Post 209002 by Turbodave on 2009-01-25 21:20:19
Evening folks...
Used to use the site a while back but had to re-register again. I'm a Vauxhall man at heart and run a Cavalier turbo, however following a meltdown a few years back I got fed up with it, stuck it in the garage and joined here looking for a manual 850R estate in red. I ended up with an automatic S70R in silver for reasons I still haven't figured out...
The car was great, superb big bus but the automatic box just didn't do it for me.... plus my Cavalier was nearing completion so for those reasons plus more, I sold it on. Last I saw of it, it was on E.bay a few months back.
Anyways, having run around in my Cavalier for the past year or so after I rebuilt the engine, the combination of winter and a lack of TLC I decided to once again stick it off the road for a ground up rebuild ready for the shows this summer. So, that meant I needed another car, and having used a mates 3.0 Omega estate and having had the S70R, I reckoned a combination of the two would make sense, so here she be...
Only picked it up yesterday but on the whole it's a sound enough big bus, few wee niggles and cosmetic issues but for 190,000 miles it's not that bad. No real plans for it, tidy up the bodywork and get it mechanically sound and then just run it. No doubt it'll spend most it's time loaded to the eyeballs or dragging Cavalier remains around the country. However, it's already scalped an Astra GSi turbo so I'm quietly impressed.
Cheers!
Post 209007 by flyingbrick on 2009-01-25 21:24:36
Hello & welcome back.......:thewave:
Post 209010 by Tomcat on 2009-01-25 21:29:46
Welcome to the forum, you wanna see a doctor for that Vaxhaull affliction you've got!.
Post 209036 by The Flying Banana on 2009-01-25 23:10:02
alrighty mate, wish you would hurry up with that Cav lol so we can see it again !!
Volvo estate will suit your needs, i have a soft spot for a white Volvo ! I am soon to be Volvo less as the yellow beast will soon have a new home....although if i was to get another the next one i will have will be a red 850R saloon!
Post 209056 by Turbodave on 2009-01-26 00:51:36
Cheers folks...
Scott, the Cavalier was put back on the road in July (after we literally threw and engine together one night) and to date has done just over 14,000 miles (including The Ring)quite how it hasn't exploded yet remains a mystery! It's still on the road now but will be going away again for some TLC, needs some paint again and I have stupid ideas involving VXR bottom ends. It'll all end in tears I tell thee!
The estate kinda ticks all the right boxes during the Cavalier's stay at the health farm... always liked them, it'll carry and tow **** and I can generally leave it wherever and not worry about dings in the doors etc. I just to resist the urge to spend money at it... he says, wondering if a 190k bottom end will cope with another 80bhp or so. Or indeed, will the front tyres...
Be sad to see the T5R go... always vowed that was the car, but alas it evaded me over all these years. Maybe we should have done that deal back in 19 oatcake!
Post 209062 by cameron on 2009-01-26 01:48:04
:welcome: Bud :B_thumb:
Lee
Post 209281 by Turbodave on 2009-01-26 20:58:48
Cheers folks...
I'm actually amazed at the reaction the car gets, it borders on comical. One lad at work nailed it perfectly, it went along these lines...
"That yours?"
"Yup, Cavs awy to the health farm again"
"Aye? It's a Volvo... estate...."
"Ha ha, I know... don't ask"
"Fcuking hell min, bit of a heap is it not"
"Never judge a book chief"
"Nah, I'm not seeing the resons behind that one... is it diesel?"
"Nope, petrol"
"2.0?"
"2.3..."
"Fcuk that..."
"...turbo"
"Bet that's **** on petrol"
"Yup!"
(wanders round it, poking fun at the rust and 70's chanky interior... gets to the boot)
"HOLY FCUK!!! IT'S A T5!!!!"
"Aye..."
"They're fcuking mint, well rapid... that's awesome!!!"
"cheers"
Although my bonfire was well and truely pissed on when the little blonde reception came to have a nosey and just looked at me like I'd grown a second head... she then wandered off muttering something, sounded like "ha ha, no chance" when I said I had a built in baby seat.
Might go cheer myself up by buying myself a flourescent vest and sit on flyovers with hairdryer, pointing it at CR Smith vans doing 79mph in the middle lane.
Or not...
Post 209373 by The Flying Banana on 2009-01-26 22:55:04
[quote=Turbodave;209281]
Might go cheer myself up by buying myself a flourescent vest and sit on flyovers with hairdryer, pointing it at CR Smith vans doing 79mph in the middle lane.
Or not...[/quote]
PMSL at that bit !!!!!!!!
