Purple Tom's VR6 - bought it back!

[Purple Tom 0]

Hey everyone,

 

On sunday I picked up my new VR!

 

I haven't managed to get any pictures yet so here's some taken from the advert of pretty much how it looks at the moment:

 

 

 

 

 

The car is pretty straight and honest, but by no means perfect. It has a few bodywork blemishes such as a couple of parking dents on the passenger door, scratches and scuffs in places and by the looks of it someone couldn't judge where the front was as the bumper has some stonewall rash! Nothing that can't be sorted though.

 

Mechanically it seems pretty good. Its done 126k and has no evidence of the chains being done, so I'll get those sorted over the winter, along with doing the clutch for peace of mind. The gearbox has an issue where it crunches into first when engaging from stationary which is obviously a worn baulk ring or similar, so while I've got the 'box off to do the clutch I'll get the gearbox reconditioned too. The interior is full black heated leather and is in very good condition, and all the other electrics work which is great, so I've got no worries there. It has a Toad Ai606 alarm but I think I'm going to remove that and fit a Cobra unit as the Toad was fitted in 2001 and I'm not sure how much I want to trust an 8-year old alarm! Other than that it drives really nicely with no smoke, and pulls well in every gear. The car was advertised with a misfire from cold which I sorted by clearing a couple of very old faults from the ECU.

 

It turns out this car used to live roughly 500 yards up the road from my house up until the end of last year! The previous owner spend £100's at my local stealers (Parkway in Derby) on small bits and pieces, and looking back at the history it hasn't really wanted for much in its life! I'm 25 at the end of August so the car is staying off the road until then, and I'm going to use the time to get it ready for its MOT which expires at the start of September. Leonard said thats a bit like having a supermodel girlfriend and not being able to take her clothes off, which is pretty accurate :lol:

 

Last year it went through the MOT but had advisories on both front top mounts, all the rear flexi hoses and one of the front-rear brake pipes. I'm going to replace these as a matter of course, and I have a set of Mk4 rear calipers to go on to sort out a pretty poor handbrake. I'll also have a gander at the front suspension and see if it might be time for new ball joints etc, but as long as it gets through the MOT I'll worry about the rest of it as I come to it!

 

Here's a couple of pictures of it in the background with my 8V - I'll update this thread as and when I can :)

 

 

 

Thanks for reading!

 

Tom

Edited February 18, 2012 by Purple Tom

[daves16v 1]

Nice one Tom, look forward to seeing it at another midlands meet :)

[Jim Bowen 1]

looks tidy, and a fab colour.

[moneypit23 0]

Saw your new car parked up in Nottingham last week (Jon mentioned it in the spotted thread) looked nice and i love the colour :luvlove:

 

I'll keep an eye out for you when i move.

[til2143 0]

Looks like a bargain Tom, well wear

[millerman 0]

nice looking vr you got there look nice in blue too!

[B41LEY 0]

Welcome to vr ownership mate! I'll have to come round some time and have a look. Ian

[A5 VRX 0]

Alright Tom, sounds like you have everything in hand! How do you find out about the MOT stuff, when an advisory is issued but no paperwork, might come in handy next time i buy a car! So the cold start problems are all sorted by clearing the fault codes, good skills. Wish i knew half the stuff you do, would of made my life easier for sure

 

Adam

[Purple Tom 0]

If you go onto the VOSA website its possible to find the MOT history of any car from when the computerisation was introduced (around 2005 depending on the garage).

 

All you need is the registration number of the car and the latest MOT certificate number. If the car's had any advisories or an MOT fail then it will be listed on the site. Its free and instant too :)

 

Tom

[Jon_vr6 1]

Thats cool that VOSA site just checked mine

[Abdul 0]

Your 8v is sooo nice though!! Really nice colour too. Id swap the lumps and interiors over :D

[Leonard 0]

Your 8v is sooo nice though!! Really nice colour too. Id swap the lumps and interiors over :D

 

It really is!

 

You not tempted to keep it as a daily :norty: or is that just getting a bit silly :grin:

[Purple Tom 0]

I am seriously tempted! But the problem with having 2 Corrados is that I'll look after them both too much! I want a daily to be a car that I don't care so much about and one I won't be so bothered about when it starts acquiring little car park dings or stonechips etc.

 

I'm looking at getting a Mk1 Leon TDi as a daily, probably a 110 as I can get a nice one for less than £3k easily.

 

The 8V will make someone a great first Corrado (like it was for me), or a great base for a 1.8T conversion or just a decent, economical Corrado for everyday use.

[Abdul 0]

I am seriously tempted! But the problem with having 2 Corrados is that I'll look after them both too much! I want a daily to be a car that I don't care so much about and one I won't be so bothered about when it starts acquiring little car park dings or stonechips etc.

 

I'm looking at getting a Mk1 Leon TDi as a daily, probably a 110 as I can get a nice one for less than £3k easily.

 

The 8V will make someone a great first Corrado (like it was for me), or a great base for a 1.8T conversion or just a decent, economical Corrado for everyday use.

 

 

VR6 it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! lol... sorry, i just really like your 8v. :D

[Purple Tom 0]

Well I thought been as though I'm off this week I'd put it for its MOT and see what happened. I was most concerned about the emissions as I don't know how clean VR6's tend to run....but it flew through! :clap:

 

It got advisories on a worn ARB link and a split inner CV boot - nothing that I won't be sorting over the winter anyway :)

 

You could say I'm pretty chuffed! The 8V has hopefully sold, just waiting for confirmation from the prospective buyer tonight....as soon as it goes I can get the VR on the road! :nuts:

[Wompa 0]

Wow! That colour is stunning!

