gjm

Not looked at TPS yet. Timing may not be quite spot-on, but it's less than 1 degree out. Worryingly, VW are on record as saying that it may be necessary to replace the ECU to resolve some issues such as these. Not that there was a recall or anything like that, of course...

Still got the hesitation issue. Driving at a constant speed - say, 90kph - and with no conscious movement of the accelerator pedal (no cruise in an old Polo!) it feels as though the engine is starved of fuel. It's a 'nothing' rather than a misfire. I've fitted new plugs, rotor and dizzy cap already. Certainly starts easier since replacing the vacuum hoses.

Swapped the vacuum lines that can easily be done. There's one that goes through the firewall which is going to prove tricky. This does seem to have helped smooth the idle. Now I just need to work out how to get the idle speed up. I can bodge it on the throttle cable, but bodge is all that would be. I've read that the speed is hard-coded in the ECU, but there must be something, somewhere that'll offer a more manual adjustment... Surely?

The top end is much cleaner (I'll not say clean) but I've not pulled the whole thing off the car (yet). I suspect there is a base gasket or similar so obviously want to have a replacement to hand when I do that. I think the ICV is a part of the throttle body (on this car).

Hmm... And this morning the car was reluctant to start. Probably need to investigate WURs and ICVs.

Well, we've got the WoF behind us. Rear wheel bearings needed adjusting (they've need that for the past two WoFs, too... ) and a steering rack gaitor needed replacing. Not so bad. A quick poke around this evening suggests replacing the vacuum hoses might be a good idea. Certainly that'll explain the rough idle, but obviously not the hesitation at constant throttle and normal driving speeds. Still, one thing at a time.

The VIN doesn't come up on any search I know of.

It's not the first time it has been done, but those conversions I've seen using the Lexus V8 have also used the Lexus gearbox. See here for one example. There was an E28 ex-535i fitted with a Lexus V8 for sale on TradeMe recently, also (I think) turbo'd. IIRC that used the Lexus 'box.

I've spent a lot of time with Porsche 928s. Typically, the standard autobox fitted to them is expected to handle more power and torque than the manuals. That's not always the case. Ultimately, the way you drive will be more important than the gearbox you use. Slamming an auto through the gears will break it.

No doubt that the thermostat swap has worked. There's even warm air through the vents! Idle needs some work - it's too low. I can fudge it by adjusting the throttle cable, but I suspect the throttle body (with incorporated idle control valve) needs removing, cleaning and replacing. I anticipate there is a gasket involved so that will wait until I can get hold of one. There is one more issue. When driving at constant speed, level road, constant throttle, there is sometimes a very brief deceleration. No change in throttle position (inside the car) but it's almost as though fuel supply has been cut for a fraction of a second. It's a hesitation. Doesn't seem to be speed related, but is (I think) happening at marginal throttle, so while cruising rather than accelerating. Could this also be an idle control valve issue?

Replacing the thermostat appears to have resolved the temperature problem - no sits solidly at 90 degrees on the gauge once warmed up. That's what I'd expect. I took the expansion chamber off and ran some descaler through it to shift some muck that had accumulated in there. The tickover issue is a funny one. Throttle cable adjustment appears to be rudimentary - slide a ribbed section through a metal ring, and use a clip to stop it sliding back. The clip was the wrong side of the ring to actually do anything - it would let the rubbed section slide and slacken the throttle cable - so I've swapped that and set things so the car ticks over now. Of course, this is tickover adjustment by throttle cable rather than how it should be done - I'll check that later. I took the opportunity to squirt some cleaner into the throttle body. It was filthy, so that won't hurt. Seemed to make a bit of a difference. The crankcase breather pipe that connects to the bottom of the airfilter housing has mayonnaise in it. Not unusual, I guess, but disconcerting. I'll look into cleaning that out properly, too. New airfilter needed. Repco/SCA want a fortune for one, and I can get an air filter, oil fitler, and fuel filter shipped from Oz for half the price of an air filter here. That said, for GBP 15 I can get an airfilter, oil filter, fuel filter and 4 spark plugs from the UK... Even if shipping works out to $50, it'd be worth it!

Not surprised - the price was right. Pity - I had 'other car' problems that I had to sort this morning.

