Confusion exists over 2.2-litre diesel engines being shared between different vehicles.
Allow me to explain.
Land Rover Defender 2.2 TDCi - engine shared with Ford Transit, Ford Ranger and derived from four-cylinder used in previous Ford Mondeo ST TDCi and Jaguar X-Type 2.2D. Engine is NOT shared with Land Rover Freelander and Range Rover Evoque.
When I was warned that the gas spheres needed replacing, I just assumed it was something that was easy money for my local Bentley specialist.
Some mysterious yet crucial sounding component hidden from view would be enough to make a non-techie like me rather jittery.
And sure enough, with a long drive around the corner I persuaded the garage to find a slot for the Turbo R to get its annual service, the gas spheres done and replace a noisy fuel pump.
Waking up the car at the end of its hibernation always comes with a certain level of trepidation. It’s a tense game of chance that can sometimes result in relief or lead to a money being spent.
Rousing the Turbo R after its winter sleep –interrupted only for a weekend blast in early-January – was the same, but so far the results are mixed.
The warning light sequence seems more prolonged than usual, but only when starting from cold. It could be time for work on the gas spheres for the suspension, according to the experts who look after my car during the winter (who incidentally would also stand to profit from the work carried out).
With another car to rely on for the day-to-day grind, my classic goes into hibernation each winter.
The ritual has become as familiar as the childood Blue Peter episodes every autumn when the tortoises were put away in a cardboard box for a few months.
So in the last week of October I reluctantly put the Turbo R into storage expecting to live without it for the next five months, but knowing it was a better idea than being tempted to drive it on salted roads.
The true test of a newly purchased classic is its first long run. Hundreds of miles on a journey taking in the UK’s busy roads are likely to show up any faults or flaws that might need attention or sow the seeds of regret.
Attending a friend’s wedding in Kent seemed to be an ideal opportunity for the Turbo R to stretch its legs as well as lend a sense of occasion to the trip – although it wouldn’t be deployed as a wedding car.
While the bulk of the mileage would be completed on motorways there would be a fair share of sweeping A-roads and country lanes.
When you think of aftermarket car accessories and tuning, the first vehicles that come to mind are probably Corsas, Saxos, Fiestas and so on.
A Bentley Turbo R might not necessarily be among those vehicles, but this car is surprisingly upgradeable.
It had already shed its original 15-inch wheels in favour of a set of 1990s 17-inch Bentley alloys, as well as had twin headlamp units retro-fitted (a job that cost the thick end of £1,000 in the early 1990s, according to the receipts that came with the car) and there was more to come.
During my formative years when I was cultivating my interest in four-wheeled vehicles, the Bentley Turbo R was one of the absolute top cars of the time.
I remember a 1989 cover of one of the weekly magazines with a newly quad-lamped Turbo R looking stately, yet menacing.
In the weeks leading up to my decision to buy the Turbo R, I’d done a little research and also consulted a friend active in the Northern section of the Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts Club.
When I was learning to drive, part of it included getting to grips with overtaking safely. It involved staying far enough back from the slower vehicle to get a good view ahead and when safe, shift down a gear or two to ensure the manoeuvre was carried out quickly and safely.
But how often do we now seem to be stuck in a queue of traffic behind something slow with no one seeming to have an appetite to overtake. No one can blame the HGV at the front of the queue. On single-carriageway A-roads their legal maximum speed is 40mph.
So when the speed limit is 60mph and most modern cars are capable of reaching 60mph from 40mph in less than 10 seconds, why are people content to sit in a queue several vehicles long behind something slow?
The Jensen's aims for the unknown in its final photoshoot before being sold.
It was five years ago that I mistakenly went to a classic car auction and raised my hand at the wrong time, burdening myself with a slice of British automotive history powered by a lump of iron Detroit muscle.
Come to think of it, 7.2 litres is probably as big as engines got in postwar British production cars.
The fuel bills were eye-watering, and although it had never let me down (I had called out the AA once in five years of ownership), the Jensen SP was now in its 40th year and would probably become more difficult to maintain.
I never expected to keep it five years so it was perhaps more surprising that I hadn't put it up for sale before now. Within a week of advertising it was gone. A gentleman who already owned two royal blue Jensen SPs and decided he needed a third, giving him a 1.3% share of all the SPs ever built.
When I was a journalism student, the internet was in its infancy. People used it for reference, and there was no scope to publish work outside of print media.
The internet is a wonderful thing, despite it drastically changing how we consume media in print. I spent my formative years in print, which at the time was highly suspicious of so-called 'new media'.
Anyway, fast-forward 15 years or so and here we are. I've worked across various platforms in digital and print, journalism still has students, we still have print media - although in a much leaner form - and there are thousands of blogs in every area of interest.
RSS Feed