September 2003
In the days of the Moggy minor and the A35 the national speed limit was 60mph, their overall stopping distances were measured in minutes not feet. The tyres they used were of the crossply flavour and had the cornering ability of a penguin on wizz. We now have things like ABS / AWD / AWS / ESP / crumple zones / air bags / vented disc brakes / servo assisted brakes / asymmetric super grippy radial tyres / 3 point seat belts and an mot test that is about 100 times more exacting than it was 30 years ago, even the cyclists now wear helmets in case we hit them.
So why are they lowering the speed limits on a some roads and planting speed cameras everywhere?
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******* Thread now closed, please see volume 19 ********
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=2&t=16...1
In this thread you may ask any question for which you need help, advice, suggestions or whatever.
It does not need to be motoring related. In fact, in this thread it should not be.
No politics
No Speeding, speed cameras, traffic calming
No arguments or slanging matches
Nothing which I think is not following the spirit of the thread.
Any of the above will be deleted. If the thread becomes difficult to maintain it will simply be removed.
However, as has been said a couple of times, there is a wealth of knowledge in here, much of which is not motoring related, but most of which is useful.
This is Volume 18. Previous Volumes will not be deleted.
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Many thanks Jeds, that's been bugging me all day.
cheers
Hi some scroate has pinched the screw in aerial which sits at the rear of the roof on my Omega.
As I usually listen to Cd's rather than radio I don't want to spend a fortune on a replacemtn. Anyone know where I can get a cheapy from at all please? Read more
Daz,
Click on Products. Select car from drop down list - in your case, Omega, and press Go. Now select engine type from next drop down list, and again press Go. Search down list until you find Electrical. Then click on Miscellaneous Electrical.
tinyurl.com/ovgw will take you directly there.
With the nights drawing I've noticed that the illumination around the light switch/dash dimmer/fog light barely lights up. Their is a very faint light that can hardly be seen. However, all the lights on the temp controls/heated window etc work fine.
Minor niggle but anyone got any ideas? Read more
Change the bulbs, there are two in the light switch assy.
The switch is quite hard to remove, you need a thin strip of metal inserted at each side, and it should pull out, but its usually amazingly stiff!
I have a 1998 Peugeot 306 D-Turbo and I am having to fill the radiator expansion tank almost once a week. I have heard that this problem could be caused by a sticking thermostat or head gasket failure. I am curious as to whether the thermostat does have a fault as the normal running temperature of the engine seems to be about 70ish and should probably be at about 90. If anybody can offer any help or similar experience i would be very grateful.
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I would go with MM's process.
The radiators on these 306's are not very good and have a tendance to corrode in the very bottom corner (by the drain tap)
I had the very same problem and found it there easy fix.
regards
H
At what level is oil consumption considered excessive in a fairly new vehicle ???
I raise this question as my sons BMW 330Ci, with only 20k miles from new, is burning a litre of oil every 2k miles, which quite frankly, I consider is totally unacceptable. If you compare this to his previous car, Audi A4 2.8 quattro, which only managed 1 litre per 1k miles, it is an improvement, but when
I compare this with my brother-in-laws Mazda 323, that has covered 167k miles and still does not burn a drop of oil between 6k mile changes.
Is it any wonder that Mazda feature so highly in all the recent car reliability surveys ???? Read more
Crikey that's a wide range! I would have a concern that its loaded with viscosity extender additive - when that burns you get a deposit left behind. Oils with a very wide range are best avoided unless you really do need to use them.
hi, help needed
1)how do i change my headlamp bulbs.
2)what mileage/age do i change the fuel filter.
3)what is the highest wattage bulb for road use i can use in my front fog light\'s.
thanks Read more
My mk2 2.0 Mondeo is currently fitted with Dunlop Sport 200s, but I find them lacking in grip, particularly in the wet. I'm looking to replace them, but there doesn't seem to be that much choice in this size with the V rating for some reason. I'm tempted to go for some Continental EcoContacts, but could get Goodyears for almost £10 less each or Avons for £30 less. Does anyone have any recommendations? Read more
I have the same size (but an H rating) & have the NCT 5's on the front (405 TD estate) - they are quiet and seem to grip well. Not had alot of rain to test their wet weather performance though. I have Pirelli P6000's on the back & they are grippy in the dry but they don't last well on the front!
Mark
I bought an old 420 (about 1995 I think) for my Brother in Law to use as a run about while he's visiting.
It had been standing outside unused for about 2 months before I bought it having been part exchanged. Its in excellent condition with no rust or accident damage and has a service history for its whole life. (boxes of receipts for everything, who has the time to keep that lot ?)
Yesterday the rear silencer box exploded. And I do mean exploded, it looks like one of those old joke cigars after they've gone bang.
I've had a new box put on the back which was no big deal, but the man said I needed to worry about why it happened, in case it happens again.
The box itself, from the outside, looked pretty new as does the whole system. It seems to have been fitted about a year ago. However, whatever ever the contents of that box would be, they had all rusted away.
The car revved and ran more freely than it did before it blew, and still seems to do so even with a new box back on.
The car doesn't misfire, and whilst I know that a misfire isn't always obvious, I'm pretty sure its not.
The exhaust fumes do not smell of petrol and the timing does not appear to be out; although that last is a little difficult to be sure about.
Was the back box just blocked and built up pressure, or is there possibly a more serious problem ?
I have only one requirement of the car, and thats that it keeps running until the middle of December. At that time it will be thrown away so I have no intention of worrying about any long term problems nor of spending any serious money on it.
Your thoughts would be appreciated....
Mark. Read more
I had the same problem with my previous car Rover 214 SEi mk2. The baffle just blew up on the rear box. Mind you the box only cost me £20 from a local garage and it ran for two years to the dot.
306 2.0 SE Cabriolet
I have just noticed a significant sized bulge on the near side front tyre of my sisters '03 reg Ford Ka. The car has Continental tyres fitted all round on the standard alloy wheels and the car has only done a few thousand miles from new. Now my sister bought the car brand new from Motorpoint in Derby, so has the pan european ford warranty. So my question is does she have any redress from either Ford or Continental as this would appear to be a tyre defect? Read more
I seem to remember getting my tyres changed in Leicester by Kwik Fit who guaranteed it against defects for up to 5 years.
The deal was they would offer a contribution based on the wear of the tyre.
In my Discovery manual it indicates that LR may be sympathetic to a fault with a tyre fitted by the manufacturer. This is all a bit academic now as the vehicle is 10 years old.
Hugo
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No Dosh: you say that you sometimes go above the NSL speed limit because you are able to judge for yourself that conditions allow you to do that.
Fine, I agree that the motorist should be able to think for themself and judge the speed at which they drive, because a road's conditions change every few yards and a blanket speed limit is nearly always inappropriate.
But why do you say that you are unable to make this judgement in areas where there are lower speed limits and thus stick to these speed limits?