chazrad

Roughly, I'd reckon on about a £1000 for purchase, fitting and a basic map to get you going if you bought an Emerald. It may be slightly more or slightly less, and will depend also whether you have someone fit it or not. DTA is more expensive to buy, I think.

its on a really steep hill were i live they put it in after a tank transporter carrying a tank lost its brakes and plowed into a tree at the bottom near the junction there is a building at the bottom of the hill were the have a play group for kids it good have been nasty ,oh yeah it took the tree out but then an 80 ton tank transporter will do that :shock:2.8l 24v Climatronic system.pdfDCP_0017.JPG[/attachment:2r0nezwy]DCP_0018.JPG[/attachment:2r0nezwy] i have pics of the crash but i cant find them but you get the idea the noise it made was unbelievable as it crashed and the tank broke its chains and nearly took the cab out Was that the accident that happened on the road into Pembroke from Castlemartin? I think that the transporter was carrying one of our tanks on the back at the time, as I'm sure one of my tank drivers was also in the cab. The female soldier who was driving the tank transporter potentially saved the lives of alot of children that day, by her quick thinking and deliberately crashing into the wall and tree on the way down the hill to scrub off the speed. She got a commendation for her actions. I think it happened about Mar/April 2004? Since then the council have installed the gravel trap slip road to prevent a repeat performance.

Dude...what a mess!! I had a set of these a few years ago and exactly the same happened to me. Load of b@@llocks they are! I switched to McGard and they do exactly what they are supposed to do with no fuss. Although McGard might seem expensive (£35?), for avoiding the hassle of s^ite ones, they are worth it. Glad you're sorted though. Oh..and congratulations on number two! I'm sure you are delighted.

Is this going to become the new 'blowing smoke up Vince's a**e thread? :lol: Seriously though, Stealth really do know what they're doing. It's a shame to say it but so many mechanics and so-called specialists don't!!

Yan, thanks for the advice. At the moment I have no plans to strip the engine down for balancing, although I can imagine the benefits. If I'd thought about it, I probably would have had that done at the time of my engine rebuild at Stealth 18 months ago. So its just the clutch and flywheel that I have been lead to believe its worth balancing together. Frankly, its the flywheel that's of most importance because I don't know whether that has been balanced at all since being lightened. I'm in the process of finding a local machine shop that can sort me out.

Kev, you're right. Insurers do make profits (they are a business after all), but the point is they still have to subsidise their motor insurance arms come claims time, because the income from motor insurance premiums just doesn't cover the outgoings. Besides Brentacre, I would give Chris Knott a try as well. I had never heard good things about them, but tried them recently and they beat Brentacre (by miles!) and my current insurer, HIC, by over £100. They offer a 'Future Classic' policy for cars driven less than 5000 miles a year. They do agreed value, make a note of things like IAM, and offer discounts for the likes of car club membership (ie CCGB). The guy who I spoke to (called Paul) was also really knowledgeable, very helpful, and even phoned me last Saturday morning to tell me the progress on organising the policy. All this is no reflection of what they might be like to deal with come claim time, but nevertheless, so far I'm very impressed. They are worth a phonecall, I reckon. One more thing fellas, and something that I did not know about Agreed Value: Your agreed valuation is something that you arrange with your insurer, not the insurance industry. Therefore it only comes into play if you cause the accident which writes your car off. If a third party crashes into you, their insurer is only obliged to refer to the market value of your car, not your agreed value. :? The irony is you would get a better deal if you caused the accident. The bottom line: If you're going to have an accidient, make sure you cause it!! :lol:

