August 2001
I am thinking about buying a citroen 2CV. I would like to know other readers experiences (other than being stuck behind one!), any common problems, economy, and what they are like to drive and own.
Regards Ian. Read more
After reading the article on horse safety in todays Telegraph i thought i'd share a short story with you all. Whenever i come across a horse or horses on the road i take extreme care as i don't want to hurt anyone or damage my car !
I once worked with a bloke that came in one morning with a really glum look on his face. I asked what the problem was and he told me that a horse had kicked his car ! I went out to check the damage and the front passenger wing was concave to the rest of the car. I asked him if he'd given the horse plenty of room and he replied " The lane was narrow so i squeezed passed it ". The rider had said that she'd pay for the damage and so they exchanged details, but all she would give him was a telephone number. He tried to contact her that night and the number did not exist ! I asked if he'd taken the registration number of the horse and he threw his rattle out of his cot. I finished off by telling him that next time he'd take a lot more care when overtaking a horse. He ended up paying for the damage himself.
I've also witnessed a horse throwing a wobbly on the road, the rider did a excellent job of staying on, i was just glad that i'd left plenty of room to give the horse some space to move around. Frightening it was.
Regards,
Ash.
Ash. Read more
Horses on the road can be a right royal pain in the backside. But the road is there for the benefit of *all* road users, whatever speed and space they take up. So if we choose to drive on narrow roads (ok, we may have no 'choice', but you know what I'm saying) where it isn't possible to pass a horse and rider safely, we have no option but to wait until there is a passing place.
The telling point in this discussion, imo, is the courtesy of the parties involved. If the rider is an arrogant pillock, then tempers are likely to fray. But even so there is no excuse for unsafe driving.
Incidentally, in the instance Ash refers to, if the horse had damaged a fetlock when it kicked out at the passing car, the owner would no doubt have had a legitimate claim against the driver of the car.
Martyn
I read the on-going debate here with refernec to our beloved Gatso's with considerable interest. I have my own points of view - some cameras are placed in the most stupid and illogical places - obviously used a revenue generators.
I have a 'friend' in the force and he has passed to me an internal document which has proved quite interesting. It is a database of all speed camera convictions, upon keying in a registration number, it returns with any applicable camera evidence, giving speed, date etc.
It works because I entered our car's registration number and up came the offence when the other half went through the camera on the Toneway in Taunton @ 63mph in a 50mph zone.
The URL is>www.maxpower.co.uk/hacked/index.htm, enter the user name as bsmith, and use the password bill99
Regards
David Read more
Well its nice to be abreast of things :-)
Did anybody watch Top Gear Value-for-Money on Thursday night?
I think Jason Barlow is the saviour of TG
The programme was much more real life than it usually is and we get to see the lovely VB-H aswell.
Why oh why did that guy buy the Mondeo when it went against all of his original criteria?
I'm sure the lucky chap who ended up with the TVR will soon be pi**ed off with the unreliabilty and kit car likeishness of TVR cars.
Top Gear still has a long way to go to achieve the sheer watchability of Deals on Wheels (Damn it! I missed it this week!) Hope Guy recorded it........
Rgds
David Read more
Phil
Yes, I had the impression she didn't have a clue what the running costs were! And to judge by the state of the Cav..... what chance for the TVR???
Cheers
john
I have a high mileage vectra (145k) which has developed a 'clunk' in the steering. The noise appears to come from the steering column itself. The car recently passed its mot and I requested the garage to try and find the problem which they could not do. There does not appear to be any lost motion in the steering system and I cannot detect any movement ib the steering coupling. What worries me is the clunk is only evident when the engine is running (ie the power steeing is in operation). I am told it may be a steering column bush but do not see how this fits in with above symptom. Any suggestions please Read more
I belive a common cause of steering 'clunk' on Vectras is worn bushes in the lower suspension arms.
Regards
john
Does anyone know of any companies that can line bore the camshaft bearings in the cylinder head, whilst the head is still in the car. ? Read more
Try www.cylinderheadshop.co.uk
Ben
Anyone know of a good product for blackening up bumpers that doesn't rinse off in the rain (like back to black does)
I've heard Armor All spray protectant is good, anybody used this? What do the trade use? Read more
Nick,
Is that the IKEA Boot polish, you know mix it at home yourself from the component parts acc to a set of picture instructions with the text in Swedish?
What do you do when the manual says 'Open the bonnet' but you pull the handle and nothing happens ?
Details : M reg Cavalier 1800. moderate mileage. Bonnet release handle pulls with less resistance than usual so either the cable is broken or the termination at the bonnet end has come adrift ? Whatever, it makes opening the bonnet rather tricky.
Does anyone out there know a 'Safe' and easy way to release it. Read more
Just a thought, but have you tried having an assistant pushing down on the front edge of the bonnet carefully as you work the release lever as Andrew says? This little trick has worked for me many times over. Bonnet catches often seize up as they are in the direct line of salt spray over the winter.
You may be able to approach the catch through the grille - just a thought.
Modern cars will have their bonnet catches shielded - this makes unauthorised access to the engine bay much more involved if you cannot open the bonnet easily.
Rgds
David
We are about to troll off on our holliers. As we have to take all our bedding with us I will have to put a topbox on the roof of my 1998 Espace. Before buying one which will be used once a year, if at all, does anyone know if these boxes are available for hire? Read more
I've hired boxes from my local HSS Hire shop before. If not have a look in the Exchange & Mart there is usually a local Top box supplier who will hire out or if you'll need one regularly they often have ex hire one's for sale. They are usually much better quality than the ones sold at Halfords.
Has any other owner of the above car suffered problems with the crome wheels ?
Our car which has only done 16K summer miles has quite a few corrosion marks on the wheels.
If you've encountered similar problems, please let me know and also whether MAZDA UK offered to retified the fault.
Thanks in advance for all replies. Read more
Chrome wheels on an MX5 - Yuk!!
Change 'em for something decent.
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Ian, with a 2cv you will never suffer from speed bumps again! The faster you hit them, the less you feel it. You would'nt want to change the points too often either. Rest of advice from all is spot on.
Mike