October 2004
Since buying the car, I've not used the heater until last week. When I turned it on, the output was barely above the ambient temperature. Yesterday, my mind being focussed by the fact that the mercury is falling fast, I flushed out the cooling system (water and Wynn's system flush) and replaced the thermostat. Although the car now consistently runs warmer, and is obviously better for the work, still no heat. No apparent leaks from inside the car from the heater matrix. The heater return pipe is very hot, the two input pipes less so. I've bled the system thoroughly. There is a change in note from the air system when I turn the heat on via the facia panel, indicating that the flaps in the air distribution box are functioning.
Does anyone have any ideas where the problem might lie before I invest some hard earned cash in taking it in the garage to be fixed? Read more
we\'ve just bought a \'98 saab 900s bifuel (petrol/lpg saab installed) at what seems like a pretty good price @£2500. It has done about 110,000 miles . The gas was not working when we bought it but the vendors said it was a fairly cheap repair.
After conventional service the car was running nicely and after the gas supply specialist service the gas was kicking in and the repair was not too expensive. But the gas specialists said that the compression on one cylinder (the first) was down and this affected performance and the tickover in particular.
In fact it is \'lumpy\', compared to our 9000 but the car seems to run pretty well and does not burn oil or water and temperature seems stable. The performance on gas is similar to petrol.
What are the implications of this compression variation in your view? Do we need to worry? Is there anything we can do short of dismantling the engine?
Do we need to? Is there anything to check which may affect the compression in this cylinder?
I\'d be grateful for your response if you can
thanks Read more
First of all get a proper compression test done - wet/dry, cylinder leakdown.
If it needs new valves and seats it shouldn't be too expensive - a good garage or a SAAB independent would be able to do it without much trouble. You would probably need new valves and seats - I'm not current with SAAB parts prices, but shouldn't be too dear so long as you stay away from the franchised dealer for the labour.
Have just been to my local Costco (Liverpool) who are running a 20% off Michelins week from the 11th Oct.
4X Pilot Primacy for my Passat (195/65/15V) cost £189 including valve, fitting etc. In addition they gave me a £40 cashback voucher to return to Michelin which brings the total down to £150. Can't beat this for value. My Dad got new Michelins for his Sirion for £10 a corner after discounts !!!
Be Quick; though you can buy now and they will fit them at any time in the future. Read more
You can always go with your friend and pay them later.
Hi I am finally deciding to scrap my horrible Seat Marbella after it failed it's MOT. I could afford the money to get it sorted but frankly I am fed up of driving the awful thing!
I am looking for a recommendation of a sub £800 car to replace it. Because I only started driving a couple of years ago I have used small cars for cheaper insurance. Now I am a bit cheaper to insure I was looking for something larger and more suitable for my hobbies like fishing and taking my racing bike out to meet friends for bike rides.
Also I am fed up of paying over the odds for small cars (for example 'N' reg Fiestas always seem to be about £500 more expensive than an 'N' reg Mondeo.
Money is an issue still so I am looking for something that wont be horrendous to keep running.
Any ideas?
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preston bca auction y'day
top of the range 1.8 p plate lantra estate in silver went for £1100 - i think.
was mint as well.
seemed bit expensive for the age - but car was mint and aged very well.
was 100 quid of buying it!
I have a quick question which I hope someone may be able to help with. I've scoured the forum and can't find anything directly relating to this (but have found some other useful info which may be relevant).
Mrs. K is a full time housewife, which means that she only drives about 4k-5k miles per year. She tries not to use the car when at all possible, but most of her trips are short journeys - typically 2/3/4 miles.
Once per week she does a long run - about 10 miles or so.
We currently have an Alfa 146, but I'm worried that the short journies that she does will damage the engine/gearbox long term - as it never gets a change to warm up at all. The battery seems to keep its charge ok - so I assume the weekly long-run keeps it ticking over.
I thought the answer was obvious - change it for a small diesel - but this would not seem to be the right answer.
I should stress that she does only use the car when really needed (she does a lot of local work for the school, parish council, church, etc).
I was thinking of changing it for an older automatic (93-onwards).
Should I go for a petrol or a diesel? I should stress I'm not worried about running costs - so the 'diesel-savings' are irrelevant - plus it's only 5k miles per year.
