September 2001
Unfortunately 1 of the front tyres on my Alfa 156 2.0TS has punctured. As it had covered 27,000 miles, I decided to replace rather than attempt a repair. As the other front tyre is quite worn as well (having also covered 27,000 miles) I decided to repalce 2. I was quoted £112 each for Michelin 185/55V15 - the same as the existing tyres.
For a lower speed but otherwise identical tyre (a Michelin 185/65H15) I was quoted £68 each. I don't know a huge amount about tyre speeds - but a litle research ahs told me that V are rated to a maximum speed of 150 mph, and H upto 130 mph. I can understsand that one should probably not mix different speed tyres, but is there anything wrong with buying two new H rated tyres rather than the V. I never touch 100 mph, never mind 130 or 150!? Read more
I am in the market to buy a cheap smallish family car.
Looking through the freeads i spotted a '91 J tipo 1.8. IE for £875.
the car has 78,000 miles on the clock, a full and very comprehensive service history, an mot until aug 2002, and one owner from new.
there's not one spot of rust (galvanised body i guess is the reason), it's not been in any accidents, and as far as i can tell it's a genuinely cared for car.
reading the car-by-car breakdown i noticed there's something mentioned about the 1.8 engine being a problem.
does anyone have any comments, experiences, etc they'd like to mention? any help would be appreciated. Read more
Timothy,this brings back memories of driving a hired Tipo down to Sussex. Not a boring car. A good drive. You might, as Mike says, get the odd electrical problem,so get a decent multimeter and study the wiring diagrams! I was surprised they stopped making Tipos. I'm glad HJ liked the Tipo. A really useful and well designed car.A nice bit of Italien pzazzzz(however you spell it.) Regards,
Mike.
i might be getting a red key and ecu both from the same car, if anybody is interested please let me know. the car was in an accident but i salvaged some bits. Read more
Chris, If you still have it please reply
I came across an advert yesterday for a '99 T, 28,000 miles Audi A6 2.8 Quattro Avant tipronic for what seemed like a ridiculously low price (a shade under £13k!). Reading the (trade) advert further revealed that the low price was as a result of an insurance job but there was no damage to the car.
So I phoned to find out more details and get the low down on why the car was being offered at this price. Having one previous owner the car had basically been parked in a car park which flooded in the deluges earlier this year. The water rose to the level of the seats but has now, so I was informed, thoroughly dried out and there is no evidence whatsoever of water damage ever occuring. The insurance company effectively replaced the car but have confirmed this story with the trader. The trader is currently driving the car around and aparrently all electrics etc. work fine. It has a full Audi service history with receipts and has the Audi warranty has been re-instated.
I am very keen to get an A6 Avant and am sorely tempted by this, but potentially what damage has the water done to the car in the short and long term?
If I did decide to pursue it would an RAC inspection be a good idea?
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Neil Read more
Neil,
Speak to Audi. If they are willing to honour the 3years 60k warranty (or would even allow you to extend it) then it's got to be worth a gamble.........As Dave says you MAY experience all manner of major mechanical problems, but with Audi UK picking up the tab, It's not heart attack territory.
I think I know what Audi are going to say.......
Stuart ( A6 driver )
Catherine has a year old MGF Steptronic in Tahiti (dark) Blue.
It is a well loved second car and when not in it's garage has covered only 3500 careful miles in west Scotland.
Nearly every panel has fine, visible scratches in the laquer layer yet the car is rarely left unattended in a car park and is not subject to unusual attacks by road grit and scratchy hedges.
(the car is carefully washed after flooding with water with a new sponge. Autoglym shampoo and polish is used.)
The car has been seen by the bodyshop of a Ford dealer (Rover don't want to know) who check out the paint as being 146 microns thick and therefore regarded as applied correctly.
HJ does not have any other answer but recommends careful application of Autoglym "Extra Gloss Protection".
Does anyone have a similar experience with dark metalics? Can we approach any other "paint experts"? Who can do a "scratch test" to check laquer hardness?
