Cars you passed over but then wished you hadn't

Ooh nice!

While I think on, I could have bought a Mk2 Escort Mexico at the same time as the Sunbeam was up for sale. It had a 2.1 Pinto, LSD, quickrack and a few other bits but again, being 18 the insurance was hideous :(

The Import VTEC series 4s were 195BHP, a little bit up on the uk models. You could specify 4ws or 2ws, and the 2ws were a lot lighter but you needed the width of the M1 to 3 point turn. Amazing how much you specify as an option. Aircon, electric windows, electric mirrors, 4ws, airbags, steering column adjustment, powersteering. Meant for some odd options like 2ws, manual mirrors, windows, aircon but not climate, but heated seats and electric sunroof. You could really have one. One I went to look at was totally fully loaded except 2ws. I would have accepted it. But they had lost all the import paperwork and old MOTs after some one had bought it but brought it back because they couldn't afford the insurance. Mileage was very low, but inside the fuel cap was a jap "Racer101" sticker. Appeared to be some sort of Jap Max Power mage type thing.

The 4ws isn't that complicated - it's just a motor driving a second, small, steering rack for the rear wheels. It's cheap enough to get a recon replacement and easy enough to DIY fit. It also isn't that heavy

- it added about 40kg, so not really particularly noticeable on a 1250kg car. I know it has a vague reputation for being problematic, but it is largely undeserved. It does make for fantastic cornering though - I only sold mine 'cos it just wasn't practical enough. I drove it *hard* for 30k miles and didn't have a single issue with it.

Albert T Cone gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

"just"...

No other sensors, control electronics etc. Oh, no...

It's normally one fecked relay that causes the problems too, and if you're that bothered about it, I believe you can lock the wheels into place and forget about the 4ws anyway.

It's a Honda, not French, ergo it's no issue. ;-)

"JackH" gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

...but when it does go south...

T-reg Shuttle over at my mate's workshop the other day. Needed an exhaust. Honda dealer only. £1300...

Well, yes, but it's really not that complicated - it's a simple servo system and no more involved than an electric window system, for example.

The only common fault is a relay which suffers from arcing on the contacts, but that's a £25 part and a 20 minute job to replace. Like a lot of these type of reliability 'issues', the reputation stems from the fact that many garages employ retarded monkeys with no diagnostic abilities.

I know four people who have had preludes - one of them has a k reg, which he bought new for his wife, but has then driven himself since. Anyway, only one has had any issues with the 4ws system, and after getting a copy of the proper service manual, it was the work of half an hour to figure out everything we needed to know, and once he got the part, literally 20 minutes to fix it.

I wouldn't let it stop me buying one, any more than I'd let the hydropneumagic suspension stop me buying a citroen...

Ouch. Time for a powerflow stainless system...

Yup, it does that by default anyway. Unless the worm drive dies or you lose the main power feed to the motor, it just ends up being conventional 2ws. I've never seen or heard of either of those happening, mind.

In my mates workshop the other day - a Y plate Merc A Class.

Not running right, computer says 'no' - the air mass meter is fubar.

Unfortunately, this comes as part of the ECU... £1300, please.

Top car... If fuel keeps dropping in price, got to be worth considering. :-D

I've read they can be opened up and repaired - dry solder joints normally, apparently.

Might sir be interested in an Activa?

Heh. Ta muchly, but not just now. I *will* own one one day, but only when I am rich enough to want an alternative hobby to shredding £20 notes. :-)

I really want a cheapish diesel estate with decent handling - I don't need anything massive, just something I can throw the dogs in the back of. A focus diesel estate would do nicely, but they hold their value anoyyingly well. A 306 HDi would also fit the bill, and might be a candidate, but we'll see.