August 2003
My 2001 Saab 2.0 lpt has had a problem with gearbox selectors since new, once the selectors were changed then the complete box replaced, still problems, then 50,000 they changed the box again and the clutch, now 62,000 and out of warranty the selectors are sticking again. It drives fine for a while then you cant get it into 3rd or 4th, always going upward in the box, then the next chang its fine again, may be for another 60 - 100 miles, then it does it once, then inthe next five changes it will do it every time, then not for another 200 miles.
Apart from flogging the car, has anyone got any ideas? Read more
hoping someone can help! am working on a polo to bring up to scratch and sell on. The manifold is cracked and am therefore changing it - however, going to undo one of the manifold-head nuts today, and by just touching (and im not exaggerating here!) the nut, the stud sheared, obviously already weakened and just waiting to be touched. anyway, some of the stud has come away with the nut.
how do i go from here in trying to put a new stud in? ive used bolt extractors before but am i right in thinking you cant extract the stud in the same way, as its not meant to come out?! if so how is it remedied? is it a head-out job?
thanks
steve
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Nice one Steve!
Thanks for getting bck to us with the results. It's nice to know that our wild guesses work! :)
Now we know how you did it, we are better prepared should any of us hit a similar problem.
Thanks again for the update and above all - WELL DONE!
H
Due to the recent hot weather the A/C did not seem to be working, so I had it checked. The system was recharged, I was told this was necessary. After a few miles it was apparent the A/C was not working. I took the car back to the garage and it is now necessary to change the A/C unit at a cost of about £570 incl VAT !!! Apparently it has a slight leak and will not hold pressure and as it is a throw away unit it cannot be repaired. The car has been serviced always by Ford and has never had the A/C serviced? Yet now I was told it should be re-charged every two years.
Any comments please?
"Tighnaglais" Read more
Did whoever re-charged your A?c not do a leak check for you before they re-charged your system?
My Escort's A/C gave up in the middle of August this year (hottest week) I called an A/C specialist called Andrew Doxey from the mansfield/shirebrook area. He performed the leak check and was able to tell me where the leak was so I could get it repaired before re-charge.
Also you can as previously stated by one of your other replies run your A/c through winter to provide drier air in the cabin and also demist quicker.
Thanks to everybody for the feedback on my previous problem.
On the same 2000 Astra 1.7DTi (isuzu) with 42k miles of which I have owned for about a month, I have noticed that when starting from cold (and also from warm when standing for minimum of approx an hour) the oil pressure warning light takes a good 5 seconds to estinquish. I have changed oil filter and put some decent Magnatec GTD oil in her, as it never hurts to do so, but alas same characteristic.
It never comes on whilst driving and I do know she is slightly over-filled. Apparently an easy mistake to make with the 16v's.
As this is my first diesel, am I looking at a normal characteristic, or should I be worried? Read more
Had a very siilar problem with another make diesel car which was cured by changing the oil filter to the manufacturer's own - this seemed to have a better one way valve and stopped all the oil draining out overnight leaving me with dry bearings and top end on starting.
IF YOU'RE NOT THE LEAD DOG,
THE SCENERY NEVER CHANGES
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Seen today:
STOP GLOBAL WHINING.
I have just had my VW Golf 60.000 serviced by a local VW dealer - which is fine, I can swallow a £200 servicing bill. What I'm not happy with is a quote for £1020 for extra work which needs to be carried out. The list includes Cambelt & water pump, Front & rear disks and and pads, wipers, rear washer jet replacement and re-welding of centre exhaust mount. Does anyone know of a reliable VW enthusiast who could do the job cheaper?? I live in the Isleworth, Twickenham, Richmond area. Cheers. Paul Read more
Give Hometune a ring, in my experience they give good service at a fraction of the dealer price, they will also come to you wherever you are!
i've got around 5k to spend, and am looking for a hatchback/saloon that looks quite sporty but not too dear on the insurance. Any ideas?
So far i've come up with the megane or xsara coupe's, but there must be more.
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Oh and who are you insured with RossD?
I searched exhaustively to find £920 fully comp with no NCB, age 20, but i quite fancy paying £370ish in a years time!
My L-reg Nissan Micra starts normally from cold, but once warmed up becomes a nightmare to get going. The engine turns over but just will not fire - this happens when the engine is warmed up and is even worse in hot weather. It feels like the engine is flooding.
My local garage (ex-Nissan dealer) have tried everything they can think of to no avail including fitting another throttle housing (a second-hand one). Otherwise the vehicle runs OK. Any ideas? Read more
This is a known problem. I think there's a modified harness for the coolant temp sensor - ask your dealer.
I've noticed over the last week or so that my car felt a little looser than normal. Nothing too scary, but just not quite right.
Then last night I took a sharpish left corner quite fast and almost had the steering wheel yanked out of my hand!
It felt as though I was driving over a pot hole repeatedly with the wheel pulling even tighter and then releasing and then pulling again. All repeating at about 3 times a second for 2 or 3 seconds!
The problem is only on sharp left turns. Straights and right turns are fine. Even gentle lefts are OK.
I've taken both front wheels off but could see nothing wrong. There is no excessive movement in either wheel.
Someone at work has suggested that it might be either wheel bearings or a loose tie rod. Surprisingly enough, I had new tie rods fitted not that long ago by my local Audi dealer when they were doing the tracking.
Is there an easy way for a non techo like myself to check the tie rods? If it is them, can I expect my dealer to fix it for free?
Thanks in advance
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Thank goodness it's OK and we didn't get some wag, in response to "The problem is only on sharp left turns. Straights and right turns are fine. Even gentle lefts are OK."
saying you should just not turn sharply left!
Who'd be daft enough to think that, I wonder?
After reading threads where people have handed back lemon cars after half the HP has been paid, I was just wondering does this blight their credit record? Anybody know? Read more
Handing back seems to be catching on! I wonder if eventually the HP companies will create their own lemon list which they won't lend on.
Browse
I think it is fairly well-known that these gearboxes are troublesome. If I were you I would take the car to an independent SAAB specialist rather than the dealer - independent guy is likely to be a bit more clued-up to dealing with these than the franchised dealer.
Could also try a good gearbox rebuilding company for advice.