A tale of two excellent journeys and a pair of MOT's

BigBen · 22nd March 2018, 16:56

A fortnight ago I was on my annual pilgrimage to MOT Maurice.

Apart from his first MOT back in '05 every one since has been carried out by the same tester at his garage in Bedfordshire.

Even since I moved down to Kent, and now back to Wales I still go there every year!

This year we would be taking my fathers' new purchase - A black 75 diesel Connie SE Auto Tourer - along at the same time, too.

. (my parents still live in the neighbouring village).

I had had a conversation with my father a few days previous, as the diesel had gone into "limp mode", I asked him to start it up while he was on the phone with me, and could hear a loud whining noise in the background as soon as he switched on the ignition. UBP failure. Funny, when we collect the car only 5 weeks before it was practically silent - just goes to show they can fail without any warning too!

The drive up on the Wednesday was uneventful and - dare I say it - rather relaxing, as I'd decided to leave in the early afternoon; as in doing so I'd miss the peak traffic times - due to various road incidents and roadworks I opted for the (mind-numbing) M4/M25/M1/A421 route.

Maurice didn't miss a beat all the way, and the 3 and a half hour non-stop journey was just the run needed to properly bed-in the new rear pads and disks.

Along the way even though many people have said they're getting rarer I spotted many other MG's and Rovers, including a fairly heavily laden 75 Tourer on the M4. I arrived at around 4pm, and as I pulled up at my parents house I realised that I felt no more tired than I had that morning, and looking down at the display saw that I had managed to average 32.7mpg. Not bad.

The next morning the new UBP that I had already ordered arrived, and after about 45mins of swearing was fitted successfully. I'm pleased to say this brought it instantly back into fully working condition

I took some time to wash and wax both cars, do the basic check of lights, tyres, belts, etc.

The next morning it was down to the garage, dropping Maurice off first, then coming back and collecting the tourer (still not named!) and dropping that off, too.

Two hours later we had the call - Maurice had flown straight through with just an advisory on the front disks (expected), but the 75 had failed on brake pipes. The previous owner had informed us that they were probably in need of replacement, so no great shock there either, really. A date was set for these to be replaced the following Friday (too old to be lying on my back on gravel fixing brake pipes now!) and also a full service to be carried out at the same time.

This was completed, and the 75 now has a new MOT also

The next day (Saturday) . I woke up, and checking the travel news saw the M25 was closed due to an accident - so opted to go home via the M1/M6/M42/M5/M50 - and I'm glad I did!

The journey was much less mind-numbing. Maybe because it was splittable into smaller sections it seemed faster, too. Upon reaching the Welsh border I had a choice - I could carry on down the A449 to Newport and use the M4, or head across country through Usk. In the end the weather was so nice I decided on neither - instead followed the A40 for about 3 miles towards Abergavenny, then took the road over the Black Mountains.

As I turned off I had an '07 BMW 3series up my chuff. He wasn't there for long. as soon as we got to the twisty stuff there was just no way he could keep up.

The ZT-T is still such a rewarding, joyous and smile giving car to drive on these roads, and the sound of the engine above 4k when changing down through the gears for the bends and then accelerating out coupled with the incredible road holding for such a long estate car is still as addictive as anything I have ever driven.

I looked down at the display again... until this point I had been averaging around 32mpg..... but oops.... now it had dropped to about 25!

Did I care?

Not one bit.

It was worth it.

And one thing that struck me after my journeys over those 4 days was that amongst all the other cars I had seen on the road there wasn't a single one I would rather have been driving......

Amsca2 · 22nd March 2018, 20:27

Lovely cars and always worth the peace of mind of trusting the tester.

You said loud whining noise and new it was ubp. Why is that?

I ask as mines wouldn't start the other day and after a wiggle the pump sprang to life and runs great again. Is louder than normal a failure sign in the pumps?

BigBen · 22nd March 2018, 20:34

I'd heard one before that was on its way out.

It was VERY loud - lets put it like this, the door was open but the bonnet was shut and I could hear it over the phone, so yes it was a guess but a semi-educated one

Some get a bit noisy and still carry on for years but others, like this one, fail without warning. The other option would have been the MAF sensor, but simply unplugging it ruled it out.

