düdo
Part of things
wide as house
Posts: 770
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Jan 23, 2017 14:38:30 GMT
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-18°? Bloody hell, I thought -10° here in Frankfurt was bad. Let´s hope it gets back up to ´sensible´ temperatures here soon. My cycle commute (8 miles) is properly chilly at the moment. It was only -12° this morning! It's meant to warm up next week.. getting up to a tropical 5°. I like riding my bicycle through the snow as it seems more stable than walking sometimes. |
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Last Edit: Jan 23, 2017 15:03:42 GMT by düdo
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Jan 23, 2017 22:39:52 GMT
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Glad to see this on the road at last! Although a shame to hear that you're getting rid of the van and BX. It's understandable though - I've even had thoughts about selling the BX (shock!) and concentrating my efforts on the Stellar. But at the moment I'm kind of treating the BX as my everyday hack, loaded up with dog, bikes, logs or engine parts as (at the moment at least) it ticks all the boxes for what I actually need from a car. Comfortable, practical, reliable and reasonably quick. Do I sound like I'm trying to justify it to myself?
Lana had the F7R engine in her Megane Coupe and it was a peach. Didn't feel as sporty as the numbers would suggest - the 16v XU engine begs you to rev it much more. But it just got on with the job, no drama and returned high 30s mpg even on Welsh hilly roads. Best of mid-40s tickling it along. She had it from ~80k miles to 135k with no engine issues, just usual Renault electrics in the rest of the car...
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Sometimes, others may not understand why you like a car so much. Sometimes, you may not even understand why you like a car so much. But none of that matters; all that matters is that you like the car, and having it makes you happy.
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Jan 23, 2017 23:26:00 GMT
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And I gave up on changing the brake pads on my mother's Corolla until next weekend because it was 4 degrees... Shame on me!
I think the issue though with the 2.0l R21 was that it used the J-type engine and thanks to French engineering it faced longitudinaly meaning it was a totally different chassis or sub frame. Not that I have any experience behind the wheel of one but I heard they handled like curse word because the engine was further forward and made the car very nose heavy. F7R or Volvo B20F (F3R if it were in a Renault) would ultimately be the best solution. You could always take the intake manifold from a Laguna for the Volvo engine so it didn't say Volvo, then say nothing and put it through the annual inspection... A pipe dream at best. Just enjoy it running for now I suppose!
I was thinking about that whole mess with multiple ECUs. I've stripped out three R19s and two R11s (including my own two cars) and it still boggles my mind at the inconsistencies between the supposedly same models. I would pull off a particular part and label the bolts/screws only to find that on my car they were phillips head instead of star screws or vice versa. My best memory of this is my last ditch effort to save my 19 after I slammed a rear wheel into a kerb hidden under the snow buckling a wheel. I pulled a rear axle off another 1993 1.4 and got my dad to help me fit it. We were bolting it in only to find the brake pipes were routed completely differently. He looked at me and said something along the lines of "I'm not bending new brake pipes for this heap of s***". I quickly bailed on the whole situation and just scrapped it instead. That and the mechanics/techs at Renault are just as confused as you are. It seems nobody knows what's going on. My dad is convinced they buy all their nuts and bolts at a local wholesaler and just get whatever is on special offer.
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Jan 24, 2017 11:02:59 GMT
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pologaz wrote The 2.0 Savanna was more expensive. I was also looking at Peugeot 505s. I saw for sale in France a 505 with - for me - the ultimate spec. It was the Familiale version with 7-seats, low mileage, full service history, diesel and most significantly it was the rare 4WD Dangel version. Unfortunately the price of such a rarity was €10k - €8.5k more than I had to spend! Re elderly relative haulage, I don't think the Nevada would be that great as the rearmost seats are really only for children up to about twelve years. After that their heads would press on the ceiling. The E class Merc isn't a real seven seater as the two occasional back seats face backwards and take up the whole boot when employed. My mate bought a used one as his wife is such a marque snob and he's had no end of electrical problems with it. Two memorable ones not being able to get into the car at all or all the family having to climb out through the boot as the doors wouldn't unlock! I told him he should have bought a Galaxy. The two kids would sit on the back row. Though Ideally they would be on separate rows on opposite sides to minimise hair pulling. I thought the 505s were 8 seaters? This one is: www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C632601 - lots of nice pictures of that one. |
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düdo
Part of things
wide as house
Posts: 770
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Jan 24, 2017 12:23:36 GMT
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pologaz wrote Yes, you're right about the 505.. eight seats. Too long with the Nevada, which only has seven. That one in the advert is a good example. Interesting to know what that went for. I think you'd be hard pushed to find a R21 Savanna with seven seats in the UK. I do know of one in top condition but it's not for sale. There's still a few Nevadas for sale in France but the prices are quite high for what are often tired examples. It hasn't quite attained the classic status of the Peugeot familiales yet. Re the hair-pulling. I know what you mean. Don't think there's a cure for that apart from straitjackets!
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Last Edit: Jan 24, 2017 12:29:28 GMT by düdo
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Jan 24, 2017 13:21:01 GMT
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Maybe that was my dad's problem. Couldn't find a 7 seat version except for the 1.7 we went to see. I kinda figured they were all 7 seaters.
Not actively looking, but I have suddenly developed a fascination with them after reading your thread. I love 1980s estates. My Passat is a little bit smaller than the savanna and sadly, never had a 7 seat derivative. Once the other half passes her test we have the option of separate cars, or I can stay at home and she can take both of her parents and the kids out. That would be quite exceptional.
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düdo
Part of things
wide as house
Posts: 770
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Jan 24, 2017 20:08:42 GMT
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matfenwick wrote Yes we go back a bit us old BXers eh? The R21 can't compare to the ride of the hydro BX. We were basically using that as a beater anyway til the injection pump started squirting all over the place. I've lost heart and can't fit the kids in now .. ten good years. The van might get a reprieve or one last summer... if I can actually put it all back together. It takes up so much space.. and it's incredibly slow. brendanr thanks for the tuning ideas. It does get me thinking.. I saw a R19 16v for sale locally yesterday for the first time : right price, right condition for a donor, imported from just over the Swiss border ( generally well serviced) and I started salivating.. then I thought : hold it down. I think I'll leave the Nevada as it is, let it grow old gracefully, tidy it up for its thirtieth birthday next summer and get some historical plates. My ambitions have shifted to small Opels with oversize plants!
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Last Edit: Jan 24, 2017 20:22:18 GMT by düdo
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Jan 24, 2017 22:26:02 GMT
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Yes and it would be a shame to pull apart a R19 16V if it was in decent condition. In fairness (even as an advocate of an engine swap) it would be some work and would inevitably not go as smoothly as you'd like because yes, you guessed it... French engineering. Then of course you'd have the car off the road again for some time. You'd probably have to fabricate an exhaust. The fuel pump would be different and then the joys of splicing the wiring. Enjoy it as-is and keep the occasional photos coming.
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