Howdy all,
Having joined on here around 2 years ago, I sold on my K11 and moved from Ireland over to the East Mids almost exactly a year ago to take up a job at Triumph and stopped coming on here.
After moving over I've owned a 406 Estate 1.9 TDI which failed the **** out of its MOT, and an Audi A4 Avant 1.9 TDI which is currently running on 3 pots (I think) and is breaking my heart on insurance (£330 a month!!!!)
My better half needs a reliable car for the winter months, so enter another K11, this time a 1.3 in the best colour
I've put Matiz springs in the front, and after realising the headlights were then pointed at the floor, cut the rear springs down to 290mm, so they stay captive at full droop without the need for a check strap or shorter dampers.
The amount of drop is perfect IMO...there's no longer a massive gap in the arches, but the ride is still perfectly acceptable over bumps. I put Corsa B coilovers in my last K11 but the ground clearance was next to nothing and the ride was rock solid. The Matix springs are a much better option for every day use.
£250, 69k miles, with MOT 'till next summer and she's running sweet as a nut.
The last service in the book was at around 50k so I've done the oil & filter, air filter, plugs, fuel filter, and replaced the coolant.
Few small bits (And one big one!) to address; I spend ages cleaning out rusty coloured goo from the coolant expansion tank (looked like plain water in the system) with a wire coat hanger, and while drying my now immaculate tank, I squeezed it too hard and pressed my thumb straight through it I've seen some on eBay for 20 blips so not the end of the world...I won't bother with a scrappy for one as it's likely to be just as bad.
The front cross member is pretty flaky/crusty and was an advisory on the last Mot...I doubt it'll pass this time around but again they're 25 quid on the 'bay. Fuel filler neck is also corroded but I'll try removing it & having a look at tidying it up with etch primer & under body paint or something.
The big issue is the sills, unsurprisingly. They've had patches welded in previously, but are still pretty bad. I went at them today with a wire brush on the grinder, screwdriver and a hammer and punched 2 cereal spoon sized holes in them. There's some light surface rust towards the front but they're properly crusty and flaky at the back. Realistically they'll need probably 1m length of sill and 6 inches up the rear aches completely cutting out and replacing to do it right.
Is this actually feasible / worth it or am I better off treating it for now & re-shelling when it fails the mot? Are there K11s shells out there that are properly immaculate underneath or do they all need some work at this stage? I don't mind the labour involved in swapping mods over from one car to another, but I love the green and if every K11 out there will need work I may as well stick with what I have. The whole underbody looks like it's recently been under-sealed (don't know what brand but it's underseal anyway; thick & soft but not gooey like bitumen or anything) but when I attack it with a screwdriver it's flaking off & showing surface rust underneath, so I'm afraid of what might be lurking.
I've painted the chrome bonnet grilles in VHT black. £5 BBQ paint from Aldi. Leaves a lovely satin finish. Yet to see how well it'll hold up.
Drop with Matiz springs. You can see the front arch is manky with rust here too. It's rotten through near the sill and the paint is all blistered up above the wheel.
Rear springs cut down to 290mm:
Having joined on here around 2 years ago, I sold on my K11 and moved from Ireland over to the East Mids almost exactly a year ago to take up a job at Triumph and stopped coming on here.
After moving over I've owned a 406 Estate 1.9 TDI which failed the **** out of its MOT, and an Audi A4 Avant 1.9 TDI which is currently running on 3 pots (I think) and is breaking my heart on insurance (£330 a month!!!!)
My better half needs a reliable car for the winter months, so enter another K11, this time a 1.3 in the best colour
I've put Matiz springs in the front, and after realising the headlights were then pointed at the floor, cut the rear springs down to 290mm, so they stay captive at full droop without the need for a check strap or shorter dampers.
The amount of drop is perfect IMO...there's no longer a massive gap in the arches, but the ride is still perfectly acceptable over bumps. I put Corsa B coilovers in my last K11 but the ground clearance was next to nothing and the ride was rock solid. The Matix springs are a much better option for every day use.
£250, 69k miles, with MOT 'till next summer and she's running sweet as a nut.
The last service in the book was at around 50k so I've done the oil & filter, air filter, plugs, fuel filter, and replaced the coolant.
Few small bits (And one big one!) to address; I spend ages cleaning out rusty coloured goo from the coolant expansion tank (looked like plain water in the system) with a wire coat hanger, and while drying my now immaculate tank, I squeezed it too hard and pressed my thumb straight through it
I've seen some on eBay for 20 blips so not the end of the world...I won't bother with a scrappy for one as it's likely to be just as bad. The front cross member is pretty flaky/crusty and was an advisory on the last Mot...I doubt it'll pass this time around but again they're 25 quid on the 'bay. Fuel filler neck is also corroded but I'll try removing it & having a look at tidying it up with etch primer & under body paint or something.
The big issue is the sills, unsurprisingly. They've had patches welded in previously, but are still pretty bad. I went at them today with a wire brush on the grinder, screwdriver and a hammer and punched 2 cereal spoon sized holes in them. There's some light surface rust towards the front but they're properly crusty and flaky at the back. Realistically they'll need probably 1m length of sill and 6 inches up the rear aches completely cutting out and replacing to do it right.
Is this actually feasible / worth it or am I better off treating it for now & re-shelling when it fails the mot? Are there K11s shells out there that are properly immaculate underneath or do they all need some work at this stage? I don't mind the labour involved in swapping mods over from one car to another, but I love the green and if every K11 out there will need work I may as well stick with what I have. The whole underbody looks like it's recently been under-sealed (don't know what brand but it's underseal anyway; thick & soft but not gooey like bitumen or anything) but when I attack it with a screwdriver it's flaking off & showing surface rust underneath, so I'm afraid of what might be lurking.
I've painted the chrome bonnet grilles in VHT black. £5 BBQ paint from Aldi. Leaves a lovely satin finish. Yet to see how well it'll hold up.
Drop with Matiz springs. You can see the front arch is manky with rust here too. It's rotten through near the sill and the paint is all blistered up above the wheel.
Rear springs cut down to 290mm:
