March 2002
1) DO NOT BUY AN OLD VW POLO WITH THE INTENTION OF HAVING A CHEAP CAR - the following is a list of breakages in 9 months, probably not exhaustive:
-Radiator
-Clutch
-2 clutch cables
-Brake pads, discs, cylinders
-Tracking, very temperamental
-Suspension components
-Wheel bearings
-Oil consumption and leaks EXCESSIVE DESPITE 140+ K
-Exhaust: full system (blowing already after a month)
-Fan belt
-Ignition leads (POOR SERVICING by previous round-the-corner-use owner)
-Latest: throttle cable spring, part-and-parcel of the carb - may need to replace carb if cheaper - was very scary as I was overtaking somebody and the revs shot well past maximum for about 10 secs before I could 'safely' turn off the engine to avoid seizure, then had to coast to a layby.
-Also, see 'polo running very strangely' for running probs (although please don't respond to that thread)
I'd guess that a better one, say G/H reg for about £1000, would be a more reliable, economical to maintain car, just wish I had taken this option as now its too late; I am a skint student and the car costs a lot to run yet is not worth what I need in order to upgrade.
2) ADVICE SOUGHT: new 'throttle butterfly spring' on carb, or is it better to get a scrap carb for £25? The spring will come from a scrap carb anyway, at a local garage.
THIS IS URGENT AS I NEED THE CAR REPAIRED ASAP
:( Read more
Just thinking about buying a used one of these - 98 or 99 model but not at Merc main dealer prices. Any experience of buying this sort of car either at auction or privately. There are a number always being sold through BCA with modest mileages and the right colours - why are they not on main dealer forecourts? Read more
Wait 6 to 12 months and get one at a sensible price on the Signature programme once there has been a more marked depreciative effect from the new model. If you must buy now, go for an old CL coupe, with at least the newer 4.3 litre V8.
Thought I might comment on the road layout at the Nocton rail crash having just seen the aerial photo in the Telegraph from the weekend.
When I first heard about the crash it was said that someone had driven down a dead end on to the track but when I saw the photo with the dead end shown as a 'straight-on' with the main road taking a left hand bend and then found out that the road used to go straight on over the railway via a bridge it became a simple error to have made. Maybe it was an error that shouldn't have been made during daylight, although there seemed to be trees on either side of the road which may have some bearing, but the 'natural' line of the road at a glance said 'go down here'. I just wonder how many other people have done the same thing there without the dire consequences? Also should something more substantial have blocked off the road than just a brick wall? Read more
Plus the road was mega slippery allegedly. So whether it was a wrong slot or an overshoot not much length to the "escape" road, about 3/4 car lengths?
I have managed with some help from the people in this forum to repair the heater in my VW Passat (see old threads for info), but would like to sort out the other electrical faults such as window switches not working and intermittent functioning of other electrical components. Would an auto-electrican be a good first port of call? Or shall i get a Haynes manual?
cheers Read more
Like others have said here, the Haynes wiring diagrams are difficult to read and, in my experience, not always accurate.
My local Audi dealer will give me print-outs of the wiring looms from the parts computer list, and these show the shape of the loom, branches and the approximate location, which can help a lot when used in conjunction with the Haynes manual. Why not ask your local VW dealer?
I use an AVO (which shows my age), but a digital multi-meter will be much cheaper!
(Some specialists spares suppliers also have pirated ETKA (?EKTA? I can't remember...) - this is VW/Audis parts books on computer). (Andy B. should know what ETKA means - is it Elektronische Teile Kaput Anleger?)
Martin.
This question got lost in the Badge Snobbery thread so apologies if you have already read this...my question is why don't Honda do more options on the Accord e.g. diesel, estate, V6, V8? I really like the car and would buy one if there was an estate with a big engine. I know the VTEC is good but its not that quick and the R type is not for me. Read more
I've just been to Japan where there are all sorts of different models. One in particular caught my eye - some sort of boxy Nissan that the Yanks and Japanese like BUT it had a 4.5l V8 stuck under the bonnet.
Does anyone have experience of repairing exhaust flexi-piping ?
Apparently you can buy the flexi stuff in accessory shops for making repairs to this kind of piping.
Any advice very much apprieciated Read more
Thanks for the replies.
It's my brothers car which has the problem. Its a Alfa 164 3.0 V6. The flexi piping is just between manifold downpipes and the cat about a foot in length.Apparently there are no pattern copies and Alfa charge £420 for a replacement section.
I have a MIG welder but wont be much good if the flexi stuff can only be brazed.Think i will pay a view visits to my local accessory shops to see whats available.If repairing this section is not feasible i think a new stainless system will be the best bet.
