April 2001

mk5 fiesta zetec recall rear spoiler

Billy on 23 April 2001

I have a Ford Fiesta zetec 1.25 (w) reg, and i have started to find paint bubbling and pealing of the rear spoiler. Can anyone tell me is this a Ford manufacturing problem ? Read more

Jeremy on 25 April 2001

Billy,

Sorry to hear that you have exactly the same problem with paint bubbling on your Fiesta rear spoiler. I have the same car and have experienced the same problem.

My Ford Dealer re-sprayed the spoiler twice and still the paint bubbled after only a few weeks. Finally, they replaced the spoiler with a new one, sprayed it and fitted it a week ago. So far, there is no sign of any bubbling, but its early days yet!

The Dealer said it was a fairly common issue and they have had several cases of the bubbling on both Fiesta and Focus cars, not always the spoiler, but sometimes the rear bumper. Apparantly Ford have offered no real explanation but, to me as a plastics expert, it seems to be entrapped air in the moulding process.

My Dealer has done everything possible to help with the problem and I am sure your Dealer will do the same.

Jeremy

Chrysler Grand Voyager - handbrake

Ray Webb on 23 April 2001

My Grand Voyager has rolled of the handbrake for the second time, this time hitting a tree and causing a lot of frontal damage. It had the recall mod done in October last year (alledgedly) and I think Chrysler should pay for the repairs.

Any one with similar experiences? How best to approach Chrysler? Who could prepare a report on the car/handbrake first?

help! Read more

John Slaughter on 23 April 2001

Perhaps AA or RAC if you're a member

Regards

john

Replacement car seats

e.harlow on 23 April 2001

Has anyone any idea where I can buy replacement seats for my S reg Polo.
I find the seats as fitted to firm.
eric Read more

Tommy on 23 April 2001

Swap it for a Rover 400, perhaps not such a good car overall but the seats are marvellous, - We have one as a pool car at work and I can testify that the phrase " Relax - its a Rover " as used in the ads some while ago is appropriate. they are the most comfortable seats I have ever experienced in a small car.

Mondeo electrics - a follow up!

Alan Clark on 23 April 2001

A word of thanks to the kind people who replied to my question of 31 March. Ironically, the charging light flashed intermittently within 2 weeks of my question being aired. Subsequently, I replaced the alternator - a devil of a job on the driveway but there you go! I have now gone 2 weeks and 1500 miles without a blown bulb, something of cheer at least! Still...I suppose one cannot complain at a piece of "modern" equipment lasting 128,000 miles! Keep up this wonderful source of entertainment everyone and thanks once again. Read more

Help - Cavalier electrics

Dave Yates on 23 April 2001

I have a 95M 2.0 20valve Cavalier which, for the past year, has been giving sensor problems - two crankshaft sensor replacements, one idle control valve replaced and a camshaft sensor replaced. Now the crankshaft sensor has gone again. The Nottingham Vauxhall dealer I've been using thinks that when these Cavaliers get 4-5 years old they show this problem and they think it's due to the way the sensor pick-ups or cabling are routed. There seems to be some sort of electrical spiking that disturbs the sensors. Their only solution is to replace the loom (apparently the newer looms have different routing or pick-ups) and they think this may sort the problem. However, by their own admission the cost of this is substantial (in excess of £500) and hardly seems warranted for a car worth about £1500 which I was intending to change.

I know this topic has been touched on before in Back-room but suspect that knowledge may have updated - does anyone have a better idea what it is that's going wrong and a cheaper way of fixing it? Does Vauxhall have any answers? One might have thought they'd have sussed it since I think it's a fairly common range of faults. Read more

Dave Yates on 25 April 2001

David

Thanks! The problem is usually shortly after pulling away (often at road junctions!) when engine is relatively cold and suddenly seems to stop and cuts out - this is almost violent. However it's also a problem in normal running usually about 2000rpm with light throttle adjustments - you can feel a jerk or a surge and the light comes on but no further problems and this often happens only once in a journey. However it does sem to get worse as time goes on and may also cause poor running when accelarating hard at 3000rpm plus.

