January 2003
I have had my heart set on changing my aging V6 Omega for a 2.4T or T5 S60 for quite a while now. I decided to wait until this summer for financial reasons however my attention was grabbed by a seemingly good deal on Friday.
2002 SJ52 Omega 2.6V6 Auto CD - Delivery mileage for £12999. The dealer is offering 4.9% flat rate and although it is not a Volvo I am sorely tempted. Infact, so much so I put my name down for one subject to a test drive (to be taken this week when my schedule allows!)
However, at the Volvo dealer where I have been drooling as of late, car two has made an appearance today.
Originally £17,999
2001 Y S60 2.4T with Winter pack and Electric Roof - 5500 miles for £14999 with a guarantee to match the Vauxhall finance.
The price difference between the two is not a concern, as I will be spending £2000 fitting the Omega with Jag style Dual Exhaust pipes and other Irmscher add ons. However, while I am a Vx fan, have a fondness for omega's, and am sure the Star Silver V6 will look a treat, my head says 'Volvo'.
What does the combined head power of the forum say?
Thanks
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Any suggestions?
I've had a Citroen ZX Volcane Turbo diesel for a few years. It's now done 200K, and for the first time I've had to put nearly half a litre of oil in between 6000 mile services. Fuel consumption is down to around 43 mpg, and it must be close to replacement time. The question though is what to get.
I do not want a drop in performance, want to at least match the consumption figure and general road holding/handling. According to Parkers 0-60 is 10.3 sec. (Say a target 0-62 of 10.6?)
I particularly like the motorway performance, where the torque makes for good overtaking. I also like the 40k I get from Goodyear Eagle Ventura tyres (20K on the back followed by 20K on the front).
I need at least 4 doors, which I think rules out the sporty diesel Ibiza.
I don't really want to spend more than £8000, so what sort of choice do I have?
Citroen's Xsara only came out with a useful 110 bhp engine in 2001, and apart from not being attractive looks to be outside budget. The Picasso has never been available with a 110 HDI engine.
The LEON 110 again is outside budget and down on performance - even if it is a nice looking car.
Similarly the Focus TDCi.
If I go for one of the VW engined vehicles, it seems that a 115 bhp engine is needed (a Bora maybe?)
The Peugeot 307 HDI is just too stodgy from the lights.
Any suggestions from the experts out there? How long is it likely to be before one of the cars mentioned gets inside my budget?. Is the Fiat Brava JTD 105 any good? or maybe the Alfa 156?
Should I just keep this one going till September maybe?
Any suggestions? Read more
MM and everyone.
Many thanks for the input. I was beginning to think I had the only decent Volcane on the road. The car has been brilliant with the one exception that Citroen radiators seem to be made of cardboard. - Now on it's third. On all other counts great.
Negligible oil burn (it got to over 180 k before I needed to top up at all between 6k oil changes). 40K on a set of tyres - each one does 20k on the back and another 20K on the front.
As as some of you have said, sheer pleasure and practicality - albeit without much street cred. Comfy seats.
I checked out the suggestions. None of the Japanese diesels get near the performance, the Astra 2.0 doesn't, the 306 and 306 don't. The bike was ruled out because I need something my wife can drive.
The Rover diesels have the performance OK, but my son says they're not reliable.
The VWs are I think overpriced.
So my decision? Put the Volcane through the 192K service, get the cam belt changed by Citroen (for the full 12 months warranty on it!) and wait till either something expensive goes wrong, or a Fiat Stilo dynamic turns up inside my budget.
- Of course all that may change completely in the meantime.
Thanks again for all the ideas.
Does anyone know if this is worthwhile? And if it is, I wonder why the technology's not being used by car manufacturers (unless something to do with patenting...)
frmarcus Read more
I was wondering if the sunday times are going to stand by their statement that it really works. But most of what they write in the motoring section is utter s**te, so I don't see why this should be any different.
How much should I expect tyre pressures to alter between winter and summer? Is it necessary to repressure tyres, or will they be OK as long as there aren't any actual leaks? I noticed my tyres were about 1-2psi down, presumably due to the hard frost we have had recently. Does it make that much difference to alter then by this small an amount? Read more
This is a typical pressure drop corresponding to a cold snap. I doubt whether a non-purist would consider it necessary to add a pound or two to compensate for this temporary change.
I'm looking to buy a Compact. About £8000 to spend so have been looking at 1998 Sports mainly and some newer lower spec models. Can anyone give me any advice on Compacts? I'm new to BMWs and Compacts so any advice would be great. For example, is it worth paying the extra to get a Sport? Will I find them a reliable motor? Will servicing and running costs be high?
Thanks in advance. Read more
A month ago I bought a lovely BMW 316ti compact, full Mtec from new version, looked stunning (montreal blue) handled like a dream (in the dry), till I put it round a little roundabout with a touch too much throttle and spun it into some traffic lights. - GUTTED!
So on the handling, in my experience, they are superb in the dry, but be very very careful in the wet. Short car, with rear wheel drive (unless you have traction control) is very easy to get sideways without trying in the wet.
