February 2003
I was really interested in going for a C5 to replace my Rover 218 diesel. But then I cam across the sorry tales in this web page - www.c5-faults.com
I see HJ has picked these up (well done) but it\'s disconcerting that such a trend emerges. Read more
On 5th Nov, I posted a thread ("Who should foot the bill?") regarding my usual garage's attempts to diagnose and fix low-revs grumbling on my Xantia 2.0HDi. They thought it was gearbox bearings....I paid £750 (inc. new clutch)....but the problem was still there.
To cut a long story short, the problem turned out to be disc pad retaining clips which apparently Citroen know about but keep a close secret (why?). Glad to say the original grumbling has just been cured 4 months after their first attempt. BUT....as a result of the original gearbox work (which proved a complete red herring), the synchro changing from 1st to 2nd appears to be shot; at best, it "clicks", at worst I can pause the gearchange between 1st and 2nd and it's like I haven't got the clutch pressed at all. The garage tell me there's nothing more they can do, it would be impossible to get the synchro back to what it was, etc.... My immediate reaction is bulls**t, they're just trying to wriggle off the hook! But is it fair to say that once a gearbox is worked on it's unlikely to give the same smooth gear change as before? Read more
Reminds me of my experience with a Citroen Saxo and it's engine stutter. The quality of customer service Citroen give and the lets keep changing things until something works attitude.
I bought my Saxo from a Skoda dealership and I spent more time in Skoda's than my Saxo. After 5 visits to Citroen and the problem was still not fixed, although they managed to damage the paint work twice. The joys of owning a citroen.
Still I took pleasure in telling the Citroen dealship the day before it was due in for it's 6th week long visit, that I had bought a Skoda.
In my experience Citroen build cars yet don't know how to fix them.
Hello all,
My Vectra's starting to play up again. It's a 1999 2.0 Di Estate with just over 100k on the clock.
The symptoms are when in fifth gear cruising at around 75-80mph (tut-tut, I know!), around 2750 rpm it seems that the engine management system can't decided if I'm accelerating or decelerating, the net result being that the car behaves as though I'm pumping the accelerator slightly giving vehicle occupants a *very* gentle forward/backward rocking motion. It is only very, very slightly noticeable at the moment, but it's definitely there. It's more noticeable when accelerating from 70-85 ish (foot hard down).
Things I'll try next time I'm out are to see if it's also evident in other gears with a similar rpm, and see if it's evident under less harsh acceleration.
The engine management light did come on once, for a few seconds about a month ago when cruising at around 80. It went out and hasn't been seen since (fingers crossed!)
For the record, I did have turbo problems back in September:
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=7566&m...e
Any ideas would be gratefully received at this point though.
Kind regards,
Cyrill666
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>>Vauxhall thought it would
be funny to use screws with a torx head (but not
the normal torx head, the one with the little piece of
metal in the middle of the hole so standard torx bits
don't fit...Grrr). Still a decent pair of pliers soon sorted
that ;)
I know this is a bit late but
The bits to fit various security Torx bits are readily available.
I have bought two sets of so called security bits in a plastic box for just a few pounds. The kit also included flat bits with slot in them, triangular bits, hex bits with hole in the middle and many others.
I bought recently a kit in Hounslow, West London for a friend.
My kit is from a mega Tesco like supermarket in Capetown. 9 Torx and 30 other security bits in a total kit of 100 bits.
Now I am looking to use it sometime. So cheap I could not buy it.
Hi,
Purchased a C3 1.4HDi last August. Apart from having to return to various dealers on 3 occasions to sort out the screenwash tube which was getting trapped between the bonnet and body, no problems.
Yesterday, after having tolerated a squeaking noise from the front wheels for the last couple of months (it wasn't bad, but irritating) , I decided to take the car to the main dealer in Greenford, Middlesex.
After a short time, the Service Manager wanders over and tells me that the pads and shoes have 'glazed over' as a result of new legislation having prohibited the use of asbestos. Okay I say, it's less than 6 months old, sort it out. Answer back is that Citroen only warrant the brake pads/shoes for 4 months or 4000 miles. To have this repaired would cost me £160 + VAT! Also, there was no guarantee that the problem would not return immediately. Needless to say, I was deeply unimpressed and he knew it. He agreed that it wasn't fair, but said that if he did the repair, the garage would not be able to claim the warranty work back from Citroen. Fuming, I tell him to ring Customer Services at Citroen UK. They don't want to talk to me, but he explains the problem, and, funny old thing, they authorise the work, even though the car has covered 6600 miles.
So, why didn't he ring them in the first place (I think I know the answer to that one already!) and what other parts of my allegedly comprehensive 3 year warranty are specifically excluded? Has anyone else had this problem? Does any other manufacturer have this get out clause on the warranty.
Paul D Read more
Can't quite follow why glazing is said to result from light use, to paraphrase the point. I'd have thought said glazing more likely from prolonged contact between pad/shoe and disc/drum, causing constant heat. In geology, (now dimly rememberd) high heat equals formation of glass (obsidian) esp. when allowed to cool rapidly. If so, this implies binding. Therefore fault with brake system. I'm not a mech/tech but would be interested in taking the argument of the garage to bits!