Patrick. Read more
Thanks for all the replies and for the useful tips.
I think we will just stop touching the damn thing.
Patrick.
i have invented something which you put into the exhaust pipe, it has a sensor that feels air, so if you are at a motor auction, you put the device in the exhaust pipe, and when the car is driven into the arena, the device senses the air, and then starts making loud banging noises, i have bought a few VERY cheap cars thanks to this. (car makes banging noises, other punters think that the car has serious problems, so the car goes for next to nothing) Read more
I remember putting a potato on my Dad's morris minor exhaust, and it was hilarious. Couldn't work out how he knew it was me though, and stopped my pocket money. Fond memories. Lorries use the same principle though as an exhaust brake or retarder.
Regards
Mike
Hi all,
If anyone has information, spares, piccies or literature on a landcrabbing theme then please let me know. I can send them to the secretary of the club to possibly include them in the landcrab newsletter.
Alternatively check out the site www.landcrab.net and think back to when they broke down or saved the day.
Rgds,
Ash. Read more
if you go into yahoo auctions, click on travel, then click on cars, then go into the catagory named 'other', you can find a light blue 1800 in mint condition, with 36000 miles, i think the current bid is about £800.
has anyone else seen the mess the authorities are making of the roads around junc 11 of the m4
perfectly good roads being "thinned", some look like they are going to be blocked altogether...
road works with no lights = accidents
pedestrian crossings with bus stops instead of zig zag lines ?
short cuts being shut to force more people onto the main junc 11 roundabout
this is madness, total madness... Read more
Well, I had a stroll past last night, and the flats look suspiciously like yuppie apartments rather than accommodation for the disabled/elderly, but I can't be sure, so in this case, I'll give Wandsworth Council the benefit of the doubt. (I'd phone and ask them, but even a routine enquiry means hanging on hold for 10+ mins...)
You'll have to excuse my over-suspicion on this one, but after only after a year of living and driving round here, I've become accustomed to their arsenal of anti-car measures. Huge speed humps, loads of hassle and red tape involved in obtaining a resident's parking permit, incorrectly-issued parking tickets, and even scrap car removal notices stuck on cars that are clearly displaying a valid tax disc and permit, are but a selection of the ways they have to thoroughly hack the motorist off. Glad I'm moving soon!
I have a 106 Diesel at the moment, which has served me well and is more fun to drive than many a 'better' car. However I have moved on since the time I bought the little beast, and am looking for something with a bit more go.
Of course the problem is giving up a vehical which does 60mpg on a bad day, is going to hurt, more so when you think that I'll have to pay the installements every month.
Anyway, I have been looking at the diesels that are on offer, and find myself atracted to the Golf 130 PD, the New Mondeo and a 306 HDI (if I can find one).
I know that the HDI is common rail technology, and the VW offerings have some special individual fancy electronically controlled pump thingys on each cylinder, but what does the Mondeo have and is it any good, how does it for example compare to the technology of he older 1.9 Turbo engines found on older PSA group vehicals? Read more
Just shows how statistics can blatantly lie. I know what sitting and driving a Rover feels like compared with a VW. You can tell where the extra money is spent.
Is the E Type the 'best' car ever made.
If not then what is?
The 5.3 V12 is clearly the best E-Type, why then do S1 3.8s sell for more? Read more
The best E-type would be a MKII 2+2, it kept the design of the MKI but they got the glitches out and the engine is the sweetest 4.2 unit you'll see. The value of E-types collapsed after the late 80's classics boom. Yuppie types were buying them as investments offering better returns than property and stock.
The MkIII was a bloater and fell foul of new US emissions laws and also the fuel crisis.
MKI 3.8 sell for more purely down to the fact very few were made.
Jonathan
No, you don't have to carry the V5. If it's a company car you won't have it anyway. What you then carry is a standard form from the lease company giving you permission to take the car abroad.
regards
John