October 2003
i know similar threads have been put up before but the threads were so long and confused i struggled to get any info out of them. my escort 1.8td doesnt like starting in the mornings. i replaced the glow plugs last week and the battery is fairly new (6 months iirc). the engine trns over nice and fast and fires occasionaly but not enough to keep itself going. after a while (10-15 secs) it does start and performs perfectly all day. does anyone have any suggestions of things to try??
many thanks
richard Read more
In the back room we discuss anything and everything, mostly to do with motoring. We may agree or disagree but thats the beauty of the backroom.
Every so often an idea comes up that just hits you right between the eyes. One I have seen this week has been the one that on a dual carriageway or motorway, there should be a double white line running between the inside lane and the next lane at on ramps so that cars cannot join the motorway and move straight over, and this also eliminates possible accidents where drivers move from the middle lane to the inside just as cars are joining!
So so simple, but yet so effective.
What other ideas have you seen in the depth of a thread thats made you think, "that is so simple and obvious". Read more
Aah, but white hatched areas can be entered if the bounding line is broken, not solid, and if it is safe to do so.
When i start my car from cold it revs up to just over 2000rpm then slowly drops down to above 1000rpm. Surely this can't be right. any suggestions? Read more
Thanks Dave but how much is a ECU software upgrade?
hi all, this is my first post so im hoping that some one can help me !! i have a 1994 2.5 v6 upon filling the tank about £50. the fuel gauge reads full but the onboard computer is telling me that i only have 90 miles left in the tank... when i have used about 1/4 of a tank it reads 0 miles ????? vx say that they need the car for the day to look into the problem at a cost of £30 p/h !!!!! Read more
I've reset it both ways - just the Range function only and the whole TC with the same (non)results.
Chad.
I have to admit that I haven't run it on "fumes" as I'd rather have the TC range not working than the crud in the fuel tank blocking the injectors etc.
Doeas anyone know if the 5 speed autos fitted to the latest Hondas are 'Jatco' units, as fitted to Rover 75's, Freelanders and X types? Read more
They seem to be electrical/solenoid problems. Certainly not mechanical anyway. None of the specialists want to touch them, and the solenoids aren't accessable without partly stripping the box, which of course no-one is keen to do. When you see the number of wires dissapearing into the box, you can understand why.
Out of interest, the time to do a clutch change on a manual 4wd X type is 14 hours. So that's about £1200 just for labour.
Hi All
Today I had my '97 Mondeo serviced at the usual place. These guys are independant Ford specialists,using Ford parts etc and have been around since the mid 1940's.
The car was in for a main or as Ford call it a 'standard' service at 65000mls.
Parts replaced were plugs,oil and all the filters( air,oil,pollen and fuel).
Also replaced was a valve on one of the wheels that had a slow leak in it.
My question is were they justified in charging me £266.00 inc VAT for all this?
I know it was a main service but that does seem steep,especially when you consider they're not even main dealers!
Labour for this service was £144 excl VAT.
Any thoughts?
Thanks Read more
Got to speak to the service manager today.He told me that the plugs and fuel filter don't get changed together on a service at this mileage (65k) (Plugs are every 40k and fuel filter is every 60k).
It was my request that the plugs were changed out of alignment with the service schedule so thats my fault.(I assumed it was every 30k....rtfm I know I know :o) )
He confirmed that the service took 3 hours beacause they always remove the rear drums and clean out the dust and also visually check the cylinders which he said "Ford don't do",and they had to source a slow puncture which turned out to be the valve.
Anyway end result is they have offered to reduce the labour time by 30mins at the next service as a goodwill gesture which I think was decent of them.
Thanks to all who replied - big help and very much appreciated.
I have recently changed my sister in laws cylinder head (for a used one) as her cam belt snapped not a good thing on a rover engine especailly a k16 DOHC.I followed the instructions from my haines manual to the letter.
When I started the car up the engine is now idling at 1500 rpm I have changed the temp sensor and the manifold heater (as it was old and blew the engine fuse).
Can any one give me a clue where to go next.
Help with a Rover 424si k16 engine that has had a used cylinder head fitted as the old one the cam Read more
Ignition on, pump the throttle five times, wait 20 secs and start the engine.
It might settle down, otherwise it is a trip to a suitably equipped workshop (Rover dealer?!) for a stepper motor adjust.
Check the simple things like too tight a throttle cable and manifold air leaks firstly......
This post from Vansboy got me thinking:
"You'll find it difficult to beat my Maestro van.It does have the Montego style seats, with added side support.
