September 2003
Judge junior has seen a car he fancies. It's a Mercedes 230 TE automatic Estate. J reg with 114000 miles on the clock. Seems in very good condition and drives nicely and is quiet. Full service history. For sale at local garage. Anyone care to give me an idea on value? Read more
swmbo had her fiesta fail the mot on emissions so the garage fitted a new cat. Still couldn`t get it through though and after a few days of headscratching the mechanic took off the new cat and substituted another off a staff fiesta. car proceeded to pass its test. So the new cat was faulty , another was ordered, fitted and tested o.k. How can a new cat fail ? no active ingredients inside or possibly physical damage in some way ? Read more
What's the life-expectancy of a cat these days? Do they
last as long as the car? (assuming it's not a short-journey
only car)
283,000 miles so far. No problems with emissions.
Visited B&Q tonight, and in an empty corner of the car park was a Corvette convertible parked diagonally in the middle across 4 bays!
Did look kinda cool though with the wheels turned out ...
Steve Read more
With the frenzied introduction recently of charges and restrictions in shop carparks, I'm surprised this driver didn't arrive back to find his/her car adorned with 4 parking tickets!
Our Micra's brakes have been squeaking (2000 W). ATS chappy looked at them and said that there was nothing wrong with the brakes and that there was probably little to be done about the squeak. That was 6 weeks ago. Now the squeak has steadily got worse and is more like a high pitched whistle! Is there anything to be done!?
Splodgeface Read more
Thanks, all. Some really useful and practical advice. That's what makes the backroom such a great place.
Splodgeface
Anyone know where I can get a wiring diagram for an Impreza Turbo 1998?
Failing that, a good technical web forum for Imprezas? Read more
Occasionally see Imprezza service CD's come up on e-bay.
There are many sites on the net for and against SUVs, mostly against though. Apart from the obvious (fuel consumption, danger) why are SUVs such a controversial drive? Is the abuse justified? Read more
good point, certainly got us all going!
I used a website once (was it connected with the AA? - not the alcoholic one though) which allowed you to enter a registration no. and it confirmed the recorded make and model of vehicle. Would anyone be able to tell me the site address please? Read more
Yep, it is indeed on the AA website.
tinyurl.com/ahxe
I need to sell one of the company vans urgently but I have no idea how much its worth.
Escort, R plate, white, good condition, 46,000mls. FSH
Any help would greatly appreciated. Read more
Hugo,
Unfortunately were down in Hertfordshire. Maybe a bit of a journey to look at a a van.
\"Would you buy a car from this man?
Richard Macer spends a month at a car supermarket in Dudley with the real Swiss Toni and his colleagues, observing the rivalries and petty jealousy among sales staff.\"
Hour long program tonight - should be interesting! Comments post-prog... Read more
(Duplicate post)
Odd question:
How many British car model names can you come up with that follow these rules:
1. Doesn't end in a vowel: No Fiesta, Granada, Cortina, Viva
2. Doesn't end in a vowel sound: No Cavalier, Victor, Freelander
3. Doesn't end in a number: No Z3, 205 or 626
I'll start off with "Golf".
It's tougher than it looks; unimaginative types, these car namers. Try coming up with 20 on your own before reading the rest of this thread (assuming anyone's sad enough to add to the thread).
V
Read more
Atlantic, Velox, Oxford, Wyvern, Consul, Somerset, Hereford, Elan, Bluebird, Pilot, Prefect, Consul, Conquest, Devon, Midget, Silver Cloud, Silver Wraith, Orion, Wyvern, Vanguard, Imp, Minx....22 was it..
Check it over carefully, they can be a money pit.
If it has self-levelling rear suspension (hydraulic pump on from end of cam) have the system checked over by a specialist - they cost arm and a leg to fix.
Check for worn valve stem oil seals (they go at about this mileage).
Check delay on engaging reverse (should be max. of 2 seconds with hot 'box - 10 mile drive). Longer than 2 seconds means B2 clutch pack needs replacing (i.e. strip and rebuild = c. £1200).
Check for whining diff. (drive at 55-60mp gently ease on/off throttle) - if you hear a whine bear in mind MB recon diff is about £1000; backstreet rebuilder will charge £4-500 but may not get it right (they are tricky).
Pop off the small plastic covers on the sill trims (front and back, each side) and prod around the jacking tubes with a screwdriver - some can rot really badly just there around the weld. Nasty repair.