February 2001
At last I can find out for free, values of my vehicles from Glasses guide (www.glass.co.uk) and Parkers guide (www.parkers.co.uk). Forget where I read it, I think Which? magazine.
Glasses went back to 1992 for part exchange and retail cars. Parkers does private sale and trade in. back to 1983 cars and vans (I think). I never thought I would be able to see what those dubious traders paid for in Glasses guide! Read more
You have writen in the DT about further training for young drivers which can reduce insurance costs. I cannot find details on these pages . Can you help me please. Read more
It's called 'Pass Plus', and registered driving instructors provide it. Typically it's 6 hours in different conditions after the driver has passed the standard driving test. Covers Motorways, night driving, bad weather etc., and is an intro. to advanced driving. No test at the end, just a 'course completed' Certificate from DETR. Paul Ripley in the DT recommends a Grade 5 or 6 Instructor, so ask what grade they are
However, ring around plenty of insurance companies if you're putting a young driver on your Policy. Quotes for adding my 18 year onto a Corsa varied unbelievably. I suspect this variation is more significant than any discount brought on by a Pass Plus certificate, but it's still well worth the new driver doing Pass Plus! It improved my daughter's driving.
Regards
John
I had two new tyres and new pads put on the front of my Rover 620 on its last service & MOT. The balancing and tracking were also done as part of the job. Thing is I've noticed that the offside wheel makes an intermittent squeaking noise when pulling away but goes after reaching 10-15 mph. The steering wheel also starts to vibrate at 60mph but is gone by 70. It's also developed a very slight pull to the left.
I took the car back to have the balancing and tracking checked and everything was fine. I don't think it's the garage, they've serviced all my cars over the last 7 years to an excellent standard. I suspected it might be the wheel bearings but they confirmed they were fine as well.
Any ideas ? I'm stumped. Read more
I agree with all the points everyone has made.
I would only add a few tips from my own experience. In the old days when we checked our own tracking with a home-made set-up using a wooden jig and nails held with clothes pegs, it was always stressed that it was important to spin the wheel first to detect any run-out or imperfections at the rim, and then to position this at the top so that its effect on the tracking was neutralised.
Also, it is important that the car is brought to rest in a forward direction, with the brakes gently applied, and not grabbed so that the suspension richochets back on itself. This ensures that the wheels are aligned in their normal driving position.
I hardly ever see garages bothering about these, and as a consequence I too have suffered from prematurely worn tyres (Kwickfit the main culprits, strangely enough).
On squeaking brakes, I agree, file the paint off the pads, also it is worth using Copperease.
Another cause can be the new pads running on a section of disk not worn by the previous pads. It is worth running a finger over the disk to check for roughness on the extreme outer or inner section, and smoothing it down with a sanding disk.
Hello,
Some time ago, someone mentioned (Was it HJ ?)the better model of a s/h Espace to suit a potential buyer who was short on funds. My ageing Nissan Prairie will have to go soon and I fancy an Espace, preferably diesel, possibly with auto transmission. Funds are limited to around £5000. Was the 2.1 litre diesel produced in auto form ? High mileage is no objection but, if I stayed with petrol, how thirsty is the Vee 6 model compared to the inline four ? Also, are there any specific "bugs" to look for in an Espace, say of around 1992/4 vintage ? Any advice, especially from satisfied (or otherwise)owners would be much appreciated.
Regards John Davis Read more
check the car by car breakdown on this site.
hj
Anyone know the best way to keep next doors cat off my car? Read more
To Alvin and Martin.
I told you. Get a dog. How about a Cathound.
I have just renewed the road tax on my Vectra 2.0 DTi which cost £160.00
On the Internet site www.dvla.gov.uk/newved.htm it gives the cost of VED for all new cars registered after April 2001.
The duty for the Vectra with the same engine will be £130.00.
Considering that the object of these new rates was designed to punish the polluters and reward the goodies is there something I am missing here.
(apart from £30.00 of course)
Alvin Booth Read more
I bought a new car in September 2000, and was wondering if anyone could tell me how it will be charged. Is it by CO2 emissions or engine size?
