May 2004
"Parents who drive their children to school in huge 4x4 vehicles have been branded "idiots" by London's mayor Ken Livingstone."
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3739495.stm
discuss:- Read more
I February this year I began to experience overheating with my 1997 BMW 523i.
The RAC could not diagnose the problem directly but advised having the Viscous Coupling on the fan replaced. I booked the car in with my local main dealer who instead replaced the Radiator and Thermostat - telling me that the fan was fine - charging me £450 for the privilege. The problem disappeared.
Two weeks ago the problem reoccurred and the car was sent back to the dealer - this time they have pinpointed a problem with the fan and it's electrical relay which they have replaced along with the fan itself - another £600 (which seems steep).
I am concerned that this may have been the original problem and that I've been taken for a ride - any thoughts?
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I do own a BMW and unfortunately totally disagree they have built their reputation from the cars they have built. Mine is twenty years old and runs like a dream and I'm sure many others would agree.
SWMBO left the car unlocked on the weekend and of course someone went through it. They left behind the stereo (which she keeps in the glove box), the blue badge (apparently quite a good trade in these) but did steal the hand book and service manual.
Presumably as the service manual had full dealer stamps and only 59k for a P reg this is what might have been of interest (for clocking purposes). I cannot think why else they would want it but if there are any more sinister reasons can someone let me know please? Read more
You never know, maybe you'll find your own book on Ebay!
The company where I work want to install air-con into an old building (converted barn), but there are issues with installation of the full-blown jobs because of the roof, or something. The alternative I am trying to get them to install are those wall-mounted jobs - I know Toshiba make these, are there any other manufacturers ? That way, the only installation is a hole to the outside wall ! Read more
Still busy, a quick and not very thorough reply;
Very pleasant place for sunny relaxing beach holiday, lovely people, great atmosphere. Most package holidays are however in fairly isolated hotels away from the real Cuba which is fascinating and should not be missed. It should be investigated with the usual care of a western tourist in a (very) poor foreign country although having Spanish is a help - don't be flashy, don't carry all the money/passports in one place etc. etc..
Havana has lots of history and is pretty lively though watch for pickpockets; at the other end of the island, the city of Holguin is amazing for being almost entirely car-free; everyone gets about on bicycles or horses.
If you dress as locals and can integrate a bit rather than go round as a total tourist then you can get a fascinating insight on a very different lifestyle.
Re: Passport Stamp & USA
Should be no problems at all, many Americans visit although they all take care to travel via Nassau since they're not allowed to fly direct. I never had a problem. If in doubt check on the US embassy website in case its changed in the last year or so.
No jellyfish anywhere that I'm aware of. Varadero is the top notch resort on Cuba, it's about an hour and a half from Havana, 100 miles away, and has an (tourist flights) international airport at the resort as well. Many of the hotels are ideal for families, some more for singles, depends on the specific hotel.
re: travelling in August
Can be very, very hot and humid then; I'd prefer to go in May/June or September, but at least on the coast there'll be some fresh air.
M.
Anyone with a middle-aged 106 might want to look closely at the two forged arms which support either end of the rear axle.
Ours is a 'P' reg base model 'XN'(8 years old). Spotted it quite by accident while repairing a small hole in the rear silencer.
Both these arms, particularly the near-side, appear to have extensive corrosion. Maybe it's not as bad as it looks but there's a lot of flaking and lamination.
My short-term solution is to blast them with WD40 until I can stipple a good coat of Waxoyl.
Don't know if they've been caught in time. It had an MOT in Feb -my MOT man doesn't usually miss anything!
They appear to carry the whole weight of the rear of the car.
Looks like a complete rear suspension-off job to fix.
It's quite a surprise when the bodywork is in such good nick - 106's don't seem to rust where you can see it.....
Has anyone else found the same - or worse?
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I think the three stud four stud confusion actually refered to the mounting bolts that hold the axle on. 306 have three bolts per side 106 have two bolts per side I think. When I saw that I swore I'd never handbrake turn again.
P.S. If you are braking heavily on the Motorway, you are doing it wrong. Like Clarkson says "Look ahead use, the throttle."
I am thinking of changing to a laptop, not least to save the space taken up by work-station.
I need just an entry-level unit for surfing, e-mailing and word processing.
I have narrowed down possible choice to 'ei-system' (own brand?), Toshiba A40 and Fujitsu-Siemens Amilo L6820.
Which would Backroomers recommend....or are there better ones worth considering?
My target price is around £650 and I prefer a 15" screen.
Any helpful suggestions would be appreciated....thanks in anticipation. Read more
For the last couple of days I have noticed that whenever
I start an HJ session I get the You are about
to enter a secure site warning. This happens with IE at
my work bit not with Opera at home (as far as
I can remember)
Not a problem at all, more a bit of curiosity -
anyone know why it is happening?
Subject to confirmation, I've stopped it happening to me by blocking the cookies of the website www.rmuk.co.uk
--
L'escargot by name, but not by nature.
SWMBO and I have decided to buy my late mother's car from her estate.
To be fair to the other beneficiaries I am seeking a valuation for it. I am seeking other opinions including a Nissan Franchise dealer.
