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[bored bigyin54]

only one ford taunus let go of its oil new engine fitted

[pscocoa]

Only this Omega has been towed/low loaded - crank sensor failure on M5 over Christmas holiday 2009. Cam belt tensioner slipped in October 2008 resulting in catastrophic collpase on dual carriageway - this was the fault of VX service - not the Omega - new engine fitted at their expense.

Racking my brain for my other cars but cannot recall other instances.

[SIR Philbutt]

The ones I remember

MK1 Escort (with 2.0l OHC engine)-
Smashed clutch racing a 2.8i Capri - fitted better clutch
Tore gearbox apart racing 3500 Rover - new clutch survived - fitted escort van gearbox which survived for years
Dynamo fell off (in France at 80mph) - crappy custom made bracket snapped - refitted (and worked after it's tumble) with big washer to hold bracket and new belt - finished trip to and back from the south

Renault Thingy (cant remember it was borrowed) -
prop shaft fell off on way back from Blackpool

Audi A6 Avant estate -
Drive coupling, RHS, disconnected as all bolts fell out. Company car that had been to stealers for new clutch 
Blew open top radiator hose

MKIII Cortina - Drove over a rock in lane on M6 and split open petrol tank (fire brigade had some fun with that)

1st MIG 2.6 CDX Auto - Blown head gasket - It overheated and I pushed my luck - Although I did drive it back (Auto no tow) but was followed by my mate just in case

Porche 911 turbo - Bro's car - I towed back from Southport with blown turbo with the MKI Escort - couldn't pass me that day 

[feeutfo]

Kdx 125, numerous occasions, due to pethetic tank range. Buggered kips valves.
Cbr600. too many to list, although crashes don't count I guess? Punctures mostly. Wrapped round a telegraph pole eventually.

Cavalier. Spun it through a fence. In no small part to rock hard and old Michelin tyres.
Omega 2.5 cdx alternator failed. Crank sensor failed. Bloody inferior car!

Only issue I've had with the far superior face lift is an hbv failed, and a puncture. Neither of which where a show stopper. Oh, and a scrap with a range rover. Undriveable after that.

[ted_one]

ME!! mental breakdown,owning 3 Omegas and not being able to part with any one of them

[hoofing it]

1. Young muppet run into my senator the senny written off he bent both chassis legs and boot floor pan. He ended up with severe whip lash and wrote off his dads car and finaly got a pasting from his dad .
I wasn,t to bothered as the engine was breaked anyway so he done me a favour as I bought my first 3.0 24v with insurance dosh.
2.Hit an old coffin dodger in a pug 405 after he forgot to stop at a round about and claimed he didn't see me.
I was driving a 24ton bin lorry with beacons flashing, no damage to the truck but the pug had the shape of the hydraulic pump imprinted in the drivers door.

[razzo]

Capri 3.0 ghia  prop shaft snapped also front spring snapped ripping through tyre
Capri 2.8i        prop shaft snapped
Capri 3.0s       have a guess its to do with the prop shaft
Omega           alternator died
Cortina           head on with a truck driver asleep at the wheel

[bootie]

Let's see 1975 to present day.
1. Mk2 cortina, bonnet catch gave way going through Plymouth main street, RAC came out and fixed the bent bit with a hammer so it would shut again, same day, heading for Exeter on the A38 diff caught fire, well smoking really then a little fire that soon went out, same RAC man out and was recovered back to Stonehouse barracks.
2. Suzuki GT250, heading home to Crowthorne on the A303, got sideswiped on a corner, went into ditch, broken kick start and gear lever and tank all bent, RAC recovered to local bike shop there and fixed after a month.
3. Suzuki GT750 heading up to Leyland from Plymouth for 77 jubilee, ran out of 2 stroke and semi fried the engine, M6, somewhere just south of Manchester area, let it cool down and completed the journey in 50 mile hops. Got it repaired with over size pistons and a small re-bore overa that weekend, nice chaps doing that work then.
4. Same Suzuki GT750, on holiday down in Cornwall, heading back to hotel after getting pie and chips (sober) chap stepped out in front of me, nowhere for me to go, hit him and I went over the top losing me front top teeth and a bit of lip
5. Lightweight landy, ran into a big oak tree in the fog on Woodbury common, didn't call anyone out, just got the tow rope around the tree and front bumper and reversed, fast! Did the trick, got back to camp and got the paint out, no-body knew the difference.
6. Mk3 2.0 cortina estate, fell asleep on the M5 just prior to seatbelt law becoming compulsory, I cleared the car, it was a total write off
7. Mk4 2.3 Cortina, heading down to see me dad in Buxton, got just south of Dundee and the crankshaft pulley wheel came off, recovered back to Arbroath and there it lay for a year until I could get it on base and have a VM work on it.
8. Saab 99 turbo, rear shock top mount broke away down in Fife, didn't get recovered but had to bodge it and drive back, very bouncy and not much fun, did get it welded up and then sold it.
9. Carlton 2.3D estate non turbo, long journey with the family Arbroath to Cornwall, on the A309 with no warning and no noise, just stopped, managed to coast into a layby, on trying to start clouds of white smoke... recovered to nearest garage who lent me a seirra sapphire to complete the journey, in fact I had that car for the rest of the trip and the journey back to Arbroath, the recovery firm brought the carlton all the way back to arbroath where they took the sapphire back to Cornwall (it was Green Flag by the way) because the garage couldn't fix it!
10. Carlton 1.8 estate, local roads, early evening in the winter, wet leaves, iced over, no response from steering wheel, straight into plantation of young fir trees, not so bad until I encountered the stumps of the mature trees that had ben cut down years previous, both front wishbones snapped! Recovered and taken away, written off.

