February 2005

Bill Payer

The received wisdom on Honda Accord is to avoid the 17? wheel upgrade (from 16?) as it messes up the ride and the car tramlines badly.
I still can?t make my mind up about the Accord and have been looking at Ford Direct Mondeo Ghia X TDCI?s ? a lot of car for the money.
However many of them are fitted with 18? wheels (upgrade from 17?).
Has anyone any experience of this ? does the ride suffer, and does it tramline?
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cheddar

Hi, My Ghia X on 17" wheels rides a little more firmly than models on 16" wheels, I have driven a Mondeo on 18" wheels and it is marginally firmer again. The differences are not great and the basic character of the car is uneffected.

Regards.

Russ66

Hi, This is my first post, but I have been lurking for ages :)

I have a (W/2000) 1.8 Primera Sport, when braking all is fine until it drops down to about 5mph when it feels like the ABS is kicking in, but the light does not come on.

The car stops fine, The ABS light works properly according to the handbook, but it refers you to a NMD if problems occur.

Anyone else experienced similar problems or any ideas??

Many Thanks. Read more

Wales Forester

Can anyone tell me the official cambelt change interval for this car please?

PP Read more

Wales Forester

Ta Charles, much obliged to you.

PP

David K

I have a Saab 9-5 Aero auto, 2001, 116k miles, with full FSH.
Once the engine is warmed up, the auto box has developed a slight 'shunt' when starting from rest and then a vibration when changing from 1st to 2nd. 3rd to 4th remains smooth as do all down changes.
I was referred to a local auto transmission centre, but was disappointed by the stereotypical 'sharp intake of breath' and a diagnosis of a needing the box reconditioned at £1400 plus labour (£400) plus VAT.(and then an extra £700 if the inner casing has been damaged!)
Where could I learn what these symptoms are likely to be? and does anyone have any positive experience of auto box specialists in the Chester/Manchester/Crewe area?
I'd be grateful for any guidance as the £2000 alternative is fearful to contemplate.

TIA......David Kirkham Read more

greaser pv

My dad had a similar fault as you describe , on a 9000 .He was told that it was either a relatively cheap/easy repair or very expensive , but would require a certain amount of dismantling to ascertain fault . He drove the car into the ground with it shunting in and out of gears for years , very disconcerting for passengers , however the box didn't actually let him down . You could try a cheap "fix" and have the gearbox oil changed , suggest 2/3 fills to exhaust the torque-converter .

cheddar

I have been unsure about the rear of the new Focus hatch however I have seen pics of the estate and saloon and both look great, anyone else seen them? Read more

Adam {P}

True. Although to be fair, I'm not that averse to the C5. Different yes. But that's good.


--
Adam

wonderwheels

I have a 2001 1.9TDi Passat (130).It is approaching 60K miles now and will need a few hundred pounds spent on it,just to keep it "reliable".i.e the timing belt,tyres,MOT and an oil & filter.Looked at replacing it,mainly because of the poor build quality.(I actually enjoy driving it), but I've had the car 3 years now.Test drove a '53 04 plate Vectra Sri and was really diappointed with the acceleration.Compared to the DIESEL Passat,it seems very poor.Not impressed at all.Budget of around £11000.I do approx 15K miles a year.The Vectra appealed to me as it wa priced at £9999,however a £5500 trade-in made my mind up!! Read more

Dynamic Dave

It was actually the Vectra petrol Sri model.For a car with
a 2.2 engine I was surprised at how poor the acceleration is.


That does surprise me. Mine's got the 2.2 engine in, coupled to an auto box, and it's no slouch. Have also driven one with a manual box, albiet not the SRi, and that went like the clappers as well. Would have thought the SRi (if they still fit a close ratio gearbox) would have been even quicker?
Leon on Derv

I have been driving a works vehicle which the central locking remote doesn't work, so I have had to open and lock the drivers door by inserting the key into the lock and turning.

This has become a habit and I now find myself doing this on my own car despite the remote controlled central locking working fine.

On friday night as I unlocked the car by key I accidentally pressed the remote lock button on the key. This caused the drivers door window motor to activate and fully open the window.

Not entirely sure what the point of this feature is, as it makes no reference to it in the owners manual, and I think the deadlocks were still active preventing you from opening the door from the inside, although it would let you put the key in the ignition and turn it which does switch off the deadlocking.

posted this here hoping for an explanation or for the convenience of someone who may be having difficulty getting into their motor.

Leon Read more

Stuartli

In fairness the VW remote control fobs can be programmed for various modes such as one press to just open the driver's door, two for all doors but, unfortunately, my local dealership hasn't a clue as to how to get any others...:-(

Even after pointing out that the manual specifically states that various modes can/could be introduced, I was looked at with blank expressions.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by

Leon on Derv

Leoness has developed an addiction to shopping channels since I bought one of those freeview box things. I noticed last night that one of the channels (think it was QVC) they were selling motoring bits and pieces at incredible prices. I decided to have a look. They were selling a product called greased lightening you know the stuff, put this potion in your engine oil this one into your fuel your car will drive like new, you'll double your miles per gallon, you'll become more attractive to the opposite sex blah blah blah. They guy talked for over half an hour about this stuff!!!!!

Anyhow, the deal clincher was that they would throw in a free can of tyre weld, he then went on for half an hour extolling the virtues of tyre weld.

However, this is the point for discussion......

He did state, many manufacturers (but did not name any) are not providing spare wheels in their cars, in the interest of offering more boot space or words to that effect, and were instead providing cans of tyre weld instead. In the event of a roadside puncture, the motorist would not need to risk life and limb trying to change a wheel, which by his estimation would take ten minutes, whipping out a can of this stuff attaching the nozzle to the valve and squirting a dose into the punctured wheel would have you back en-route in just two mintues.

Can anyone confirm the accuracy of the no spare wheel allegation?

If so presumably we no longer get a jack or wheelbrace with said motor?

I have always assumed tyre weld to be a temporary emergeny repair, I would not fancy running at motorway speed with a tyre full of epanded styrofoam....

If you can run at motorway speed with tyres full of this stuff, surely manufacturers would be filling the tyres at the factory and claiming puncture resistant tyres as standard???

Comments please,
Leon Read more

wildcolonial

I thought you all might be interested in an experience I had 25years ago with a product (long since forgotten the name) that I put in my BMW (1974 R90S) motorcycle tyres. It was supposed not only to seal most punctures but dynamically balance the whole wheel. It was a thick viscous black stuff in a pressurized tin and went in the valve stem with the core temporarily removed, As far as its effectiveness at sealing punctures - I never got one, but who knows whether I would have otherwise. The remarkable thing, though was the feeling of perfectly balanced wheels. When you first started out after application the wheels were horrendously unbalanced but within a mile or so, as it distributed itself, the ride became smoother than I had ever felt before and it was REALLY pleasant. I would buy it again if it were available.
Presumably any thick viscous substance, which I imagine most sealers of this type are, would provide the same side benefit.

itchy

Hi, its a 95/96 1 litre AX (carb model) I need to know the valve clearances please. Also is the inlet valves the front or back?
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dieselhead

Inlet valves are at the back of the engine if it's a 954cc TU

tom1234

can somebody tell me how the wiring works on the front windscreen washers.there is 2 wires coming from the pump assembly 1 goes to the washer/indicator stalk. where would the other 1 go to? the pump is mounted on the side of the washer resevoir so would the other 1 go to earth? i dont understand the principle of what happens electrically when you press the washer stalk can somebody help me out here please? Read more

tom1234


the problem with my washers was down to the stalk being faulty.
changed the stalk and the washers now work. many thanks guys for your advice.