January 2004
Had a bit of a bump last week and to say I was utterly stunned by the price of parts for my fiesta would be an understatement.
Front Bumper £22 + vat
Near side wing £24 + vat
eh ? Thank heavens for cheap cars ! Read more
Hi All,
Here's a strange problem I have with a 1987 Volvo 340 1.7 GLE that was given to me a couple of years ago. The car suffers from the usual probelms with this model that are well-documented on this site (erratic tickover, moisture getting in distributor cap etc), but this particular example has an interesting extra problem: when straightening up after turning right, the engine stumbles momentarily (2-3 seconds) as though suffering from fuel starvation.
This problem started subtly and has gradually got worse to the point where it is a real nuisance in certain situations (eg turning right across oncoming traffic etc). Any ideas what the cause could be?
I can only think it could be 1) something wrong in petrol tank plumbing (or baffle?) 2) poor fuel pump performance being exposed in "g" conditions or 3) carburettor problems. I have had the carb off recently and found nothing amiss. Certainly made no difference after I had cleaned and checked everything.
I've run out of ideas for now, so any suggestions welcome.
Paul
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Well, I've finally sorted this problem out. It looks like the carb float and/or needle-valve were responsible. I bought a carb repair kit and new float from www.carburetters.co.uk/ and replaced float, needle, gaskets etc and, hey presto, the car no longer stumbles when turning right.
Prior to this, with the help of an MOT-tester friend, I had also found that the idle mixture was very rich and came to the conclusion that the float chamber was overfilling giving an overrich mixture, with the "stumbling" being caused by the mixture going so rich during cornering that the engine could not run properly. This also explains why the fuel cosumption was very poor when driving slowly (around town), but excellent when at motorway speeds.
With the overhauled carb the car is much easier to start, and now also has a nice even tickover, which it didn't before. Plus I can turn right without wondering whether I will make it before the on-coming traffic hits me.
Total cost for carb spares was £59.
Before Xmas I received a 'nice' letter from DVLALO Enforcement Centre saying that my car was not licenced and issuing all kinds of nasty threats if I did not pay up by 10 January. The point is the car was licenced and I had the tax disc to prove it plus details of the cheque paid to the Post Office. Despite three letters including one with a copy of the tax disc (all unanswered) and attempts to phone them (engaged from 9am onwards)I still have not had any reply.
What should I do? Anyone else had this experience?
Steve Read more
I did the same thing with Bradford Pennine insurance many years ago -1975.
My car had been damaged by one of their insured, and they refused to pay for the cost of a hire car because I was in receipt of a car allowance. After a number of futile calls and missives to them, I sent them a letter outlining my mileage costs for dealing with the hit and run driver, together with a charge of £1.50 for each letter. They replied to say that they could see no basis for my charges. I then replied, and added the cost of that letter, and informed them that If they didn't pay up within fourteen days I would institute legal proceedings. They again refused so I saw a solicitor.
The outcome was that my claim was paid in full. They also had to pay the solicitor's costs.
Been clearing my garage out and came across what I think is something for starting engines.
This came from a farm auction I was at some time ago,it was sold as a battery charger and was one of those impulse buys that for a fiver was worth a risk.
It appears to be in working condition but what I want to know is what exactly is it and is it worth advertising locally (it is heavy) or have these new fangled portable engine starters made it obsolete and ready for the bin.
Regards Mal.
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I have had one of these chargers for years - very reliable. Turn the selector clockwise for charging at whatever rate seems sensible - in emergency turn it back one click for boost starting - it got the JCB going last week in the frost...
"A baby, who went missing after his mother's car was stolen with him strapped in the backseat, has been found safe and well."
Report on the TV said the ignition key was left in the car.
tinyurl.com/3dz59
This is not the first time this sort of car theft has ocurred.
Is it time to consider an alarm similar to a "lights left on" which is activated when the door is opened perhaps with a couple of buttons to cancel it?
A nice loud alarm that gets louder until it is cancelled.
