Took a look at the Alfa 147 at the weekend - VERY surprised - looks to be very well built from good quality materials. I was surprised as I was expecting something very different.

Are these cars sought after as discounts don't seem to be very large - or am I just looking in the wrong place?

Has HJ driven this? Read more

Hi All,

Apologies if this thread has already been discussed.
I have a 1995 M-reg Cavalier V6 which is sluggish and thirsty(even more than normal!). Local main dealer Garage have not identified anything yet but it has definately undergone some degradation. If anyone has any experience of these vehicles or known problems with them then info would be great.

Other than its current malaise I have always enjoyed the car.

Thanks in anticipation
from Jason Read more

I think that one of the more dangerous aspects of driving today is the poor maintenance or misuse of lights by road users.

I always thought that the rule was "if it's dark enough for any lights, it's dark enough for dipped headlights". however, I was gobsmacked to read in the Highway Code that side-lights are permissible at dawn and dusk and when street lights are close together (i.e., for a London dweller, everywhere!).

I think that this is mad for a number of reasons.
1, there are fine lines between dawn, day, dusk & night;
2, despite the fact that all motorists should check their lights, most don't and, because the beam from a side light is weak, most don't notice when a bulb blows;
3, while some side lights are bright, others are very weak and next to useless;
4, in a row of oncoming traffic, if the majority of cars are using dipped headlights, those with only side lights tend to disappear.

However, I'm not an advocate of all-day headlights, although I understand that the government are considering legislation to get manufacturers to "hard wire" lights on at all times. I think that this can be distracting during the day, and can also diminish one's ability to judge distances.

What would be more sensible would be automation of lights. I hired a car in America that would turn its own lights on if it thought it too dark, and that included dreary conditions in the wet.

I will leave the vexed question why some people insist on a combination of side lights and fog lights for another time

Or am I wrong? Read more

Over the weekend, while visiting my mother, I got a call from her neighbour. Her daughter had arrived the day before, having driven 60 odd miles down the M4, and that morning had seen a largish oil stain beneath her K series engined Metro, which had been serviced a couple of days previously. As 'I knew a bit about cars', could I take a look, and see if she needed to call the AA. My immediate thought was that either sump plug or oil filter were loose and I was right - the oil filter was very loose. I tightened it fully hand tight, and checked the oil to find the tip of the diptick just about touched what remained. About 3 litres were needed to fill it. If it hadn't been spotted I reckon she'd have been stranded on the hard shoulder on the way home, possibly facing the bill for an engine rebuild.

Now, it's not the first time I've heard of this happening. I always tighten these filters pretty much as tight as I can by hand, but I must admit it can make them difficult to remove, but at least they don't come loose in service. What do the experts reckon?

Another thought - it was serviced by 'a chap who used to work at the local garage, but now works for himself' - I wonder how he'd have dealt with a claim for an engine rebuild?

As an aside - despite the recent service, the oil coming out was black - a sure sign of the long service intervals.

Regards

JS Read more

Has any ingenious person found a source of these that doesnt involve paying my local Peugeot dealer the price of two decent restaurant meals?
Since the chip itself is no more than a fivers worth I dislike being held to ransom.
It doesnt need to be connected to the key,either. Read more