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D.K's LCR, #Projectcarbon. Still alive
- Thread starter D.K
- Start date
I'm a bit torn on what path to take next at the moment
As I mentioned in a previous post I'm less than happy with the condition of paint work at the moment, the "fogging" on the bonnet has come back and as it stands really it needs a full front end respray, the rear bumper needs respraying and there are a few other little bits that need tidying up, as it's metallic paint this will probably result in a full respray, don't get me wrong the car looks very good and to the untrained eye most probably wouldn't notice it but I know it's not to the level I expect.
Another option I'm looking at is a full body vinyl wrap, I've got a colour in mind which I'll keep to myself for now, my main concerns with the wrap is how durable it's going to be and I don't want to go for something too lairy that wont suit the car or go out of "scene" within 1 season like the classic 3 spoke alloys.
I'll be going over to Legend Vehicle Specialists Ltd www.legendvs.com soon to discus my options and see what they think is best.
On the power side, the cars not felt right for a while, I've spoken to a couple of people about this and we think it could be the actuator so I need to look into these now, I know Forge do one but can anyone recommend any other ?
I'll be going over to AmD soon to do some more checks and test's and take it from there.
Now for the tough bit, given how much I'm expecting the body work to cost I'm weighing up whether it's worth doing it or selling up, I've had the car 7 years and in some ways I do fancy a change, this has got nothing to do with the fact that a lot of the "big" mk1 players are selling up, At the moment I cant afford to buy what I want so it wont be going any time soon but the thought is there :/
Hhmmm... I think it'd be a shame to wrap it - it can be costly and I don't think you'd enjoy caring for the car as much as you would do a paint finish? 7 years is a long time but if you're not in a position to better your car ownership with something you'd actually really want, I'd seriously consider respraying the car. Shop around and hopefully you'll be able to find a really good sprayer for a reasonable price. Perhaps a better chance of selling the car to an owner who wants a mint example, too. Of course, it's your decision and I wish you the best with whatever you decide. Hopefully the actuator is the culprit
See, it looks lovely when shinny and clean. Respray gets my vote rather than a matt wrap. I hope your budget can stretch to making it into an absolutely mint example (just a spray away)
I still think you would get pissed off with it wrapped. Cleaning it and trying to keep it clean is going to be a pig trust me.
Looks the b0llocks in the pics mate
Looks the b0llocks in the pics mate
Went over to AmD to try and find the cause of my intermittent boost problem.
The problem I'm having is the car will intermittently not make full boost, for example you pull off a roundabout, 2nd gear accelerate boost builds to 22psi, 3rd gear 22psi, 4th gear 15psi, close the throttle back off a bit and accelerate again in 4th and it will hit 22psi.
It doesn't seem to be gear related as it's done it in other gears.
As well as seeing it on the gauge you can also feel it holding back.
As you'd expect during the during the road tests today it behaved itself and the vacuum tests we're all ok and showed no leaks so we are now ruling out the actuator, for now anyway.
One thing we did find was a fault code relating to the pre cat lambda probe, it could be that if the sensor is playing up it might be causing it to cut or reduce fuel and therefore reduce boost, we've cleared the code so now it's just a case of waiting and see if it comes back.
The car has smelt like it's been running rich for a while and the exhaust tip never stays clean long, and I've noticed some marks on the rear bumper around the exhaust that look like it's been spitting a bit.
Also today I went over to legend vehicle specialists in Gravesend to weight up my options on the paint work, now these guys are not exactly cheap but the quality of their work from what I've seen is very high, we're looking at a full front end and rear bumper respray, I've got a couple of other places I still want to talk to so nothings getting done just yet.
I think I've ruled out the full body wrap now, I've seen a picture of a Leon in matt grey and to me it doesn't work.
As a temp measure we are looking at doing something a little bit different with vinyl just on the bonnet, no it's not fake carbon
The problem I'm having is the car will intermittently not make full boost, for example you pull off a roundabout, 2nd gear accelerate boost builds to 22psi, 3rd gear 22psi, 4th gear 15psi, close the throttle back off a bit and accelerate again in 4th and it will hit 22psi.
It doesn't seem to be gear related as it's done it in other gears.
As well as seeing it on the gauge you can also feel it holding back.
As you'd expect during the during the road tests today it behaved itself and the vacuum tests we're all ok and showed no leaks so we are now ruling out the actuator, for now anyway.
One thing we did find was a fault code relating to the pre cat lambda probe, it could be that if the sensor is playing up it might be causing it to cut or reduce fuel and therefore reduce boost, we've cleared the code so now it's just a case of waiting and see if it comes back.
The car has smelt like it's been running rich for a while and the exhaust tip never stays clean long, and I've noticed some marks on the rear bumper around the exhaust that look like it's been spitting a bit.
