While I was on my way over to London, not long away from Holyhead my clutch didn't want to seperate which we thought was the fluid boiling due to the heat, the pace and the fact that my engine bay fan on the drivers side wasn't coming on, so I drove from Wales to London with virtually no clutch. Met with all the guys at Surrey Quays and Paul Sage said to come round the following day to change the clutch fluid to Dot 5 to try to prevent boiling.
I went round at about lunch time on Monday and he put it up on the ramp while I took the missus into town. I got a fone call shortly after to tell me that the problem was a bit bigger than fluid boiling (a whole lot bigger!) and that she'd need open heart surgery. The clutch fork pin had broken and it was an engine, subframe, gearbox out job. AAARRRGGGGHHH!!!
And we were to be getting the ferry back from Holyhead at 02.30 Tuesday morning (monday nite)!
Paul was brilliant, and got the operating table out early on Tues morn, after finding us a hotel, and helping us change the ferry booking etc. (Big Thanks! Especially to Tony who works in ARR for getting in with Paul at about 4am to start - beyond the call of duty!)
While the car was in pieces (along with me!), he found a seal in the gearbox was leaking, and the spigot shaft was worn and needed replaced (more money! )
But all is now well! He changed the clutch at the same time, and put it all back together, and got me on the road at about 8pm (after working through lunch, and being very pleasant the whole day ), with the car feeling totally different and much better, and my wallet a whole lot lighter!
But after spending all that money, all I could think of was 'what am I gonna buy for it next?', (and I bought the LeMans grille for the intercooler on the way out of Paul's! ) I think I'm sick in the head (and so does the missus! )
By the way - huge thanks to everybody who helped me while having my problems, especially Dermot and Richard. Cheers!