maizey

Slightly different angle than previous but worth considering. Lets forget the fuel consumption for the moment Moving to a gt4 is very appealing, however, this would be an older car, certainly more miles than 23k (unless you find the car of century that is) therefore, if it goes wrong, are you in a position to fix it yourself and/or can you afford to pay a garage to repair it for you. As this is your daily drive is there something else to use if the car is in the garage for a week or so being repaired? If you are OK with this then do it.. I would do the test drive thing as mentioned by others but you are in the great postion of having a nice low mileage car at the moment which you can hang on to until you find the perfect gt4 . . . . Boring answer I know, but 23k is nothing,I doubt whether the oil has even got round the engine yet !!

Hi, Before you do anything further to the carpet . . . and assuming it's in a worthwhile conditon to save. 1.Allow it to DRY as far is possible - appreciate that the oil will not dry,but get the water/moisture out. 2.Get a tub of Swarfega and apply thoroughly to the oil stains - I mean work it deep into the carpet fibres with your fingers,nail bush.old tooth brush anything you can lay your hands on really. 3.Leave 12 hours or so . . . .if you can keep going back every so often and work the swarfega in then so much the better Finally with good hot soapy water and fairy liquid ( ie a concentrated washing up liquid not a cheapo) wash the carpet. You may have to repeat this process to get all the oil out but it will work. BUT always start with a "dry" carpet if possible to get the best results/use/effect from the swarfega. I used to work in the textile trade and swarfega was our best friend for oil on fabrics or come to that on anything really. If you think about it,if it's ok to use on your skin then it won't cause damage to other surfaces. Out of interest if you have spilt oil on your drive/concrete/flagstones use the same process as above.

Exactly. . . I've had the joy(?) of removing sheared off alloy sump plugs, as you describe, on other peoples cars . . . . . that's why I called them "NASTY ALLOY" previously

Dunno? . . . . . but if it was just a case of sticking the magnet to the original sump plug then don't suppose the manfacturers would have bothered "crimping" a magnet into a new sump plug? My guess is (and it is a guess) that there may not be an adhesive resistant enough for the environment it lives in,that they don't want to take the chance of the magnet dropping off inside or maybe being pulled off, as the sump plug is being removed and reattaching itself to the inside of the sump?? What is needed is to get the collected metal particles, on the magnet, out of the system, therefore, the magnet has to stay on the end of the sump plug so I guess that a crimp fitting is the best option. Might be worth an experiment (not by me though !). . . . . . if anyone out there fancies it

Hi,Magnetic sump/drain plugs ? you really need one of these STEEL not nasty ALLOY from motorsport-developments.co.uk (listed by manufacturer or thread size/pitch) They also supply 4 x magnets which attach to the oil filter.

For me this is a case of 'and' not 'for and against' Regular oil changes - definitley Yes & good quality oil - definitley Yes & quality oil filter - definitley Yes & engine flush - if it makes you feel better/happy/peace of mind - then Yes & magnetic sump plug,magnet on the oil filter . . well why not . . . . not exactly heavy are they? and the cost will not break the bank will it? If a magnet prevents a bit of metal circulating (or getting stuck) around the engine, the oil pump or oil feeds etc, that a good thing isn't it? Opinions were asked for, not saying mine is right, but that's my view - always have and always will fit a magnetic sump plug . . . . you could say I'm attracted to the idea . . . sorry, I'll get mi' coat

right then . . . fitted one of these to every car I've had. . . and they do take out (sometimes quite a worrying amount of) metal particles . . . ever had a scratch around in your old oil in the drain tray after doing oil change?? . . . . . ok not the greatest pastime, i admit. There have been a few concerns/comments regarding magnetic sump plugs made out of "alloy" material - ie they may shear off on removal if it's been put in to tight along with the repetative warming/cooling cycle . . . . I reckon you would have to really, really tighten it to have it shear off though. However there is a steel one www.motorsport-developments.co.uk "The Dimple is without doubt the best Magnetic Oil Drain Plugs on the market. All steel construction, real engineering quality control and the strongest magnet available" Follow the link at bottom of the page to their "webshop" which I have on my G7 . . . . . . . Hope this helps Oh yes . . . and you get 2 x washers with it

Hi,if you have a "Machine Mart" close to you they do "CTJ2250LP,2.25 tonne low profile trolley jack ideal for use with cars with low ground clearance"@ £48.The CTJ2QLP is a lower profile jack@ £120.They also do a Ultra low profile jack (CTJ1500QULP) but at £180 you'll ned to do a lot of jacking to get the benefit . . . . .so to speak !

