May 2004
Air conditioning on landrover disco is left on all the time.
A couple of months ago the A/C was less efficient than I would have expected and when the engine was switched off a "gurguling" sound could be heard coming from the ventilation system.
Now there is no cooling whatsoever from the A/C and no gurgling sould even though A/C is switch on?
Any idea what it may be?
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i have a 3 door honda civic 1.6 esi, haynes manuals do not cover this model, is there an alternative? or should i buy two haynes manuals, one for engine etc one for body work trimings etc. cheers Al Read more
Sorry, just to be clear, i'm not selling the manual, i just used that link to illustrate which one it is, because it doesn't seem to be listed on haynes.co.uk.
Ed.
Can somebody please tell me; is it common motor practice to re-fit a used cambelt. I have a difference of opinion from two garages. A Ford main dealer says that once a timing belt has been installed and tensioned, once it is removed it should not be refitted, even if its only done a few miles.
Another private garage says that this is not true, they are perfectly useable and can be refitted. I suppose its a difference of opinion as to what can be done and what should be done.
Being fairly non-technical I dont know. Maybe different rules apply to different manufacturers. It would strike me that it is advisable, but is it motor trade practice.
Any advice on the subject would be appreciated. The car is a 1997 Ford Fiesta 1.4 ghia with a zetec engine. Read more
Yes you can re-fit a cambelt and it will be perfectly servicable providing it hasn't been mistreated during the removal process. But I would personally recommend that if it has to be removed then it might as well be replaced by a new one at the same time.
I am currently looking to purchase a diesel as I drive around 30,000 miles a year. I have a budget of around £7000 and need something that is going to be reliable above all else for a couple of years or so. Positive driving experience, gizmo's and the like are obviously a bonus.
I have been looking at the likes of Avensis D4D, Mondeo and Octavia. I have previously dismissed French cars as unreliable, and thought that they may not stand up to the miles well (no offense meant, but this is just the general idea I have from mags etc).
Thing is, finding a good car at this price is proving to be difficult. Very few seem to be available through private sellers, and general dealers stock can be very patchy, if not downright dodgy.
I am starting toi re-think my stratergy and would appreciate your thoughts.
Choices-
1 Keep plugging away and something will turn up - eventually??
2 Widen the search to include French cars - plenty around. Are my worries unfounded?
3 Buy a much older car like a MB or BMW diesel which stand up to miles well? But what does £7000 get??? Might make sense as retains value - hence the question about what £7000 buys you.
4 Pay over the odds and get a slightly older car from a main dealer with fewer history concerns etc.
Which of the above choices makes the most sense?
I never thought it would be so difficult to blow £7000 on a car! The longer I look the more confused (and disheartened) I become Read more
You should try out a mercedes C Class diesel. 45mpg on a good day and small depreciation and capable of huge mileages. I like the French designs but am wary of residuals and quality.
I've heard that it is possible to run diesel engines on vegetable oil, but that additives are required.
What are the additives?
Does it affect the engine life?
Is the fuel economy as good as it would be on diesel?
This is for a Kubota lawn mower.
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Also by adding veg oil you are changing the ignition quality of the fuel (reducing the cetane value). Therefore more fuel is injected prior to the start of combustion allowing more time for mixing of fuel and air. Basically fuel that's injected after combustion has started causes smoke.
I think I heard on the news this morning that Gordon "I've a stealth tax for everything" Brown is asking the OPEC countries to produce more oil to keep fuel prices down...
Do you suppose he considered something a little less drastic like.... oh I dunno, reducing fuel tax a little?
JaB Read more
Just to correct an impression - China is actually a net exporter of oil. Of course, they're using more at home, which still makes a difference to the rest of us, but we'd be even worse off without them!
Time for biofuels to be taken a bit more seriously, perhaps?
Hi,
My fiesta's temp gauge is reading unusually low, especially when travelling at motorway speeds. The needle drops just off the "normal" area of the gauge, which hasn't always been the case. Furthermore when stuck in traffic in hot weather previously the needle would creep up until the cooling fans kicked in, which it doesn't do any more - the needle barely gets past the mid-way point of the "normal" area on the gauge.
I'm wondering if this is likely to be indicative of a change in the characteristics of the thermostat, or if the temp senders are tired and in need of replacing.
Do thermostats change their opening temperature with time?
Cheers,
Fiesta man.
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Hi all,
Just thought i'd add to this thread to say that my Escort is doing the exact same thing as the original poster's Fiesta.
It just started in the last few weeks - at motorway speeds the gauge reaches the very bottom of the 'normal' scale, and in traffic it is about the same.
However i'm sure that i have heard the fans kick in whilst in heavy motorway (crawling) traffic.
Is this still likely to be the thermostat, or just the sender to the gauge, whatever/wherever that may be?
why do some manufacturers (such as Peugeot, Mercedes, BMW, Alfa Romeo, Mazda)use numbers and letters when others give their products names?
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ND, as an Alfa aficionado I'm surprised at you. Xedos may
be a silly name, but ugly it ain't. In fact one
of the nicest looking cars of its day. OK, the grille
could do with being a bit bigger, but the rest, especially
rear 3/4 view is superb. Almost as good as the 156
saloon!
Now you see, to my eyes it was oh-so-nearly but never quite made it. Certain aspects jarred, including the grille. Overall it gave an impression of being ungainly, mainly down to how it sat on its wheels. Had they been moved a tad closer to the corners it would have completed the job with a lot more conviction.
Hi,
I need to try and identify an engine, a part of which is shown in www28.brinkster.com/dryboy/filler_cap.jpg .
All help appreciated!
Thanks,
Fiesta man
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Vauxhall OHC
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groups.msn.com/honestjohn - Pictures say a thousand words.....
I was behind a Peugeot today. One I hadn't seen before but looked really stylish in a deep purply colour.
Would it have been the new 40whatever it is? Read more
>>>> afraid there is no consistency here anyway. Some German cars do
have names - Golf, Polo and Sharan to name but 3.
i was of course referring to BMW and Mercedes. but i suppose E class, S class etc are not numbers.
Had another look but cant see anything obvious.
Local a/c shop has sign out advertising "free check" so I will take it up tomorrow and see what they have to say.
just one other question - the local a/c shop is also advertising aircon topup. AFAIU a/c gas is not topped up (say like a car tyre to a specific pressure) - but a specific weight of gas was added? Is my understanding correct? if so what would an "aircon top up" be?