December 2001
If you can stay up late enough, tonight's 'Despatch Box' promises to be interesting. It will be looking at Uncle Ken's Congestion Charge.
Tonight, 12 midnight, Beeb 2. Read more
After going far too fast over a speed bump i noticed that when the steering wheel is in the positon that should mean the car is going in a straight line, the car is actually going to the right. Also the car pulls to the left when i let go of the steering wheel. Is this serious?? How can i get it sorted?? Is it likely to be expensive??
The car is a Fiat Punto Sporting and it is my first car so i am not too sure about these things.
Any advice would be much appreciated
cheers Read more
Hello everyone,
Just found that MINI are giving away free air fresheners on their site to anyone who registers with them. If those web ads are annoying you, at least get something back for all the hassle.
www.smellofadventure.co.uk/
I don't work for BMW/MINI and am posting this just to avoid buying everyone here individual presents this christmas.....
Lee. Read more
recd mine yesterday, in fact they sent two apple flavour.
Am flying to Zambia on 02/01/02 to travel around Africa.
Am trying to sell my car. 1986 BMW 316, 1.8 litre, Full Service History, 99,000 Miles, 10 Months Tax and MOT, Navy Blue, Alloy Wheels, CD Player, Full Tool Kit, Immaculate Condition. Price £925 ONO.
1.) Is the price too high, bearing in mind that the Tax disc is "worth" over £100? If someone offered me £750 for the car, exclusive of the tax disc, I think I would accept.
However, I love the car and feel that I could survive without the extra money. I am, therefore, considering leaving the car in the garage, if I cannot sell it.
2.) Does anyone have any storage advice, bearing in mind the age and value of the car?
2.a) When leaving a car on blocks, I assume that the blocks should be positioned under the jacking points. Is it, therefore, okay to jack the car up at non-jacking points?
2.b) Should I overinflate the tyres, given that they will not be in contact with the ground and, therefore, under any pressure?
2.c) I remember reading that little fuel should be left in the tank. How little?
2.d) Leave the windows open a couple of millimetres to allow airflow. What about airflow to the boot, given that the car is a 2 door saloon and the rear seets do not fold down?
2.e) Should I cover the car with an old sheet, or might this trap any moisture in the garage against the car?
Thank you very much in advance.
Yours
Andy
P.S. If anyone wants the car, I will deliver ... Better stop, else Martyn might delete! Read more
Short answer first re trickle charger. HJ recommends one on this site which is available, I believe, via the Internet. I bought a different one about 2 months ago when I noticed it in Halfords. It is sold under the Draper brand and cost about £20. It seems to work well and brought a battery from a redundant SAAB back to life in a day or so.
Honda Prelude: Still have the car after four MOTs but have taken the decision not to try to renew MOT in February basically because it will be cheaper to buy another than repair. Like your Integra, we are getting clutch slip now (110K), the rear floor just inside the nearside sill area needs welding (other side done for last MOT), and rust around the edges of front wings, sunroof, and centre rear panel means this one is looking tatty. Throw in four new tyres needed, new front shock absorbers to replace the tired originals, and we have a likely bill above the £300-400 an OK condition Prelude of 1985-87 will cost with MOT.
The plus points for the Prelude are that it has been extremely reliable over the 50K miles we have put on it in nearly five years. It was a one lady owner, who gave up driving at 75 (honestly) car with service history to 54K. Everything was original, even a couple of Michelin tyres were getting on for 7-8 years old at a guess. Despite that, only replacements have been a radiator, regular filters and oils in the time we've had it. It has never failed to start and the oil stays very clean between 5000-6000 mile changes.
I agree the shape is somehow more attractive than the later, rounder cars. I do not like the rather old-fashioned American style dash. Driving has always been simplicity thanks to the slick Honda gearbox, comfortable driving position and excellent roadholding. I can generally drive with the sunroof open until rain gets fairly heavy and do so throughout winter thanks to a good heater and a standard wind deflector.
In short, we have enjoyed the car so much that even although its replacement is already here, the Prelude has just been taxed for its final 2 months. In the end I shall probably strip it off much of its running gear and trim and look out for another with better bodywork. This one has the 1.8 carburettor engine but I presume the 2.0 litre is probably just as reliable.
If you do find one of these, and the very best should be no more than £500-600 when priced realistically, watch out for rust in the floor, around the sunroof, and in the fuel filler surround and the pipe itself which is probably unobtainable new. Dirt can build up in the arches and rot the filler pipe if not cleared.
David
Headline News: Fenland village dragged into the tech age.
We've just seen a couple of these interactive electronic speed signs erected in a village I travel through daily. When I heard the plans I was dead against for various reasons. After a couple of weeks they are growing on me.
