January 2004
i have an escort turbo diesel and recently it has developed a \'flat spot \' at low revs when cruising on the flat, also at lights or junctions sometimes it feels as though it is going to stall, it gets a \'lumpy tickover\' like a petrol car with the choke out. also there is blue smoke coming from the exhaust when this happens.(both cases but not oil smoke!) i have been told it could be a sticking injector or the idle speed compensation activator, has anybody come across this problem? Read more
In an earlier 'I have a question' thread (www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=13782 ) there was some discussion of spreadsheets to calculate car running costs by entering mileage and fuel consumption.
Did anyone come up with the perfect spreadsheet as a result of this? I know DavidHM had one at the time.
If anyone has such a thing I'd be grateful if they'd send it to me. I'll update my profile to include an e-mail address.
Thanks in anticipation.
[Not added to the current 'I have a question' thread because the subject is motoring-related.]
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Hi Cockle
I've been trying to develop an Excel spreadsheet to do the car expenses for my husband's business. May I send what I did to you for some help? I'm getting lost at the more than 10000 miles calculation - I'm okay up to then. Look forward to hearing from you.
Ronniexx
hi all, i fitted new p6000 to my v70 t5 about 8k miles ago,have noticed that they appear to be wearing more on the outside shoulders than the inside is this normal? the wear pattern appears similar on both front tyres the car handles fine with no evidence of bias etc (the tracking etc was checked at the time of fitment),t.i.a Read more
ISTR that they should wear more on the inside shoulder. Which v70 do you have, the current shape or the "850 update"? Will check with my parents 850 when I see them tomorrow if it stays dry.....
I'm hoping to get myself an Audi A4 that I'll keep for a few years until the new Volvo S40 comes into my price range on the used market.
I'm not sure what engine to get though. Due to my budget limitations I'll probably be getting a car with around 70K miles or more. I've seen a lot of the 1.8T around at the right price, but I'm a bit worried the life of the engine... a turbo with that many horses running seems a bit risky, even for an Audi. Do you think it's still a safe buy? I'll be doing only 10-15K miles a year in it. Otherwise I'll probably go for a slightly high mileage 1.9 130 TD.
What do you think? Should I just go for a Volvo S60 or a (bargain priced) Rover 75! Read more
Good point raised here - IMHO most engines with a turbo weren't specifically designed for a turbo, whilst some parts are upgraded to cope with the extra power/torque/thermodynamic properties the basic engine wasn't designed for this stress.
Also it's very difficult to tell if the car has been chipped and restored to default mapping, my old Xantia was sold after being
'breathed' on by Van Aaken and the dealer didn't notice.
What car have awarded the new Golf Mk V their car of the year, and I see BMW have won more awards (4 in total) than any other manufacturer.
IMHO these awards are somewhat misleading, as they only assess the actual vehicles actually tested during the year.
What do you reckon to their final selection ??
www.whatcar.com/News_SpecialReport.asp?NA_ID=20644...5 Read more
Yes, these awards also seem to be based upon what the magazine thinks is what a hypothetical customer is looking for. Hence VW tend to be well built and have low-ish depreciation. Even though their recent reliability record is getting worse, they are still perceived as being a good buy by private motorists, and magazines appear to take this into account.
One of the chassis outriggers on my Herald has a rusty hole.
I am thinking of welding a patch onto it to repair the weakness.
What sort of welder should I buy?
I'm thinking of MIG, but what power/price? gasless or bottle?
Will a patch be OK, or should I be replacing the whole outrigger.
Can this be done without having to lift the body? Read more
I've had a couple of Hearlds and Vitesses in the past all of which had some sort of chassis problem. I've got a vague feeling that there is something about getting to the top of some of the outriggers making it difficult to weld fully? The other thing to check when looking at these things is that the body mounts themselves are in good condition. I've had cars that passed with body mounts being knackered (the result being obvious in ectreme cases). This is often shown up by doors being difficult to close - they look dropped but aren't, the body is!
Takeing all the above into account they're dead easy for the home restorer or skinflint! Having a seperate chassis the rest of the body can be pretty awful before it's a failure - just nake sure there's no sharp bits!
Dog Drives Milk Float
Into Pensioner
A PENSIONER is being treated in hospital after he was hit by a milk float driven by a dog.
Merseyside Police said the accident happened after a dog jumped on to the accelerator of the vehicle in Wirral.
It is thought the animal had been travelling in the cab of the milk float at the time.
A spokesman for Merseyside Ambulance Service said: "A 75-year-old man was taken to hospital suffering from a grazed knee following the incident."
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I'll get me coat, I have nothing to add to this!
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groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
I have a 1991 Volvo 1.7 with a worn Carb. and on limit of emission rating with no further adjustment available . Anyone have any bright ideas? Existing carb is Solex twin barrel downdraught Code 28/34 CISAC Z-10. Read more
This is something worth considering. Carburetted vehicles are usually set up rather rich because it's an easy way for manufacturers to comply with NOx emission regulations and gives very slightly more power. Result is poor fuel economy.
A larger air corrector will lean off the mixture higher up the rev range and reducing the jet size will lean off the mixture through the whole rev range. Personally I would reduce the main jet by from say 95 to a 90...you could go further but might find that you get flat spots....I fitted a smaller main jet to a 1.8 sierra a few years ago and noticed no loss of performance.
Where do you backroomers find the worst drivers in the world and why?
I nominate China, particularly Beijing - too many people , no driving tests and millions of death wish bicycle riders mixed in with everything else on M25 type roads.Life is cheap and as far as I can tell they have no such thing as insurance.
I will now retire and time how long before THe Growler nominates Manila Read more
I second helicopter.
Beijing, closely followed by Shanghai. Suicidal, and then some. Looking back at the photos I took makes the blood run cold.
Now I know why my colleague who lives in the latter doesn't bother with a car.
Hi
my 2003 vectra radio unit suffers from servere interference on MW.
I have narrowed this down to the speedometer as when standing still it is fine, as soon as speedo moves the noise starts, i comfirmed this while going downhill i turned engine off and noise was still there. It increases with car speed.
2L turbo diesel
kenny Read more
Could a surpressor not be fitted in the sensor feed power line? Just like in the old days when you had to put one across the coil to stop the HT interfering with AM/LW.
Browse
It is hard to tell and ps I didn`t see your post.governer is a rev limiter.it only comes in when you reach certain revs.blue smoke is caused by engine oil being burnt.ie nothing to do with fuel pump.so you may still be burning oil but dont see it.