November 2004
I know this subject has been discussed before, but I couldn't find it on a site search so please forgive me.
A very close relative in her seventies was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease last year, and unsurprisingly has been in denial about her deteriorating condition ever since. Whilst still able to walk with the aid of a stick she has fallen several times and is very unsteady on her feet.
Disturbingly, of late she has been known to be very economical with the truth regarding hospital appointments, seeing medical staff, getting extra help such as wheelchairs etc..
A complicating factor in all this is we live 150 miles away, so contact is limited to phone calls and the odd trip at various intervals to see her.
She still drives her small car which is a lifeline to her and when pressed claims to have told her insurance company about it whom she said, "said it was ok to drive". It sounds unlikely to me. To our knowledge she has not filled in any extra forms, been re-assessed etc., nor paid any extra premium.
We are now pressing her to inform DVLA which we know she is required to do by law (as specified in Form D100) but she has come up with more excuses like "I've tried to ring and they're always busy."
Last week she scraped the car on a wall (not the first time)and passed it off by saying, "Well, we all do that sort of thing". Our worries are that she is NOT fit to drive and eventually will hurt herself and very worryingly, some innocent third party.
So the question is, how do we tackle this issue ?
Concise advice welcomed. Thank you. Read more
Hi,
Im going to be looking at buying a 1998 Audi A4 V6 2.8 this weekend. The car is manual, 2WD and has about 108K. It is a US spec car since I'm in AZ at the moment, dont think it is much different to the UK model. Any idea what are the important things to check on this particular car.
Thanks.... Read more
Check all the climate control functions and its LCD display (control unit can fail as can the air distribution stepper motors - $$$).
Drive slowly over some bumpy roads and see if the dash creaks - they mostly seem to - and it can get very annoying!
www.mg-rover.org/articles/showart.php?ArtID=524
I reckon this looks pretty good - only thing is it's a bit too "new Audi" with the front grill (looks like No Dosh's goatee*).
Still a nice looking motor though, I'd definitely buy one over a Beemer or Merc. Would probably prefer a Jag to any of them though. If they chuck in some stonking engines for us dervheads as well as petrolheads, I'd say it would be a success. In fact, given the paucity of derv coupes for those like me who wouldn't buy any other kind of engine, that could be a key to success for them.
*Ok, I freely admit I ripped off that joke from the Sniff Petrol website ;)
--
andymc
Vroom, vroom - mmm, doughnuts ... Read more
The titanic had only a few minutes warning before it hit the iceberg.
Rover has had years of warning that it is heading on a clear path towards towards the no-new-models beach
[Sorry this has gotten a bit lengthy, i'm a very wordy chap!]
Hi Folks,
OK, I'm replacing my aging (N Reg) Renault Clio 1.9D, for a number of reasons.
1. It's looking a bit tatty, and i'm having to go visit clients for my firm a lot more recently, and it doesn't look good.
2. It's a bit small. Since buying the car i've taken up Scuba diving, and the clio isn't really big enough to lug two peoples kit around in comfortably (saying nothing of the weight of said kit).
3. I want a new one :)
Budget is £4000, give or take a couple of hundred.
Another diesel would be nice, but petrol ok provided the economy isn't horrendous (i'm set to accept less than the 55 to 60 that the clio gives me, and don't do enough miles for 28-30mpg to break the bank).
I've looked at astra/focus estates (the hatchbacks dont have the boot space I need), and mondeo, vectra, nissan primera and pug 406 saloons, price wise it strikes me that i may as well go for the bigger saloon as the smaller estate is the same money, but generally with less toys.
In order of initial feel i'd rate as follows:
Pug 406 (Drove a 99/T-Reg 2.0 petrol Executive, 76k @ £3995)
Mondeo (Drove a 2.0 zetec X (but 2000 model year) @ £4500)
Vectra (Drove a W plate 2.0TDi at £4300, it had a few "issues" but got the idea that i wouldn't find the vectra too exciting to drive).