We had a Mk3 VR6. It wasn't a Highline, but had all the Highline bits and then some. Particularly rare as ours was a Dragon Green 5-door automatic. It went up in smoke on the side of the road. A puff of dust from around the steering column turned out to be smoke. A second and Mrs GJM pulled over and got out. Engine off... Phoned me to say she was concerned, then turned around to see an inferno. <sniff>

Yup - they do. http://www.ststrim.co.nz/index.php/automotive.html I've no connection to them. Stitches on the Clevedon-Maraetai road do superb interior work. Not sure if they do steering wheels, but give Kelly a call. 09 292 8048 / 021 821 550. When I get around to it, he's going to rebuild a couple of Mercedes seats for me, retaining the original look but with more shape to them.

Had a nice chat with a lovely lady at Qualitat. (Shane wasn't available.) Thermostat: $34 O-ring: $4 Top housing: $29.90 ~1.5 litres of genuine VW coolant: ~$30 (ouch) All plus GST.

I think it is about $80 for a thermostat and housing, from an appropriate source. The housings are (I think) plastic, and tend to crack/break when you start to 'play' with them.

Thanks. That'll be the first stop.

Apologies... But at least it is a German car. 1998 VW Polo 1.6, AHS engine (the lower power - 75hp version). Nearly 145000km. Regularly serviced. Economy isn't great at around 12km per litre on 45km runs. For a little while the temperature gauge has suggested the coolant is not getting up to temperature. Typically, it'll peak when displaying 70 degrees, but with the cold weather over the last couple of days, it's been lower. If sat idling for a period of time the gauge will show 90 degrees, but as soon as any constant speed is reached, this drops back to 70 (or less). Normal journey length is around 45km, mostly on SH1 at 70-100km/h. For some time we have had an issue where it would sometimes, not always , stall when stationery. Always restarted without any issue. I'd attributed this to an (apparently) common problem with the throttle body. Costs a small fortune to replace so we've lived with it. Today, no problem going in to work. When leaving work, seemed a little reluctant to start, but then would not tick over. Revs smoothly - no problem. Take foot off accelerator and it stalls. Drives well enough, accelerates smoothly, but will not idle without a little accelerator. So... Has the thermostat gone south and needs replacing (replace the housing on these at the same time), or has the engine temperature sender called it a day? My nitial suspicion is that longer use with low temperature (at least) being reported has 'fooled' the ECU into running the engine much richer than it should, and the excess fuel has caused the cat to become blocked. Any ideas?

It was the early to mid-90s MBs that had loom issues. After that and through to ~2002, the accountants insisted on the use of sub-standard finishing processes, including paint, anti-corrosion and the like. The W220 suffered much less from this than other models; the W210 E-class was worst affected.

Spent the first 5-6 years of it's life in Singapore, which will likely have contributed to the low mileage. Pity there is no mention of service history. Whatever, that is a helluva lot of car for the money. If you crave ultimate involvement from your driving it's less likely to completely satisfy, but anyone who expects it to perform like a whale on rollerskates is going to be very, very surprised. I drove a W220 320CDi and while there is no getting away from it being a big car, it felt nimble and handles like something much smaller.

I just checked - it cost me €110 to have the 4 MB rims shipped from Fulda in Germany to RD2 Papakura late in 2012. The rims were 16x7, no tyres, but lightweight - under 6.5kg each. The 4 rims were shipped in two packages.

I bought a set of rims for the MB from Germany. Had them shipped, freight. Providing they're not too expensive (including shipping and any insurance costs) you'll not have any grief. I don't think mine were even inspected for dirt, etc.

^ Yup. Take a look first. It's certainly not a holiday destination at the moment, but if you have the offer of good work, it may be worth it.

My 320D Touring is very nearly two years newer and has covered (at least) twice the recorded distance. The interior in my car appears better than that one. Mechanically - look after it and it's hard to tell when it'll stop working. Biggest expense is likely to be replacing the turbo... The ones fitted to these cars aren't easily repairable (at least, not in NZ. Lots in Europe.) Easier and possibly cheaper to buy in a warranted refurbished one from a reputable source in Europe. Other than that - maintenance. That's it. Usual story - use good oil, and change it more often than the service indicator advises you it needs doing - that comes up every 20000km or so. Great cars. Price reflects it is coming from a dealer, and that they aren't common on NZ roads.