the person that bought my old beamers or golfs crashed into a tree (slow speed of course, you get me)

Yah get a VR6, it's like this: - Valver = Beginner G60 = Intermediate VR6 = Advanced :-)

For a 328i Sport? They have leather, mtech suspension, mtech bodykit and 17" BBS's I haven't seen any on a N plate or later for that money. You don't want an early one because the interior falls apart and the engines are crap. You really want a >98 that has had a new engine and spindle recall under warranty. Don't touch one that hasn't had a new engine as the early ones are made or cardboard! I have to admit, going sideways is fun, I did a power slide around a roundabout on Monday with Biggerbighugo, which you could never do with FWD :-) Save up and get a 3.0L M3!