An auxillary position for audio with a timer could allow the audio system to be used without the driver in the car.
I can see there will be lots of objections to the idea but common sense appears not to work.
I suspect there will be limited support from the insurers as I understand they to not pay out for a theft if the key is left in the car.
The idea may smack of nanny state but this mystic "common sense" is in short supply.
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My 6 year old Vauxhall Omega has a \'fanfare\' if the door is opened with the key in. I also remember seeing Peugeot 106s? maybe 306s that had numeric keypads on the centre console, and my 1986 BMW 525i used to have a feature where you could set a 4 digit code on the computer before being able to start the car. But at the end of the day, why should we all suffer because of a stupid fool,
You shouldn\'t leave children so young in a car, especially with the keys in and presumeably unlocked, you can\'t legislate against stupidity. As whe the driver did was illegal \"Not securing the vehicle\" , wouldn\'t it be easier to take their license away?
Hello,
We have a 1990 Escort 1.3 with the pushrod/OHV engine. Currently it has 109k miles on the clock and apart from being rattly, it seems to run well and oil consumption is fairly low. My wife keeps asking how much longer it will last (i.e. please can we replace it with something newer soon!) I know this is rather a 'how long is a piece of string' question, but what expereince have other people had with this motor? Oil and filter are changed at 5k intervals and typical use is 30 mile motorway round trip to and from work.
Any insights welcome! Read more
Mine did 116k over 14 years, alot of short journeys, oil changed annually at MOT time. Emmisions were perfect right up to last test. Oil consumption at end 2000 mls/ltr. Body & gearbox gave out but the engine was still running fine.
To minimise rattle adjust tappets at least once a year, as they seem to go out of adjustment quite quickly.
Has anyone yet seen one of the new fangled "Home Zone" signs, and if so, are they actually on streets that have no tarmac, as some tabloids seemed to imply they would be? I've never seen one (Cambridge area).
If you don't know what I mean, the pdf is at
www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_roads/documents...f Read more
I see double yellows no longer need the posted signs in order to be enforceable then.
Must have missed that elsewhere.
Linking this to the new civilian traffic ossifer thread, should we all go out and buy shares in the company making yellow road paint?
just a thought, it could supplement your pension DVD, would mean I wouldn't have to work such long hours to keep it solvent!
FiF
Displayed on the new matrix infosigns on the M4 in South Wales this morning:
"Don't drive aggressively"
"Use your mirrors"
"Avoid sudden lane changes"
"Be courteous to others"
The first time i've seen these messages. Normally it's either "Don't drink and drive" or "Wear your seat belt".
I'm all for it myself. If only they said "Don't hog the middle lane".
Ed. Read more
"Avoid sudden lane changes"
Just stay in the centre lane..............hmmmm
Hi everyone,
I was just reading a thread about Legacylad's Subaru (sorry to use you as an example pal!) and couldn't help noticing "Sammy Subaru the Third will be staying in the family a good deal longer.."
This got me thinking, i found myself discussing my Ford Escort the other day, and rather than referring to it as 'it', for some reason 'she' seems to suit better!
Also, a couple of my female friends actually have names for their cars - "I went into town with Minnie..." actually means that one of them drove into town in her Nissan Micra, for example!
So, anyone else have names for their vehicles, or personify them in any way? Read more
Had an old Renault 5 (old shape) once that SHMBO called the fat lady because from the rear it was pear shaped due to the tumble home.
Otherwise they have always been called TC or The Car
Not sure whether this is of any use to backroomers, but when I was in the big Leclerc at Gonfreville (Le Havre) a few weeks ago, they had snowchains at about 35 euros a pair (c.£27) - don't know how good they were but hey, given you might only need them once or twice a year they're a real bargain. Good quality ones in this country run out at about £90. Read more
Worth noting that you could get basic chains in Halfords from around £35 a couple of years back. Don't know if they still do them.
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Mk 3 Fiesta parts are 10 a penny on ebay...
madf