May 2005
I am a bit baffled by the current pricing situation. I wanted new pads and discs fitted to my current Mondeo and telephoned a number of local dealers in order to get quotes. The service department at Ford dealer one quoted £175 the rapid fit facility at the same dealership stated they could do the job for £155.
I was very surprised at this mismatch so I telephoned dealer number two which is part of the same dealer group as dealer one and only located a few miles away. The service department quoted £231, yes £231!!! The rapid fit department quoted £165.
I then selected a dealer not connected with the other two and got very different prices yet again. Rapid fit £140 and service dept £170. In the end I went for the cheapest price.
It seems mind-boggling that two dealers part of the same group located only a few miles from each other would have different prices. The difference between the cheapest and most expensive quotes seems a staggering amount. I am curious as to if anyone else has experienced this?
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I would like to live in a country where I could safely look forward to Vauxhall's next advert promising fabulous top speed and safe motorway cruising, at family car prices.
Does this mean the bad guys will be trading up to Porsche 4 x 4s, or Lambos? Read more
Neither do I.
The Vectra GSi isn't anymore expensive (starting at £21900) than many other family car prices.
Hi just wondered what the typical number of miles was for replacement of the timing chain on these vehicle's . Many thanks Read more
Well thats quite a relief I get my oil changed every six months anyway .Only have 21,000 on the clock so a long way to go ... Cheers
Hello all,
obviously, we all know whats happened to Rover (sob!) but I've always fancied a 2nd hand 75 series (in gold, of course!) - Im presuming there'll be risks with availability of parts at some point in the future but that this risk could be off-set with the devaluation.
Whats the thoughts on whether (and when)it could be a good buy or motor finance suicide?
ta
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One of my mate's customers was bragging about the fact he had just got a top of the range Rover 75 (diesel) for £10,999, which both thought was a real bargain.
My mate was somewhat surprised when I told him his customer could have done a lot better than that.....
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
Hi all,
Does anyone know the mileage at which it is recommended to change the timing belt on a pug 306 1.8XS 2000 V? I've had a few conflicting suggestions already: 74k, 80k etc. My cars currently on 66k so I imagine it will be due soon?!
Cheers
Stephen Read more
That's why I like Volvos ;-)
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Adam
Anyone know why you can lock the doors on a Transit van with someone elses keys, but not open them again?
One of the lads I work with has left the keys in the ignition of his van whilst he loaded up. Someone else, thinking it was their van, managed to lock the doors with his key - but they wont open them again. Surely if he managed to lock the doors with his key, he should be able to open them again? Read more
My mates C reg 90 can be started with a 20p piece!
Here's a funny thing. Driving into the office this morning I noticed that the new Golf appears to have dispensed with the little amber side indicators located on the side wing.
All other cars seem to have these. Am I mistaken or is this a bold new design initiative?
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DD, Agree about aligning the mirrors requiring a helper, but on the other hand we didnt find the need to alter them between drivers as the head didnt need to be turned...just avert the gaze and you could see in the mirror. This was very useful as Mrs StarGazer is of a very different height and we have to adjust door mounted mirrors every time we swap drivers.
StarGazer
Are you the owner of a VW group car fitted with a TDI PD engine, if you are do you know the name of any of these companies that change oil and filters in this type of engine. If you use one of these companies do you feel confident that they are using the VW specified oil that is needed for this type of engine.
Thanks Read more
Quote
but also note that audi say:
Using ordinary high quality multigrade oil will not cause any engine damage but it will defeat the object of the new AVS technology and will mean that a service will be needed at fixed 10,000 mile intervals. In addition, compared with conventional oils, Long Life oils give exceptional levels of engine protection, are kinder to the environment and deliver fuel savings.
quote taken from:
www.audi.co.uk/acs/ownershipbenefits/details.jsp?i...6
Sorry this is wrong information for TDI PD engines it must be
oil rated at 505.01 or 506.01
Advice needed please. I have recently fitted a towbar to my car so that I can pull my caravan and on stock car days a car transporter trailer. I have just bought an old trailer this week which rattled badly when towed. I put this rattle down to the fact that the trailer is well balanced and offers no loading on the car when empty. Then a thought struck me-could the hitch be an old 2" cup rather than the later 50mm. The car towball is 50mm. There is no identity on the hitch other than the makers name and its capacity which is 40cwt! Can anyone offer any advice please. Thanks again Read more
Modern tow couplings I think have a spring-loaded lock that would take up any slight play. Old trailers tend just to have a locking bar or pin to stop the ball jumping out. I agree, thick grease is worth a try.
Actually the trailer is not meant to be perfectly balanced, but have a definite loading at the front - I think 25-50 Kg. Anyway, it should feel decidedly heavy as you hook it on. Try some balast in the front of the trailer. It quietens it and also gives a more stable towing set-up.
Don't forget the legal obligation to have a wire or chain in case the ball breaks or jumps out. If it is an old trailer it certainly won't have the sophisticated modern brakes that self-apply if the trailer has come uncoupled.
PS. for real noise try pulling an unbraked ex-army trailer with a towing eye and a draw-pin!
I've been having trouble recently with my Vauxhall Astra 1.4 H reg recently with it juddering and losing power when conditions are cold and damp. When the engine warms up it runs fine.
Now I've just been out to the car (it is 12am) and very dark, cold and damp, so I thought I'd check to see if there was any High Voltage arking coming from the HT leads and I noticed I could see intermittent small blue flashes coming from the area where the end of the HT leads make contact with the spark plugs.
The sparking seems to be occuring across all the HT lead contacts just above the spark plugs. Very small blue points of light flashing what appears to be randomly. There does not appear to be any arcing anywhere else across the length of the leads.
Is it normal to see small blue flashes there or is this a sign that the HT leads need replacing and could be the cause of judder when I'm driving the car when it's cold and damp?
I've changed the spark plugs & checked the distributer cap which looks fine.
Mack Read more
MOT result - It Passed
Thanks again to everyone for replying.
My Astra 1.4 (H reg - 1991)managed to pass the MOT without any failures. Not bad for a car I bought 2 years ago for £290 and this is it's second MOT since I bought it. The engine still purrs like a kitten.
This is a great web forum for advice. Thanks eveyone.
Mack
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When the online booking facility was available I got a quote from my local dealer and then trawled around the site for other quotes, 1 to try to save money and 2 out of interest.
My local dealer appears to be the most expensive I could find.
I, having the time travel, choose a 50 mile drive to Chichester for what I consider excellent service. This saved £75 on a Focus service less the cost of fuel and lunch.
The servicing cost that I sampled were very similar all over the country. The cost at other branches of my local dealer were cheaper.