June 2004
Can anyone tell me if my ZX's heater is knackered as when i put it on the smell is a burning plastic type and I have to resort to the cold air and open windows and when on full blower the heat feels like a very hot hairdryer and you have to remove your hand due to being burnt. Read more
Problem; difficulty getting into second gear requires a good tug down, occasionally.Other gears are fine.
Before visiting a scrappy and possibly replacing all the linkage section, any advice or suggestions to help me.Thanks.
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Worth greasing or at least WD40'ing all the linkages visible in the engine bay from the gear shift shaft to the top of the box. Little cost and it may just fix it.
Good evening all,
Daughters test soon. Wants to postpone for her own reasons. Can't get through to the wonderful efficient people at the DSA due to, "take this option," etc etc etc. Any other routes available?
Regards as ever. Read more
Can't believe it. It is cancelled. Eventually, (after I chose the correct options 3rd time around), I spoke to a rather disinterested lady who asked me for some info namely Daughter's theory pass number. Didn't have that to hand so send Daughter to find, took 4-5 minutes. Just before coming up with the goods the lady said that the reference number on the test confirmation letter would do! I was seething by now. You would think that in this day and age.............. No stop it Martin, don't go on. It is difficult to believe that not so many decades ago we ran 2/3 of the discovered world. Now those 2/3 are over here getting their own back and we can't organise a 'do' in a brewery. Got to go to work now. Dear Mr. Brown needs the revenue so that he can give it to the needy!!!!
Regards to all. M.
My boss had a right good moan at me about her Golf (51 or 02 reg, can't remember).
The biggest upset she has is that the silver painted plastic on the keyfob is so weak that both keyfobs have broken. Dealer says they all do that and it has been improved. Does anyone know if a replacement cover is available.
She also moaned about creaking noises from the dash that have been cured with foam and about the dealer not resetting the service computer. It took a trip back to the dealer to get the service meter reset (once the staff finished their private conversations).
She was impressed by the build quality of the key for my C5 though.
Ben Read more
Not sure what the keyfob is... The key on my Golf was the same as on my current A4 Audi Avant (2.0 FSI DD...). The body did come apart too easily but it sapped back together again and nothing ever broke.
My V-reg GT TDI 110 did 52K with only a couple of things fixed under warranty. No creaks or rattles: I was v impressed with the build quality. DDs point about SA vs German build could be relevant. C-class Merc saloons built in SA are apparently inferior to the estates build in der vaterland.
Hi everyone,
I live in the US where any car of any worth drinks petrol like there's no tomorrow. I want to research buying a car from Europe, i.e. left hand drive, maybe Luxembourg, France or Germany, and shipping it to the USA. Does anyone know anything about this? I'm looking at a Diesel vehicle, primarily, probably a Mondeo.
Thanks!
Phil Read more
Importing a car from Europe to the US is much more difficult than the other way around!
If the car has not been homologated for the US, you could be asked to provide some example for the NHTSA to crash test to prove the car's crashworthyness....and putting US-style side marker lights on the car isn;t going to fool them...
However, I think there is a way around this, if you drive less than a certain number of miles a year.
the easiest thing would be to stick to something European that is sold in the US - eg most VWs, BMWs, Mercedes, or any Volvo or Saab - although I think cars like the Golf/Jetta are built in Mexico.
Steve
...in North Yorks?
Firstly, there are a huge number of concrete bases (for those big cantilevered matrix signs) being built. Now I drive it to and from work every day, since I moved up north, and never have I thought "Blimey, the problem with this road is the huge lack of information being constantly relayed to me".
All the matrix signs I've ever seen just say "Don't Drive Tired"
Also the police are really hot on that road. Every morning and evening I see someone getting a roadside talking too. There's always a police car somewhere doing a laser check. I never used to see any police on the M25.
I'm not complaining, as this active policing has finally managed to slow me down to an average 75 mph. Read more
There are two on the southbound M11 just before the end.
