April 2002
Hello troops,
Here's a new one(on me, anyway). A friend's son has just bought a 4 year old (UK 'R' plate) A6 Avante turbo diesel from a non-franchised dealer. Its got 68,000 miles on the clock, a full Audi main dealer service history and paint is bubbling off all four doors at the bottom. The tailgate is ok. Audi UK are refusing to accept rectification under warranty and so far have not offered any goodwill.
The bubbles are very small, about the size of a pinhead and very hard to spot unless you are looking for them. We have contacted the previous owner, who confirmed the mileage and service history and that the car has never had an accident, or any body or paintwork repairs. When asked, he said he had not noticed the bubbles, but usually jet washed the car, not handwashed it. (the bubbles were first noticed as the son handwashed the car) Has anyone out there had a similar problem? The paint is metallic silver. Read more
Can all cars run on synthetic?
Is synthetic the best choice for all cars? with semi being a compromise? or does it depend on the cars age?
Are the claims in other threads about some synthetics being too thin true?
Is there any benefit of using a higher grade oil (such as mobil1 etc) such as reduced wear, improved MPG etc?
For what age cars would fully syntheic be recommends, age for semi, and when would old fashioned mineral be prefered. Read more
I can't be more specific than he called it SL he didn't mention a make i assumed it was a VAG supplied oil , and i did ask him three times that it was definitely fully synthetic
Dear John
Is there a known problem with the heater blower on the Astra G model (first registered March 1999)?
Thanks
Edward Guy Read more
A friend has a faulty heater blower in his Astra, already replaced once in warranty, and wonders if anyone else has had failures with theirs....
Have logged top 15 and bottom 15 for reliability from this survey into car by car breakdown. No real surprises. Rover 800 was bottom, closely followed by Land Rover Freelander (Maybe they should re-name it the Land Rover Lowloader, but at leats they can claim it's the second top off-roader). Toyota RAV4 was top of the list, with the Mazda 626 breathing up its exhaust pipe. Car by car breakdown also contains results of other reliability surveys so gives a balanced view.
HJ Read more
If that was your response to more questions, I'd have a lot more time for you.
Go on, you know it makes sense! You might learn something...
FWIW
Just read a letter in Diesel Car from a guy who has been having trouble getting hold of the correct specification oil for his VW TDi PD diesel - VW spec 505.01 (sic).
He informs that Titan Supersyn SL PD SAE 5W/40 oil meets that specification and further info can be found from:
Fuchs Lubricants
New Century Street
Hanley
Stoke on Trent
ST1 5HU
www.fuchs-oil.co.uk (08701 200400)
I haven't succeeded in loading their webpage yet (extremely slow), but I'll try again later.
Ian Read more
I vaguely remember reading sometime last year ( probably in Diesel Car ) that Fuchs supply VAG with their PD oils.
I believe this topic has been on here before and have browsed through past postings but they dont seem to quite answer my query.
I drive a Saab 9000 Aero, 2.3l Turbo, so the engine and turbo can get pretty hot.
It has been run on semi-synthetic before I bought it with regular changes, but I want to try it on the best oil I can get, and am hence contemplating Mobil 1 with 6-monthly changes (approx 5l miles).
The cost doesnt bother me too much.
What I have heard are rumours that it is too thin, and doesnt provide the turbo shaft with a sufficient cushion of oil on startup.
As it is recommended for high performance/turbocharged engines, this seems strange.
Will putting in the most expensive oil damage my car, or will it live happily ever after? Read more
If you are interested go to www.superblackbird.co.uk/ and click on the Blackbird forum (1/2 way down on the left) then go to page 8, its at the bottom, for my slagging off for using full synth in my Blackbird. An 1137 cc engine producing about 165 BHP. It gives the bikers view on the same subject.
Bill
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ( IPCC) chairman removed for allegedly using science for political ends.
www.techcentralstation.com/1051/envirowrapper.jsp?...A
This is mentioned below but, as drivers are being persecuted by ever higher taxes, extra Road Fund licence fees for driving bigger, safer cars etc., all in the name of saving the planet from melting, it is very important to note.
