Driving in the UK
- Thread starter lulzyboy
- Start date
It's a leisurely pace.
Solid engine, does it suit a big heavy car aimed at performance? Probably not, unless it's been fiddled with of course.
My colleague and nearest neighbour is about to fit a Zetec to his MEV Rocket kit car. It'll go rather well in that I should imagine.
I had one in a Robin Hood 2B (I can hear the sniggering) and it didn't hang about either, I love the engine to bits, it's a lovely, "modern", happy-go-lucky unit with oddles of tuning potential but I'm going to be as bold as to say the V6 would be my preferred engine in the Cougar.
I learned to drive in the US originally. I was not required to use reverse at any time. You'll be pleased to learn that I subsequently passed the UK driving test.
This is interesting. I was always told that holding the (foot) brake on when at a standstill can actually warp the front rotors through localised (and therefore uneven) heat transfer. Since I detest replacing disks, I almost always use the handbrake. Doing the right thing for the wrong reason... LOL
Parking brakes purpose is to hold vehicle in place while the driver is out of it. Aplying parking brake while you are daily driving is nonsence. When standing next to trafic light, brake pedal should be applied at all times (in case someone crashes from the back, in order to save people who are crossing the street, and to avoid pushing you into other cars, etc). I dont see any parking brakes advantage over regular brakes uphill also... Yes uk drivers are very polite and stuff, but it has nothing with p rakes i think. Dint know how to say, but if you use hand brake uphill in lithuania, you are a looser
Not picking on Lithuanians here, but I've been stuck behind far too many foreign drivers who are so out of control that I've thought they were going to roll backwards into my car; release brake, rev engine, try to remember where the bite point is. I give them plenty of room and let them disappear in a cloud of burning clutch.
Okay, now picking on Lithuanians: If you think it's reasonable to judge someone's driving by how heavily they can abuse their car, then it's you who's the loser. Frankly I thought that was just a Russian male thing.
Incidentally, the correct term in the UK isn't "parking brake". It's "handbrake". It's not just for parking.
That is to prove to the examiner that you are in full control of the car and its not going to roll even a milimetre till you want it to, once you pass your test you just use kerbs or small children for the same result
When T took her test, the examiner put a matchbox directly behind her rear wheel. Had that matchbox been damaged in any way, he would've failed her, (or so he said). She's the third person of her age that's told me that story so either it's true, or people in their 50s and 60s are collectively bullsh*tting us.
I can't imagine why anyone would; seems to be a neat little Lotus 7 homebrew clone. That's something I've always wanted to do - build a kit car - so due respect for doing it.
Serious question: Have you driven a Zetec Cougar?
No, well not for any great distance but I had a mk2 Mondingo with a 2.0 Zetec, it wasn't "slow" but it was outpaced by a lot of similar cars.
Couldn't speculate on weights but that a full-fat Ghia-X which may have not helped!
One day I'll stick up a thread about the 2B, but it it's a long and complicated story.
I was just hoping for a rise. Alice_16v would have obliged every time
I've never driven a Zetec Cougar but both Alex's and Stu's felt perfectly decent.
I've never driven a Zetec Cougar but both Alex's and Stu's felt perfectly decent.
I wasn't meaning to be adversarial, but you may know that I had a Zetec Cougar and a V6 one at the same time. Both were fully-equipped and the weight difference was within a 100KG or so.
Given the normal use case of a GT car - long range cruising - I would say that the Zetec was about the equal of the V6. The V6 has a higher top speed, but that doesn't matter on a British road. The Zetec used less fuel, but not enough to cry home about. Both do very well for cars of their era in the 50-70 stakes, where they're supposed to shine.
I freely admit that I bought my V6 because:
1) It sounds magnificent.
2) It has an advantage in stop-start driving, especially on MK's roundabouts where getting away fast is key.
3) It was black.
But in all honesty, the (standard) 2.0 Zetec is pretty much...adequate for the car. It's not like a 1.6 Focus of the same era where you wish you could whip it. It's actually a really nice car to live with, even if you do have to wring its neck from time to time.
Do that. I would love to build a kit car, and would be happy to hear your experience of it.