September 2005
Good afternoon folks!
i`ve just put some of these bearing buddies on our boat trailer, as they say they keep water and grit out of the hubs when the wheels are submerged during launching/retrieving activities.
apparently the idea is that once fitted you pressureise the hub by pumping them full of grease, however i can only get a couple of squirts in before the rear bearing seal bursts out and all the grease pours/squirts out, thereby rendering the things useless. the spring loaded grease resovoir on the bearing buddy dosen`t even start to move during filling.
anybody any ideas on what i`m doing wrong?.
thanks Billy. Read more
Please keep this discussion to the subject of flood damaged vehicles. References to the recent disaster in the US should be respectful of the tragic loss of hundreds, possibly thousands of lives, and to the conditions that both residents and rescue services are facing.
We will edit posts here as we see fit, but your help in ensuring we don't have to would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Hugo - BR Moderator
Flood relics to hit the road
Buyer beware: That used car might be a Katrina survivor
By Jim Mateja
Tribune auto reporter
Published September 9, 2005
If you shop for a used car several months from now, you might want to give the carpet an extra close sniff.
You could be purchasing a dried-out casualty of Hurricane Katrina.
Whether acting as entrepreneurs or scam artists, wholesale car dealers soon will be scouring the ruins of New Orleans, Mississippi and Alabama for flood-damaged vehicles. They will obtain the cars for pennies, refurbish them and then sell them to buyers, some of whom won't be told of their purchase's waterlogged history.
Chicagoland is a target for such damaged vehicles with its large population.
"Whenever there's been a natural disaster, Chicagoans have had to beware," said Jerry Cizek, president of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, which represents more than 700 new-car dealers in the area.
For example, days after Mt. St. Helens erupted in 1980, cars still soiled with volcanic ash arrived here on trailers as entrepreneurs prepared to peddle them.
Though Cizek expects most vehicles will be damaged beyond repair, there are estimates that 250,000 to 500,000 of the 2 million vehicles in the Gulf Coast floods will be salvaged.
The problem is not necessarily the practice of refurbishing the cars; it is whether the cars are identified as being salvaged.
It begins when insurance companies rule cars a total loss and make settlement payments to dealers or private owners. They, in turn, sell the vehicles cheap at auction, after which the car's title is branded as a "flood" or "salvage" vehicle.
But some opportunists will take those vehicles to different states that don't require the cars to list its previous condition on the title. With its history wiped clean, they are moved again, ending up for sale in places such as Chicago.
Ray Scarpelli, an Antioch Chevrolet dealer, said that Gulf Coast cars probably will show up in Chicago in about three months because it will take time to dry them out and get them running again by replacing computer electronics. But the evidence can't be completely covered up.
"You may get the stink out with shampoo, but come the first hot day the smell will be back--and you can never get all the moisture out of an engine," Scarpelli said.
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>>>Whatever device they used to slice that ship in half must have been an awesome sigh<<<
It was basically wire erosion on a massive scale, using a very big wire stretched from between two surface vessels, under the sunken vessel, and dragged back and forth to saw through the whole thing. Incredible.
Any suggestions for new shoes for my 02 Reg Honda Accord 2 litre (in other words, the previous model)?
It came fitted with Bridgestone Potenzas, which are what I've fitted as replacements so far. But they don't seem to last particularly well, despite a lack of aggressive driving.
I was vaguely wondering about a switch to Goodyear but would appreciate the views of others.
Incidetntally, in case this has been asked before, I did try searching, but couldn't find anything. Read more
I fitted Firestone F590 fuel saver tyres to my Prelude and they are excellent. Listed as a best buy in Which. Very comfortable good all weather grip etc. Mikey
A spot of advice for a colleague if you don't mind.
If a car would usually be a good purchase at £10,000; what would be an appropriate price for the same car but adding in the factor that it had been a Cat C [front end damage] but had been seemingly well put back together ? £2,000 less ?
Yes, he is aware that not buying it, getting another one, etc. etc. is an option.
No, he doesn't want a Mondeo TDCi.
TIA,
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By stolen / recovered, do you mean ins company has paid
out and the car has subsequently been found? That would make
sense.
Quite, the insurance companies wait for a month or so before paying out, then when and if the cars are recovered they are then the property of the insurers, not the original owners, unless they manage to buy them beck.
Hence I guess you could get stolen and recovered vehicles with minimal or no damage done.
