sid

Daddy, was you in Ramsgate earlier today?? Passed a silver scoob with graphics but was in works van so would have looked a right muppet if I had been waving like a loony, so just passed in a more dignified manner!!! Nice mota!! Si

Hi all, See you at this meet, its been a while!!! What time you leavin Ricey, might cruise up in company...?? Si

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Pele!!!!!!! from Simon and Cheryl.

Hi all, Pele and Lee do us all in Kentscoobies proud, and I certainly wouldn't begrudge £15 to keep the club running. Will be at more of the meets now as I have got all my troubles behind me, Simon.

Probably going to be in hospital having an operation so not sure if i will make this one either, not been a good run lately what with holdays and family bereavments etc etc... Maybe soon things will get better....... Simon

My father owns Dover Yacht Company and I work as a marine engineer. I have manufacturers training by Volvo Penta and work on anything and everything, big or small. Never seem to get chance to work on our own boat though...!! Before that was forman at local Renault garage for about 5 years. Cheryl my other half works for large pharmaceutical company in Sandwich as a microbiologist. Recently rebuilt my scoob after engine blew, nice easy job...Helped my mate modify his girly MR2, fitting NOS, water injection, big brakes, suspension etc etc etc....(you will probably see it in a mag soon, bright yellow, with green fusion graphics.) Simon

Hi riceboy, it must be you i passed down by the harbour the other day then. I got 1600 miles under the new belt now, and its going good, the hill is a cracking good run, specially if you get a good start at the bottom!! Si

Cheers lads, you have been most helpful!! Will ring them in the morning! Si

cheers j-k, will give him a try! Si

Where do you all get your tyres from, how much you pay for what sizes etc, where are the special deals when you need some...!! Si

Now i've been out clocking up those miles (1350 now...) I have seen quite a few around the folkestone/Dover/Ashford area that I haven't seen before. Blue '04 pulling out of Sevington Business Park Ashford on Saturday afternoon, gave a nod, nice! Black classic (WRX?) in Folkestone, I waved but no response...Hello. See a Silver classic WRX with Tommy Kaira front bumper, thats me! Si

Yes, it works a treat doesnt it!!!! Si

Crayon? Whats going on now...??!! Si

Hi Q, yes maybe right with an old car, but you will have 'opportunities' with new ones too, just different ones I guess. Rebuilding with performance parts will probably set you back say £2500-2750 for all of the parts, nearer 2500 I would say as it may not need a clutch whilst your there. I think all in you would be looking at around £3200 'ish for a full rebuild using good parts. You can get short engines, but it would be a standard one if its cheaper than that, and if you are going to do it, do it in style, as they say!! £3000 for yours with no engine is pretty good, but like hol says, the price of the other one (??!!) has probably been offset to account for this, unless they have an engine that just happens to be sitting on the floor which can go in. Whats yours worth done, standard?? £6500??ish (maybe worth rebuilding with std parts and selling on straight away) at least you would realise more money for yours, it would be cheaper than doing it with comp. stuff, and would be straightforward. Comp parts are different, and fitting is more time consuming, so the overall repair costs could be alot less. JMHO, All the best guys, Si. Remember, we dont have problems!!!

Numptyboy, what you got in the way of air filter?? Done anything to it recently, or how long has it been doing it for?? Si

Q, firstly give the man whos been running your engine with the knock a slap, it is more serious than a piston skirt. The oil pressure light is connected to a sensor on one of the main oil galleries and is set at about 7psi, so it will go out very easily. You need a proper manual guage to do an oil pressure test. With a big end gone, you will still get oil pressure, but running it pumps all the rubbish that was your bearing, which is now in the sump, around your engine. Hence why it doesnt want to be run. When big end bearings go, you usually find they wear and double up (slip on top of one another) on one side of the con rod, so it may seem like it goes, but thats when the two cream crackered halves of the bearing take up the gap. I found that my piston was actually hitting the head when the bearing remains were on the same side of the rod to the piston. You will need a full strip, and lost of parts, and as the engine has been run like this, probably a new crankshaft too. They are a very good engine, but the oil pumps fail on the earlier ones due to a machining oversight of the pressure relief shuttle valve. Like me, you are probably thinking, 'why didnt anyone tell me' thats because with an import, everyone talks about ecu maps and nothing else. Its NOT the map that has done it before anyone says either. A £200 oil pump is much less agro than doing the engine! The oil pump needs to provide enough pressure to run at idle, say 3-4 bar. as you increase the revs, pump speed and therefore the pressure rises. If there wasnt a relief valve of some sort, at around 6000 rpm you would start cracking bits and start pouring your oil over the road. The valve opens at higher engine speeds to dump some of the oil back to the sump. If the valve sticks open, when the revs drop it wont close, therefore still dumping oil back to the sump. Oil delivery is reduced (not completely) and then you get the bearings breaking the oil film and starting to wear. They get hot, pick up and hey presto engine starts knocking. It is worth rebuilding, if you really like the (your) car, you can either go two routes. Rebuild with original parts(obvious really...) or uprate everything while you are inside and make it bomb proof. You can got the 2.5 route, but in early cars, its probably not really worth it. I think Pele has sent you my e mail addy, so if you want to talk about it, send me a message. All the best, Si. We never have problems, just 'opportunities'!!!

Hello all! its still alive... 150 miles now...!! Simon.

Just found the nice polished one on www.forgemotorsport.co.uk. looks the doggies danglies and comes in at £158 inc vat. not too bad.....? Si

Thanks for that, I think I will go for an ally one rather than the original one, it seems they are a bit on the naff side.... thanks for your responses to that, why o why do these dealers do this to us.....?????

Hi people... I, today experienced exactly the same thing as you Derek. My coolant header tank burst at the seams and now drips coolant onto the exhaust, lovely!! Me thinks.....no problems.. trip to Canterbury this morning to get a new one. WRONG. I go into stores, say I want a new header tank, to be told that he couldnt find one for my (import) WRX on the computer, as my car not listed. I said, surely, a turbo version will have a tank fitted to it, so find one and I will compare it to my one. Reply was cant find one. Errr, sorry, but having worked in a garage and had dealings with parts, its NOT difficult to find these things..... What is wrong with the people these days, again, another dealer that is going to lose out on a sale of parts cos they cant get off their Ar$e to look for it. AAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHHH.........!!!!!!!!!! Now got car that I cant drive cos of some Dik that cant be bothered to open his eyes!!!!!!! (Unless of course my car has a totally different tank to all the others that I see on the roads down this way..... )

i thought it was pretty funny, especially the further you get, the turkeys start wearing armour and carrying guns!!!!!!!!!!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!! Si

I did mine with carb cleaner, has been ok since and certainly cleaned it ok!! Si

Thought you might like to get your own back!!!!! Shooter

i am too. folks/dover area.

Hi all, One of the first cars i had was a Renault 11 turbo (same engine as 5GTT) Then on to Escort RS Turbo Then a 88 Renault 21 Turbo, then a 92 21 Turbo which i spent quite a bit on with Prima racing and was bloody quick, but front wheel drive so spun all the time! Now on my first, 92 WRX which has a few bits done already, with some more in the pipeline.... Best one...............THE S C O O B Y !!!!!!!