April 2001
I'm looking for recommendations for good tyres. They need to be available in / 195/60R15 87V. I'm currently running the Avon ZV1 which have pretty decent grip but are noisy and the ride quality is rather poor.
I'm looking for tyres with good comfort / ride quality, low noise, but reasonable grip / performance in wet and dry conditions. I'm not bothered by the cost or wear rates.
A friend of my has suggested:-
Continental ContiPremiumContact
Goodyear Eagle F1
Michelin Pilot HX-MXV3A
Does anyone have any experience or recommendations?
Many thanks in anticipation. Read more
Hello
Can I reduce my company car tax liability by owning another vehicle for my "private" use ? I am considering buying a Nissan Sunny for £ 100 from a friend who has owned it since new ( 1988 ) for this purpose
Any thoughts on this ? Read more
Damn...I thought you meant you drove a £100 Nissan Sunny!
If anybody can help me i would be much appreciated.
I have an H-Reg Vauxhall Astra 1.4L, with about 90,000 miles on the clock.
A couple of months ago the Rear drivers side wheel jammed on, and i could not move the car without wacking the wheel with a hammer (RAC recommendation). Now however the brake makes a ratlling noise when i go round a right hand bend or go ove a big bump, and sounds like the brake drum is hitting the wheel or is loose, but i can't see anything visible, can anybody help? Read more
Whenever the brake fluid leaks, on vehicles I have owned, the brakes become wet with the fluid and braking effort is minimal. I have never found the linings sticking and that they can surprised me.
Although replacing springs using a kit is not expensive , I found previous owners neglect resulted in rust preventing brake drums coming off. The studs rusted and it could take quite a time to get the brake drum off. Putting grease on the studs prevented future problems.
My K reg E series (120,000 miles) has started to splutter when warm, my garage diagnosed new ht leads but this has not cured it, they now suggest a new injection unit and injectors for £1200 or new injectors and lambda probe plus adding injector cleaner to the distribution head which "might do it" for £600 does anyone have any suggestions of a lower cost more reliable solution? Read more
Had exactly the same problem on a G-Wagen. Distributor cap and rotor arm was the cause. Oil vapour leaking into the cap causing the spark to track.Cleaning the cap and rotor with carb cleaner effected temporary cure.
I'm interested in a French family car.
My budget is £4,000.
Is my money best spent on a Xantia / 406 / Laguna or should I consider some thing else?
Your comments would be appreciated. Read more
We used to get the choice of a Turbodiesel Xantia VSX on our company car fleet, at one point most people had them, some took them to over 120 000 miles and they never had any serious faults, although I remember once seeing an invoice for a major service for £450.00 They are very comfortable so long as you are under 6"4' the Turbo diesel is a fine engine but if you can get a HDI model, these are even better. One guy who retired recently couldn't wait to get another Xantia and bought a brand new one for £ 11 000.
We also had some citroen XMs, do not even consider one of these, they are frighteningly expensive to maintain, one of the managers who retired bought his from the company and it cost him 4 grand over two years on repairs alone.
If you can stand the thought of a non-french car the Toyota Carina E is very economical and should be availible within your price range.
We have 2 boys (aged 5 and 3) & a baby on the way. Can anyone recommend a large hatchback that will take 3 child seats in the back.
Obviously this means that the centre rear seat has a 3 point belt, but in my present Primera, 3 seats will not actually fit in.
I have looked at the Scenic, and the Multipla (which incidentally I find quite attractive - but then I am a Primera owner!!) - but want something that will also have the practicality of a hatchback.
Any suggestions?
Thanks Read more
Thanx HJ!
Would a used Mondeo also be suitable? (I am considering secondhand at present - and I suspect that the Picasso is too new to be on the market yet?
Regards
My brother currently is running a 1988 Audi 90 Quattro 2.2 injection 10 valve. He is running it only on LRP and it does state that it will only run on 98 ron minimum on the fuel filler flap.
He is going to get rid but would keep it if he could run it on unleaded without a great cost of conversion. Does it need hardened valve seats or just its ignition timing changing?
It is a cracking car even at 141,000 miles and he is loathe to lose it as his girlfriend is hankering after a MK II Golf Driver as it is of similar price range and has more space but isn't 4WD and is a bit dull - no offence Golf drivers!
Please help as if he keeps it for another year I will be able to buy it off him!!!! Read more
Tom,
Leaded 4 star was originally 98 octane (ron), latterly only 97. Super-unleaded is supposed to be 98 octane (ron), but LRP is I think lower. I would take more notice of the engine code than a sticker on the filler flap, but to play safe use super-unleaded or an octane-boosting additive. The main point on this car is that the valve seats should be OK anyway - the higher octane rating is to combat pinking / detonation, and whilst high-speed pinking is not always audible you usually get the message at lower speeds when pulling hard. The ignition retard is purely to combat pinking.
Regards, Adam.
Can anyone recommend a reliable, non main dealer garage where I can get a Toyota Carina E serviced in Swindon? The local main dealer charges through the nose for servicing and I want to maintain the servicing schedule using an alternative garage with Toyota expertise. Read more
Thanks Peter, I'll give them a try when the next service is due in a month or so.
HJ - I'll let you know if, in my opinion, Greenmeadow merit a mention in the list of recommended garages.
Annoying clonking noise coming from offside rear whenever going over bump or uneven surface in my old model 1995 214SLI, 55,000 miler. HJ mentioned in the car by car breakdown that this type of noise could be caused by worn bushes or where the roof pillar attaches to the body - exactly which location would this be? Any help would be welcome as it is doing my swede in! Read more
It's the roof support strengthening bar which becomes detached.
HJ
Does anyone know whether old style Rover 200's (1990-95 models) are prone
to wear on the teeth of their flywheels as my 92,000 mile 214 is grinding its starter on start up (as though I'd try to start it while the engine is running) The fault is inetermittent but getting worse. I have looked & there appears to be some wear on the teeth in the four areas the flywheel comes to rest.
This is annoying because two years ago I replaced the flywheel as the old one had severe wear on the teeth. At that time the starter jammed & refused to operate at all, leading to several AA call outs. Has anyone experienced similar? Read more
I had a 93K 214 which made these noises. Garage examined it but said no sign of harm being done, so ignored it. Car still going OK when I sold it with 88000 on the clock.
Browse
.jpg)
What about the P7000s?
I'm assuming that they're better than the P6000s. Anyone had any experience?