StuartFZR400

Lapping up the sunshine I was a little hesitant on sunday when out for a ride. Thats what I continued to do for a lot of the journey too; everywhere seems to be turned into a 50pmh zone, that used to be a National. Its barmey, because you'll drive past a side road that twist & turns more than a pikey in a jewelry store, thats got a national on it, where you wonder how 60 is possible on half of it. It just saddens me a tad, as its added on to the matter that I've heard some forces are cracking down on any road infringement with the unmarked cars. Im not a huge fan of these boys; they're using anything these days - saw some woman plodd on sunday sat in her black impretza with gold alloys. The unofficial word is that they've been told to book anyone for anything - that there are to be zero warnings in our county. I know they use funding from speedcameras, I'll bet they have quotas to meet - anything goes; expect them to fill up the quota on anything. Anyone else got these new limits on nice quiet A roads? See much sense in it? I mean, sometimes you can note where there maybe a danger, but there are those triangular warnign signs, or you jsut see the hazard and you back off. No? Well, maybe average joe doesnt. It's deffinately going to be the case that we see far more 50's. On roads that are begging for more, its now going to be begging the question, can i afford to do the old limit. Many roads are so busy. Every headlight I see Im backing off, waiting for it to get close so I can make a decision; they'll use any form of motor-bikes too, no form of identification required either, just a blue strobe when its too late. I never see plodd in town doing anything about speeding there; and that where I see the biggest danger and largest infractions. Take it easy guys and treat everything as plodd. book-em-Danno!

Its a ballzup, for the insurers to pay. Be interesting to know if they commonly make this mistake. Basically, I'd start off with making full recovery of monies spent on getting back to the point before he got pulled over. That is, you need to itemise out every cost: phone calls, driving distances (at 40p per mile), recovery of car cost. That is costs of going to plod station to clear it all up too; inclusive of any postage/evelopes/stamps/paper etc costs. All of these you should be able to fairly claim back - it adds up. On top of that, you're looking for some compo' for time spent etc... (be warey of discounts on future renewals on insurance, if your Bro is young, theres a chance the ins will be coming down a good deal with age and no claims anyhow.) I'd rather have cash-back.

Good call Colin 1. Mr Thread starter - I'd whip off the wheels, ensure all faces are clean (back of wheel and also hub) and put back on. Should all be fine. (regardless of order). Using Wheel spacers? 2. After checking above, I know you say the tyres are new and thus balanced recently, but as said, they can easily be knocked off or become loose or even slip half an inch.

There are a few otehr decent makes too. Failing that theres a genuine VAG exhaust. Im not kidding when I say its not bad; the tip is stainless, althought they're pricey. The note is deep but muted. A magnex would've been a tad deeper/louder. Cheapo makes just get trashy/too-loud. Supersprint not bad?

You mean like trying... Venom Sport at touch over 300 quid, Are Euro Performance still doing it? Magnex doing Milltek for 390. Are Magnex still bust? I know Micron (the bike daddy of the company) is trading again. The last site I listed there do seem to show a section for Magnex exhausts, back boxes, for the Corrado.

Its bound to be wheel end of things, doubt steering rack etc. So again, lets start with the freebee items: 1. grab each front wheel with both hands and pull hard, yanking back and forth. Nothing should move. 2. check for balance of both front wheels, by you (as above) or tyre fitter; also have them check the state of the tyre - uneven wear can cause a wobbly ride 3. while wheels are off, check the brake caliper/carriers are fixed tightly (although would expect judder to be at all speeds if this were the cause). You've done those and it still judders. Next suspect might be wheel bearings or ball joint. 4. check ball joint boot (rubber) for splits 5. check wheel bearings. 6. check suspension, not loose at ends/mounts etc Should not be tracking unless its miles out.

lol @ Gothapotomas, Karma & Envy ... chiropractor pretty good too.

