October 2003
Hi all,
Following on from the very popular current thread, 'how old are you?', i thought i'd take the initiative in starting this one
I'd put money on there being two people who had no idea another BR member lived in their street/had kids at the same school etc, and they could be a useful contact to help you out with future problems, whinge about the local road system with, or perhaps even a new person to go down the pub with, who knows?!
So here goes, i live in Watford, Herts - Where do you live? Read more
My L-reg 1.6SE Astra has suddenly started leaking coolant like crazy when the engine's running. It's a constant drip of 2-3 drips per second and will easily leave a big puddle on the floor.
I can't clearly tell where it's coming from but it appears to be from somewhere around the water pump. The timing belt was changed less than a month ago - could that have anything to do with it? In my opinion it's only recently got worse.
What is causing me to panic slightly is that the coolant quite clearly has oil in it - I'm kind of hoping this is just oil it's picked up running down the side of the engine because I changed the oil the other day and accidentally spilt some! (Cue horrendous burning smell for next three days...)
Any ideas? Please? According to Vauxhall a new water pump (if it's that) will set me back £170 including labour and if it's the head gasket (which I hope to hell it isn't) I don't even want to guess at how much it will be. There doesn't appear to be any oil in the coolant in the expansion tank (which runs dry very quickly) but the plastic has turned a horrible brown colour, but has been like that since I got the car.
Has anyone seen this problem before, and could help me out? Read more
When the wife had a 1.2 Nova I changed the cambelt twice in its 100+K life and didnt have to slacken the pump.
The old one would slide off the sprockets and the new one would go back over the sprockets with the aid of a large screwdriver.
A friend who has a local garage said that he also did this with the Nova.
Sudden Battery Death
One Sat. morning my daughter's Scenic battery was "dead". It is well used for commuting and family run-about, and a recent holiday in Norway, and never an inkling of weakness. The battery, original 4 yr old FULMEN wouldn't take charge or deliver power. Kaput!! This isn't a friendly way to expire.
In the 1970's , sudden failures of Lucas batteries were the talk, but I haven't heard of it since. Are we going to have another spate?
CentaurHJ Read more
The (original!) battery went on my 9 year old Xantia about a month before I sold it! Strange to say, the battery showed no problems with starting etc but the car's alarm wouldn't turn off (even after disconnecting the battery!) Apparently the alarm senses a low voltage and interprets it as an attempt at unauthorised entry! The alarm, of course, has its own backup battery so it keeps going. The upshot was that I had to drive 10 miles with the alarm wailing to buy a new battery!
Graeme
**** Thread Closed. See Volume 4 for more of the same ****
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=34935
For the continued discussion of all things pertaining to motoring jokes.
Volumes one and two filled up.
This is Volume three, two is closed.
There is no need to repeat anything since earlier volumes will not be deleted, although I am quite sure that this will not stop you.
You should know that I don't like this thread and therefore I watch it carefully. Anything over the line, imo, will get deleted; too much of it and the entire thread will simply go.
Mark (RLBS)
Moderator at Work
mailto:mark_moderator@honestjohn.co.uk Read more
Opps, did not remember Growlers joke from June.
I have often wondered why diesel engines last longer than petrol engines, although have never reached a conclusion. Here are a few reasons I have though of, but would welcome a more educated opinion.
Lower power output (will the new generation high output engines not last quite as long ?)
Heavier construction
Lower combustion temperature
Lower reving
Burns oil (a lubricant)
anything else ? Read more
Not necessarily diesel fumes. Most traffic in town is petrol engined, and the atmosphere in a taxi drivers cab, historically, has been full of nasties from smoking. Ordrs of magnitude more important, I'd guess. Defra summary:
"By contrast, a study of lung cancer in professional drivers in Sweden showed an increased risk among those working in the city of Stockholm (Jakobsseen et al., 1997), especially in short-distance lorry drivers; these findings allowed for the effects of smoking and the authors suggested that exposure to traffic fumes might have been responsible, although no data were available on atmospheric concentrations of PAHs within the cabs. A study in Denmark, which focused upon employed men who were diagnosed with lung cancer between 1970 and 1989, also revealed a 31 to 64% excess risk of lung cancer in bus, lorry and taxi drivers (Hansen et al., 1998). The smoking habits of Danish drivers and those in other types of employment were found to be similar. However, in the absence of exposure measurements, the contribution of PAH exposure to this result is unclear.
