April 2005
Hi all,
I was wondering what people would suggest for the above - a total budget of £5k (preferably including insurance) for my 22yr old sister who will be commuting 60 miles a day.
I'm thinking it'll need decent fuel economy, she's never had her own car so has no NCD (so insurance will be painful) and it'll need to be reliable.
Any sensible suggestions would be appreciated and considered!
Thanks,
-- Lee Having a Fabialous time. Read more
I'm attracted by the low prices of the C-Max on the Ford Direct web site - under £13k for a 9-month old 2.0tdci ghia for example (nearly £19k list).
They look good cars - is there a catch, beyond the obvious depreciation that Fords/Vauxhalls always suffer?
Recent forum threads have suggested that many modern diesels are very complicated if things go wrong, so, putting aside on-going mpg claims and disppointments, is the 1.8 petrol a decent engine instead?
Any one got any experience of running one of these?
I need the space and can't stomach the idea of paying around £17k for a similar-age used Volvo V70 (my original choice). Read more
If you want that type of car (i.e. mini MPV) then the C-Max is as good as any IMHO. I've had them a few times in Europe as Hertz rental cars and I've liked them - quite an impressive vehicle.
.*********
have any backroomers found the reception of their radios on their bMW 5 series a bit wanting,the reception is ok with the engine off,but once starting the engine,it goes crackly.this is especially true for MW stations.It gets worse on putting the rear demister on when even the local FM radio station gets affected.I am not sure if it has got to with the reception generally in the area as the reception on my audi 80 which is 12 yrs old in the same areas is good.any thoughts whether there is problem with the electrics/fuel management or just defective aerial/radio on my recently acquired 530d which is 2002/51 year model.
BTW where is the aerial on the 5 series?
Read more
I am not familiar with your model,but the aerial amp will be near the rear screen,in hatchbacks behind the trim on the inside of the hatch,on saloons under the parcel shelf,possibly visible from inside the boot.It will be a rectangular box with two flat leads from the element running into it,also a couple of cables for power and earth and a co-axial aerial cable.May be worth checking the earth is good using a multimeter(should not be more than a few ohms).
I was pleased to see in HJ's column yesterday the photograph of David Beckham's Hummer, which made me laugh out loud when I saw it in the Mail earlier in the week. Have you ever seen anything more ridiculous in your motoring life? Read more
"totally spoilt by some bicycle tyred wheels"
Seems to be the fashion with Shoguns round us at the moment - can't see the point I'm afraid since not only does it ruin the off road capability but also even if you never go off road it looks daft
As one ages we are told that short term memory becomes less reliable, but long term memory remains strong. I can prove the former by saying to Growlette where are my glasses? They're here, you put them on the fridge 5 minutes ago. No I didn't.
Yes you did. No I didn't. What do you think, they grew legs or something? ...(continues)
So......how many of you can recall the number plates of every vehicle you've ever owned? I can, faultlessly, every one of 'em, but where did I put my car keys this morning.......
Read more
Memory is a strange thing and can be trained just like your body.
My father in law was 87 when he died a couple of years ago and his short term memory was terrible, he was forever losing his keys or mobile phone.
However when he was in hospital he was bored and for entertainment he recited to us the complete version of 'The green eye of the little yellow god' from memory. It is six very complicated verses long.
He had learned it in his twenties, at least 50 years before and had not recited it since for over 40 years.
Vaguely motoring.
Where I live I have many good German retired friends, one of who has just opened a traditional German beer garden in downtown Manila. Last night was its grand opening and a great many litres of weissbier was consumed along with a lot of sausages and sauerkraut. In these groups I am usually the only Brit so they love to have a go at me. They're a good natured bunch, we've known each other for years and our drinking sessions usually involve re-fighting one campaign or another.
Last night it was whether Rommel or Montgomery was the better General. Seems obvious to me since Monty won, but oh no, it was the fault of the Daimler Benz management for making Panzers which got bogged down in the sand, thus losing the Africa campaign. A detailed description of the mechanicals of the many variants of Panzer then ensued, with the hindsighted recommendation that the Daimler Benz management team should have been sent to the Russian Front.
Don't mention the war. I did, but I think I got away with it....
Read more
Yes indeed, it was a Humber. SWMBO's uncle drove Monty in it; apparently he was not too keen on him either.
If a cars had a smoking owner, can you eliminate the smell completely? We looked at one today, the dealer said he's bought a new machine from the US on the internet that gets rid of the odour totally...........
Our current vehicle still stinks after a year despite thorough valeting.
Any views?
(I've nothing against smokers btw, I just don't like the smell!) Read more
And it's a zombie thread.
