May 2005
A friend who has a fondness for these things wants to replace a Vauxhall, of the soft-roof persuasion and I wondered are there any significant pointers to help decide. Main parameters are: 1. not stratospheric price, but Audi, BMW and Volvo are markers of where her possibilities lie. 2. Must have some room in back as adultish son (when around) is 6' plus. She zips about the country, so longish journeys need to be comfortable. Audi are pretty well out of it having "deffed her out" on visiting the local dealer. Volvo a possibility, as recommended by a sensible BMW dealer who's vehicles are apparently a trifle short on the leg space. So, a fairly broad spec. I, for once, have simply no opinion! Grateful for any insights given. Read more
Problem: Mondeo 97 TD runs cool when warmed up, i.e It warms up to a given indication but then if driven on a light/steady throttle sees the indication drop to just in the "normal" zone.
However if driven hard, post the temp indication dropping,then the indication rises. I've since changed the thermostat with a genuine item, and the fault is still apparant.
If it was running hot i would be thinking pump/ radiator problem, but what could cause running cold other than a fault temp sender for the indicator.
No other problems wrt starting or running in general.
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>>but what could cause running cold other than a fault temp sender for the indicator.
Temp sender is only an indicator of temp..Not a controller.thermostat controls engine temp.If new stat is faulty not unusual.would suggest having it replaced..Only other thing may be injector timing out?.Just a thought.
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Steve
i am looking to change my galaxy tdi 130ps for either a 2.8 V6 galaxy or a 1.8T VW sharan. wot do u backroomers think... i dont mind about fuel consumption... just about performance and reliability - i know, they're both VW engines!!!!! Read more
Seat Alhambra.
Essentially the same car, less money.
Hello all, I'm planning on selling my '92 Scirocco and getting something a bit (read: lot) more comfortable.
I only drive around 5k miles a year, mostly on the motorway but with the odd jaunt to Wales, Scotland or the Lakes.
My budget is only £500 to £1,000 and I want something comfortable, reliable and pleasant to drive. Because of my low mileage, fuel economy isn't so important.
So I've narrowed my choice down to either a Toyota Camry 2.2 or V6 from around 1992 to 1994, or a Saab 9000 2.0 or 2.3 ecopower from the same period.
I've seen sub-100k mileage, FSH examples of both of these in my price range - and studied the breakdown on this excellent site - but are there any other options I should consider?
And the car-by-car breakdowns on here warns about the autobox on the Saab - does anyone know what mileage they tend to fail?
Thanks in advance.
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SAAB 9000s are based on the Alfa 164, share components etc,
which is why it is not as highly rated and rusts
(much)more than the 900.
I find that surprising, as 164s don't tend to rust badly.
Evening all,
My 1997 doesn't have an alarm, or remote central locking. My driver's door lock gave up the ghost over the weekend - it still locks and unlocks when using the passenger door - but I think the barrel inside the lock has collapsed.
So, rather than paying a VW dealer mega £££'s to sort out the lock, I've been toying with the idea of getting an alarm with a remote locking interface. I know it'll only leave me with one point of entry in the event of failure - but I can't help thinking my hard earned cash is better off being spent on an alarm rather than lining a dealership's pockets!
Any recommendations for aftermarkets alarms would be gratefully received!
Cheers,
DB Read more
Thanks for all your (mostly) useful suggestions.
My local backstreet garage is going to take a look at it and see what he can do. VW have quoted >£100 for fitting a new barrel so I may as well kill two birds with one stone if it can?t be repaired cheaper.
As for the insurance point ? there is no fault with the locking of the car ? it?s just you can?t operate it using the driver?s door lock. Also, RF, thanks for your particularly useful comments.
Hi
can someone tell me if a non working interior boot release
is deemed a failure? ie..boot opens from outside with key only. cheers! Read more
YAY.......cheers martin!
i have a focus ghia 1.8 tdi on an x reg plate.i got it with 46000 on the clock but has 53000 now in case this is relevant.since i got it i have had a knocking noise which i cant identify.i cant tell were its coming from either,sounds like back but sounds like front.i have checked spare,jack,parcel shelf,under seats glove box and everything else possible.it knocks on flat smooth roads and when driving straight.just MOT'ed last monday so would expect steering and suspension in good cond.has anyone else had this experience?would love some feedback please.
cheers Read more
I had an annoying knock on my Focus when it was nealy new, I thought it was suspension, but it turned out to be a broken engine mount.
What an expense this is going to be! At 72000 miles the particle filter has to be changed and 5 litres of noxious additive topped up, at a cost today of £636.92 including parts, labour and VAT. There is now such a shortage of this fluid that today's Pugs are coming off the line with the kit not fitted and are thus non-compliant. I'd rather be non compliant myself and pay a bit of extra road fund. The extra couldn't come to £630 in 5 years! So much for trying to save the planet! Read more
Yes it is better looking and also driving.
Those who are good with SEAT's will know that the 1.6 SE was only made in 2000 - 2001. Is there an alternative model after this that comes with all the toys etc? (Yes it's superficial I know but I'll probably be keeping it for 3+ years).
How come they only made the S afterwards, and then recently the SX (Which I can't afford)
Is there another moel in between that I'm somehow missing, o if I were to buy say a 2002 1.6 I'd have to make do with the S specification?
Sigh...I'd happily have a Skoda if I like the look of them. Read more
Bump - Not an exciting post I know, but I know there are people with all sorts of car buying experience in the Backroom so any advice would be welcome (Even on aspects like will the insurance suddenly sky rocket for any reason? - Admiral/Elephant going bust notwithstanding!)
Just had a diagnostic test done on my 99 polo sdi diesel. It has 2 stored faults, 1 suspect ecu and 2 suspect injector pump.
Total = £1800. I spoke to the fitter halfway through the test and he said the diesel temperature sensor looked to be at fault, my problem is how do you get into the pump to change it since it has security screws fitted as well as the torx screws.
Obviously there is no way I'm going to pay more than the value of the car to repair it. Damn you VW...... Read more
I still have this surging / misfiring problem with the polo Sdi.
If the lift sensor failed on No 3 injector, what sort of symptoms would I get ? It's been on Vag com and no fault codes are showing, the car doesn't have a MAF sensor either.
Thanks
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Sounds like the Volvo C70 might have the edge. As for running costs, and rear windows, I'd also be a bit worried over the rag-top aspect, but I guess she isn't, and its her decision. Cheers.