Midlands Car Servicing

Nipped into the workshop today to get a head start on my pearl white plus .
This ones covered just over 30,000 miles from new and rather than it being sat in the unit for another 2 years I’ve decided to prepare it for some events over the next few months and into summer .
I might even take it on the Scottish north coast 500 later in the summer or perhaps another European road trip .
... This one has to be the cleanest coupe I’ve ever imported and also the first ,so it has a lot of sentimental value . In fact it took nearly 6 months to arrive from Japan with me thinking I had been ripped off and it would never turn up.
Jobs today were to remove all of the aftermarket audio and tidy up the centre console area . Someone had attempted to fit a larger unit and had damaged the ashtray and the console so these had to be scrapped . Luckily the aftermarket components were only stuck to the dash with double sided tape and not screwed through .
I’ve replaced them with a black flocked console which is my personal preference and accessorising the dials with the chrome rings . The lower console was also damaged so it was replaced . Although it may seem like a simple job it’s one that will easily take 3-4 hours even with an experienced hand .
The wiring ,head unit ,booster unit ,cd player ,dvd player toll road reader and control unit were all removed . The amount of components removed was insane and the work of several hours .
Looking a lot better now 😊
The drivers window had dropped down whilst I was driving and upon removing the door panel it was void of the regulator,waterproof membrane and fixings so I will remove these from a donor vehicle in the week as well as a plus gearknob to replace the less desirable aftermarket one .
Timing belt ,service and a few other gremlins will be replaced and then it’s off to the bodyshop as the bonnet has got some lacquer peel on the edge as well as the drivers mirror . The wheels will be refurbed and then a full detail . The bodyshop will also bodycolour the headlight washers ,paint the grille gloss black as well as the b- pillars and door handles which I think will be a nice contrast against the white .
A customer of mine is borrowing it next month for an event so I’m looking forward to seeing the pictures thereafter .
See More

I’ve been at the showroom all day cleaning the current stock . Running out fast ,down to just 4 Imported coupes out of 12.
Imported :- Yellow plus 46000 miles
... Ink black plus 79000 miles
Yellow 20vt 45000 miles
Portofino blue 20vt 48000 miles
COMING SOON (awaiting prep) :- Uk Sprint blue plus 75000 miles
Red plus 145,000 miles Major restoration (rust free pre and post work)
Silver le 100k miles
Electric blue plus 75k miles
See More

In this trade you do come across some horrors with poor workmanship . This one though has to be up there with the most horrific . The rear brake lines are also a bodge and have been rubbing on the roll bar .
This wine red 20vt was recovered into me yesterday at my recommendations .
... I noticed when removing the lower auxiliary pulley that the timing belt was unusually slack on both sides .
Once the covers were removed I could see immediately that the nut had been left loose for the tensioner, Or so I thought .............
Judging by the damage to the chassis leg (Which can only be due to levering the engine with a bar ) the previous installer concluded that the tensioner could not be removed with the engine in situ therefor decided to cut the end of the floating spline off to gain more room . In doing so the nut only went on half way and once it met the tensioner it decided to strip the remaining threads in the nut. Rather than rectifying this error it was just left . As this one has a plastic tensioner it’s most likely the installer couldn’t remove it therefor left the old one in place . The plastic tensioners were troublesome (more so on Alfa’s) so if you do see one then replace it immediately .
Surprisingly despite insufficient tension being offered to the belt the engine hadn’t sustained damage nor jumped the timing .
I did have to remove the engine off all of its mountings to gain access to bolts securing the mounting in place to be able to replace the floating bolt .
Very near miss ,but luckily it was dealt with in time .
See More

This one is going though later . Fiat coupe plus in yellow that covered 95000 kilometres . Some service history .
You can probably see why I won’t be placing a bid on it ,but aside from aesthetics it’s got starting issues ,poor paintwork and an oil leak .... Poor starting could be low compression or engine damage from the oil leak or mechanical neglect .
Oil leaks can cause problems when shipping and can incur further decontamination charges as well as needing a single container at circa 2k .
We haven’t bought a single car since October 2018 through the jap auctions but no point buying problems .
See More

Looking forward to reading this soon . If you look closely enough you can see me driving 😊
https://www.facebook.com/233490606722049/ posts/2458829680854786?sfns=mo

Very rare to see a limited edition coupe through the auctions in Japan but last night this one showed up .
36000 miles Service history Black Le
... Unfortunately in the inspection notes it had comments about corrosion so my agent paid for an additional assessment which confirmed it had heavy corrosion all over and various panels had been replaced . Most likely storm or water damage .
On that note it wasn’t worth the risk . It will most likely show up in the uk at some point but certainly didn’t meet our quality standards .
See More