It is also noted that, as far as I know , this has not been reported in the UK Press.
Some have known for a long time that the global warming myth was politically inspired and now we have the proof. It should be noted that 76 countries voted against the chairman, not just the USA with it's oil company friends. Read more
no - i just think you make poor use of perfectly good space
Hi
A trader friend of mine is selling a polo (1991, 1.05 spi). My better half currently has a polo (1989 1.05 carb) and we are interested in buying it. The newer car looks much better, the brakes and steering are much improved.
The cost is a few hunderd quid more than ours. which isn't a problem, but we want to know if the injection engine is liable to cut out as the carb one has (the warmer weather seems to help cure this). We are therefore keen to sell the car in the warm, to ensure that it doesn't cut out on any test drives (it hasn't done this for a good few months).
So...
Are the facelift models significantly better than the older ones, and what price should we mark ours for (F reg, 98k, fsh, a few rust patches, but otherwise in good nick). I was thinking 500 mark, we will put 12 months mot on it before we sell.
Many Thanks
Jonathan Read more
May also help if you tax it as well...
The old polo sounds like it the carb is icing up, make sure there is no kinks in the vacum tubes (they look a bit like strong drinking straws). Check to see that none have droppped off. Check the operation of the flap (disconnect vacum tube from back of carb, noting where to re fit it and such the tube, this should be enough to lift the flap up) in the air intake that selects between cold air sucked in via the funnel thingy pointing at the grill or the hot air sucked up a pipe connected to the heat sheild of the exhaust manafold, oh and ensure that said hot air pipe is there!!
If I have time at the weekend I may take a couple of shots of the Girlfriends polo covering this stuff and add it to lees online gallery as this keeps cropping up.
Email me direct if you need more guidence with this issue gddeane@hotmail.com
Chatting in the pub the other day and your column came up and two things surfaced. The first a feeling that your growing biased to the manufacturers regularly and increasingly giving them the benefit of the doubt. And secondly regularly endorsing often the more expensive branded fuels offered by esso and shell etc. especially for high performance or sporty models. I know of two police forces that fill all there vehicles including patrol cars and high pursuit vehicles at the local supermarket, strange given what you say about performance and damage?
TJ Read more
All petrol has to meet a legal mimimum spec. It should be a car manufacturers responsibility to make sure that thier cars can run on that petrol.
Don't laugh but was listening to Jimmy Young on the radio today. I know I know, not normal radio fodder it just happened to be on, honest john.
Anyway he will be having Steven Byers on in the future, date to be rearranged and JY is asking for questions on transport to put to Byers.
It seemed to me that this forum could probably come up with quite a few pertinent ones. Not sure how it could be co-ordinated but I reckon its worth a go. I'll do it if no-one else is better able.
How about us collectively preparing a list of three absolute humdinger questions, edited down to sound bite proportions rather than three page rants. Then we could ALL submit these to the beeb.
I open the bidding with.
Repeatedly legislation is proposed on road traffic laws or vehicle construction regulations to solve problems which could be removed by drivers and other road users applying simple common sense. What does the Government propose to do to educate road users of all kinds, and would they be prepared to make such training complusory?
Not sure its a humdinger or a sound bite I know, sorry boys/girls, edit away and add your own please.
And *please* be gentle with me about the Jimmy Young bit.
Cheers all,
Stuart Read more
Mr Byers. Is there no beginning to your talent?
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It sounds very much like micro blister, which often disappears in hot weather. I think it is moisture trapped under the paint. The original first owner cannot confirm that the car has never had remedial paintwork, as it may well have been done before they got it due to transportation damage or even factory rectification. I worked in retail a long time and allsorts can happen to a new car! The original dealer may know, but is a little unlikely to own up to it four years later and pay for rectification again. Your friend's son could always try asking, and if they have any luck, let us know his lottery numbers please!
Regards
Mike