MattBLancs wrote: 14 Dec 2022, 22:43
Wow that steering column has experienced some forces hasn't it!?
As you say, will be on the territory of apply plenty of impact forces in the opposite direction to get it back straight. Never removed a steering column, but guess it a fairly hefty dash disassembly to get to that point?
Have to have strong words with your OCD tendencies to at least leave it be until the spring! Not the time of year for that job, even if there's a comfy driver's seat to sit in whilst doing it!
Looking at things it doesn't *look* like it should be too bad. The cover over the column under the dash is actually a separate panel which will help as it means the whole dash shouldn't need to be messed with.
I'm not about to resort to violence without relatively fragile things like the instrument panel safely out of the way though - but it needs to come out to clean up a bunch of contacts.
That being removed should give me a better look at what's been damaged too, though I'm pretty sure from looking at it the top of the bracket on the column itself is bent out of square as well as the bit of metal it bolts to. The latter I can see being convinced back into the right shape with some carefully applied brute force, but the column itself I think may be easier to just replace. Especially for peace of mind - the shaft itself was never designed to handle that sort of force and I'd rather not have the wheel come off in my hands one day!
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Yes, agree the two threaded studs on which the nuts you can see are part of "the next bit" and look quite wonky. Good plan to move stuff out the danger zone before adding a brute force fix!
It's a funny thought isn't it - cars have been nicked well, since cars have been invented - I wonder what level of violence applied to the steering column is taken as a "credible scenario" and so part of the design, and what is taken as too extreme?
" That being removed should give me a better look at what's been damaged too, though I'm pretty sure from looking at it the top of the bracket on the column itself is bent out of square as well as the bit of metal it bolts to. The latter I can see being convinced back into the right shape with some carefully applied brute force, but the column itself I think may be easier to just replace. Especially for peace of mind - the shaft itself was never designed to handle that sort of force and I'd rather not have the wheel come off in my hands one day! "
I had a steering wheel come loose in my hands once.
I had just fitted a new deep dish leather wheel to my Hillman Imp a couple of days before and was driving home hussling the car along the twisty Low Road from Levenhall. It just moved with my hands as normal but the car kept going straight. I had to press hard down on the wheel to get it to grip enough to steer.
Long story shortened, the shop had sold me a wheel for the wrong car and the splines were wrong. They stripped the first time I cornered hard. Replacement wheel, lots of apologies but no recompense for the s/h column I fitted in case the one in the car was damaged and failed again. The shop reckoned my column was perfectly ok!
Never shopped there again and they were a well known Motorsport shop.
Of course I've immediately spotted a couple of typos...I'll address those in the morning.
This is a subject where I'll really need to put together a supplementary history page as it's just too complex to fit into one general page without it ending up just completely unreadable.
At least updating it going forward will be easier rather than trying to put together a potted history, three years of use and the recommissioning story all after the fact.
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Ran out of steam before I could get it uploaded, but the webpage for the R25 is complete up to where we've got with it. Won't really be anything on there you've not already seen here save for some higher resolution photos.
It's now booked in on January 4th to have the front suspension looked at to hopefully get rid of the knocks and clonks coming from there.
Tasks I'd really like to get done in the next couple of days weather permitting:
[] General service. Caddy is due an oil change too if memory serves.
[] Inspect the timing belt. I'll change it (or have it changed) in the spring anyway as it's due by time, though it's only done ~600 miles since it was fitted. I'd feel more at ease if I've had a look at it I think.
[] See if I can get the stereo out to check for unplugged/damaged cables.
[] Clean the poor thing...
...Try not to come up with yet more excuses to drive it somewhere.
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Today on "random coincidences spotted while out shopping..."
I did not park in that spot deliberately. Well, I did but purely because it was the one with the least other cars around. I didn't spot the numerical matching that had happened until I was stowing shopping for the drive home.
A little present arrived in the mail today.
Which has confirmed a couple of things. Firstly is that the Monaco is indeed an up-specced GTS. Second is that the colour was in fact unique to the Monaco, and was referred to as Oak Bronze. This is useful to know for cross referencing purposes when I come to actually try to buy paint for the car.
Here's the contents of that foldout brochure.
This is a 1987 brochure, so predates the switch to fuel injection.
Yesterday's comment: "I really should stop coming up with excuses to drive the car..."
Today: Manages to do 50 miles of local running around. Sigh...
Has the novelty worn off yet? Nope. Yes there are issues, but I'm still standing by the original assessment I made when I had that really quick drive of my original one 19 years ago. This car just really, really suits me.
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Zelandeth wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 02:21
Today on "random coincidences spotted while out shopping..."
I did not park in that spot deliberately. Well, I did but purely because it was the one with the least other cars around. I didn't spot the numerical matching that had happened until I was stowing shopping for the drive home.
I had a slight problem when I tried to load this page, as it could not originally be found, and returned a 404 error! (only joking).
James ex BX 1.9
ex Xantia 2.0HDi SX
ex Xantia 2.0HDi LX
ex C5 2.0HDi VTR
ex C5 2.0HDi VTR
ex C5 2.2HDi VTX+
Yes, I am paranoid, but am I paranoid ENOUGH?
Out amongst the stars, looking for a world of my own!
Hell Razor5543 wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 07:09
I had a slight problem when I tried to load this page, as it could not originally be found, and returned a 404 error! (only joking).
Good one James
I'm just back from doing my Christmas shop at Tesco... I'm now all done and ready for the big day Whilst out and about I filled Pix the Pixo with a full tank of petrol ready for Sian when she comes home later this week... Yes, I know but it's what dads do...
