March 2004
Hi,
has anybody any experience of using wundercars? I think they were in receivership in the middle of last year but they still seem to be trading. They have some really good prices on Audi A3s and when I spoke to them they were UK sourced rather than imports. The site seems a bit light on company information though. Would you consider them given their history? Read more
\"General Motors, the world\'s largest car company, is preparing to take Europe by storm by introducing diesel engines into its luxury models.
General Motors is planning to produce Cadillac cars with diesel engines in a move that should make the luxurious American marquee more appealing to European drivers.\"
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3490852.stm
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>>though you lot would pick it up, hence me leaving it.
So you left it there knowing someone else would pick it
up. Why didn't you not leave it there and then nobody
would have had to pick it up ?
For the sheer pleasure of this lot tying themselves into lexiconic knots of course. Then I can delete all the rubbish later this evening.
Mapmaker, have you been sniffing the smoke pouring from your poorly cylinder? I've started using the central line via St Pauls to get out of SW1 as quickly as possible in case I get jumped by someone waving self-adhesive apostrophes at the billboards on Southwark St on my way to London Bridge.
I've just bought a (very cheap) Audi Coupe 20V, 1991, 128K on the clock and no history. It runs beautifully, except that it is blowing unburnt engine oil out of the exhaust. Oil is accumulating inside the tailpipes and dripping onto the ground at rest. Not a lot of oil, but enough to suggest there is a problem. The engine has no noticeable crankcase pressure and doesn't smoke, so I reckon the bores are OK (they usually are on the 7A engine). Passed emissions test yesterday (a non-cat test as it has been decatted at some point).
It had a reconditioned cylinder head fitted about 18 months ago, just after the previous owner bought it. He hadn't had the car long enough to know whether it used any oil before the head was done. And as the head work was under warranty, he didn't have any paperwork to show what 'reconditioned' actually meant.
So I reckon the most likely explanation is that oil is leaking down one or more of the exhaust valve stems when the car is shut down. The engine is canted over about 30 degrees, so any oil will tend to trickle out of the ports and into the downpipe. Does anyone have any other possibilities (preferably ones which don't involve removing and stripping the head)?
Looking on the bright side - thanks to its oil coating I'm not expecting the exhaust to rot from the inside out...
Richard Hall
bangernomics.tripod.com Read more
91 litre per 1000 miles.I assume that was mistyped.even 9 litres
is excessive to extreme.1 litre is even a lot at that
mileage ie
per 1000 miles.I gather those engines are capable (if properly serviced)of
around 400k but then I dont know the engine
Sorry, I meant 1 litre. In fact, I've now done around 500 miles in it and I doubt it's used more than a quarter-litre - given the age and mileage I can live with a litre every 2,000 miles.
You're right about the durability - the 7A engine is incredibly strong (I suspect because it is the non-turbo version of the 230bhp Quattro motor, and hence very understressed).
Richard Hall
bangernomics.tripod.com
Just a couple of days ago I asked (and then answered myself) about the requirements which make double yellow lines enforceable, following on from a conversation with a friend at the weekend.
Well I got the first parking ticket of my life last night, issued by Staffordshire Police.
I met up with a life long friend in our home town of Newcastle-under-Lyme. Neither of us had been out there since I moved to Manchester and she moved to Walsall to join the police three years ago.
I parked the car up on Stones Market, a location that everyone has always parked in for as long as I can remember, and off we went to eat. On our return we saw FIVE police officers all standing together and we wondered what kind of trouble there had been or was about to be.
We then noticed that all the vehicles had been issued with Fixed Penalty Notices. I won't comment on the use of FIVE officers to ticket cars as this is a motoring forum.
The Stones Market is basically a market between two facing rows of shops. The whole area is tarmaced and there are two market stalls in the middle of the area. This effectively forms a rectangular one way system. There are double yellows down the pavement side, but not in the middle next to the stalls. It is next to the stalls that people park, which does not have double yellows. The area is wide enough to leave about 8 foot between the cars and the pavement.
My first thought was that I would appeal on the grounds that I was not actually on double yellows, because I wasn't. They were 8 foot to the left of the car! I then decided to take a look at the double yellows, following on from what I had researched at the start of the week. They were very faded, missing in locations where road works had taken place, and finished abruptly without the required t-bar.
