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whinge and whine

Posted: Tue May 06, 2008 6:26 pm
by GarthW
ZZzzzz. Ok, yes i've changed the the subject, i've been that frustrated with how things have gone i've taken a step back and feeling much better.
Also i'm finally broke, over budget slightly and cant afford the final thing i need to finish her at the moment, and f@*k me its not that much!!

Anyway heres some of my build stories/whingeing lol.

Things got to a point where i was afraid to ask people for anymore advice. Do i use mild or steam tube? Is Aliminium a better heat conductor than stainless? Why didnt i use this, why didnt i use that? As for getting my air scoop made, that seems to have been a waste of time also, ok i dont understand air dynamics, but was politley told my air scoop is useless for its letting air in, rather than letting air out, so in the end i'm like, i see scoops like this everywhere on cars, why is mine different? Ok rain will get in, but big deal it goes through the grill anyway.
So the cash spent on that wasted? why spend more modifying it, so damn, back on goes the ugly plastic plate. I might try do something with it, but then i might get noticed less without it..? Might be a sign...arrrrgh dammit!!


Final quick word-I took the alfa off the road late September last year, so its been awhile. I have to join a car club to get a Cams license, where other than an alfa club would another club accept me and my car? Or can i get my cams license another way?

Hope you all are well, i'm not doing anymore posting till its all done, then will just hit you all with it.

Posted: Tue May 06, 2008 7:15 pm
by MD
Geez mate that sounds bad news. Really sorry to hear your project going saideways. Believe me I had my share of grief putting the Brick together over two and a half years but I got there in the end. Even had to repair work I farmed out and paid good money for just so it would right. These projects do frustrate the living sheit of you sometimes but it is all the more rewarding when you overcome the problems.

.. take a breather. Cool your heels. Your Alfa will call you back when it's ready like an old friend.

We are all interested in your project and share your enthusiasm. Please don't pull the pin..

Regards, MD

Posted: Tue May 06, 2008 9:06 pm
by Barry
Garth , shit happens mate..Stick to the forum,trust me,its the only one worth frequenting.
Beside,that will up the number of Saffa`s vs Ozzies..You cant let that happen.. 8)

Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 6:12 am
by SydneyJules
Keep at it Garth- we all wanna see the thing built, but moreso, anyone who has done something custom knows that things go right and things go wrong- it's a shame a passing comment can be misconstrued.

And on a BAzz note, the Aus Vs Saffa thing needs addressing!

Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 5:11 pm
by GarthW
Thankyou guys, felt like putting car in garage and leaving it there till i got rid of all my anxiety lol.

Will keep going with it, cant let idiots bring me down!!

Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 5:20 pm
by MR2 Zig
Hell, GarthW, you're doing good....it took 6 months for me to get piston kits at a reasonable price.

Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 9:39 pm
by MerrilGordon
My GTV6 just about burned itself up one day.

Failed oxygen sensor that made the engine run too rich.
I left it idling in the garage (before I knew of the problem) while I went to the other side of the house on an errand.

When I came back there was smoke coming from the undercoating and a puddle of aluminum from the heat shield due to the converter getting too hot. So I shut the car off and pushed it out of the garage and took a water hose to the under side.

I had been working on it all fall and it pulls this shit on me ?!
That red bitch spent the winter outside. No car cover, no attention, no nothing. I would just walk by it once in a while looking at the leaf litter, twigs and snow accumulating on it, then walk on. I also parked my beater pickup in the garage where my GTV6 usually sits. In full view of the Alfa I might add.

It's been four years now and that was the last time my car failed me.
Sometimes you have to lay down the law and let them think about it a while.

Merril Gordon
My GTV6 is a nice mistress now.

Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 1:06 am
by MD
Sometimes you have to lay down the law and let them think about it a while.
Ah, Merril, that's GOLD !! :D :D

Garth -see, you feel better already I bet. Welcome back.

Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 5:19 am
by Fernando
Merril that is just classic. :D My own car has made me feel like doing that on several occassions.You treat the bloody thing better than yourself and then, when you need it like you need a hole in your head ,it throws up some or the other hissy fit. :evil:

Garth glad to see your still okay mate.Sometimes you just need to vent off a bit of steam that's what we are here for on this site. :D

Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 11:00 am
by MerrilGordon
Yeah Garth, Fernando, MD, and everyone,
These cars sure have a grip on us don't they. They're just machines right ? Not Alfas ! They drip soul and mine sure has a hold of me. Otherwise I wouldn't have been so pissed off. Any other car and it would have been gone. To this day I always enjoy driving it, even if it's the slow commute.

Merril

Posted: Sat May 17, 2008 12:59 am
by GarthW
Wow thanks guys, Gordon i'm still smiling thats for sure!! But damn i dont think your car will do wrong by you again!! Haha.

I love my car to death, its an addiction, i miss being around it, and the day i get her back i'm on a long night cruise around town and wont be getting out anytime soon after that.

Thanks for all the nice words, basically car is ready and just waiting on turbo install, hopefully by the 27th may i'll be on the road.....fingers crossed. :wink:

Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 8:14 pm
by GregoryV
Garth,
I'll sum this up for you ... unfortunately you have something known as nogtv6drivitus. This can set in on any gtv6 owner unexpectantly after said gtv6 has not been driven due to repairs and modifications that take over 3 weeks! And untreated after 6 months can lead to serious depression and halucinations ranging from, "Maybe I'll build a hot VW bug instead" to "You know stamp collecting is just as fun!" :D

I've been there I know, and the ONLY way to cure it is to get the car on the road again, take a few redline shifts in 2nd and 3rd, with a few corners and all will fade away! Bolt the plastic plate back on and just do what is needed so you can drive it again.

Honestly, I am still trying to get mine "done" after ... ugh 8 years – as long as it is in shape to start and drive I am happy. There was a period when it was in the garage in pieces for something like a year, after a while a felt like what's the point of this, but once I drove it again all was right in the world! Three years back I lost my gearbox, I parked it for 6 months to get the cash to take care of it because I did not want to put it on a credit card ... thought of selling it again ... fixed it finally and was good.

If it is not your daily driver, let it sit, until you can do what is needed to get it on the road.

GV

Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 9:35 pm
by Alfettish
Garth, re: CAMS licence. Join any club. A hillclimb club, a drift club, a vintage race club. You don't have to race, just sign up for a licence after you've joined.

Posted: Sat Jun 07, 2008 4:52 am
by patzo_3l
garth weve all been theer and had the EXACT same problems. youll get there in the end belive me.u just goto learn to ignore some things that people tell you. i dont fully understand why no alfa club though? u can join any club...im in the alfa club and i race at holden and ford days, maserati days, etc etc. the reason i recommendind the alfa club though is from past experience when a common alfa related probelme occurs, other people at the day understand this and seem to be more helpful then when at a non alfa club event you hold up their meeting with your broken down "lemon" and have to deal with them. get my drift?

Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 4:27 pm
by GarthW
Yeah well said thanks guys. I read about a new super lap format their gonna run here, well nsw and qld first, but will be nation wide maybe if it ever takes off. Street registered format, and an open class.