Classic Jalopy Blog

Citroen DS Instrument cluster repair 1

Citroen DS Instrument cluster repair

Earlier in the week I had identified the lack of instrument cluster lighting was due to a crack in the instrument cluster circuit board.  The crack was causing an intermittent broken circuit.   I wasn’t able to find much on the internet about Citroen DS Instrument cluster repair.  Looking at the board it looked like a very simple design.  That gave me the confidence to...

Citroen DS Instrument Cluster Lighting 5

Citroen DS Instrument Cluster Lighting

Recently during a night drive I discovered my Citroen DS instrument cluster lighting had failed.    In Sydney, where I live, this is a huge problem as the city is bristling with speed cameras.     So many that I could lose my entire licence in about 10 minutes driving near my house doing only 10 km/h over the speed limit.     I regularly drive...

2020 Shannons Sydney Summer auction 0

2020 Shannons Sydney Summer auction

I went to preview the 2020 Shannons Sydney Summer Auction today.   If you had a budget of about $20-$35,000 AUD, there are a lot of interesting cars to choose from.    Shannons do a pretty good job of finding a good variety of cars for each of their auctions – both in price range and types of car.    They are a bit more...

Auto Brunch St. Ives February 2020 1

Auto Brunch St. Ives February 2020

I attended the monthly Auto Brunch event in St. Ives Showground today.    This time I took my DS.   It was pretty dusty from all the smoke in Sydney, but still got a lot of attention.     Even though I have been four times,  there can still be a lot of variety and different cars I have not seen before.   This month there was...

Side by Side Parker one year ownership report 0

Side by Side Parker one year ownership report

It is almost a year since I installed the Hero Hoists side by side parker.   overall, I have been very happy with this hoist.     It has freed up some space to work in my garage, without having to sacrifice some of the rent paying cars I store in there.  I’ve had no problems with it. It is a tight fit in my garage,...

M103 Distributor cap and rotor 0

M103 Distributor cap and rotor

Today I changed the Distributor cap and rotor in my 1986 300SE.  I bought the new cap and rotor about two years ago but only just got around to changing it.   Unlike on the earlier engines, the M103 distributor cap is a fiddly job.   Instead of sticking upwards, it comes out sideways as it attaches to the camshaft. I find that whenever I buy...

Youtube tips – shifter bushing and rounded bolts 0

Youtube tips – shifter bushing and rounded bolts

Today I did an engine and transmission oil change on the 300SE.   I don’t normally post basic maintenance to this website as it really isn’t that interesting.   In this case, I used to tips I learned form MercedesSource videos that really sped up the job.    MercedesSource are an online parts vendor, who also make some useful special tools.   The owner, Kent, runs a...

450SLC Dragging rear brakes – part 3 1

450SLC Dragging rear brakes – part 3

In part 2, I had been struggling with my new SLC rear Calipers.   As outlined in that section, the new calipers I had on hand are for models not equipped with the anti-squat rear suspension.   This was because USA models were not so equipped.   The hard lines were too short to fit properly and fouled on the suspension bump stops.    I dropped the...

Rover P5 Coupe parts car update 0

Rover P5 Coupe parts car update

My old Rover P5 Coupe parts car is almost completely dismantled.   It is being parted out to aid in the restoration of three other coupes.   These coupes are in much better condition but needed certain parts to return to the road.    Last I saw the car there were still key parts on it, but all that is left is the engine and transmission....

Rover P5 Coupe restoration update 3

Rover P5 Coupe restoration update

I recently stopped by the workshop where a friend of mine is restoring three Rover P5 Coupes.    Over the last couple of months there has been quite a lot of activity, although that is somewhat hard to see from the photos.   Rover P5 restoration is quite time consuming – they are not simple cars.   The photos from my visit in April are available...

450SLC Dragging rear brakes – part 2 2

450SLC Dragging rear brakes – part 2

A couple of weeks ago I started investigating the dragging brakes on my SLC.   I found both of my rear calipers had been overheated and were in poor condition.   I ordered a set of rear calipers, and decided to change the rotors too.   Mine were still in spec, but on the lower end.    The hoses I had purchased last time were also not...

560SEC Climate Control repairs part 1 3

560SEC Climate Control repairs part 1

When purchased, my 560SEC did not have working climate control.   Not only did the A/C not work, but the heater had a mind of its own, occasionally bursting in to life and turning on full heat.  Curiously for a car that has been in Australia since the early 2000s, the car had not been converted to R134A. My first step was to see if...

Citroen DS sphere pressure check 3

Citroen DS sphere pressure check

Today I attended a Citroen Car club tech day.   Since most Citroens are equipped with hydropneumatic suspension, the club has equipment to pressure test spheres.   It has been five years since I tested my spheres, so they were well overdue.   The sphere pressure check equipment consists of a hand pump and pressure gauge.   The club is also equipped with re-gassing facilities, although those were...

KE Jetronic EHA Adjustment 2

KE Jetronic EHA Adjustment

I discovered at the MBCNSW Dyno day that my 560SEC was running dangerously lean.   Lean enough to cause damage to the engine.  While I was in the USA for work, I went to the Mid Florida Auto show.  I met Pierre Hedary there (who runs an independent Mercedes workshop), who suggested that I should start by testing my fuel pressures and that he had...

2019 Mid Florida Auto Show 0

2019 Mid Florida Auto Show

A couple of weeks ago, while I was in the USA I attended the Mid Florida Auto Show and Lake Mirror Concours.     This posting is a few weeks old, as I didn’t have the cable for my camera to transfer the photos.   I was in Orlando for work, and Lakeland is about an hour or two away.    The Mid Florida Auto show...

2019 ACT Marques in the park 0

2019 ACT Marques in the park

This weekend I planned to drive down to Canberra for the MB Spares and Service clearance sale.   Originally I was going to do a Saturday day trip, but I noticed that the Marques in the park show was running the next day.   From what I read this is a fairly large, but still informal show, with normally a few hundred cars in attendance. I...

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