September 2005
Hi, car is a 2000W 306 HDi.
My ABS warning light is coming on, it does the ignition check for a few secs and goes out ok, but will then come on when I drive, some times as soon as I start rolling but others it takes up to 5 miles. Also braking hard (ie stabbing them at 30) will make it come on as the brakes are released. Onces its on it wont go off until you switch off and restart.
My question is could a difference in wear of the front tyres (one is brand new the other is nearly at the end of its life so there is probably ~5mm difference (195/55/15)) be enough to throw the sensors as the wheels will be rotating at slightly different speeds?
I've booked it in to get the ECU read but just thought it could simply be the tyres. To add further complications the car was involved in an accident recently (some one drove into the side of me - front nearside wheel area took the initial impact) - hub/wheel bearing/suspension etc was replaced so it may be related but I don't want to jump to conclusions yet.
Any advise would be appreicated. Mike. Read more
I have a water leak in my astra. Everytime it rains the foot wells of my car both sides are saturated. There is no water on the seats so we've ruled out it being the sun roof. We recently had a new windscreen but can't see any leaks through there. It seems to be coming from between the bonnet and windscreen but i cannot see any obvious place. This also causes something to short within the car and the battery to go dead. It's very confusing!!!
Any suggestions??
Thanks
slt Read more
I have an Australian deliverd Astra AH 2005 that had a similar prob including filling up the aircon/heater fan & flowing all over the floor ( 3 weeks after warrenty expired & 1st problem with the car) . Found the problem was a faulty sealing rubber between the plastic plenium chamber cover & the windscreen causing any water running off the windscreen to run under the plenium chamber cover & directly into the heater / demister inlet vent !!! Great design guys!!!!! , Have placed a plastic bag over the inlet for a temp to keep the car dry & will get a price asap for a new cover ( clips break on the old one when you try to lift it to inspect under it ( i suspect its a throw away part) but i bet it costs a couple of hundred bucks at least ..... Over all 2 bobs worth on this car .. Great on fuel & good to drive but build quality & design ? Bout the same as a late 70`s Skoda !
I am thinking of buying a 51reg old shape Mercedes E430 that has the same key as most Mercs from mid 1997 onwards, I remember my old R reg C180 had the same unit.
The issue I have is that the E430 I'm looking at only has one key and its been sellotaped to hold it together! I clearly need to buy at least one new one but I'd imagine it would cost a fortune to buy something like this from a main dealer.
Is it possible to buy a second hand one and get it reprogrammed? How much would this cost?
THanks in advance Read more
This link might help. I don't know about their prices but they aren't likely to be higher than a Merc dealer!
www.autolocksmiths.net/
Ok, seen a used sports hatch, year old and its been owned by a soldier in Germany, its UK supplied and mileage is a little high for a year old but its resonably priced. Serviced in Germany I believe.
Is it risky buying ex-armed forces? I believe they have to sell it within a year to save the VAT, could it have been used as part of their duty? Or would it have MOD listed on the V5 document?
Would like to hear from anyone who has brought from an Independant that sources their cars from Armed Forces abroad. Always brought from dealers and they've been ex-lease cars.
Cheers. Read more
Did DVLA think it was a Taunus? Were there LHD Cortinas?
no it was a cortina and ford themselves helped me out greatly with identifying it as such it was ordered in uk and supplied direct to MoD in Germany it was a black 2.3 v6 but apparentlly started life as a 1.6 but was converted presumably by military. i eventually got it registered on a Q plate Q981REU in it's day it was a nice car and quite quick but extremely thirsty...cheers...keo.
In order to further my long-term policy of buying middle-aged Hondas, rather than younger ones, to save money that I can then hand over to the bank, the oil companies and the government as demanded, I am close to coughing up for a 1998 Prelude 2.2 vti automatic with sequential gear shift option. Rumour has it that this gearbox is a bit iffy, which surprises me because my other Honda autos have been excellent and fault-free. HJ mentions this in the car by car breakdown - anyone know how prevalent this problem is?
Read more
Apparently the 'boxes have a bit of a reputation for failing on the more powerful engines. Brown (burnt) fluid and harsh shifting is the first sign of trouble. I must say I'm not a great fan of these particular 'boxes because the ratios seem a bid oddly chosen to me.
