Since our Pug is out of warranty, I've decided to do some minor modification to it... Nothing fancy as this is my queen daily ride and it need to be as comfortable and original as it can... Don't think I can use the modification word here as I'm merely changing the original parts to some aftermarket one... First thing to go is the restrictive air filter... Normally I don't do drop in (usually go with open pod for the extra oomph and not forgetting nicer intake sound!!!) but in order to make the car looks as original as it can, this is the only route to go... Off goes the original paper air filter and in goes the 'K&N'... 

Second thing that needs to be replace is the spark plugs... The factory fitted spark plug on the 'Pug' is 'NGK Platinum' series... Instead of Platinum, I opt for Iridium spark plug which is a tad better.... Initial feel after replacing these parts is actually quite promising... The car is definitely smoother and pulls a little harder especially at night... Even my queen realize about it... She told me the car is more powerful after replacing these parts... These aftermarket parts is definitely worth your dough if the time is up for changing it as these parts need replacement sooner or later... Next item that need replacement is the absorber... Custom 'Titan' adjustable or 'Bilstein B14'??? Probably go for 'Titan' as all my other car using it and I'm really happy with it... Till then...

I've decided to create a new labels for my blog... Previously, I will put all my '308 Turbo' update under 'Car Freak' which is a general label for all things related to cars... So just like what I did to 'FrankenBenz', I'm creating a dedicated label just for my '308 Turbo' and I name the label as 'Woeful 308 Turbo'!!! I'm sure most '308 Turbo' owner out there will agree to this label...

I really like the '308 Turbo' when it is behaving nicely... But the problem is, throwing tantrum is what it's good at!!! And quite frankly, it is driving me up the wall sometimes... It is a nice drive but maintaining it is a pain in the ass!!! 

Recently I got a special gift from it... Throwing two error code simultaneously!!! The dreaded 'Depollution System Error' is back after fixing it some time back... Last time the error code pop up because of a faulty turbocharger... This time round I'm still not too sure what causes it... Another error code is the infamous 'Gearbox Faulty' code which almost all '308 Turbo' owner with 'AL4' gearbox will get... Luckily with the error code on, I'm still able to drive it... Just that it restrict the gear to 3 only instead of 4 forward gears... 

Send my car to the workshop and after 1 week, it is finally fix... But what is the main problem remain a mystery!!! The mechanic change two of the solenoid in the gearbox and the problem still exist (the solenoid is the most common problem that causes gearbox faulty error in the 'AL4' gearbox... so normally mechanic will change these two solenoid first before doing anything else)... But after changing these two solenoids, the car will sometimes show the error code... So the mechanic decided to unplug all the wiring loom and rewired it back together and also cleaning the throttle body (which I'm not sure why he does that)... After doing all these, the car is back to normal... Even the 'Depollution System Error' code is missing!!! So if you ask me what is the main culprit for these two error code, I really can't tell you... Even my mechanic is puzzled by it... But deep down, I'm very sure the code will reappear again... Is inevitable... Is just a matter of when!!!

Is almost 4 years since we bought the 'Pug' and we have our high and low with it... Frankly speaking, problems are inevitable... I think every 'Pug' owner will agree with me on this... There are a few common problems that almost all '308 Turbo' owner that I know of got it... Namely the famous 'Depollution System Error'!!! This is a horrifying error because it does not specify on a specific error... It can mean anything and mine is a malfunction turbo while a lot of my friends having trouble with the timing chain...

If your car is the older model that came with the 'AL4' four speed gearbox then beware as this gearbox is famous for throwing tantrum!!! I got my first experience when I drove her up 'Genting'... And now she will throw tantrum occasionally when she sees fit... The problem with the gearbox is it refuse to shift to second gear smoothly and it can be nerve wreaking sometimes!!! Since our car is long over warranty, we will need to wait and see the situation as getting it fix is not cheap... After asking around, it seems like there are 2 solenoids that are giving this problem and changing them will apparently solve this problem... I'm no mechanic but sometimes I'm wondering whether is it the weather that causes this... So I'm actually thinking of fitting a 'ATF' cooler if it doesn't come with one or changing it to a bigger one if our 'Pug' already have it... 

