September 2003
In my new VW Sharan there is a radio/cassette fitted which is also a CD player when the autochanger is fitted. I have a Kenwood autochanger taken from my previous Sharan. Is the VW ‘front end’ compatible with the Kenwood autochanger? Does the Sharan already have the connecting wire installed as part of the wiring loom?
Keep upright
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Can anybody suggest how to improve the steering on a Mk IV Golf Diesel Estate? Mine wanders around on motorways, and the tyres (old-ish Continental eco-contacts on standard steel rims) squeal horrendously when cornering at even very moderate speeds. I've checked the pressures, and even tried running them a couple of pounds harder than recomended, but to no avail. Tracking seems to be OK, as tyres are wearing very evenly across the tread pattern, with no feathered edges, or high/low spots. Read more
My wife's 1.6 SE Mk IV has pulled to the left from new...there is another thread in this site about it. Short story is that all Golf Mk IV are sensitive to camber: spent a samll fortune having 4-wheel laser alignments, etc, etc. No good. Drive it on a newly asphalted flat car park = perfect straight line, even when accelerating/barking hard. Back on open road = pulls to left very noticeably.
The Continental EcoContacts also squeal when going round roundabouts at a moderate 20 mph. Awful.
We are not buying another Golf. All we get is dealer excuses and waffle.
P.S. Front tyres lasted 29,000 miles. Rear 34,000 miles. Which is odd since car is driven gently and mostly on A roads. My Seat Arosa Diesel has still got the original front tyres after 50,000 miles and they are not even worn (no exaggerating).
Having read many posts and some quite interesting viewpoints I might be in the position soon of changing the car and wonder what you lot think.
My question is whether to buy new or used with a budget of about £16k?
I'm aware of the depreciation on new cars, but this is purely a private purchase of the heart, because i've never had a new car before and am really tempted to have the joy of running it in, taking care of it, keeping it in mint condition and just enjoying driving.
However you can get some amazing cars for the same budget.
My criteria are:
Performance
Handling
Image
Reliability
Resale Value in 3 years.
My current thoughts are:
New: Honda Civic Type R
Mini Cooper S
Seat Leon Cupra R 225 (I can go a little higher than £16k)
Used: BMW M3 EVO (98 r/s 40k miles)
Audi S3 - (2 years old less than 40k miles)
Merc CLK 320 (98 r/s 40k miles)
What do you all think?
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Considering your criteria the Merc loses out to the M3 on performance and handling, but has more usable performance than most of us mortals can handle.
What 'Image' do you want to portray? and who do you wish to impress? Apart from the sporting motoring enthusiast I suggest the majority will be more impressed by the Merc.
No contest - buy the Merc
Just had a call from the VW dealership I left my car with for a servicing this morning to say that the service is fine, but they pranged the wing and bumper.
They have offered courtesy car over weekend, but I am off on holiday on Monday and a neighbour was going to drive my car back to my house for me. She wont be able to do that in their courtesy car.
They have therefore offered to pick it up from my drive and have it back there when I return.
Am I justified in asking them to re-activate the passenger airbag (baby old enough now) as compensation, given that they have no issues about making good the damage done? Read more
Pdc,
you seem very easy going, i would be jumping up and down all over the place if they have pranged my car, last service i had i asked them to switch the wheels about for me, they did with no question but when i went to collect it there was a big scratch on one of the alloys, i told the service manager and after a small amount of arguing in which he realised it was a bad idea to call me a liar the deal was done and a new alloy was ordered,
I didnt want my alloy repaired etc becasue it wasn't like it when i took it in the garage, a week or so later and the new wheel arrived and was fitted. happy me.
On a different note, i think it is utterly disgraceful you have to pay (and £70 at that!) to get your airbag sorted out, it should be done for free in the first place, SEAT and many other car people have managed to deisgn the airbag with a key to turn it off. to make you pay to get a 5 min job done in order to make your family safe is a joke it takes advantage of people i think and in my eyes a design fault by VW. Demand a bit more than just getting that done or they'll walk all over you next time, show them you mean business and get a fair result AND make sure the repairs to your car are done properly, resprayed correctly and all that, i know im beginning to rant but it makes me cross that they've made the mistake and bashed your car and your asking us if you think its reasonable to ask them to tuen your airbag off!!! Id think it was reasonable for you to ask them to get the red carpet out and peel you grapes!!!
good luck!
My 2.0 Cabriolet has a severe intermitant hesitation under load between 2-3000 rpm, also the revs sometimes drop to 500 at tickover. The coil pack, plugs and idle valve have all been replaced but to no avail. Any ideas? Read more
No it hasn't, does the engine management flash/light when a fault is logged because it hasn't.
My 306 (97 xtdt) Seems to have a problem with burning through one particular fuse. its the one for the instrument and fascia display illumination. seems to go about every couple of months, sometimes while driving or sometimes when i start the car and switch on the lights. either way - no dash lights at all! i was wondering if this is best left as it is, fuses cost practically nothing after all, or if it means something is wrong with the wiring/instruments themselves.
BTW it is a 10amp fuse if that helps.
Thanks in advance for any replies. ( unless its about carp french electrics!) Read more
............Whereas a bulb or two over is bad!
