64 GUZZLE IT DOWN...

So I’ve had the car for a while now, so I have a better idea of what I’ve bought. As mentioned yesterday, the speakers and the exhaust need replacing as soon as possible, as they are starting to get to me. 

In the next few weeks, I will book it into a garage to confirm that the exhaust is the issue. If so, I’ll install a new unit as soon as possible. 

I had planned to replace the speakers myself, but after watching a full video of the procedure, I realized that not only do I need to remove the whole back seat and seatbelts, but it has also made me worried.

A door panel falling off because of my shoddy workmanship is a pain, but not correctly fitting a seatbelt could be deadly. 

Apart from these niggles the other thing I need to get my head around is the terrible turning circle (caused by all the extra components crammed in there to help the car corner like it is on rails) and the alarming fuel consumption. 

I’ll hold my hands up; the car is new to me, so I have been giving it a bit occasionally, but I’m averaging 35 mpg!  That is the same as the motorhome we hired a few years ago to do the NC500. I know it is my fault, but I’d expect more from a little 1.4 engine. 

On the trip from Poole, it averaged 55 mpg, so I’m not concerned about getting to the start of the Rally, but I can see us stopping at every petrol station throughout Switzerland and Italy!