thorne

From the Completely Off-topic thread earlier this year:

On 2/19/2023 at 5:55 PM, thorne said:

Seems to be the issue all across Australia: the days of LPG availability appear to have passed their peak. I took my annual drive to QLD late in January, and while LPG isn't as popular in the north-east of the country, usually there would be plenty of places selling it. No longer: outside of SEQ (Brisbane, and the Sunshine and Gold Coasts), you're lucky if you can find ONE place selling LPG, and that's in the larger towns, the smaller towns don't even offer it. I was amazed: from Goondiwindi (only two places), to Dalby (only one), to Rockhampton (only two places), to Mackay (only one), to Gladstone (only one).....it was quite a jolt, and meant I had to seriously rethink my fuel budget. "You're one of the only servos in this town that sell LPG!" I point out to them as I pay for my fuel. All of the operators nod glumly, and why? Their answers were all identical: "EVs."

 

The situation was the same crossing the border into northern NSW. Major towns with dozens of servos, reduced to only one - or if you're lucky, two - of them selling LPG. Outside of major cities or sizeable roadhouses, they're rapidly beginning to disappear, even in Victoria, which was easily the best state to find it. 

 

Not something I really want to face, but as EVs become more popular and the servos re-invent themselves, they're ditching alternative fuels. Soon it will just be unleaded and diesel. 

He may have: I mean, no guarantees, but he did manage to rustle up a fairly rare indicator assembly for my XH the last time I was there. Best way to see is to contact him: he doesn't have a website (not like Jolly's U-pull), but you can call him on (03) 9309 3223 (M-F 8:30am-5pm). Best of luck.

Not that we needed a reminder, but I'm sure most people on this site with LPG- or dual-fuel systems would have noticed the availability of LPG across south-eastern Australia really begin to dwindle in the last few years.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-19/lpg-cars-disappearing-from-roads-gas-renewable-fuel-vehicles/102236128

Yep, 6'4" here and I've been wary of entering and exiting both my vehicles ever since I bought them.

With the panelvan, there's no issue with headroom at least: yay extended roof-line. Only problem is, I look out the windscreen mainly through the blue polarised strip across the top of it. My thighs - which are fairly muscular - only just fit under the steering wheel, which has been set upwards at its maximum setting and the seat rolled all the way back. If I sit relaxed, there's no issue, but if I tense up my thigh muscles, then they make contact with the underside of the steering wheel. It's an interesting way to see if I'm stressed while I'm behind the wheel.....although I must say, on the odd occasion when I need both hands off the wheel temporarily, it's an effective way to steer.

I have similar issues with the FGX, but that sits lower to the ground than the panelvan does, and because the A-frames are swept much further back, I have to remember to duck my head, or else it makes solid contact as I go to get inside it. Not a problem I have with the panelvan, as it still retains the X-series A-frames and there's no danger of knocking myself out! Thankfully the seats in the sedan appear to sit lower than the panelvan - and I can set them a little further back - but I only need to raise my knees about an inch before they hit the underside of the steering wheel.

3 hours ago, Panko said:

I got my Recaro seats back from the upholsterer  

I am so in love with these seats. 

 

 

They look incredible! 

Worked like a charm!

On 8/26/2022 at 5:34 PM, Mr Polson said:

Pretty sure Repco has a sale on UHF this weekend too but not 100% if it includes aerials

Looks like I'm going shopping tomorrow. 

Two of the removeable options were these:
https://www.bcf.com.au/p/oricom-plug-and-play-5w-uhf310-radio-pack/573880.html
https://autobarn.com.au/ab/Autobarn-Category/Shop-our-Full-Ranges-by-Brand-|-Autobarn/Gme/GME-5-Watt-Super-Compact-UHF-CB-Radio---Plug-'n'-Play-Kit---TX3120SPNP/p/ME24221
Pictures show magnetically-mounted aerial on the roof of the car, mounted from suction cap on the windscreen, powered from cigarette lighter socket.

I'm sure the aerial won't have much coverage, but it will on the top of the car (instead of at the front mounted on the bull-bar) and it's removeable, I can put up with the interior cabling.

On 8/23/2022 at 9:00 PM, Mr Polson said:

With the bullbar, I'd be inclined to run a extension cord from the CB to the front. Then have the aerial on a pipe clamp type bracket, which would allow fairly easy removal when not using.

This is a great idea! A decent aerial is a must for remote driving, but unnecessary for urban trips, and this sounds like an effective compromise. I must investigate this further!

Apologies if this is the wrong sub-forum to post in, please move to correct one if needed.

