Dave2302

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We have a hot tub in our conservatory, last New Year, snow on the ground, me, a good mate, and some family all pissed in tub, legged it down the shore and dived into Loch Duich !! By Fuck it was Cold, but great running back up the hill and jumping back in the hot tub

Absolutely agree /\ /\ /\ When I first started in the Auto box game all there was was C3 Fords GM 180's and the odd yank TH350 / 400 in Jensens etc That was vey good to me over the years, but I got out 12 years ago, writing was on the wall !! I don't need to work now, I'm only doing what I do now because 1) It keeps me outta the Pub all day long, 2) I love Cars and like a challenge, (new Technology), 3) I am providing a service to my local Community, 4) It supports and gives perks for my continually growing Car collection If I was 16 years old now, knowing what I know now, NO WAY would I get involved in the Motor Trade as it is now, so if I was Lucas, in this current time, I would put my money into IT !!

10 years is ok if there are decent strategic Break Points. I think Lucas' problem, (well one of them ), is that he has no track record in this country, hence 12 month depo req'd

LOL, got my Xmas pressie to myself early, went and picked it up almost 2 weeks ago, 2004 SLK to add to my Benz collection My works do is Sunday pm down the Dornie Hotel ............................ Oh wait............................ That's every Sunday

It's 7:30 am, just opened workshop, sat here with my first Coffee, and you almost got me on the hook there Nice one Perhaps sell him a Red and White twin wheel Sprinter pick up truck with jingling bells affixed to the sides

Yes, especially as you have no proven track record.

I don't think that is the case, I do know of one diagnostic firm who allow Customers to visit and view the goods, very good products with excellent after sales, I know, I have a couple of their Machines. I think there is some law involved that Mfrs must make their software available, the problem these days is that unless you use genuine machines you cannot access say MB / Ford / BMW etc Servers and the latest ECU update files are not available on Database. So you must pay for server access, that is why I bought new MB Star this year, my old knock of was fine, in fact I still use it on older MB's because the latest 2018 s/w on the genuine machine has no more HHT Emulator, also the genuine one does not have Developer Mode, which my home built system does, and that works on Cars up to 2014 MY, so I can take off Speed limiters, turn off traction control completely, etc etc which the MB Dealers are not allowed to do !! Of course I only do this for Race Track use

you may be right, my jocks buy Audi diseasels, I very rarely buy a Beemer, but the highland jocks are a much better breed of billy, no hassle at all, I have to actively encourage them to bring a Car back with a warranty problem and not pay me !! Try that down south

I think the rates is the least of his problems, now here's a fresh Idea !! With his electronic skills and obviously wanting to get in the Motor sector, and a bonus being Chinese, why not import Diagnostic Equipment, fettle out all the bugs and sell it, there isn't that many selling fully sorted machines, I know, I tried a few, and they were a good product but lacked quality control etc. That will be a booming industry over the next few years, it's already taking off now !!

I think you got lucky Anything with BMW on the back is usually bought and driven by a complete c*nt , give me an Audi bunter any day

Absolutely, keeps 'em keen, we used to do a profit share with our top 2 guys

Mercedes Benz Server subscription costs £10k a year on it's own, then there's all the other 11 Mfr's that I have Dealer Kit for, some PAYG, some Annual and some per file downloaded. Then there is Machine software updates. etc etc etc etc etc, and most run of the mill mechanics won't be able to work it or understand it !! Absolutely Mikey, a billy asked me the other day why I charged him an hour to "just" fit a Battery I used to employ good Mechanics / Technicians at my Gearbox firm, and believe me, whenever we interviewed there wasn't 'arf some wankers applying for the jobs !! Without Motor experience how the hell do you know who is good and who isn't, the good ones are either on top dollar and happy in their PAYE Job or they work for themselves An "out of work" mechanic coming for an interview would always set bells ringing, it took us years to get the right team together. If I had Lucas skills with Chips and Electronics etc I'd be in that game, but I just love Cars, Old and New, always have done.

