November 2003
I have a 2000W Merc 320 CDi Elegance estate that has now covered 95K miles. The car's great, but is it worth trying to sell now before it passes the 100K mile mark to avoid a large drop down in its value? It's a great car and this is the only reason I have for possibly wanting to part with it. If anyone can comment and suggest what it may lose just by going up to this mileage I'd appreciate their thoughts.
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My 13 years old grandson informed me that he was on the way to school, riding his mountain bike fast in a clearly marked cycleway on the side of the main road in front of the school. There were roadworks at the time, and a very long queue of stopped traffic. A careless ?person? threw open a nearside car door into the cycleway too late for my grandson to brake. He is small for his age, but the bike is a heavy, robust thing. He said that he hit the door, folding it forward, and breaking it off. He rode over part of it. I asked him if he stopped to complain, but he replied that he just carried on as he was late for school. Surprise for someone! I expect that it was another pupil, also late, ducking out to run the last hundred yards.
Are car door hinges so weak? Once upon a time the A pillar used to corrode badly, but nowadays? Is there some safety feature?
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DD - given that if I park on a slope, given the weight of door intrusion bars, etc,etc, I sometimes struggle to hold my door open, I agree that someone may be embellishing their experience
--- BUT --
Also, if someone had "taken" my door off it's hinges (regardless
of who's fault it was), I would have gone straight up
to the school to have a word with the head master/mistress
demanding that the child responsible for the damage should be found
so that his/her name could be forwarded to my insurance company.
you might find this was not a productive line to pursue. Section 214 of the highway code indicates that "you MUST ensure that you do not hit anyone when you open your door' and whilst I can't track down the relevant legislation, for some reason or other the phrase sticks in my mind that is it is illegal (a criminal offence) to allow a car door 'to be opened so that it causes injury or danger to another road user' - so if it happened to you, unless you had witnesses to say the door had been open for a while before the cyclist rode in to it, your insurance company might not be that keen to hear about it !
Bora - what Bora ?
My SAAB coughed briefly the other morning and hasn't made any noise since! It has been in the garage for 2 days now and there doesn't seem to be any current getting to the glow plugs (warning light on the dash isn't coming on either). Unfortunately, they cannot seem to trace the fault (fuses, relays etc. seem fine)
Any ideas/similar experiences, greatfully received.
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MikeF. Good luck with your search for a different dealer! I am getting dire service from my local dealer and they now only service the cars but don't sell them. I went in with a faulty blower motor switch (it had to be held pressed in slightly to work) and after a day in the service bay they said it was a faulty switch and they hadn't got one in stock but would order one! A car with no blower in this weather is no fun at all, cold and misted up!
can anyone help,my wifes clio (j reg)old shape is chugging on hills and stalling going down hill.Doesnt seem to pull well off junctions etc.
Im wondering if this is a points or fuel prob?
If its points does anyone know what the gap should be and how many degrees btdc the gap should be set? Read more
If it is single point injection suspect oxygen (Lambda) sensor for slow switching. Have the valve clearances been adjusted recently? If so and are quiet they are too tight and will show up as rogh idle and lack of power.
Andrew
Simplicate and add lightness!!
Hiya...
1996 Polo has now done just over 68,000 miles.
I didn't drive it at all last weekend, and took it up to the petrol station on Monday to fill up. All seemed fine but after I had filled up and got on my way the engine seemed to die as I pulled away from a set of lights (no, I didn't stall..I felt it fading and then it died.)
It started again fine and has been fine ever since but, mother hen that I am, I'm a bit worried about him!
Could it be that he needs a new battery or was he just cold and sulking at not being used all weekend? And if he needs a new battery is it just a case of buying one from Halfords and popping it in, or is a mechanic's job?
Thank you!
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Sorry but I thought I'd plug my problem in the same
thread. I know it's not the same for Volkswagens but I
got told something about the ECU
I had this exact problem with my Fiat Uno, and my dad was always telling me I'd flooded it, because by the time he got to it there was no problem! It was very satisfying to finally discover it was the ECU and not anything I was doing!
I am looking for internet sites with any info/tips on LPG cars.
Any ideas?
Thanks Tim
{No need to post the same message to both forums. I have removed the other one from Tech Matters. DD. BR Moderator.}
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I had a gas conversion done on a 4 ltre Jep Cherokee a while back. Absolutely brilliant. I noticed no difference in performance and the equivalent mpg was 40.
I'd recommend it on a big engine if you do enough miles. You get the pleasure of a petrol engine with the economy of a diesel, and no smelly fuel.
I have a 1994 vauxhall cavalier (1.7 TD). When I start it in the morning and put the blowers on the cold setting everything is ok. If I put them on hot the whole car steams up in seconds; I can feel the moisture in the air as it comes through the vents.
As the air heats up it gets even worse (probably because hot air can hold more moisture). After about ten minutes of driving the problem goes away and doesn't re-occur until the car has been left for a while.
It's also worse after rainy nights.
