March 2004
I have a 1993 Astra 1.7 D estate fitted with the standard SC201 radio cassette which has a LCD display which shows time/radio frequency/air temp (or time/date/temp if the radio is turned off). The question is can I change the radio for a CD tuner such as the Vauxhall Delco CDR500 and expect everything to work straight away, or will I have to visit my dealer to get the CD radio and LCD display programmed to work together at my expense.
thanks... Read more
My 11 year old auto Nissan 200SX was MOT'd & serviced by my local dealer. A mechanic then decided to "road test" the car & managed to plough into the side of a 4WD Mercedes. The mechanic says that the throttle jammed open but the Merc driver & I both think that he put his foot down & lost control of the car.
I have owned this car from new & it was in very good mechanical condition. I do a very low mileage (1500 miles last year) & the car was providing depreciation free & fun driving when I needed it.
The garage say the car will be written off by their insurers. My insurers say the book value of the car is approx £2000.
Does anybody know what it would be reasonable to ask for & is it normal to road test a car after a normal service?
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In one case they refused to pay the cost of a
hire car because I was in receipt of a car allowance
for my professional work. They maintained that my allowance covered the
cost of hiring a vehicle.
If you were inconvenienced, then obviously you should not have been
out of pocket. However, are you suggesting that you should
have been paid the car allowance by your clients/employers while the
insurance company paid for all your actual expenses? I'm not
sure that either the clients or the insurers would be impressed
by that situation.
The car allowance was paid to cover depreciation, tax, insurance, petrol etc. for my vehicle. It did not cover the hire cost of another car. The foregoing, except for fuel, were all fixed costs and did not disappear simply because my vehicle was off the road. I had to pay the cost of hiring a car whilst my own was being repaired; an extra cost which would not have been incurred had my own car not sustained damage, due to the negligence of the insured.
I know it's incorrect and unfair to make derogatory generalisations about white van & BMW drivers etc., but I have noticed a significant percentage of those who have managed to annoy me were sporting a CSMA (civil service motoring association) logo in the rear window.
Perhaps you have experienced this, or similar? Read more
I'm a CSMA member, but I don't put the sticker on because of the shame (actually, I don't understand why anybody puts stickers on for AA and RAC either - surely it's just advertising?).
No, I'm not a Civil Servant. But I have noticed that those with CSMA badges have particularly shiny cars and are therefore small-minded with nothing better to do with their time.....
I've never heard such rubbish!
Personally, it's those drivers who get annoyed by stickers, badges, paint colour, etc etc who REALLY annoy me! For heaven's sake, I even know someone with a BMW who's a nice person!
Hi all, I hope someone with a MOT mind can help me.
Little Seicento is due for its 2nd MOT within the fortnight, so whist checking all parts of the car to see if its working, locking, and not leaking. I've notice that the passenger side drive shaft from the gearbox is leaking small amounts of oil from the gearbox, as I understand one of the seals internally has gone after 36k miles.
Now the leak is not major its just small amounts have gone onto the gaiter and drive shaft.
The question, is this leak MOT failure or not?
Thanks :)
~Sei-Boy, not a member of the base ball hat group~
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Inner (Gearbox side) driveshaft boots do not come into the MOT test
Nor do gearbox oil leaks (Unless excessive)
--
groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
I just bought a used Citroen from a main dealer. I was a bit worried when I read the manual that mentioned a coded card, it states that 'should the card be lost the immobiliser device can no longer be considered secure'. All I received was 1 key (with built in remote). They said the other key was lost, but they have ordered me a replacement.
How serious is it not to have the coded card, and what comeback do I have? Does it have any implications for my insurance? Read more
The dealer will have coded the car so that no other key will start the engine.
When the keys are recoded, you must have the scratch card and all the keys you want to work so that the car can "learn" them.
The lost key will open the doors and switch on the ignition, but it won't start the engine.
I wouldn't worry about the insurance, if you have just bought the car, it is probably living in a different place to before, contact the previous owner and find out where the key was lost.
I wouldn't worry or tell the insurance.
When you buy a 2nd hand car, you assume the previous owner hasn't taken a copy of the keys.
"Imagine a world without cars" - No thanks!
"It may suprise you that very few readers saw much need for self-driven cars" - Suprised me! Where's the fun in that?
Just who's side is he on? Read more
Hi i have a slight problem with my autobox sometimes when i select drive all the position lights luminate and i get a autogearbox fault come up on my computer after restarting all seems ok , could this be a selector switch problem ?,and does anyone know where i could buy these parts without going to main dealer.
Mike
PS: I have just read in another forum, that sometimes on Vauxhalls the selector switch can send the ECU a confused message ? . Read more
Was the other forum the yahoo omega owners forum?
If not, there have been several people on there with the same fault, selector switch seemed to be the most common cause.
2003 Renault Clio Dynamique 1.5 dci80. Am I really the only Clio owner with rear wheel alignment problems? R/N/S tyre worn indicating a problem and vehicle subsequently checked confirming the fault. The vehicle has not been damaged, kerbed, potholed or abused in any other manner. Problem really manifested itself during the recent snow/ice conditions - very exciting to drive!!! Usual Renault warranty 'hassles' are anticipated. Read more
Get a good tyre specialist to check the allignment of the front wheels with respect to the rears. I had this done on my wife's Clio a couple of years ago when it had similar problems. Apparently the front wheels were in allignment but not with the rears! This wascaused by all the adjustment being carried out on the off side so that the four wheels were not in a straight line with one another. Only downside to the job was that it was a far less exciting drive afterwards !
Yes. He's very English. Read more
I think the guy is quite entertaining but why does Clarkson first but in then completley take over when he starts speaking on Top Gear? Is it only me that notices this?
I've decided to confine my dog to the rear of the Tourer but I'll need a dog guard. Honda want a whopping £130, and Halfords do one for £19.99. Argos and Index both sell one at £9.99.
I'm not a cheapskate, but £130 seems way over the top. Does anyone have a recommendation for such? Read more
Does anyone have a useful tip for stopping dogs from throwing
up? Our beloved whippet/jack russell cross really does not like
cars and on a journey of any length is almost certain
to leave a highly corrosive calling card in the most inacessible
location possible, gradually eating its way through the chassis....
Yes, I've found how to prevent it in my smallish (knee-high) terrier.
Left to his own devices, he settles down nicely once we gather speed, and is fine for any distance at speed on a straightish road.
However, in town, when the car is stopping and starting, he likes to wanders around a bit, or at least to stand up and see what's going on.
The one absolutely foolproof solution is to have him sit on my lap with my arms wrapped around his torso so he is tightly hugged and can't sway. That works every time -- no swaying and he is fine. Plus he's delighted cos he gets extra cuddles.
The only problem is that it is really only me and my mum who have grasped just how firmly he needs to be held. Others end up olding him too looseley and get thrown up all over, which (unsurprisingly) he ain't very keen on.
The interstring thing is that he is fine being held high enough to see out. The problem in his case is all in the swaying.
My mum and I see no problem with finding our role in life as a cushion for the dog. He also finds it entirely appropriate. However, some other two-leggedies seem unwilling to take on that role: there are some strange people out there ;-)
YMMV
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On Vauxhalls, they're either just underneath the front numberplate, or at the bottom of the nearside front bumper.