24-10-2014, 06:07 PM
The last tax disc on my motor was December 2006. Who'd have thought the next time it was on the road it wouldn't even need a tax disc!
I moved to London 10 years ago and found the cost of keeping a car pointless, so since then my 306 XS has been SORN.
Flash forward to October 2014, and it graces the roads of Britain once more!
Here I intend to document the struggle to rectify 8 years of decay, and the transformation of the car from rude boy wannabe, to track weapon.
Granted it's a 1.6 8v, but when you have zero NCB, insurance group 5 is your friend.
The initial MOT threw up a lot of perishables that needed renewing, pretty much anything rubber in the front wheel arches: driveshafts, lower suspension arm bushes, pivot bolts gaiters, brake hoses, droplinks, tyres, and the brakes had warped as well.
So that lot came out, and at the same time I thought I'd give the other corroded parts a new lease of life.
![[Image: a7bcb7b52be46d095ed18f89858c62fb.jpg]](http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/24/a7bcb7b52be46d095ed18f89858c62fb.jpg)
I ordered fresh replacements, and decided to relish the opportunity to upgrade what my budget would allow. So in went freshly painted replacements, as well as braided hoses, uprated GTI-6 front calipers and discs with Ferrodo pads, aluminium droplinks and 405 Mi16 alloys in anthracite with legal Yoko rubbers on them. After that my budget wouldn't stretch to poly bushes or uprated pivots, so maybe next time.
![[Image: 27a303b541cce4fd1c3ad4bd660780c1.jpg]](http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/24/27a303b541cce4fd1c3ad4bd660780c1.jpg)
I prepped and painted the hubs and the track rods as they were beginning to look corroded. I replaced the track rod ends as well as they were close to the death penalty. What was left afterwards is an archway to eat from (Disclaimer: Don't hold me to this).
![[Image: 6208c0946b44c62a45b84ca7d8296ea2.jpg]](http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/24/6208c0946b44c62a45b84ca7d8296ea2.jpg)
I ran it through the MOT one more time, and of course, being a Pug, it gave up a fight. So after replacing the rear bearings it then passed.
The two weeks (plus) laborious pain and swearing has meant my Pug is back on the road!
![[Image: a6d469acf462344137e31173fc5d451e.jpg]](http://tapatalk.imageshack.com/v2/14/10/24/a6d469acf462344137e31173fc5d451e.jpg)
There is a long list of things that need seeing to to make this track worthy.
When I've built up some NCB, it's likely there'll be a '6 lump in there.
But first to swap the 'showy' spoiler for something with less drag (so let me know if you have a standard spoiler in silver and we can do a straight swap)! And lower both ends after having ripped out the leather interior! It had 17s before so now the wheels are a bit more practical for the track, but they've left enough room to shelter a lion in the arch. And a 'zorst that doesn't sound like I've left my fake Burberry in my mum's flat.
These are just a few on the long list to track beast.
Oh, and I've left the '06 tax disc in the windscreen as a little memento.
I moved to London 10 years ago and found the cost of keeping a car pointless, so since then my 306 XS has been SORN.
Flash forward to October 2014, and it graces the roads of Britain once more!
Here I intend to document the struggle to rectify 8 years of decay, and the transformation of the car from rude boy wannabe, to track weapon.
Granted it's a 1.6 8v, but when you have zero NCB, insurance group 5 is your friend.
The initial MOT threw up a lot of perishables that needed renewing, pretty much anything rubber in the front wheel arches: driveshafts, lower suspension arm bushes, pivot bolts gaiters, brake hoses, droplinks, tyres, and the brakes had warped as well.
So that lot came out, and at the same time I thought I'd give the other corroded parts a new lease of life.
I ordered fresh replacements, and decided to relish the opportunity to upgrade what my budget would allow. So in went freshly painted replacements, as well as braided hoses, uprated GTI-6 front calipers and discs with Ferrodo pads, aluminium droplinks and 405 Mi16 alloys in anthracite with legal Yoko rubbers on them. After that my budget wouldn't stretch to poly bushes or uprated pivots, so maybe next time.
I prepped and painted the hubs and the track rods as they were beginning to look corroded. I replaced the track rod ends as well as they were close to the death penalty. What was left afterwards is an archway to eat from (Disclaimer: Don't hold me to this).
I ran it through the MOT one more time, and of course, being a Pug, it gave up a fight. So after replacing the rear bearings it then passed.
The two weeks (plus) laborious pain and swearing has meant my Pug is back on the road!
There is a long list of things that need seeing to to make this track worthy.
When I've built up some NCB, it's likely there'll be a '6 lump in there.
But first to swap the 'showy' spoiler for something with less drag (so let me know if you have a standard spoiler in silver and we can do a straight swap)! And lower both ends after having ripped out the leather interior! It had 17s before so now the wheels are a bit more practical for the track, but they've left enough room to shelter a lion in the arch. And a 'zorst that doesn't sound like I've left my fake Burberry in my mum's flat.
These are just a few on the long list to track beast.
Oh, and I've left the '06 tax disc in the windscreen as a little memento.