Anyone any thoughts on the less popular slow but ? less complicated and longliving golf SDI as they are relatively cheap new Read more
On the other hand:
If you dont mind less-than-rapid performance (but ok once up to speed) the SDI is good from a long-term point of view, especially as a workhorse. Less to go wrong (but still electronic control if thats what you are scared of) and cheaper to insure...
TDI 150 would be nicer though!
Next time you criticise the Boys in Blue, think of this....
From our local paper.
A man was shot and killed during a heated altercation in Empangeni in KwaZulu-Natal at the weekend, when a group of provincial traffic officers allegedly tried to remove a colleague from the scene of an accident.
The shooting happened after a member of the municipal traffic department had apparently tried to detain a provincial officer and take him for a blood-alcohol test.
The provincial officer had overturned his car in Durnford Road on Saturday night and the municipal policeman - being the first on the scene - wanted to check the driver's sobriety.
It is believed that the provincial officer refused to go for a blood test and, during the altercation that followed, some of his colleagues arrived at the scene.
"I have been told - from the reports of witnesses - that the provincial officers bundled the driver into a car and tried to leave the scene," said the mayor, Denny Moffatt. "Apparently they drove straight at our officer, who was standing in front of their car."
Moffatt said the car hit or almost hit the municipal officer - the details were not clear - and a shot was fired. It was tragic, he said, that a provincial officer was killed. "But they should not have tried to leave the scene. They should know better."
He said local municipal officials were anxious to ensure that a full investigation was carried out and had tried to ensure that blood tests were taken of all the people concerned. "I am not at all sure this was done. And I am really worried that the procedures followed were not normal."
Moffatt said the blood tests could provide vital evidence in the case. "I would still like to know how the officer managed to overturn the car on a stretch of road with a 40km/h speed limit."
He said the municipal officer had been arrested after the shooting. "I tried - with the help of an attorney - to get him released on bail, but could not."
The provincial traffic police have refused to issue any statement on the incident. "We will issue a statement after our initial investigations have been completed," said a spokesperson for the provincial police, Colin Govender. Read more
Bill:
TagaloG, one of the 611 languages and dialects spoken in the Philippines, the lingua franca of Luzon, which as you will know is the main island of the 7,000 odd which make up the archipelago. It is the basis of Pilipino, the bastardised "national" lingo taught in schools as the government's xenophobic attempt to kill off one of its former main human resource assets, the wide use of spoken and written English. The employment of loonies in high places is not the prerogative of the failed EU experiment in let's all have a bureau-Euro party.
But we must stick to motoring, as we have been told by the big boys in class further up this page.
Today I visited the gas station and bought some windshield washer fluid.
When starting up in the morning, the gearbox is stiff engaging 1st gear. It works perfectly going into 2nd and then upto 1st.
After a few minutes there is no problem. Does the gear box have a problem worth worrying about (as this happened on my last car as well) or is this normal? Read more
I had great difficulty engaging 1st in cold weather in my '93 Golf. The local VW specialist greased the linkages and the improvement was huge. Unfortunately, it has worsened in the 6 months since this was done, though is still much better than it was.
Has anybody had a problem with the windscreen wipers on a VW Bora? I was out in my dad's brand new one on Saturday when the wipers suddenly packed up (completely dead on all settings). We found somewhere to park and checked the fuse which was OK. After about half an hour we were just about to ring the breakdown people when we tried them again and they were fine. The car is fitted with a rain sensor and when they stopped working they were on the intermittent setting. Has anybody got any ideas what could have happened? Read more
...or technology, even.
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Thanks to everyone for help so far - yes I have been a bit careless as regards prices paid (or, prices paid by family.) I like the car, mine just seems a bit unreliable even for its age! I'm not denouncing all Polos because I know they are good; the post was written soon after it had broken down! History wise, it has a fsh up til 95, 96ish, then has been in the family. I know that it was serviced regularly as a motorway car for my aunty, who was also a student at the time. Camshaft wore out at 100k or so and car was later sold to a friend, RAC mechanic, for £100 - I think at the start of '99. Since, I suspect its done little mileage and has been used for short runs only. I got it in May '01 for £250 and the faults described have occurred since.
However, I have put *about* 15000 on the clock since (the odo is worn so does not count every mile - its registered 10 thou) so maybe I can't have great expectations. Just frustrating that when I do, well, keep patching it up - its a case of, when to stop throwing money at it?
Getting to the point, re: the carb/throttle. I was told the spring would be difficult to get by the garage, plus the aa mechanic said that a scrap carb may be as economical and no real loss on account of the high mileage covered by the original - ie would be a simpe option.
Just seems that the engine and gearbox are bombproof yet everything else starts to break with high mileage!