The car is a 1999 T reg Nissan Almera SLX 5 door automatic with 23,000 miles (SWMBO will acually drive an auto - manuals are out of the question).
The car has some very minor damage to the front of the bumper, which has been badly repaired. In addition there are a few scratches and some of the bumper trim has come off
I am looking for the type of valuation equal to what I would get for a relitively quick sale. Not necessarily an auction price but not one that may get a sale if the sun is shining.
Any advice would be gladly received.
Hugo Read more
I was a little stuck as to what to offer the other beneficiaries.
So we have all agreed that the £1800 is the value for probate and my purposes. If I were to sell it for more then we have agreed that anything over would then be split among all the beneficiaries.
I doubt that there is any chance of selling it now. SWMBO, who I might add was convinced she would never drive again as recently as two weeks ago, has just named, washed and driven her new motor with unparalleled enthusiasm! The big difference is that it is an automatic, which means she can pay more attention to the roads etc.
Although she has passed her test years ago, she was always a reluctant driver and recently has driven about once every 6 months or so under extreme duress.
Hugo
I noticed HJ recommended changing a 60k miles/5 yr old golf in Sat Telegraph, due to higher repair costs.
What do backroomers think?
My golf is just about 5yrs old with 40k on the clock. I'm getting told to change it by the other half. However given that we've owned it since new and it has had no problems what-so-ever I am minded to keep it another few years.
When is the best time to change a new car - is there a magic formula?
Thanks Read more
Yes indeed. Distinctly uncertain that you're comparing like with like though. People hwo live their life on credit invariably end up borrowing new money as quickly as their old loan is repaid. Whilst it may not be a direct cost of having a new car, it is likely to be a cost that results from having a new car.
Have done approx 78,000m from new in 2001MY 115PS TDI PD. My driving style is very light on brake use, plus main jouney is m/way. Original pads and discs stll have plenty of meat left. Rear brake squeal occasionally evident over approx last 30,000m.
Today I had the OSR tyre renewed... The operator managed to damage the alloy wheel by incorrectly loacting it on the tyre removing machine - wheel now has deep gouges across two of the spokes. I didnt notice this until I got home, but what I did notice on the way home was worse than expected fuel economy on the Multi function display, and really bad squealling from the rear brakes, which was partly silenced by sharp application of h/brake while in forward motion.
I've had the wheel off, cant see anythng wrong, except excessive binding. The binding is severe when the wheel bolts are torqued to spec (89 ft lbs), but less severe when bolts just finger tight. Torque to turn wheel is in region of 35 ft lbs in severe case.
After road test of 10 miles, NSR disc temp 50 deg C. OSR disc temp 158 deg C. Clearly I need to fix this - any suggestions?
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PS
Will be dismantling caliper later today, but read in Haynes manual
that caliper bracket retaining bolts must be renewed.
Is this really necessary? - the torque spec does not suggest
they are put into yield.
You're correct. But they only cost pennies so I generally renew them as a matter of course. Dealers never seem to stock them so I can only assume that their own factory trained technicians don't bother - maybe just drop a blob of Loctite on the old ones?
Question: how long does it take to change 2000X Punto ELX front wheel bearing?
Answer: 3weeks plus
A front wheel bearing went on our Punto so our local car repair man ordered a new one from a Fiat dealer giving all the necessary chassis and engine numbers, etc. When it eventually arrived he had the car in and fitted the bearing. The grinding noise had gone but the ABS light was on all the time so he suspected he had damaged the ABS sensor removing it. He ordered a new sensor and a couple of days later the sensor arrived but it wouldn't fit. Back he went to the dealer but none of the correct type in the country so he had to wait for one to come from Italy. The correct sensor arrived nearly a week later and was fitted but the ABS light was still on. Our man returned to the dealer and was then told that he had fitted the wrong wheel bearing originally. The ABS wheel bearing has magnets moulded into the rubber seal between inner and outer races which the sensor uses instead of the normal toothed ring.
As I write this the dealer is attempting or should I say has been trying since last Thursday, to get a bearing transferred from another division.
The first bearing cost £25 but would be cheaper no doubt at a bearing shop; the ABS bearing should be costing about £60 but I doubt if you could get one except from a Fiat dealer.
In the two and a half years and 16,000 miles of owning this car we have had 4 weeks off the road to fix a gearbox problem, 1 week off the road to get a rear section of exhaust and 3+ weeks so far trying to get a wheel bearing replaced. This doesn't include another new wheel bearing, a new shaft in the electric steering system, the handbrake being stuck on and a few other little things which were relatively quick to fix.
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From an engineering point of view there is no need for poor design and often it's all put down to being done for cheapness.
Putting magnets in the bearing is not necessary and why should you have to replace these with the bearing each time (especially when it is a regular occurrence with a Punto), when the classic toothed ring is a far better way of doing this. Like Opel/Vauxhall with the Vectra indicator stalks you have to really think if a change from the normal way is necessary or just being done as a gimmick.
A new registration Fiat standing on your drive definitely says something - it says that it has probably broken down and awaiting parts.
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Ok, no new arguments, just the same old same old.
Say bye-bye thread
all: Bye-bye thread.
No Dosh
Backroom Moderator
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