This broom yellow 20v has been the work of the last few days . I had it recovered from Torquay on behalf of its new owner who lives in Scotland .
Against my best advice the customer bought it blind and without hearing the engine start .
... Luckily though it was near immaculate underneath with no corrosion and the engine started fine . Rare to be so lucky these days .
Despite it being stood for many years all it needed was :-
Number plates Washer pump Wiper blades Fuel cap seal Battery Cam cover gasket Timing belt kit Auxiliary tensioners Rear discs and pads Nsr wheel bearing Radiator Thermostat Clutch slave Service New sump plug Gearbox oil New antifreeze New brake fluid And an Mot .
Not many cars that would be this resilient to being off the road so long . Throughout the work it’s been lovely to work on with no issues at all .
See More

Almost three years ago to the day issue 242 March edition of auto Italia was released . All vehicles were fully restored by midlands car servicing . Hard to believe that nearly 500,000 miles had been covered between the trio .

The silver 20vt is in today for its sales preparation. Imported into the uk from Japan by me last year . The car sold before I could even put a price on it . 30,000 miles from new ,9 service stamps in Japan .
... I’m running a few weeks behind with the sales preparations currently due to the workshop being so busy but luckily the customers have all been very understanding .
And What a car this is ,cannot fault it at all .
Work carried out today :- Service Gearbox oil Brake fluid Cam cover gasket Cambelt Auxiliary tensioners Fuel cap seal Mot Registration
Please see the comments section below for the video of the underneath . 😍😍😍😍
See More

Amazing to read the feedback about us it really is.
Still 👂 hearing also people say “ JBT who? ” That’s me, owners in the Coupé world know me by this name “ But for those of you who are new on the scene or have just purchased their first ever Coupé we need your help to like and share our page.
Sales is something people have been unaware that we do so this will help to point them in the right direction for the best Coupe’s around.
... So we need your help if possible.
Please like & share the page if you can.
Thanks 🇮🇹🙏
See More

The chrono grey Le was back for an idle gremlin .
Fault was traced to a cracked idle control valve and a split fuel pressure regulator pipe .

Some of you may remember this one that got away . Electric blue plus covering just 8000 miles from new . 3 dents to body plus lacquer peel amongst other faults . I stuck a 14k bid on this and lost to my surprise . Rumour has it that the sale price In Japan was closer to 16k which broke the record for coupe end of auction value.... Also pushing up guide price on future models.
With transportation ,registration and import duty Making this closer to 19k I did predict that the sale price would be 20k if it hit the uk .
And here it is at a dealer. The same dealer that outbid me on a chrono grey Le last year .
Good luck to them though ,it is a rare car at those miles .
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classi…/ad vert/201902074701494…
See More

This black limited edition coupe was dropped off with me yesterday to investigate low oil pressure .
Before the water temp hit 50 degrees the pressure was dropping to 1.5 bar .
I did a pressure test using an external guage which was showing an identical reading to the guage In the car .... At this point i drained the oil into a clear container to inspect . No Debris found but on the side of caution the sump was removed and the bearings inspected.
The thrust washer was intact and unmarked ,all the main bearings were within tolerance but the big end bearings did show signs of scoring .
I replaced all the bearings and Cylinders number 5 and 2 required oversized bearings over current standard fitment to achieve the manufacturers tolerance . Generally the big end bearings take the same size but the mains can take upto 4 different variant of shells . With a top limit of 0.03 and a bottom limit of 0.05 there’s not much room for error .
Most engines are very flexible when it comes to tolerances (especially French and German engines ) But This engine isn’t forgiving if you exceed the tolerances as I found out about 15 years ago when I set the tolerance to 0.25 on the main caps . Oil pressure was 3 bar constant but after about 3000 miles the engine seized solid. During inspection I found it Had spun all of the main bearings meaning the engine was scrap . It was a very costly error for me at £4500 for a new replacement engine plus the oil control system. In total I think I paid out £6000 from this mistake but I still deal with the car to this day and the customer also reminds me of it every time it’s in for service 🙈.
Not a mistake I have repeated since so it’s always best to get as close to bottom limit as you can . The greater the oil pressure = reduction in flow . The lower the oil pressure =increase in flow .
With the oil being the first point of contact with the engine it’s vital to allow sufficient flow to aid cooling . Most German and French engines run between 0.8 and 3 bar peak . The 20v engine can exceed 8 bar at maximum rpm making it very unique .
Usually you would be blowing oil seals and wrecking Turbos but the 20v engine is more than happy to run such pressure .
With the new shells fitted ,90 degrees on the oil temp doesn’t drop lower than 1.5 bar increasing to 5 bar at 3000 rpm . Manufactures tolerances are :-minimum 1 bar at 70 degrees and 2.8 bar at 3000 rpm . So post rebuild it’s well within the safe tolerances .
See More

