dr_mat

Not really. Just that the misfire response is a big one. You don't expect a minor misfire to stall the engine and light up the dash like a christmas tree. But the dealers should really know better .... At the end of the day it's just a car, it needs fuel, spark .. One of 'em must be failing if it's not running right! Anyway, replaced the CP and the immobiliser reader coil on the missus' car and it's been clockwork reliable (again) since then (two years now).

And I'll bet you've not got 100% factory standard suspension/wheels/tyres ... Thereby adding your evidence to the "some modified cars" pile but not the "general Corrado" pile.

Assuming that when the car "stops" the ECU warning lights come on on the dash, here's what you need to look at: - The coil pack (assuming it's a PETROL CAR - would have been useful to mention that!) and spark plugs. These are common failures on 206s once they reach 4-6 years old. Can take out the ECU too, if you don't catch the faulty coil pack soon enough. Basically what happens is the engine misfires even slightly and the paranoid ECU cuts the fuel immediately to avoid polluting the CATs. - the "no start" is most likely the immobiliser reader coil in the ignition column (another common failure ..) The former costs about £80 plus fitting, the latter about £15 plus .. Had exactly the same problem with the missus' car and Peugeot diagnosed the ECU at £800, without realising that due to the immobiliser the ECU remains LOCKED (i.e. you can't talk to it using the OBD interface) until the key authorises start. Local Pug specialist got it right though, and saved us seven hundred notes... Funny thing about these common failures is my local Pug specialist knows about them, watchdog knows about them, my GRANNY knows about them, yet the dealer networks don't!

Yep, I'm sure VW use the same OEM for their oils as several car manufacturers. And no doubt VW are one of the most expensive, too ..! Yes, most dealership discounts are mythical. My local one won't entertain a discount, either. We have two GSF outlets in Reading, for some completely unknown reason.

GSF sell Synta don't they?

I disagree. I think it's clear that the Corrado is not tail happy at all. It's just better balanced than your average Vauxhall, and basically that means that if you're stupid you can wind up facing the wrong way. But it's hard to do that, and generally things have to be pretty extreme to spin a Corrado. (That flexy rear beam keeps the back end from jumping about too much.) In a world where all FWD cars understeer to hell the Corrado is a breath of fresh air, not "tail happy". All IMHO, of course.. ;)

I would say tinkering about with it is meaningless till you get it on a rolling road... Claiming a few bhp here and a few bhp there is just fiction till you prove it. You might have a faulty sensor or something that's robbing you of 50bhp, so tweaking cams/inlets/etc etc will make no difference ..

I've seen a head gasket go and yes, you can get a LOT of steam out the back (and boy it ran rough on 3 cylinders), but the point is a cold engine will produce a significant amount of steam too. If you're still getting steam when it's warm, and the water level is dropping I'd start jumping to the same conclusion as you .. ! The "15 seconds then it dies" could also be fuel supply - so it's worth replacing your fuel filter, and checking the operation of the fuel pumps.

The Corrado ABV was OBD1, AND you have an early distributor one. That means you'll either have to rip out your OBD2 ECU and loom and replace it with the OBD1 setup, or you'll have to put all the OBD2 stuff onto the ABV engine. Otherwise, from what I understand, it's a straight fitting job. The electrics however might give you grey hairs ...

Nope. It's the immobiliser coil, in the steering column. Or it's the connection from there to the immobiliser control box under the dash. Look for some excellent posts by RW1. The car would not start at all if you had a faulty crank sensor, and the error code would call out "engine speed sensor", not "immobiliser".

Is it smoke (particulates/oil) or steam (water vapour)?

White "smoke" on a cold engine is more likely just steam! Sounds like you might need a distributor fix, to me.

Seems to me there's a problem with the ABS controller itself (the electronics), or the wiring loom between there and the ECU.

I'd search for "immobiliser AND coil" if I were you !

Interesting. Tempting to try out a highline TB, actually, sounds useful. Mind you, I need my remap working properly for the Schrick first ..

"wake me up when we get to swindon"

I don't think there's anything fundamentally wrong with them, it's just that the VR tends to judder with them. Vince has said to me in the past that he's never had trouble with them in any other cars, only VRs..

That's a heck of a lot of metal. Gotta wonder if they didn't leave it there for a reason .. ;)

Technically it still boils, it's just that the gas doesn't escape violently, as it would when it's open to the 1 atmosphere pressure outside. Anyway, I think he said the cap had been replaced...

The water only boils when it reaches 100 deg. It shouldn't ever reach 100 deg unless you're stuck in traffic.

.. until the government decides that LPG should be taxed the same way as petrol and diesel, that is.. (Which they did shortly after diesel was introduced, despite it's much improved efficiency.)

Vince at Stealth has replaced many Sachs clutches on VR6s. He's also replaced many LUK clutches on VR6's, all under warranty. He's replaced them all with VW ones! It appears there's something picky about the VR6 that means you simply have to buy the VW clutch.

You could just unplug one of the myriad sensors and force the ECU into limp-home?

I had a full-opposite lock moment in my VR too, turned out my rear tyres were barely legal (oo err), and my fronts were great.. Hence my question. But yes, the brake bias valve is also an issue if you've lowered the car.

How's your tyres?