My car is cursed

[KPB]

In the 6 weeks Ive had her, my lovely, lovely, freshly RICA'd old girl has been...

Reversed into (minor damage to front grill)
Refused to start due to a mysterious self-healing immob problem
Caught on one corner outside B&Q (scuff to bumper)
Dinged on the rear o/s door by some berk at Tescos
And today...keyed...in the works carpark (security monitored, plush offices in remote location!).

Clearly, i've p1ssed somebody off 'upstairs'.

I'm not a violent man (anymore) but all I want is 5 minutes in a dark room with the person who has keyed her, plus two snooker balls in a sock.

[zoomungus]

youve pissed someone off to attract all that bad energy or your cars a magnet...............lol

[PaulZX]

HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM ah HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I just sent you some good vibes, see above....

[zoomungus]

HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM ah HUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

I just sent you some good vibes, see above....



its not hummmmmmmmmmmmmmm its ommmmmmmmmmmmmm lol but i s'pose hummmmmmmmmmmm could work too..........................all together now ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.................lol bad karma man

[KPB]

its not hummmmmmmmmmmmmmm its ommmmmmmmmmmmmm lol but i s'pose hummmmmmmmmmmm could work too..........................all together now ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.................lol bad karma man

I'm definitely feeling the love.

Can someone karma away the scratches on my mota please?

[zoomungus]

consider it done

[PaulZX]

scratches need a different vibe... more of a womwomwomwomwomwomwomwom

[KPB]

I knew this forum would be useful, but mostly how to clean throttle bodies etc - not spiritual guidance, healing etc. Thank you Father FlyingFridgeMover, and Guru ZooMungus (how much for that in Scrabble?)

[zoomungus]

lol................................but we do feel for you mate, if we caught whoever scratched your volvo we would be holisticly shutting their balls in said volvos tailgate door, scabble points, nah.................visa or cash! lol

[Porcine_Aviator]

You might like to have a look at this company for a quick and easy repair to the keying damage. Chips Away (http://www.chipsaway.co.uk/). I have used them more than once to fill and spray stone chip, scratches, and other damage that my 850 T5 had. They came to my home and did the job on the front drive. The local guy even sprayed the front air dam in the rain. Got this large awning out and put it over the car and did a great job. Whole thing cost £90 and it looks so much better than before.

The rear end was done a while ago after a bloke decided to hit it as he came around the corner. The car was parked on the side of the road outside the house and he hit the rear off side and smashed the corner. Fortunately a guy who lives over the road saw what happened and came over with the vehicle reg', the bloke drove off.

We called the police, well the insurance is fully comp, and told them what had happened, and left it with them. About two weeks went by and my other half had a call from them saying they had found out who it was, and the vehicle was a company van. But they would not be taking any action against the driver, even though he had driven off and failed to report an accident.

My other half asked why, after all if we had done the same thing the police would be knocking on your door with their size tens. The friendly local plod said "I'm sorry we are unable to take this any further due to the fact that the driver of the other vehicle who hit you is dead!".

It seems he was a drug addict and he had died of blood poisoning two days after he had hit our car.

So the moral of the story is - You hit my car you die -

And to go back to the repair, it was done by a local Vauxhall !! main agent, the insurance company wanted us to use them, and looking at the front done by Chips Away and the back done in a spray shop you can't see the difference. I know there must be but if it looks good and you're not going to enter it into a Concourse Volvo Show it's worth saving yourself a lot of money.

I'm going to have a scratch on Christine's door done as soon as I can find the money, after the repairs to her it could be a while before that happens:wallbash:.

[princepugh]

Had my old P1 V70 keyed a couple of years back, the insurance repair didnt put half of the trim back right and one of the doors didn't lock properly. Then shortly after some B@s&*rd egged her, roof and bonnet paintwork ruined! Another insurance job, this time the car came back leaking water into the cabin through the boot, drivers door and windscreen - turned into quite a heated exchange and took a while to resolve!

Makes my blood boil to think back but I'm sure it's all Karma when I think of some of my adolescent misdemeanours :-)

[KPB]

Today's problem...slipping clutch...have had one quote of £600. Sound reasonable? anyone done it themselves?