& for added refinement, I've fitted the wood veneer door trims ex Meastro Vanden plas. Oh yes, plus the tinted door glass. & a gradient tint screen. & the carpets from MG Meastro, in bright red. &...
Sorry about this guys, but I'm quite serious, too!!
Should we start another thread about what alterations you've carried out on your vehicle!!
VB"
VB - you surely forgot the fake leopard skin interior and 70s afro style hair to go with it :-)
What have you all done to your vehicles to make them original?
I covered the back and rear wings of a Mini 850 with sailboarding stickers.
I wrote XR3i and my initials on a tatty Mk 2 escort, with humbrol model paint.
erm that's it. I had a very sheltered life, I never really had the chance, always alone in the playground 'sniff sniff'.
Cme on own up, what wacky modifications have you done?
Hugo Read more
Funny you should mention seat covers, 'cos on Mrs Vansboys new Mx5,well 6 months old now, The 'Special Edition' Montana,...
The car has lots goodies anyway, chrome interior detailing, Nardi wood steering wheel & trim, air, hardtop, extra speakers, alloys, but she had to have:-
front mesh grille
solid wheel arch mudflaps, front & rear,
wind blocker
silver style bars
stand & cover, for hard top
& to hide those cream, dead animal seats,leopard print material was chosen!!
Looks good with the top down, contrasting with the Garnet redpearlescent paint!
VB
Yes friends.... my Discovery again!
I need to get a Thatcham Cat 1 alarm fitted to satisfy the insurance company, after finding out that the alarm on there does not qualify.
Apparently I am required to have a VSIB certificate to prove this and my insurance want to see this. They have given me 7 days grace ie full cover without it so I can get it sorted.
I have no problem with this stipulation and I have budgeted for it. Infact it does deal with the lack of key fobs that I am faced with at the moment. I get two with the alarm plus two override keys.
Hence I phone around some independents and found them charging anything up to £350 to supply and fit
The best quote I had was £260 plus £25 for a driver\'s side central locking motor, so that all doors can be locked with the RC fob. Total £285 inclusive of VAT
The system I have been offered is a Laserline, which the chap claims has better build quality on the central unit than many of the others.
What are your views on this?
Hugo
\"Forever indebted to experience of others\" Read more
Thanks for the advice guys,
It seems that Laserline does not have the backroom vote of confidence here.
The local outfit that will be fitting apparently uses them in preference to Clifford, Cobra etc, because they say they have had hardly any problems with them, in comparison to the others. I have to say, out of all the companies I have contacted I felt that these guys were the most professional and helpful in the area. I got the feeling that I was speaking to a number of wideboys when I contacted some of the most commonly reccomended outfits.
However, he offered me the opportunity to compare that alarm with the others in terms of build quality...
Hey, but then I bought a discovery, so perhaps the alarm and the vehicle will go well together!
I shall probably get him to agree to swap it for another make if it causes problems.
On a side not I saw a 52 reg Hummer having an alarm fitted in Plymouth today. THAT was an awsome site. It was not quite as big as the huge US military vehicles, but a little bigger than the Range Rover. Reg HU52MER.
Hugo
"Forever indebted to experience of others"
Hi All
I wonder if anybody out there could clarify the time scale for changing the cam belt on a 1998 Omega 2.5 CDX My service book says 80000 or 8 years but I have been told that it as changed back to 40000 or 4 years confused or what a friend said it was not the belt but the tensioner that is the problem My local dealer Perrys say 40000 but i dont know whch way to go have been quoted £200 is that a fair price also I have been told to change the oil every 5000 and to use synthetic oil I am becoming a bit disenchanted with my pride and joy any advice out there
thanks
Bob
Read more
>>...also I have been told to change the oil every 5000 and to use synthetic oil ...>>
RobertH: I will copy my reply from
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=16726
You can get quality oil filter change at National Tyres for £10 (or £15 for semi-synth). Take a print of the folowing page with you.
www.national.co.uk/main/offers.asp?offer=specials....p
This is cheap enough if you want to change at 5000 miles, but you can safely stretch that to 10,000 miles. Trust me, I know.
Search this forum (button on the right) for \"oil change\" for more information on oil changes than is good for anyone!
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There is a flexible rubber type of diaphram which forms part of the internals of the primer, which in your case seems to have punctured (not unusal). This lets air into the fuel feed pipe having the effect of letting the fuel drain back to the tank.
When it's really bad, the injector pump is sucking more air than fuel. A new primer/filter is required.