In the last few months I?ve noticed that the coolant hoses on my wife?s Maestro TD are still pressurised after standing overnight. Opening the rad cap and the air blows out.
I replaced the radiator cap with no improvement.
The engine is running perfectly including the heater. No loss of coolant or oil, No sign of oil in the radiator header tank and no sign of water in the oil. Temperature gauge as normal.
Googling indicates a failed or failing head gasket.
Reading ?how stuff works? tells me that a radiator cap has a device which opens to prevent a vacuum and equalises the pressure as the water cools.
Taking all this into account why doesn?t the pressure equalise to atmospheric overnight and is there any other reason for this pressurisation.
Incidentally I fitted a new radiator a few months ago .
Any thoughts or ideas very welcome.
Read more
Thanks guys for your comments. Called into my little two man garage down the road yesterday and asked his opinion.
He practically recited Mikes words exactly. And even mileage which is 83000.
He asked if the heater was working OK. Looked in the tank for bubbles when revving and any signs of oil and said it was likely the head gasket was failing.
He said the price would be something over £300 as there was a lot of work and would vary a little if the head needed skimming but would fit a cambelt automatically.
He advised to leave it for a while and then decide if it was worth doing.
One of those ?is it worth it jobs.? She has had the car from new and its been a brilliant car despite its detractors. But the tin worm has began its work as it does on all Maestro and Montegos.
In 12 years its had one bottom swivel and last week its second alternator. Apart from that nothing has gone wrong. The battery was replaced under warranty and this one is still fitted at 11 years old.
Oh and part of the exhaust a couple of years ago.
I have a Vectra TDI 2.0 and it?s a good engine. However for all its sophisticated electronics I would choose the Prima engine as the best. Noisy at low speed and sounds like a real diesel but great cruising and acceleration albeit with clouds of black smoke which they all do.
Pity its blotted its copybook now but the boss will shortly have to decide its future. I tentatively suggested ?why do we need two cars now? but got one of those looks??.
I have seen this week's poll and also commented on this under there but...
8 months ago had cam belt replaced on V reg Focus by friendly mech
3 weeks ago adjuster went.
Direct Line rescued car to local Ford dealer
After three days local Ford dealer issue "preliminary" report after inspection - "cam belt tensioner has gone but it is not the original belt" - so no question of assistance with cost from Ford.
Fair enough, I arrange for local mech to recover car from Ford dealer and he does the work (cam belt OK but replaced anyway - with adjuster - plus 8 bent exhaust valves etc etc)
Ford dealer called the wife when the truck arrived to collect and said their bill must be paid before the car is removed - £140 + VAT. Short and curlies job - she paid up. (I was away)
Does the team think this is a reasonable amount to pay for a "preliminary inspection?". My mech reckons this would have taken him 20 minutes...maybe he's wrong...
(NB I have already written to the dealer to ask how they arrived at teh figure) Read more
A further update: I had also written to Ford Customer Care as I had been told that they often offer "assistance" if the mileage is below 100,000, even thought the car may be out of warranty. (OK, I was "trying it on" a bit, but why not?)
I have just recieved a call from them. They said (on the advice of their technical department) that although the cam belt itself is recommended for change at 100,000 miles, the cam belt adjuster is NOT covered, as it is a mechanical part and therefore serviceable.
Not quite sure what they mean by this, but I don't see "check condition of cambelt adjuster" in any of the service schedules...
(They also said that in cases where they may "give assistance", the car would HAVE to be looked at by a Ford assessor, and dealt with at a Ford dealer. I wonder if that would have incurred a delay in the process?)
Anyway, case closed, lessons learnt (by me!).
hello ,i have a passatt 1.8 20v non turbo 1997 adr engine code mileage 72000. full vag history. i foolishly bought the car at auction and since i bought it about 5 months ago the car has been suffering a loss of power/misfire between 2000 and3000 revs. it doesnt always happen but usually by the time its warm ,it starts to play up although it can be rough when cold.
when the car reaches 3000 revs and beyond it runs superb no problem.
ive renewed maf meter,fuel filter, plugs and leads airfilter all to no avail .before replacing maf a friend with vag software plugged into the ecu and the reading was "knock sensor exceeded upper limits" he hadnt seen this before and suggested new maf .no joy ,can anybody throw some light on this as i am going crazy as the car is so lovely otherwise cheers steve
Read more
thanks very much i,ll give it a go!
Browse
Well, I said I'd get back when it's sorted.
Citroën C2 1.1LX, brand new. Really lovely car, I'll post again when she's had it for a while to give her views on it.
They're doing some excellent deals on Citroëns at the moment!
-- Lee Having a Fabialous time.