Am I being too paranoid about potential engine damage?
many thanks in advance,
K Read more
In our case I think our most important factor is that of safety, as Mrs. K transports K junior around (3 years old).
So need something safe and solid. Reliabilty is not a major factor (we drive an Alfa at the moment !).
So really a 5 door hatch/estate fits all the criteria.
Flashy car does not work for us - waste of money 'for show' purposes only, keeping up with the Jones', etc .... particularly where we live in Sunningdale - we'd need to some way (and expense) to keep with the local Jones'.
She's a housewife - so "wow" factor not required - just something with a good spec (auto, leather, air con), 5 door or estate and not TOO big in size.
Following on from a lot of the comments above re: newish flashy car v's Mondeo, etc, etc ..... and turning up at customers - remember there's also the perception that perhaps you are sensible and reliable - not a bad thing - particularly if they are going to invest in you.
Just my tuppence worth.
K
The official European Car of the year list has been knocked down from the original 32 to just 7:
BMW Series-1
Citroën C4
Ford Focus
Opel/Vauxhall Astra
Peugeot 407
Renault Modus
Toyota Prius. Read more
Now he tells us ;o)
Looking at this car thinking pretty good buy.(2001, 20,000 miles £5,700) Has anyone got one and how do you like it?
Version 1.6 LXI
Any advice apprecisted. Read more
I have a 99 1.6LX manual which I bought new and have put 74,000km on. It has been great. It had two faults when new - the boot light wouldn't work, faulty earth, and a rattle on the trim of the hatch. Both fixed under warranty. I have had no trouble with this car at all. It is the most reliable car I have ever had. The station wagon type design of the rear makes it very spacious and easy to carry big loads.
I agree with other correspondents about the front seats. You might need to buy a support cushion or even replace the seats with after market ones. Buy one for sure. It is a great car.
I'm not holding my breath but anything is better than nothing!
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/south_yorkshire/373088...m
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In some places only having two lanes can encourage better lane discipline - when I drove regularly in the north east I found things much better as people were used to it and behaved sensibly. However, certain bits were the exception and one was the A1 Western Bypass which was pretty much like you say - people just didn't pull in.
Can anyone tell me if my car has a cam belt or chain fitted? The handbook mentions neither, but the Haynes manual mentions both types. A work colleague suggested Vauxhall swapped from the belts to chains but is not too sure about the date.
Its a 1.2 16v 2000 X reg (but is still the W reg model - thats why I say W reg).
Thanks
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Hi
My mother has had three corsas from new.
The oldest being an R registration.
it has the suzuki 16v chain driven cam (1.2 ecotec)
Even her new 1.2 16v sxi has a chain cam.
--
(iam not a mechanic)
Martin Winters
Unfortunately true, as I have received a £40 fine for failing to declare a vehicle.
Many months ago I bought yet another Series III landy, and the MOT ran out end of July, with the VED a month later.
Back in July, en-route to MOT station the clutch failed and I had the vehicle re-covered back to my house. I booked another MOT and clutch repair a week later, and had the garage collect the Landy.
During inspection they discovered the chassis was nearly all ferric oxide. Unable to finance a rebuild, the garage kindly kept the Landy on their premises and sourced a buyer (looking for a project) for me.
All long winded, sorry, but the whole thing took a couple of months, during which time the VED expired but "out of sight, out of mind" I forgot all about it.
Do I have any recourse in that I needed an MOT to get a new VED disc?
...or as I suspect, I should have just SORNed the useless lump. Read more
Thommo, sure that it was just three years? only need to sorn if they've been taxed since Jan 1998.
Martin
Browse
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Richard, understand what you are saying, and it could be true as the coolant that came out was pretty grotty - the crud that came out of the expansion bottle had to be seen to be believed!
However, the workshop manual specifically refers to the bleed screw as being in the heater return pipe, and this pipe certainly gets hot along it's entire length - I'd not expect it to get hot if there was nowhere for the hot water to go as there would be no flow.
I'll take a look at the cooling system diagram in the Haynes manual tonight. I was fearing someone would say it was the matrix as there is rather a lot to dismantle to fix it!