Anton Sobriquet

Just been reading thro' this from the beginning. Cool as........... but where'd he go? Dying to see it come together.

Breakers. Would have thought any KR engined VW, eg Corrado, Mk2 16V, would be more or less identical. Doubt you could get just that bit from a stealer but could be wrong.

Useful links, thanks. Found this on motester:- Mirrors Not all mirrors on all vehicles are subject to Test, depending on the age of the vehicle. Those mirrors which must be checked must be:- secure visible from the driver's seat not distorted or damaged so as to seriously impair the driver's view to the rear. Government site just says "minimum number must be on vehicle" and refers to security & condition. I'll call around some MOT testers and see what they say.

Should have posted this ages ago, just to wind it up. It turned out the ECU was perfectly OK and the intermittent non-start was a faulty ignition switch. A mate and I spent about 3 hours messing about trying to replace it, following the guide in the wiki. It's unbelievably fiddly, particularly as the screw holding the switch in is brass and we ended up having to carve a new slot in it after smoothing the head. But we got there in the end and the car fires up like a good 'un now. Wouldn't want to have to do it agin, tho'... I went for an OBD2 conversion in the end, as per sig, and must say it's a huge improvement. Well worth it. Engine is much more lively and responsive. Only snag is I've got a faulty reading on the MFA output for MPG - it permanently reads 99.9 :lol: Otherwise everything works.

The driving mirror attached to my windscreen dropped off about a week ago as I was checking out my hairdo. Looks like it was glued onto some kind of metallic film stuck on the screen. Must say I've got much better vision without it and just use the door mirrors to watch for the old bill and check out the crumpet now. I know there doesn't have to be one in a non-walkthrough van or truck but is it legal to drive without one in a car? Anyone?

I've got a couple of them I bought from a forum member a couple of yeaqrs ago. I'm not planning on using them anymore (were going on a Mk2 that got stolen) and you're welcome to one or both, if you want. Can't remember what I paid, but it couldn't have been much. I'll check it out. IIRC they've got a bit of red paint around the front, but it would easily come off. LMK and I'll post on parts for sale to comply with forum rules.

Been looking for my Haynes but couldn't find it. Rats! IIRC it's part of the ECU gubbins. The wires connect to the 'ignition module'? - can't remember the name of it off hand. Not the Hall Sender, don't think there is one, but something along those lines............. I know there's a good diagram in Haynes for the KR ECU and dizzy connections but I haven't looked at it for years. memories terrible. Sorry! May as well give home start a bell. Sounds like you've tried everything else. Keep us posted.

Obviously not the starter motor then! I've had good results getting valvers going by bump starting when they wouldn't fire up on the key, tho'. Defo worth a go, mate. As aide said a page back, it's difficult off a forum, 'cos it could be one or more of so many things. As a last try, check ECU's bone dry, disconnect it and plug it back in. Sometimes works. Otherwise, you'll just have to threaten it with Gordon Clown's scappage scheme. Don't suppose you've got Home Start breakdown cover?

There's an earthing point on top of the gearbox case, IIRC, another near the starter motor somewhere, I think. Just look around in the engine bay for the earth straps, you can't miss them. It's worth doing all of them. Undo the nuts and sand all the metal until it's shiny, including the point on the engine, gearbox or body it's bolted to. If you see rust, it's a clue that it's causing problems or soon will do. Nothing lost if that's not the issue, to keep from getting a big voltage drop when you try starting. Welding cable is big, fat chunky stuff which is infinitely superior to the original earth cables. You should be able to get it either from an electrical wholesalers or a discount motor supplies. Remove original cable and replace with welding cable. Good point on the vacuum hoses bananOr. Also check the circlip aand seals on the rubbery hoses from the MAF. I had one come loose once and the car misfired and started badly 'til I found it. I assume you've WD40'd everything, including distributor?

Assuming everything's dry, it's always worth cleaning up the earths. I had similar problems on a 16V. Replaced everything possible without success. Shined up all the earthing points and fired up immediately. Worth replacing the standard cables with some thick welding cable, too. Hope this helps. Good luck.

Don't forget to try the 'blue' spanner. Get a blowtorch on the nuts until they're red hot then lick and blow on your fingers and have another go. If that fails just use the grinder......... Edit Ah, I see I'm behind on this.

At the risk of sounding anal, could we extend the request so that we get as much info as poss from everyone? In addition to side-on pic and height from floor to top of arch, as originally requested, could we get C model, wheel size, ET + tyre make & size, maybe? As per Das Golf's excellent post, details of arch work and experiences arising (so to speak) would also be handy...