I'm taking another long-distance journey in the near-future, and I'm seriously considering a CB radio for the panelvan due to the isolation factor. Preferably a 5W, 80ch version, doesn't need to have all the bells and whistles, something functional will do. Unsure where to mount it to be honest (with a towing brake it's getting a little crowded already under the steering column) - although I hear there are "plug and play" units that are essentially removeable and are powered by the cigarette lighter socket - but I'm worried about the UHF aerial. The panelvan has a bullbar with plenty of space for a decent one, but I don't exactly live in a well-do-to area and I fear it's going to be nicked or broken off if it's left outside. Also, I have to park it under a storage locker above the parking space so it can't be too tall anyway.

I know the big 4x4 utes (like the Ranger and F250) can get a roof console installed - perfect place for a CB - and while the panelvan does have the extended roofline, I don't believe they'll fit a panelvan properly, and a bespoke console will be too pricey.

Any ideas? Any feedback welcome.

Nice! I'll have to ask you about your curtains and see if I can get them working correctly on my XH..... 

I went through this myself on my FGX a few months ago (see FGX link in my sig for details), was able to get it replaced for free using glass cover option on my insurance.

Definitely get acoustic glass if given the option (demand it if you can!). Does your VE have rain-sensing wipers? If so, the windscreen will need a hole carefully bored through it for the sensor, and it will most likely be acoustic glass they use to do so (at least, when the insurer asked if my  car had rain-sensing wipers, they allocated an acoustic windscreen automatically). Certainly cuts down on wind and road noise....but then mine was replaced for free (more or less), so that might influence your decision.

I've had to do this twice, once for my XF (which were openable and had hinges), and once for my XH (which were fixed and did not open). Both times I got them out was using a Stanley knife and scored the window along the outside edges from the inside to cut through the silicon. Then (very gently!) push in from the outside: I actually taped a tea-towel to the inside after I finished cutting, so when I pushed the window back in, it would fall against something soft, rather then fall in and shatter (and @2redrovers is correct, those glass panes are fucking expensive). The XF was a bitch, because it was made to move and has holes punched through it, so the pane is a lot more fragile and needs the hinges unscrewed first.

I can't remember if the XG has fixed or hinged quarter windows.....?

Done, found this unit on special, does a lot more than I expected (including remote control and phone functions!), all for $170. Installation soon.

https://imgbox.com/5ijA3Aou

Thanks to everyone for your help!

10 hours ago, Mr Polson said:

Have you checked out SCA or Repco? My Repco has 24 headunits n our board, and most of these are kept in stock.

It's only really high series modern cars that can't have the radios updated easily, most of the Japanese and Korean cars can still have their head units swapped out, just costs a bit for all the facia kits. Falcons have to be the least supported models in terms of aftermarket upgrades, especially BA onwards.

I've been checking JB Hifi Home (virtually nothing, standard stores don't even sell them anymore), Autobarn (a better selection), and SCA (also not bad)....but I never thought to check Repco, as I just assumed they sold spare parts. Will note that down for the next visit, cheers.

Yeah, will attempt to glue in the old one for now, but I appear to have talked myself into an upgrade over the last few days.   Besides, a unit with Bluetooth would be nice.....!

As most cars come with integrated music systems these days, I've found the hard way looking in brick-and-mortar stores there's not nearly as much demand for headunits these days, as the older cars slowly die out. Bit of a shame, really: how do modern car-owners customise their systems?

I dropped by an Autobarn on the way home to eyeball some of the units on offer. Alpine are still around - but are priced higher than other units that do pretty much the same thing, so it looks like with Alpine you're paying extra just for the badge. Also, Clarion are still around! But I can see why they aren't so popular these days: their units look dog-ugly. So that's them off my list.

I'll drop by a JB Hifi and see what they're offering over the weekend.

How easy is it to remove my old unit from the dash without the right tools? I would like to see how it's all connected and how easy it would be for me to install it myself.

Just snapped off the retaining hook on the inside of my Pioneer headunit in the XH after detaching the face from it....fantastic, it will only work if I physically hold the face-plate into the unit, if I left go, it falls out. Looks like......time for a new radio!

Anyone have any suggestions for a 20-year old vehicle? Must-have points:

- 1 DIN size (not carving up a genuine XH console just for a bigger screen, fuck that);

- detachable face (I think they all are these days anyway?);

- prefer mechless (no CD player), who plays optical media these days?;

- at least one USB port;

- Bluetooth: I have a new mobile phone without a headphone jack, so the only way I can play music from it (without a cable) is this way;

- Needs to support extra speakers (I have two mounted on the top of the safety cage between the cargo bay and the passenger area);

- A remote control would be nice too.

Everything else is either optionable or negotiable.

My last headunit was a Pioneer, so I'm leaning that way again, I like the design to be honest. Unsure about JVC or Kenwood, and I'm not particularly keen on Sony (higher prices and uglier models). Budget is $150 (although I'd consider more if I think it warranted it).

Photo of the current unit:

Any suggestions and recommendations would be welcome. Thanks everyone!