Hi,not sure how much this will help but a bit more local to you is "G Bailey Motor Bodies" Skelton Road Timperley WA14 1SJ 0161 928 0919/5408 or Google them, they will sort you out . . not the cheapest admittedly but they are very very good . . . I've used them a couple of times myself and the company I work for sends accident repair work to them along with "awkward ones" that need to be sorted out "once and for all". See their map - If you do go to them you will get a nice drive along side the Canal !!! Good luck with the repairs

Hi,appologies if you are already aware of this but if you intend to do anything other than change a wheel do not just rely on the jack to hold the vehicle up . . .. buy and USE axle stands. Appreciate this is a boring bit but it doesn't take much movement for a car to fall or roll off the jack provided and if you are underneath,have you legs or head in there then . . . . . . . . . . Better safe than squashed

On ebay - GOLD LABEL HIDE FOOD . . . . . (250 gram tub last for ages) Hi,been using this for 12 months+ on the seats,leather sofa,leather jacket . . in fact eveything leather . . . . STEADY ! . doesn't go to a "gloss" finish like your photo 2 ,my car seats actually look just like the first photo. Give a go

don't know if this helps but Eurocarparts red ( 5year) triple QX 5 litre works out @£12.73 using their EASTER25 code . . . . . . . . . TRIPLE QX Red Anti Freeze 5Ltr Our High quality Red Antifreeze and Coolant has a powerful formula with 5 years protection for all seasons. It is suitable for any vehicle currently using Redantifreeze / coolant and meets GL12+ Standard. recommended by Car Mechanics Magazine who rated it on potency, heat capacity, versatility and value Triple QX Red Concentrate Antifreeze is an extended life, ethylene glycol antifreeze/coolant providing effective heat transfer and all climates, year round performance meeting BS6580. It contains Organic Acid Inhibitor technology and is free from nitrates,

Hi,how about this on ebay? Toyota TRD T sport Corolla Celica Altezza MR2 Yaris Chasser battery tie bar - Item number - 290860352873 Don't know anything about it other than what the ad says . . . . . Hope it might help though Maizey

Hi, just to add something more to this . . . .old guy i knew who owned funeral/undertaker business always used to put egg cup full of bleach in final bucket of rinse water just for the paintwork for his cars To be honest his black cars were very shiney, did look the part and didn't appear to come to any harm . . . . . . .HOWEVER, NEVER TRIED THIS MYSELF AS IT SOMEHOW JUST DOESN'T "FEEL" RIGHT TO ME . . . . . . CURLY WIPER BLADES,DOOR SEALS,SUNROOF SEALS ???? . . . . SO NOT RECOMMENDED BY ME . . . . A decent car polish will do for me. wd40 for removing tar from the paintwork though . . .just remember to put some polish on again afterwards

J02 x2 . . . . . . get rid of marks/dirt/clean with baby wipes then the Gold Label . . . don't need anything else . . . . . i also use it leather sofa, leather jackets, shoes . . in fact leather anything!!

Hi, . . . "Cushion, Back Door . . T67293-20030 . . . about £6 each (incl Vat)

Very Very happy with Red stuff pads Thank you!

Hi, i remember this one, Now Looks Great . . so well done for getting in there and sorting it . Oh and you've saved yourself some cash as well . . . . even better.

Bugger !!! , , , , , there were no GHD's in mine when I got it . . . . . . must have the base model then

Hi . . £10:50 at Amazon and free p&p

another option? . . drill out what's left of the captive threads etc.Drill suitable size hole straight through. Fit / replace with a piece of stainless steel threaded bar - example ebay item 350510891622 - wth suitable size washers each side and a stainless steel cap nut to make it look pretty ( optional) - example ebay item 220936601683. So you finish with an assembly of "cap nut - washer- bracket - brace - washer - cap nut". . . A bit of thread lock liquid for the cap nuts to stop them vibrating loose and that should do it ( would look OK as well). Hope this is another option for you

Sorry to see the amount of damage to your "baby". Looks to me as though someone has reversed into/up the side of your car otherwise the door mirror would have gone (?). I was feeling sorry for my blue 140 when neighbour wheelie bin was blown over onto it and put a dent in the N/S door and wing,Silly bugger put his dead christmas tree in the recycle bin but it was too big and he couldn't get the lid shut so, instead of sawing it down, he just stuck it in the bin and left the lid it open,'Course with all the wind we had recently the lid acted like a sail and smack - 2 dents. . . . but nothing compared to what you've suffered . . Hope you can get it fixed and, like the others on here, a new door is the way to go. A repair to that will never be 'right' your eyes will always be drawn to the area and you will alway notice it. Good luck

Might be a case of "premature celebration" LiamGTR . . . . . . . J03 hasn't stated what colour they now are or, for that matter, what he has actually painted them with