January 2005
OK, I'm looking to change my car, and a lovely example of a Fiat Coupe has come along - but it's a private sale.
The issue I have is that I need my current car until I have the new one, but the money from selling the old car will be put towards the new one.
This means that in some manner I'll have to borrow the extra money and pay it back I think.
What are the possible solutions?
My first thought was a loan for the full amount, then pay off a lump sum when I sell the old car, but apparently I can't do that. It's a case of just your repayments, or the whole amount.
Natwest offer a 'tailored loan', which seems to offer the ability to pay off lump sums, but I haven't been able to find out how much the arrangement fee is yet.
Does anyone have any other suggestions for working out this surprisingly difficult problem? I'm sure I'm not the first person to have come across it.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions. Read more
I noticed last night whilst stationary my 96 1.25 ford fiesta made a strange whistling noise if I pressed the brake pedal lightly. If I then pressed it a little harder the noise stopped. If I then turn the engine off I hear a noise like a balloon going down for maybe 5 or 6 seconds, pressing the brake pedal makes the noise stop sooner. I suspect a damaged vacuum hose, is there anything else I should check for.
Many Thanks Read more
Thanks for the advice guys. I had a good look/listen last night and the hissing is definitely coming from the servo. Also checked the one way valve, that is working exactly as expected. So it looks like I'm off to Ford to get a new servo, anyone want to guess how much a new servo is for a 96 ford fiesta?
How can you find out (with certainty) the accuracy of a pocket tyre pressure gauge?
My latest recently-purchased pen (pencil?) type reads 4 psi lower than my older pen type which I've had for several years. My latest, however, agrees with a recently-purchased digital gauge which claims to have an accuracy of +/-1 psi.
I'm assuming for the time being that the newest 2 gauges are the most accurate, and that the older one reads 4 psi high. But how sure of this can I be?
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L\'escargot by name, but not by nature. Read more
I have a mechanical dial gauge, no clue how accurate it is, but I have no reason to doubt it, or check further. I use petrol station air pumps and my usual method is to overfill the tyres by about 4-6 psi, then its only a short .5 mile drive home (hardly enough to cause any undue wear). The next morning when tyres are cold I use my dial gauge and reduce the pressure accordingly.
The BP nearest to me has a free air pump and it has a handy digital selector which beeps when the set pressure is reached. Problem is the hose must have been damaged at some point, repaired (probably by cutting out damaged section, so now its too short and whill only reach the tyres on one side of the car at a time.
I thought of complaining, but then thought "you get what you pay for". 8-)
Hi
My Rover 75 diesel is now on 205,000 and was wondering whether to change the cam chain. I have been to two separate dealers and they both advise that it doesnt need changing but gave me the number of Rover to check anyway as neither have seen a car with such a high mileage...
I havent called them yet but wondered what opinions people have as to what to do. Is it worth the expense to change it - more than likely with the tensioners etc, or will it go on for many more miles regardless?
Any advise appreciated as plan to keep car now at least 2 years with minimal unscheduled expense. Read more
Hi
My Rover 75 diesel is now on 205,000 and was wondering
whether to change the cam chain. I have been to
two separate dealers and they both advise that it doesnt need
changing but gave me the number of Rover to check anyway
as neither have seen a car with such a high mileage...
haha, simular to my experience with Peugeot. I remember when I took my 1996 (which was quite new at the time) 406 in, with 126,000 on the clock, and they had never seen a peugeot with those sort of miles on it let alone their latest model car. If I remember rightly the service book only went up to 96,000 miles (or it may be 104,000 or something close to that) Anyway after calling over all the mechanics ("John.... John .... come and have a look at this ... 406 with 126,000 miles on it") they re-engaged their brains and worked out they could do the service schedule by dividing the number of miles by 9,000, and then counting ABCABCABC etc to work out the next due service was a B ... DOH!
I have Mk2 VW Golf 93,000 miles
I recently had the front wheel bearings replaced on my Golf.
The garage mechanic pointed out that the rear wheel bearings were fine, even though one rear wheel (when raised off ground) makes a click sound when a turning force is applied.
