November 2003
Got failed lights on both my Corolla and Beetle - how do you get at dash lights ?! Read more
Hello. I have a Rover 216 sli, recently whilst driving at any speeds i am getting a shaking in the steering wheel, and occasionly i am hearing a grating noise when turning left. I have checked all the fluids for power steering, and also had the balancing checked this morning (balancing was fine). I am wondering if its slightly more serious, ie ball bearing needs replacing or the cv joint is wearing out. Is there anyone thats experienced this problem? Read more
Thanks for the reply. Car is K Reg (92), Further developements, on Friday on the way home it was fine (which really spooked me). This morning the juddering happened when i braked or eased of the accelerator after the car warmed up, (when its cold, its fine no problems) i could replicate the juddering everytime. When travelling at constant speed and accelerating it was fine. Does that help?
Should i still be driving it considering the juddering in the steering?
Jeremmy Clarkson is this mornings castaway on Radio 4's Desert Island Disks. Starts in 25 mins. (0900) Read more
And David Bowie, Heroes
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The coupes have been running undisguised around Munich for a while (check out the pictures on the BMW website) and I've also seen a couple of cabrios in the flesh. Unfortunately, the first time I saw one from the back I thought at first glance it was a Chrysler Sebring, until I noticed the BMW roundel and 645i badge. I still think the rear end styling is the most unhappy aspect. However, the complete shape is distinctive and has massive road presence, particularly the coupe and especially on those huge alloys. The interior looks very nice, similar to the new 5. The droptop would be the choice for me following a lottery win.
A good friend of mine has asked me to find him a fast \"sports car\" for around £4k pounds. The car does not have to be in the typical sports car mode eg mx-5, but it does have to be fast. Practicality is not really an issue as he has a second sensible family car, and has recently changed employers allowing him to walk to work.
My first thought was a Nissan 200SX- I wondered if people here had any opinions and suggestions? Read more
Toyota Celica GT4. Just about get the last shape (twin round lights) for that money, I think. 250bhp, 4wd and tunable to silly levels. Pretty reliable, too (Toyota, after all). Friend had one, and BOY it was fast!
--
Dr Alex Mears
Seat Leon Cupra
If you are in a hole stop digging...unless
you are a miner.
In his column, HJ is always insistent that oil should be changed well before 9K miles. This then puts him in conflict with the boffins at BMW, whose service interval indicator system bases its advice in part on a sampling of the oil. In my case this gives a service interval of about 13K miles. So where should we place our trust? HJ's caution and experience, or BMW's techno-wizardry? Any bad experiences out there? Read more
I take all this good advice on board and have followed HJ's regime with my Alfa Romeo 156 2.0l which is going and sounding better than ever after 18 months and 16k miles.
But a lot of people who are going to get shot of their cars after a couple of years or who are on company schemes simply don't care if the engine is looked after or not.
200k miles is a lot of miles, especially when many drivers can't see further than the end of their own bonnet...
Best regards
Joe
As I've mentioned in the past, I drive a 110 bhp Leon TDi. I know that the 130 and 150 PD engines are now available in the UK, but have been available on the continent for a lot longer. What I want to know is, was there ever a non-PD version of the 1.9 TDi engine which produced either 130 or 150 bhp, one you could have bought straight out of a European Seat dealership? If so, was this achieved simply by remapping the ECU (chipping), or were other methods used to achieve this, e.g. larger fuel injectors? Or were the 130 and 150 bhp engines only ever available with the Pumpe-Duse technology?
The reason I ask is that every so often I still think about chipping my car from 110 to 130. Having read up all the various threads on this site and elsewhere, I am concerned about excessive wear & tear, eg on the clutch. I'd feel a lot more confident about doing this if I knew that VAG had already built in the tolerances to cope with 150 bhp.
andymc Read more
Thanks for the replies everyone. Interesting response Arfur, I wonder where I can find out whether the clutch on the 110 and the 130 is the same - might try a Seat forum if no-one here knows. Also, got any links to info on the official Seat chip upgrade you mentioned? Have to agree that the engine is excellent in standard tune - I'm just interested in having even more fun if I can! To my mind, if I was confident about chip upgrading, spending £300 or so on it would mean that the only difference between my car and the new 130 bhp SE would be that my engine oil isn't as expensive ....
Any further information about potential clutch problems unrelated to upgrading, as mentioned by Leon, would be very welcome by more than just myself, I'm sure. The CBCB does mention the possibility, but no more detail as yet. If it's just the squeak that many Seat clutches seemed to have as standard, mine was sorted under warranty, but if it's anything else then I haven't come across it yet.
Leon, Wilson's is my local Seat dealer! Good old Trevor. I've mentioned on this site before about the good level of customer service that dealership provides - they've always done a great job for me. If you use them, you can't be all that far away from me - you near Ballymena?
andymc
I have no complaint about the usual pop-ups. I fully accept HJ's point that something has to pay for the forum, and I really value what he provides.
But I have suddenly started getting eBay windows that seem to go beyond the normal small pop-ups. They are full-size new browser windows, and consume a lot of processor memory while they are loading, slowing down the forum window. Also even after closing one, another one appears soon afterwards. This seems a new venture in pop-up art. Does everone get them - what is the general view?
May I say again, the Back Room is a wonderful forum, much appreciated, and I accept the need for the ordinary pop-ups. Read more
Cliff,
Please read HJ's instructions in Announcements. Email him with the problems, he can then forward to the advertiser.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=3&t=17...4
For obvious reasons I'm locking this thread.
Who here normally removes the front of their car radio? As I see it the options are:
- Leave front on radio
- For: you don't have to carry the front of the radio around.
- Against: the radio is worth nicking.
- Remove front and hide it in the car
- For: radio not obviously worth nicking.
- Against: if someone breaks into the car they will probably find the front so it's worth their while nicking the radio.
- Remove front and take it with you
- For: radio not worth nicking.
- Against: someone might break in on the off chance that you've left the front in the car.
- Against: you have to carry the front of the radio around with you.
For what it's worth my radio front is in the house now but my car is parked overnight in the street. I know there are some fancy radios that hide their own front (so you're effectively stuck with a halfway position between options 1 and 2) and that you can also buy covers that make it look as if you've removed the front. Read more
Believe it or not, the insurance companies call the area Greater Manchester even though...it isn't! So whilst insurance is higher than where we used to live, the area itself is nicer. I leave the front unit in overnight for the following reasons:
a) Street is actually a cul-de-sac and in the 18 months that I've lived there, I've never seen anyone in it who doesn't need to be there (if that makes sense)
b) Car is parked at the very end of a drive which has spotlights covering it and another car blocking it in
c) I'm too lazy
But when I park at uni, I still leave it in although I shouldn't. They're just so big and cumbersome to carry around with you but that's just my opinion.
Hello
My friend has a 97 MGF which is stuck in reverse gear. Has anyone had this problem before with this model?What was the cause and was it expensive to fix?
Thanks for your help Read more
I'm sure this has been suggested before, but isn't it possible to pull a wire through using the old cable to help start you off? It's rare that a cable snaps in the middle, they usually go at the points of most stress, namely the contact points, so would you not be able to tack a thin wire on to the old cable and pull through?
I'll get my dunces cap and sit in the corner awaiting a response......
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The steering wheel doesn't have to be taken off to get at the dash lights on a Mondeo, granted it's a difficult job but manageable.
I would imagine many cars don't need the wheel removed to get at these bulbs.
PP