[zoomungus]

Today's problem...slipping clutch...have had one quote of £600. Sound reasonable? anyone done it themselves?

ouch! mine is on the way out, the thrust bearing is squeaking so at some point its new clutch time, 600 squid is abit high bearing in mind that a clutch is only 60 squid if that, the rest must be labor!

[KPB]

the rest must be labor!

The Volvo independent where I had the RICA done say its 7hrs labour, so you're right there - big job by all accounts but will do a bit more digging and post some prices on here as I get them.

[zoomungus]

gearbox out job!

[KPB]

gearbox out job!

yeap, average 6hr repair time according to one clutch manufacturer.

[Loadsamiles]

In the 6 weeks Ive had her, my lovely, lovely, freshly RICA'd old girl has been...

Reversed into (minor damage to front grill)
Refused to start due to a mysterious self-healing immob problem
Caught on one corner outside B&Q (scuff to bumper)
Dinged on the rear o/s door by some berk at Tescos
And today...keyed...in the works carpark (security monitored, plush offices in remote location!).

Clearly, i've p1ssed somebody off 'upstairs'.

I'm not a violent man (anymore) but all I want is 5 minutes in a dark room with the person who has keyed her, plus two snooker balls in a sock.


You didn't buy it from somebody local to you did you????

[KPB]

You didn't buy it from somebody local to you did you????

No, bought in Solihull, split the week between Leic and Lincoln but work in Notts. Fairly anonomous colour, spec etc and I drive fairly sedately.

[KPB]

All fairly much in the same ballpark

Local place - £510 (although after the last one he did, he swore he'd never touch a T5 clutch again)
Nationwide autocentre - £580
Clutch specialist - £560 (plus a warning about the dual mass flywheel which might be another £550 if there is wear!)
Volvo Independent - £600
Mr Clutch - £399 (or '£540 for a two part clutch?)

I think i'll nurse it for a few weeks and see how it deteriorates...

[Baj]

Mr clutch and flog it :)

[zoomungus]

Mr clutch and flog it :)


i agree, could be a bogey car, a least is not christine.....................lol

[KPB]

i agree, could be a bogey car, a least is not christine.....................lol

I've only had the RICA one week!

[zoomungus]

rica are addictive lol prob that that buggered your clutch

[KPB]

rica are addictive lol prob that that buggered your clutch

To be fair the RICA Agent nr Mansfield took the car for a test drive before the installation and got the clutch to slip under load on a hill, so I was prewarned. The problem has accelerated (excuse the pun) since that day tho. I suppose I could revert it back the standard map using the PPC, but where would be the fun in that?

[zoomungus]

are you sure its not just wheelspinning, at full boost mine will wheelspin in 3rd lol!

[KPB]

are you sure its not just wheelspinning, at full boost mine will wheelspin in 3rd lol!

I wish! The clutch is definitely slipping under even medium load, sometimes about 4k rpm in 4th etc. No traction control light flashing nor grip issues.

[zoomungus]

thats a bitch, i would nurse it and make it last longer :)

[KPB]

thats a bitch, i would nurse it and make it last longer :)

My plan exactly. I could say 'I should be okay as it doesnt feel like its about to let go completely' but its snowing outside, I have 40 mile journey home and Mrs Fate might be reading this.

[zoomungus]

keep below 4k, should be easy esp as its snowing, in fact if i had the old module i would stick it back in but then again the engine runs better with the remap, flip that coin!

[KPB]

Ah, the joy continues. The S60 has been keyed in the works car park.

On Monday some wheel balancing uncovered a split lower drop link bush.

On Tuesday I got round to investigating why the front discs I fitted 2 months ago were vibrating like a 40,000 volt dildo (so i'm told). They were fitted correctly so I ended up having to change them for Brembos.

On Weds the turbo boost dropped through the floor. Hopefully its just a hose somewhere as i've got no smoke.

Dont get me wrong, when the car works its brilliant and I love it, but if it wasnt for the fact I spent £500 on a RICA PPC I think i'd be chopping it in for something else already.

I thought these things were well built???

[Baj]

You wanna have a word with your works security people. Someone not doing their job. Get a looksee on the videos too.

[KPB]

You wanna have a word with your works security people. Someone not doing their job. Get a looksee on the videos too.

Yeah did that, all very sympathetic but the cctv doesnt cover the area I was parked in. They wont cover any costs of repair either.

