chuck

Got sorted with Sabre. They're an english company who are relatively new to insuring in N/Ireland. BTW they are my old insurer. My broker had a long talk with them - apparently they thought I was a car dealer, which was why they were reluctant to renew my insurance. But the broker sorted them out. Car dealer eh?? I'd need to sell more than 2 cars in 1 year to turn a profit methinks!!! Anyway, tried Quinn and Brady among others (thanks to everyone who pitched a suggestion), but the quote was easily beat by these guys. TPFT for £850 with a Belfast BT9 postcode. They also allow several mods without affecting premium. If anyones interested I could give details of the broker that deals with them. Good job thats sorted out now, I was running out of hair to pull!! :D :wink:

OK Now I'm actually pullin my hair out. Insurance in this country is a pain in the ass. And as for turning 25, doesn't mean cheaper insurance, just means more companies are willing to rip me off :evil: :evil: My present insurer (who I've been really happy with till now - have always offered 2 free modifications :D ), well they don't want to insure me any more - reason, because there were alot of changes to the policy last year. I changed car twice last year thats all - and they charged me for it!!!! Well, been shopping around today, and either the company doesn't cover N.Ireland, or will but doesn't want to cover a car with lowered suspension. And the cracker was "Corrado? Well I'm sorry, you have to be over 25 for us to insure you on a performance car" "But I'll be 25 when I want the renewal - this is only a quote" "Sorry you'll have to give us a call when you're 25" " But I'm 25 tomorrow!!!!!" "Well call us again tomorrow" :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: Is it just me or are some people just really stupid. Did you aso know a towbar is classed as a modification?? Anyway, glad I got that off my chest, now to the question. Anyone here from N.Ireland??? If so, anyone know of insurance companies/brokers that will insure a lightly modified Corrado with a mature and sensible 25 year old driver? Cheers

Hello, Yes. I had exactly same problem not so long ago. Turned tout to be a disconnected vacuum hose. Check under the throttle housing. On the big black air inlet pipe from the air box. Look on the underside of that, you should see two vacuum hoses going into it (one plastic, one covered in cloth as I remember). If there's only one, look about, there should be another lying about somewhere thats disconnected. This happened to me when I replaced the ar filter, as you can tend to pull on the hoses a wee bit when doing so, and one is pretty taut to start with. Other symptoms: It runs OK after a few minutes as these pipes are only used for engine choking when cold. It is almost certainly a vacuum hose. If its not the one I described try this, Start the engine with bonnet open. Keep engine going with the throttle from the engine bay. Let it die and listen carefully. You should be able to hear a little hiss dissappear. Thats your problem. Find and Fix. :)

24 today, 25 tomorrow. And it doesn't bother me really. The promise of cheaper insurance keeps me going (why isn't there a sarcastic emoticon???) Only had corrado since nov last. Had a '92 Scirocco Scala for most of the 2 years previous. Insurance here in N.Ireland is crippling, so before that it was just little lawnmower engined runabouts.

Welcome to forum JC. Nice to see someone else here from N.Ireland. Still waiting on those pics, might even see you round. BTW, I've sent you a PM about Insurance. I can't seem to get any.... insurance that is :wink:

Just a bit of advice really, Have bought a set of Eibach springs, and want to fit uprated shocks too. I like the idea of Eiback shocks as these will be matched with the springs, and I might go for Eibach rollbars too to finish it off. I'm not looking for racecar performance, just a tidy ride. Anyone used Eiback shocks, and if so whats the verdict?? Thanks

An update, Checked with the local MOT centre today, and all they look for is that the doors open and close securely from outside of the vehicle, without key in hand. Mine has a button accessable from boot, which opens from outside (I have only removed door locks), that opens either door. (sorry that doesn't read well - boot operates as normal - inside boot is button that opens door) I was told today that this would be acceptable, as they test it in normal working order, not crashed condition.... I might still look at putting a button in the wing mirror like TVR. Anyone any pics of how they've done this? Hope this clarifies things, though this applies only to Northern Ireland as I think our MOT is slightly different to the rest of the UK. I don't know what the legislation is for England or further. Incedentally, I've had this system installed now for 3 months without problem. Sure if its really icy, you might need bottle of water to free the door, but other than that there hasn't been a hiccup yet - and I have two keyfobs....

