See the excellent article on the news page on this site.
FWIW beware gizmo-ridden vehicles which don't have fundamental instrumentation such as low coolant, low oil level, engine over-temperature.
So we can assume that satnav, aircon, and colour-coded cupholders will naturally lead on from advanced engine state instrumentation? Think again.
And our eco-friendly, lean-burn common rail powerplant won't use oil like a Morris Marina as it's so "advanced? Oh dear. Not so.
And this is "progress"?
Yes, sure, company car drivers should check these things regularly. But having been a "high-mileage road warrior" for around eighteen years, I can assert that "life ain't like that". And I credit myself with a bit of mechanical sympathy.
This rant comes out of bitter experience with a company Mazda 323.
A super car. Agile and willing. One would assume that it had at least what my old Pug 405, six years older, had in terms of warning devices. Such as separate engine over-temperature and low coolant warnings? No, sir, No, ma'am.
Take one slightly tired and semi-distracted driver. Contraflow shenanigans. One very sharp stone. One very exposed radiator. One deceptively under-equipped vehicle. A rapid loss of coolant. One cooked engine.
Ah yes, the leasing company were all for sending me the bill. Or sending it to the company who would send me the bill. £5K++, either way.
I argued with Mazda that, in my opinion, their car was under-equipped to alert the driver to a developing mechanical crisis.
I understand that they paid up.
rg
|
|
Instrumentation for 'low oil level' ? I've never come across that. Low oil PRESSURE, of course but not LEVEL. That would be a very useful feature and I've often wondered why it isnt fitted as standard.
|
|
SWMBO's recently-bought Clio Initiale (2000W) has an oil-level indicator as one of the 'on-board computer' functions, so it's not a new idea. However it normally only appears at start-up, so I'm not sure how valuable it is for a sudden failure. I suppose the difficulty with oil-level indication is that the stuff is sloshing about all the time?
|
|
|
Oil monitoring devices are already fitted to certain cars. My sisters 16v clio (cant remember what engine size) has a read out on the dash to indicate the oil level. This is apparently due to the difficulty in getting to the dipstick in the cramped engine compartment. (Thtas what the salesman told us anyway!)
Ross
|
|
|
1 litre / 1000 miles!! Incredible! Even at 136k when I sold it my BX TD used a negligible amount between (5000 mile) oil changes - I never topped it up, and I didn't drive it gently! Progress? Hardly....
It was also fitted with a oil level gauge which gave a good idea of the oil level at start up. The Xantia TD I have just bought is also fitted with an oil level light at start up - if it flashes then you need to check the level. One day all manufacturers will catch up with PSA on the warning light front (mind you the Seat Leon TDi I have on hire at the moment does a good impression of blackpool when you switch the igniton on - but I don't think there are oil level or water level lights!).
Richard
|
Daughters 94 Clio has oil level display so its been around for sometime.
Happy Motoring Phil I
|
|
My mates 1983 (C Reg) Ford Orion 1.6i Ghia has a low level oil light fitted as standard.
|
DD
Yes, I had an 'A' plate Escort Ghia with low oil, coolant etc warnings. What did Ford do when they bought out the facelifted model? Deleted all these items, along with the variable intermittent wipe and a few other bits.
This is an interesting thread - I know several company car drivers that cheerfully admit they don't ever open the bonnet. I don't understand why they behave like this - it's them that will be stuck on the hard shoulder. Despite this, the fact remains that most modern cars don't seem to use any significant quantities of oil. I can't remember when I last added more than a litre over 10,000 miles, and that would only take most cars down to the mimimum mark. Have I been lucky?
Regards
John S
|
|
|
|
|
My 1991 Rover 827 had a low oil warning as part of the trip computer (also low water & washer levels) which worked ALL the time. But it was only a warning.
My 1984 Rover SD1 3500SE had a low oil warning that only operated at startup. The electrics were also set up so as to cut the fuel pump if the oil pressure warning light came on. At least you wouldn't be able to go too far and would probably save the engine (less than 200m, actually). Strikes me this is how all cars should be.
|
Colleague who drove a 323F 2.0 V6 destroyed the engine when a little end bearing seized, and the rod came through the cylinder block.
Independent analysis showed oil starvation to be the cause, but no oilways were blocked and the pump still worked.
The conclusion was low oil level, borne out by the lack of the black wet stuff running down the road afterwards.
"When was the last time you checked the oil?" aforementioned colleague was asked.
"Check the oil? What's that? Never in my motoring life... Surely the low pressure light will give me plenty of warning?"
"Err no, it won't actually, but couldn't you tell something was up?"
"Well it rattled away on the motorway yesterday, but it kept going, so I kept going..."
Company ended up footing the bill (££££££££s) for a new short engine.
/Steve
|
Alfa Romeo have oil level lights and water level lights.Problem is they sometimes come on when everything is OK,or parked on a hill.(the wonders of Italian electrics).
Perhaps leasing companies need to have a signed agreement stating the driver accepts responsibility to check oil levels and perhaps give a approx engine replacement cost to frighten them into doing it.
Lex have recently offered non runners at auction usually cambelt failure/HG failure or other engine dramas so it must be a growing problem like HJ reported.
|
I had a 1962 Rover P4 100 which had a combined fuel/oil level gauge. It operated as a fuel gauge until you operated a switch to give the oil level in the sump. Obviously only accurate before you start the engine.
And they call it progress........
|
|
|
|
The electrics were also set up so as to cut the fuel pump if the oil pressure warning light came on.
Slowing down gradually over 200m does sound better than the engine seizing at speed, Cyd, but what if I'm 2/3 of the way past a TIR in a hurry to get some top - up oil from Halfords before they close? ;-)
Someone has mentioned the excellent red stop warning light on some Citroens; it didn't so much replace the other lights as alert you to the fact that one of the critical ones had lit up, and it was the size of a half-crown on a DS - sorry, 5 franc piece.
Best of all, perhaps, is the funky bell, apparently provided on Fiat's 130, their fated but beautiful attempt at the executive market of the 1970s.
|
|
|
|
A colleague of my dads once seized the engine on a new car. Didn't the oil light come on? she was asked. The reply came, Well the engine still ran so I kept on driving it.
This is probably why some cars had all their warning lights replaced by a big one that says stop.
Another story relates to a another young lady who owned a Peugeot 205. Driving along one day the "stop" light came on. Why nobody knows. She phoned the garage to ask what to do. They replied, Just drive the car over and we'll take a look at it. She explained that the light said to stop. It's all right they replied it's probably not important. Well why does it say stop then?
On a personal note my own car hasn't used a drop of oil in 30k miles. But I was very grateful to discover that I had a low water level warning when my heater matrix failed recently. Warnings like this are all the more important when you don't open the bonnet from one service to the next.
|
"Warnings like this are all the more important when you don't open the bonnet from one service to the next"
Actually, I was quite meticulous in checking the Mazda, a habit born out of growing up in a "motor engineering " family.
However, the indicator devices (water loss, over-temperature) would have helped me out in an extreme situation which even the most regular checking would not have been able to prevent. Point being, these things are not just for the negligent.
rg
|
|
|
|
>>motorists will face an average garage bill of £308.71 during Years Four and Five of ownership
What would a typical warranty cost for years four and five, and would this warranty reduce the expenditure on garage bills to zero ?
I imagine that there is an excess, there are consumables and there are exclusions.
And I am wondering how much one would have to spend warranty-wise to reduce a garage bill to zero.
|
Mark
Look at www.warrantydirect.co.uk , the link is at the end of HJ\'s article.
|
|
|
|