There are many regular travellers who used to ignore the 40mph limit, never mind the new 30mph limit. The signs do at least jog the memory and cause folks to slow down as they absorb the "yes it means you" message that is driven home.
The first day they were fitted I watched as they were triggered constantly but now perhaps every third car gets a flash. Someone must be getting the message.
Thought I had something really exciting to post at the weekend when the sign lit up as I came within range in the tractor (at 18mph). Then I realised it was the Fiat Panda passing me triggering the system.
Two points there as well. What is a Panda doing passing a tractor and how did I let him get past without turning right with no warning.
David Read more
They probably will now
The idle on my Renault Megane has become uneven. Does anybody have any experience with fuel sytem cleaners that can be added to the petrol tank? Are they any good?
Many thanks
Joe. Read more
Ask at a few local workshops for Forte Oil Seal Conditioner, about a tenner or email me and I'll send you some.
It's freezing, as noted elsewhere, and my gloves are falling apart, like so many pairs before them.
Current gloves: £1.99 - or was it 99p! - from Woolworths, 'one size fits all' woolly gloves with a 'gripper' pattern on the palm. Problem: fingernails destroy the ends, and no, I'm not trimming my fingernails any shorter!
Previously tried: Totes, equally prone to fingernail destruction, and also too tight at the wrong part of the wrist for me.
Best pair ever: horse riding gloves, bought from a shop specialising in outdoor wear for the "huntin', shootin', fishin'" fraternity. But I lost them and haven't found another pair like them, except on someone else. Only problem, not very long in the wrist so a bit draughty.
Any other recommendations? My spec is that gloves MUST fit easily into a coat pocket, and be thin enough to enable me to find my bus fare without taking them off on the days when I don't have the car. And, I guess, cheap enough not to cry if I lose them!!! Read more
Stuart
And this is from a man who's currently driving an American car. Surely that puts the Vectra's handling in perspective?
I recall driving my friends mid 80's car in Canada (sorry, can't remember the make, but it was front wheel drive), and he was proudly saying how he'd replaced the shocks, and how much better the handling was.
He then said I should watch the bend ahead. Now, frankly, I didn't class the slight curve as the 'bend' and was looking much further ahead. However, negotiating said curve made me realise what he meant! Never seen so much lean in a car on a road I'd call straight in Britain.
regards
John
I am in correspondence with Alfa Romeo (GB) over what I perceive as being excessive wear on my car.
The inside edge/shoulder of the front tyres wears considerably faster that the tread covering the rest of the tyre.
Alfa have intimated that it is driver habits rather than the car or the tyres. I, of course disagree. The 166 I drive is the V6 2.5 model. I previously drove a Mazda 626 2.5 V6 and achieved on average 22k miles per set of tyres. Currently achieving 12k miles on the Alfa and I am not alone yet ALfa continue to "refute my allegations".
I know that HJ states that this model is renowned for excessive tyre wear and indeed printed a letter in the Telegraph some weeks back (copy has been lost unfortunately).
Has anyone else experienced this problem and taken issue with Alfa?
The local dealership recently checked the tracking but the variance allowed by Alfa is so great that it is almost meaningless. The guy at the garage did say that the tyre wear is as a result of motorway driving - apparently the downward pressure on the car is such that the tyres wear excessively. Not sure how true this is but I do do a fair bit of m'way driving in my annual mileage of 30k +. Read more
Another reader came up with his solution to Alfa 156/166 front tyre wear which was to align the two front wheels exactly parallel: no toe-in and no toe-out. He claimed 40,000 miles from the fronts of his 2.5 V6, which is unbelievable. But I guess the steering feel depends on a bit of toe out, so can't say what this reader's 156 is like to drive, or even if any of what he wrote is true.
HJ
hello HJ, can you please tell me the name and phone number of the auto transmissions specialist that you keep telling people about,
many thanks.
chris lada watson. Read more
Chris - make sure you read the handbook VERY Carefully before towing.
One good way of totally poking an auto box is to tow incorrectly. If neccessary, get it onto a flatbed.
Does anybody know why my clutch 'grabs' first thing in the morning?
It turns me back into a learner driver as I kangeroo up the road.
When it's warmed up it is very smooth and it doesn't slip.
Is something leaking on to it over night?
Could this be expensive....... Read more
Drop of oil gone gungy and gluing plates?
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Brian is correct, tracking will not affect pulling to one side. (On arack and pinnion system) That must be caused by a greater torque exerted one one swivel axis than the other. Something is probably bent, or a tyre is faulty or flattter than the other. You cannot easily tell which side is bent either. Full geometry check is the answer.
Mike