I work as an Aerospace Engineer in Belfast. Not nearly as glamarous as it sounds, and we are going through the third set of redundancies since last year :x Perhaps we should be asking a different question. 'Who has a job and hates it???' Me Me Me Me Me Me Me!!!!!!!!!! I do feel lucky to have a job at the moment tho..... You could say I'm a dissalusioned ex-student, who desperately wants back the student life........ with money......without exams....... :D :D :thumb right:

Ha, I did exactly the same thing. Had a '92 Scirocco Scala and sold it last year as it was costing bucket loads to keep. Biggest mistake yet. Shoulda kept it or changed then for a nice Corrado. Bought a pug 306 D-Turbo. Great car, but no fun as it was no longer a hobby keeping it going. So I went back to VW in November with the C and though it is now costing bucket loads again, I haven't regretted it!!!! (even though the pug was much more lively around town - also think the turbo charger was boosted in some way :D ) Anyway whats money for if not to have fun with. Sod sensibleness I say. BTW i rent, don't own. :(

Bit more info on the whole legal thing "Drivers and front passenger doors must open from inside and out and remain securely closed. There are exceptions where as part of a specialist customisation the door aperture has been permanently filled, provided there are no obvious aperture gaps. Vehicles modified to carry high value cargoes are also exempt. The lack of door handles because of original design characteristics or specialist modification is not a reason for rejection providing the door can be securely latched in the closed position. " From an MOT site. Make from it what you will, but the way it reads, it says that if modified to remove door handles, it need only close securely. This makes sense as the MOT is more geared towards public safety and not personal such as this modification. I have still sent a query to the MOT depot on this subject though, as I have aleady passed the point of no return. :oops: Anyway, I've seen tonnes of cars modded to remove door handles over here, and kits are readily available to do so. It even has a standard works charge at a few of the ICE stores too.

Surely its no different than driving with doors locked???

yea, but its hard explain that to your flatmates when you've got blood all over your hands, and your kinda squinting through very wattery eyes cuz theres loads of grit in 'em, and your back is raw cuz you've been lying on a grit driveway for the last few hours!!!!! Or maybe thats just me. Aside from the personal injury, it is satisfying fixing stuff though. :D

I've just been to check up on my C which is in the bodyshop at the moment getting a full respray :D . One of the points for attention is the rust on the rear wheel arches. They told me today that they had been rolled and that that had caused the rust to set in. So my advice is, if you have to roll the wheel arches, get it done professionally and fill the gap at the edgewith that rubbery underseal stuff!!!! The gap acts as a mud trap otherwise. Also, I'm going to get a set of 16" 205 width wheels. I'm now worried that the arches might need rolled for this. Is this true??? cuz doesn't the VR6 come with 205 wheels as standard. Surely they don't need rolled for them.

I have just bought Eibach springs from Venom. They told me that there are two different spring top designs for the early (pre '92 cars). They tell me that I migh need new strut tops to suit if they are the wrong type. Haven't looked yet to see though. Maybe someone els can explain, cause I'm really confused too.

Cool.... Sounds much cheaper than a clutch. Thanks, I will check that next time it starts misbehaving. Doesn't sound like a clutch to me either. If it was, I would have thought it would be jumpy all the time.

Yea, its all booked in now. Next week and I will be without C for at least a fortnight. (its OK though - one of those weeks I'll be trying to break a leg sliding down a snowy hill in Andorra on me arse), so it won't be missed for that one. I managed to knock the guy down a bit on price anyway. Leaving front bumper on and other cut corners (like me stripping bits and bobs myself). Will still be a top notch job though. Also, I'm only getting just the front two seats done now in half black leather (I was told its near impossible to get a good finish on the door cards - they're bonded on in the factory, so I'll leave the standard grey cloth on the centers and doors)... and see what it looks like with stock rears. Probably get them done later. Oh, and when its done, I'll post pics :D :D :D Lanny, will also post pics on the shaved doors and try to include some info on what I did with the solenoids - it was easy to install, but a bugger to find somewhere that they will fit :x (theres a couple more holes on the drivers side than on the passengers - guess which one I did first :? ) Oh... and 18 months???... :tongue: (sorry hadn't seen that emoticon used before) Coupled with Eibach springs and a set of 16" alloys (I like the look of 17s, but I'd either ding 'em or get 'em nicked - and knowing the standard of thieves in this area, they'd probably pull them off with a tractor :roll: ) ..... I can't wait.........

