July 2003
Halfords have announced the redundancies of 260 staff following the company\'s acquisition by CVC Partners, from Boots, last year.
CVC also own Kwik-Fit and rumours of a merger of the two businesses are, as yet, unconfirmed.
Read more
I believe manufacturers pay out a small fortune for the names their cars end up with. Despite this, they end up with some right clunkers in some cases, e.g. 'Probe' sounds distinctly surgical, and little else.
Backroomers can probably do better, so what's your suggestions?
For a start, I suggest:-
'Flinky' for one of the tiny town cars.
'Quantum' for something a bit grand.
Over to you..... Read more
Or Chevrolet when they tried to market their Nova in Mexico. Nova is Spanish for "won't go".
I don't think the following is covered by the Highway Code, so I am interested in opinions.
Imagine a single-track country lane with passing places. Who should give way -- i.e. back up to the nearest passing place, assuming they are equidistant -- on a steep section? Should it be the car going down the hill or or the one going up the hill? Read more
" I'm most awfully sorry young (!) man , but I
don't do backwards "
Happily there is published proof that this was not me!!!! (ref my post from Saturday 19th)
;)
(not that I'm quite in that category yet, despite some opinions!)
Backing off now....
"Appearances can be Deceptive"
Hi all,
I have a vauxhall vectra hatchback. 97 (P) reg. As i am thinking of sticking a set of alloy wheels on the car, i would like to know if it's possible to change the drum brakes to disc brakes.
Is it just a matter of takeing of the old & putting on the new. Or does it have 2B a complete axle change?
If can just change from drum brakes to disc brakes, is it a very complicated job?
Many thanks
Paul @ Cheshunt Read more
Plus you'd probably have to change the master cylinder....and if you have ABS.....that's bad news.
There is an advert on page 22 of today's Daily Telegraph by this outfit, which appears to be sponsored in some way by the paper. It offers various services for up to £24.99 per month, such as annual servicing, warranty, MOT costs and breakdown cover. Has anyone any experience of it? (The web address given in the paper is wrong and should be www.motoreasy.co.uk.) Read more
I looked into it. It seems to work by harnessing the services of local cheap & cheerful non-specialist garages. If you're happy with that, then it's probably a good deal. I found out which garage was my local prospect, and backed off because I didn't like the look of them.
After catching a bit of deals on wheels that featured the rover p6 3500s they mentioned that the car was available with air con. I could do with a comfortable cruising car with aircon/climate control. With expected low mileage a tax exempt classic is the cheapest option for having another car. I had previously thought something modern that would do 45+ mpg might work out cheaper but depreciation would probably wipe out any savings along with higher parts prices. 2k cars that were that economical would probably lose the money in parts costs.
I would be looking for something that would do around 30 ish mpg like my vitesse but preferably with a bigger fuel tank and definitely not a soft top.I really fancy an interceptor but at 12 mpg it is far too costly! Comfort is the main concern along with something that has good parts availability. Budget probably less than 5k and preferably closer to £3k.
Are there any cars other than the Rover that fit the description? Or is it possible to retro fit aircon say to a Triumph GT6 which is another motor I could see myself in? I can see the retrofit aircon option could be fraught with problems but a model of car that had aircon some thought must have been put into where everthing would fit.
teabelly Read more
Aah, didn't know that. I mentioned it my Dad whose father used to have a 3500s and they only managed 25 mpg at best. Perhaps converting it to use fuel injection rather than carbs might get above the magic 30 mpg.
I emailed vehvac to ask them about retro fit aircon, no answer from them yet. Another alternative was to retrofit aircon to my lancia and chip it as one of the performance chips actually improves fuel economy as the original lancia mapping isn't fab. It should give a 20% improvement which would make it do at least 25 maybe even 30 so that could be one answer.