I think that the wine had gone to my friends head, as she dared me to tackle the officers about the FPNs. I did. I was extremely polite when I asked them why I had received a ticket when I wasn't actually on a double yellow. I was told that the lines around the outer edge of the market place applied to the whole area, and not just the pavement side. That sounded plausable to me so I accepted it.
I then pointed out to them that the lines were not compliant with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2002. They agreed with me that the markings were of very poor quality, but one added that as of this year the rules had changed so that signs were not required. I told them that I was aware of that, but that my problem was with the markings on the road.
I was polite throughout, never once asking why they weren't out catching "real" criminals (t-i-c), and told them that I accepted the ticket but that I would be appealing on the grounds that I had mentioned. I suggested that they were wasting their time as I would be contacting the local media in the hope that they would inform people of the validity of the issue of the tickets. I requested that they inform the local highways agency so that they could rectify the faults.
The officer told me that they were only out doing as they had been told to do by their inspector, and apologised for having ruined my night.
We drove off and I would have left it at that, had Catherine not spotted that the date on the ticket was 03/02/2004. I really should take up religion! She persuaded me to go back, so I did. They were still there 15 minutes later. I asked the officer who I had spoken with whether it was February or March and he replied February, and then the penny dropped with him. I showed him the ticket and simply said "I hope you haven't made the same mistake on the other cars. Sorry if that's ruined your night" and drove off, feeling that victory was mine.
Sad isn't it, that such small victories give me such pleasure. It will never bring the system down, but at least you've made a small chink in it!
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Local paper reported that these 5 plod had been brought in from Leek, a town 14 miles away, with the sole purpose to ticket vehicles.
The car guide I have quotes good mpg, 45-60ish, for cars like the Peugot 205, and Fiesta 1.1 up to about 95-96. However, the model range from 96 onwards quotes significantly lower, 34-54mpg, for the same engine sizes.
Why does this happen, and as I'm looking for a car of 95-96 vintage, is it something I need to take into account? Read more
Wait until some europhile insists on it all being reported in litres and kilometres.
That will bring tears to our eyes.
the purpose of this thread is to find the worlds funniest bumper sticker, ill start with any merc sprinter van with "driven well?" on the back
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There is already a long, and repetitive, thread on this. Try a search using the Forum Search on the top right of your screen.
i have a 1995 mondeo TD and i have a fuel leak.... cant really pin point the source of the leak but it looks like its coming from the centre of the fuel pump.... does anybody know if there is a seal in side of the pump that can go or is it a case of getting a new pump ? Read more
hi guys, i have a megane scenic can anyone tell me how to input the security code.
many thanks willow Read more
Hi willow1008 - hope you got sorted.
Wanted to put some info on this great site about my latest Scenic ('98 1.9dti) IR immobiliser experience. The plip gradually got less reliable and more frustrating. I put new batteries in but hardly any better. One morning (Saturday, luckily) it was completely dead until inside the car (unlocked with key) and then only worked rarely. I thought it was knackered and would need mucho £££.
Always worth having a tinker so I stripped down the overhead IR receiver to check for corrosion as it is directly under the aerial mount which has leaked in the past. Maybe the connector benefitted from a clean, but also the IR signal receiver plastic dome was covered inside with a layer of grime. A wipe down, reassembled and it's working fine! Better than for years in fact.
Simon
The door seal rubber on my 93 318iS has started to harden and I now start to get some wind noise above 60. BMW quote over £100:00 for a replacement. I have looked at other parts sources,but cannot find another supplier.
Doea anyone know of a way to resolve this at a reasonable price? Read more
BMW make a special cream for door seals called Gummi Pfledge, about £5 a tube, works a treat, even on Citroens!
I have a 93 BMW 318iS. Ever since I bought it there has been an intermittent sqeak when operating the clutch, with the clutch action getting heavy. This occurred both before & after a new clutch was fitted.
The problem seems to lie with the actuating pushrod from the clutch slave cylinder. A little grease on the end of the pushrod clears the noise and the clutch is light to operate for a while before the problem begins again.
Has anyone come across/cured this problem? Read more
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ill beat them on price on a3,a4,golf,passat