Primera (W plate @ £3995, felt very plasticy inside, but drove nicely, i think it's the "feel" being in it that dropped it to the bottom).
From that i'm now having a look / drive of a few different pugs, so i can compare/contrast before making a decision on which one to go for, but thought i'd post here (i've been lurking for a while) and ask for peoples comments, experience with 406s good or bad, anything to watch out for not listed in the car-by-car, and so on and so forth.
I'm still tempted to take a look at a few more mondeos, price wise it's going to be the 2000 model year (sadly), so again comments/experiences with those would be welcome too.
Cheers folks!
Gavin. Read more
My father's Cortina wasn't in great shape after towing a 3000lb boat-and-trailer combination. Rear suspension a bit squashed, clutch had been slipped a lot, engine rather strained.
I'm sure the caravan is lighter than that, but probably still worth having the car thoroughly checked over.
It seems that the european car of the year for 2005 has gone to the Toyota Prius with the C4 2nd, Focus 3rd, Astra 4th, Modus 5th, 407 6th and BMW 1 series 7th.
www.caroftheyear.org/pages/Voting05.htm Read more
What struck me most (& I realise this is nothing to
do with motoring) was the standard of translation into English.
Don't worry, this problem is being worked on at the highest levels:
The European Commission has announced an agreement whereby English will be the official language of the EU, rather than German, which was the other contender. Her Majesty's Government conceded that English spelling had room for improvement and has therefore accepted a five-year phasing in of "Euro-English".
In the first year, "s" will replace the soft "c". Sertainly, this will make sivil servants jump for joy. The hard "c" will be dropped in favour of the "k" which should kleer up some konfusion and allow one key less on keyboards.
There will be growing publik enthusiasm in the sekond year, when the troublesome "ph" will be replaced with "f", making words like "fotograf" 20% shorter.
In the third year, publik akseptanse of the new spelling kan be expekted to reach the stage where more komplikated changes are possible. Governments will enkourage the removal of double letters which have always ben a deterent to akurate speling. Also, al wil agre that the horible mes of the silent "e" is disgrasful.
By the fourth yer, peopl wil be reseptiv to steps such as replasing "th" with "z" and "w" with "v". During ze fifz yer, ze unesesary "o" kan be dropd from vords kontaining "ou" and similar changes vud of kors be aplid to ozer kombinations of leters.
After siz fifz yer, ve vil have a reli sensibl riten styl. Zer vil be no mor trubls or difikultis and everivunvil find it ezi to understand ech ozer. ZE DREM VIL FINALI CUM TRU!
[sorry, this isn't new, but couldn't resist ..]
In a nutshell, am I required to have snow chains in the Alps if I'm at the helm of a bona-fide 4x4 complete with low ratio transfer box, offroad tyres and locking rear diff?
Knowing how les flics love any chance to fine a Brit driver.....
Ta in advance.....
ND Read more
You can buy 4WD Alfas in Swizzland. by the way.......
You can get them across europe, LHD only. Despite huge interest in the UK, no plans to have a RHD production run. Smartalfa are importing LHD s to order.
Hello all,
Looking for some advice. Last year my car got hit in the night whilst parked up by joyriders. Worst thing of all was the loss of my no claims bonus which is now 1 year instead of 4 which it would have been.
Coupled with a speeding ticket the month before my renewal date my premiums I was getting quoted were sky high... to put you in the picture I'm 27, held a license for 10 years with no previous accidents/ losses and my T reg Rover 214 is costing almost £900 a year with just the 1 year NCD. Shocking i think. And what about if I want to get something sportier in the next year or two- I dread to think..
Anyway someone mentined to me that there is a process by which I may be able to have my NCD reinstated but was not able to remember fully the details of this. Short of the young hoodlums being successfully prosecuted and being forced to stump up is there any hope of doing this? Does anyone know?
Read more
My other half had a similar problem.