/\ /\ /\ +1 Un believable ........................ I have been buying tools, mostly Snap On since I was 14, over the last few years the Snap On purchases have gone down to just the occasional lost socket, or a new gadget etc................. However, the need for specialist Dealer Level Diagnostic machines, and the learning curve of Computers, (and for you Lucas) how the Cars Electronic Systems works is very very steep. My Workshop Equipment expenditure last year alone will wipe out your remaining capital ....................... I quote Fraser from Dad's Army (for those of us that remember it lol) "Doooooomed, Doooooomed" Why do you think the fella is selling up ?? I have a mate locally, owns a fleet and wants his son to take over his business, the boy is brilliant with computers and his dad asked me if i could teach him to use diagnostic stuff .......................... I gave it a shot, got the boy reading fault codes, looking at data, but the issue is he has no idea how an Engine etc works, so when the code says "EGR Valve" he might just as well go down the pub............. Not a scooby !! Lucas, you are full of surprises, keep 'em coming

Ditto Nik, here's wishing yourself and everyone here a very Happy Christmas and a great New Year, Cheers !! Dave

Preparation H works well

+ 1

Because it is all made of rubbish in sweat shops where the staff get a bowl of rice per day !! That SLK I just bought had some very nasty behaviour when hitting copious surface water at speed, when I got it home and had it on my lift for a thorough going over / service etc i discovered 2 of the 4 good tyres were "Made In China" cheapos. There is now a set of 4 decent high performance tyres here waiting to be fitted to it as soon as I get a spare half hour Chinese Tyres are for grocery trollies, and even then only if you don't like your wife and children

I'm not really going to write tons on this, but myself together with a local fleet owner tested a load of this absolute rubbish on various vehicles which rack up mileages quickly. In almost every case the Chinesium failed early on, or plain didn't work out of the box. When looking at the mileages that the same OE or OEM part would do, it was cheaper to fit an OE / OEM every time as it would do many more multiples of mileage that the number of price multiples, in other words the OE / OEM worked out a cheaper part, and that's before you even considered the labour to keep changing the shit every 3 months or whatever What is going to happen when the Chinese Pump goes bang and wrecks the Fuel Regulator / Rail and Injectors......................... OUCH !! If absolute price is the problem here, I'd sooner fit a good used OE part

Absolutely +1

Hmmmm, when did it last have an Air Filter ? .................... That may not be as stupid as one would think I haven't had a problem with a Citroen / Pug, but MB's will not regen if they have "Airflow Offset Drift" code, and one of the (many) causes of that code is ........................ Yep, Air Filter !! Agree with the others, Peugeot / 'troon Lexia will nail it without parts darts

http://www.pumapeople.com/forum/index.php?s=28f402c0763c19c5e8052effa6f2a0bc&showtopic=100870&st=0 In 2010, the 4x4 Ford Puma Cosworth 24V was started, I finished it in October 2013 and after some small clubby events I started Rallying it. Sold it this week, to a local mate, due to Mels Bro long illness and then not 1 but 2 family bereavements within 9 months of each other it hasn't seen much action in the last couple of years, and i don't have time to go Stage Rallying every other weekend now Before that there have been many Car builds including an old Fiat 500 spaceframed and had a V8 Chevy with NOS, used to drag race that. Latest project almost completed was resurrecting my S55, and hopefully Friday I'm picking up an SLK V6 R170 which I'll fettle and drive coming Summer, then next (2019) Xmas shut down it will get a 5.0 V8 shoehorned into it, all Merc Parts of course I prefer Road Cars these days, like them a bit different, you can get in them and drive them any time you want, the Competition Cars and Power Boats are now in the past for me, too much of a load of messing around for not much time at the wheel Every workshop should always have a project

Yes I used to do far more of the Hydraulic controlled 4 speed auto's, MB never really got that right, the later Electronic 5 speed 722.6 probably the best box MB did in terms of reliability The 9 speed in my E Class is awesome performance wise, it's just seamless and always in the right gear !! BUT I wouldn't want to have to rebuild it, mind that car will be sold when it is almost out of warranty and another few month old ex demo E Class will be obtained

Fuckin classic, I love that /\ /\ /\

LOL, and yet other parts of USA love him I have a lot of MB Indies who talk / skype / TV with me, from all over and they love him Or, perhaps it is just MB nutters like moi that love him