Ah well, Left car in to mechanic today and guess what, he said he couldn't get it to judder. True enough, took it home and the damn thing wouldn't judder.... - all day.... :x No.... thats actually a good thing init? :D maybe its fixed itself itself Gotta love those self fixing problems

False alarm, turns out it was the loose vacuum hose. Must've knocked it loose when using the 10K spray. Still don't know what the bit under the throttle does. It didn't make any difference when I took it off. Doesn't make any difference now its back on. :scratch: Bet you it still costs about £40 though!!! :lol:

Nice to find someone who doesn't make you feel guilty about bringing your car to them. BTW, I would always avoid VW too. Not only do they charge the earth, but judjing by a few things they fixed on mine (by previous owner) they aint too good at what they do. e.g. new radiator, but they broke off the old top nozzle and left it in the main radiator feed pipe - it started to act as a tap :x and eventually shut off flow of water into radiator. Also did the steering rack, and forgot to put the rubber gaiter back on (the one from bulkhead to rack). Rack needs to come off to replace, though I reckon I could bodge one on with one from a scrapper and duck tape :wink: So I agree, VW.... no way!!!!!!

Mine does that too. Easier than stripping it down, keep the windows up, and stereo on if necessary, then its not a problem!! :wink:

Yea, sounds like it. But you should be able to get driving again by bypassing the heater matrix. Find the two pipes in engine bay that go into and out of the bulkhead. Disconnect both from bulkhead and with one re-attach the open end to the other (there are 2 valves, one black and one silver - basically connect the 2 of them using the rubber pipe from one). Just means you'll not have any heat. Brrrrrrrr But it will mean you can drive without losing water and without the light flashing until you get it fixed. :) Good luck

Hi nick, Need more info. Is it from cold, or always when warm. Does it only happen for right after after its switched off and your trying to start it again? Cause I've read somewhere that injectors can sometimes leak which will have the effect of flooding the engine when its turned off. If you try to start it quickly again it won't catch. Though if its left for a while the fuel clears and it'll start again. Just a thought!

Another problem. (though I'm starting to get a kick out of fixing things) Started the car this morning, it caught, revved and then died. Kept doing this. I found that it would idle OK if my foot was on accelerator. It would also idle OK by itself once warmed up. So I hoked around, found a vacuum hose not connected to anywhere so connected it to an attachment that had nothing on it (anyone got any info on all the vacuum system? - its all very different from my scirocco). This didn't help in the slightest. Then I found what looked to be a thermostat type thing under the throttle housing. Is this the automatic choke? Is it supposed to press on the throttle to open it slightly when cold, then relax and let it close when hot? Cuz if I'm right, then mine is broke as its relaxed all the time. Also, how much is one? Mines going to mechanic tomorrow for clutch, and I know I'll get one from scrap yard for about a fiver, so I don't want him to go and replace it if its going to cost me loads. Cheers

I only have bits and pieces of history to now (118k) - nothing mentions clutch. Brake fluid level looks good. Mmm, now 'dragging' could descirbe another symptom - clutch sometimes doesn't separate fully and it'll clunk a reverse gear, and maybe a 1st. I'll take it to a clutch specialist then. Cheers

Just replaced the gearbox one this morning. wasn't expensive and didn't take long (once I found out what needed done). In fairness it did tighten up the engine a wee bit, but the judder on engaging the clutch is still there. :( . Its worse in reverse than 1st. I might get round to getting at the other one some time, but methinks it's some other problem thats causing excessive vibration when engaging the clutch, thats causing the mounts to wear. Would bleeding the clutch help. I have noticed that the biting point can vary a bit. Maybe a bit of air in the system could cause a bit of juddering???????????????. or as G60Jet suggests - could it be the clutch? :x Or maybe a Vibra-Technics front mount mount might help? thanx