There are a couple of people that have done custom upgrades from Sync1 to Sync2, but it was too expensive to be worth it, as - from what I can gather - it required the entire FGX dash and all body/boot/engine looms plus ECU etc to be used, the looms were rerun plus a hole needed to be cut in the roof for the antenna, and there was still no guarantee on the GPS. There's some imperial DIY kits for American vehicles but I'm not sure how well they'd run in metric....plus some are as dodgy as hell.

There's already a mod group looking at doing a Sync2 to Sync3 update (or even commercially like this Yank mob, for US$2300), but again, as we're out of the technology loop for a car that's no longer made, I'm not too sure how successful it would be. As for updating from Sync1 to Sync3.....I don't like your chances. At least Sync3 comes with Android Auto/Apple CarPlay.....

I use a futon in mine, which is light enough to wedge itself around the wheel arches, and plenty of space for storage (Esky, toolboxes, etc) furter along. I have plenty of insulating rubber between the tray and the futon (I had that custom-cut by Clark's Rubber for my old XF panelvan years ago), so when I lie on it I don't feel the tray underneath me. It's comfy enough for me for a decent kip.

This thread might help you out.....

I bought a car cover from Supercheap Auto for the panelvan - strangely enough, no one makes them for the panelvan shape any more, had to buy a Large/X-Large for SUVs and even then it barely fit it! - for $150, made for outdoors (rain and dust). It was a cheapie option, but it does the trick: even this "cheap" version has elastics to draw the cover under the chassis - it's low enough to sit halfway down the rims - and has a couple of access flaps (so if you roll your windows down before you put the cover on you can still access the inside of the car without opening the door and still be protected from the weather). It also came with its own bag to fold into when it's not on the car. I guess I'd probably prefer to weigh it down in the case of a hurricane, but because the panelvan is a fairly bulky shape the cover won't really blow off of its own accord unless it's really nasty outside.

As the panelvan usually sat under a car cover behind a fence, it was semi-protected from the wind and heavy rain: now that I stable it inside a roller-door garage, it's more or less become just a dust cover now, although it does allows me to stack boxes on the bonnet without fucking up the paint. 

3 hours ago, SPArKy_Dave said:

My other XH Panelvan (Nov 98), is optioned with cruise control all by itself,
so there must've been exceptions to that cruise/abs/airbag rule?

I'd agree, my XH (Dec 97) has ABS, cruise control as an installed dealer option, and (even though the steering wheel is big enough to accommodate it) no airbags.

Yarra Ranges are a great place to drive, my favourite road the Acheron Way (the C507, Warburton-Narbethong road) is out that way. It's where I took the first decent photos of my panelvan (of which one survives in my post picture signature, see below). If you need more or a challenge, turn right at the Marysville Road junction and tear through the gravel to Woods Point, or onwards down Walhalla Road to the Thomson Dam, it's a great half-day trip. 

13 hours ago, dex said:

Not the types ,,

intentionally leave lights on , to allow getting to the house ,,

then after a time ,, they turn off to save battery . 

As modern equivalent 

You mean "Follow Me Home" headlights, the BA onwards had that function. Leave your headlights on when you left the car, and the headlights would stay on for a set amount of time (between 2-5min) before turning off automatically, or the owner could trigger it themselves by hitting the lock button on their fob. My FGX has it: despite my not actually having a driveway it's still handy.

Unsure of they are any conversion kits for older vehicles, as many older cars tend to complain (ie: play an audible alarm) if you intentionally turn off the engine with the headlights still on (or could be upgraded to do so, providing on of those Jaycar kits); a conversion kit would have to bypass all that and then still power the headlights off the battery on a timer before killing them. An autosparky might know more, but there's the danger of letting the headlights drain your battery if something doesn't work right....

It's one of the reasons I actually keep the LPG system on my XH panelvan: it's great for long-distance travels (650km total on full tank of petrol, plus 500km on full tank of LPG), and as someone already mentioned, should the fuel pump seize you can still at least continue onwards. Okay, so you shouldn't tow on LPG and you don't have as much power on LPG than on petrol, but if you're doing highway/freeway driving without the city stop-start habits, having another fuel source is handy.

Really it comes down to the price of the fuel and operating costs. Even with the price of LPG going up recently, it's still cost-effective to run on LPG compared to petrol. Most of the time, money saved in daily operation will easily outweigh the price needed for re-inspection/tank re-stamping. Then again, I specifically looked for a Ford panelvan that was already converted because the advantages of another cheaper fuel source still trump the alternatives of it without.

Ultimately it depends on what you want out of your vehicle. If you want more performance from your engine and eliminate wiring, converters and the tank to save on weight, then trash it. Otherwise it's too handy. Yes there are performance panelvans, but most of them (like mine) are still being used for dailies or work purposes where having LPG is still advantageous even today.