mystery machine

You're correct in that the pistons in the 2.5L engines are not upgraded from the WRX, but the reason they melt is not simply because of higher power output (not too many horror stories from Hawkeye STI or RB320 owners after all*), it's because some of the hatches' ECU maps don't protect properly against detonation.True that stronger pistons might hold up better under the above circumstances, but the bad ECU map seems to be the root cause. * As a hawkeye STI owner... here's hoping!

Never fear - an afternoon with the machine polisher and Frank_STI will have her looking like new!

Had never heard of the guy before this thread - the Top Gear feature was impressive and entertaining. Some playground the laddie has! Favourite line from last night's show: "V8, not G8!"

Aye, the bonnet looks a wee tad orange in that pic. Digital cameras sometimes get it wrong where there's an odd mix of light sources or a 'confusing' palette of colours in a scene.Either that or Mark got a wee bit over-zealous with the buffer

Jeez-oh - it's like someone took the cling film off! Great work again Mark - always a pleasure to view your 'before & after' detailing pics. Cathy, I know you were a wee bit down on your wagon after the Falkirk Wheel meet - you must be feeling a lot better about it now

Spot on - just about hosed the monitor there

Get it scooped before the programme starts?

Thanks for the info Prodrive springs + KY Jelly shocks sound like an option well worth considering once the warranty's kaput. The RB320 setup - Bilstein dampers + Eibach springs - is appealing too. Never priced it, but I imagine we're talking big £££££s...

Nae bother, cheers for filling me in! That explains a few things

Who's Mark?

P.S. Frank, for a weedgie you seem to see a lot of Central Region... most Strathclyders get queezy and lightheaded if they stray a mile past Castlecary arches Just kidding mate

What, you mean the new hatching in the middle of the road hasn't put a stop to all that blind overtaking?

Looks like you had fun (apart from the stonechip bit) - car's looking really nice too I'll need to try that Braco->Comrie road you mentioned in the other thread. How's it, surface-wise? Hope it wasn't closed for them to scatter a thoosand tonnes of basturding chippings onto it! You must've been going a fair old pace to end up with that deer stuck to the bonnet - feet first too! "All we know is... HE'S THE STAG"

Apparently the chippings are put down to help seal the new road surface, protect it against water, etc and us motorists are effectively 'assisting' with the bedding-in process... Thing is, they seem to manage to surface as many other roads (including motorways) without resorting to this objectionable practise. My guess is that the chippings are a cheap alternative to some other more expensive sealing process... the chippings being used wherever they think they can get away with it I take it you weren't unlucky enough to have someone overtake you on that stretch? Spoilt the whole drive for me, that. Can't see any obvious damage yet, but I'm sure I'll notice something next time I run a sponge over it.

Great work, Frank - the rain will be deflecting six inches away from the paintwork now! Where can I get hold of some of that blue masking tape, BTW? And what's the "two bucket method"? I could say that I use a similar method during the summer, i.e. "one bucketfull for the bodywork and one for the wheels"... but I'm guessing that you're referring to something altogether more sophisticated...?

Cheers Cath. Will probably wait for the repeat on Fri though - if I watch TG at the computer I'll only end up spraying my monitor with beer during the funny bits

Big improvement - takes dedication to keep dark paintwork looking smooth!

Echoing the above, does anyone know how these compare with the OEM items? Have to think ahead to when I can no longer claim relacements under warranty...

If loose stone chippings bother you, then you might want to avoid the A84 between Lochearnhead and Strathyre for a few days at least. I had just about cleared the several miles-worth of affected highway when some utter muppet went winging past me at about 45mph (speed limit is a temporary 20mph), chucking up a load of chips onto the front of my motor in the process. Suffice to say that I was not a happy camper... Please let us know if you've happened upon any similarly affected sections of road - I for one would be grateful for the opportunity to avoid them

Excellent - glad to hear everything's fixed up Will bear Magma in mind as I may have to see them a bit sooner than hoped - the tints on one side of my car have developed the odd pinhead-sized bubble Reckon the recent bout of sunshine might've caused it... and in Scotland of all places?! P'raps I should be looking for a seasoned window tinter from Tenerife!

That's right - even now when I hear it I think of the old Top Gear and expect the tune to fade after the first few bars. I can almost visualise Jeremy Clarkson poised to rip into the latest Vectra... or Quentin Wilson smugly imparting his wisdom on how to pick up a Rolls Royce Silver Spur for the princely sum of £22.50 Much prefer the new TG, mind - even if they do use an 'orrible cover version of 'Jessica' for their theme tune. Bugger, that reminds me that my sodding DVD recorder is playing up again, having failed to record last night's episode

Just some off-topic Allman Bros chat. Doesn't matter

Well, I was around at the same time as the original Allman Brothers Band, but I admit that I wasn't quite mature enough to appreciate them back then (in the '70s ) "Sometimes I feel... like I've been TIED to the whippin' post" Love all that stuff! And of course EVERYBODY in the UK knows 'Jessica', A.K.A. 'the Top Gear theme tune'

I'll be honest Baz, I much preferred it before you added the fins and the air intakes. Thought you had a fantastic clean look going there... But it's all about what you like, and it's still one of the smartest bugs around