August 2002
Despite HJ advice re problems starting cars after moving them a short distance, my girlfriend started has flooded her car (Fiat Brava 1.4) again.
This is the second time she has done this. The first time a local mechanic towed the car away and diagnosed the problem as a flooded engine.
This time I have tried to solve the problem myself.Following the previous advice in this group (see below) I have removed the plugs, dried the excess petrol of on some kitchen paper, and left the plugs out (and combustion chambers open) overnight - 15hours before refitting the plugs in the car.
The plugs look ok, on the spark end, but there is a little corrosion around the nut end. possibly why the plug caps were so difficult to remove. I have replaced two of the HT leads - making sure that only one was changed at a time, so not to confuse the firing sequence.
When the car was tried again it was exactly the same. The engine turns smoothly, but does not fire at all.
Any other suggestions, before I have to get the car towed off again!
Thanks
"One of my readers has written to Charles Moore, editor of The Daily Telegraph, trying to get me fired for the advice I gave about this. But there are a couple of ways to get a flooded catalysed car started. One is to take out all the plugs and let the neat petrol in the combustion chambers evaporate away. The other is to isolate the cold start instructions from the ECU to the engine (equivalent flooring the accelerator pedal to give a flooded non-cat car maximum air to sort the mixture out by ). However, this last method could damage the cat.
HJ
" Read more
As I've only just discovered this forum, forgive me if this question has already been dealt with.
I have always driven VW diesel cars (Golf, Jetta GXD and Vento 1.9 Tdi) and am sure that changing the oil midway between the recommended intervals must have contributed something to their longevity (400k, 200k and 200 k miles respectively - and the last, the Vento, is still running happily.)
I recently purchased a Skoda Fabia 1.9Tdi estate (Comfort), with which I'm very pleased: in all respects (except price) it seems like the Vento Tdi.
I changed the oil at 5000 miles, using Castrol GTD Magnatec. However, I have subsequently been told - by Skoda dealers and Castrol, indeed - that the spec on this (VW 505 500 I THINK - don't have details to hand) is incorrect (SHOULD BE 505 501) and that I should replace it with oil which can be obtained only from VW/Seat/Skoda dealers in 1 litre containers @ £7 approx per litre. Even when I said that the oil would be changed again at the first scheduled service - in 5000m - all said I should still change it and muttered darkly about possible damage if I didn't.
I am happy to do this, in order to preserve the car i good condition (the whole point of the 'extra' change anyway) But, I wonder:
1. IS it really necessary?
2. Are the oils SO different (simple answers, please, for someone who is technically illiterate!)?
3. Is it possible to obtain the correct spec oil more cheaply than as detailed above (which works out at nearly £40 for a change!)?
Any help most gratefully received.
Thanks
Paul Bowden
Lincolnshire
UK Read more
I just relied to a post from 3 years ago ;(
I must try to concentrate more...........
I have installed a lovely new SONY radio /CD in the Galaxy and FM reception seems fine. However, MW and LW is a bit poor and picks up all the interference from Engine electrics. I read that the tyep of aerial fitted to the side window has an amp associated with it which I can power from the radio's electric aerial output.
Question / problem - I can't locate the amp and / or wiring diagram. Haynes are not publishing a manual until December and my Ford garage seem reluctant to print me a copy of this part of the circuit ( I asked at a recent service ). Can anybody advise on the matter please otherwise I'll nip along to the local audio shop and pay them for the pleasure but it must be obvious, surely ?
Many thanks,
Pete Read more
My Ford Orion used the rear screen heater as the aerial and I had no complaint about the reception.
The lack of an external aerial to get tangled up with car washes and with canoes on the roofrack was a real boon.
£50,000 of taxpayers money to give free driving lessons to asylum seekers. On our overcrowded roads?
Discuss. Read more
The lessons are not limited to asylum seekers, you should ask through learn direct... I am british, white, 31 and the only requirement is that you have a provisional license and you will have to complete some computer courses... nobody gets it for nothing they have to study for it.
Even if you have a job (like i have) you are eligible though you have to pay 20 pounds one off registration.