I did remove the MAF and clean it on a short cycle in the dishwasher while I was fitting the UBP, though. It's brought many a dead one back to life for me on more than one BMW and Vivaro van!

Amsca2 · 23rd March 2018, 13:39

Cool. Ill give my one another chance and replace if it pauses again. My fan is the loudest known to man so it tends to keep other noises out of mind. The fans balanced so I leave it alone since its just very high speed bodge by a previous owner.

Ravinder · 23rd March 2018, 14:50

Both look lovely. It’s worth going the extra distance to someone you trust. Distance don’t put me off one bit if it means getting the job done right....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amsca2

Cool. Ill give my one another chance and replace if it pauses again. My fan is the loudest known to man so it tends to keep other noises out of mind. The fans balanced so I leave it alone since its just very high speed bodge by a previous owner.

Erm...wasn’t me...

BigBen · 29th March 2018, 19:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ravinder

Both look lovely. It’s worth going the extra distance to someone you trust. Distance don’t put me off one bit if it means getting the job done right....

Hi Rav,

Couldn't agree more

It's also nice to have the same MOT tested look at it every year, and so have an idea of what's good and what bits may be starting to age a bit more over the last year.

22nd March 2018, 16:56	#1
BigBen Loves to post R75 V8 Tourer, CDTi Auto Tourer (both Connie SE), MG ZT-T 190+, MG TF 115 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Here be Dragons! Posts: 490 Thanks: 106 Thanked 160 Times in 101 Posts	A tale of two excellent journeys and a pair of MOT's A fortnight ago I was on my annual pilgrimage to MOT Maurice. Apart from his first MOT back in '05 every one since has been carried out by the same tester at his garage in Bedfordshire. Even since I moved down to Kent, and now back to Wales I still go there every year! This year we would be taking my fathers' new purchase - A black 75 diesel Connie SE Auto Tourer - along at the same time, too. . (my parents still live in the neighbouring village). I had had a conversation with my father a few days previous, as the diesel had gone into "limp mode", I asked him to start it up while he was on the phone with me, and could hear a loud whining noise in the background as soon as he switched on the ignition. UBP failure. Funny, when we collect the car only 5 weeks before it was practically silent - just goes to show they can fail without any warning too! The drive up on the Wednesday was uneventful and - dare I say it - rather relaxing, as I'd decided to leave in the early afternoon; as in doing so I'd miss the peak traffic times - due to various road incidents and roadworks I opted for the (mind-numbing) M4/M25/M1/A421 route. Maurice didn't miss a beat all the way, and the 3 and a half hour non-stop journey was just the run needed to properly bed-in the new rear pads and disks. Along the way even though many people have said they're getting rarer I spotted many other MG's and Rovers, including a fairly heavily laden 75 Tourer on the M4. I arrived at around 4pm, and as I pulled up at my parents house I realised that I felt no more tired than I had that morning, and looking down at the display saw that I had managed to average 32.7mpg. Not bad. The next morning the new UBP that I had already ordered arrived, and after about 45mins of swearing was fitted successfully. I'm pleased to say this brought it instantly back into fully working condition I took some time to wash and wax both cars, do the basic check of lights, tyres, belts, etc. The next morning it was down to the garage, dropping Maurice off first, then coming back and collecting the tourer (still not named!) and dropping that off, too. Two hours later we had the call - Maurice had flown straight through with just an advisory on the front disks (expected), but the 75 had failed on brake pipes. The previous owner had informed us that they were probably in need of replacement, so no great shock there either, really. A date was set for these to be replaced the following Friday (too old to be lying on my back on gravel fixing brake pipes now!) and also a full service to be carried out at the same time. This was completed, and the 75 now has a new MOT also The next day (Saturday) . I woke up, and checking the travel news saw the M25 was closed due to an accident - so opted to go home via the M1/M6/M42/M5/M50 - and I'm glad I did! The journey was much less mind-numbing. Maybe because it was splittable into smaller sections it seemed faster, too. Upon reaching the Welsh border I had a choice - I could carry on down the A449 to Newport and use the M4, or head across country through Usk. In the end the weather was so nice I decided on neither - instead followed the A40 for about 3 miles towards Abergavenny, then took the road over the Black Mountains. As I turned off I had an '07 BMW 3series up my chuff. He wasn't there for long. as soon as we got to the twisty stuff there was just no way he could keep up. The ZT-T is still such a rewarding, joyous and smile giving car to drive on these roads, and the sound of the engine above 4k when changing down through the gears for the bends and then accelerating out coupled with the incredible road holding for such a long estate car is still as addictive as anything I have ever driven. I looked down at the display again... until this point I had been averaging around 32mpg..... but oops.... now it had dropped to about 25! Did I care? Not one bit. It was worth it. And one thing that struck me after my journeys over those 4 days was that amongst all the other cars I had seen on the road there wasn't a single one I would rather have been driving...... __________________ S. Wales meets cancelled until further notice [SIGPIC]https://www.the75andztclub.co.uk/forum/image.php?u=23989&type=sigpic&dateline=1467731033[/SIGPIC] Past cars:- BL: Discovery 3.1 & V8 2WD pick-up, Rover 800 Vitesse Turbo Coupe, 820 SLi 180 Fastback, 600ti, Montego 2.0EFi VDP, Ital 1.3 Estate Ford: Transit Cosworth V6, Granada 2.9 V6 Scorpio & 2.8 V6 GL Volvo: 480 Turbo & 1.7 ES, 240 GLE Porsche: 944 2.7 Lux Audi: 100 ESE 20v Peugeot: 405 1.9 GR Talbot: Alpine 1.6 Rapier S Last edited by BigBen; 22nd March 2018 at 20:47.. Reason: Added pic