Glad you've sorted it. Always check the cheapest items first, ie free stuff, like balancing back at the shop. After that I'd start looking at suspension top mounts and ball joints - looking for a split boot etc, which would explain the clunk at take-off. So if it comes back, you know where to look. Someone mentioned spraying thier wheels; should be fine if you did a good even job, but if you got blobs of paint on the inner rim edges (j) theres a chance the tyres not on properly. However, once balanced the wheel should spin fine and therefore make no difference to which corner of the car you put it on. Easy done I guess, especially easy to loose when they're the nicer Stick On ones. Just whipp off the wheel, stick onto a spindle (got a spare bike spindle?, or stick of wood), make sure the spindle is level (stick in a vice maybe) and spin - the wheel should come to rest at random positions; but not the same position. I remember getting judder at precicely 60mph after getting new tyres. Took it back to the shop where they insisted it was done correctly. He put it on the jig thing and spun it up; it was out by the smallest margin, where he then said - barely anything mate. I told him to rip off the weights, deflate the tyre and align the spot with the valve; he spun it up and put on half the weights than before and was all perfect. Such a noob!!

the bonnet you've bought/acquired, is it to be re-sprayed? All body shops should know how to fit it perfectly, should you find that you can't quite get it perfectly aligned.

Sorry this isn't technical and pointing to an obvious answer, but the following will help avoid questions from others later and is free... - you've checked all those fuses then? - you've not recently installed some ICE? - not had water leaks? - tried simply checking for loose wiring? After that someone here will hopefully point to some basic unplug and check this etc; again cheap. Failing those steps you could find someone with Vag-com, but wouldn't bother with that idea just yet (unless you know someone local).

I always ran 3pft, and thought that should I total the car, then Im lucky to bwe alive, then secondly I'd pay the price and downgrade to a poo car with what money I had left over. Seriously, how much wold Fully C really pay out? Sometimes they do, but its a long hard battle, based typically upon current sale examples; see here for examples of what a fight you might have here. What is the car really worth? What can you afford to loose? Or, if you really cannot afford FC, then dont got for it..... yet.

Cool and welcome. Cant complain if it was cheap; the biggest bills are yet to come, lol - nahh, thats up to you. Looks nice enough in white - just dont let it get scruffy. So whats it due for the MOT? And what upgrades after that?

Yeh, if you search the Drivetrain section you'll find a few people asking this. Also, do take a look at the Corrado Wiki HERE. Firstly, lets remember this is an old car and brakes and the like are not as good as modern, quite often. So to keep up to speed, its a good idea to upgrade brakes first; thats size and material. The carriers and calipers can be quite expensive, add on the discs and pads and the job is costly. So assuming you do want to hammer your old car, then yes upgrade the brakes. Bigger discs should help avoid overheating a tad. Dont colour them your self, as this can cause over-heating; dull black is best at disapating heat. Yes you need bigger carriers to accomodate the bigger disc and it will hang the better caliper too. As for brands, you'll find all sorts of oppinion, some love diamonds, some love brembo - some people hate them. Personally I liked the Brembos and they were cheap from GSF. However it seems gsf no longer sell Brembo - ask your local. The best benchmark, the commonly good stuff to put on your car for quality is actually VW or VAG. You'll find that these days that VAG are quite cheap for the Corrado and Mk3/4 Golfs. Yes some of thier parts fit, and the Passat 2.0 sometimes fits the late valver 2.0L C; read the codes carefully etc. My local VW garage is helpful and happy to pull up the parts on the computer to look. (so note that a top tip is to buy genuine oil and air filters off VAG when running none-tuned). For pads, IMO, Pagid are pants and EBC are fine, and yes teh green stuff wears quicker, but what do yu expect; again VW are ok but actually pricey for pads IMO. GSF used to sell reconditioned brake calipers; that being brought up like new; just need to inspect upon collection that nothing is scratching the piston. Carriers can be bought 2nd hand and the sliding pins can be bought new off VAG as far as I remember. Yes you need bigger wheels to acc' some of these babies, not 288's though (and remember 280 is standard on a VR6); always ensure the offset is correct too; 16" offer a nicer ride and look IMO, but only IMO and a few others - however yours do look smart - they are 15? There are more than one type of brake upgrade on here. Somebody will be along soon if you cannot find those old threads by searching and you decide to bump this thread...

Yellow shocks - not standard and could also be Bilstien; or some fake cheapo sorts. Red spirngs - could be anything, spax etc, but again not standard. Typically you'd find that correct matching spring and shock will result in a tight fit. So tight in fact, that you have to borrow/buy spring compressors to get the blighting springs off the shock (as the spring is held in by a top plate, squashing the spring down in a bit of pre compression). Get 'em off and replace IMO. If the springs are so short, soft, then you're very likely to bottom-out over a big bump or hollow in the road; if the spring and shock bottom out, the force is transfered to the rest of the car via the top mount - somthing will break one day.

