Newbies Carina 2.0 Litre Executive And My Other Car.

July 14, 2006

Hiya Everybuddy,

New member, with new car (to me). It's a Carina E 2.0 litre Executive Hatchback. Hope to take delivery on Monday and I'll get some pics up on my Daimler web site asap (link in signature). I wanted a cheap reliable runaround while my Daimler's off the road.

I grew up with carbs and condensers (as you'll see from my other car) so lambdas and ECU's are still new to me, although I grasp the principles.

Anyway, on the short test drive in the Carina, I thought I detected some pinking. I know the Battery of the car was flat a couple of days ago (radio left on, they say!?!) - just wondering if they disconnected it whilst charging the Battery and the ECU needs to re-learn, or should I reset it?

Where should I start to get rid of the pinking? I'm sure it's not water pump rattle or anything else - after 35 years, I recognise pinking when I hear it, but I'm unsure how to proceed with "computerised" cars.

What spark plugs should be in the 3S-FE engine?

I'll be bidding on a Haynes manual shortly and will probably get a servicing CD-Rom (if they're available for these cars).

One reason I bought the 2.0 litre Carina is because it's pretty close to my Daimlers 0-60 time of 8.0 secs. The Daimlers 147 mph top speed is an advantage - but where! OTOH, the Carinas fuel consumption over the 5.3 litre V12 should keep me happy!

Anyway, that'll do for now. I WILL have more questions when I start looking over the car in more detail.

July 19, 2006

Well, after a couple of hiccups, I finally got the car. I also got a Haynes manual for the bargain price of £8.50 (inc. postage) off eBay.

You can see the first photos of the car here:

Carina Gallery

One thing I didn't notice until after I bought it is the CD player! It's a combination unit with tape and radio. Anyway, if you want to know what to do with all those CD's you mess up on your computer, this player eats them up and doesn't spit them out again. Anyone got the same problem with a Toyota CDplayer?

I reckon I'll be able to fix it. I've fixed a few before. For a factory fitted ICE system, it don't sound bad.

Now that I've added a section for the Carina on my Daimler web site, I'll expand it over time with photos and descriptions of work I do on the car.

The pinking noise is quite bad. I'll check the plugs and timing first. Just as I typed the last sentence, the postman knocked and brought the Haynes book...I'm off now to browse through it, CU l8tr.