The DVLA leaflet INS115 states that the fee for exchanging a paper licence for a photocard licence (which you have to do anyway when you change addresses) is £18, and the fee for the removal of expired endorsements is also £18. If I exchanged my paper licence for a photocard, would the removal of an expired SP30 be automatic and be included in the £18 fee for the licence, or would I have to separately request removal of the endorsement and pay an additional £18 for this (dubious) privilege ?
Is there any disadvantage to having an expired endorsement on your licence, and is it worth £18 to get it removed ?
L'escargot by name, but not by nature. Read more
Answering the first part of the original question, if you won't be changing address, then there would only be one £18 fee to both change to a photocard and remove the endorsements.
James
Is it me or car insurance going through the roof?? My 98 2.0 16v vectra is £550 fully comp, I know London is not the best place to have a car but even so at 41 I had hope it would be less,anybody know of companies that might be cheaper or specialise in Vauxhalls ?? Read more
Me neither.
2nd time I write this!! there must be some sort of time out feature. This time I will highlight and copy the message b4 I press "post this message".
OK so breifly, when compared to my first version :o)
2.0 16V Omega
what function does the engine coolant serve to the throttle housing, I find it hard to believe it could output any noticable heat to the housing, hence to the temperature of the air coming into the engine, given that it only briefly mates with the throttle housing.
what is the engine coolant pipes function where they join a vacuum pipe (from the rocker cover) where the pipe joins to the throttle housing just below the throttle valve.
why is there two pipes from the rocker cover to the throttle housing, the larger one joins the air intake duct, the smaller one vacuum quality joins below the throttle valve. What do these two pipes do? why does the engine function when these pipes are blocked up.
I also discovered that later Omegas have an oil separator on the top of the cranckcase breather hose, which can be easily fitted to older engines which don't have it, it helps to stop the breather pipes from blocking up. GM partnumber 9 193 502
Wouldn't it be nice if GM were to have a website where you could enter the GM part number and you could get a price & description of the part aswell as those exploded assembly drawings which you see at the dealers it would save a lot of phone calls or visits to the dealers.
Kev Read more
Well it makes a little more sense now, thanks, I can see that the coolant hoses going to the vacuum pipe, help to keep the oil sludge in a liquid form.
btw in the process of renewing that vacuum pipe, which was 100% full throughout its full length of clogged up dirt, I decided that the metal pipe through the throttle housing must also be blocked, I unblocked it using a drill bit. But the hole did not appear to go all the way through to the inside of the housing. I removed the throttle valve assembly and drilled from the inside, again unable to pass the bit all the way through. I cleaned out the old vacuum pipe and reconnected a cut portion of it. I filled a syringe with white spirit and injected it into the pipe, at first nothing came through , then a little and eventually it flooded through. I can now be sure that the hole is clear.
It is weird though that it has been designed so that the hole can not be cleaned easily, because, it is not in a straight line.
But what about the coolant hoses which mates with the throttle housing? what is the function of that part. Again thinking about it it is near another vacuum pipe which joins at the rear so I guess it is to try to help keep that from becoming blocked.
My car's running fine and then on occasions loses revs and begins to kangaroo and the fuel injection system malfunction light comes on. Sometimes flooring the accelerator makes it stop, sometimes I have to switch the engine off for a few minutes, but it only ever happens once in a journey and often days pass before it happens again - any suggestions? thanks*
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Many thanks I've been having similar problems and I now know what it could be
SXe
It was let slip to me today that Gloucs. Police propose a new scheme for first time speeders. They offer a 3 day course for £60.00 (and no points) in lieu of prosecution. Dunno when and where this is coming into force but the source was reliable. Read more
>>However, for a lot of people three days off work means three days of not getting paid and since these are the kind of people who spend a lot of time on the road......
Ah, but for people whose whole life would end in disaster in the face of a lost licence or enforced training course, they have another scheme;
If you don't go speeding, they don't prosecute you for it and you will lose no time off work, get no points on your licence, and have no fines to pay.
What's more, they are prepared to expand this part of the scheme to cover anybody who drives in their area.
How concerning is a sort of whooshing squeak when the clutch pedal is depressed? My Yaris sometimes exhibits this, and I spotted somewhere that it may be related to a clutch slave cylinder. The squeak isn't very loud and doesn't happen all the time - usually just when the car is cold, and the clutch seems fine otherwise. Do I have anything to worry about? The car is under warranty for another 8 months, but I'm not sure if this would count as a warranty claim or not. I do recall my mother's Saab used to make a similar noise and did so for ages with no obvious trouble, but I do tend to worry about unidentified noises! Read more
I'm not too clear on this, but I got 12 months 'Manufacturer equivalent' warranty when I bought the car last October. Does this mean that anything that would be fixed under the normal 3 years warranty will still be fixed, or are there typically more limitations? I've only actually got about 2 months of the 'original' warranty left if it does many any difference.
Is it worth waiting to see if it gets any worse, or play it safe and get it done under the original warranty?
Browse
I might look into the C5. Brilliant car at a bargain price (£10K). I also noticed that the boot is huge.
But, I will probably wait until I am sure they are reliable. But from what I have heard, the newer models seem to be great.