Come on, use the wiki.... HERE Click. 205/50/15 is norm. But you've got a 7 wide rim; so would not go down to 195 wide. read the Tyre Bible linked on that page for reasons behind the numbering, how ratios work etc. If confused, just ask 8) The make you showed was cheap and known to be cheap. £31 per tyre? Maybe worth a shot if he can do your size too. And I didn't know you could buy Rainsports (Uniroyal) for 31 each, I used to pay 50 each. See the general Tyre Discussion (Drivetrain) thread for feedback on brands. You'll get what you pay for; I liked the Uniroyals, but would also prefer to spend more and go for the bigger brands like Michelin or Bridgestone/Conti if possible, as the tyre is made better, stiffer. You want better handling still, then try a 16 inch wheel.

Crisp looking pics - nice

De-jah-vou Common topic sure we had this last week nightmare

A Scir what? Seen a red one locally; then one in black - mistook it for a Volvo hatch, lol

ok, cool. Any idea on thier postage costs? I know buying over the net you have this 30 day back law, but its just hte overall hassle of it all. Presume there is no stock price list. I presume you phone these guys then double check genuine vag are no cheaper; I did typically buy original for the corrado; especially filters etc, as the cost diff' was minimal, but quality so much better. Only stuff I didnt care about, or the vag part was going to out last the car, did I go GSF. Its funny, twice now we've phoned up Renault for the GF's car for parts and often a fitted price or full price is quite high. Probe a little further and twice now Ive found that the main part can be broken down into smallter items, for which we only want one bit, and often more affordable.

You're not wrong, but it's the (badly) modified ones that do that. My mate's Evo 9's exhaust is clean as a whistle and that's a 100% factory car. He probably drives it properly often.

Hence I'd get a rat bike; the CLR looks good, but I'd make it dirty, lol. All bikes are easy to pintch - pick em up and put in a van - simple. Nobody in Croydon is going to stop or challenge two fellas lifting a bike. I've still got mi 600 sports bike and had a few before. I find the small simple situp bikes make me relax and just slip through, without nailing it. If you had a few national limits, then I'd recommend something better. Even that said, I had a 125 once, which was supposed to be restricted, lol, and would do 100 down hill, lol. The kit, if you get cheap, you'll find out why. the H.Gerrik stuff is fairly good. Unbranded is dodgy, the stitching might pop - you dont want to find out after an accident and say 'but if only I had got xyz'. Crikey, you could make do with well made denim jeans, work-boots (25 quid will get you steel sole in construction shop; which saves your ankle if the bike lands on you), and a Barber jacket; but just expect a sore arse when you fall off; cheapo helmets are fine if you wont be in the rain, or dont mind riding with the visor well cracked open. Get a decent helmet, but say last years in a sale; buy good gloves - lots of warehouse outlets selling off cheap but good brands. Make do with the above, and only buy more kit once you see neccessary (ie keep riding) and have the money to burn.

Jim, be careful on your BMX, theres some real twots in warwickshire. Talking of self control, I did notice that the C attracted a lot of attention, even boy-racer-girls in Brum. When I traded in for the family car coupe, no body ever took notice. Yet hopping onto the mention of traction control, I foud the esp system killed a good foot to the floor get off; the lame 167ps laid down by 247's still needed some finite toe movement (naff electronic delivery imo).

wire, try a pocket rocket; 175bhp/ltr. Who needs traction control... muuhaahaaa. (i do). Owned, me in the valver, by a minging Integra type R. oh well, thats 220 for ya, and willing to overtake on a righty bend - numpty! We have no exotic cars by us - shame; i do melt over a nice burble.

