Yellow A610

Here's a few pictures of my A610. A high mileage, high owners car bought cheap with plenty to do. But yellow 610's with the spec I wanted aren't exactly plentiful.

She is looking very good bud and in the best colour I must say!

Bit of an update on my car. Had a few things to sort recently and Big MVS said he would help me with my dashboard removal after his MOT tester had done the same as mine (heavy handed button pushing on the dashboard) so he had experience. As mentioned in his thread, I said I'd give his car a quick polish (2 days of wash, clay and 5 stage paint correction to give the paint an as new look) as some sort of compensation. Must say, I was extremely happy with the end result.

Nice deep reflection



Anyway, the bank of switches on the left of the dashboard were broken as can be seen in this pic



So a simple dashboard out, change bank of switches for new switches from breaker and bobs your uncle. Well, not quite. Not only were the bank of switches pretty much completely knackered but it quickly became obvious that someone had been here before and not done a particularly great job. They had botched the buttons with glue and springs. But then these switches are obsolete and almost impossible to get hold of so quite understandable.



Unfortunately, not only were the switches knackered, the fixings that were part of the binnacle that the screws went in to were also broke. Fortunately, the breaker came up trumps again with a replacement binnacle.



So speedo/rev counter etc swopped from old to new and test to ensure everything works



Very much relieved to sort this as the rear foglight not working is an MOT failure so the button needed to be sorted. I think it is worth warning all 610 owners to be careful with these switches as they aren't the highest quality items and are not easy to find. I really appreciate Martin's help with this.

Other updates on my car ...

Free flowing stainless steel sports exhaust. Much better sound and I reckon it feels a fair bit more pokey. Frees up a fair bit of space in the engine bay too.





I also upgraded the front brakes to a 310mm grooved disc and bell kit with Hi-spec 4 pot calipers and Hawk pads.



Next job which will be done very shortly will be a 310mm disc and bell on the rear with a handbrake caliper.

Now fitted 310mm grooved 2 piece discs on rear with 4 pot calipers to match the front. Just need to change the handbrake cables now for ones which work better with the calipers (which have been made). Brakes are pretty powerful now though!



Also had a problem with hot starting on the car but knew it was likely the rotor arm which I had never changed. Had a day at home yesterday and had just been sent some new Ignition Leads from our supplier to evaluate so decided to change plugs/leads/dizzy cap and rotor. Found this.



Went for a short blast last night and had actually forgot just how good the A610 is. I drive one of the Esprit's to work most days now but the 610 feels so fast, the brakes feel fantastic, it handles beautifully and the V6 burble is quite addictive with the upgraded exhaust.

[The Saint]

These are the kind of posts we need. We can see the love of your car in these photos. I recall first seeing your car at the NEC, and the amount of people admiring it.
Please keep us updated with those brake conversions. After having RATS rebuild my A610, I know how difficult obtaining parts is, and will continue to be. Any update or reto fit, is greatly appreciated.
Knowing that you can buy a car that needs work, with high mileage and time and dedication, you can end up with a car to be proud of is inspiring, and you sure give hope to those out there with projects hiding away in the garage, that need finishing.
Thank you!

[BIG_MVS]

Nice brakes John. Looking forward to seeing it in Jan if not sooner.

Vince - Could you write my epitaph when I croak please.

[The Saint]

*pokes Martin VERY hard in the side*
"wee wee" taking ********

This is exactly the posts the site needs to show we are real enthusiats and not a political statement *looks at the can of worms again* Most visitors love to see these cars and as you know a picture says a thousand words.. (Hinting at others to post more!!)

Love you too Martin....

*pokes Martin VERY hard in the side*
"wee wee" taking ********

This is exactly the posts the site needs to show we are real enthusiats and not a political statement *looks at the can of worms again* Most visitors love to see these cars and as you know a picture says a thousand words.. (Hinting at others to post more!!)

Love you too Martin....

Vince, just to show that my car has had a bit of work over the years (it's taken me over 7 years) to get it to a reasonable standard, I'll show you what it was like when I got it. It's difficult to show it in photos but it was cosmetically challenged and had all the usual Alpine issues. It's a great car and my first car project and THE car I always wanted so it's pretty satisfying to get in it and go out for a drive these days.



Damaged bodywork behind rear wheel




Minor damage by front wheel above bumper


Normal peeling paint on mirrors


Lots of paint/lacquer issues at front.


A butterfly trying it's best to hide the huge swathes of osmosis on the doors


Engine bay looked a bit tatty


Not exactly an NEC show car.


And more than its fair share of rot

Been playing with some OZ Nova's today. Think the rears (295/35/18) are borderline! Look pretty cool though.





Just a little bit of colour in the engine bay.

Loving the wheels

The touch of colour makes all the difference, nice one!

As ever she looks an absolute beautiful example of an A610, keep up the good work!

Is your exhaust this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RENAULT-ALPIN ... XQgyZSBMd6

How noisy is it? I'm not sure I want a noisy one!

I have seen the video on youtube

More about the exhausts in the thread link below. If you want a quiet exhaust, it probably isn't for you. It was designed as a free flowing sports exhaust that makes the most of the V6's noise instead of suppressing it. However, the noise isn't heard so much in the car as it all behind you.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=7706

Is your exhaust this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/RENAULT-ALPIN ... XQgyZSBMd6

How noisy is it? I'm not sure I want a noisy one!

I have seen the video on youtube

Little update on mine. Not too much going on but done the odd bit of tinkering with the interior, fitting an alcantara centre console and armrest etc. Looks fairly OE but a massive improvement on the standard plastics I feel. Just feels a bit more upmarket. Plenty of positive comments throughout the year from the Cars and Coffee attendees about the car.

chester4.jpg

chester5.jpg

chester1.jpg

chester6.jpg

[BIG_MVS]

Looking good as always John