February 2004
Hope I am doing this correctly. I would like some advice on my abysmal failure to renew my MOT in time. Here follows a story a little too long, but it is all true; so if anyone can help, i will be grateful. My MOT ran out and i had not used the car due to a heavy workload. I then booked it into a garage for an MOT. Unfortunately, smoke began to pour out of the bonnet and two idler pulleys needed replacement before the MOT could go ahead. By the time this work was finished it was too late and i was too poor for the MOT to go ahead. I could not afford the MOT until i got paid, which was three days later. Unfortunately I was stopped two days later and given a producer.
The policeman wrote the date 05/02/05 on the producer. I would like to know if this mistake has any bearing on my case, such as mistakes on speeding tickets invalidating them.
Also, i will have to go to the police station to admit my guilt. I obviously wish to minimise the fine, but is it more advantageous to myself to say that i clean forgot about the MOT, or tell them the above story about my finances.
Any help would be most appreciated. Read more
Well, that dreaded time has arived - my son will be 17 in a few months. Unfortunately, neither of my cars will be suitable for learning in due to the high insurance.
Having done a search on this site with no useful results, perhaps I could have some advice please! Above all else, the car must be as safe as possible - image is irrelevant. Cheapness to run, partucarly wrt insurance, and reliability is important. My budget would be no more than £1500 assuming that I sell one of my beloved Saabs. I have my own thoughts, but perhaps the serried ranks of wise backroomers can confirm them? Read more
Thats strange I must have copied the wrong message into the
box. Peter
What message into what wrong box?
I have owned my new Honda Jazz for exactly 3 weeks now.
I washed it today and discovered a nice dent in one of the rear door panels caused, judging from the shape of it, by some kind person smacking their door into it at some point....thanks for that.
To top it off, I went up to my local Halfords to get some wax to sort out the minor scratches that had also appeared in the dent and having got there parked well away from other cars. On returning to Jazz I discovered that not only had it been surrounded by other cars but was also covered in bird muck. Drove home seething, was wiping muck off car and discovered a nice fresh scratch on my wing mirror that definitely hadn\'t been there 30 mins ago when I washed it. (cue blood pressure elevation and steam emanating from ears.)
I never had this problem with my old Fiesta with its black plastic bumpers and wing mirrors.
Damn you body coloured wing mirrors/bumpers and damn you inconsiderate motorists
Rant over :o/
Am feeling a little better now
What\'s for supper?
Fill what\'s empty, empty what\'s full and scratch where it itches! Read more
Wait one year and get the nice person from Chipsaway to come around and fill all the scratches and remove all the dents.
I am in the market for a new hearing aid to replace the N.H. device issued F.O.C. in the UK.
I now live permanently in Spain and I would be grateful for any advice based on backroomers' own experiences. I have been offered a digital programmable aid (by Widex - the Senso CX CIC) for the equivalent of £1245, including fitting, adjustments, and a five year guarantee.
Is this reasonable? (Two audiologists have suggested this after the usual tests).
Any other recommendations or thoughts gratefully received!
Roger. Read more
Both of you back in your corners, NOW!
:o)
No Dosh
mailto:Alan_moderator@honestjohn.co.uk
I notice from today's Telegraph (Business section) that MG Rover are currently the only bidders for an old Daewoo/FSO car mfg plant in Poland.
Perhaps their next move is to release a badge engineered version of the Polonez... Read more
puntoo is right, a well made, fully tooled body panel should be the right size every time, but because such a tool is so expensive, low volume manufacturers cannot always afford to do it. Hence a lower quality tool is used and the parts are reworked before putting on the car.
The cost of these huge pressings is why floorpan sharing is so common, and why Aston Martin chose the 1975 Jaguar XJ-S floorpan for their DB7.
Gareth
I took delivery of a new Peugeot 307 S in December 2003. As soon as I started it I was aware of a high pitched whine. This whine varies when the steering wheel is moved. The dealer seems to think there is nothing wrong with this, even though it sounds like a microwave oven. My passengers notice it as soon as they get in the car. I sought a second opinion recently at another dealer and they said that they would fit a new pump which they are supposed to have done a couple of days ago. It still sounds the same. Has any one else noticed this whine on the Peugeot 307, and can anything be done about it? Read more
"He said the pump would have to be taken off one of their other cars"
Well.....that ain't normal practice, for a start!
--
groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
I suspect we\'ve all seen people driving around who we have thought this about. Got a classic yesterday. Black A-class Merc with green \'P\' plates on it. Moving away from lights on a two-lane stretch of road I was slightly alongside him and gaining slightly when he decided he wanted to be in my lane. No signals and a swift \'chop\' rather than a smooth movement. Luckily I was on the ball and as I\'ve now moved to using lower gears (thanks group!) was able to avoid him. Followed him for another mile or so and the driving was a bit bad - didn\'t seem able to control the car and was weaving quite badly. This was in quiet traffic as well...
Really does make you wonder if the test actually does enough to ensure drivers are safe to be \'let loose\'. Read more
these 3 may still drive like that for all I know!
I just finally got a payout from an accident from my insurance company and was wondering if I have to pay tax on it or not. I am sure you don't pay tax on health insurance payouts but wanted to get some sort of answer regarding motor insurance payouts.
Thanks in advance for any advice received!! Read more
Ssshhhh. Don't give Gordon and Teflon Tony ideas!
Mrs B's Punto's factory/dealer warranty expires next month, along with it's inclusive AA cover.
The deal offered by Warranty Direct appears really good value at £149 p.a.
Does anyone have any experience of this or any other extended warranty/breakdown cover? I'd be grateful for any experiences, info or simply anyone's opinion.
bax Read more
I had a Fiat Coupe with a warranty direct warranty, whereas I did not claim several other Coupe owners I knew used them and were generally very happy with them, they sometimes took a short while to settle up but they did, and the warranties were pretty comprehensive, the Gold one I had at the time even covered consequential damage which on the Coupe was essential as the alternator belt could snap and take out the cam belt. A few other owners used Warranty Holdings which I would personally not recommend as they were less forthcoming with settling claims.
Does anybody know what make of 2lt. DTI diesel will be in an S registered Rover 620 SDI? The top of the engine is heavily shrouded which makes identifing the engine manufacturer difficult. Handbook says Rover, but I suspect it is originated by either Peugeot, Citroen or Perkins. Any ideas? Read more
Yes it's the Rover L series diesel, fitted also to Rover 200/400 (post 1995), all Rover 25's and 45's, Rover 600, Freelander (until the BMW engine took over I think in 2000?) and the MG ZR and ZS.
It's a very good engine, fast and economical. A bit noisy compared to the latest common rail engines from VAG but very reliable. It even has a stainless steel head gasket.
Browse
BiB = Boy in Blue
Nick nick.
HtH (Iota - Happy to help!)