Also today I went over to legend vehicle specialists in Gravesend to weight up my options on the paint work, now these guys are not exactly cheap but the quality of their work from what I've seen is very high, we're looking at a full front end and rear bumper respray, I've got a couple of other places I still want to talk to so nothings getting done just yet.
I think I've ruled out the full body wrap now, I've seen a picture of a Leon in matt grey and to me it doesn't work.
As a temp measure we are looking at doing something a little bit different with vinyl just on the bonnet, no it's not fake carbon
Regarding marks on the bumper around the exhaust - when my old turbo was on the way out I was getting little black spots on the bumper and part of the tailgate. Might be worth taking your TIP off at the turbo end and just checking for shaft play. Mine was also starting to sometimes not build boost, as you describe. Hope it's not that but thought I should mention it.
Cheers mate I'll check that, might be worth doing that before I go too far with other plans 
I went to see another body shop today about the paint work I want sorting, this guy came highly recommended by a friend who details high end performance cars, we're looking at respraying everything below the window line i.e, bonnet, bumpers, doors and wings for £1300.
All the panels are straight and there's no dents but it is starting to show signs of it age as any 9 year old car would and I want it to look perfect
We've had a long think today and really I cant afford to buy what I want, RS4 or M3 so if I was to sell it I'd be looking at something like an S3, Also I really need to replace our other car with something a bit more practical which I wouldnt be able to do if I replaced the LCR.
But it's still in the back of mind if it's worth spending £1300 on it
Nothing's going to happen till spring so I've got a bit of time to decide what to do.
I went to see another body shop today about the paint work I want sorting, this guy came highly recommended by a friend who details high end performance cars, we're looking at respraying everything below the window line i.e, bonnet, bumpers, doors and wings for £1300.
All the panels are straight and there's no dents but it is starting to show signs of it age as any 9 year old car would and I want it to look perfect
We've had a long think today and really I cant afford to buy what I want, RS4 or M3 so if I was to sell it I'd be looking at something like an S3, Also I really need to replace our other car with something a bit more practical which I wouldnt be able to do if I replaced the LCR.
But it's still in the back of mind if it's worth spending £1300 on it
Nothing's going to happen till spring so I've got a bit of time to decide what to do.
Sorted a couple of little jobs I've been meaning to do for a while.
1st one, replaced the broken boost gauge
The bezel cracked which was stopping the needle from moving.
I stuck with the same gauge to save buying a oil temp gauge but I've sprayed the bezel's black rather than the silver that they came with.
I need to clean the glue off from the tape on the temp gauge
Next job was the rear ARB, one of the centre brackets has been moving
So I've refitted it, I might drill through the bracket and rear beam and bolt the bracket in place to stop it moving.
I also changed the drop link's from the firm setting to the soft setting, it was surprising how much a difference it made, it really did feel softer at the rear and the creaking noises from where the car was so stiff have stopped
1st one, replaced the broken boost gauge
The bezel cracked which was stopping the needle from moving.
I stuck with the same gauge to save buying a oil temp gauge but I've sprayed the bezel's black rather than the silver that they came with.
I need to clean the glue off from the tape on the temp gauge
Next job was the rear ARB, one of the centre brackets has been moving
So I've refitted it, I might drill through the bracket and rear beam and bolt the bracket in place to stop it moving.
I also changed the drop link's from the firm setting to the soft setting, it was surprising how much a difference it made, it really did feel softer at the rear and the creaking noises from where the car was so stiff have stopped
Been a bit lazy on the cleaning front recently
Autobright direct Magifoam
One of the benefits of sealing your wheels properly, this was just after a soak in snowfoam and then just water pressure from the jet wash
Yesterday I borrowed my mate garage and set about trying to bring the bonnet back to life, the lacquer has gone flat again
Not the best lighting but it was better than doing it outside.
50/50
Still needs more work and I couldnt get the scratches out but at least the gloss and reflection is back
Autobright direct Magifoam
One of the benefits of sealing your wheels properly, this was just after a soak in snowfoam and then just water pressure from the jet wash
Yesterday I borrowed my mate garage and set about trying to bring the bonnet back to life, the lacquer has gone flat again
Not the best lighting but it was better than doing it outside.
50/50
Still needs more work and I couldnt get the scratches out but at least the gloss and reflection is back
What snow foam are you using these days Darren? I went for the Clean Freaks one this time round and its the best I've used yet, and there's been a few. Hope the car's running well? How the latest splitter holding up?
I'm still using the Autobright Magifoam, I tried some of Kleenfreaks other bits and I wasn't that impressed with it.
