On the van are Michelin X 145s. The spare is a Nankang m&s 135, which don't seem
To be available any more

I have a couple of reals of automotive wire shield stuff if you haven't got any yet. You are more then welcome to however much you need.

Just to let you know (from the AKL thread) that since January 6th this year, Hugo has covered 10,300km (6,400miles) Between now and next Sunday there's at least another 385miles to add to that; this includes work, the Leics-Car-Go! club meet and Raid Raymond with the SAS, so I'm averaging around 1,000miles a month

Not that it's a competition or anything...

I think if I were you, I'd want to keep it so that the sidelights stayed on when the headlamps were on. That way you still have a marker light if one of your headlamp bulbs fails. Surely you can run them off whatever powers the tail lights? Looking good though

Just a point of law for you,in that your position lamps (side lights) are required to be lite with the headlights.I know you can't see them with your headlights on but thats the requirement

That's interesting about the sidelights, I didn't know that was the rule. I'll leave the set up as is then and leave the other terminal that's off with dip beam for DRLs in case I want to mix it with the Audis, as I believe DRLs have to go off when dip is activated?

Dave - that would be fab, about 3 meters would be great! Thanks!

With the spare wheel moved under the bonnet I decided yesterday (despite suffering from plague/influenza/sars) that I wanted to do something with the old spare wheel area. It was this that roused me from my sick bed. Thanks Neil.





Turns out a great cure for man flu is to do something manly. Like drilling spot welds. Grrr, manly stuff!



Funnily enough, this left me with a number of small holes inside



Interestingly, that crack has been there since I've owned her, so can maybe presume the spare wheel was flexing the metal?



I had to use a larger size drill to drill them out after the pilot holes and a little persuasion, but it came away cleanly meaning it could be refitted if desired.





Using my Dad's amazing shape template thing with pins (like the boxes you had as a kid with needles in that you put your face in? Remember those?) I cut a piece of marine ply to fit. It's held with substancial screws from the rear wing support and the interior box and epoxied to the front box section.





I also primed and sprayed the 'locker' (nautical background) to make it a little smarter.



I also fitted two pieces of ply to cover the holes I'd drilled out, which has also meant the bolts holding it in place ave pulled that crack back into place.



I only have the paint for one of Hetty's two tones but it'll protect the metal work.



Buzzing.

Now I'm thinking....

At the minute my side-box thingy houses a leisure battery, but I think that there could be better uses for it... I watch with interest!

Well a fab time was had at the ICCCR. My oil catch tank was pretty full on returning home so I've moved the cpd valve closer to where the original breather would have been.



I've also angled it up so that the oil should drain back int the filler and via the return pipe into the sump.

I'd thought about getting rid of the old filler which had a replaceable rubber 'ducks bill' breather (since replaced with a CPD valve) that looks like this:



With the later AK350 type which looks like this:



However, this people is why breathers need to be replaced:



That's the remains of the 'breather' part of the breather meaning that black one is totally buggered.

I've cleaned up the old style one and with the CPD valve coming straight off the 'breather' bit there's a lot less oil in the pipe to the catch tank.

Whilst doing that I knocked the alternator (rear mounted type unique to AKs and M4 Meharis) and the exciter lead pulled off its mount that attaches to one of the bushes and it all came apart in a graphite/copper wire/springy balls up.

I've lashed it back together and ordered new bushes but, wether it was to do with this or wether it's because `i havent driven in the dark for ages and simply hadn't noticed but:



Did it light up when the VR died last year? No.
Did it light up when we had no power driving through Brittany? No.

So why, oh WHY has it come on now? And everything seems fine

Will check charging in the morning.

Sam, how much oil does the catch tank catch? Only curious as to how much oil you loose from the engine that's not doing its stuff?

Also call me back !!!!