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Picked up a cheap temporary 309 - but with some issues. Advice if possible please.

I collected a 309 yesterday afternoon, after I'd worked out it owed me about £50. Not bad for a 88k mile car.

G-red 1.3 309 with £90 worth of tax, 3 mths MOT and a spare cable with upgraded Clarion stereo and some fuel. Part SH - the first two owners appear fastidious due to the records for work that's been done. But the third ..... ?

It drives, doesn't bounce or squeak/rattle. There doesn't appear to have been any of the typical boot/sunroof leaks and the bodywork's fine - a bit of rust in a couple of places and a minor dent but that's all. The front strut tops appear to have been done at some time too. Exhaust looks almost new and it had a heater blower unit in 2002.

However, the brakes are juddering and the clutch definately won't last too much longer, but hopefully at least a week which is all I definately need it for.

It also seems to have had a) a major water leak or b) head gasket failure at some point in its' life. There was some mayonnaise in the filler cap but I don't think the oil's been changed for some time and it's been standing. The rocker cover also looks like it may be leaking.

Jobs to do prior to a thousand mile hammering of it next week due to work-related trips for various employers:

  1. Oil and filter change
  2. Plugs
  3. Flush the cooling system, or at the least drain what I can.
  4. Wonder how I can fit the choke cable 'cos without one it's running fast and there's one been supplied
  5. Figure out why the reversing and fog lamps don't work.
  6. Get the RH rear seat back to fit as it won't at the moment.
  7. Figure out whether the fuel guage is wrong or its' really using up fuel that fast (due to the choke?)
  8. Figure out why the engine keeps running after it's been switched off (? to do with choke cable)

Any advice on the the best way to do the above issues would be much appreciated. I've got a Haynes manual and I'll give it a go!

David

Reply to
David Lane
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don't spend anything on it, drive it till it stops, take off the tax and run it in for scrap.

Reply to
mrcheerful

SNIP

Thanks. I'll cover the cost of the car on the first trip (which I can't do by public transport), so that's an option.

However, I'm definately changing the oil - that's treacle.

I'll put it on Freecycle or back on eBay before scrapping though!

David

Reply to
David Lane

A 1000 miles on a car with juddering brakes..how selfish and self centered are you? The chances are that somewhere in that 1000 miles you will need to use them hard, and if they don't do the business could take some other innocent guy off this planet. But het what the heck as long as you enjoy yourself.

Sort the brakes first forget the rest.

David Lane wrote:

Reply to
Ian

Ian wrote in news:c2Pkg.13222$ snipped-for-privacy@newsfe3-win.ntli.net:

Fuck off you safety nazi, juddering brakes still go to lock up status if you want to press that hard.

Reply to
Stuart Gray

Well I can only hope that the original poster's 309 breaks down before it does him or somebody else harm

Juddering brakes - warped discs, worn down pads = inferior brakes = longer stopping distances

I could try to expla> Ian wrote in

Reply to
Ian

Oh do f*ck off you sanctimonious cretin.

Worn down pads would not lead to juddering brakes - they'd lead to grinding brakes. Warped discs might, but as long as they've got plenty of thickness in them they're unlikely to be a safety issue unless the juddering is particularly violent. As discussed on one of the uk.rec.cars.* newsgroups a short while ago, for some types of disc/pad combinations (i.e. grooved/slotted discs), a juddering feeling is actually perfectly normal. As for inferior brakes - well yes, the quality of materials brake pads are manufactured from can vary massively, and this does affect their braking ability, but everything's made to certain minimum standards, and it's just down to the driver to drive within the limits of the car they're driving. No amount of high performance stopping equipment can defy the laws of physics.

-- "For want of the price of tea and a slice, the old man died."

Reply to
AstraVanMan

Thanks for the basic advice!

Brakes checked yesterday, left with them and sorted.

So its' the other aspects I need to be bothered about.

Reply to
David Lane

Nope. Juddering brakes are either caused by warped discs and any pads or they're out of adjustment.

Oooh - you wouldn't be Scottish or Welsh by any chance?

Reply to
David Lane

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