Car's a write off now so I'm going to look at a non Mtec version tonight : ( Rare as rocking horse droppings those Mtec 316ti's!
Can't afford to insure a 318ti now that I've smashed up one BMW. Boo. Will have to wait a year or two for the 1.9ti.
4 cylinder auto model R reg, engine stopped, won't restart, oil light was seen flashing on & off prior to stopping. Dipstick shows oil in sump. Any ideas to help RAC man when he comes. Manual says low oil pressure.
Tony Read more
Finally sorted out by local VW dealership. They had the car for 2 weeks & have been very fair over costs.
When they first got the vehicle in they did a diagnostic, this showed a fault with the engine speed sensor, this they changed from stock. Engine still would not start, other parts were tried all to no avail. Last part ordered in no good either, so prior to it going to autoelect specialist the dealer called VW technical again, during the talk through of what they had tried the tech dept remembered that either last year or year before a batch of faulty engine speed sensors had come to light. They thought that all the faulty ones had been recovered, but no, the one from the shelves was a faulty one.
New sensor fitted & all is well. Sensor £150.
I'll be getting my recently acquired 525 TD serviced within the next few weeks. As it's now 7 years old - one of the last of the old shape models - I don't feel the need for official dealer servicing, and reckon that dated receipts showing all work done/parts replaced etc should be enough for any future buyer now that the car is about to pass 100k. However, there is a service indicator on the dash which comes on after you turn on the electrics. It consists of a series of green lights, a yellow and a red - the idea being that the green lights go out one by one the closer you are to needing a service, yellow for "service now" and red for "service overdue".
My question is this: will I need to go to a main dealer in possession of a laptop in order to get the service indicator reset, or will a small local mechanic without a computer be able to do this some other way? I'd rather that the indicator was able to continue functioning instead of having to ignore the red light all the time. Read more
Dan, where on earth did you get that misinformation from?
Firstly, the service indicator is an excellent reminder, not only of when a service is due but also as a daily guide as to how long there is to go before the next service. The system takes into account the style of driving, number of cold starts, etc. and calculates the service intervals very accurately. It even knows how far you have gone into the 'red' and brings the next service forward a bit to compensate. Oh, and it also reminds you when brake fluid and coolant changes are due.
Secondly, of course you don't need to pay a BMW man with a laptop to reset the lights! Resetting tools have been available to the public for many years, and very cheaply too. Resetting takes no more than a minute or so.
Can anyone help out and advise if the current Astra service indicator ('Insp' showing in the trip meter position) can be reset at home? This could save me a return visit to the dealer!
Regards
John S Read more
Dave
Many thanks! Works a treat.
Kith - no mention in my handbook of this method. Page 30 just states it shows at the appropriate time, and the usual 'consult the dealer'. Have I missed it somewhere?
Regards
John S
BMW assist are just about to pay their 4th visit in 2 years to me to try and sort out jamming door locks on frosty mornings. Basically I can get in but the door then won't latch shut. No amount of WD40 seems to sort the problem, am i alone in experiencing this? Or are there other frustrated owners out there?
Any thoughts appreciated Read more
Not much help but I just thought I'd mention that my 1992 E34 Touring doesn't suffer from this.
I need some urgent practical advice following someone running into my car while it was parked outside my house. I’m in the process of selling this car having transferred my insurance to a newer vehicle. Fortunately, I have the full name and address and insurance details of the person who crashed into my old car. The parked car has an mot and road tax. First question...is it legal for a car to be parked on the road with no specific insurance, so long as it is roadworthy (MOT) and Taxed? Once a week I have been driving the car to keep it from seizing up, I have been driving it on the basis of third party only cover being provided by my new comprehensive insurance policy.
1. I figure so long as it is a legal lump of car that has been run into i.e it has a right to be there on a public road then regardless of my own insurance situation her company will pay up.
2. Is there anyway my Insurance company will “get involved” and pursue this claim for me as they would with a no fault accident when either third party or fully comp with the primary vehicle. Or will they say this is third party cover for secondary vehicles for which there is no claim being made and given the policy is not for this car then it is nothing to do with them and I’ll be left to fight it myself.
Anything I should or shouldn’t say, things they will looking to say to avoid paying up, general advice much appreciated.
Thanks, Ian
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Simon, my clairvoyant powers see the termination of your account, again, if you continue being this rude to people. Do yourself a favour, and try not to get too worked up about things.
HF
Mark,
Do you understand the difference between USE and KEEP?
Browse
My heart strings have been pulled to and fro deciding whether or not to abandon my loyalty to Vauxhall or to join the welly brigade.
I joined the welly brigade, and seem to be the youngest member (at 22) of the dealers over 60's owners club :)
The Volvo is an excellent car to drive, with a superbly balanced and powerful engine, matched with a more than capable chasis and the finest bum resters I have ever sat on.
The Omega was a nice car to drive as well, but without putting it through more of a test, its weaknesses were more apparent.
I'm sure I made the right choice, however you must excuse me as I'm going out to fit the speed restrictor at 25mph...