Some update on our beloved 'Pug'... Two days ago, our 'Pug' is officially out of warranty coverage!!! Isn't it fast that our 'Pug' is already three years old... And it is officially not a virgin anymore when it comes to 'Genting'!!! I drove it up this morning but too bad the condition is not ideal as it was raining cats and dogs... So I tone down my driving a little bit but I'm really impressed at the grip that it produced (tyres play an important role as well)... Really confident with the way it handles... Definitely much more powerful when compared to my ex-daily driver which is none other than my trustee 'Proton Gen2 MME Edition'... Although much more powerful, the thrill or driving it compare to my 'Gen2' is like night and day difference!!! 'Gen2' is so much nicer in terms of handling!!! So what about comparing it to 'FrankenBenz'??? Frankly the 'Pug' feels super slow now!!! The last time I drove 'FrankenBenz' up 'Genting', I'm using only one gear... Gear three all the way up!!! Although much more powerful, I don't find it entertaining as well as 'FrankenBenz' is way too heavy for this kind of driving... 

Since the warranty coverage is over, I must take extra care on our 'Pug' starting from now... And you know what, it decided to give me a heart attack moment this morning when I drove it up 'Genting'... I'm using the tiptronic all the way up changing gears manually... When I was about to reach 'Genting', the gearbox decided to go in neutral but the display says that it was in gear three!!! Step on the accelerator and the car's not moving... Shifted it back to auto and still it won't move until I heard a loud 'clunk' sound (my heart almost stop moving), and 'Pug' was moving again!!! I can't imagine what might happen if I really abuse it this morning... Luckily it was raining and hopefully no damages done to the gearbox!!!

I believe I'm really unfortunate when it comes to motoring life as I'm always plagued with different kind of problems... This was definitely not the first time I've experienced a cracked windscreen... In fact, this would be my fourth time since I started driving...

It started with a tiny spot right beside the 'AMD' sticker... My darling don't really remember when she got hit on the windscreen but we decided to get it repair after having breakfast... And you know what happened after our breakfast???

It started to cracked almost half the length of the windscreen!!! We got a shocked of our life when we saw it... So off we go searching for a windscreen repairer urgently... We managed to find one called 'Dr Cermin' located in 'Setapak'... When they saw our windscreen, their first thing they told us was the windscreen need to be replace... No point repairing it as the cracked was way too long...

But we decided to repair anyway as our insurance coverage was not enough to replace a third party one let alone original... Third party one cost around RM1200 and original one cost around RM3000!!! We were going to wait till we renew our windscreen insurance and pay more premium for the windscreen so that we are able to change to a original one... That was the plan...

They obliged to our request but they won't guaranteed that it would work as the cracked was really too long to begin with... We decided to gamble with it and give the go ahead...

They started by drilling a tiny hole at the end of the crack... The reason they did this was because they were going to inject the sealant in through the tiny hole so that the sealant will flow along the crack and seal it... That's the objective...

 Applying sealant...

 The tools for making this work... 

After applying the sealant, the crack area was covered with a thin piece of plastic and drying process began...

 After a while, they started peeling off the plastic cover...

The end result!!! Still managed to see the crack nearer to the 'A pillar' but those nearer to the center was gone!!! Definitely better than before...

This was done before 'Chinese New Year' and you  know what happened two months later??? It begin to crack again... No choice but to replace the whole windscreen as the crack span more than half the length of the windscreen!!! So based on my experience, if your crack is small/short, faster get it done and you can basically forget about repairing those crack which is longer than four inches long!!! Not worth the money spend because most probably it will start cracking again just like what is happening to us!!! And now I know why I usually don't win when I gamble, cause I sucks at it!!!

Is time to change the brake pad for my 'Peugeot 308 Turbo' again!!! Front brake pad can last only around 40,000++km and the rear pad can last up till around 80,000++km!!! This is the fastest wearing brake pad car that I've ever drove... Not forgetting the disc rotor!!! The front need replacement real soon...

This time round, I didn't opt to use back original brake pad from 'Peugeot'... Since the original one wears out easily, I decided to give some other brand a try and not forgetting saving some hard earned cash as well... 'Valeo' is one of the biggest OE manufacturer around so I presume that the quality is on par with the original one... 

After bedding in the brake pad, I'm amaze with the stopping power from the new 'Valeo' brake pad... The brake quality is actually on par with the original one and the best part is both front and back 'Valeo' brake pad cost less than the front original brake pad alone!!! Crazy right but is true... The only drawback is the spongy feel of the brake pedal... But this occur even when I use the original brake pad... The only thing I can do to eliminate this is change to steel braided hose... But let's just wait till the warranty period is over!!!