DeanO Xr3 CoV

So it was that time of year, the MK5 came round to having her first MoT whilst in my capable (huh-hmmm!) hands, so after getting a few of the chaps at work to check her out i knew i already would need Front arms, rear brake cylinder etc..... but to my horror we found some mahoosive gaping holes in the rear chassis arms. So in the garage she went. Got the other jobs done by John and the 2 matts at Wolvey Service Station (many thanks for all your help guys!) whilst i was away on the worlds most exciting training course in Bristol. While there i got a phone call from John saying i could save myself a big wedge by prepping the areas to be welded, which basically meant a big strip down job. One hole went under the exhaust back box, so that had to come off, then the second and mostest fun part was the hole that went right back under the fuel filler neck pipe. Removing this, no biggy, but because that had to come off, so did the tank cuz of the vapour. Several hours of frustration ensued!!!! I'd been squirting WD40 and oil on for a few days prior to try and reduce the likeliness of a bolt shearing. 3 were fine, 1 bleeder sheared which took about an hour to get out! Eventually it all came good and £350 later everything was done. The welding looks spot on, real top job. Thanks again guys.

Heres a few pics i managed to take along the way!



Note the use of tools aswell as tool box as wheel chock!



My dad gettin stuck in!



I could lie and say, "yes we measured this inch perfect so not to hit the wall", when pushin the car back up the ramps, but really it was pure luck!



The tank and exhaust eventually out

Some underneath pics



This one is upside-down, so if you now stand on your computer desk chair and bend your head as far round as possible.........! Sorry at my lack of effort to rotate image!





And the fuel pipes kept safely out the way with string tied to the passenger seat!

All in all the MK5's cost me about £650 this year in Tyres £125.00, Exhaust £60ish-, MoT £350.00 and tax £101.75! Next up is a new set of discs and pads up-front and an oil and filter change. I've clocked up some mega miles in this year tho', about 16K in-fact which is downright scary, but the MK5 has done it no problemS. Getting her started is another matter (note my final pic, yes that is my engine bay wrapped in blankets as i find this helps with the cold morning starts. I am sick of jump starting her, i've changed the battery, set the carb to 'rich' mixture, chopped about with the carb flap itself cuz the dam thing kept totally closing and the engine was choking itself on fuel, and this is the best solution!) but the journeys themselves all A-OK. (and yes my cat loves my car)!

Lil Dan came round to check out the work in his nice Fez, and the Ford journey continues. Even further down the line on my next few days off from work which i have booked off special are installation of the sound system out the MK4 into the MK5 as my radio does not work and i am sick of just having my Mp3 player. I miss my bass!! So the CD player and Sub are going in, along with some 6x9's i want to get, and i'm gonne fit some new front's in aswell; the door cards are out and need altering in order to accomodate the new gear. Then basically its a good clean and polish!







I must get a new indicator this one here looks disgusting! Thanks for reading!

hamspeed

Ha Ha thats a cool project I must admit I do like your MK5 in red! Although im not sure your cat makes a good choice for indicator Are you having any paint problems on yours? On the roof i'm getting little flakes that keep coming off (hoping they will t-cut back in) but I was wondering whether this is a common fault or just old age!

DeanO Xr3 CoV

Yea, paint problems on mine are on bonnet, wing mirrors and rear spoiler. My dad had the same problem with his Mondy "M" reg. Whenever water tends to settle on it, then when the sun gets involved it kinda burns the paint and stains it pink. My bonnet is by far the worst and i wouldn't recommend T-Cut from my experience with it. I think the Meguairs 3 Stage process or summit similar is a better option, but depends how far you wanna go with it. I tried T-cuttin my bonnet and its basically left loadsa scratch marks and swirls all over it. I just keep polishin now with Meguairs Gold class polish. Comes up nice but i may try some of the 3 stage stuff when i get more time. Will let you know how it goes!