Hmm, yes. Let's not get carried away. They are a business at the end of the day, and they employ lots of bright people called loss adjusters to ensure they set the premium in line with the risk. We all know this: if you are a young guy with a fast car, the statistics prove how much more likely you are to have an accident, than say, my mother in her 1.0L Toyota Yaris. Firstly, the insurance industry as a whole subsidises the motor insurance industry to the tune of some ridiculous figure, every year. The premiums we pay are weighted to cover - as has been pointed out - the ejjit drivers who spoil it for the rest of us, but also the rising number of third party compensation claims. To address the 'different pots' idea, Kev, it sounds great but can't work. To illustrate the point I think you are trying to make: 'Pot A' is money taken in premiums from us 'good drivers', enthusiasts who look after our cars, don't put in fraudulant claims and seldom have an accident. 'Pot B' is the money from Mr Sideboy Waxo, whose chances of an accident are about double ours. Well, if Mr Waxo had his premium weighted to a point that truly reflected the risk he poses, he probably would not be able to afford it. Great, I hear you cry...gets him off the road! If only that were the case. The number of uninsured drivers on our roads is now something horrific like 1:8 vehicles, and that would simply makes the situation worse. So as far as the industry is concerned, the best way to deal with the problem is to spread the cost across the punters. Either way, the industry will raid our 'Pot A' to pay 'Pot B', because we are all 'careful drivers' and don't claim, so the money is there to pay claims with. As mentioned, even then the money raised from motor insurance premiums does not meet the amount required to pay all the motor claims. So if the insurance industry as a whole decided it no longer wanted to subsidise the motor insurance industry, two things would happen: 1) everyone's motor insurance would go up (que many more uninsured drivers) and 2) everyone's household, contents, travel etc insurance would go down. Its a very emotive subject. I've just renewed my Corrado insurance today. Its alot of money but as Kev says, that goes with the turf when you own a performance car; and like him I would be suspicious of a quote I thought was too low. Finally, let's not forget, they are in business to make money, they are not a charity. BTW, I'm not am not an insurer and don't work for one either. :lol:

Thanks. Though I don't have a mate in the trade! Hmm, pm on its way!

Kev, thanks for the advice. I reckon I'll stick a new clutch on as much so I can get the flywheel and clutch off to a machine shop, sooner rather than later. Then I'll take it off to my specialist to get it all fitted. Got a different 'box to go on aswell! :D

Si, how much your LUK clutch is going to cost you?

Guys, I've recently bought a lightened flywheel, which is in fact a VR6 standard flywheel machined down. It was done by a guy in South Wales who is known on a few forums for his gearbox rebuilds and other stuff (Club GTI especially). I've exchanged an email with him, and he can't be sure that he balanced it when he finished machining it down (he did the work back in Oct 07, and clearly does a few of these). It has also been said that I should get it balanced with my clutch to make sure there are going to be no untoward vibrations - all sensible stuff. Now, that all sounds like the car has got to be off the road for a while, whilst the present (standard and only 5000 mile old) clutch is stripped out of the car and sent away with the clutch to get balanced. So the questions are: 1. How long will it take a workshop to strip the 'box out, remove the clutch, get the lightened flywheel and clutch balanced together, and refit it all? 2. Is it, in fact, worth me buying a new clutch and sending that off with the flywheel to get done together, then present the newly balanced bits to a mechanic to fit? I suspect I'll stick with the standard clutch as I've had no problems with the OE one on their atm, despite the stage 2 Vortech. 3. How much does balancing cost? Can't imagine its much. :D Any help appreciated, fellas.

S...weeeet !! And cheap at twice the price. A proper racing car! :lol:

James, those are exactly the photos I was thinking of when I replied to Leon's question. I now remember you saying you made up that extra pulley bracket arrangement. Leon, I remember Nick saying that he used to have to retension the 'charger belt every couple of weeks to keep it tight and prevent slip which surprised me. Every car is different, it seems as I have never had to touch mine. It seems fine... that is until it comes ripping off at high rpm!! :lol: Hope you get it sorted, Leon.

Leon, You can reduce belt slip by wrapping the belt in such a way that it has more contact with the pulley. This has been covered before. I think James covered it once - with photos - before he went to the VRT side. Vince put mine on so I get absolutely no slip at all. In essence it has extra contact with the 'charger pulley so has more grip. I don't have aircon on my car, but the belt that is used is a Mk3 Golf VR6 (with aircon) belt. It fits perfectly. I can't remember if your car has aircon... HTH Charlie

Great thread James. Watching this with interest... :D

I'd pm Corozin on here. He's just had his VR rebuilt in a simialr way you are talking about. Its a good job and he's now a wealth of advice. I think he's running 11:1 comp ratio and Wossner pistons. He'll give you the lowdown. Also, FourseasonsTuning.com are a good source for parts. They're your side of the Pond too. You'll find them if you Google them.