I wonder what voltage bulbs are durability tested at?
Whilst I don't drive just for pleasure there have been occasions when on a lovely day and an clear/open road I've truly enjoyed driving. I am conscious, however, that some people seem to derive great pleasure from pushing their cars to the absolute limit whether it be in terms of pure speed, handling or whatever. What is the pleasure in this? Is it just the knowledge that they have the skill to handle their cars properly in any legal circumstances or is their pleasure derived from the 'buzz' they obtain when they're right on the limit ? If the latter, isn't this as good as an admission that these people know they're behaving dangerously but quite like it and enjoy taking the risk?
A good friend of mine used to spend much of his time racing his Kawasaki z900 he loved the thrill of high speeds and rapid acceleration. The added danger of other traffic simply spiced it all up a bit and he thought nothing of having a good old burn up on the local main road. For him it was just fun and excitement - a real buzz - but for his parents, it was the start of the end. They lost their precious son accelerating rapidly into the side of a van.
Does driving pleasure have to include danger or could we all enjoy motoring safely and reserve the antics for race days and private tracks? Read more
So despite the efforts of some to stifle debate and prevent others expressing views they don't like we managed to get there.
I should answer Joe's question about what I consider fun driving and I suppose the easiest way to do this is to say that depends on when/where.
On a busy road I enjoy staying out of trouble and anticipating the antics, errors and/or needs of other drivers. I enjoy getting from a-b unstressed and in safety. I enjoy the fact that my kids have had a pleasant ride and haven't turned white and been sick. In town I enjoy not making the lives of others miserable, letting drivers out of junctions, letting pedestrians cross the road (where safe, of course), reducing all that congestion and rage building up ahead by NOT blocking that exit. I enjoy driving in a way that is courteous and doesn't annoy others to the point where they then take risks. I let people overtake even when they're speeding. I'm not going to put myself or anyone else at risk by trying to stop them. If someone tailgates me I let them pass as soon as is safe. I never touch the brakes or just carry on going regardless thereby adding to the danger.
On the open road, sun shining, visibility clear I enjoy driving within and up to the speed limit. I find this fast enough and don't see it as some sort of challenge to my manhood. The sort of roads RF talked about are still fun to drive on at 70 or with whatever speed limit applies. Taking bends, driving over undulations etc. can be fun without pushing it to the limit.
I've done a Rally Course a Brands Hatch and found driving around a very tight and rough course in an RS200 exhilarating. I can see the benefit in learning how to handle our cars in emergency conditions and feel this would be a good addition to the test if it weren't impractical.
I don't however feel it's right to try to get my fix of excitement on public roads where my actions might well affect others.
Yesterday my car suddenly wouldn't start - I got a clicking noise, and all my electrics seemed "weak", i.e. the e/w were moving v. slowly, central locking was not always working. I got the car started with jump leads and drove for 30 minutes. Then as soon as I stopped, the electrics were dead again.
While I was driving, the electrics were not 100%, e.g. opening the el. window made the headlights dim.
Overnight, I borrowed a battery charger and attached it to the battery, but after half an hour or so, the charger reckoned the battery was fully charged, but still no joy with starting the engine.
I'm a bit clueless and hope to get a bit of advice before I take a garage's word for it that I need a new this and that.
Cheers
P.S. The car's an L-reg Rover 414 SLi Read more
Your battery is dead as a dodo.
My neighbour came out to me while I was working on a car the other day, and asked me to help him with his - the engine wouldn't turn over. I put his headlights on, and could only see a very faint glow in the elements. I told him his battery was dead. Then I tested it with a voltmeter, and it read over 12v, so I said perhaps it wasn't the battery, perhaps it was the starter motor or a bad earth somewhere. But a couple of days later he saw me again and told me he'd taken it to a garage where a new battery was fitted and all was well again. So, it shows you that batteries can be funny things, they can look like they are fine when they're not. But yours sounds totally gone, no question.
I intend to replace the rear disc's & pads on my 99V Primera 2.0 16v auto.
Partco have quoted me relacement part numbers for MINMOB1818 which I know from mintex's catalogue are front pads and part number GIRDF2591 for the disc's.
Does anyone know if these are also fronts or if this is an alternative from another maker?
Many thanks in advance.
SeanO Read more
Does Nissan own Renault or Renault own Nissan?
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>>Back to motoring: interesting dodge by Nelson Mandela. The Toyota LC attracts luxury tax because it has the factory roo bar, the winch, towbar, all that stuff ready fitted.
Nissan on the other hand sell you the basic 3500 then send you down the road to their accredited accessory dealer who fits all this genuine factory ironmongery post-sale, thus ensuring you miss the luxury tax. The Aussies think this is really clever, the Filipinos laugh like hell because that\'s the first thing they would have figured.<<
Sounds just like it used to be in the UK in the 50\'s and 60\'s when purchase tax was applied to new cars but not to extras or accessories. So at the cheap end of the market things like heaters and even bumpers were extras to avoid the tax.
Cabsman
Have a hunt around on the web for things like www.autoleads.co.uk - they have a VW cd bus lead.
Check where the CD changer is normally fitted in your car, look for places where the lead could be. On my Scenic the lead was is in place hiding behind a slit in the carpet under the seat.