What did you do to or for or with your Laverda today?

Can't believe anybody enjoyed working on old french cars! My first car, 1969 Peugeot 304A, was a great runner and comfy, but any engine bay work was a nightmare. I still have the weird angle wrenches and funky oil sump plug key I made. As most cars back in the day it rusted like hell.
Later worked on Citroen 2CV and ID 19, luckily not mine! Only french cars somewhat normal to work on IHMO were Renault R4/5 and with limitations Estafette.
I never enjoyed working on the GS, nor any other french car, Gerald. Just as much a mechanical nightmare as the DS. But, the fucker was so reliable, all it needed was oil, tyres and brake pads, can't ask for more!

Wifey wants a Renault R4, for old times' sake. Told her I'd file for divorce if she got one!

piet
 
Can't believe anybody enjoyed working on old french cars! My first car, 1969 Peugeot 304A, was a great runner and comfy, but any engine bay work was a nightmare. I still have the weird angle wrenches and funky oil sump plug key I made. As most cars back in the day it rusted like hell.
Later worked on Citroen 2CV and ID 19, luckily not mine! Only french cars somewhat normal to work on IHMO were Renault R4/5 and with limitations Estafette.
Are you the world's first two left handed man?

Paul
 
Wasn't aware there were so many variants... also 3.0 TDI. Doesn't make chain replacement any easier though.

piet

s-l1600 (2).jpgs-l1600 (3).jpg
 
OK - have the car back now and to Audi's credit, the last company that ripped 3.700€ from me seem not to having exchanged all tensioners, as the current company found 3 with production date 2009 on it (the year the car was built)! So - one could speculate that with all parts exchanged, the car wouldn't have needed a second exchange at this point in time!

Nevertheless, am selling it now, but spent a total of over 4.000€ to fix it before selling it (I don't like to sell cars that are broken or have issues, I simply don't think that's fair).

So - if anyone wants a freshly worked over Audi A6 Allroad, running sweet and nice again, contact me, please, by PM.
 
Can't believe anybody enjoyed working on old french cars! ....
Not everything was bad - the French engines were very reliable = not much work to do.
I had almost no problems with the Peugeot 404 with which we drove to Turkey, a Renault R4 and the Simca 1100GLS station wagon that we used as a camper.
Simca.jpg
But rust was really a problem - I had to weld over 1 m² sheet metal into the R4 - back then, of course, without shielding gas and outdoors in winter!

Thomas aus LAU
 
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I must have bought and sold a dozen Renault 12’s when back in Sydney. Found those easy as anything to work on. Stuffed a 17TL engine into a mate’s R12 wagon. Those were the days..simple. I did get considerable experience patching rust, which is coming in useful as I attempt to bring wife’s long awaited 356a restoration along.
 
I bought a new Citroen BX19 estate in 1991 and sold it in 1993 with 100,000 miles on the clock, never gave me any troubles with an average of 1000 miles a week, it went, on the original cam belt, clutch, brake discs etc,lovely comfy ride and with the extra towing pack, not a bad tow car for trailers but too underpowered for a family caravan. After about nine months the left had side of the dashboard would not illuminate, couldnt be bothered to get it fixed and probably fxxxxd up by a spotty teenage mechanic, went back to a much more enjoyable car as work took the strain/twist of going out in a van again, Merc 350 SEL
 
First road bike Honda CB175 whilst still at school.
I had a part time job in a gas station.
I would walk around the pumps periodically to drain any fuel in the hose bends and tip in my petrol tank. Filled it in one shift.
Similarly drained leftover drips from discarded car oil containers then oil the bike chain and top up the motor.
Lowest running cost bike I ever had.

Rob
Damn, I thought we were the only riders that did that!
Back in the 60's in Pennsylvania we would set out late at night (rode a 350 Benelli then) and just go as far as we could before daylight, emptying residual petrol from the hoses of closed stations along the way. Justified it because we figured it had already been paid for by the previous customer. Hmmm, never thought of the old oil cans though. 🤔 Good one.
 
First road bike Honda CB175 whilst still at school.
I had a part time job in a gas station.
I would walk around the pumps periodically to drain any fuel in the hose bends and tip in my petrol tank. Filled it in one shift.
Similarly drained leftover drips from discarded car oil containers then oil the bike chain and top up the motor.
Lowest running cost bike I ever had.

Rob
Drongos who do that make me sick, if I'm the next to use a drained pump hose I'm paying for a hose full of air.
 
You're not taking into account that the chains need to be replaced because the guides and tensioners failed, Cam. And, in no way are you comprehending the depth of the issue... the whole caboodle is at the REAR of the engine!;) The pictured engine is a 3.0 litre TDI, the petrol engines are along similar lines.

I wouldn't have an Audi/Porsche/upper range VW if it were gifted to me, fucking 4-wheeled nightmares.

pietView attachment 59231
Holy crap Piet. I never inmagined that any designer could come up with such an abominable mess of chains and then put them on the back of the engine so you can't get at them. What a nightmare. Remind me to never buy an Audi.
 
Fitted a new front tyre.
Sadly Bridgestone aren't yet doing the BT46 in 110/90 with a V rating, so I was forced to go for a 100/90.
That's the skinniest front tyre it's ever worn, the OEM TT100 was a 4.10.
Not sure about the feel but definitely not keen on the look, I'll see how it performs.
I hope Bridgestone sort out a 110/90 V18 by the time it's worn out.


The previous BT45 110/90 had done nearly 9,000 miles. Still had a reasonable amount of tread, but I'd rather replace 2,000miles early
than 20 yards too late.BT46 100 90 V18 Front.jpgBT45 110 90 V18.jpg
 
I had the Bridgestone T32 rear fitted yesterday by some random bike mechanic called Martin something. Seems I am shouting him lunch on next weekends club ride. Thanks mate. I have had issues with losing those glue on wheel weights so I replace them with the same weight billet alloy weights that slide onto a spoke and attach to the nipple with a grub screw. I bought a kit a while ago off eBay for $40, there are approx 10 weights from 30gm down to 5 grams. The tyre cost $218 oz. That's a 140/70 on my 3.00 rim
 
That's a Bridgestone T32 140/70R18 M/C 67V TL rear
and either a T32 110/80R18 M/C 58V TL or these, no idea why they do the same except for speed rating, maybe a different number of plys?
110/80ZR18 M/C (58W) TL they do for a front.
It took me 2 years of ringing the oz distributor every couple of months to get the earlier T31 in a 140 delivered to oz. He was trying but ordering from Japan and getting seem to be 2 different things. BTW he was an ex RGS owner. So check they are available in your country if you want to try them.
 
So check they are available in your country if you want to try them.
Bridgestone (UK) have just now started listing a 140/70 V18 BT46R (the type I was after) as "NEW", but none of the suppliers have them in stock.
Fingers crossed they get the 110/90 V18 BT46F soon.
I can't convince myself to fit an H rated one, even though that was the rating on the TT100s when I bought it.
It's been on Vs since '79. An H is rated up to 130mph, I don't often get above that but the bike is certainly capable and tyre failure at those sort of speeds is not a pleasant prospect!
 
Good to be serious about ratings, but I'd bet plenty there's decent margin in those H-ratings - in fact I'd hazard a guess they're rated to hold a sustained 130mph. Anyone know how tyres are tested for ratings? We would have been proddy racing on H-rated tyres and plenty of bikes would be hitting that speed at Bathurst's Mt Panorama (as seen in the vid Vince posted recently.
 
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