I've done my time in small economical hatchbacks (205, Uno, Punto etc) and it's time to get a barge that can cope with a combination of the short kiddy-taxi runs, daily business mileage around M25/M1 etc. plus the long M-way trips to the aged parent.
850Tdi stands out as being well-built, decent image and potentially capable of another 60,000 miles on top of say 120,000 already on.
Is the block VAG sourced, and if so, has it been good in the A6?
Is it a choice between this and the A6? The 406 doesn't look quite so solid, to me. Read more
My neighbour has just got rid of a 220,000 mile L-reg 850 (albeit petrol) and never had a single problem with it. Guess what he replaced it with? A brand new V70 D5.
Ben
just come in from a night out, went to cardiff auctions. lots of cars with very few people, what sold was fetching retail money. many vehicles went unsold, cant remember the details of individual cars except a two and a half year old daewoo matiz with 126000 miles went for £2500 provisional and an 02 leon for £5500 provisional i thought that was all its money and it was snot green ...cheers...keo Read more
I was bidding for a car the other day (me=joe public). The bids were £50 at a time . It was just me against a dealer when we got to £5000 the auctioneer pointed at me and said £5150. As the bidding had been in £50 lots up until this point I immediately hessitated and the car was sold to the dealer for £5000. had I realised at the time I should have offered a smaller amount but he caught me off guard.
Last week I bought a 1 owner mobility car. It had had a service once a year for the first two years and was now due another service (3 years old and 28 thousand miles) first job I did was to drain out the oil, what came out was about 1ltr of very black oil. So I now take "lady owner" to mean there is a high possibility the oil has never been checked. Next time I buy a car from a lady owner I shall ask how they checked the oil. I do not wish to offend women owners ,its just that my wife said she wouldn,t know how to check the cars oil,(Citroen Saxo 2 lady owners).
Dad has just bought a TVR Chimaera to replace his MGF. Usually does his own servicing - well oil/filters/plugs etc. He thinks the TVR needs more specialist attention to do this so used a sports car specialist to do the bits and bobs.
I thought that the TVR would be no more complex than the MGF. How much harder would it be...except for another bank of cylinders?? Read more
From experience they are nothing special to work on just a little awkward as the bonnet makes access a little challenging. Having owned an MGF no change there! All the service bits are readily available from Land Rover just pay attention to the condition of the brakes and suspension components especially as with any serious performance car getting them to stop is paramount. The chassis tend to go rusty in the front wheel area as the powder coating gets sandblasted off by road grit and as with any TVR electrics can be troublesome.
Andrew
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Simplicate and add lightness!!
My 2003 1.6 Focus had a "major" service at 20600 miles last week. 3 days later, on starting the engine, the cabin was filled with the smell of rotten eggs. Windows have been down, air con on and a 200 mile long journey completed but still it smells inside. New tankful of BP (but not Ultimate) has gone in now. Standing outside car with engine running - no smell from exhaust. I would be very grateful if anybody can throw any light on this problem. I am worried the engine will be damaged. Please help. Many thanks.
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Thank you for this encouraging message! Think I may take the car to Quik Fit for them to have a look; either that or a trip back tothe service garage, who don't seem very helpful. Will let you know outcome!
The Omega failed it's MOT a few weeks back on the rear n/s tyre. This tyre was actually much newer than the rest due to damage to the old one.
The tyre was worn on the inside of the tread only. The MOT chappy told me that the front o/s was nearly marginal, being worn on the inside edge only too. The other tyres seem ok all round.
He suggested 4 way laser tracking. I've had this done before (about 2 years ago, at Micheldever) and it was perfect.
Is his suggestion correct, if not, what else could cause it? Read more
Suspension bushes maybe? That's what the diagnostic was when the NS rear tyre on my previous Vectra wore on the inner edge.
Also try posting / searching in the Omega section of cavweb.
For several months now, when the aircon has been turned on there has been a gentle gurgle just to begin - for maybe 5-10 seconds.
Now, the air that blows out is not cold, and the gurgling is unceasing.
Any ideas?
TIA Read more
I had a '98 Vectra that suddenly dumped it's gas, was not too expensive to fix and re-gas, in your case it might just be that the gas pressure is low.
A grease gun can provide tremendous pressure. I've seen one used to push bearings out of propshaft joints (afte the clips are removed!).