Katiegan's Garage | Winter Plans

[CAMAROBOY69]

Bruiser is evil. Bruiser is plain evil. He is genuinely the modern reincarnation of Christine.

We spend all that money on him yesterday and what does he do today? Seize his calipers.

Today we were supposed to be going over to Blackpool to see my granddad and teach him how to technology with his new laptop. We stopped off at the petrol station for some fuel for the journey, when suddenly that awful familiar smell begins to fill our nostrils. Burning brakes. My dad, stood fillin' up Bruiser, sheepishly touched the caliper, and confirmed our fears. The caliper had seized on again. We had to head back home and abort the mission of teaching my granddad how to technology. I guess Bruiser just didn't feel like going to Blackpool today.

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After hours of many swear words, we managed to free off the caliper, and sort out the handbrake cable which had gone funny too. Lower Bruiser off the jack stands, take him for a drive... and the smelly smell of burning brakes and the feeling of braking when freewheeling was still there. Park him up in the garage again and this time it's the other caliper that has miraculously seized in the time it took us to free off the other one. Great. Bruiser must've had a really bad night's sleep last night, because he did not want us to relax on this fine almost-June Saturday. The other caliper was extremely stubborn and required the whole family (myself, my dad and my mum) to try and free it off. Six hours of blood, sweat and seized calipers later and both were seemingly okay. There's still an awful lot of play in the handbrake but at least you can't smell the burning brakes anymore and neither caliper is hot to touch. @Slash was right - we should've bought a new caliper*. It seems that when the garage replaced the handbrake cable they did a pretty bad job, causing the caliper to experience more problems than it should already have.

We'll see how long it takes Bruiser to be a moody teen again and make us bust our knuckles for something else. He is evil.

After all the hard work, I did manage to get a poor quality video of the new head unit using my crappy Android phone (couldn't use the iPod as obviously it was in use). The sound quality is good enough to show how bassy the head unit is, although I would recommend headphones (rip in piece at 0:20 if you do though) or speakers with good bass to really get a feel for it. We also still need to get a front fascia for it too, it looks kinda small and lonely in there. Listeners of FlyLo FM on GTA V should recognise the choon I used in the video.



('No Name' means no name given for the album btw)


*We still haven't bought one though lel.

Congrats on the new radio. That's always such an exciting experience and that one looks very nice!

 

[Katiegan]

I don't know why but I put Bruiser in Car Throttle's new 'hot or not' garage. Within a minute of being on there he scored -1 so I'm on edge right now. If you think he's hot (which you do) you can vote for him here. And because you're in this thread you totally should.

 

[ildd]

*anticipates Bruiser to be top 20 by midnight*

 

[opelgt1969]

Got my "HOT" vote!

 

[Slash]

I voted, as you already know.

 

[Katiegan]

So, today's the big day. My prom. 'Senior prom' as it would be called in the States. For a while, I was wondering what my prom car would be. Perhaps I could rent a limo with my buddies? Nah, they all live too far away. Maybe I could rent a fancy car? A Bentley? An Aston Martin? Nah, those are pricey to rent. My mum had a friend who had a baby blue Chevy Delray he rented out for weddings and proms - but some time last year that went up in flames, so that was out of the question. As I looked out of the window, wondering what I could arrive in, my gaze rested upon the black Mondeo sitting outside the house. Of course! Bruiser could be my prom car! Why did I even consider anything else?

The crafting of the bows.

The finished product.

And a bonus Instagram photo.

 

[Zyla]

How handsome; he wears the bows well.

But, uh... is he the prom car, or the date as well?

Edit: Nevermind, I just saw your post in the real car thread. Double .

 

[eiriksmil]

Now you showed the car, let's see the prom queen in her dress..

 

[SVT Cobra GT]

I still can't believe I've not seen him yet after all these updates!

 

[eiriksmil]

Double post..

 

[SVT Cobra GT]

I still can't believe I've not seen him yet after all these updates!

 

[Katiegan]

Mondeos and brakes. Who'd have 'em, eh?