Loved my Ramair which I had for 6 years...great noise. I had to sell it on when the charger was fitted. Now got a K&N cone fitted down in the bumper, which I can't hear - unsurprisingly!! :D I think air filters are a really subjective thing. Some people want them noisey (me!!) and others like them to be stock quiet (then stay with the standard airbox!!?). The BMC always sounds good - at least when Corozin hoons past me at XXX mph on the motorway in 4th....he's had one for a while. I think I'd probably go for one of those on an N/A VR6 nowadays.

This is a great looking mota. I always loved Asim's car, which was sooo similar in looks to this. Improvements: the ride height as mentioned. I'd second the recommendation of coilovers if you can stretch to them (- there really is no proper substitute) and get that baby slammed!!. Other easy mods that would really suit : dewipered rear and tinted red rear lights. In your photos, I actually think the car looks better with the rear spoiler in the down position. :D

I'd check the 'Search' facility on here if I were you. This has been discussed many times before. Short answer is that on an N/A car, they don't make alot of difference, and can be a hassle to fit and remove for every MOT (if your car needs one). If you're supercharged or turbo'd, then there's merit to them. HTH

Mate, you're absoultely right about this. Anything will be better than the old, dried out, tired bushes. But i'd still say go for Powerflex as you're uprating the suspension with coilovers. The down side will be the slight increase in vibration and possible rattles...not noise from the bushes per se. Bonrath top mounts will see you right and last longer than OE top mounts which will split after 1-2 yrs if you fit them with coilovers, due to the increased forces. Ask John Mitchell at JMR in Sussex for advice if needed. He's well respected and has loads of experience fitting parts to modded 'dubs (He has his own 16vT Corrado) You'll find him on the interweb. HTH.

Nice one matey. Forces, hey? Seems to be quite a few of us forces guys on here. :D I was only thinking of LHD lights the other day, for the time when/if I get sent abroad. Did you look into getting standard LHD lights for the car, or did you decide on Angel Eyes from the start. Tbh, the Angel Eyes are not really to my taste, which is why I ask. Cheers...

A couple of points: If you're going to go with coilovers, you really should look at stronger top mounts. Yes, the VW ones are OE etc etc, but they'll wear out alot quicker with coilovers. Bonrath do them. I had a set from an internet company (might have been Motorsport World (MSW)) and fitted them with myu KWs this Summer. No complaints, and will last longer than stock top mounts for sure. Cost about £90 for the set of 4 though. Powerflex bushes vs standard. Again, you pays your money. Powerflex is going to be harsher and more noisy, but they 'give' alot less than standard and will defo last longer, as they are designed to cope with the stresses of high performance driving. That's why they get used in motorsport. If you want to generally improve the handling of the car - as fitting coilovers would suggest - then go for something like Powerflex. If you want OE compliance, then stick with the standard suspension setup. The fact is that there are going to be down sides to every modification you make. Its up to you to decide if the benefits outweigh them. ...Oh, and don't fit Konis. Koni coilovers have dropped in many people's estimation recently. The build is not what it used to be. There are stories of people having to send back consecutive new sets of coilovers as they were all faulty. KW make the best coilovers for the price at the moment. And I'm not saying that just because I have got them fitted. I took lots of advice before plumping for these, and they're great. They also have plastic adjustable collars for adjusting the ride height, so they won't seize (as is possible if they are made of metal), and the bodies are fully stainless so they won't rust. You'd be mad to go for anything else, if your coilover budget stretches to at least £600. (Konis will cost you IRO £600). Dinkus is right on the EBC pad issue. They used to be poor, but now have improved. I have an older set of EBC's on my 325i daily driver and they ain't up to much frankly. Certainly not much better than standard OE BMW pads. However, Vince sells EBC and recommends them, now that Pagid FR pads are unavailable. As a result, when upgrading to 288s, I fitted a newer set on the C and they're absolutely fine and pretty effective. Just my thoughts and opinions, based on my experiences, based on others advice. :D

Mate, this is going to be good. Looking forward to finnaly seeing the car, and al the shiny bits. I'll contact you later re meeting up tonight to sort the photos out.

Well, happy to stand corrected on the Quaife/Peloquin thing. You learn something new everyday. Ihave an LSD down on my list of future mods. :)

Looking forward to welcoming you to the FI club, mate. :D