Dubbin'

I'm pleased to report that the search for winter wheels has proved fruitful, and after a mixed track record in this area I even seem to have come up trumps. So here is the Golf. Its a 1997 VR6 Highline, which is the one with airconditioning and leather - in this instance a purple to match the 'Mulberry' paintwork.

Better than that, this is a one owner from new, 30,600 miles examples, that came complete with a 2inch stack of history including the original invoice and brochure...!




The owner looked after car really well, althought he wasn't a polisher it was filthy in and out! However, my once over showed that everything worked, and that apart from a dent in one door, the bodywork was excellent - and even the interior plastics were perfect, saved from the usual u/v ravages by storage in a garage from new. It sailed happily through the MOT, but the rear tyres (fitted in 1998!) need replacing.

I collected it from the owner in Leicestershire, a good 200 mile drive from home. The run home along the M1, A43, A34 and M27 was uneventful, although the continuous rain varied only between drizzle and torrential. The car hummed along showing 32mpg on the 'puter, the ancient VW branded Sony cassette radio worked fine and the a/c pumped out cold, dry air. The only weakpoint was the dampers, which have given up the ghost. On slightly lower springs, even on the short test ride it crached into bumps and lurched on low frequency bumps, but after 3 hours on the motorway it really was all over the place.

Young SS3.5 and I spent a couple of hours cleaning it today; and its all good. Under the dirty rubber mats are the original over-mats, hardly used, and the leather responded to a bit of cleaning. We even got most of the grass out of the boot floor.

In fact, its almost too good to use.....

SS7

Binned

Here's an advert from Pistonheads. Just to remind you, this is the language of Shakespeare, Milton, Shelley, Churchill, Lennon and Beckham. God help us all:

"For Sale: 1994 VW GOLF VR6

Here im selling this golf vr6 for a friend its not my car, its bin a good car and only selling due to not being able to insure on my own policy so it must go as im stil 17.
The car itself isnt standard it has bin lowered and a set of deep dish alloys have bin fitted, also has duel exhaust system and flushed bootlid, kamei grill with mk4 headlights. car is moted til next year but no tax. im awaiting v5 to return but wil supply full reciept. any questions just call me. cheers"

I've got a stiffy....

From press coverage in Road and Track at the time of the Cayman S’s launch:

“Compared with the Boxster, the big difference of course is that the Cayman is a closed car. Porsche engineers have retained the Boxster’s strong floor-pan without modification, with the result that the close car is only 11lb lighter that the comparable Boxster.

On the other hand the Caymans S's torsional stiffness is 2.5 times higher that the Boxster S (which ranks as one of the structurally stiffest contemporary open cars) and only 5% lower that the 997 series Carrera. The beam stiffness is also doubled compared with the roadster’s.”

Keyed Up

When I decided to take KNoB to the office for one last run the other day, I also took the Cayman keys to the garage with me. This was a bit of a fall-back, just in case the poor old thing didn’t start/wouldn’t go/exploded in a ball of flames etc.

At some point, while messing around with KNoB’s keys, the garage door opener, my PC case, phone and waterproof jacket, I put the Cayman key (in its little leather ‘Porsche Zentrum Hamburg’ pouch) on the 924’s rear spoiler.

Later in the day, after returning from work and enjoying one of the dowager Mrs SS7 chillies con-carnes (certificate U), I went out to the garage to wash months of accumulated dust and crud off KNoB.

I’d parked it outside the garage for this purpose.

The first thing I noticed when I approached the car was the Cayman key, still sitting on the rear spoiler…… It had remained there for the whole of the 12 mile journey to work, and the whole of the 12 mile journey back again, as well as 8 hours in the office car-park, and an hour in the drizzle outside the garage.

Sometimes we are blessed by the Gods.

The King is dead, long live the King

So, the saga of KNoB (the Carlist trackday Porsche 924S) is over. The first serious buyer spent 20 minute looking the car over, and then took it away leaving a small pile of cash.

An expensive lesson for all.

Now looking for a late, low miles Golf Mk3 Gti 16v with leather and air. Interested applications to the usual address.

SS7

Wiper Fetish

Now I know this sounds a bit anorakish, but I’ve always had a bit of a thing about the way 911’s windscreen wipers move. There’s a beauty and purpose and precision about the way they slash from side to side, especially on the fast speed, that is unique to the brand.

It always reminds me of the big Porsche 935’s racing in the rain at Le Mans in the 80’s.

SS7

Knife Crime, then and now

I was reading an Enid Blyton tale to young SS2.0 at the weekend. It was called 'Treasure Island', and was about those bad boys the Famous Five. I suppose Enid wrote this in the 30's.

Anyway the four homies (aged I guess between 11 and 15) and the dog are given parental permission to spend a night on an island.

In their possession, they had pocket knives, a sheaf knife, an axe and matches (amongst other things), but no Mack 10 as far as I can tell. Even in my youth in the late 60's, a pocket knife was something that I used to carry around. However I used it for whittling, cutting string and general boy scout stuff. At no point did I think of sticking it into someone for offending my fragile sense of self-worth.

One cannot help noting that our attitudes to kids and knives have changed. Or at least the perception; total number of knife deaths in my county in 2006 was zero.

SS7