Ten hours we spent on Bruiser today. Ten hours. Do you want to know what we were doing? Brakes. Pads, discs, and a new caliper. It was supposed to be a simple servicing job, then we'd change the oil and all that jazz afterwards. But, as we all know, Bruiser likes to do things his own way, and I suppose the constant drizzle of rain outside the garage really put a damper on his mood and he just wasn't feeling it.

Early morning start, 9am, so we could get both the brakes and service all done in one day. First up were the front pads and discs. Now, the front brake discs on the Mondeo are notoriously bad to get off. There's plenty of stories out there of people having to take them off in two pieces, hence why we decided to do them first. But, to my and my dad's surprise, the discs came off fine. A bit of persuasion from a hammer and they were off. Within about an hour or two we had the front pads and discs changed (including a sandwich break in between).

Then came the fun part. The infamous seized caliper. We'd finally bought a new one yesterday, and it was time to square up to it and deal with it. Now, I'd done the front discs and pads on my own, as I've done them so many times at work now I know what I'm doing. However, calipers and handbrakes aren't quite my thing yet, so I left that to my dad. Surprisingly enough, the caliper came off pretty easy too. We had to wrestle a bit to get the new one on, but we hardly lost any brake fluid which was a good thing. Eventually the caliper was all connected up to the cables it needed to be, we changed the rear pads (the discs were still pretty decent), put the caliper back on, and that was it. It was quite amazing how easy everything had gone so far. Too amazing, in fact.

And too amazing it was. We moved round to change the offside rear pads, did all that, the pads went in reasonably well with the aid of some copper grease and the trusty hammer, bolted everything back up again and that was that. We took another break, my break being that little bit longer after I suddenly got some pretty bad stomach cramps, with my mum taking my place in the garage. My mum and dad bled the brakes, I nursed my cramps with some ibuprofen and chocolate, and then my mum and I traded places once again. We then had an issue. We had no brakes, and no handbrake. Changing pads and discs is supposed to help your brakes and make them better, right? Well, somehow it did the opposite for us. The brake pedal was going flat to the floor and the wheel hub was still spinning freely with the handbrake fully on. Soon our plans of an oil change were gone as we spent three or four hours struggling with handbrake cables and calipers. Many swear words were yelled and cigarettes smoked by my dad, and many accusations of Bruiser being 'possessed' and 'constantly working against' my dad. As it turns out, the offside rear caliper was seized too, but we'd only bought one as we thought it was just the nearside rear caliper. Eventually, after much wrestling and handbrake pulling and swearing and slamming of tools, we managed to get the handbrake back. The brakes are still pretty spongy but they'll get better the more we drive.

After starting the day at 9am, we didn't finish until 7pm. Next time, I'm definitely taking Bruiser to work and doing it at work. It's amazing how much time is lost trying to jack a car up with a cheap jack from Halfords and having a garage so small and cramped you have to park the car to one side so you can fit to work on it, because parking in the middle would result in no room on either side and you being trapped in the car. I didn't realise I'd miss the ramps at work so much.

I was hoping to wash him too day as, believe it or not, the last time he was washed was the last time this thread was updated - 2 months ago . I didn't get any pictures of today's antics either, but tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day so I'll try and finally wash him then, and maybe get a few snaps in there too.

 

[Doog]

Mondeos and brakes. Who'd have 'em, eh?

*a momentous tale of trial, defeat and perseverance*

I was hoping to wash him too day as, believe it or not, the last time he was washed was the last time this thread was updated - 2 months ago . I didn't get any pictures of today's antics either, but tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day so I'll try and finally wash him then, and maybe get a few snaps in there too.

 

[Katiegan]

The fact that he hasn't been washed for 2 months, or the thread hasn't been updated for 2 months?

 

[Sage Ages]

The fact that he hasn't been washed for 2 months, or the thread hasn't been updated for 2 months?

Both.

 

[Doog]

The fact that he hasn't been washed for 2 months, or the thread hasn't been updated for 2 months?

this juan

Two months without washing a black car is an offense worthy of incarceration!

 

[Katiegan]

this juan

Two months without washing a black car is an offense worthy of incarceration!

