July 2001
Having re-read some magazine tests and HJs car-by-car breakdown I'm getting the feeling the MR-2 might be the better drivers car and I think it looks better and will be a bit more exclusive than an MX-5
Spoke to a Toyota dealer today - has delivery of 2 weeks as a possibility and started to sugest we negotiate on price when I mentioned imports - threw in air con for free as well. Not many used on the market, and they seem to be at very high prices, but the way he crumbled worried me a bit.
What are the disadvantages from buying from Tradesales? Are the cars to the same spec and have underseal etc? Are they sourced from Europe or Japan?Can they be serviced and have warranty claims sorted at a francished dealer? How much will they come down in price? How much more should I pay at a Toyota dealer for the three years warranty and extra resale of a proper UK car?
Would the lack of a boot make the MR-2 a swine to shift on once the novelty has worn off?
MGFs have been written off the list - last one I tried I found I couldn't get my legs in it....
Sorry for all the questions, I'm sure I could answer most myself with a bit more research - but spending someone elses money is a bit more worrying (especially as it was saved up to buy a house!!!!) so good to have a range of opinions. So far my advice of 'buy a 6 litre V12 Jag for £5000' has fallen on deaf ears...
Piers Read more
I have a ford orion 1.6 ghia injection 1989 that has central locking.
when I lock the doors with the key they lock and then immediately reopen.
This problem seemed to be on the drivers door only at first,so when i could not lock the doors from the drivers side i just used the passenger side to lock them.
I therefor presumed it was the drivers side at fault, but the problem now seems to occur on the passenger side also.
can anybody help please.
thanks D Clegg Read more
Dominic
Had exactly the same problem on a Fiesta.
Problem was faulty door lock switches - the water had got in and corroded them. Dead easy to replace once the door trim is off.
Regards
john
Hi,
I am looking for budget breakdown cover (recovery only) for my aging Nissan Bluebird, can you recommend any company or any special offers that are on at the moment.
Many thanks,
Ian. Read more
David Woollard wrote:
>
> Ian,
>
> Bit nervous of a post here in case I get my nuts chewed off
> (more valium Dave!).
I got beaten at squash Monday night. Could you tell? ;-)
First a thank- you, then a question.
The posts seem to me to fall into two clear groups. The absolute auto-thickos like me, who vaguely remember changing plugs on 125cc Francis-Barnetts, after which performance, at best, stayed exactly the same; and the experts who, goodness knows why, give freely of their knowledge to such as me. Thanks, one and all. Who knows, one day someone may ask a question I can answer - just so long as it's about a Francis Barnett with a two stroke Villiers engine, circa 1950.
Now the question.
My Talbot Express (same, I believe as Peugot J5) Van, drops, with some complaining, but nevertheless drops into reverse. Two years ago, it wouldn't and no amount of running it around, avoiding reversing then trying again, would alter that fact. A couple of hours later it relented and, without any fuss, in it went.
Last week, whilst facing a brick wall in France, it decided to do it again. A very helpful local mechanic showed me how to push down on a bit of cylindrically shaped metal under the bonnet whilst my wife pulled the gear stick in the general direction of reverse. In it went, and since then, although avoiding absolutely any need to reverse (thank you Condor Ferryman), it's been given a little practice every time we stopped, and in it went every time.
The question is - is it Sellotape, WD 40, don't speak to it, a new gearbox or, as I think the French mechanic was trying to say 'keep your wife under the bonnet all the time, so she can push this down when you shout 'NOW, NOW''
Any advice would be welcome and received with gratitute. Thanks
Colin S Read more
Colin - This sounds as though there is some wear within the gear selection mechanism, externally.
Check all the linkages & pivots etc for excessive free play and movement.
Replace any suspect parts, especially those that seem to have a direct effect on reverse gear
Get somebody to operate the gearstick into the reverse gear position and watch the linkages and see what they do (or don't) do.
Perhaps a good oiling of the linkages will help? Certain exposed VW linkages benefit from a regular oiling to ease their operation.
Rgds
David
It is an engineering fact that it is just as easy to make something that looks pretty as it is to make the same thing that looks ugly. An attractive paint colour cannot cost any more to apply than something that is just plain dull.
Why then do car manufacturers produce wheels that look like some internal part of a machine that is not meant for the eye, and paint them in uninspiring matt black? They then have to cover their sins with a silver frisbee in order to inspire anyone to part with their wedge in order to buy the product.