However her current renewal said 60% ncd but only 1 years discount. And they were giving up brokers so would have to online to get it......needless to say all that took into account was 1year ncd.....sky high prices.
So.....
I went round all the companies (careful to tell no lies) but just told them she had 60% ncd (did not mention years ncd most asked however a few made an assumption on the information I gave that she had more than 1 year)
They will of course ask for proof and I duely sent off the renewal quote with all the figures. And never heard a murmur.
In the end got a good deal. Saving about £200.
But it took about a day of hard work to get it.
Afraid thats all I can suggest.
Hi
Car prices ae creeping up, and have been for the last 18 months or so.
American cars are approximately 80% dearer here.
Rip off Britain on the roll again?
Is it cheaper to go to Europe and buy?
American cars, why are they so dear here
LD Read more
It's up to us to go and negotiate the best discounts out there.
EG, my new van had a retail of £14995 + vat.
It actually cost me £4000 less than that and I got a few extras thrown in plus 0% with 30% down. Part of this was down to Nissan trying to push for new registrations and part was down to me negotiating.
I noticed that the Picasso is now from £9995 rather than £10995.
To get a real idea of prices you need to take into account the final price after discounts etc.
Hugo
Hi all,
Was thinking about tackling this little job soon, second gear is a bit tricky to get whilst its cold (at first pull away). Could this be anything to do with the oil lever in the gearbox ? Checked and it looks like one of the seals is worn and the "odd" drip comes out. Hardly any though, but I suppose if its been like that for a while the lever might be low
Any suggestion on costs / time to complete / trickieness
Thanks
Paul
Read more
Can't answer your question directly, but my experience with "stiff gearchange when cold" on a 306 was ...
1. Changed gearbox oil - possible improvement, but not much.
2. Dismantled, cleaned, greased and refitted gearchange linkage - noticeable improvement. Still not perfect, but I can live with it now.
Still describing the 306 (petrol & diesel) ...
I assume the gearbox seals you are talking about are the ones the driveshafts fit through. Easy replacement once the driveshaft has been pulled out of the seal - don't forget to drain the gearbox oil first!
You can leave the driveshafts bolted to the wheel hub, which saves a job. You just need to separate the hub from the lower suspension and loosen the shock absorber top mountings to get enough free play to pull the driveshaft out of the seal.
Left hand side is easier than right hand side.
It is well documented in Haynes.
Ian
Evening everybody...
I was wondering if anyone has heard about late model Mondeos (petrol) wearing out clutches? My father in law was incensed today when he received a bill for £670 for a replacement clutch on a 2.0 Zetec, which is just over 3 yrs old and covered 36000 miles. He has owned it from new - I appreciate it is a wearing part and longevity will vary, but 36K seems far too short to me..
Any one else have any experience of this?
Cheers,
Pad Read more
It was replaced at a Ford main agent, they said that it was down to wear, not faultly parts so no joy there. I always suspected that driving style came into it, I didnt mention it in my first post to see if there was a barrage of 'yes, Ive had the same problem' replies. I have also done some snooping around and can find no evidence that this is a recurring problem.
Cheers for the responses,
Pad
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She should see her GP so that a medical assessment can be carried out. A driving assessment is the next step. In the case of Motor Neurone Disease, the sufferer can continue to drive as long as the condition is not affecting his/her driving.
If she is driving dangerously and the GP finds out, the GP should ask the patient to contact the DVLA. If the patient refuses then the GP has to make a judgement about medical confidentiality. If the patient is dangerous on the road, the GP will have to weigh up the case for public safety against the the case for the patient's medical confidentiality. For example, he would have to break confidentiality if the driver is dangerous and in charge of a vehicle that could put others at great risk e.g. coach/HGV.
If the insurers aren't notified they may refuse to pay out, especially if the person continued to drive knowing that he/she has an obligation to let the DVLA know about serious medical conditions. and they chose not to.