December 2002
Has anyone else come across a self-fuelling myth that needs sugar in it's tank? My top 3 are:
1. The Hyundai Coupe resembles a Ferrari 456.
Yes, but only from the side. And cars move.
2. You can now buy a Lotus Elise for £10,000.
Journalists who come up with this one are either showing off, too lazy to do their research, or lying like flat-fish.
3. The Metro was a good car in it's day.
No, that was the Lancia Delta Integrale.
I'm sure there are others...
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I guess almost by definition the people who are in this forum aren't the ones I'm appealing to, but at least it'd be good to know if you agree.
I'm getting depressed by the behaviour of a lot of drivers as winter moves in, regarding lighting.
On some journeys I keep a casual account of how many other cars I see incorrectly lit in poor visibility or at night .For example in a 40 mile journey M40-M25-Heathrow on Tuesday , 58 cars , even after the peak.
These consisted of those driving on sidelights (why?- and it's been illegal for over 20 years) ; with foglights on though no fog ; or with one or more light not working.
I've driven in Europe and the US and I think this happens here more than anywhere else I know. Iguess it's to do with lack of concern for other road users - after all it rarely affects whoever's driving .
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Entirely agree DTD. I've pointed this out before:.....it has been proven in other countries that driving with dipped beam on substantially reduces your chances of being involved in a fatal accident. (cannot lay my hands on the actual proof anymore, but I assure you it's true).
I drive with dipped beam on (almost) all the time - especially in the winter, especially in the rush hour (summer or winter), especially when the sun is low & behind me, when it's raining or misty, in country lanes (where drivers may see the lights glinting through the hedges before they see the car) etc etc etc etc.
I look forward to the day when legislation requires that dipped beam comes on automatically whenever the engine is running.
In my view the worst offenders are those who not only have their RH headlight out, but also have no sidelight there either - looks like a motorbike coming the other way making you think there's plenty of room - untill you're about 20 feet away that is!! "Beware the one-eyed Monster" was the slogan used by one London Council some years ago.
I'm sure there's plenty more examples, but the question remains the same - why do the authorities do nothing about this menace on our roads?
Hi
I an thinking about buying a volvo m reg 100,000 miles 2.5 v6 20 valve se auto
I like the car and it has history, anyone either reccomend these or have any comment. Are they expensive to run? The price is £4000.
Should i go for mistubishi gallant estate 2.0 which I have seen for about the sam price with 70,000 miles on an r plate.
\thanks
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Errrrmmmm - despite the fact that I've never owned 2 cars of the same marque I suppose the answer is: once a volvoman, always a volvoman :)
Hi all,
Thank you very much for all the advice this year. After much testing of almost all Turbo Diesels on the market, I went back and bought another QX (again)! The list is:
1. 406 2.1td
2. passat td 110
3. mondeo 1.8td
4. scorpio 2.5td
5. volvo 940 2.4td
6. Rover 620td
I cannot get used to the TD's characteristic. I find it completely gutless from idle to 2000rpm, where I would always press the throttle down gradually until almost full throttle, then I would be hit by a HGV from behind suddenly when the turbo picks in, where then I always jump off the throttle. My girlfriend complains about the very rough ride so I part it with another 3.0 QX auto where I got it for 1800, however it is only a 95/N SE and not the SEL I had before so no leather and heated seats. I tried the 2.0 as well but it has no LSD so it is a bit difficult to get the power down in wet.
Anyway, now I have a car over christmas so all is well. :-)
Thank you very much for all your help and I wish everyone Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Best wishes,
Garrison Read more
Picked up some useful background on these thanks to Dan and others and it's now far enough into winter to consider buying one.
The MK2 is supposed to have slightly "improved" handling by which they seem to mean less tendency to snap oversteer in the wet. Although there seems to be some debate as to whether the right choice of tyres cures this on the MK1 anyway.
As I primarily want the car for open top fun on dry days, and I prefer the look of the MK1, is there any other reason why the MK2 might still be the better choice? Read more
Hi. Re Steve S's tyres query. I switched from Pirelli to
Advan Neova LTS very recently. The Advans are the Lotus
recommended item now. They are supposed to be better in the
wet, etc, but I actually found them less predictable at
the limit --- but then again, don't trust me, since now
it looks like my S1 will be a write-off. Hey ho.
Re sports exhausts: On getting mine, I switched to a
stainless sports exhaust and a different air filter. Makes
the car feel and sounds just right. My system is an
in house job from Brooke Kensington and I think is a
bargain.
