Long story - I have two Mk 4 Golfs. One with a knackered engine and one I use. I'd like to sell parts from the knackered one if I can, but what do I do with the parts I can't? I reckon all four wheels would easily sell, but what do I do with the chassis and bits I can't shift? Mrs Wife won't be happy with it sitting in the driveway for too long. I seem to recall that scrap companies will only collect a car that is esentially complete. Any advice?
No, they'll collect ANYTHING that you pay them to collect. They'll probably only collect FOR FREE if complete, because then they have the room to make profit off it.
If you can take to any scrap-metal depot, you can weigh it in and get the mixed-metals value by weight, or the steel/aluminium values where they're separated.
You'd have to pay to have the residue removed. If it can't be winched onto a low loader, perhaps even more.
You could get quotes in advance from firms to take away the trash using a grab lorry. Make sure they have a waste licence and include the cost of disposing of the trash, not just the cost of transportation. You could then judge if it's worth your while.
Tow it to the scrap yard, jack it, take the the wheels off and bring them home in the tow car. The scrap yard will just run it though with a fork lift and move it where they want it.
I suspect it's too common for much to sell quickly. But bumpers, mirrors and front lights might and aren't needed for towing / winch.
Perhaps this is my best bet.
Thanks
Yes, Some time back I had a car which I had sold the rad' battery and wheels and a few other bits. No scrapper would take the shell without me paying. Can you blame them? We ended up fitting temporary wheels on it and pushing it to the local trading estate where it was dumped.
Mid 2000s scrap cars were 2 quid a tonne, it was depressing taking them in. the fire brigade can be a good way to get rid of a scrapper, they always want them for practice.
Yup, a mate got 20 quid for a car he drove in that was full of old iron car parts (brake disks etc).
A few years back I got more for the Rover 218SD scrap than I paid for it (£100), 7 years earlier. ;-)
A mate tried recently and it was back to the 25 quid.
We gave a Fiat Panda to the museum at Duxford. We drove it up there and they used it on site till it finally died.
Then, prior to one of their public event days they drained all the fluids and on the day they parked it out on the apron then over the Tannoy, announced the registration, requesting the owner remove it asap. After several repeats of the request with increasing urgency a tank comes out and flattens it. ;-)
A fitting end to a fun little vehicle we though. ;-)
Probably find the 'Fire engined' Panda is worth decent money these days. ;-(
Cheers, T i m
I saw the Fleet Air Arm do something similar with a car (can't remember what) at Yeovilton many years ago, Dropped it on the airfield from under a Whirlwind a couple of hundred feet up. Loud THUD! and a cloud of dust and grass.
Cool. ;-)
And I remember many bigger cars (or Minis) finishing their lives as bangers, grass track or hot-rods etc.
I'm guessing most stuff is too complicated these days, all the electronics, ABS, airbags etc, possibly all integrated into the ECU?
How easy would it be to strip a car with such back to the basics?
Cheers, T i m
I raced bangers and hot rods for years, using carbs took away all the risks and complications of injection, injection was not allowed, ign systems were simple. I would not be keen on building something with modern electronics and pressurised fuel systems for banger racing, non contact hot rods perhaps. AFAIK the most successful banger drivers are still using granadas with a carbed 3 litre v6
I didn't know that.
As with our Mk2 Escort based kitcar etc.
Ah, yes, that's another point.
Yup.
Wow, yes, I remember the 'Granny' making a good banger and my mate went through a few of them.
He would (often) drive one home on a Friday night and then strip it on Saturday, welding / bolting stuff up where allowed and fitting a central petrol tank (modified petrol can) etc.
It would then get a coat of 'Re-Paint', including his nickname and number and off it would go Sunday morning.
It was always interesting to see what it looked like when it came back and how often it would get patched up (sometimes using a sledgehammer) and go back out again. ;-)
Cheers, T i m
I used to usually get several meetings out of each shell, building a car usually took me one day to strip it out, another to build it, an afternoon to try it out on a practice session, a bit of titivating and away on Sunday, if possible I would get the wife to take it on a ladies meeting to get it a bit battered. New cars were like a target ! In between race days generally a day of straightening and painting up.
Hot rods were a lot more technical to sort out and I couldn't really afford it, so was never really competitive.
Some of it, easy. Some of it, impossible if you wanted it to actually run.
Sure, but I meant to run (of course).
Like, I know you would still need the ECU and all it's sensors (crank, cam, airflow, temp, exhaust etc etc) but presumably, other than any immobiliser stuff, it might not need any of the 'comfort / entertainment / ABS' type stuff.
Guys must do just that when putting a modern engine in a kitcar?
Cheers, T i m
Big ish snag is much of a modern car's electronics can be linked. So the engine won't run without the matching auto box. Etc.
But for a kit car, you'd just replace the engine ECU with a Megasquirt or similar which uses all the original hardware - injectors etc. If you can't get the factory ECU hacked to work stand alone. Which in any case might just cost more than a basic Megasquirt.
And I'm guessing there is no way of fooling the ECU easily because it's dynamic (with feedback etc)? The gearbox is a self contained entity that responds to loads and engine revs so might be difficult to emulate?
Interesting. ;-)
That's what I was thinking. It cost me £250 to get the ECU in the Meriva re-manufactured and I like the idea of one I built (and could therefore maintain / repair) myself?
Cheers, T i m
In general not. MS does have a CAN bus to allow it to communicate with suitable other devices. However, most modern cars already have pretty decent injection so MS would do not much more than match that. It's older vehicles with poor injection - or carbs - where it really scores. Or modified ones where you need a new map.
Very much so. MS was designed with DIY in mind. Virtually all the components are industry standard generic parts that can be bought from any decent electronics supplier like CPC. Mainly the bits which could be easily damaged by abuse or whatever - like say the injector drivers.
All the schematics and instructions etc are freely available as is help if you DIY.
There are several versions of MS, depending on what you want to do. Right up to fully sequential everything.
Some are surface mount machine made - so not the easiest for DIY repair. But the main PCB, the basis of most, can still be got with ordinary through hole stuff - and as a kit to assemble yourself.
Because of the easy and cheap spares, it's not such a gamble to buy a used one as could be the case.
It probably comes as no surprise that I'm a fan. Fitted one to my SD1 about 7 years ago, and have been building and repairing them in a small sort of paying hobby way ever since.
Just to add, they are extremely reliable. Mine has never missed a beat. They usually get damaged during careless installation. Decent wiring skills ain't in all home mechanics toolbox. ;-)
Ok. ;-(
Only if it's working. ;-)
When you upgrade to fuel injection you mean (for the latter)?
Ok.
Ok. I like the sound of that.
Cool.
I saw that on their site.
Quite.
;-)
I like that sort of thing.
I hope they aren't 'famous last words' Dave. ;-(
I was going to comment on the Luminition system I fitted to the Kitcar when we built it ~30 years ago ...
No, as I have found out over the years, especially some of the yoofs and their ICE installations. ;-(
I've even seen a heavy duty +12V cable running out from under the corner of the bonnet and back in though the passenger door jamb!
So, is there a viable fuel injection conversion (or version) of the
13/1600 Kent engine (top end) that would help improve fuel economy on my kitcar? I know they did a single point fuel injection 1.1 for the early Fiesta (daughters Ex had one) but I'm not sure if that would be considered an upgrade over what I have?Cheers, T i m
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