The mechanic said that this click sound is due to the torque setting of the hub nut, is this a correct assumption? My rear wheels have drum brakes.
A quick glance in a haynes manual shows that the taper bearing is held in place by this hub nut plus a lock ring and pin. The torque applied to the hub nut seems quite low considering that the hub nut has to hold the brake drum and wheel in place, is this a correct obversation or have I missed something?
Read more
Could even be the tilting causes the brake shoe to move..unworn section of the drum moves the brake shoe..They have been known to click?
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Steve
I am about to embark on the challenge to DIY oil & filter change on my Corolla 2001 vvt-i 1.6 Auto. I have spent some time looking around for relevant info (No Haynes manual however) but still have some queries:
1) I read this statment from somewhere - 'It has the cam belt to the left , alternator underneath and the heat shield to the right, there is no room at all to get the oil filter off.' Is that true? I have never seen what's underneath the car.
2) Hints or things to watch out?
Any ideas are welcome.
Thanks,
Dumb Read more
Just realised my oil change was on a post 2002 Corolla, so I am not sure if it is the same as your model Corolla?....
My wife has a 205 automatic,because the reversing lights were malfunctioning so I decided to clean up the terminals on the inhibiter switch[it has worked before]I have now lost the reversing lights but have also lost the ignition light at switch on and it now comes on when I rev the engine.The volts with the engine running are13.75 and at rest they are 12.25,the headlights are brighter when I rev the engine Iwould be gratefull for any suggestions
Burman Read more
it was a fuse
Burman
Thinking of buying a Previa, mainly because I need plenty of space and bullet proof reliability. Has anyone out there had experience of a new shape Previa. I'm almost certainly going for a second hand diesel, not many about though with 7 seats, most are 8 seaters - which don't have removeable seats. I'm thinking of paying about 16k for a 53 plate - does this sound reasonable ? I could go for a 2.4 petrol but even a Toyota dealer admitted they were very juicy so I think I'll probably give petrol engines a miss. Read more
Hi - have you any other reason for wanting a Previa? There are other MPV's out there and you haven't said if you've ruled them all out for one reason or another. I have a Mazda MPV (diesel) which I'm very happy with. It has 7 good seats, all of which fold/slide. It has plenty of room and all in all I'm delighted with it. Being Japanese and a Mazda I'm hoping it'll be very reliable in the long term and these were the main reasons for buying it. I briefly considered a Previa when buying my Mazda MPV but didn't like the cost. Also tried a Hyundai Trajet but found it a bit rough and ready albeit with an excellent 5 year warranty. The Trajet's rear doors don't slide and neither do the rear seats which would be a major problem for us so it was a no, no. Rightly or wrongly I quickly ruled out the European and N. American MPV's and the Kia Sedona for a variety of reasons and was left with Japanese of which the Mazda seemed the best all round bet for me. It's now 18 months old and I've had no problems whatseover (touch wood!).
If you haven't had an MPV before and have small kids the rear door issue is more important than you might think. Sliding doors are much better IMO, especially where space is tight. Also ease of removal/folding of the rear seats is important. You don't want to have to lose seats to carry any significant amount of luggage. Thus far, I've only needed to remove the rear seats on mine on a couple of occasions when carrying extremely large items.
Of course the Previa is a great car and Toyota reliability is legendary so if it meets your needs and you've got the money why not. If you want a cheaper Japanese alternative however I'd recommend the Mazda.
Are any UK mx-3s available with aircon? A friend is looking for one but his SWMBO wants aircon and those cars don't seem to have it. Are the grey imports a better bet for aircon?
teabelly Read more
Ah, thanks. I'll pass on the info.
teabelly
My brothers Alfa 155 wears down the inside of the front tyres (surprise etc)I heard that Avon have produced a tyre with a harder wearing tread on the inside. Anyone got any experience of these or similar? Read more
Browse
www.moneysavingexpert.com click on Forums - loans & debts - ask there.
It's a FREE site, from Martin Lewis, the money guy thats on TV & radio all the time.
& well worth ALL backroomers checking in there, too - lots n lots hints n tips on how to save £$£$.
Whenever a motoring Q comes up, I always point them here!!
VB