Summary
28. There is clear evidence that PAH mixtures are carcinogenic in humans and several individual PAHs are carcinogenic in experimental animals. Cancers result from exposure to PAHs over several decades. Increased risks of lung cancer, in particular, have been associated with increased concentrations of PAHs in the workplace. There is epidemiological evidence of an association between urban air pollution and excess risk of lung cancer in those most highly exposed, but risks cannot be estimated confidently from these data because of possible confounding by smoking and lack of information on historical exposure levels."
Hi folks,
I wonder if anybody can help me. Two weeks ago I noticed a slight hiss whilst driving my 2002 Scenic 1.9D. Over time it got louder, so I popped my head down to where the noise was coming from. I discovered a set of Bellows mounted behind the Brake pedal, had a gentle fiddle and was satisfied that the Bellows were leaking.
Interestingly enough Renault Workshop claim that it is the Servo unit that is at fault and requires replacement and could take around 5 hours. On this basis they will not release the vehicle as it is considered unsafe.
I'm not certain that I had been told the truth and wondered whether somebody out there could advise me.
Kevin
Read more
I suggest you find a quiet bit of road with a gradient, turn off the engine, press the brake several times till the pedal goes really hard, then let it roll and try to stop it from 10 mph.
Then you'll know what effort you need to stop if the servo does fail....
My daughter`s Ka was in at the main Ford dealers 2 weeks ago to have a new power steering pump fitted, and the problem has re-occurred already.
Just wondered if any other Ka owners in the B.R. were experiencing similar steering problems ????? Read more
Jackie many thanks for your informative thread, checked out the website you recommended and found a lot of useful info and confirmation of the steering pump problems.
This morning I noticed that both of the reversing lights have stopped working on my 99T Vectra. Checked the bulbs, they both looked fine, but replaced with two spares I had and still not working.
The manual seems to detail what every single fuse is for but info about the reversing lights and their corresponding fuse is conspicuous in it\'s absence.
Before I get on my hands and knees and carefully remove every single fuse from the box, can anybody shed any light on what the problem may be?
Thanks. Read more
Had the same problem on my 97R Astra TDS, worked intermittently for about 6 months (had to wiggle gearstick in reverse 4 a bit then they would spring into life.Evetually gave up and had to replace switch
Replaced the switch in mine last week and working fine now, switch is fairly easy to get to on mine, front of the engine just right of centre. £11 from Vaux garage though!!
Volume 20 now closed. Please see volume 21 ( www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=17471 )
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 20. Previous Volumes will not be deleted. Except the other volume 20, which seems to have vanished, despite DD and I protesting that \"it weren\'t us, guv\".
ND
Read more
My thanks to Colin and eMBe for your input. Seems I will have to investigate further. Rgds, Pete.
Can anyone advise?
In September 2001, my Sterling (november, 1997) required a new engine. The engine gasket problem had caused the block to suffer corrosion, which was not repairable. The mileage at that time was 59,500. It has now done 84,500 on tghe new engine, reasonably without fault. It seems that there are still KV6's in the current 75, and having seen recently a TV programme highlighting the KV engine problems that Rover are still encountering makes me wonder whether Rover have resolved the KV6 problems. It seems impossible to get a definitive answer from my local Rover dealers. When I invested(!!) in the new engine, I couldn't imagine that Rover had not fixed the problem - it seemed so well documented at the time.
This recent bout of adverse publicity is giving me cause for concern, as it's unclear what the chances are of the new engine covering 80K miles are so (which I woulod be generously satisfied with).
It also raises the question as to whether it will require a new gearbox (automatic). So far this has not given me cause for concern.
Comments and advice would be welcome
Regards,
Corky Read more
The first examples of the KV6 fitted to the 800 were apparently almost hand built, as if Rover was using the 800 as a guinea-pig. Suffered from catastrophic head problems that usually meant a new engine required. After a couple of years the engine was redesigned, so later examples shouldn't suffer this problem. The head gasket problem highlighted on a recent program relates to K-series engines built before 1999 and is a separate issue, but should not normally mean a new engine being required - unless possibly if the owner continues to drive with the engine overheating.
Do not use your experience of the Ford Granada's auto gearbox in judging the likely longevity of the 75 one - 120k sounds about right for a Granny auto.
Browse
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Yes I have lived in Guildford -surrey for 30 years ( in two different houses) my father who is in his 80's has lived in the same house as he was born in.
chris
chris