I think it is too easy to not get the whole picture if you are dead set on attacking random groups of people out of envy or jealousy.
I am very grateful for the support i am getting to learn to drive as a result of the new initiative to make sure that people who live in britain regardless of their background can learn to drive safely.
Good luck with your lessons!!
This is surely the future of home-mechanicking... look it up on the internet!
Anyway: my girlfriend has a 1999 Ford Ka, and very nice it is too. However, it's recently developed a misfire, which manifests itself when the engine is hot - ie. in traffic.
Recently, it had a similar problem which was easily solved - a quick look at the plugs showed that the ceramic casing on No.1 plug was cracked, hence spark was arcing to earth. Rubbish Motorcraft plugs!
Replaced with Champion 'Ion' plugs, which claimed to have a long lifetime - so they should at £5 per plug!
Anyway, the plugs look fine this time, but the misfire is back - any ideas? I am reluctant to shell out for a set of HT leads (does anyone know how much they are?) especially since the problem seems to be temperature related.
There are no warning lights, the coolant level/colour is fine and the rad fan is also fine.
On the subject of taper fit plugs: I have always been told to install any set of plugs with a smear of copper grease on the threads, after gapping the electrode of course... Also I think the best rough guide to fitting taper fit is to tighten them until the taper 'seats' and tighten a further 1/4 of a turn. Read more
If Mondeo man doesn't replace the plugs as well he will be back to square one in a matter of weeks as the original leads will have burnt a track to earth down the side if the plug(s). The new leads will temporarily sort this until the burnt track down the plug encourages the new lead to fail again.
Today as usual I parked in the Trafford Borough
Council Car park in Altrincham to catch the
tram to work.
The ticket machine (as often!)was not working so
we all (as usual!) left notes in our cars saying
so.
At 5.30 pm we all returned to find we had got
parking tickets.
Where do we stand and what action should be taken?
Meldrew
(I just do not believe it!) Read more
Go for option (c). Less hassle and you can get on with life. Don't sweat the petty things, or as we say here after a few, don't pet the sweaty things.
I posted a question earlier and mentioned the fact that I put supermarket petrol in my car (a Rover 620 Ti which I've run for four years, has 78,000 on the clock and still no smoke!. I'm about to change and buy a '96 BMW 728i with 30,000 miles on the engine.
Shell Optimax seems very popular on the web (but expensive on only one garage in Cardiff) - so my question is this. Should I stick to one brand of petrol? BP? Shell? Texaco? Will supermarket petrol really hurt my car? Unleaded or Superunleaded?
I'd love to hear evryones views, but especially those who work in the petrochemical industry or in vehicle research!!
Cheers!
Read more
As the title suggests a reply has been received, albeit a fairly non-committal one, probably as might be expected.
In a small nutshell basically Ford appear to be saying that they recommend in the handbook that BS EN 228 (petrol) and BS EN 590 (diesel) fuels should be used. That's about it.
they also comment that most diesel fuel on sale in UK meets this standard. (my emphasis)
Therefore Ford appears to be admitting that some fuel does not meet the standard, but which ones ??? For the ones which do meet it; as we all know all animals are equal but some are more equal than others.
They go on to say that where the standards in certain markets generally deviates then the effect of this is reflected in the service and maintenance regime.
Of course this does nothing to answer my question for clarification of their comment "if you fill up with worst case fuel in Britain...."
However I have printed out the .pdf file they've sent and will peruse the contents. Anything interesting I'll report further. The bibliography at the back certainly contains some interesting looking leads to follow.
Hi,
Have just bought a 10 month old Toyota Avensis 1.8VVTi GS. All is well with it apart from.. I've begun to notice that, under some conditions, it can vibrate a bit on acceleration. This never happens when not accelerating, regardless of road speed.
Tends to happen worst when accelerating at around 2000rpm in 2nd gear e.g. at roundabouts. Will happen in any gear at highish engine revs (e.g. 3500-6000) when accelerating hard.
It's still under warranty so no worries about getting it fixed. Took it to main dealer who balanced the wheels and checked the brakes - made no difference.