All good for a few years until:- Feb this year
11. Going down into Roquetas to fill up, stopped at a crossing to let 3 lads cross (you have to stop over in Spain) the young lady behind must have thought she could fit in the boot of the Carlton estate and didn't stop! All been repaired now and wating to be put back together.

[tgm147]

2009 to 2012 in time order.

1.0 Corsa.

- Throttle body died 3 days after getting it so it would only tick over. New one fitted under warranty.
- Gear linkage gave up whilst driving, leaving me stuck in neutral on a motorway sliproad. Towed off and new linkage fitted.
- Oil pressure switch gave up. Drove home in clouds of smoke.

2.2 DTi Vectra C.

- Boost sensor clogged forcing the car into limp home mode. RAC came out and cleaned it. Resumed journey.
- Boost pipe split the day before I was driving it to Santa Pod and back. Duck taped it and drove anyway. Tape gave way about 100 miles in but limped it there and back. Covered the back in soot. Replaced the pipe.
- Random limp home mode issues all the time to do with EGR valve. Cleaned and checked it was working which it was. Started getting fuel pump pressure codes. Got rid of the car with the thought of a new fuel pump looming on the horizon. Fixed by new owner - was a 40 quid vaccum actuator.

2.2 Omega.

- Valve stem seals gave up. Drove everywhere smoking for a couple of weeks until I could afford to fix it, including 2 pulls by Traffic Police. Seals replaced.
- HBV died 3 days before I was due to take it to southern Ireland, dumping coolant everywhere. Replaced by Vauxhall dealer who cracked my windscreen.
- 3 cracked windscreens in total - 2 didn't seal properly. Tip: never use Auto Windscreens if you live by me.
- Head gasket went. Replaced after a head skim. Still drove but smoke out the exhaust everywhere.
- Exhaust rusted through. Replaced with stainless steel custom one.
- Half a million rocker cover gaskets.

I've had the Omega since October last year. It's caused more trouble in 6 months than the others caused in a year each!

[omega3000]

Mk2 escort    brakes failed and ran into dads fridge in the garage 

Mk1 astra     blown oil seals ..towed

Mk5 cortina   front wheel came off at 60 ...fix at roadside

Capri           gearstick came off in hand ..fix at side of road

Carlton x 2   Nothing

Vectra 2.5    Nothing

Vectra 2.0 estate   Blown head gasket

Astra estate  Melted stater motor .. towed home

Omega 1       blown crankseal ..towed home

Omega 2      blown camcover gasket .. aux belt and pulley snap at 70mph  car trailered 250 mile

Omega 3     Coil pack..duff plug..bridge seals..rad..thermostat..leaking windscreen..phantom sunroof..sqeaky brakes..cutting out..tramlining..ball joints..drop links.. Kept me busy for a week 

RD250E       Select first gear and went backwards  stupid electric points ..trailered home .

[Vamps]

Been luck I guess as I have always managed to nurse any car back home or to a garage, the only exception was in 1984 in a Ford Transit Crew Bus with about a dozen Cub Scouts in the back, threw a little end and seized solid about solid, managed to coax it in to a Pub car park. Rang a couple of parents with estate cars to come and collect the kids, I was slightly puddled by the time the Recovery truck arrived

Oh and called the AA to change a wheel and on another occasion the tyre was flat, office car park near to a tyre place so simply got them to come and take the wheel off, fix and replace.....

Like Jimbob, I too hope I have not tempted fate........

Reading on another thread reminded me on another recovery, in about 1977 I had a 1965 Humber Sceptre Mk1 and fitted wheel spacers to the rear wheels, the studs snapped leaving the car wheel arch sitting on top of the tyre, that could have been nasty if it had happened at speed.....we live and learn.....

[smithpa7]

Car:
Only one in 32 years of driving

First car, Austin 1100. I braked hard at a roundabout and the whole of the front end lifted off, the old tin worm had destroyed it...

I gently pushed it back on and drove to the scrapyard and got rid of it. Does this count as a breakdown??

Motorbike:
I visited a friend. When I came to leave my bike had gone. My RS100 was found a few days later with about £200 of damage to it. It was my first bike and I loved it. I used to race a Suzuki 100 along the A19. Both of us lying flat over the petrol tank The bike were completely matched for top speed. Those were the days

[OOMV6]

Austin Princess (don't ask) - front suspension collapse

Mk1 Fiesta - sheared end of rear axle after ****wits at ATS or similar (cannot remember) overtightened hub nut after fitting new wheel bearings causing wheel bearing to melt.

Mk3 Granada - 1 of the alternator bolts sheared causing belt to slip and so no power after a while - on a dark night on French autoroute

Ford Sierra - Through Paris near a market ran over a bin liner. Got caught in fan belt and subsequently cambelt causing it to snap. Expensive bin liner, but not for me. Lease car.

[Omega_Dan]

Just one for me.

Bmw 525 - buckled wheel after hitting unknown object and not having a spare wheel

[Manual Elite V6]

1. 1L Corsa b, on the way to Carmarthen to pick up my brothers new car the crank sensor decided to fail in lane 3 of the busiest roundabout in Carmarthen in rush hour traffic, car was pushed off roundabout, taxi to get new car then towed back through the back roads.

2. Same Corsa, the oil pressure sensor decided it wanted to give out and dumped a load of oil on the road, pulled over and my father came and towed me back with the Omega, towed so easily I'm sure he forgot I was attached to the back of it with the way he was accelerating at times.

3. V6 Vectra SRi nearside front wishbone snapped at 50mph through a narrow stone bridge, was a scary moment trying to avoid the bridge, raised the coilover suspension to get the arch off the wheel and creeped home pulling over when ever a car came behind me.