This lovely moonstone grey Fiat coupe VT6 was in for a checkover early Monday morning .
Every so often i will deal with a customer who is as enthusiastic as I am .
Although it wasn’t great news post inspection he was under no illusions that the car would be in A1 shape....
Continue Reading

2 coupes in today for checkovers and remedial work . Both examples are purchases from new owners and new customers .
It’s been a long time since I saw a coupe I hadn’t worked on before let alone two in the same day .
... The scotts green coupe was for sale down south for a big fee recently covering just 50,000 miles and one owner . Bit of a marmite colour but personally I love a nice scotts green coupe . structurally in excellent condition and probably the best uk example I’ve seen in a few years which is a credit to its previous owner . It certainly wasn’t without fault but always best to start off with a solid car .
The second was a moonstone grey vt6 . Unfortunately the story wasn’t as nice for its new owner due to various issues throughout .
See More

Please if you’ve used our services could you leave a review. We are so busy right now but great feedback helps build customer confidence and helps to fill the Diary 📔 over the year.
Even if we’ve helped you get back on the road from afar.
Enjoy the pics a car prepared mechanically and supplied by us.

Another brilliant write up from Auto Italia in February’s edition which is a great way to start the new year .
Pick up a copy (issue 276) or order from :- https://auto-italia.co.uk/ They’re also on Facebook if you want to keep up with their current filming progress .... https://www.facebook.com/autoitaliamagazi ne/
Many of you may remember the Alfa 156 V6 ti facelift that we imported in August 2018. The new owner Phil describes the whole process and his feedback post buying from us in the magazine .
Credit to Michael Ward photography and for the write up from new owner Phil Ward
We don’t just import coupes ,in the past we have imported :- Mini’s x5 Fiat coupes x15 Alfa spider Alfa 156 Lancia delta integrale Nissan skyline r34 gtr spec 2 Fiat punto Honda Odyssey absolute
See below for more info .
**Frequently asked questions **
For our imported vehicle service.
> Yes, mileage is guaranteed and certified. > Export certificate available for mileage verification. >De registration certificate available
> ( if not registered) Price includes full MOT and registration.
> Cars can be reserved before it’s arrival or ordered to customers specification .
>Very easy to insure in the uk. Get a quote before purchase. Call Mark Richard on 01275792270 or direct line or LV The word “grey import” is an insurance derived term which only applies to new vehicles . New vehicles are typically worth less on the market for insurance valuation purposes . Older vehicles are usually more expensive to buy in Japan due to their exemplary condition which should be considered when agreeing a guaranteed value .
> Buy online with full confidence. Delivery all over the world can be arranged .
> We hand source our cars mainly from Japan using a very experienced uk and Japanese agent .
> Feel free to ask any questions. If you don’t ask you don’t know. We are always happy to help.
We don’t just import coupes ,so far we have imported Alfa’s ,lancias ,nissans ,fiats,and other makes .
Not all vehicles are to order ,we also have our very own showroom with numerous vehicles in stock .
See More

Today’s job is this Renault Megane cabriolet .
This car was bought by me early last year on a £500 Leicester to Alicante In Spain challenge . I purchased it with a few niggles hence the price . With the interior fan and wiring fixed as well as a boost issue (control solenoid ) a snapped spring and a full service carried out it never missed a beat and made the full 4000 mile trip .
... The 1.5 dci is ,in my opinion, the best small Diesel engine by far . Reliable ,ridiculously economical and plenty of grunt . It was averaging 80mpg and cost less then £250 in fuel despite the 4000 miles covered .
Although it would’ve been cheaper and quicker to fly (just) ,fun isn’t in a straight line and the journey was one to remember.🤣
The idea was to sell this on and not be out of pocket upon our return ,if they made it 🤣, but with such sentimental value I decided to donate it to a family member .
Jobs today were :-
Screenwash inop Reverse lights inop Water leak through roof Full service Bulb inop
Full service carried out and SLR reset . Reverse light issue was the switch in the gearbox so that was replaced . The seal on the roof had a build up of grime so that was cleaned ,retreated and tested .
Osf bulb replaced as well as the washer pump motor (common fault ) .
I do love the Renaults ,cheap car second hand that’s well equipped and if looked after they are extremely reliable .
See More

This electric blue vt6 was in today for a non start issue and a checkover .
Non start was a faulty alternator and along the way I found excessive play in the drivers rear arm as well as a split fuel cap seal .
I have dealt with this car for the last 3 owners .
... The vt6 model was basically a plus and also had plus colours . The only difference was the plus had the big bolster seats with red stitching alongside the steering wheel ,gearstick,door cards and rear seats . It also had red brembo calipers ,a strut brace and a red crinkle cam cover side skirts and front bumper lips .
The vt6 has the same 6 speed as the plus ,white dials ,external colour scheme and silver push button start .
See More