It's not my fault! I wash cars rain or shine at work, but the slightest bit of cloud at home and I'm not allowed. If it's a nice day, it's always either 'too late' (3pm during the summer is not late, it doesn't get dark until 8 or 9), or it's a case of 'you're not washing the car' 'why?' 'because you're not'.

Man parents suck I mean seriously just like they don't even like understand my problems dude ugh.

 

[eiriksmil]

I cleaned my daily for the first time in three months the other day, see no problem with two lol.

Next time, I'm definitely taking Bruiser to work and doing it at work. It's amazing how much time is lost trying to jack a car up with a cheap jack from Halfords and having a garage so small and cramped you have to park the car to one side so you can fit to work on it, because parking in the middle would result in no room on either side and you being trapped in the car.

Ding ding! Proper work space and planning is literally key to make your own servicing enjoyable..

 

[BeAsTPkRIPPER]

Katiegan's 2003 Ford Mondeo Zetec - "Bruiser"

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Back in December 2003, a rather small man (standing at just under 5 feet tall) bought a brand new Ford Mondeo Zetec. He wanted it in Panther Black Pearl, but his local Ford dealership in Bradford didn't sell one in that colour. At the time, only one dealership had one ready to go in that colour. It was in Southampton, a whole 243 miles away from Bradford. So, the Bradford dealer had that Mondeo transported 243 miles from Southampton to Bradford and into the hands of the man. On December 16th 2003, the car was registered on the road. In September/October 2004, he decided he was too small for this slightly large Mondeo, and put it up for sale. His brother, who was looking to sell his current car, a 1998 Ford Mondeo LX, and who was about 5 inches taller, decided to buy the MK3 Mondeo from his brother. The '03 Zetec moved from its first home in Bradford to its second home in Huddersfield, and was affectionately named 'Bruiser' by the man's brother's 6-year-old daughter. 10 years later, the Mondeo is still owned by the man's brother, and his 6-year-old daughter (now 16) still calls him Bruiser.

Over the past decade, Bruiser has gone through various changes. From dodgy subs in the boot to a big fat loud exhaust, he's had a variety of looks. Here's a few photos of him over the years.

2005
The subs were later taken out in 2007.

2006
The black-eye headlights were replaced in 2007 after a minor crash.

2009

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2011

2012

2013

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Current Modifications;
- 18" Team Dynamics alloy wheels in Panther Black
- K&N 57i Induction Kit
- Custom-made Cobra stainless-steel sports exhaust
- 40mm lowering springs
- Phoenix Gold tweeters
- Pioneer FH-X700BT Head Unit
- Ken Block sticker (adds 43bhp)
- Monster Energy sticker (adds 50bhp)
- Magic Tree Vanillorama air freshener x2 (adds 10bhp)

Future Plans;
- Underseal and rust-proof whole car
- Remove various squeaks and knocks
- New wheels (Focus ST or MK4 Mondeo Titanium X wheels)
- New bumpers (Zetec S or Ghia X bumpers)
- Install black-eye headlights again
- Install tinted rear lights

You should i have kept the System in there

 

[Katiegan]

I've been pondering over what to get for my first car since, well, I knew how to work AutoTrader and eBay really. Now that I'm learning how to drive I've been thinking seriously about getting my own car, but as some of you may know, the UK isn't too kind on young drivers' insurance and it's quite a task finding something that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I was originally going to settle for a VW Fox or a VW Polo (9n), as they were both the cheapest to insure at £1600 a year. Working at a VAG garage, owning a VW seems pretty logical too. Then one day, my boss approached me and told me he had a car coming in that would be ideal for me. What was that car? A 2004 Fiat Panda Dynamic, with just 56,000 miles (80,000 km) on the clock. I'd never even considered looking at Pandas, apart from the 100HP (which was actually reasonable on insurance, but way too expensive to buy for my tight budget), and I certainly wasn't keen on the idea. He told me I could have the Panda for £500 if I wanted it, but if not he'd sell it to a friend. I thought about it, spoke to a few friends about it, but thought it wasn't for me and I'd wait it out for a Fox or a Polo.

