November 2001
Got a 1992 Citroen ZX non-turbo diesel 90,000. Runs well etc. Hardly burns much oil. Checked exhaust system and tailgate and bonnet seals. Checked engine bulkhead for holes etc. but still getting faint fumes through air vents. Engine exterior is clean. Grateful for any ideas because I'm lost. Read more
If anyone is still looking for route-planning links I have updated the relevant section on the "Resources" page on my web site:
www.bogush.fsnet.co.uk/resources.htm#RoutePlanners...s
(The news section has been updated too:
www.bogush.fsnet.co.uk/resources.htm#NewsSources) Read more
You're Welcome
Which engine is the overall winner - diesel v petrol? Read more
the rubber band slipped on mine, and was very costly.
On 6-11-01 I requested advice to remove the inside rear door panel of my BMW 518 M reg and Mark provide the correct answer. After taking my courage in my hands and wrestling with it as he suggested I got it off to find that a small cable connection from the handle to the lock had broken and it is only going to cost £1.28 to replace.
Thanks mate I was expecting to have to take out a second mortgage for a BMW main dealer to repair it. Read more
i see that we have two different brians on this website, this is going to be confusing.
A German court has thrown out a fine imposed on a driver caught by a speed camera on a perfectly safe road.
The Frankfurt-Oder court ruled that councils can't fine motorists for exceeding the speed limit on safe stretches of road. German law only allows speed cameras on dangerous stretches of road with a history of accidents.
Driver Petra Marx argued the fine was illegal because the road is not an accident black-spot. The court agreed and scrapped the standard £15 fine. (£15? compare that with Britain!)
Petra said:
"The place I was blitzed does not appear on the accident lists and so the authorities cannot put up a speed camera just to fill their own coffers." Read more
This might be true but does not apply overall Germany ,plus in this case their was an implication that the camara was not working correctly at the time .It is still there and catching people who are fined .The 15 ukp is the minimum fine it rises to over 10000dm and a 3 year ban depending on the circumstances.Also on the basic fine there is no points on your record.If you appeal or request details the fine doubles plus paper work costs are added.Sometimes press soundbites do not tell the whole storey.
Andy Bairsto,
Germany
As a company director of a car sales site do people want to buy off the net or do they use it for research when negotiating a deal.
Would people out there pay for a quotation say a fee of £15.00 in order that they know what the very bottom line is? Read more
Our business is purley to act as an introducer of business to our contracted UK franchised dealers, we do not ask for any money from you, your contract is only ever with that UK dealer. Due to the volumes of cars we sell this way franchies dealers give us superb discounts in order that they meet their sales target and they then get rewarded from the Manufacturer so everyone wins.
I appreciate your views about premises, we will ensure a picture of our premises is placed on site.
sorry to put a boring subject up ( i like the replies on car owner names)
i've got a toledo 1.9dse (non turbo)
it is very noisy at idle, this goes away when off idle, the auxillary belt tensioner seems to move around a lot at idle. could this be causing the noise?
or is the 1.9 vw engine just noisy at idle.
also
what is the point of the egr valve, it just seems to fill the inlet manifold with a soot/oil mix. what happens if i disconnect it?
newbs Read more
> what is the point of the egr valve,
To add a little info exhaust gas recirculation is a technique used in a number of combustion systems, not just internal combustion engines. Its a technique whereby substituting some of the air with exhaust gases, peak combustion temperatures are reduced and NOx formation is thus reduced. So its an emissions issue.
Personally I think its a bodge.
I can get a new UK spec 1.6 Focus Ghia from Motorpoint for
approx £3K less than the best deal my local Ford franchise can offer. The
only snag as far as I can tell is that due to the fact that it is an import (of some kind)it only comes with 1 years manufacturers warranty as opposed to 3 from UK dealer. Motorpoint offer an extended warranty to give a 'like for like'
comparison as they call it for £290 per year. Is this a good deal? Anything else I need to be aware of in buying from Motorpoint?
It just seems too good to be true. Read more
In reply, if you want a UK supplied vehicle at cost price and do not want to shop round the dealers take a look at www.broker4cars.co.uk as they give you a quote on the majority of makes for a small commission. Your deal is directly with a UK franchised dealer with whom you will deal directly with at the price we quote. Customers still receive three years manufacturers warranty and road side assistance.
We've had many threads on the backroom regarding the illegal use of fog lights which everyone seems to agree is very irritating, especially front fogs on well lit roads. Having now lived in the sticks for about three months, and consequently doing a fair bit of motoring on unlit roads I have noticed another habit which is equally frustrating; the 40mph plodder who will not use main beam. Apart from the fact that he/she might as well be driving with one eye shut, they are impossible to overtake as you simply cannot see far enough ahead to determine whether the road is straight or there is a bend ahead.
I wonder if these - mostly elderly - people are so unaware of ther vehicles equipment that they don't actually realise the lights have one more phase to go, or they just can't be bothered to turn the headlights on full beam because they are not confident enough of there ability to go back to dipped when meeting an approaching vehicle?
I spent about 10 miles gnashing my teeth behind one of these last night. Read more
Surely, the simple rule is to use main beams where they will not cause inconvenience to other road users (or pedestrians), and dipped lights at all other times.
And in either case adjust your speed commensurate with the distance that you can see.
Easy, isn't it!
I'm thinking of buying a 2nd hand diesel 4X4 for around 10-12K.
My requirements are that it is very reliable, safe, able to transport a family of 4 comfortably on long journeys - (My family and I regularly travel from London to my in-laws in Inverness for holidays doing around a 1500 mile round trip), able to carry almost as much luggage as my Xantia Estate (nothing can carry as much as a Xantia estate!), I need the flexibility of having FWD quite often and if it can better 25 mpg (touring) that would be an added bonus!
The Land Cruiser Colorado, Shogun, Patrol and Trooper are shortlisted - Also, I?m quite keen on the older, bigger and rounder style Land Cruiser circa 1990-1995 with the 4.2 TD lump ( probably not more than 18 mpg though! )
Assuming that they are all the same age (except the bigger 'Cruiser), condition and spec etc and may only vary slightly in price what would you go for ?
Chad
P.S. I don't mean do insult all you "Landies" out there, but I can't get my head round the older discos and the new TD5 is out of my budget. Also I don't think I could live with a "County". Read more
Make sure you don't buy an imported Landcruiser etc privately... or at least check it out very thoroughly - remember all that stuff on watchdog about nicked Jap Landcruisers making it over here. Frightening statistics.
For my tuppence worth - the Citation 3.1 is rated very highly by farm types and from friends experiences the Shogun is expensive to run / maintain.
Browse
If it was you on the A414 this morning, going like the clappers whilst sounding like a tractor, it is because your exhaust has come off at the manifold. That would explain the smell!
Sorry, you were going the other way, so I couldn't warn you.
Or maybe it wasn't you, but whoever it was is going to have a nasty shock at the next speed hump, because the exhaust was hanging down with about two inches clearance from the road.