martinb

The standard KR engine feelsa little tired and drops a fair bit of oil, but a good mate of mine was breaking a mk3 VR6 and offered me the engine at a price that was far too good to refuse. Its a bit grubby / oily but runs as sweet as a nut and wont be going in until after christmas giving me plenty of time to replace buts before it goes in. Straight out of the mk3: bit of a clean and some paint: Got the whole family to help me sort the loom out and removing all the grotty tape ---------- Post added at 07:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 PM ---------- so thats about as far as I have got so far. Still collecting bits for the engine swap and finally managed to track down an unbroken drivers door speaker grill. The most recent pics I have, from last weekend:

next fitted some new clips to the seat runners to stop them rocking all over the place managed to find a 7 slat grill as Im not a fan of the debadged ones. The badge was grotty so rubbed it down and started painting it black: fitted, much better: ---------- Post added at 07:39 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:35 PM ---------- dont plan to be! I'm sure several people on here said I would end up getting another at the time! Unfortunately this ones not quite as clean a base to start from as the nugget was but sure it will get there in time. At least I dont feel guilty about changing bits on this one, whereas if I found another mint standard nugget, Im not sure I could bring myself to mess about with it.

I have regretted selling this car almost every day since I got rid of it! I would love to know where it is now? Anyone on here own or spotted it? Sooo after selling this I have had a Bora, oak green mk2 gti and an A3 T Sport and although they were all good cars, the yearning for another Rado has got stronger until I finally gave in a couple of months ago. I thought I would revive this thread rather than start a new one: could do with a new drivers seat (anyone?) small scab on the arch: the basic spec is: 1.8 16v KR engine Coilovers Powerflow exhaust 9x16" Brock B1 alloys painted in Rover Tempest grey red tint rear lights bonnet bra HID headlight kit fitted. All electrics work! (although the passenger window is tempremental) In typical Corrado style it broke on about the 2nd day of my ownership but after I stopped it leaking electricity (new battery and alternator) it all seems good. ---------- Post added at 07:29 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:23 PM ---------- progress has been pretty slow as I was sorting out my wedding just a couple of months after getting the car. Had to replace one of the front new wheel bearings and hubs, also fitted and 2 new tyres on the fron and got the tracking done as it was miles out! These tires were ok when I got the car a month earlier! Drives like a different car now! Took the Bra off as I prefer braless.... I have got the bonnet looking okay again after a lot of tcut and polish. Also got a new steering wheel and found a standard gear knob:

I have managed to get one local now but thanks anyway, I may want some more bits bit will let you know (getting quite a list!). Im based near Stansted Airport

where abouts in Herts are you? Do you have an alternator? cheers

Cheers, yeah kinda undecided about the wheels as I was thinking maybe silver too - will have to get some better pics and see if someone can do a photoshop for me. meant more on here as last i heard it was down portsmouth way. Where abouts in Essex are you? haha, yeah probably be seeing a red one quite often now. Still got your green VR?

Not really new but I'm finally back in a Rado after selling my Nugget yellow ABF'd 16v back in 2008 and regretting it ever since! Since selling my last one I have had a Bora, Oak green mk2 gti and an A3 T sport but have finally got another, quick camera phone pic: few plans, first up its got a debadged grill but not a fan so want to get one with a badge, also need a new drivers seat but will start a thread regarding all my plans in the correct section! Since getting it on Tues, I have already broken down once - forgot about the joys of owning a rado! Also, I would be very interested too find out where my Yellow one is now if anyone on here has seen or heard of it - H875 GJN: Cheers Martin

Cheers Dude. Really do miss the car but the im sure the new owner is gonna take good care - he has already signed up on here. Yeah it has been replaced with a Bora, not as much fun but proving to be much easier to live with as a family car :)

now sadly sold :(

yeah was slightly worried by that as it was obvious it was going to be tight but it just about fits :)

yeah was not paticularly impressed Stu, particularly as there where cheaper engines available but i paid extra as it had already had everything done to it and was bought from a mate! Still gotta look into what was wrong with it and then perhaps have a chat with him about getting a bit of my money back. But well pleased with it now, got there in the end!

