February 2005
As per usual the Japanese dominate the top positions in the 2004 survey, with Skoda and BMW the only European manufacturers to feature in the top 10.
Probably of more concern for Mercedes is that they don`t even feature in the top 40, with the E Class their best at 41. !!!
www.whatcar.com/News_SpecialReport.asp?NA_ID=20780...8 Read more
What is the best method of car washing?
I normally use either a bucket of water, shampoo and sponge or a hose with a small brush on the end - rather hard work!
I ocasionally use the hand wash service available in some public car prks - £5.99 (no, sorry guv, you can't have a receipt)that is quite effective, but as the car is locked, they can't clean the shuts.
Recently, I have started using a jet wash at the local Shell garage, quite good and not too much like hard work.
Which method do you favour? Is it possible to get a jet type car wash (with a large brush) for use at home? would the ordinary mains pressure at home be strong enough?
Don brbe
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When I first got my Bora (Reflex Silver) it was reasonably clean apart from a layer of dirt on the paintwork; I used a pressure washer (car wash in the detergent container) on it first to get the dirt off.
To my surprise the pressure washer had had very little effect and only a "proper" wash using a sponge actually removed what was only a fairly recent level of dirt.
I do agree with the remarks that silver cars never seem to look really dirty though...:-)
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
have just fitted a pair of "bolt on" driving lights to a 03 suzuki jimny,wired through a relay and switch.Can anyone advise if this will put an abnormal load on the battery/alternator when used in addition to the main beam? Read more
Many thanks for the advice
If you have a missed call on CLI or mobile can you find out who the owner of the number is if its a land line without actually ringing them up and saying 'Hi, you've just ring me - who are you'?
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive? Read more
Making an offer?
It is very variable and entirely dependent on prevailing market conditions.
When the market is slow as now how well a house maintains its price is dependent on post code (for schools and things) presentation and desireability. One nicely presented house in a post code may sell at its asking price, another badly presented in the same post code wont sell at all.
so the price you offer is dependent on how long its been on the market. if its been on for three months or more you can jump in with offers 10-15% below and stick to it.
some areas are now suffering from "guzundering" (same as guzumping only the other way round) get all the way down the house buying chain and processs and at the last moment say you want 10% off or you are pulling out.
'92 Escort 1.4 with CVH engine.
Has a recon engine put in a few years ago - and have been chainging the oil every 12 months just before the MOT.
Was using 5W30, which would come out of the sump very dark brown.
the oil started leaking somewhere - think it was burning a bit - so used 10W40 at the last hange. This was in October.
The leaking has stopped but the oil on the dipstick is black and looking a bit thin, and smells a bit "petrolly" compared to whats in the oil can.
Should i change it now, or will it last thru till october again?
The engine is running fine by the way.
(the change from 5w30 to 10w40 made it run noticably smoother too)
cheers Read more
I dont seem to get as many miles on a tank
of petrol just recently either - could this have something to
do with it?
Most definately. Take it to a trusted garage to have it seen to. It's probably a failed sensor, though I'm concerned about the white smoke you're seeing: is the car loosing water or is there mayonnaise on the dipstick at all? Oil in the header tank? If so I would suspect a head gasket failure, which could go towards explaining the overfuelling.
Dont know how I can find this out so hoping someone can help.
The electronic speedo drive out of BE3 gearbox has 3 prongs for the connector.
Live
Earth
Signal.
question is which is which?
My car never had this drive before so my haynes wont cover it, even if it did I wouldnt have the wires to check the numbers off against.
Anyone a genius and know how to work it out, or better still anyone have a loom knocking about for a car with one of these drives that can check the wire numbers leading to the pins and let me know Would be helpful if they could also tell me what loom it is so I can get hold of wiring diagrams to find out.
Many thanks Read more
BBC article here: news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4236235.stm
Headline figure is that Jan 2005 saw 8.2% fewer new car registrations than Jan 2004, but even more dramatic is that the figure for private buyers was -21.2% (balanced by fleet sales, which are up 3%).
On the face of it, a 21% fall in private buyers seems huge. Is there any reason this is less dramatic than it seems? Were there an unusually large number of pre-registrations in Jan 2004? Or has the car market just fallen off a cliff edge? Read more
Interesting quote from the Commentary section of the report:
"Part of the appeal of MPVs, and 4x4 models, is their resistance to theft. According to the National Audit Office's report Reducing Vehicle Crime, MPVs and 4x4s are half as likely to be stolen as small saloons, minis and supermini models."
Criminals ecologically-minded, or perhaps they don't go fast enough!
i have a peugeot 206 diesel v reg and iside the engine compartment near the raditor there is a pipe with a sought of box hanging from it was wondering if any one knows what it is called as my one has broken away so whebn the engine is runnig it seems to have got lowder since it has broken hope some one can help Read more
i think it is a noise reducer on the front of the engine it comes from the engine and goes into i think a air filter
Hi, just wondering if I can pick your collective brains about this.
I've got a 1998 Renault Megane 1.9 DTi which runs perfectly....except for in the rain at high speed.
If I drive on a fast road in the rain with lots of spray, the engine will suddenly without warning go into "limp mode" meaning it idles at 1000rpm and I cannot accelerate etc. This problem seems to persist for as long as it's raining.
If I switch the engine off and back on again, it is sometime ok for about 5 - 10 minutes before doing the same thing again.
Renault have had my car for 3 weeks but haven't found any fault codes on it. It also hasn't rained and they've been unable to make the fault occur - they have no idea what's wrong with it and cannot mend it.
It sounds to me like water getting in somewhere causing a short circuit - but what do I know!
Any experience of this, suggestions etc would be great because I'm stuck.
Thanks
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I suspect that water is getting into the electrics. Possibly a connector leading to one of the sensors.
No easy solution. I would get a hose and selectively water spray various areas of the engine (perhaps do it in quarters). When you find the 'sensitive' areas then start pulling connectors apart and look for water ingress. I would guess that it would be connectors around the lower half of the engine - the upper half stays pretty dry.
how do you put out service light registered 2000"v" reg Read more
Browse
'I don't buy this argument at all. I think all buyers of new cars expect very high standards of reliability these days - its pretty insulting to Skoda buyers to suggest that they have low expectations.'
I filled in one of these questionnaires a couple of years ago and this is indeed how cars like Skodas get higher marks.
If you buy a car expecting it to be wonderful and it is - you are not giving it high praise apparently.
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I wasna fu but just had plenty.