We're a HQ building for a very large brand on a remote industrial estate - so not exactly Chav Central. As far as I know, no-one bears a grudge against me.

Gonna spend this PM trying to trace hoses etc to diagnose the lack of turbo boost. If anyone has any ideas they would be appreciated - most of the stuff i've read on the forum is for 850s etc.

[KPB]

Well folks, after all these boost issues, clutch slipping, vandalism, warping new discs, assorted minor problems and the rapidly deteriorating suspension bushes, ive decided to chop in the Volvo. Each week seemed to bring another random noise or problem and I've lost my enthusiasm for that could/should have been a brilliant long term motor.

I'll miss the looks, the comfortable seats, fantastic stereo and RICA madness - but i've traded it in for a 530d.

In 5 months the T5 cost me a few £300 in parts, £550 for the RICA PPC and I traded it in for £700 less than I bought it.

So all told I lost about £1400 and something like 7 or 8 weekends getting oily. However, the 530d SE was a real bargain (v-plate, 1 owner, FSH and just £3690) so i've broke about even. Also, with a clutch change impending and ongoing boost issues, the S60 was about to cost a lot more money.

First impressions on the BMW compared to the T5

Better...
...interior quality. It feels absolutely brand new inside.
...consumption (47 v 31 on the same journeys).
...all round visibility
...refinement
...handling (but only slightly as they roll similar amounts)
...feel good factor. Everything in and around the car is very solidly engineered.

Worse...
...seat comfort. The Volvo is blessed in this department.
...stereo. The beemers is not actually that good full stop.
...throttle response. The 530d feels and sounds more like a big N/A petrol engine. You have to floor it to get the boost to kick in, but when you do, it is genuinely rapid and mpg doesnt suffer too much. to be fair tho, a RICA'd T5 is something very special in this regards.
...Looks. This is subjective - but I think all ages can drive an S60 but I probably stick out a bit driving a 530d aged in my mid-thirties.

My overriding opinion of the S60 is one of disappointment to be honest. It started really well - the car was tight and had FSH including a recent major service - but it deteriorated very rapidly and I lost faith in it. I'm not criticising your choice of car, I think I just had a rogue one.

As time passes though, I think my overriding memory will be when I drove the car after the RICA upgrade. The power was incredible and I grinned for days. The other very positive point is the amount of support and help I got off everyone on the forum, without which i'd have parted with even more money and on occasion would have been totally stumped. Thanks folks!

[cornclose]

Hmm, I wonder if I now know what your boost issues were... I'll await confirmation from another forum member before I say any more...

Shame though, but sometimes you just have to do what you think is right - I think maybe you just had a run of bad luck. Good luck with the new motor! Do pop back and visit us though!

[KPB]

Hmm, I wonder if I now know what your boost issues were... I'll await confirmation from another forum member before I say any more...

Well I'd be interested in hearing any other theories, although occasionally disconnecting the battery to clear fault codes worked - but obviously this isnt a long term solution nor really a fix in itself.

[cornclose]

I guess it's irrelevant now as you've traded her in, but it's uncanny to see another 2001 T5 with boost problems and a rica map.

Come on mikouk - need your feedback too!

[JelT5]

Thank you Father FlyingFridgeMover, and Guru ZooMungus (how much for that in Scrabble?)


Masses on a triple word score mate!!!

[KPB]

I guess it's irrelevant now as you've traded her in, but it's uncanny to see another 2001 T5 with boost problems and a rica map.

Come on mikouk - need your feedback too!

Perhaps, although whether a 2001 car would suffer unique RICA problems compared to say 2000 or 2002, I just dont know. I dont think there was anything specific to that year?

My best guess is that the boost levels were too high for a particular component and the ECU was logging a controller fault and throttling back. But in turn that weak component hadnt sufficiently 'failed' to make the issue obvious, making a resolution potentially a costly and time consuming affair. But to be honest, it was the culmination of poor luck and reliability issues that caused me to sell, rather than just the boost one.

In hindsight, I think maybe the RICA 310 comes on too fiercely within a short rev range - at least on my car which was stupid fast in 2nd and 3rd. It had a major grin factor but there was always a nagging doubt that it was straining the drivetrain. The engine was always scorching hot even after a fairly tame drive.

Still pretty happy with the 530d...just trying to stay away from the RICA website!