At present it's with a specialist firm in Nottingham who reckon they've checked everything as far as they can and can only come up with a cam-shaft sensor failure (Vauxhall main dealer reckoned it was a crankshaft sensor about a week after replacing the cam-shaft sensor!). Specialist have traced loom as far as they can and all seems OK - they wonder about a dodgy batch of sensors.
It's going back to Vauxhall dealer tomorrow to check sensors and replace.
Dave

Andrew

thanks for your reply - the specialist guys reckon that the ECU seems OK but I take your point about these Cavaliers - I've heard the same thing but loom replacement seems over-the-top. I'd have thought modern electronics might have been able to determine something a bit more specific!
Dave

Fair price for SAAB?

jonbenj on 22 April 2001

My father is trying to sell his SAAB 9000 CDE. Car is a '94 L 2.3 turbo auto with leather, aircon, electric seats etc. 87000 miles, full SAAB service history 2 months tax, just been MOTd. He's asking around £3700. Is this reasonable? There was a thread here a few weeks ago about big luxo motors, and consensus seemed to be that this sort of car is a good buy, given a proper service history and decent conditiion etc., so why's he had no luck so far? Not even a sniff. Read more

Sanjeev Thearia on 24 April 2001

Unfortunately, I have to agree. I used to have a similar model (2 years older with 120K on the clock, full SAAB history) but the best I could get in part-ex was £1500 for a much much more expensive car (BMW this time!).

Parts costs were horrendous, and that's the major problem with the depreciation and level of general interest in older ones.

oil changes-older cars

Paul on 22 April 2001

I've got a '93 Saab 9000CSE which has done 104,000 on a standard service schedule. I may also be getting a VW Polo 1.0 which has done around 70,000 on similar servicing. Both will be run into the ground-is it worth, at this stage in their lives, starting six monthly oil and filter services? Read more

D J Woollard on 23 April 2001

Paul,

Yes, as all the other guys say, well worth the six month change interval. An oil and filter is the cheapest contribution towards a long engine life. Our ten year old BX turbo-diesel has covered over 200,000 miles on the same engine and turbo, never even needed the head off. It has had oil changes every 3,000 miles since about 120,000. I will continue this to the very end. I also change the oil and filter at 3,000 miles on my Xantia TD (90,000 miles) and hope for a similar engine life.

Use quality branded oil but no need to go mad, carefull buying around £12 a gallon will get a sufficient standard.

David

Side lights with spot/fog lamps

Charles Renard on 22 April 2001

This subject may have come up before. After a couple of days without rain today it is raining quite hard but there is no fog or mist or lots of spray being kicked up. However the traffic on the M4 and on the normal roads seem to delight in using side lights only coupled with spot and or fog lamps that dazzle. I was under the impression that the use of spots or fog lamps with side lights was against the rules. Am I wrong? Read more

Ian on 29 April 2001

In the area I drive in it's not company cars that are the trouble but those driven by boys who have not yet learnt which is the front end of a baseball cap.

Automatics

Sheila on 21 April 2001

Would you recommend the Hyundai Coupe Automatic.
I am a disabled driver looking for a decent auto - I drive a Mazda MX3 at present Read more

honestjohn in Bali on 23 April 2001

I'd look at Hondas and Toyotas.

HJ

CAR EMISSIONS

Roger Keene on 21 April 2001

I saw this article in my local paper and I thought the ?Back Room Boys? would be interested:

? Leaps forward in car engine and fuel technology have been so successful in reducing exhaust emissions that 100 modern cars now produce less hydrocarbons than one petrol lawnmower.
According to a government index of vehicle emissions, small two-stroke engines of 50cc or more are rated 74 for carbon monoxide and 338 for smog-inducing hydrocarbons. Cars which meet Euro III emissions standards ,(such as the latest Fiesta or Rover 45), rate just 7 for carbon monoxide and 3 for hydrocarbons.

Buses, lorries, and taxis stand out as the major contributors to urban motor vehicle pollution. An older articulated lorry produces as much particulates as 350 new petrol cars and the nitrogen oxide of 284 new petrol cars.

The current generation of petrol cars produces around one-sixteenth of the toxic urban pollution of their non-catalytic converter forerunners.?

What do you think? Read more

Jonathan on 25 April 2001

i agree wholeheartedly