Well, things have not exactly gone to plan, today was supposed to be cam belt day but the garage is having an absolute nightmare with a BMW, which is tying up the ramp and the mechanic. Said spanner wielder is going on holiday, which is very selfish, so although the could do it, they won't get to it for ages. I spoke to various other garages but none could do it at an acceptable price in an acceptable time frame, one quoted almost as much as a main dealer. One said he wouldn't because cheap cam belts seem to be flooding the market, they break after a few months and the manufacturers accept no responsibility.
Eventually I spoke to a garage a bit further away, one that looks after my mate's farm vehicles, vans and people carriers etc. He rates them highly and they have been recommended by others that I trust. They will be doing it in a couple of weeks, I keep thinking I should do it myself but it is a big job and I would rather it be done by somebody that carries insurance in case it all goes tits up.
The new sub woofer arrived, it only took 5 minutes to fit, it really brings the stereo alive, I was pretty disappointed when I first heard it but very happy now. I still think the treble is a wee bit lacking but that might be because I am listening to mp3 rather than lossless. An absolute bargain at 34 quid delivered, definitely worth the spend and few minutes to swap it.
The oil and filters arrived as well today, might go to Malc's tomorrow after the MoT, if all is well I will do the oil change which appears to be due.
I got some touch up paint for the little scuffs and marks but it's really not a good match, going to maybe have to get an aerosol or try a different supplier.
Still need to order a couple of brake pad sensors, the stupid diag box won't tell me if it's the front or back one playing up so if the car is going back up on the lift I need both in hand. The TPMS is still playing up too, I suspect the battery in the front right hand one is depleted, I won't know until the ECU does it's next scan. A new one is only 15 quid but the tyre has to come off and be put back on and rebalanced so that probably adds another 30 quid to the bill.
Oh well, it's getting there, at least after tomorrow I can actually start driving the thing - assuming the MoT goes smoothly.
UPDATE - the MoT went very smoothly, no advisories and the tester said he was very impressed with the overall condition. I took the car from there round to Malcolm's and did the oil and filter change, which threw up a bit of a shock. The car holds 6.6 litres of oil but when I drained the sump only 3.5 litres came out - that was very low, I am amazed a low oil warning hadn't come up. Anyway it has 6.6 litres of nice fresh high quality oil and a clean filter now, the electronic dipstick confirms the level to be just below the max, which is right where I like it. I shall be keeping a close eye on that though, it really shouldn't have been that low.
Jobs remaining now are - cam belt kit, window regulator, brake pads and sensors all round - one of the sensors is lying but I might as well replace the pads while I am in there as a new set came with the car. The tpms is still saying the front right sensor is playing up but the diag box says it's front left. I think that may turn in to a saga.
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