Breakdowns

[snkbte]

Just wondering as we all drive these ICV cars how often do these cars break down on the road.

How many have had failures whilst on the road that required towing and what were the problems.

How many have had flat tyres?

Cheers SNKBTE

[PCC]

No flat tyres But,...................

Electrical problems - yes. Managed to fix all breakdowns. Fortunately in front of an eatery or pub

Touch wood - no breakdowns for over a year.

I'm in the RACQ, but the car wouldn't winch onto a tilt tray so have a number of emergency number I can rely on if in trouble

[BJ's Snake]

4000 kms in 18 months since rego with no probs as yet.Winton in 3 weeks may be the test.
Cheers
BJ

[Bryan Wilson]

Holed radiator by exhaust pipe falling off the car in front of me on the way to the first Shelby Fest
Crimped damaged tubes and repaired on roadside with Kneedit metal putty I carry in the boot.
Ran hard all day at Winton on Saturday and did 8 WOT drag runs at Heathcote park dragway on the Sunday.
I am still running the radiator with patches
Touch wood thats the only trouble I have had on the road.
Cheers,
Bryan

[Sloth]

The Kneedit will outlast the cores in the radiator... it is a great product. As to the breakdown, well, you gotta drive em to break em and i still ain't drivin..!!

[dbn04]

had my first breakdown a couple weeeks ago, electrical prob jump started got it home and traced to wires in starter motor came loose and battery wasnt charging, all fixed now been on the road nearly 3 years,
ps: its ran like a bag of **** a couple of times, but allways got me home

[Beejay]

What went wrong Brett?

Ben

[Wazza]

PLENTY of trips on the back of the R.A.C.Q. truck in the first year or so, as I found out all of the Cobra's weak points and replaced them with much tougher components.

Mind you, now I've done over 120,000 klms in the Cobra in just over 4 years, and on average race/drag it once a month, and the stopages come along only about once a year now, so that isn't too bad.

I guess most of the car is reasonably new, 'cause I'm forever improving and changing things on it, and I drive it every day.....LOVE it.

e.g.

Jumping in the Cobra today, and picking up a Special Services ( S.A.S.) guy who's just returned from East Timor, and as it's his birthday, so we're surprising him with his first drive in a Cobra, and taking him up to the Sunshine Coast.

It seems that every time he spots a Cobra in Perth, he stops his car, and winds down the windows , so he can see and hear the Cobra properly.

He seems NORMAL enough to me.

His wife contacted me from Perth a few weeks ago, and asked if I could contact a Cobra owner in Perth to possibly arrange a drive in a Cobra for his birthday surprise.

She had bumped into a couple of our Queensland members in Perth on a holiday, and they had given her my number to see what I could come up with.

Anyway, when she rang, we worked out that they would be having a flying visit to Brisbane, and the Sunshine Coast as soon as he returned home from East Timor ( Came home last Sunday) for a quick mini-holiday.

Got a couple of other guys ( Peter Fox and Graham Akers) to help in the surprise as well.
Three Cobras will be rumbling up the driveway of his sister's house , where they stayed last night, in about 2 hours time, and he should freak if all goes to plan.
Should be good, and a good excuse to drive another few hundred kilometres on a nice day in Queensland.

Now that I've said that I rarely have a breakdown anymore, I guess I should get up from this computer, and go and triple check everything before we take off.
Murphy's Law waiting to strike.

Warren.

[Cameron Parsons]

One breakdown, less than 500 mtrs from home. A Bosch electric fuel pump with less than 4000K's on it, just failed. No reason given.

20,000 k's later, hasn't missed a beat.

Shattered a CV joint at Willowbank. But Drag racing will do that kind of thing.

No flat's, yet...

Cameron

[sambo]

Hey Wazza, it's Paul here, met you at Warwick Harrison's about a month ago, you were changing the wheels on that red thing! How did it go with the SAS guy, he must've been loving it. Nice work.

[Blair]

Hey Wazza is your paint job 120 000 kms old as well? Your car looks new every time I have seen it! What is your secret?

P.s> Young Hodson (Col) was very impressed with you car! 120 000 kms young and still turns heads!

[Cameron Parsons]

Wazza's Secret....

Club Runs and races on the weekend...

Complete engine and drive train pull down and rebuild Monday through Thursday....

While that is happening, car is in the shop getting a re-spray....

You see, it's simple!!



But really... I have seen Warren cleaning and polishing that machine. The secret is time and elbow grease...

Cameron

[PCC]

Plenty of $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ in your back pocket

[snkbte]

No, Beejay, nothing has happened, I think it is just while driving this new hand built car I wonder how all these parts are working together. I hear ever sound and wonder whether it is normal or not.

Each drive takes me a little further from home, but I must say I am nervous about breakdowns.

Cheers SNKBTE

[spookypt]

Hey Wazza... timing chain?? What timing chain??? Never happen on a YOTA!

I broke down twice! Ran out of fuel... both times.... Yep, before you say it.....idiot!

SpookyPT

[Blair]

You know Spook, you had Rebel1 on the ropes! He didn't know how to handle you! You could even make fun of what school his daughter went to the chances of you 'knowing' her! Then you go along and type / admit you have run out of fuel not once but twice.

I think times have changed. You wait till he reads about your fuel problems.

[richardferguson]

I thought this thread would be too painful to read or contribute to...then again, it could be therapeutic.
Well, there's been 5 or 6 tows, 3 flat batteries, 1 busted fuel pump, 1 ruptured fuel line and many "would not start".
Having ditched the Motec M48 and now running an Autronics SM4 things are on the up. Ahhh, that feels better. My advice: get an NRMA Premium Card.
Looking forward to Winton.
Richard

[Wazza]

Originally Posted by sambo

Hey Wazza, it's Paul here, met you at Warwick Harrison's about a month ago, you were changing the wheels on that red thing! How did it go with the SAS guy, he must've been loving it. Nice work.

Fantastic....


Hi Paul,
The S.A.S. chap was a really nice guy who LOVED the cars, and didn't have a clue that it was going to happen, so he got a great surprise.
Got him in all three Cobras at various times on the run up the coast.
He was stoked!

Got him doing the old "grab the dash board with white knuckles" trick, when I gave it a boot full coming on to the motorway.....couldn't shut him up after that....pretty cool.
I'll stick a picture in the next Snaketales mag.

Warren

[Wazza]

Originally Posted by Blair

Hey Wazza is your paint job 120 000 kms old as well? Your car looks new every time I have seen it! What is your secret?

P.s> Young Hodson (Col) was very impressed with you car! 120 000 kms young and still turns heads!

Had a respray a few weeks after I first got it in 2003, when I had a bit ( a big bit !) of a lose in the rain , and tangled with a fence.

But since then I just try to give it the OCCASIONAL wipe over with a clean rag.
I'm not like Spooky, or I'd have no paint left to polish!

It's been hard keeping it tidy when it gets filthy at race meetings.

All it takes is one slide off the track, and it looks like a lamington until I get to it and clean it again.

Now I've got the Red Racer, I'll only be doing the occasional track meet, so it might stay tidy.

It's getting a full new leather interior, including the boot next week, now that I should be able to keep it off the racetrack.

The only race meeting I'm sure of is the Nationals.

I'm entering both cars, so I'll be a busy boy.

Regards,

Warren.

[Philm]

I have had a pretty good run, first flat a couple of weeks ago.

I can relate to the new noises you hear, expeciall after a track day when the car sounds great with your helmet on, then on the drive home it sounds like everything is falling off.


Wazza, your boys mentioned how well you polish the beast.


120 000kms well done, most would not see that in 3 lifetimes.


Phil