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76

Omega General Help / Front struts, are they handed?

« on: 20 August 2010, 13:17:41 »

I've got a cheap pair of Bilsteins ready for collection from Euro Car Parts but they show as the same unit for both sides where GM list them as different numbers LH & RH, is there a difference?

77

Omega General Help / Re: 2.5 Est Exhaust

« on: 19 August 2010, 18:46:50 »

I have the same problem on my 2.5 est, found an estate exhaust used for a month but it was in Dundee! Then I was going to buy an eternalcar but I discovered last week that i'm not so hot rolling around on my back under the car anymore. That coupled with me spotting that the cat bolts are pure rust i'm going to have to drive it in somewhere. Best price so far is £230  but my local Powerflow dealer thinks he might be able to repair it with replacement tube.

78

Omega General Help / Re: Estate rear seat centre mount

« on: 17 August 2010, 19:40:07 »

Thanks for the offer but it's my centre belt thats missing, the awkward one to replace 

79

Omega General Help / Estate rear seat centre mount

« on: 17 August 2010, 10:05:57 »

I mentioned a few weeks back that my estate has the rear centre belt missing, my plan was to replace it or the seats. Unfortunately my cash is now being used on the MOT so I need a bodge.

Simply put when I attempt to fold the seats down they don't lay flat, they twist inwards. I pulled the lower pad and spotted that the centre bracket that secures the seats to the floorpan is a mass of bent and ripped metal (I assume it has seized at some point).

The question is can you easily replace that bracket or is it integral to one side of the seat. I would normally just remove it to check but i'm off on holiday in Sept and dont want to get them out and find I cant get them back in.

80

Omega General Help / Re: Replace engine or unseize?

« on: 15 August 2010, 20:38:26 »

I don't know the full details of your engine deal but if they are reusing your old plenum/breathers and it is blocked i'd imagine it's highly unlikely the fitters will clean it out so you could blow your rocker cover gasket on a weekly basis.

81

Omega General Help / Re: HELP! I cant get in.... :-(

« on: 15 August 2010, 20:44:49 »

As shrek and I said you will think you're going to break the key, turn it to unlock and then force it that little bit more.

82

Omega General Help / Re: HELP! I cant get in.... :-(

« on: 15 August 2010, 18:37:34 »

I've had that happen and found that I needed to apply quite a lot of pressure when turning the key, to the point where you think something will snap. It then made an audible 'click' at which point I could open the door (but the button stayed down as said).

Just be sure you are using the right key though!

83

Omega General Help / More handbrake questions

« on: 15 August 2010, 17:04:58 »

So I spent 3hrs under the car this afternoon pretty much to no avail as my baby trolley jack cant lift the car high enough to get it on max axle stand height  I got the heat shields off OK, managed to see the adjuster and soak it in oil but just couldn't get enough access to get a socket on, also I span the hubs on both sides but couldn't see the star adjusters at all.

One thing I did spot though was the adjusting bracket was very heavily angled towards the offside a bit like this.
      ___
 __/
  /___

I'm assuming this means that the adjusters on one side are stuck? If so I guess I might as well just get a set of shoes and replace the lot anyway?

84

Omega General Help / Re: MOT failure questions

« on: 11 August 2010, 20:31:40 »

has any one mentioned adjusting the handbrake shoes up first.(wheel off, adjust thru the disc)

Now that sounds like a plan 

85

Omega General Help / Re: MOT failure questions

« on: 11 August 2010, 19:09:20 »

Thank you for that, you're right they aren't that bad, more so considering that my local auto factors wanted 65 quid a pop for them...........

86

Omega General Help / Re: MOT failure questions

« on: 11 August 2010, 18:57:33 »

There was a  smiley after that comment  I do use the handbrake all the time.

The handbrake does apply just that it was ineffectual on the test, I think I might as well try taking up the slack and if that fails go the whole hog with new shoes. I was kind of hoping for a golden bullet test as the one thing that cheeses me off is stripping something down only to find it's not what I thought/don't have the right part.

No recommendations for cheap shocks so far though 

87

Omega General Help / MOT failure questions

« on: 11 August 2010, 15:21:56 »

So I took it in today and got a fail ticket  exhaust, front shock, tyre and handbrake.

Tyre is done, exhaust will be eternalcar, that leaves 2 questions.

Does anyone have any cheap recommendations for a new pair of front shocks? (I did toy with a wanted ad but unless they are obviously newish there's no point risking it)

As the handbrake failed on both sides do you think that will be the cable needing adjusting or new shoes and is there an easy way to check that doesn't involve stripping it apart?

More importantly why do I need a handbrake when I have park 

88

Omega General Help / Re: Wishbones questions

« on: 12 July 2010, 13:44:00 »

Make sure they tightened the front wishbone bolts with the front wheels fully loaded or the bushes will not last.

Interestingly, my lemforder bushes have only lasted 2 years......

On my Elite I had VX installed (yeah I know more money than sense) and they only lasted 20-25k miles, the set I have just ordered are el cheapos....

89

Omega General Help / Re: Estate centre seat belt

« on: 30 July 2010, 13:13:14 »

Aha yes thank you, thats useful.

My first thought was new seats especially seeing Sir Sideways post an estate breaker. Unfortunately I badly need to do my wishbones this weekend and as per most breakers/forum mechanics he is way up north 

90

Omega General Help / Estate centre seat belt

« on: 29 July 2010, 09:23:34 »

OK this is embarrassing, I have this old beater estate I bought a month ago, needs a couple of minor jobs but otherwise usable.

Last night my daughter sits in the car and says "where's the middle seat belt?" I say ahh maybe it got trapped when someone last put the seats down, I take a look and there's nothing! The plastic insert is in the top of the seat, the clip is in place in the base but no belt.

So, how easy is it to replace? I only took a quick look but I assume it must run through the seat itself?

Not something I wanted to find out at 9 o'clock last night