Post 209557 by My T5 on 2009-01-27 20:09:09
Welcome. PMSL! I had the same response the first time i took my car into work!
Post 209575 by Unknown on 2009-01-27 21:02:46
V is for Vendetta, or is it Volvo and Vauxhall? Welcome.
Post 209586 by Turbodave on 2009-01-27 21:27:03
No quite sure I follow that one chief, it's late and I'm having a blonde day!
Post 209828 by Unknown on 2009-01-28 19:30:58
[quote=Turbodave;209586]No quite sure I follow that one chief, it's late and I'm having a blonde day![/quote]
Just my stupid humour, not much to follow. Do you just like makes of cars that start with V. (The film V for Vendetta has a lot of words with V in it)
Probably needed to be blonde to get my lame humour. I look forward to seeing your cavalier in the future, maybe the York drag races in July.
http://www.vpcuk.org/forums/showthread.php?t=19906&goto=newpost
Post 209894 by Turbodave on 2009-01-28 21:21:02
Ahhhh, right you are...!
Not sure where the Vauxhall and Volvo thing came from... probably the BTCC back in the good old days. Me being an impressionable 12 year old decided I wanted a Cavalier GSi and a Volvo estate. Few years later I worked through aforementioned GSi and onto the current turbo, along with the S70 and now the current T5. Can't really explain it, just love Q cars... nobody expects a 14 year old Cavalier to pull 150mph+ and nobody expects a rusty Volvo estate to do the same. I just don't do bling!
York could be good... that's assuming it's back on the road by then as it's currently going away for a bit TLC. Don't underestimate the old Griffins though, runs a 13.5sec quarter and a sub 6sec 0 - 60mph so can usually put the wind up a few things. That said, I'm missing 4x4 already... the T5 is a disaster zone, think I've ruined about 4mm of Goodyear already. Exiting roundabouts is a pant staining experience... as are slip roads, traffic lights, motorways, parking, cobbles, kerb crawling.
TRACS... dear God why wasn't it available in the early days!
Post 209909 by Unknown on 2009-01-28 21:37:12
Didnt they do a 4wd Cavalier turbo? I have to shamefully admit I had a secret admiration of cavaliers, but I left it in the 80s along with my desire for a mullet.
Thank God my Mum wouldnt let me have the hairstyle of the Gods, but I remember wanting one....the shame.
However I am on the same wavelength as you with regards to stealth motors. So many cars these days are loaded with bling, but are all "mouth" and no "trousers". I love the idea of people in "tasty" cars getting seen off by something unexpected. Someone I knew of, had what looked like an old and low spec polo, still on steel wheels. Apparently though it had a mid mounted Audi TT engine and could leave most things off the lights. That impresses me more than any number of splitters and DTM style bolt on exhaust ends. haha
Post 209919 by Turbodave on 2009-01-28 21:47:23
[quote=straight5;209909]Didnt they do a 4wd Cavalier turbo? [/quote]
Yup...
That's what it is... it's more a ponytail than a mullet to be fair
Post 209925 by Unknown on 2009-01-28 21:53:33
Whats the 4wd like on them? Is it locked on an even split or does it do something clever like those haldex clutches? What sort of performance does it give? Long as its not a rats tail, then your ok in my book.
Post 209935 by Turbodave on 2009-01-28 22:05:00
The standard transfer boxes were their downfall. They ran a stupidly **** system which was good in theory, just not in practice. They run a viscous coupling which hydraulically disconnects the rear under 25mph (why?) and under braking (again, why?) Problems arose when the front to rear tyres were mismatched, this would create wind up in the boxes and blow the seals... back in the dya it was around £5000 to replace them.
Only recently people began to experiment with alternatives, there are some out there running standard boxes but hugely beefed up and huge cost. The other, and better alternative is to mechanically "lock" the tranfer boxes up so they are are constant 50/50 split. This was one of the first cars in the UK to have it done, and the difference is unbelieveable compared to standard. They don't have LSD front or rear, nor does it have a centre diff... which always creates mayhem come MOT time as it drives itself off the brake rollers.
Performance wise... standard is 204bhp/204lbft giving 149mph and 0 - 60mph in 6.4secs, but they are piss easy to get more power from. This one ran around 280bhp at it's peak but was reduced to 250bhp simply because 280bhp was at its upper limit for the setup it ran, ok for a toy but no use when you're doing upto 20k a year... hence it was dropped for reliability. Recently this was taken back to 220bhp after I rebuilt the engine, just never put it back up yet!
I'll go take my anorak back off now...