Also do the charges apply to used cars as well?
----- Original Message -----
From: andrew poulter
To:
Sent: Sunday, February 25, 2001 9:06 AM
Subject: Rover VVC Camshaft sprockets.
> Dear Sir
> I read with interest the article "Brass in Sprocket" in the telegraph of 24th Feb. I currently own a 1998 (R) Rover 218 VVC coupe and have had a similar experience to that of PH from wargrave. I am the vehicles second owner the first being Rover group themselves and purchased the vehicle from them at one year old but with only 300 miles on the clock as the vehicle had been in storeage for the previous year. At 21000 miles the engine suffered a failure of the woodruff key that locates the upper camshaft drive sprocket, with subsequent damage to valve guides, stems and to the cylinder head. The car was taken to my local Rover dealer who almost immediately asked if the car had had the key replaced under a recall. I could not answer this as obviously Rover had been the previous owner.
> Subsequently Rover admitted that the car had missed the recall and paid the whole repair cost (Approx £1500).
> Whilst writing i would like to highlight the excellent service i recieved from the dealer "Bristol Street Rover" in Poole, who progressed my claim and provided me with a courtesy vehicle for the 3 weeks it took to get my car back, even though my car was out of warranty.
> I would suggest that any VVC owners check that they have had the recall done as mine and P.H.'s example prove this can be a costly failure.
>
> Yours Sincerely
>
> Mr A Poulter
> Ringwood
> Hants.
DEAR ANDREW,
MANY THANKS. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR. I AM GOING TO POST IT IN THE BACKROOM AT www.honestjohn.co.uk SO THAT MG CLUB MEMBERS AND ANYONE ELSE CAN EASILY ACCESS IT AND RESPOND.
HJ Read more
Honest John,
I read this e-mail with interest as I own a 1997 R Rover 218 coupe (like Andrew Poulter) which has done 46000 miles and in March I asked Hartwells of Bath to check on its service history regarding the VVC mechanism. They told me a recall which involved re-torqueing of bolt(s) was required. According to their records this had not been carried out while Hartwells Coalpit Heath were servicing the vehicle for its previous owner. The recall action was subsequently carried out by Hartwells at Bath on 30th March. However on Good Friday, the drive to the cylinder 3 & 4 inlet camshaft failed. (This is at the opposite end of the engine from the main timing belt.) The precise nature of the failure was not established by the AA man at the time, but the car has been recovered to Hartwells in Bath and I await to hear the cause of the problem.
It is not clear which end of the engine the Woodruff key is so, I'm wondering if mine is the same failure as that reported by Andrew and or is it perhaps associated with the recall action taken by Hartwells. It is very strange that this failure should occur so quickly after the recall was done and do not know what bolt(s) would they have re-torqued.
Based on failure experienced by Andrew, I assume that significant engine damage is likely to have occured to my car too and the cost of the repair will be similar. If you think Rover or Hartwells can be held in any way responsible, any advice regarding how to minimise the cost to me would be appreciated.
Yours Sincerely,
John Ingle
honestjohn wrote:
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: andrew poulter
> To:
> Sent: Sunday, February 25, 2001 9:06 AM
> Subject: Rover VVC Camshaft sprockets.
>
>
> > Dear Sir
> > I read with interest the article "Brass in Sprocket" in
> the telegraph of 24th Feb. I currently own a 1998 (R) Rover
> 218 VVC coupe and have had a similar experience to that of PH
> from wargrave. I am the vehicles second owner the first
> being Rover group themselves and purchased the vehicle from
> them at one year old but with only 300 miles on the clock as
> the vehicle had been in storeage for the previous year. At
> 21000 miles the engine suffered a failure of the woodruff key
> that locates the upper camshaft drive sprocket, with
> subsequent damage to valve guides, stems and to the cylinder
> head. The car was taken to my local Rover dealer who almost
> immediately asked if the car had had the key replaced under a
> recall. I could not answer this as obviously Rover had been
> the previous owner.
> > Subsequently Rover admitted that the car had missed the
> recall and paid the whole repair cost (Approx £1500).