My theory - and I'm not a mechanic - is that one of the driveshafts is a bit sticky. The frequency of the vibration seems to increase with road speed (judders faster as you drive faster). The problem is pretty minor - my wife doesn't really notice it - but it's annoying me somewhat! The engine seems to run very sweetly so I don't suspect any sort of misfire.
Any ideas on the cause?
Thanks,
MarkL.
Read more
Hi,
A rather late update on this one. Around a month ago, the new workshop manager at the Toyota main dealer diagnosed a faulty offside (I think) driveshaft and replaced that under warranty. This has improved things a lot and the vibration is now never anything like as bad.
The 1.8 VVTi engine still sometimes isn't as smooth under load as, say, a 1.8 Mondeo but then it's a very different engine so who knows what's normal.
Would have been good if the problem had been diagnosed when I originaly reported it around 18 months ago. Anyway, a good resolution and good Toyota service in the end.
Does Redex or similar really work, is it worth putting in the petrol of the Panda (which is taking rather a long time at the moment to warm up) with the choke needing constant attention to prevent the thing stalling?
Bill Read more
Svpworld says that redex might be useful in early 70's engines.
I've got a few early 50's motoring magazines. Redex was a cure all then, according to the adverts. Considering the small amount you get for your money, they're probably still using the original barrel of oil.
I'm replacing the CV rubber boots on my '91 Golf but am having trouble with the six Torx headed bolts that attach the driveshaft to the differential. The T40 socket I bought from Halfords seems a loose fit in the bolt heads and has just slipped in a couple of them. I have managed to remove a few of them using an allen key and applying some heat but am worried about damaging the heads of the new bolts when trying to do them up to 33lb ft torque.
Does anyone have any experience of these bolts and the best way to undo and replace them? Thanks. Read more
For any kind of socket head bolt (Allen, Torx, 12-point or
whatever) it is important to ensure the drive bit is very
firmly seated in the socket. ...
All these fasteners seem a bit marginal for torque loading
unless the bit is in perfect condition and fully seated.
Richard, I couldn't agree more. Let's go into a bit more detail ...
Allen screws are becoming obsolescent now, mainly because of their high cost. This is due to the fact that they need to be made of a high steel grade (at least 10,9) because of the tendency for the heads to crack across the corners. A high grade steel is more expensive to buy and forming the head is also costlier for higher grades. With an Allen screw, the main danger of insufficient key engagement is splitting of the head, and once that happens the key will just slip.
Torx screws are now far more popular because the heads are inherently stronger, so the screws can be made from a cheaper steel (typically 8,8) and the heads are easier (and thus cheaper) to form. However, because Torx has a stronger head, the socket depth has been reduced in comparison with Allen screws (to ease head forming) so it is equally important to make sure that the socket is clean and the tool fully seated.
I believe that Tri-square is made to a military specification for very high duty applications. A tri-square screw will be made of a very strong steel and be very costly to make. It will be used only where there is a need for a very strong fastener in a recess or other confined space. Since they are for high duty use and they are in a strong and low-elasticity steel, tri-square screws will have a high tightening torque and it is very important to make sure they are properly tightened.
Richard and I mentioned the use of Loctite for Casper's drive shaft screws but, thinking about it again, this should really be a very last resort. If the use of Loctite will reliably avoid the need for a high tightening torque, then I think VW would have used a Torx screw with Loctite. As an off-the-cuff example of what I mean, the drive through the shaft to the wheel may rely partly on the friction between the drive shaft flange and the hub it attaches to, and this friction may in turn rely on the screws being pulled down to a specified torque. An insufficient torque could lead to fretting between the flange and the hub and eventual looseness.
Here endeth today's lesson!
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First, thanks for the advice. Car now started, resolved to always push it around in future, neighbourhood now smelly/foggy ;-)
I would add another way to stop the fuel, pulling the plug out of the 'Ive crashed' fuel isolation switch. Mine (1996 Rover216) is simply in line with the fuel pump and nicely accessible.
That done it ran for a few seconds as it dried out and therefore verified the rest of the system. Another 30 seconds of intermittent dry/open throttle before putting the fuel back on and it fired up if a bit reluctantly.
Bill