To and from work... okay. Assuming you fell off a ped, I guess you dont like peds, although maybe a sensible choice. No idea if the one you rode was a total banger or what; I've ridden all sorts and know some to be a bit loose, lol. I know peds feel twitchy with the short rake and small front wheel, so lets assume you want a real bike. Handling, so staying away from peds, you're left with lots of bikes to choose. It all depends upon you, your build/frame and how lively you like to be. If you're tall, I would stear you away from a tiny CBR125 sports bike, as you'll be all hunched up, uncomfortable and all your weight on the front, making it more likely you'll loose the front and crash; similarly if you're short in the body, you'll be laying on the tank and again have little control over the front. If its for work, I'd recommend something chuckable, easy to move about - that leaves lots of options, the most likely sort being Dirt / Trailer bike with road tyres - you can see over traffic, they move well and brake really well etc. Remember all your small capacity engine bikes will be a bit Waaaaaa noisy. The trail bikes being all sorts of makes Btw, KTM are fine in addition to the usual suspects. If the trails bike is too tall, then you can go for a comfy sort of sit-up-n-beg pootler, like a CB125 Honda or something. Here is where I would stear clear of these odd new makes, stick with the usual suspects. Most come with puny little brakes and need to be ridden sedately because of it. Older bikes might even be with a drum brake; not nice. Kick starts are fine if you dont mid the umph required, most are easy. Check the catalogues, but you might find the sit-n-beg will have a bigger petrol capacity than some. Then you see people on these chopper style bikes; look the part but dont sound the part, what are they, like a Honda CA 125? Same rules apply to the above sit n beg bike, although the long rake might feel odd to you; but at least you can put your feet down in some instances (slow moving). Downside, less able to see over traffic, traffic also less likely to see you. The Trails bike is more see-able. Bit of both? Honda XL 125? Have a look. Also note that these types of bikes are more user friendly than say the old sports bikes; the old sports often require you to use pre-mix petrol, ie added oil that you either carry under the seat or do at home - pain!! So the new bikes are much better, you top up a built-in oil res; or they are 4 stroke and dont need it. Usual suspects; these being Honda, yamaha, suzuki and kawasaki. FYM would be fine and probably are a canablised version of an old honda design, but with buying a big name, you know you'll get parts always. Most bikes are simple and you'll fix most of it your self. Service it, they need TLC. The sit-n-beg bikes are less well design for rain, in that sometimes electrics are prone to going sizzle; maybe less of a problem on newer ones. All bikes will likely return good mpg. Aprilia are okay, italian and so the odd thing can go wrong; but avoid ducati/cagiva like the plague for a daily runner. Most rat bikes have been dropped; look for usual signs, use your common sense. Handle bars, brake levels, indicators (underside), foot rests and exhausts are commonly the first to cop damage; most are easily fixed or bent back into place; even the sub-frames. However do not buy one with a bent main-frame or forks; look for cracks on the weld points. Rusty cable connections lead to pain in the butt issues later, so a well maintained one is nicer. Bike aside, you've got other factors. Cost of passing test. Then buying the clobber; helmet - if its an every day use, I'd want to buy decent; that means lightweight from the likes of Aeri, Sheoi; two hundred of your finest will cover it in a sale. Its Britain, it will rain, so helmets tend to mist; look in the likes of MCN bike paper, or bike mags like Two Wheels for tests - but often they're a bit biased. IMO, I have found AGV helmets to mist up easily. There are products for de-misting, but its another hassle. Nothing wrong in buying last years Aeri, this years are just upped in price for fashion mostly and tiny spec improvements. You'll need clothes; the correct textiles work well, but you'll notice riders will often go for leather trousers even when using a textile jacket; leather is simple more safe. Jackets are a pain and most are badly designed; water ingress is a real pain. Then boots - you want waterproof boots, there are plenty decent makes - read MCN. Black jackets make you harder to see in commuting traffic, while you may not wat to wear a high vis tabbard, you might choose a light-ish colour over coat or main-jacket; just not white as dead flies never want to wash off, lol. Gloves - summer ones give a better feel as they're thin (ish), while winter gloves are warm; buy both. MOT, tax etc is cheap; as should be insurance after your first year (pending age a tad). I've merely skimmed the surface, sorry. The main thing is getting a comfortable and reliable bike; the comfort will come from getting something that fits, or you're happy to use - like you maybe 5'8 or something, but tall trails are still easy to ride if you're happy to jump up and slide off onto one foot when stopped.

Are you insane? There's nothing BETTER than a standard Corrado. I'd take a completely original, unmolested VR6 over just about any car out there quite honestly! 4x4 ride height and all. Says he on the lower setup, Borbets and everything else (badgeless grille?).... :grin: I liked my C looking standard, except maybe the 4x4 looks were a tad... erm, tame. However, I did allow the tiniest of tweaks, the 7.5j BBS pollished (but so similar to G60); subtle. Yu think a turbo on a VR would be subtle, you cant see it? ... eh, Wire.