FWIW I got my car with BBS 16s from a Mk3 Golf and Koni TAs with H&R -40mm springs on. Not my personal preference at all but it was certainly 'comfy' and fairly handlable. The car was a good deal, too, about 3 years ago! I changed (was it last year or the one before?) to 17x7.5 BBS LM replicas from the forum GB tallpaul ran with Continental Sport Contact 2s on. The ride was a bit crashy around town by comparison with the 16s for sure but felt much, much better on a decent surface at speed with lots of feedback. I had no tramlining at all. Looked cooler, too. I recently changed from the Koni/H&R setup (which are now for sale BTW) to a set of KW V3s (plus new wishbones & TT bushes) and the transformation was quite incredible. No more crashiness at all, and still no tramlining. Feels absolutely brilliant. Spot on, in fact.

The windows rattle a bit when fully wound up and there are various interior creaks and groans at the back but all very minor. It's only noticeable at low speed.

I'm up for doing this, too. Haven't a clue about aircon, so a 'How To' would be really cool, especially if it lists every single part you need!

Mine are 871mm, too! Unless the turret brackets are a different size on mine, which seems unlikely, they're both identical to ADZ_VR6's and, presumably, the others', after all...... :scratch: I immediately set about fitting one to the VR myself and discovered the rear right speaker cable was routed round the inner side of the turret! Routed it round the back of the turret instead and almost got the brace to fit. It's actually more or less exactly the width of the flange too wide - about 3mm! The other 7mm Stealth reported oversize must have been a longsighted somebody at Stealth not noticing the speaker cable in the way! :roll: :lol: Had a good look around the rear right turret and boot floor, just in case, and there's no sign of any damage or repair work, thank god. I did get a bit worried about whatever might have happened to the rear right corner when filler was found while getting the arches rolled and pulled a couple of weeks ago. It does seem it was more or less just cosmetic damage to the arch, but I'm looking at a new quarter panel some time in the future. 3mm's easily grindable I think, so I'll get that organised and, hopefully, get the brace fitted very shortly. I really appreciate everyone's input. Thanks to all. :D

Cheers mate. I'll grab a measure and wander up to the garage this arvo.

Thanks chap. Any chance you could measure your brace when convenient? Better be doubly sure it's not the car..............

Haven't 'phoned Trimsport since Toad's post that they didn't come from there. Have racked the brain but still can't remember any useful details, tho' I do remember that they were made up by a guy - just can't remember who............... Have also tried searching again but get nothing at all. Anyone got any idea who actually ran the GB back then? Might help for me to contact them - ADZ_VR6? Defo don't want to push the turrets out 10mm, so I won't be fitting one to the car LOL. Vince did try to fit one and abandoned it, since it just wasn't on. Looks like the car took a whack in the rear right corner some time before I got it - got some rust just starting on the arch, but everything lines up OK and when Vince did the geometry/wheel alignment after fitting a set of KWs there were no issues. Very much appreciate the effort to help sort this out, chaps.

Well mine defo don't fit. Both (bought one for my Mk2, but it got stolen before I could fit the brace) are identical and 10mm too wide. Vince thought about grinding one down but there would have been too little metal left to make that a realistic proposition. It finally occured to me to check my PMs, just in case, and I found I sent payment £103.80 on 15th Jan 2008 to ADZ_VR6. Don't know if that sheds any light. I seem to remember the delivery arriving very promptly after I sent payment. Seems too much of a coincidence that some had to be replaced because they didn't fit and I'm wondering whether the bell that rang for KAD_VR6 on "anto" was actually from the Rear Brake Upgrade GB I organised rather than these strut braces :confused4: Anyway, I'll take a measurement and 'phone Trimsport to see what they say.

Thanks Kev, will do. Sure am. One or two kinks to iron out still, but pretty much there. Apart from getting launched out of my seat over bumps flat out (bit of a head banger) and a bit of arch rubbing (bit too soft & rebound's wrong somewhere), car's a dream. Vince is a star. Spent about 4 times what I'd allowed myself, tho'. Hope to god SWMBO doesn't find out..... Just need about 250 more horses and RWD, a good body shop, the necessary sponduliks and I'm sorted :lol:

Yes, I think so. Rings a bell somewhere in the swirling mist that passes for my memory. It was a fair old while ago...

Unfortunately, the two polished rear strut braces I bought in the GB a while back proved to be oversize by about 10mm when attempts were made to fit one to my VR recently while the car was at Stealth getting a few tasty bits done. I gather from a reliable CF authority, who fortuitously happened to be at Stealth at the time, that there was such a problem with the first batch of braces made. If that's defo the case, then I need to get them sorted somehow, if it's still possible. I can't remember who did the GB to make contact and don't know what happened as a search proved fruitless and I haven't been on the forum for ages (apart from the occasional furtive peek), having had to promise SWMBO (under penalty of things too diabolical to mention here) to put all car related activity, except driving to the builders merchants & back, on hold until I'd finished the house renovations. I assume the oversize braces would have been replaced when the fault came to light, or maybe payment was refunded. Can anyone help point me towards a solution, please? PS Must say it's nice to be back and how pleased I am with Vince's work on the car, which is completely transformed :D

That makes things a lot easier. Thanks for your help, mate!

So it wouldn't really matter whether they used Girling or Lucas Mk3 carriers then? Or, for that matter, whether they were Mk2 ones?