February 2003
Hello,
I am considering buying a circa 1996 Saab 900 for my wife, she wants something a bit stronger than her Clio, due to the menace of 4x4 driving mums round here. but something different with a bit of style.
Anyhow, What is the longeivity of these cars like ? for example if I find a good, well maintained example, but with a lot of miles - like 120 000 would it be a reasonable bet so long as the price is not more than £ 2 - 2500 ?
I would be interested in your experiences, I have read the car by car breakdown.
Marc
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We have just acquired a VERY low-mileage 1.3 Jan 1995 Fiesta.
It starts well when cold but the engine keeps dying and fails to restart when hot. The garage cannot find any faults. At one point the fuel level was very low and I wonder if there is dirt blocking something but it is intermittent and the garage could not replicate the fault. The car had been sitting unused for a number of months. Has anyone else had this problem or can anyone suggest what the fault may be, please? Read more
Well there you go, I am now laughing at myself. no distributor!!!! Still a nice story to tell about the old beast, I mean the Montego that is.
I put heat to full, rear window heater on and de-ice side quarter windows and mirrors first.
I assume that the tiny amount of heat from the heater will be more useful than the advantage of having the heater matrix off to ecourage the coolant to heat quicker.
What does eveeryone else do? Heatter on or off?
--
These are my own opinions, and not necessarily those of all Toads. Read more
Perhaps I worded that incorrectly. What deicer does if it gets
on the paint is to remove any protective coating on the
paint, ie Wax/Polish, thus leaving the paint open to the elements.
Normally the warning on the side of the can will say
this.
I see! I knew what Mark meant about the quoting! Sorted it out now.
I have a 1995 Nissan Primera 1.6 SLX.
I intend to add a coolant-leak additive as I think I have a small leak somewhere in the system.
Can anyone give me some tips as to how to get the most out of it. Someone suggested running the car with the cap off for a bit while it circulates.
Just some general tips would be a real help - feel free to state the obvious - I may not have thought of something.
Thanks in advance
Paul
{Added info from drop down menus that weren't previously an option when this post was first written} Read more
How did this work out in the end? Is the car ok?
What is my car worth in a) private sale, to sell quickish
b) part ex against a discounted car?
Honda Accord 2.0 LS 99T 96,000 dark blue, cream interior, original condition, full Honda service history, tax & mot till June. 6 stack CD, elec w/ows & roof, air con. Read more
To be honest, at that mileage those prices seem a little strong to me - though I'm no expert. Accords are tough and well built and, if the colour and make suit your local taxi market you might get lucky, but £4995 is more like retail, which means I'd be asking £4500 and accepting less to get shot of the thing, and would probably jump about £3750 part-ex. Just get several part-ex quotes against lots of deals to make sure you're doing the right thing.
hi can any backroomers recomend a company in the manchester/cheshire area who could carry out a four wheel alignment /steering check? as my local fast fit garage has had four attempts and has not solved the problem to my satisfaction many thanks Read more
hi jon yes i did , car now sorted thanks very much>> Andy
Did you ever go to either of these garages?
Jonathan
I've just been trying to valet my '96 Xantia Estate before I put it up for sale preparation and discovered 2 large pools of water under the rear seats! The actual seat cushions are dry, it's just under the bench that the water seems to collect.
I'm not certain where it's coming in from but think it's probably from the bottom of the tailgate. Apart from the obvious harm that it's going to do the interior, I need to try and sell this car soon. The car has been standing on my drive for a couple of weeks now so we didn't notice it earlier. I bail it out and a couple of days later it's full again - I may have to install a bilge pump at this rate :-)
Is this a "characteristic" of the Xantia estate and what can I do to fix it?
Many thanks.
Chad.R
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I think it's the seal on the rear windscreeen wiper that lets water in on the estate.
M,
following on from our previous discussion re-Camilla, which has sunk to the murky depths of the Tech forum, this pitched up today ... You'll just have to keep grinning at her in the mirror!
(BTW, junior - 8 mths - has decided he likes the motoring thing. However, he gets really riled if the car stops at lights etc... and starts shouting and carrying on until we start moving again!)
Safety fears for kids
American safety regulators are concerned that more children are sitting in the front of cars, where they are at greater risk during an accident.
According to Reuters, the US government released a new survey that found that about 30 per cent of children aged between four and seven were sitting in the front seat. The survey also said that 15 per cent of infants and 10 per cent of toddlers aged between one and three were being placed in the front seat.
The safety inspectors conducting the poll observed 3 500 children in passenger vehicles, while monitoring motor safety habits at 1 100 intersections in the country.
"Youngsters are at greater risk of severe injury or death when they're involved in a crash while riding in the front seat," Dr Jeffrey Runge, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said at a news conference this week.
"It is vitally important that all parents secure their children in the back seat. The back is always the safest place for kids to ride."
Safety regulators advised that placing children in the back seat could reduce the risk of serious injury or death during an accident by nearly 40 per cent.
Children in the front seat are also at risk of injury caused by the force of the inflating passenger airbag.
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Well, its not actually very clear.
Statistically, from best to worst, the safety of the seats is back middle, back left, back right, front left, front right.
Although I guess that is probably reversed in a acountry which drives on the other side.
However, that is not taking into account whether or not someone is sitting in a child seat or not.
Also the Americans are pretty horrible in their treatment of statistics. For example, they are quite prepared to say something increases your chance of being hurt by 40% when they mean is that it moves your chances of being hurt from 1:10,000,000 to 1:6,000,000
In addition, they rarely take into account contributing factors. e.g. it may be that a child is 40% more likely to be hurt in an accident if he is in the front rather than the back. However, it is equally possible that the child is 60% more likely to even be in an accident because of parental distracion if he is sat in the back.
In other words, I never believe any US scientific report befor eit is confirmed by someone else.
However, Camilla is still in the back and going to stay there I think. But I still have my doubts that her risk in the front is any higher than an adults.
Now I know this is not car related, but can anyone point me in the direction of a company in the North of England (from Doncaster North) that does vehicle racking solutions for Transits etc..?
Any help much appreciated, as I have 35 new vans arriving sometime in the next 6 weeks that will need racking etc..! Read more
TVL (The Van Liners)
www.thevanliners.co.uk/
I have to grow old - but I don't have to grow up
Still can't believe people are stoopid enough to drive with the rear window completely frosted up, both rear side windows frosted, passenger window frosted, windscreen frosted - with a small 'seal' hole scraped from which to peer through, and most of the drivers window frosted. Absolute morons. Saw several today including one beemer (! like I should be surprised) which drove past a police car and the rozza cared not a jot. Then saw another numbnut with who obviously thinks 'opaque' is the new 'clear' when it comes to trendy windows - in an old Carlton. He broke down on a roundabout - I hope he's still there freezing his nuts off.
Rant over. I hope they all crash - without affecting other road users (unless other road user is a similar eejit) - and suffer tremendous pain before expiring.
I thought the kettle brigade were aerated in the brain dept but I'd rather people damage plastic surrounds and crack their windscreens than drive with a soft-focus/no view of their surroundings.
They make me mad they do.... you might have picked up on this by now!!! :-) Read more
Dave,
I agree completely, but the best part is that they don't re-freeze when you get moving. Scraped only windows are prone to this problem, not sure about the hot water option in this respect.
Chris
Browse
Your logic is sound, and the price right for what you suggest. The 1995 900 is not a drivers car but would be a good solid choice for your wife. Look at the forums on the Saab Owners Club website for a flavour of the car at saabclub.co.uk.
You could consider a 9000 - bigger and roomier, you could get a moderate mileage 1993-94 model for what you want to pay.