> > Whilst writing i would like to highlight the excellent
> service i recieved from the dealer "Bristol Street Rover" in
> Poole, who progressed my claim and provided me with a
> courtesy vehicle for the 3 weeks it took to get my car back,
> even though my car was out of warranty.
> > I would suggest that any VVC owners check that they have
> had the recall done as mine and P.H.'s example prove this can
> be a costly failure.
> >
> > Yours Sincerely
> >
> > Mr A Poulter
> > Ringwood
> > Hants.
>
> DEAR ANDREW,
>
> MANY THANKS. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR. I AM GOING TO
> POST IT IN THE BACKROOM AT www.honestjohn.co.uk SO THAT MG
> CLUB MEMBERS AND ANYONE ELSE CAN EASILY ACCESS IT AND RESPOND.
>
> HJ
Ashley, 650 miles for £28,are you sure?,that works out at about 85 mpg! for a car that is rated at 50+mpg.The only way you can work out the fuel consumption correctly is by filling the tank to the brim, running it to nearly empty, filling it again and then doing your sums as has been already mentioned by H.J. Read more
One big problem is that diesels seem to vary so much in refinement. Certainly the Peugeot/Citroen HDI units are quite refined, and I'm sure a Mercedes CDI is too, but there are some surprises. Ever driven a Saab 9-3 diesel? It's noisy, gruff and more like a taxi for noise. I could not believe how bad it was. Top Gear love the petrol Mondeo, but not the diesel. Its clearly a case of try your chosen diesel and see if you like it.
Regards
John
Hi all,
I've spent most of today polishing my car, sad i know, but there was more tar on my car than on the roads ( if you can call them roads, they're more like tracks ), but there you go. So, i started off using Halfords own brand super resin polish, it did the job okay but i had to scrape some of the tar with my nails to get the polish to shift it, it wasn't doing the paint any favours that's for sure.
Then i found some Auto Glym polish, so i tried that. Once the tar got a whiff of the stuff it virtually jumped onto the cloth. It came off easily compared to the Halfords stuff, i know you only get what you pay for but how can two similar types of polish be so different ? I know you can buy Tar Remover but i prefer to polish the stuff off, plus you don't have to polish it once the tar's off !
My question is, what do the readers like to use to polish their pride and joy, and are certain brands worth paying the extra for ?
Regards,
Ash Read more
Thanks Andrew,
I'll have to hope for good weather this weekend so I can give it a try!
Mark
I have a 1985 2.8i Capri in which someone has expressed an interest. It has been sitting on axle blocks in my dry garage for several years. It was originally my company car and I loved it so much that I bought it for personal use, but that didn't work out as expected because I then suffered severely from a back problem and it was agony getting in and out of that low-slung Recaro seat.
When in use it was regularly serviced through its 56k life. When I bought it for personal use I decided to fix the rear axle, from which a grinding noise had been coming intermittently, a noise that of course the several Ford main dealers could never hear until it came to recommending that the whole axle be replaced. After spending serious money on getting that done, I found out via the Capri Owners Club magazine that in all probability the wrong lubricant had been installed on first manufacture. Oy vey!
The bodywork is almost free of rust, save for a couple of very small patches at the front, which have been covered in petroleum jelly since I first noticed them. The engine needs adapting to unleaded fuel, but the last time I checked I was advised by a Ford main agent that it would cost no more than 30 quid to do it.
Anyway, what would be a reasonable offer to expect from someone enthusiastic about putting it back in motion and attracted by the fact that, unlike most of its peers, it has had one careful driver since new? Read more
Hi Roger,
Thanks for your reply regarding Ivor Searle Ltd. These people do heads,short and full engines and gearboxes. I have used them on several occasions via Southern Rebore Services and quality is excellent.
Ivor Searle Ltd
2 Regal Lane
Soham
Cambs.
CB7 5BA
01353 720531
www.ivor-searle.co.uk
Please mention Tune-Up Ltd when contacting them
Cheers,
Andrew Moorey (Tune-Up Ltd.)
Browse
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Dafydd Tomos tried to post this message:
'CAP prices are available on www.carprices.co.uk'