My other alternative was an ultra fuel efficient low tax bracket supermini. The daihatsu charade seems like an obvious contender with up to 70 mpg and all without one of those evil diesel engines ;-) I'd trade off some comfort in ride for reliability and frugalness. I really need a car for very short pootling journeys and long motorway journeys and there doesn't seem to be an obvious choice to do this. A larger diesel car (could only consider the alfa romeo diesel as being the least dieselly engine out there) is a bit of a space waster as there is likely only to be me in it most of the time. A marea weekend jtd was another cheaper possibility and the extra carrying space if I wanted to carry flat packs and step ladders would be very useful but not used very often!
The daihatsu finance scheme of £1600 deposit and £99 a month for 3 years looks quite attractive too. I don't know what servicing and maintenance costs would be like though.
I think I need a car that can change from a frugal 2 seater into a long distance cruiser via sports car bruiser!
teabelly
Me again, i want to attempt an oil change on my astra TDS, what is the best oil to use and anything i need to know abaout before i take this on? Read more
Shell Rimula.
Do a search for Rimula and you're laughing.
Hello folks! Lovely day isnt it! The time has come for me to replace my 97 R Astra TDS with something insurable for a 19yr old, as i am of to University.
I have £4k to spend, and am considering a polo,a corsa or an Ibiza.
Can anybody offer any advice as to what would make the best purchase, and maybe suggest any alternatives? Had my eye on a 1.4 Focus but optimistic for £4K? Read more
Just to chuck in another name , how about a Peugeot 306 (I know the Xsara has already been suggested...). I recently p/x my 306 1.4 LX (2000 X reg, 55,000mls) for £3,800, so you should pick up one private for around the £4,000 mark.
Mine was reliable apart from some self-inflicted shock absorber damage (driving in the snow, bouncing from kerb-to-kerb!!), with service costs being £100 per 20,000 miles (I had it for 40,000 mls & 18mths) I'm fairly certain the insurance group is only 4 or 5, and its a fairly sporty car (obv. on a relative scale!)
I traded mine in against an Astra Coupe, but they're probably out of your price range. I would have thought a new shape Astra 1.6 would be in your price range, prob on a W or X plate...
Just read an ad for resurfaced disks and new pads for about half the price of new disks & pads.
What are the pros and cons ?
Sorry, pros are obvious, half price. What are the cons ? Read more
On the other topic on disks shattering (as discussed above) this used to be commonish on Fords with fixed twin piston calipers.
If one caliper piston seized (common!) then the brakes only applied force via one pad, flexing the disk in the process. Eventually after many operations in this mode the disk fractures due to metal fatigue.
The rubber and felt door seals squeak and groan where they contact the car body on my new VW Polo. I've tried dry silicone lubricant but it has no effect. I've sprayed the door seals with WD 40; this stops the noise but only for a very short time.
Response from the dealer - "They all do it, Sir!"
Any ideas please? Read more
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What exactly are Halfords for?
As far as I can tell, they have two problems. Firstly, cars are becoming harder to work on and cheaper/easier to buy new, meaning there's much less reason for DIY mechanics and parts purchases.
Secondly, those that still do DIY work or are in the trade are very, very sensitive to quality and price - which is fair enough, or we'd all just go to the franchise guys.
The only advantages that I can see they have over other shops and suppliers is that they're open longer hours (evenings and Sundays) and offer finance on larger purchases - despite the extortionate APR and high prices, it appeals to the boy racer brigade.
IMO they need to close their town centre branches, which are too small to carry an effective range, reduce prices of parts and maybe move away from own brand to OE style suppliers (Valeo, Bosch, etc.), have a greater internet presence, and improve customer service and staff training.
If a comparative minnow like GSF or euro can put its range online, Halfords definitely can. As they are selling to enthusiasts who read magazines, be it Car Mechanics or Max Power, they need to sell to people who are at least aware of the prices they can get elsewhere, even if it means charging a small premium for immediate service.
Some of those will reduce margins per item of course, but the problem appears to be that their fixed costs are too high for the volumes they're shifting, rather than they're not making enough profit per item as others are apparently managing on far less.
Obviously the greatest volume could come from selling to people who don't know the market and have no idea what products should cost - but they just don't buy their own bits or accessories any more.