i was totally Cr@pping myself when the moment came to turn the key again but this time it fired up pretty much first time!!!!!!!!!! :luvlove: I had a few minor issues to sort with a few flashing warning lights/buzzers but after some helpful advice from the user Rubjonny who uses several of the forums these where soon sorted. So thats pretty much where im up too now. The ABF is sooo much better than my old fairly tired KR lump. There are still a couple of minor things i need to sort - Starter motor keeps sticking on & think i need to get the camber/tracking checked as the steering wheel is on the p!ss now but it was straight before. Also where we had the front off and the bonnet catch etc (cos i snapped the cable) the bonnet does not quite shut down right so left with slightly iffy looking panel gaps which really bugs me but should be easy enough to sort! Oh and i still want to strip down the 1st engine i bought to try and figure out what was wrong with it (and perhaps get some money back although there are a lot of bits i did use or want too keep and i made a bit back by selling the gearbox seperatly)! but its kinda out of sight out of mind at the back of the shed now the car is on the road - will definatly do it at some point and then probably put the head/cams on at some point in the future. anyway couple of more recent pics: at E38: with its twin: :grin:

by now i really needed the car back. The mrs was getting fed up with me constantly stealing her car and E38 was fast approaching so we decided that the quickest and easist way to get the car back on the road would be find another engine out of a running car that was known to be good (lesson learnt there!). Mik at MV develpments came to the rescue (thanks mate) with a complete running ABF lump for only £100. An afternoons work had the engine out again and after Steve/caddyman had picked up the new engine for me we started again! Luckily with such highly skilled helpers (well actually really Steve did the vast majority of the work :clap: :grin: ) and my boy Alex the new 2ltr 16v ABF went in really easily we fitted a brand new clutch along the way as mine was shot and the gearbox/clutch we got with the last engine would not fit, and by the afternoon that day we where ready to try and start it again!

then came the big moment.....it was time to try and start it! What an anti climax, it would not go, i did not really expect it to start 1st time but after flattening the battery on the Rado, my g/f's mk2 gti and my mates van still with no joy i was starting to worry.....the next couple of days where spent going over everything checking it had fuel, it had sprk, checking the timing where all spot on but it still would not go! :brickwall: Had several people look at it and all agreed there was no reason it would not run, the guy i bought the engine was/is adament that it should be good (although had never had it running himself). As a last resort we attatched the tow rope and pulled the car up the road to see if we could bump it into life! Bingo....it was finally running but all was still not well. It would not tick over, was blowing clouds of smoke, sounded terrible and was very flat and would not rev up. Once we turned it off we where back to square one....it would not start again and i bit of poking around the engine bay soon revealed everything was far from right with the engine. It had filled the airbox full of oil and after draining the oil found that to be full of water :sad:

sooo we set about fitting it: new lump in..... almost time to give it a try starting to look like a car again! Right up until this point things seemed like they where going fairly well......

not updated this for a while but its been an eventfull few months for my Corrado! Basically the head gasket went and after looking at the cost of getting it done i decided it was not worth chucking money at an engine that had done over 190k so thought it would be a good time to replace it and maybe upgrade it a bit. A mate had recently offered me an engine that sounded perfect, spec as follows 2ltr 16v ABF bottom end from a mk3 16v gti 'long throw' engine - supplied by Stevens VW about 2yrs ago and informed it was a good low mileage engine, standard internals, painted silver 1.8 16v original head ported inlet and exhaust openings to gasket size and welds smoothed Skimmed All valves removed, de-coked and replaced. Guides fine so not messed with New Head Gasket fitted comes with new head gasket set New head bolts fitted - not torqued up yet Cams - has 2exhaust cams - supposed to be a good power upgrade due to increased lift, need toqueing up standard tappets comes with chrome affect rocker cover and mildly polished 50mm inlet manifold 020 16v box as original - good synchromesh with none of the usual 1st-2nd gear faults also painted silver and bolted to the bottom end ready to go new clutch and assembly - also from Stevens VW comes with all main ancillaries - starter, alternator, k-jet injection system, mfa, hoses etc etc mk2 16v subframe comes with the engine if required all for £350:

mines on just over 194k now (about 22k of that since i've had it if i remember right) although recently had an engine swap.

and another :D 51 on the forum according to that topic on colours....... 8)

Couple of more recent pics of mine: and with its twin @ E38 this year: :)

yeah im still here buddy! Glad you got it sorted in the end, i take it you called back after i had already left? :D

https://www.hertsinsurance.com/shortperiod.php :)

aww Mic, you didnt give me a chance to beat that for you :( , you know i will always get you a deal......let me know when its up for renewal next time and i will beat it for you mate! :wink:

im always a little wary down there....had my first ever "off" down chesnut ave when i was 17 - had only passed my test a few months and was going down there flat out in my 1st car (1ltr beige 1982 metro nice!), hit a bump on one of the bends and aquaplaned (it was p!ssing down) into a rather large tree sideways at fairly high speed (for a metro)! not nice but luckily i walked away and learnt a valuable lesson (metro's are cr@p :lol: )! There is still a mark on the tree there now...looked as i went down there yesterday :eek:

lol yes mate chesnut avenue! was gonna put on the post 3cm can you guess the location as i always try too when you post pics! :lol:

got a load of new/better pics yesterday with the new wheels on, few of my faves: 8)