I noted that the MK filling stations seem very short of fuel this morning... Two were dry and Tesco only had Finest99 available... So Zel, may I recommend you get your fleet filled sooner rather than later in case the good folk of MK decide to go bonkers and panic buy... We all know how skilled they are at doing that...
Both mine are full.
Jim
Runner, cyclist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
Zelandeth wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 02:21
Today on "random coincidences spotted while out shopping..."
I did not park in that spot deliberately. Well, I did but purely because it was the one with the least other cars around. I didn't spot the numerical matching that had happened until I was stowing shopping for the drive home.
and in another co-incidence yesterday I started a new thread in the Off-Topic Chat Lounge called
"Familiarity Phenomenon and other unlikely co-incidences" to mop up such apparently random occurances.
Link here if you wish to include your unlikely parking space number co-incidence. viewtopic.php?t=73189
CitroJim wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 09:00[
I noted that the MK filling stations seem very short of fuel this morning... Two were dry and Tesco only had Finest99 available... So Zel, may I recommend you get your fleet filled sooner rather than later in case the good folk of MK decide to go bonkers and panic buy... We all know how skilled they are at doing that...
It's been like this on and off for the last couple of month Jim. Complete roll of the dice if anywhere has fuel. A week or so back petrol was fine but diesel was nigh on unobtainable.
It's really annoying - especially as I keep reading from other folks how prices have dropped back in many areas of the country to levels where their diesel is cheaper than E10 petrol we're paying for around here.
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Zelandeth wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 11:59
It's really annoying - especially as I keep reading from other folks how prices have dropped back in many areas of the country to levels where their diesel is cheaper than E10 petrol we're paying for around here.
They have... I was faintly surprised to see Tesco Magic 99 was 'only' 160 and a bit a litre... At that price I didn't mind filling Pix up with it even though she doesn't need or appreciate it... There was no E10 available anywhere...
Wonder why MK has become something of a fuel supplies lottery?
Jim
Runner, cyclist, duathlete, Citroen AX fan and the CCC Citroenian 'From A to Z' Columnist...
I've been waiting on some silver cable ties turning up so I could apply some additional security to the wheel trims on the R25. Slightly irked when they turned up and are actually just dark grey. Meh, will do for now. At least I know the trims are going to stay put.
I originally thought these were secured by the wheel bolts but they're not. Nor do they clip onto the wheels massively securely - especially with the modern zinc wheel weights being rather chunkier than the old lead ones. Combined with the number of pot holes that there are around here I could just see one of these frisbeeing itself off into the sunset one day and really don't fancy trying to find a replacement. So slightly ugly cable ties it is for now until I come up with a better solution.
None of my cars gets to live a completely sheltered life...They all need to earn their keep. While I'd draw the line at carting dirty waste in the back of the R25, I'm absolutely not beyond using it to cart a whole bunch of cardboard and an old bookcase to the recycling centre. Plenty of space once the seats are folded down.
The rear seat folding mechanism definitely gets a mention...I've never seen anything quite like it. As you fold the backrest down the base is attached to a linkage so you just need to give it a little lift to get it started then it folds itself up out of the way as the backrest drops - the reverse happens when you fold it back up again. The forward section of the parcel shelf remains attached to the seat back. I'll need to record a video to show how it works, as it's really quite clever...and more the sort of thing I'd have expected to see in the Merc S123 than an 80s Renault.
Made it look like there wasn't very much in here at the end of the day.
It took me a good 20 minutes or so carting stuff out of the house and dumping it in there though, there's a lot more in there than it looks like.
You remember me mentioning that repair tape on the exhaust? I have a sneaking suspicion that "about this far" may have been the limit of its durability, as I'm pretty sure the exhaust has got louder. It is neither obtrusive nor unpleasant, just a nice purposeful growl on acceleration - but I'm sure it's louder than when the car arrived. I mean she probably hasn't had a decent run in forever, so that may just be I've now blown a load of crap out of the system...but that sounds like wishful thinking. Exhaust may wind up being first up after the front suspension is sorted then. Especially as there's a godawful rattle from it somewhere up front-ish at certain revs which is incredibly annoying...
No, I wasn't kidding about how annoying it was!
The exact source of which has thus far eluded me...It kind of sounds like it's coming from inside the front silencer. Though it's quite hard to get a good look - ground clearance isn't something this car has a lot of so I'd really need to get it up in the air to have a proper look I think. Especially as the front silencer runs right to left across the car more or less under the front seats I think rather than down the middle front to back on most cars. It's a bit of a ridiculously complicated setup for a car of this age with no less than five sections.
I know that (from the front) parts 3, 4 and 5 don't look to be in their first flush of youth, 4 is the one which has currently got tape on I believe - and I don't give good odds on any of those bits coming apart intact.
That is not going to be cheap to have made up in stainless...but I see this car as a long-term keeper so may well just go down that road. I don't fancy the odds of cheap aftermarket systems (if I can even find one) fitting properly. Which is moderately annoying when you're trying to get two bits of pipe to line up and have some wiggle room - but the third section sits about an inch away from the inner sill and 4 actually passes *through* the rear chassis rail, so the potential for my descending into madness trying to fit an aftermarket system here is very high I reckon.
Current fleet:
07 Volvo V70 SE D5, 88 Renault 25 Monaco, 85 Sinclair C5, 84 Trabant 601S, 75 Rover 3500, 73 AC Model 70.
Enjoyed reading that...
Good one James 
Whilst out and about I filled Pix the Pixo with a full tank of petrol ready for Sian when she comes home later this week... Yes, I know 
but it's what dads do...
