The Price Of Perfection

[brccrx]

Pm me car chassis and i'll tell ya what she had at the rear from the factory

[goz_83]

Not the greatest pic in the world, but here she is parked up in the garden with a spoiler covering up her once bare ass. I guess i'm a man who like a bit of lingerie after all

[brccrx]

Its a beauty i must admit!

How do ya go over doing NCT with em rear lights tinted?

[Bernard]

Very nice and better with the spoiler I think.
(speaking of spoilers)I'd move that tree though, it's spoiling the view.

[Sebastian]

why not tint a bit the front also ?

[goz_83]

why not tint a bit the front also ?

Failed nct when front windows were tinted.

[Kace]

Nice - very shiny !!

I failed the NCT last time around with red tinted lenses - although in fairness they were VERY red so I was chancing my arm.

[Wagalini]

Looks lovely!

[Sebastian]

why not tint a bit the front also ?

Failed nct when front windows were tinted.

yeah I mean a lighter tint . passed mine with tinted front

[goz_83]

why not tint a bit the front also ?

Failed nct when front windows were tinted.

yeah I mean a lighter tint . passed mine with tinted front

The tint was quite light, but obviously not light enough for the retard who tested the car. It looks darker in the pics. I even had to remove the sun strip, which was just a strip of tint on the windscreen.

[goz_83]

Just serviced the FTO and Zafira. Had a serious oil spill, because the oil pan was at a slight angle and instead of the oil draining into the pan, about a litre spilled out onto the pavement

Cat litter saved the day.

I installed oil sump drain valves onto both cars, making oil changes a bit easier in future. By the way, the FTO does NOT need the adapter they recommend, because the sump opening is NOT recessed. save yourself €4 and remove it from the order if you're buying. New oil filters on both cars too. It's nice to see the Golden stuff going in after the black stuff has come out. Now I must order a few more bottles of oil from oilman.

[Kace]

Goz - question for you from one of your original posts in this thread. I'm looking for a Start button to go into the cigarette lighter socket.

Any chance you could post a pic of what yours looks like and also let me know where you got it.

Cheers
Kace

[gt94]

Here's the one in my car kace I didn't fit it, previous owner did. I reckon eBay is your best bet for button.

[goz_83]

Goz - question for you from one of your original posts in this thread. I'm looking for a Start button to go into the cigarette lighter socket.

Any chance you could post a pic of what yours looks like and also let me know where you got it.

Cheers
Kace

Hi Kace.

It's not the best photo, but if you look at the 1st page. 2nd last post, there is a photo of the gear knob and the push button is in the background. If you want, I can take a better pic later. I got mine from ebay, but I only ever installed the push button itself, because I didn't want a ciggy lighter hole there and I planned to get a remote start alarm installed, voiding the need for push button anyway.

here is a link to the kit I purchased. http://www.ebay.ie/itm/Chrome-Blue-Engi ... 19e186de99

NOTE: To get the button to fit, it requires widening the ciggy lighter hole. I managed this by spinning a knife blade in the hole for a few minutes.

[Kace]

Thanks for that Goz. What's the button quality like - cheap as chips or is there a nice feel when depressing etc.

K

[goz_83]

Thanks for that Goz. What's the button quality like - cheap as chips or is there a nice feel when depressing etc.

K

Cheapish. If im honest, i would have chosen a different one if i was sure i was installing it for push start. I would have picked one of the silver ones you drill into the dash, but my main thing was blanking the ciggy lighter. I have everything i need wired behind the console.

In saying that, the kit is a good one and instructions are decent too. I would say go for it and if you don't like the button, you can order a button separately from other sellers. If memory serves me, you get different colours in the kit - blue red or clear.

[Kace]

Thanks Goz - I went for one of the sturdy milled aluminium ones in the end - just ordered last night so hoping that the mechanism on this one will be nice and solid like the button construction. Also matches other brushed aluminium items in the car.

Update

Got the installation completed, fixed the wiring for my stereo and strengthened my cracked centre console while I was at it.

Start Button works a treat !!



Now that everything is fixed up, the car is now going into storage for the winter and has been declared 'off the road'

New exhaust front pipe has arrived from UK (thank you Parcel Motel!!) but won't be installed until we're out of hibernation.

[goz_83]

Looks well Kace. I wish I had the space to store mine away for the winter, but as I don't have the space, she is still my daily driver. I wouldn't fancy leaving her parked out in the elements, because I have seen how quickly they waste away if not driven regularly.

I just got mine back from GVD Autos. She needed some touching up. Some clown had hut the front bumper when it was parked and there was a hairline crack right in the middle of it. I had the whole thing repaired and re-sprayed. The exhaust had come loose from an anchor, so had that welded too, probably from another knob who hit the rear bumper and scuffed it up bad. . Thankfully it just needed some fresh lacquer and polishing. Replaced the parking lights with fresh LEDs. I think I am going to swap all the exterior bulbs (except the high beams and HIDs) over to LEDs.

[goz_83]

Oh, and I forgot to say that I also got the cold air pipe installed. I didn't want it cutting through the mesh, so my engine bay shouldn't be full of leaves in the autumn



and an updated pic since the re-spray work

[Sebastian]

have to say this again , lovely colour

[brccrx]

have to say this again , lovely colour

+1, absolutely stunning example of well kept FTO

[Myfeckin FTO]

have to say this again , lovely colour

+1 - best OE FTO colour. And that FTO is in great nick.

Have to say though that Dannys candy red FTO still holds sway as the nicest aftermarket colour I have seen on an FTO.

[goz_83]

So I left it with Paul Nolan yesterday and collected it today. He has sorted out the Lambda sensor. It needed a good clean, but now the readings are normal. Paul also replaced the track rod ends on the front and says I need to replace some of the wheel bolts and nuts, because they are damaged. I blame the spacers I had on the car. So, I am going to get that sorted asap and then rebook a fresh NCT. The nct thread for this work is here => viewtopic.php?f=8&t=14589

Paul knows his stuff and didn't shaft me either, which would have been easy considering I wasn't exactly sure what the problem was with the car. I will be using Nolans in future and will be recommending him too. The Atlas garage has lost a good customer after doing some lazy work on my car and failing to do 2 things I asked. 1- Check emissions before changing lambda and (2- change the parking bulbs. They also didn't clean the oily mess they left under the car after changing the rocker cover gasket and power steering hose. I just wouldn't trust them again like I did.

[Uncle B]

I've found Paul great, a gent and a bit of an FTO magician. I'll probably need him to do a few bits after my NCT this Saturday!

[goz_83]

Collected from GVD Autos last week. Got the bumps and scuffs sorted and the wind deflectors are on too. On Monday, the new windscreen went in. The old one got some damage and needed replacing. It looks great with the brand new screen. I will take a few snaps before she goes into storage.