July 2003
Has anyone seen the new VW Polo advert ? Based on the Land of the giants. Brilliant!!! Makes me want one. Best car advert ever.
:-) Read more
I'm about to sell one of my cars and wondered how fellow posters deal with the issue of buyers test driving cars. If I let a buyer drive my car with me as passenger and then he crashes the car I won't be covered by my insurance. Should I refuse the buyers request however they aren't going to be too happy. Anyone know the answer? Read more
I have to return comment as you do seem very arrogant-
>>Well, as I said, I would not sell to the likes of you with that technique, but would certainly to genuine buyers who are not time wasters. >> Well as i wouldnt come and see your vehicle then this comment is irrelevant. You've labelled me a timewaster for my comment! very strange....
I never joke. >> oooh Mr Serious. I think i heard that line in a film once. But i have to agree - you really dont joke as you do seem to take yourself far too seriously.
No i wouldnt be surprised that many dont keep all the docs, however my response would be that a lot of people dont care for their cars. my comment was in reference to those that do.
Regards the ID. It WONT stop you from being burgled, as you're very unlikely to find who did it. An ID for a test drive is not conclusive proof of a burgler.
Regarding the Vauxhall 2.2litre, Ecotec engine, 2002 model.
On a recent service visit to the main Vauxhall dealer i pointed out that my vehicle (fitted with this engine)on occations felt as if the power dropped off momentarily during hard acceleration.
When i picked up the car they told me that the technician had reprogrammed the ECU with the latest version of the software.
I am aware of the function of the ECU but wondered if anyone could enlighten me a bit more about what improvements i might expect if any.
Thanks in advance. Read more
Things is, NG, did it fix the problem?
I've just had the ECU of my Astra downloaded with the latest software to cure hesitation between 1500 and 2000 revs that made it a pain in traffic. Worked a treat, and has also reduced the previously quite high cold idle speed without upsetting the cold runing, so a double bonus, not that I'd ever mentioned this. Obviously this software is modified more often than you might imagine.
Regards
John S
The why do they bother thread has me thinking. What estate cars look better than the saloon or hatch they are based on. My list is
Rover 75, New Avensis, Alfa 156, most BMW touring(s), most volvos, new mondeo.
And I always loved the look of the old rover 3.5 when they had the non standard estate conversion. Read more
Used to agree about the Alfa 156, but having seen the
estates around for a while, I definitely prefer the saloon.
Citroen C5 far better looking as an estate though.
I know what you mean about the C5, especially when it has roof rails. The saloon (my car) rear overhang looks a bit short from some angles, like there should be more saloon style boot.
Ben
On my 3rd Citroen. Saxo, Xsara, C5.
I know that this isnt an Audi forum but i had to let someone who might appreciate it know about a recent Audi Drivers day i attended.
My friend got a new A4 in March and Audi invited him and a guest to this driving day where you could drive a selection of Audis - Unaccompanied!!!
Well i say Unaccompanied. The only accompanied drive was in the New Audi S4.
Heres a brief run down, but if you want to know more just ask!
Audi S4. Accompanied with the 25yr old salesman in the back (no control - ha ha!), but when we got in and asked if we could give it a boot his response was - 'you can redline it if you wish'. oh. my. gawd. So we set off. this car is a m a z i n g. 0-60 in 5.6 or something. We absolutely caned the crap out of it. fantastic. We asked if we could do a 0-60 test on a quiet road. he said 'fine. i'll time you'!!!!!!! we couldnt get to 5.6 but 5.9 was best we could. we also averaged 7.9mpg over 11 miles. All i can say is i want a 4.2 v8 S4. I only need £37k now.
The other cars we drove were the TT 225 bhp, and the new A3. TT had very heavy steering but quite nippy (to say the least) but could do with a little more power - they didnt have the 3.2v6 there. shame. As it was unaccompanied we thought we'd do a 'few' 0-60 tests in the TT. 6.5 was the best, but the clutch started to smell so we gave up......
The new A3 2.0 FSI is very smooth but it has NO POWER. All very lovely but so dull.
I have to say tho. If you get the opportunity to test drive an S4 - DO IT. The car sounds fantastic. goes like s*** thru a goose. and is just so addictive.
Read more
Good points about the adverts.
I heard that too. When you consider that 98 ron or so means optimax at about 2-3p p/litre more, that would work out about £1.50 - £2.00 more per tank. Which will last about 1 1/2 weeks for the average driver that = 35 tanks per year = £70 more per year. Not a lot but still something.