Any ideas? Read more
By the way I remember that mine used to mist up worse as soon as I turned on the blower- If its not for the reason of a faulty matrix or leak below the bulkhead I assume its because you are blasting even more saturated air over an already misted and cold surface. I also remember how when parked up on a sunny winter day the sun on one side of the car would clear the windows on that side whilst the windows on the shaded side would be absolutely streaming with water more than ever. The heated rear window could not ever keep up and it used to drive me mad- especially when I needed to reverse into a parking space and couldnt see a thing. On the plus side I suppose it did teach me the art of reversing on mirrors.
I spend most weekend on motorways driving to go climbing and kayaking. I need a large hatch or estate to fit upto five people and equipment. I don\'t want a MPV. I don\'t not use it in the week.
Key criteria: diesel, economy, performance, handling must be sporty (granted its an estate so won\'t be great) reliabilty.
Having had a company Golf GT TDi PD 130 bhp I am keen to get this type of performance though I am not sure I can afford it. Would remapping a 110 bhp be worthwhile?
My list is A4, passat, octavia. Any other ideas? I am not too bothered about something with high mileage in order to keep the price down. Must have FSH and be able can handle the mileage, hence the choices above, what would the life span of this cars be?
My budget is £8k.
Thoughts please.
{No need to post the same message in both forums. I have removed the one from Tech Matters and copied any replies over to this thread. DD, BR Moderator} Read more
The Accord is a bit new, and although Honda engines have always been reliable, a modern diesel is a first for them.
The HDI engines (especially the 2.0) are well proven, been used in the Xantia since 1998 and try googling for HDI problems; there aren't many out there.
Compare that to the Ford lumps, first the TDDI which only lasted a short while, replaced with the TDCI which then underwent improvements for the Jaguar. We have seen problems with the Jag engine on this site.
I personally believe the VW and Peugeot Citroen engines are the best, in terms of reliability, performance and refinement.
If you want a good diesel, buy one of the modern proven units and even I, a Citroen lover, would wait until the new 2.0 HDI/TDCI units have been around a while.
We own a Dec 2000 X reg Punto 1.2 8v ELX which we bought just over a year old with 13,000 miles on the clock.
At 18,ooo miles it was off the road for over 2 weeks for gearbox repairs, a new wheel bearing and a shaft for the electric power steering. A few weeks later we needed two new front tyres as the tracking hadn't be set correctly after the wheel bearing replacement and the electric motor for the power steering had come loose.
At 26,000 miles (just under 3 years old)it's been off the road for over a week since the rear silencer fell off when the paper thin exhaust pipe broke. We couldn't find a non OEM part so had to go to a Fiat dealer. They said there were two possible replacements and neither were anything like what was on the car so they asked for the old broken exhaust to find one to match. They eventually got one but when fitted to the car it wouldn't reach the existing front section. So an additional collar was required and they had to get one of those. We never got our old exhaust back - I wonder why? We now need rear brake shoes for the forth coming MOT, where do we get these from and will they fit?
Bearing in mind the inevitable head gasket or cracked cylinder head which will happen any time from now or the multitude of other things that plague Puntos, when is the best time to get rid of it and get a good make of car. Read more
We have a local small garage which does all our car repair work when the car is not covered by a dealer service dependent warrantee. He says that he usually only sees his customers once a year for a service and MOT, breakdowns aside, so he looks over the car to be as happy as he can that it will go a year on wearable items.
The Punto has been service from new by Fiat dealers for what that's worth. Although there was no metal to metal noises when using the brakes, one rear shoe was just down to the metal. More surprising to me perhaps is that unless the front brake pads were replaced within the first 11,000 miles they have outlasted the rear shoes. I thought the front brakes did most of the brake and generally wore out first?
So we had a rear silencer section, a joining collar, a set of rear brakes shoes, a full service, a MOT and 4 hours labour for £270. If anyone is looking for a dependable garage in the south of Norfolk, I will gladly supply the telephone number of one that I can vouch for.
The Punto isn't a bad car to drive, is fairly economical and deceptively cheap to buy, but running costs and time off the road are the unacceptable other side of the coin.
Quick question.
I recently bought a 1997 Citroen Saxo VTR 1.6 with 84000 miles on the clock. Last week i filled up with Shell Helix oil, and 800 miles later, the oil level warning light is on and it need filling up again.
Any ideas, as there\'s no oil on the floor under the engine.
Thanks
Ian Read more
I would suspect worn valve stem oil seals. I used to own a 205XS with 1.4 TU engine (yours is the 1.6 version) and it was fine with 88k but developed very healthy appetite for oil. Especially noticed when setting off from traffic lights after stationary there was loads of smoke. I think the seals harden and break up with age. Never found out as I sold it soon after it became a problem. Some garages may be able to renew them without taking the head off by removing the valve spring and collets without letting the valves drop. You may see it as chance to do a top end overhaul and change the cambelt at the same time?
BTW - I surely miss the 205XS now driving a new shape Punto - the (non-assisted) steering and handling was superb. Nice styling also.
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I agree with all that's been said.
You will lose a great deal more on the replacement car than you will by keeping the present one, and you may not find it any better to own and drive.
I speak from vast experience, i.e. many years of repeated mistakes!