The cars still not running 100%, we think the pre cat lambda sensor needs replacing, boost is still bit random and it's drinking fuel like a fat kid eats cake
The current splitter is doing very well I'm hoping to get the car in for a respray in the spring, when it goes in the splitter will be taken off and inspected for and damage to the resin,
We're also looking at replace the wife's car soon with something a bit more practical, my plan is rather than using the Leon when ever we go out together we'll talk the new one, this will allow me to virtually take the Leon off the road during the winter although I don't have a garage
Recently I grown bored of driving a modified car, It's too low, the ride is hard, the roads round here are awful and I'm constantly worrying about it getting damaged.
With this in mind we are looking at crossover range of soft 4x4's, We looked at the new Vauxhall Mokka yesterday which is a really nice well spec'd car but it's a bit out of our price range and they are fairly new still so there's not many used ones around.
We've also looked at a lot of Nissan Juke's which meets all of our needs and you can pick up a well spec'd used one for reasonable money, We're going to see the bank then going to book a test drive, I've been told they are a bit gutless but if I want to drive something fast I'll take the Leon out
The cars still not running 100%, we think the pre cat lambda sensor needs replacing, boost is still bit random and it's drinking fuel like a fat kid eats cake
The current splitter is doing very well
I'm hoping to get the car in for a respray in the spring, when it goes in the splitter will be taken off and inspected for and damage to the resin,We're also looking at replace the wife's car soon with something a bit more practical, my plan is rather than using the Leon when ever we go out together we'll talk the new one, this will allow me to virtually take the Leon off the road during the winter although I don't have a garage
Recently I grown bored of driving a modified car, It's too low, the ride is hard, the roads round here are awful and I'm constantly worrying about it getting damaged.
With this in mind we are looking at crossover range of soft 4x4's, We looked at the new Vauxhall Mokka yesterday which is a really nice well spec'd car but it's a bit out of our price range and they are fairly new still so there's not many used ones around.
We've also looked at a lot of Nissan Juke's which meets all of our needs and you can pick up a well spec'd used one for reasonable money, We're going to see the bank then going to book a test drive, I've been told they are a bit gutless but if I want to drive something fast I'll take the Leon out
I'm still using the Autobright Magifoam, I tried some of Kleenfreaks other bits and I wasn't that impressed with it.
The cars still not running 100%, we think the pre cat lambda sensor needs replacing, boost is still bit random and it's drinking fuel like a fat kid eats cake
The current splitter is doing very well
We're also looking at replace the wife's car soon with something a bit more practical, my plan is rather than using the Leon when ever we go out together we'll talk the new one, this will allow me to virtually take the Leon off the road during the winter although I don't have a garage
Recently I grown bored of driving a modified car, It's too low, the ride is hard, the roads round here are awful and I'm constantly worrying about it getting damaged.
With this in mind we are looking at crossover range of soft 4x4's, We looked at the new Vauxhall Mokka yesterday which is a really nice well spec'd car but it's a bit out of our price range and they are fairly new still so there's not many used ones around.
We've also looked at a lot of Nissan Juke's which meets all of our needs and you can pick up a well spec'd used one for reasonable money, We're going to see the bank then going to book a test drive, I've been told they are a bit gutless but if I want to drive something fast I'll take the Leon out
I love our Passat CC for that very reason.
When we moved house at the beginning of the year I went without a garage for a period - really hard to keep the car healthy through the bad weather. I'd think about investing in a really good quality car cover if you become fortunate enough to have the car as a weekend/summer car - my discs in particular took a real kicking. Hope the car returns to its best very soon
It's only ever been used as a weekend car since I've had it, I take the train to work so I dont really need the car but I cant let it go Hopefully having and driving a "normalish" car will make driving the Leon even more fun.
I think I will have to get a good cover for it
Hopefully having and driving a "normalish" car will make driving the Leon even more fun.I think I will have to get a good cover for it
Had a go at polishing mate, did my charge pipe. It came out really well, other than some scratches that were underneath the paint. I'll upload some pictures now in my RR, you should take a look at the amateur lol! Might sound stupid too, but do you have to have a pressure washer to use snow foam? Also how often do you do it, every wash or like once a month say?
Sent from my iPhone
Sent from my iPhone
The quality of the charge pipes under the paint is very poor, You will struggle to get all the scratches out.
I've found wire wool and autosol works really well on the charge pipes but don't use it on the manifold
You do need a pressure washer to use a snow foam lance, most pressure washer have different lance fitting too so buy your pressure washer before buying the foam lance.
During the winter if the cars really dirty I use it for every wash, in the summer I only use it if it's got really dirty.
I've found wire wool and autosol works really well on the charge pipes but don't use it on the manifold
You do need a pressure washer to use a snow foam lance, most pressure washer have different lance fitting too so buy your pressure washer before buying the foam lance.
During the winter if the cars really dirty I use it for every wash, in the summer I only use it if it's got really dirty.
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