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Sometimes, yes. Lots of problems with the 164 as a result of it being a left-hooker by design. Don't talk to me about clutch master cylinders! ;)

Other than the "Ferrari" engine, I thought the Thema was a bit dull. I'm biased, of course, but I think in terms of looks alone, the 164 was head-and-shoulders better than the other three. Dynamically, they were all pretty much like a Fiat Croma with a bodykit, of course. The 164 with the 3...

Mate of mine had a series of Suds when we were students. Absolute dogs, all of them but SO much fun! Those little flat 4 motors were absolute jewels!

It's an old 164 (1989 Series 1). Pretty obscure, but I'm fond of it!

Some high performance tyres start with less tread on them, because the manufacturer wants to keep any "vagueness" due to tread block distortion to a minimum. My EV is on "ordinary" high performance tyres, rather than EV-specific.

A lot depends on the car. My old Alfa, it doesn't matter hugely, but it runs a bit of toe-out (it's supposed to) wear the inside edges of the front. (Also a bit of negative camber as standard). I can get a little bit more out of a set by swapping front-to-rear part way through life. The...

Agreed, but 2003 (and I'm going with the end of that year for a bit of a safety margin) was the date from which they were all legally required to.

Any car registered after the end of 2003 ought to be able to run E10 permanently.

That jumper was very flattering... ;) To be honest, I still have (mostly) black hair, even now, but maybe not quite so much of it!

There's even a photo, taken just before that moment when I peeled the film off...

Many years ago, (when Mrs Avocet and I were courting!), I had to put a load of development miles on a TVR. Obviously, a development car, so a bit of a "shed", but good fun. We decided to take it to Spain... Some scumbag decided to break into it one night in Segovia. He couldn't nick it, as I...

Yes, oil dilution is "a thing". As other have said, excess fuel injected during an "active" regen. It gets past the rings and dilutes the oil. (Which, (a Ford engineer told me), is also what kills wet belts). Generally, the regen will be "passive" (the engine management system won't have to...

The new cybersecurity regulations adopted in the EU from 2024, will start making it much harder for third parties to get into car computer systems. Nothing to do with the manufacturers, just regulation. The UK has announced it will also adopt them (although most new cars sold in GB already...

First thing you've said in a long time that I can actually agree with! You are, indeed, completely in the dark!

As Mottie said, it doesn't stop anything sticking. it MIGHT help to reduce brake squeal by helping make good contact between the end of the piston and the pad backplate. Only put a bit on, as you don't want it melting and contaminating the friction surfaces.

I think most of the water in brake fluid comes in through the flexi hoses and past the caliper piston seals? Certainly, I've always found it to be way dirtier in a caliper than in the reservoir. Around 2003 (I think) the regulations on end-of-life vehicles came in and the use of certain...

As you wish. I'll keep scraping the corroded iron out from under them whenever the pads start sticking... ;)

It's ferrous insofar as it has iron in it - all stainless does, but metal merchants would sell it as non-ferrous. If you know about galvanic corrosion, you should know what happens when you put stainless in contact with mild or cast iron...

Yes, the stainless will be fine! It's anything ferrous that it's in electrical contact with that suffers! It's galvanic corrosion. Surely you've tried putting a stainless self-tapper into a piece of thin mild steel and leaving it out in the rain for a few months? The stainless will...

Pop into Halfords and put your registration in the wee terminal next to the shelf with the antifreeze on. It should tell you what sort you need. That stuff (OAT) is generally used on newer cars (say, those bult in the last 20 years or so). If you have an aluminium radiator, it's PROBABLY the...