Schabak project now has its own thread:

http://www.clubpolo.co.uk/forum/index.php?...view=getnewpost

It's pretty unusual for my car to dwarf a fest vehicle - but this week, the Polo looks massive.

Very nice Alex, this has to be my favourite/perfect polo, i like to think mine looks similar Very jealous of your job, your article in PVW is always great too, its nice to have something on an old polo in there.

Keep it up

What is that Renault thing though?

Glad you like it

The Renault is a Twizy - it's a rear-drive, tandem-seat quadricycle with a chassis tuned by RenaultSport. It's quite good fun, but it's not really a car for the UK. No windows, and the doors (which open upwards) are optional!

Love your G40 mate, very clean. Just noticed your number plate says herp derp

Liking your bit in PVW this month!!

Need to pick up a copy when I get a chance!

Just bought a copy also, saw you are car then 10 Porsches and couldn't leave it on the shelf!

Just bought a copy also, saw you are car then 10 Porsches and couldn't leave it on the shelf!

Yeah I enjoyed reading that Alex, Toby I thought the ten pages of porches was abit much ...

So today I've sorted out a niggle on my car. And yes, this is a very nerdy post.

Short version is, six years ago my windscreen was smashed by a rock on the M25. The windscreen fitter who replaced it filled the channels of my old seal with silicone sealant, which blocked the drainage holes. I moaned, I got them to re-fit it, but the seal never sat right afterwards.

So when I came to get the car resprayed last year, I cut the thing apart thinking it'd be easy to find a new one. It wasn't. Volkswagen doesn't sell them any more, and you can't re-use old ones as they stretch over time and don't seal properly. So I had to buy a non-OE item - all you can get these days - which isn't as wide as the real thing and doesn't have the ridge in the middle. Not earth-shatteringly awful, but a bit annoying.

Here's what the pattern part looks like. Doesn't marry up to the lines of the car at all.

Pete "PeteG40" Mirfin hass managed, somehow, to get the real thing. I've had it fitted today, after a really quick turnaround on shipping, and my god does it look better than the tardy pattern part. The fitter reckons it'll actually hold water out better than the last one too, so fingers crossed.

One nice, flush-fitting OE windscreen seal:

Basically, for £16 it's a bargain. If you're keeping your car for a while and value having the right bits on it, then it's even worth having one as a spare as they're only going to get harder to lay your hands on.

Happy.

Is Pete stocking these?

Is Pete stocking these?

AFAIK not stocking, but can get them as needed.

next level OEM whore, you haha!!

next level OEM whore, you haha!!

Non-standard glass - I'm not that obsessive

next level OEM whore, you haha!!

Non-standard glass - I'm not that obsessive

Awesome news alex, I've been looking for one as like you say the original gets stretched on removal.

Looks so much better too

next level OEM whore, you haha!!

Non-standard glass - I'm not that obsessive

ppffftttt, my opinion of you just got lowered!

Mini update.

It's occurred to me that I haven't introduced you lot to my long-termer. This is owned by SEAT UK, and I've got it on long-term test, going back in May next year. So think of this as my daily drive:

I like it. It's got the 1.2 TSI under the bonnet - 1.2 with a turbocharger - so it's livelier to drive than the factory figures suggest. I picked the spec, hence the FR trim and larger wheels, and I've fitted the TomTom nav upgrade, cruise control and USB iPod connection to make it really useful. This gets to do most of the hard work these days, and it's averaging around 42-46mpg (depending on how I drive it) using Shell V-Power which it seems to like.

Because it's the estate version it's also massive in the back. Four cases? No sweat.

The Polo is getting short-ish outings at the moment to keep it ticking over but it's still being stored on the lawn at my inlaws while we sort out a mortgage. I think the new screen has kerbed the leak, which is good, and there are two tubs of calcium chloride crystals inside to absorb the moisture while it's laid up. Fun and games. Winter mode? Here's mine...

Aiming to get it professionally Waxoyled next year, and add a wideband Stack AFRM to my bank of gauges, probably worked into the right hand speaker grille. Not sure yet.

Naturally, I'll keep you all posted.

Looks in a sorry state :(

Seat looks smart though :)

How do you manage to blag the Seat on long term test? never heard of that before?

It's quite common, most mags have a few cars in on long term test. All called different things in the mag though.

So for example Evo calls theirs "Fast Fleet" and most of them are long termers. There are a few cars in that group which the staff actually own though.

Interesting feature on MSN Cars this afternoon:

http://cars.uk.msn.com/features/cars-motor...nalists-drive-1

:)

Intresting how alot of them drive Older less desirable cars.. :)

Intresting how alot of them drive Older less desirable cars.. :)

I guess it's a point of view thing, mine's one of the faster ones on there though. Some of the comments are a bit brutal too!

Small updates.

We're about two weeks from completing on our house, so the Polo hopefully is only a couple of weeks from being garaged again. I'm already planning a bit of a refresh for the interior and engine bay. Just a few bits that I want to tidy up.

So, low mileage seats. They've been in storage for about eight years, so they're quite dusty, but the fabric is immaculate.

These are going in this weekend, and mine will go up for sale afterwards. Anyone after some really good condition Scirocco GTII seats? The only flaw is a small patch (1cm square) of missing vinyl on the driver's side door card and the seat base has gone a bit bobbly. I'll post pics when I've removed them.

My carpet has blim burns on it, so I'm replacing that when I've got a garage, and the driver's side door card has gone a bit saggy so I'll probably replace the whole set (so the fading is the same on all of them). One of my Corrado VR6 steering wheels will go in too. The plan is to take most of the interior out, hunt for rust, treat it, and replace anything knackered while it's in bits.

In other news, I've got an automatic up! this week. Someone mentioned about comparative sizes with a Mk3 ages ago, so:

It's taller and wider, but the Polo is a few inches longer. I'll get a better pic tomorrow, when it's light, assuming both cars aren't covered in snow.

Haha, Loving what your bringing home :) Miss having my Pearl Grey coupe. Love the colour. Keep it going man!