A fairly frivolous thread for a Friday afternoon :-
During my travels up & down the M3/27 I see vast hordes of medium sized cars, I'm thinking Astra / Focus / Megane / Golf etc. I would say roughly 90% of the ones I see are hatchbacks, only 10% saloons.
So why do the volume manufacturers bother offering an extensive range of saloons in this category? Do they sell shedloads in mainland Europe? Read more
...Oh, and Adolphe Sax, so only three to go... and then I spotted the web link that's just been posted, which I guess takes the sport out of it! ;-)
Hi everyone
When I bought my Vauxhall Carlton 2L CDX (private) a few weeks ago I noticed during the inspection that one of the blades on the thermo-viscous fan was missing (probably caused by the previous owners attempts to remove the very large and awkward shroud that projects from the rear of the radiator).
However, when checking the condition of the spare wheel I noticed a second hand replacement fan nestled in there with it.
I replaced the fan at my first opportunity (i.e. when I had located two large enough spanners in the skip that purports to be my garage) but kicked myself for not inspecting the replacement more closely. There were two rods welded across the large rotating nut and onto the backing plate. The effect of this means that the fan will not ‘free wheel’, but will spin at a rate exactly that of the shaft.
I went ahead and fitted it reasoning that more efficient cooling was better than less efficient cooling. Especially in this weather.
I think I have the rudimentary understanding of thermo-viscous fans in that they operate on a kind of silicon (?) clutch effect i.e. when enough heat is present the silicon stiffens or solidifies so that the ‘take up’ of the fan corresponds more closely to that of the engine speed and when less heat is present they ‘free wheel’ thereby creating less of a cooling effect.
When running the car the gauge returns a temperature reading that hovers just above the first quarter mark. It rises to about the halfway mark on steep hills (and there are lots of those around here!). This is just a little cooler than what I had previously observed. There are no ‘Normal’, ‘Hot’ or other indicators on the gauge.
Is the correct operation of this fan vitally important?
Thanks for any advice.
Regards to all
Bob
Read more
Hi Dave N, the increased warm up time is caused by the fan inducing unnecessary cold air and blowing it over the engine. In addition, even with the stat closed water stil circulates arounfd the block and some through the radiator this is to avoid the stat opening and stone cold water being pumped into a cold block and cracking it. Hope that clarifies your thinking. Regards Peter
The flimsy plastic surround on mine has split (the bit that makes it flush against the roof). Haven't got a clue how it happened. As far as I know it is not a seal so water ingress isn't a a problem (the cars only 18mths old). It just looks naff now. VW say that they will have to fit a whole new aerial £75 plus fitting which obviously I wish to avoid. I'm not even sure whether they would have to remove the roof lining to get at it!
Any ideas where I can get the little plastic bit from please? Read more
Job done under warranty during my lunch break and new aerial fitted without fuss.
Fingers crossed that the new Lakeside dealership are as good as they seem.
Drove to Stratford-upon-Avon early this morning.
Clear road, sunny but not over-hot, Korngold film music on the stereo. Bliss.
Has anyone else enjoyed a drive recently? Read more
Yes. Yet another happy customer for Stratford upon Avon last Friday.
And a happy drive to Whitley Bay and the coast on Monday.
But I really enjoyed Melbourne to Perth (WA) last year in a Mazda 4WD, taking in a few vineyards (someone else driving !), a swarm of locusts that lasted 80km,...
Aaaah...
The radiator or one of its associated hoses has sprung a leak on my '93 Audi S2.
The ccar is already booked into my local dealer for a different job on Thursday next week (24th).
Can I simply keep topping up the coolant resevoir with tap water until it goes into the garage, or should I look at getting it fixed sooner?
I have no idea where the leak is coming from, and I'm not technical enough to trace it.
Read more
Agree - try the Wynns stuff it looks very good and if in doubt you can contact their helpline. Juyst do a search on Wynns.
Browse
.jpg)
I thoroughly enjoyed the advert.
It lifted me from my annoyance at reading another advert in the "Mail" yesterday. The Telegraph comes home, and we were away for the weekend, so I bought a change.
Anyway, I noticed an ad for a Daihatsu Charade. It read:
The most fuel efficient hatchback in the world**
No, it's not, I thought. Wonder what ** means?
Looking in the small print we see:
**The most fuel efficient 4/5 seater petrol engined car in the world.
Not the same thing, at all.