August 2003
I am looking at buying a new Focus from either Motorpoint or Trade Sales.
Having spoken to both I am still a bit in the dark regarding the Ford warranty and how it applies to cars purchased via this route.
Basically - will I get the same 3 year Ford warranty I would get from a dealership? Can anyone who has bought a Ford from either of these let me know.
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From my local biker forum today:
Will you give a lady a joyride?
The female students of the University of the Philippines, Diliman Quezon City would like to experience back riding on big bikes so we need at least 100 big bikes to help them out. The ladies will ride with the bikers during a motorcade that all sizes and types of bikes are invited to join. The free concert afterwards will feature bands like True Faith, Twisted Halo, Matilda, The Brew, Aerid Fumes, Bridge, Imago and many more. An array of food and beverage booths will also be set up in the vicinity of the event. There will also be games and prizes awaiting all the participants. JOYRIDE is on Friday night, September 12, 2003. Assembly is 5:00 in the afternoon. at the AS Parking Lot, U.P. Campus, Diliman, Quezon City.
..as we like to say, only in the Philippines. Now I have to explain to Growlette how this is a valid exercise in promoting motorcycle goodwill as part of the educational experience.
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HJ you are too kind. At first I thought you meant a '71 Boss Mustang 351, but I guess a V-Rod catches the eye pretty well too. I threw my leg over one in Florida last year. Very strange feeling to think I was on a Harley, because it's so well mannered and not a bad-ass bike like mine. Goes nicely though and makes a change from the plastic fantastics. Imported here in the Phils it's a ridiculous price alas.
Can someone please tell me if it’s any easy modification to have power permanently on the cigarette lighter socket on my 2001 Astra Estate without the ignition being on.
Thank you Read more
I would have thought the simplest way would be to gain access to the rear of the cig lighter, disconnect and insolate the existing spade connector with electrical tape, and then connect a new wire from the cig lighter to the battery, making sure that you incorperate an in line fuse into the circuit as near to the battery as possible. As for the size of fuse, I would use the same ampage rating as the existing one thats already in the fuse box.
For my sins I am in the process of replacing the Head/gasket on a T-reg 306 diesel ( 1868cc version ). Can anyone tell me 1. If I need to replace the head-bolts 2. What is the torque and sequence
3 What Peugeot charge for this job - it\'s a right pig !
4 Any pitfalls - other than don\'t attempt it . Read more
I suspect it's to do with the higher compression ratio in diesel engines
I have never actually seen this pop-up that people are talking about? Where/when does it appear? Read more
just seen the advert on the site very impressive.
Hi, having taken my car to be inspected for it's faulty air con unit(bolt had snapped off) causing a new non air con fan belt to be fitted I was faced with another problem.
On lifting the bonnet, the oil cap had come loose and the top of the engine block covered in oil. The chap managed to re-seal the cap and it is now fine but he told me as he stated at the time that it was because the engine was fighting aganst the auto box (which he previously said was knackered).
When I first collected the car from him there were several auto box problems for a couple of weeks when revved medium to hard and I then had to resort to D1,2,3 etc.
He did a quick check by turning on the sports mode and then the weather button next to gear shifter and told me the auto box was not switched on as the TC light would have come on briefly if it was.
When he fixes the aircon he said he'd atke another look at the box. He has a new £7k piece of kit which plugs into the ecu giving fault descriptions as well as codes. As far as I can tell the auto box seems to be operating ok, altho it did clunk a little when not used for a week to start with between changes.
I'd be grateful if anyone could shed any light on or ideas on this. I have been to Vauxhall and they couldn't decipher the original fault codes!!
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Hi, Are you still having problems with your autobox or have you found a cure. I seem to be having the same problems.
Mnay leasing companies are now telling leasees to take their cars to AA service centres after the 60k 3 year warranty is up.
My local garage tells me they are unable to service my Saab 9-3 properly as they don't have the code book that translates what the plug in computer tells them.
Has anyone had experience of AA service centres and do they have the ability to reset all the computer gubbins? Read more
When I had a Mercedes 190E I used to get it serviced first by Halfords then the AA (when Halfords sold the servicing business).
I used them in two different towns and the service was always first rate and very competitive compared to so called specialist garages and of course MB franchises.
I recently took my 2002 Polo (1.2 E 65) to France on holiday. Before going, I asked my VW dealer about headlamp converters (the handbook says consult your dealer). They duly ordered me a conversion kit (about £10) and fitted it (about £15). The kit turns out to be two small strips of adhesive tape, and apparently an adjustment to the lights was also necessary. They now tell me that I need to have the lights re-adjusted back for UK use.
Obviously I'm not happy at having to shell out some £25 each way (£50 total) for every foreign trip. With my old (1984) Polo, it was a simple matter of black insulating tape.
For the future, despite my requests for information, the dealer has not given any clear instructions as to whether and how I can carry out the adjustment myself.
Does anyone know how to do this for the 2002 Polo? Am I stuck with having to go to the dealer every time? Or with using some random black tape and taking a risk (including the risk of invalidating my insurance, I expect)?
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VW dealer told me it's not a DIY job as you have to use a headlamp aligner.
Not satisfied with this, I contacted VW UK head office. They say that they 'recommend' the use of their own kit, and that it is fitted by a dealer, but that I could just buy a conversion kit from, e.g., Halfords, and follow the instructions in there.
My MK4 Golf 1.6 has an unstable idle. It is at its worst when trying to fast-idle at 1,200rpm – it cycles between 1,000 and 2,000 revs with the throttle pedal “kicking” each time the revs reach 2,000.
I suspect the idle control valve may be faulty. Does anyone have any suggestions please?
The car is a 2000 W and has done 40,000 miles. It is an Auto.
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Stop-Press latest! The car became undriveable – it wouldn’t run below 1,400rpm and then very lumpily.
The inlet manifold was full of oil, so I took it off and washed it in petrol.
The plugs were due for changing, so I fitted a new set.
On re-assembly the car ran perfectly, with the idle rock-steady at 800rpm.
My conclusion is that the oil in its bronchial tubes caused the symptoms. The jury is still out over whether overfilling was the root cause, or if I will get a recurrence.
Incidentally, I tried to read the fault codes by linking pins 5 & 6 of the diagnostic connector. Unlike my Dad’s Vectra, there is no light on the dash with which to read the codes. Can anybody tell me how to do it please?
With thanks again to Honest John and contributors.
John D
Is it my imagination, but did diesel used to be cheaper than petrol in summer and slightly more expensive in winter when people bought heating oil?
I was looking forward to cheaper fuel in summer.
Oh well.
On my 3rd Citroen. Saxo, Xsara, C5. Read more
I think long ago diesel was much cheaper than petrol all the year round, because the tax used to be much lower. Now it is so much more popular in cars they have put the tax up. Watch the tax go up on LPG if it really catches on.
Browse
"you have to be a bit careful because the cars are pre-registered"
Yes, ours was two days old:).
I checked the VIN out with a franchised dealer and it is indeed two years. I also learnt that the second year will not cover interior trim, i.e. seats, steering wheel etc. I suppose there would be too many wear and tear claims at 23 months old if it did cover trims.