A week passed, and then the Panda came in while I was on day release at college. I came in to work the next day and it was lined up outside amongst some other cars. It was actually a lot nicer than I thought it would be. Of course, I didn't want to buy it until I'd run an insurance quote for it, so I went on a price comparison website... and I was quoted £1300. My boss then said I could have it for £400, giving me an extra £100 to spend on it. Normally these sell for about a grand more than that, so I jumped at the chance. I went through all the procedures of buying it, taxing and insuring (provisional for now, of course), and brought the little thing home yesterday. It's been appropriately named Pandagan! (shout out to @ildd for the idea)

I only have some underwhelming phone pictures for now, but here he is.

The first day I saw him, parked up in the yard at work.


Just after we brought him home yesterday.


Of course, Bruiser is still here!


Earlier today, with my L FOR LOSER plates.




Both the front and back bumpers are already damaged from the previous owner. While I'm still learning and getting used to the car and driving, I won't bother getting them fixed.



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Other than the bumpers and the missing fuel tank flap, the car is in great condition. It's only got one dent, which is a small parking dent on the passenger door. The pictures don't do it justice but the colour is a really nice vibrant blue. I think it's been polished and waxed before too because there's no fades in the paint and the rain rolls easily off it. I'll try and get some better DSLR shots soon.

There's a few little things it needs, but nothing too major and nothing I can't sort out myself. Here's a full list:

• New petrol tank flap (the one from it came with the car, but the brackets that secure it to the hinges have snapped, and the paint on the flap has chipped from being kept in the glovebox for so long, so it'd be easier to just buy another)
  
• Replace rocker cover gasket due to the current one leaking slightly
  
• Find out why the airbag light is on
• Buy one new tyre (currently has three brand new Westlake tyres, then one Michelin which is low on tread)
• Put an aftermarket stereo in it because it only has a cassette player and no CD player (my boss says I can just take one from the stores at work, he the real MVP)
• Get this supa fly sticker yo!
• Replace cam belt & water pump

All in all, I'm very pleasantly surprised with it, and it's all I need for a first car.

 

[Brend]

Love it Katie. I was considering getting a Panda myself but funds haven't permitted me the chance to even buy a car yet. Closest I got was a Suzuki Ignis Sport I had in mind but unfortunately the owner sold it from under my nose. Can't wait to see how yours ends up with a few modifications.

 

[MUSC4EVER]

Looking good, I will be looking for my first car in the near future as I have started learning to drive....belatedly!

 

[Beeblebrox237]

Looks great! I do like the Panda, and I've toyed with getting one myself in a few months. I love the colour, too. How is it to drive?

 

[Katiegan]

Thanks for the compliments, guys! Everyone I know seems to be impressed by it so far.

Looks great! I do like the Panda, and I've toyed with getting one myself in a few months. I love the colour, too. How is it to drive?

I've only driven it twice so far but it feels great. I'm learning in a 1.2 Corsa D, and the Panda is a lot more responsive. The Corsa feels quite sluggish in comparison to the Panda. The throttle is so light too that I often find myself accidentally wheel spinning when setting off . The steering is really, really light and easy and that's without the city mode on. It pulls like a train for a little 1.2, it doesn't struggle on hills at all. The only downside is that the clutch pedal is quite high, but it's recently had a new gearbox so that could have something to do with it. The gearbox feels great though, it shifts nice and smooth.

I can understand why James May loves them!

 

[Pseudopod]

500? That sounds like a bargain, even with the few holes it's got.

 

[Anathema]

That's very nice for 400 pounds. Very good condition.

Wish I could find stuff like that (in good condition) here in America for a decent price, but the auction dealers (read; people who buy cars at auctions, and then try to sell them for a profit) are very prevalent in the area I'm in.

 

[TripleA5]

Cute little car, love the colour. Never thought you'd end up with a blue Fiat. 👍

 

[Dagger311]

LS swap all the things.

 

[Zyla]

LS swap all the things.

i will cut u





a slice of cake and discuss why thats a bad idea.

Congrats, Katie.

 

[Doog]

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It's a pretty dumb idea to buy a Dodge Caliber in the states, but your neighbor must be some special kind of stupid to buy one in the UK, where you can get literally any small car as a hatchback.

Congrats on the pimp sled car, though.