I've only seen them used about twice, one of which was to warn of road closures in central London for the Millenium celebrations.
Quite often there is slow or jammed traffic in the North Circular, but it's never on the boards.
Complete waste of space and money.
The AA ad with Whistling Jack Smiths "I Was Kaiser Bill's Batman" annoys me, as I keep whistling it for hours after hearing it! Read more
With the utmost respect to HJ, I stick to my comments above!
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Roger. (in the UK for 2 more weeks and then back to the sun! )
Wonder if anyone else has the same problem?
I don't wear specs, and I am most reluctant to put on sunglasses when driving - usually only do so when forced to drive into early morning/late evening sun.
The reason is, I find they have a sort of blinkering effect on me - I am much less aware of what is happening on the periphery and even a little insecure. Read more
Frostbite, I suggest that the problems you get with shades can be sorted by getting used to driving with sunspecs. I wear specs all the time and switch to prescription shades if I need to when driving. Check out others' recommendations for what makes might work well for you AND look cool (the latter is highly important).
BUT I wouldn't wear shades when the sun is very low. I've tried it and while it reduces direct glare it makes everything on my peripheral vision just too dark. In these conditions, my advice is to use the car's sun visor. (And actually, nature has made the eyes pretty adaptable and IMHO this is all the help they need.)
It's different throughout the rest of the day, though, when the sun is high and strong. A decent pair of shades is far more relaxing.
Why does the motoring press seem to like Lexus so much ??
I just read the IS200 road test on this site and whilst the 'what to watch out for' is quite accurate, I cant understand why so many other articles and surveys seem to think Lexus are reliable and desirable.
I had an IS200 Sport for 18 months and I can honestly say that it was the most troublesome company car I have ever had. I had the full gammet of problems :-
Juddery clutch - Replaced unedr warranty but still juddered after
6 Speed Man gearbox crunched from 1-2 and 2-3 changes - gearbox rebuilt over 1 & 1/2 weeks still not really any better.
All 5 alloys changed due to premature corrosion.
VVTi engine although smooth had to be revved to distruction to get any performance and returned appauling MPG for a 2 litre car.
Add to this ageing styling and cramped interior/small boot, and I have to say WHY Lexus ???
On a final point though, the dealers are exemplary, I suppose they have to be ! Read more
when I got rid of my IS 200 in January (I wanted to go back to front wheel drive/hatchback format), I sent Lexus a list of my niggles - all fairly minor ones, but still irritating: "montage of clocks" dashboard layout difficult to read on move, no useful storage space around driver where items (e.g. glasses, phone) wouldn't fly about, narrow boot space entry, insignificant horn sound, disappointing engine performance (auto) and relatively high petrol consumption ... yes, all hardly life threatening, and I made it clear to Lexus that I thought their overall build quality and dealer service was superb. Customer Service, of course, came back and promised me that my comments would be sent to Japan and noted as they design the next 200, due out in 2006, I believe.
Hi Aprilla a wonder if you can answer my question. How do you rate the engineering, design and manufacturing philosophy of the three German car manufactureres such as VW/Audi as compared to BMW and Me0rcedes. Do you beleive these cars are unnecesarily complicated or over engineered? How much difference is thier between a mass produced ford/vauxhall and say a mass produced BMW or Merecedes.
A relative of mine says that BMW's in Canada do not perform well in Canadian winters as the plastic components in and around the engine bay crack due to the cold.
I would greatly appreciate your thoughts.
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'I believe that, incredibly, some [W123s] are still doing duty as taxis in Germany'
Recent reported sighting of a 230TE doing service in Dorking. Croatia is apparently stuffed full of W123 taxis, and even the odd W115 is still doing duty there.
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Still have the problem with the heater of my recently purchesed ZX which even on the hot setting smells like burning plastic and when the blower is on it's extremely hot, and the smell is so bad the windows require to be open or turned to the cool setting to reduce the smell.
Any help or advice or ideas appreciated.