February 2004
my firend is tempted by one of these (he seen it on www.mh2k.com) its 10k - where can he find out about it, and what to pay. who else sells them? Read more
I have a shadow 1 (1972) with a brake problem that I am unable to solve. Can anybody give me any advice please?
I replaced the two n/s/r flexi brake pipes closest to the calliper. Unfortunately there was a fluid leak o/night which emptied both reservoirs. On bleeding the system fluid was drained on both rears until no air was evident, however the brake pedal travels to the floor still. When pumped the brakes are good but when this ceases the pedal goes to the floor. The front brakes have now been bled. No air was evident but the problem remains. The warning display, when the brake pedal is applied shows ?partial brake failure? and ? master cylinder? warning lights. Brakes are good when pumped but the obvious problem is air is still in the system. (Possibly in the master cylinder)
Can anybody give me any advise on this problem?
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>>there was a fluid leak o/night which emptied both reservoirs.
I assume you didn`t see where the loss was from?.If you cannot actually see a leek it is more than likely it is draining into the servo in which case a new master cylinder is wanted.
On my MK2 Golf 1.3 the radiator has developed a very small leak. The leak is at the bottom of the radiator on the opposite side to where the pipes are connected to it.
At the moment I am not losing much water but I think that it will probably get a lot worse.
Whats the best way to remedy this problem, will I need a new radiator? Read more
I think it is taking a risk with any modern car to use it with leaking coolant, or to do a bodge job with Radweld or similar. The consequences of a small leak suddenly getting bigger and letting the engine overheat can be catestrophic, and it all happens in matter of seconds, long before the temperature gauge has registered or you have noticed it.
The days are gone when tough old engines could be boiled dry and just had to be left to cool before filling up again.
I'd see Radweld as a get-you-home expedient, not a substitute for a real repair or a new radiator.
Which is the better option - both 2.0, both petrol, both fsh. Mazda 98 R 63,000 Peugeot 98 R 53,000??????????? Read more
You should avoid a 626 auto at all costs. It uses the Ford CD4E transmission and seems to be even less reliable in the 626 than in the Mondeo. I believe that in the US there is a 'class action' against Mazda due to so many owners experiencing premature failure (60k miles is a typical failure point). I was asked to look at one that kept 'dropping out of drive' - it only had 12k miles on it and was owned by a vicar - unforunately the box was burnt out!
Otherwise the 626 is not a bad car.
Do consider a 2.0i Primera though:
1. Bodyshell is much more rigid
2. Higher safety rating
3. Cheaper spares, and more pattern parts available.
4. Far better handing and roadholding.
5. Lovely smooth chain-cam engine which is more powerful.
6. Saloon, hatch and estate body.
Look at some P11 models (mid-96 - 99, or P11-144, 99-2002).
Alas the price of cooking oil is continually on the increase. About a year ago it was 40p per L now it is around 55p per L. Asda sell it for 46p but in pesky 1L bottles.
Does anyone know of a cheaper source? I wish I could qualify for a 'cash and carry' card.
I wonder why the price is shooting up. Is it because the futures commodity market are predicting a bad havest of rape and sunflower etc, or is it because the super-markets are mysteriously selling more? Read more
Used cooking oil must be refined precisely. Filtering is only the first stage. You have got to seperate the animal fat and the glycerene and drain off the water and let it stand for quite a while. Anyway all the info is on the link given above. I can't be bothered with all that palava. Mixing new oil with diesel is as far as I would go but unfortunately its not cheap anymore. Even with a 2:1, (two diesel, one oil) ratio, the overall price of your fuel per litre only drops to about 70p and then if you pay the tax it would exceed pump prices If you have a heat exchanger under the bonnet that's a dead giveaway, so you better pay the excise.
To someone who has a Vectra - is it easy to accidentally switch the front fogs on and not know they're on? Someone around me always has them on, even though I've reminded them a few times.
Vectra fogs are at perfect dazzling height! :) Read more
DD
As regards earlier Vectras, my \'96 P reg was exactly like your X reg. Not easy to switch on, auto switch off and a clear warning light. Exactly the same on my current model Astra too.
Regards
John S
I had a lift the other day in a chauffeur-driven 740i (pre-Bangle). Lovely car, beautifully driven.
But.... the windscreen wipers were the wrong way 'round (i.e. the unswept corner was on the driver's side). Since then I've noticed many 5 Series are the same
What's the story. If I was spending that much on a car, I'd expect UK-style wipers! Read more
Depends how tempting your passenger's legs are....
Hello!
I've got a H reg 1990 VW Scirocco GTII (carb model) which seems to be having a problem with RH turns! In a straight line or round left hand corners it runs well but everytime I turn right (at a roundabout for instance) as I press the accelerator to leave to roundabout the car stutters / loses power. A fraction of a second later, when the car is going in a straight line again it will quite happily accelerate away. This doesn't happen on LH turns! I'm quite confused! Got any good ideas?
Thanks
Andy Read more
I just looked at the fuel filter, which I replaced about 500 miles ago and its full of muck and it looks like there could be some water in there too. Since I posted th right hand turn problem has got far worse and the car won't idle. Gonna change the filter today but looks like there could be problems in the fuel lines / tank too! Any suggestions about cleaning out fuel lines and where water might be getting in?
Thanks
Andy
Is it just me or do you folks out there think that we have far too many road signs cluttering up the roads and verges.
I'm thinking of the local back lane where we seem to have 40 mph repeaters every couple of hundred yards and the 'best kept' villages with horrible double yellow lines everywhere.
There also seems to be an explosion of those brown 'places to visit ' signs usually on the way to some minor attraction.
Are they all necessary? Couldn't we have someone getting rid of unnecessary signs instead of sticking new ones up everywhere?
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Which flows from:
(a) the assumption that Americans speak roughly the same language so their legal system is the same as ours and
(b) their penchant for the lethal combination of (i) no-win-no-fee lawyers who (ii) work on a percentage basis, (iii) the lack of any concept of contributory negligence, and (iv) punitive jury-awarded damages.
Sadly, the thrust of our legal reforms is to move us generally in that direction. We manage to improve on it miraculously, though, by having hugely expensive lawyers and the ever-present risk that you will have to pay the other side's fees.
Just because its a frequent subject here, I thought I'd mention that Direct Line just managed to beat my Norwich Union renewal by £1000.
Somewhat of a dramatic saving, so perhaps food for thought. Norwich Union, seemingly until now, have always been rather good on foreigners with foreign licences but Direct Line appear to be better - at least for me. Read more
M.M, Nice to hear from you again.
I think that hiking up premiums by the amount you describe when there has been no claim or change of circumstance is very hard to justify and it would annoy me immensely.
You appear to have had no problem with Norwich Union's service, just their premiums. I suggested trying NU and RSA for quotes rather than saying "insure with them" and I think this advice still stands as their service does seem to be very good. However, if the quote is unrealistic that's another matter.
My daughter's Peugeot 106 was one of the first of the face-lift models and is a P-reg 1.4i Roland Garros (leather seat facings, electric windows, etc). It has about 90,000 on the clock and I would have thought this would make it a candidate for writing off. My daughter is very pleased it wasn't as she is very attached to it.
Browse
Isn't this the same as the Hyundai van (with different front styling),designed by Mitsubishi.