April 2002
hello, i ama 17 year old 1972vw beetle owner, unfortunatley it is a 1.6, although its top speed is 70 mph i have not been able to find any reasonable insurance quotes, even when being a named driver on a parents insurance,i have not made any claims since passing my test, and any info on where to look for a reasonable quote would be greatly appreciated.
thanks for any help
Robert Read more
Hi i am now looking to buy a bmw m3 evolution from 1997 onwards. I really like the performance of them and the used market for them is quite reasonable when you look at other rivals (merc amg's, porsches, etc..).
Basically I am looking to get the coupe version too. Anything i should be aware of when looking? also, if anyone has owned/ has experience of them i would appreciate a response.
I dont mind buying private or from a specialist although with private sales i will get it inspected by the AA or an expert in the field.
thanks Read more
Yea, i guess i should use that/something similar in the future :-D
Went and saw some M3's today and as a result have definitely decided to go ahead with an M3 Evolution from 1997 onwards. Saw some fantastic examples and am very tempted by a couple in particular.
What do you think of Black M3's? was really after an estoril blue one but have been offered a gr8 black one with a lot of kit. Am quite tempted - will keep you all posted on what happens.
Thanks to everyone for ALL your help and suggestions (the 968 someone suggested was a good idea but unfortunately a bit older than i wanted). Like i said, will keep you posted look for my future post as this topic is now closed as its too far back on the site.
Can anyone please tell me, Where is the paint code on the new Wagon R+ ?
Its not on, or near the vin plate as far as I can see. Thanks. Read more
Can someone out there tell me if if I would seriously damage my engine (in the long run?) if I use the wrong engine oil?
I went and bought some engine oil Castrol GTD Magnatec 10W40 to use in my VW 130BHP PD engine. It says on the back that it meets VW 505 00 and VW 500 00 standards so I bought 5.5 litres of the stuff thinking that it would be ok in my engine (remembering that the manaual stated VW 505 something).
I used .5 ltrs of it to top it up a few weeks back and didn't think anyhting of it until now. I've checked my manual and it seems that while this oil is fine for a 110BHP engine, the 130BHP requires 5W/40 oil to standard VW 505 01 - note the '01' and not '00'!
Is this standard of oil significantly different? Can I just keep on using the stuff I've got and hope that it is just lubricating enough until the next oil change 6 months later?
Any Oil boggins out there?
Chi Read more
I've said before;the dealer will fill with the minimum spec he can get away with-repeat-MINIMUM!!-he buys it in 500 gallon lots.If you want a particular oil used,have it put on your service order.I get a hefty discount on oil at my local dealer but to get this I must effectively buy a can of oil;I would not get it on the bulk supply.
Hi all,
Thought about requesting photo and proof of camera calibration but when l read that they'd measured me doing 94mph at the time of the offence...(Yes bad boy l know).
Think l'll take the 3 points conditional offer and say thankyou very much!
dan Read more
The new A 130 had an accident in the week that it was opened and the local anti-car ranters had their usual gripe in the local paper about the dangers of high speeds to life and limb.
In fact, the accident involved a lorry and a JCB.
(Martyn, apologies if this is off topic - but it's Friday and is car related!)
From the endless supply of junk emails...
Women drivers from a man's point of view
Driving to the office this morning on the M25, I looked over to
my left and there was a woman in a brand new Mondeo doing 65 miles per hour with her face up next to her rear view mirror putting on her eyeliner! I looked away for a couple seconds and when I looked back she was halfway over in my lane, still working on that makeup!!!
It scared me (I'm a man) so bad, I dropped my electric shaver,
which knocked the donut out of my other hand. In all the confusion of trying to straighten out the car using my knees against the steering wheel, it knocked my cell phone away from my ear which fell into the coffee between my legs, splashed and burned my thighs, stained the seat, ruined the darn phone and DISCONNECTED AN IMPORTANT CALL!!!!!!!
Darn women drivers! Read more
Smokie, not even on topic, but...
Colonel in a private room, for a hernia op.
knock on door. "Come in". In walks nurse, up with nightshirt, lathers and shaves around. walks out.
"Excuse me, why did you bother to knock?"
I've always thought Ripley in the DT talke c**p. After the time he endorsed a letter gloating over the death of a biker and effectively said the guy deserved to die I've stopped reading him. [1]
However I happened to dip in today and was (not) suprised to see him suggest that Intensive courses are worse than the traditional "hour a week" method.
Now, I've done both. The 3 day intensive was excellent. I lived and breathed road craft for 5 days. (Test & CBT were extra days) I learned so much that I hadn't following the 30 hours I had at 1 hour a week.
Even Ripley could only come up with one advantage of the '1 hr a week' approach. That the person will travel as a passenger between lessons. Well you can do that between days of an intensive course too.
1) Sense of pride in your roadcraft having done a 'course'.
2) No period where you lose skill between lessons.
3) You're on the road at all times of the day.
4) There's time to talk and think about road craft in meal breaks.
The only advantage I can think of the hour a week approach is that you spread the cost.
They should double the length of HJ's column and sack Ripley. HJ writes better too!
[1] Although the DT kindly let the poor chap's daughter clear his good name after Ripleys lies. Very moving - worth a search. Read more
Trevor Potter wrote:
>
> "I have never seen anything he has written that is not
> accepted by all driver training organisations as good
> practice".
>
> Obviously some of the people here do not want to hear that.
Nah, it's the same Trevor Potter who said you should use half the Highway Code stopping distances (cos it's not a law, just a rule, so it's ok for him to break it).
I wonder what Mr Ripley's writings on that are?
does the team have experience of?
Wonder Wheels has been mentioned. Any others worthy of merit?
Er, it's not for me and my pristine O _ _ _ _ _ _ obviously! I'm just asking for a mate, like... Read more
Since most alloy wheels are painted or lacquered, compounds designed specificially to clean aluminium are probably a waste of time, especially as most wheels will have a few chips and scratches that acidic cleaners will get behind and lift the finish. Anything that etches will require you to go on using it, too, or am I being unduly pessimistic?
I got caught in a traffic jam on the A19 this morning. After an hour or so of stop start driving I noticed steam coming from under the bonnet. Pulled over and discovered one of my hoses has a pin hole leak. The leak was spraying onto the engine causing the steam.
The coolant was also spraying over the alternator. Should i be worried about damage to the alternator?
Ross Read more
Seconded.
Mike
i think nissans rear view camera is a brilliant idea.
does anyone have any idea where i can buy a camera and monitor kit to install in my own car? Read more
It's the forward vision on refuse vehicles which needs to be improved to judge from an incident locally last week where one ran over a cyclist in good visibility in the middle of the afternoon!
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Dave,
Assuming the fins around the cylinders don't fall off, how does an air cooled engine's cooling system give up?