Do they think we are amused when pulling up at traffic lights to see yet another trim detach itself and roll gently across the junction, to be crushed to a pulp under the wheels of the passing traffic, making one's gleaming nearly new car instantly look like a ten year old banger?
Please don't suggest cable ties, it's bad enough getting a puncture on a wet night without having to search for something to cut the bloody things
Maybe there is a reason, but I can't think of it. Read more
Yeah [very sensible] point taken, better not say that i dont own a Citroen then........
Kev,
Dear Honest John,
I recently purchased a nice vehicle from Formulae Fuchs. I raised some questions before the sale about the offside front wing, because the light and trim didn't seem sit quite properly. Panel gaps etc were all up to normal (Land Rover) standards.
I was fully reassured by the seller that his wife had clipped the bumper endpiece which he had replaced. He showed me the replaced part. He said that the car had its (original paint) and had been subject to no impact damage or panel damage.
From closer inspection I now discover that the wing and more trim has been replaced and resprayed. I feel that I have not been told the whole story and am unhappy with the terms under which I bought the vehicle.
The seller offered to take the car back for a refund but has now gone back on that and says that there is nothing wrong with the car that would warrant me taking it back.
What would you advise?
Thanks and best regards,
Adam Binns Read more
Adam - I don't know where you are based but D & N Autogas of East Brent, Somerset, just off J22 of the M5 did a smashing job on a customer's Rover 75 recently. They also supplied all the parts and advice needed for the LPG conversion I carried out on Guy's Golf (Which is running beautifully, by the way..)
Having had a quick test drive in an H - reg 90,000 miler and a 98 R 20k Mk II 1.8S my girlfriend has decided she wants to buy an MX 5.
I'd rather buy an older one privately and hunt around for a nice UK one with FSH, A1 bodywork, no accidents, decent mileage and negotiate hard with the seller. And maybe refresh the suspension / steering (new shocks / springs and bushes) to get a nice 'tight' car that's not going to loose much value.
The missus is considering buying a new one though - Are the changes to the face lifted one that great to warrant a brand new one? Should I be pushing for a lower price on an Mk II (one tested was up for 13995 with hard top (~£500 added to value?)) now that more trade-ins will be about as people go for Mk III?
Is a new MX 5 financial maddness? Can I get a new Import to full UK spec - would it have to be a european rather than Japan Import?
The ABS and airbags of a newer model will be a reassurance, but I prefered the lively feel of the small tyred original to the over tyred, grippy but not very adjustable feel of the Mk II we drove..... but then it's not going to be my car.
There's a 99T 15k 1.8 Mk II for sale privately locally. Asking £12k for it. I think £10,500 is a fair price and probably what it's trade value is. Would this be a good starting point for negotiations and walk at £11,000? Or will the price take a big drop as more are on the market from people hanging on for their Mk IIIs?
Any advice would be most welcome!
Piers Read more
I get all sorts of enquiries for sorting a/c on these old jap imports, and I've made the decision not to touch them if they run R12, which most do. Simply because the cost of doing a conversion properly, plus the cost to repair the original fault/leak, just pisses people off. Unless it's something special, and they're buying a new compressor or prepared to take the risk, I don't entertain. Not to mention the hassle of corroded fitting etc.
My son told me the following story, which he assures me to be true:
Chief of police in a rural area gets a call from the commander of the local RAF base. RAF type asks if plod has been operating a speed trap on a certain road. Plod answers in the affirmative.
"Well" says the RAF chap, "I had a couple of Harriers doing a low-level slow navigation exercise in that area. Their defensive radar told them that they had been "painted" by radar which automatically set up a sequence to target an anti-radar missile at the source. Thank your lucky stars that when the system asked the pilot for the OK to let the missile go, he declined" Read more
I'm working on a night vision project using both IR and UV illumination.
Hello ... Honest John classes the VW Bora as boring.... anybody wish to confirm or deny... and perhaps better still advise on family car to survive 10 yrs with 8k per year in price bracket 12-16k Read more
I reckon used prices of the newer SEATs and Skodas will firm up as both their brands go upmarket.
Used VW's are astronomically expensive admittedly, but I think the only way is up for Seat and Skoda.
what do you think about buying a new fiat punto hlx from an importer (motorspoint) Read more
I saw them at JCT 600 on the Leeds ring road just by the M621, its next to The Ferrari Garage and not far from the B & Q Warehouse. give them a call.
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Do they come with standard scissors?