22nd March 2018, 20:27	#2
Amsca2 Gets stuck in MG ZT-T cdti Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Grangemouth Posts: 521 Thanks: 60 Thanked 93 Times in 80 Posts	Lovely cars and always worth the peace of mind of trusting the tester. You said loud whining noise and new it was ubp. Why is that? I ask as mines wouldn't start the other day and after a wiggle the pump sprang to life and runs great again. Is louder than normal a failure sign in the pumps? __________________ The Typhoon Bull Last edited by Amsca2; 22nd March 2018 at 20:28.. Reason: Miss quote

22nd March 2018, 20:34	#3
BigBen Loves to post R75 V8 Tourer, CDTi Auto Tourer (both Connie SE), MG ZT-T 190+, MG TF 115 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Here be Dragons! Posts: 490 Thanks: 106 Thanked 160 Times in 101 Posts	I'd heard one before that was on its way out. It was VERY loud - lets put it like this, the door was open but the bonnet was shut and I could hear it over the phone, so yes it was a guess but a semi-educated one Some get a bit noisy and still carry on for years but others, like this one, fail without warning. The other option would have been the MAF sensor, but simply unplugging it ruled it out. I did remove the MAF and clean it on a short cycle in the dishwasher while I was fitting the UBP, though. It's brought many a dead one back to life for me on more than one BMW and Vivaro van! __________________ S. Wales meets cancelled until further notice [SIGPIC]https://www.the75andztclub.co.uk/forum/image.php?u=23989&type=sigpic&dateline=1467731033[/SIGPIC] Past cars:- BL: Discovery 3.1 & V8 2WD pick-up, Rover 800 Vitesse Turbo Coupe, 820 SLi 180 Fastback, 600ti, Montego 2.0EFi VDP, Ital 1.3 Estate Ford: Transit Cosworth V6, Granada 2.9 V6 Scorpio & 2.8 V6 GL Volvo: 480 Turbo & 1.7 ES, 240 GLE Porsche: 944 2.7 Lux Audi: 100 ESE 20v Peugeot: 405 1.9 GR Talbot: Alpine 1.6 Rapier S

23rd March 2018, 13:39	#4
Amsca2 Gets stuck in MG ZT-T cdti Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Grangemouth Posts: 521 Thanks: 60 Thanked 93 Times in 80 Posts	Cool. Ill give my one another chance and replace if it pauses again. My fan is the loudest known to man so it tends to keep other noises out of mind. The fans balanced so I leave it alone since its just very high speed bodge by a previous owner. __________________ The Typhoon Bull