 

Cool to have two C on your driveway!

[Purple Tom 0]

Well the 8V sold last saturday (12th September), so as I currently don't have another car it was time to get the VR6 on the road! The timing was unfortunate as it meant I entirely missed the Derbyshire Rolling Road day (2 miles from my house!) as I was busy running round getting the two cars sorted.

 

I've had the VR6 on the road for just over a week now and I love it. I've done quite a few little bits and pieces on it already, more to make it 'my' car than anything else. Somehow a car never feels properly like my own until I've done some work on it. The list of work done and parts repaired/replaced/upgraded reads as follows:

 

- Audi TT wiper conversion (aero wipers)

- All badges made black rather than chrome

- 50mm front splitter fitted (to aid clearance on my drive)

- New headlamp bulbs

- Aerial base rubber gasket replaced

- Interior fully removed, valeted and refitted

- 'daves16v' handbrake tunnel trim repair kit fitted

- full wash, polish, wax and detail carried out

- 4x Continental Premium Contact2 tyres fitted

- New camshaft position sensor

- New auxillary water pump - heater matrix coolant pipe

- New thermostat

- New thermostat housing

- Coolant distribution block removed, cleaned and refitted to cure a small leak

- Mk4 expansion tank and correct plug etc fitted

 

Thats about it so far, but I've been using the car daily so its been mostly after work that I've been doing stuff to it. I haven't got any pictures yet other than a couple of the expansion tank, but for those of you with VR6's who want to do the conversion, here's what it looks like...

 

 

 

Sorry about the poor quality, my camera battery died!

 

As you can see, all I needed to convert the VR6 coolant pipes was an 8mm inline connector and a length of 8mm I.D hose. I had plenty of hose lying around from when I did the Vauxhall conversion on my Mini so it was a simple matter of finding a routing that didn't put any undue strain on the hose. Its nice to be able to see the coolant level now, as well as to be able to easily remove the expansion tank cap!

 

I've got plenty more to do to the car over the winter, including:

 

288mm brake conversion

mk4 rear calipers

braided hoses all round

ARB's

timing chains

clutch

possible suspension upgrades...

 

But so far in terms of the drive it is worlds apart from the 8V. The VR6 feels so much smoother and obviously much faster, and the soundtrack makes me not want to listen to the stereo quite as much! :D

 

I'm also really impressed with the fuel economy. Now I've replaced the camshaft sensor I am regularly getting 35mpg on the MFA, which is about 34mpg in real world figures. Its much better than I thought it would be and as a result I think its a very viable daily driver!

 

I'll update this again soon, but so far I'm pretty happy!

 

Tom

[OSV 0]

Sounds like you've been busy and making good progress. Where did you get the aeriel base gasket? What was involved in fitting it, and are you pleased with the result.? Thanks

[Leonard 0]

Car was looking great the other day Tom.

 

Really weird seeing what looked like my car from a couple of years ago, without it actually being my car LOL :grin:

 

If you want to get rid of that old 90mm splitter then you know where I am :norty: :grin:

 

Keep up the good work as always

 

Matt

[Purple Tom 0]

The aerial gasket was on eBay - here's a link to the item, £4.95 posted (I bought three so I've got some spares!)

 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Seat-Arosa-Ibiza-Leon-Altea-Roof-Aerial-Gasket-Seal_W0QQitemZ400049388630QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM?hash=item5d24cd3c56&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14#ht_527wt_941

 

Fitting is very straightforward, there's actually a how-to in the Wiki section of the forum, but it takes around 20 minutes altogether and is very easy.

 

Matt - unfortunately I put the 90mm splitter on the 8V before I sold it, so I don't actually have it anymore, sorry mate! It was good to see you though, we'll have to do a mini photoshoot of the Matlock Aqua Blue Corrado Club :lol:

 

Tom

[Purple Tom 0]

Few more pics of how it looks at the moment...just washed it after work so I thought I'd take the opportunity!

 

 

 

 

 

:D

[Jim Bowen 1]

i do like a nice set of speedlines. 8) 8)

 

thinking of doing the mk4 expansion tank conversion myself

[Purple Tom 0]

The next lot of upgrades are now complete. Spent about 8 hours on sunday working on it and fitted:

 

- Genuine VAG 288mm front discs and pads

- Refurbished carriers and calipers

- DG Autotech front stainless braided hoses

- Genuine VAG rear discs and pads

- Genuine VAG rear wheel bearings

- Refurbished Mk4 calipers and carriers

- Goodridge MK4 conversion hoses

 

It was a fun day with the usual repairs of previous bodges, had to make up a couple of new brake pipes due to poorly made flares, and the only way to get one of the rear carrier bolts out was with lots of heat and by hammering a multi-hex socket over it (someone had previously rounded it off!). Apart from that it all went well and the brakes bled up lovely after all the work, although they still feel understandably vague because of the new pads etc. I've done around 40 miles and they're improving all the time :)

 

Here's a couple of pics, nothing very exciting but gives an idea:

 

 

 

 

And here's my Mini with the Corrado in the background - its bizarre because it's usually the Mini thats up on axle stands with the Corrado outside :lol:

 

[GlosterOx 0]

Coming along nicely Tom - Keep up the good work!!

 

Ian :notworthy:

[A5 VRX 0]

Yeah looks like its getting some decent attention Tom! Followed you a couple of months back through Crich one evening in summer, i was on my Silver/Orange R6, she sounded pretty good and some nice pops out the zorst under the bridge at Sawmills!! Looked exceptionly clean to mate,

 

Anyway bought a mk2 Valver (and R6) after the C went to you but has just been wrote off so on the lookout for another Corrado VR!

 

Keep the updates coming

 

Adam