Let us know what you buy in the end!
Cheerio, DPM.
Now I don't want anyone to think I'm going soft but I think now would be a good time for us all to register our thanks to all those who have helped (both technically & otherwise), advised, amused and stimulated us here in HJ's BackRoom.*
Those who've offered advice to my current and past technical problems will know who they are and if I could buy them a pint I would.
For people like me who have no knowledge about cars, it's most reassuring to get opinions from far more knowledgeable folk who don't have a vested interest in the matter and stand to gain nothing. So THANKS AGAIN all !!
Also thanks to HJ, Mark & the crew for running this place - let's hope it goes from strength to strength.
* what does HJ use his spare room for ? Read more
Great site, great people thanks to all.
I have a '99 Omega MV6 3.0Litre, its devoloped a leak on the exhaust manifold. I visited my local dealer who advised new exchaust manifold gaskets (Not a problem!) however the engine would have to be removed and replaced to carry out the work!!! Has anyone heard of this before? Read more
Just the exhaust quite loud and almost a tick on acceleration. I let you know when I?ve sold the wife and kids, remortgaged the house and pillaged the credit cards to pay the Vauxhall dealer!!!
Yesterday was a very icy day over in here in the South West. Some of you may be aware, there was a six car smash on the M5 (Bristol) which was due to the icy conditions. This morning, it was even icier. Now on both days, I travel about 6am, none of the motorways or side roads were or have been gritted yet both days were forecast to be icy. Also a friend who lives in Hampshire told me that none of the roads there have been gritted. Can anyone enlighten me as to why this may be? Read more
Going back 20 yrs, a few friends and I had RWD bangers and it snowed enought to lay a few inches (once a decade thing in the south) so we took a tow rope and went out to the sticks and carved up the virgin snow at 1 am. It was Great Fun! went into a few ditches and collected some dents (my avenger was all filler anyway) but it was a good experience.
I once tried to turn right from a iced junction in a rover sd1 and just didn't manage it, tracking needed checking after that, oops!. I always put that down to my bad driving rather than some inherent fault in the car.
IMO everyone forgets how to handle the winter and slowly re-learn the lessons, some have a prang in the process
www.scoobynet.co.uk/bbs/thread.asp?threadid=160565
Can you believe this? :)
(I think the reply to the original says it all) Read more
Actually the 12" blue and orange sheets of flame my Harley mechanic gas set up for me for Christmas look a good bit neater than this effort! LOL
(Vance & Hines Straight shot drag unsilenced drag pipes and some stuff you can do with an S & S carb he won't tell me about).
Well, what can you expect: everyone is so tee-ed off being told what they can and can't do, can't blame 'em for breaking out now and then. That's what you get in nanny societies...
Car has done less than 30,000 miles and suddenly the gearbox had a heart attack as I moved off from a roundabout. I can no longer get the clutch into gear four. I have taken the car into a local mechanic who has advised me after doing some initial checks that the problem is within the gearbox itself. Told the cost will be £120 to strip the gearbox but this does not include any additional parts that may be required. Does this price sound reasonable to anyone here in the know? Also I was considering taking the vehicle into MrClutch as they specialise in clutches + gearboxes. Does anyone know much about MrClutch and what prices are like?
On a final point do you think perhaps I should contact Vauxhall as the car is under is only 2 ½ years old and has done under 30,000. As far as im aware the Vauxhall cars only have a one-year warranty and Im not sure if this applies to the gearbox.
Any help much appreciated.
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Update got a reply from Mr Clutch website about price of new gearbox. Fair play they replied by e-mail and gave a quote from their website.
Copy of e-mail below opinions on that price sounds a bit on the steep side to me but I don’t know much about gearboxes
Update got a reply from Mr Clutch about price of new gearbox. Fair play they replied by e-mail and gave a quote from their website.
Copy of e-mail below opinions on that price sounds a bit on the steep side to me but I don’t know much about gearboxes.
Dear Mr Reynolds
Thank you for your speedy reply. I have contacted our Gearbox Department and they have given a price of £609.23 for a F15 5-Speed engine for the gearbox to be supplied and fitted, this also includes VAT.
Thank you once again for contacting CI Holdings Ltd.
Yours sincerely
Becki Smith
Browse
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"You can use Coca Cola instead of engine oil"
Perhaps you use the can as a replacement filter? Anyone wanting 20,000 mile oil changes should use Pepsi instead.
No Dosh - but then who has?