Hi
Unfortunately i am not very technically minded when i comes to cars , and all of a sudden i have two problems that have arisen with my car, First my interior dashboard lights have gone, and also my rear lights too ( headlights are still working ) anyone know what it might be, fuse maybe ?
Also at the same time, all of a sudden when i change gear at around 2 - 3000 rpm the rev counter shoots up for a second and the car lurches forward a little, what the hell is that all about.
Does anyone out there have any advice for me on these two things, ( and if they're related. )
Thanks Read more
Throttle cable goes direct from pedal to pump-so can only be
cable or pedal;disconnect cable from pump and check that it works
freely-also check cable run,it may have got caught the wrong side
of some component.
Ok well a throttle cable is a lot better alternative than a new clutch, i hope it is.
Essex Police yesterday started running a campaign to enforce the wearing of seatbelts, having run a similar campaign back in March and catching 3,500 people in the month.
To launch the campaign they have gone very high profile with interviews on local radio and press releases in all the local papers and on their website. Unfortunately they appear to have put out a release which is patently incorrect in its interpretation of the law relating to the responsibility of the driver in ensuring passengers are belted up.
I quote from their press release:-
'Drivers should remember that they have a responsibility not only to themselves but to their passengers; it is up to the driver to ensure everyone in the vehicle has belted up. If an adult passenger in the car, whether front or rear, does not clunk and click they too can be the recipient of a £30 fixed penalty notice.'
Having had the discussion on here a while back,
tinyurl.com/cnxf8
I couldn't understand how they could so easily misread both the Highway Code section 75 and the appropriate Road Traffic Act 1988 section 14 & 15 when we obviously could. I therefore posted a request for clarification on the Essex Police website that I was correct in assuming that the driver was responsible for all passengers under the age of 14 and that any passenger over 14 was responsible for their own actions. Essex Police have now replied stating that my interpretation is correct and their press release is wrong!
OK, anyone can make a mistake, but the Chief Inspector of the Traffic Division on seat belt law? I hope he's going to employ better proof readers next time around!
Having said that they are still using the same press release today!
On the plus side 6 out of the 7 guys at work yesterday knew the seatbelt law and responsibilities and were in favour of the campaign, let's hope it bears fruit during next week's return to the school run. Read more
From the footage that was shown on TV, there was no other offence shown or mentioned for the fine and points, giving the impression that the officer was indeed doing the driver for the no-seatbelt-on-passenger offence, but of course it is only TV so it could have been poorly edited.
I thought at the time that the officer came across as extremely smug and condescending also.
Hi, My Astra wouldn't start today out of the blue. Called out the RAC who jump started it then it proceded to splutter a bit with battery light & engine lights flickering and no power steering. After stopping it and jump starting it again things seemed to go back to normal, so I drove home being followed by the RAC man. When I arrived home and turned it off it started again no problems, the RAC guy tested the battery again and it seemed to be fine. I have just checked it again now (a couple of hours later) and it is completely dead, it won't even open the central locking. When I turned on the ignition it didn't turn over at all but there was a clicking noise coming from a box in the engine which has large fuses in it(???) I'm not convinced that it is the battery has anyone any ideas?
I would appreciate any help, thank you.
Angie. Read more
I would suggest that the charging system /alternator be checked.Any problem here will cause the battery to discharge & also the PAS to malfunction (the system is electronic not belt driven)
Bought an '04 plate S60 a couple of months back as a second car - first Volvo after a series of Audis and I love it. Smooth 5 cylinder engine with 5 speed auto and all the toys for less than a price of a 1 year old Golf.... anyway...
After the 1st week of driving I noticed that the pipe coming out of the bottom of the power steering resovoir was leaking very slightly and was low on fluid. Straight into dealer who replaced pipe, resovoir and fluid.
Checked a few weeks later and low on fluid - topped up and the level has remained okay so assumed just an air pocket. However I do notice that when the engine is hot and I'm parking the steering does lack some assistance and appears heavy at parking speeds - but only when hot. When I take the top off the PS resovoir it seems under pressure and I can feel air being released - a bit like taking the top off the header tank of a hot engine.
Tried this in my A4 and there is no pressure hot or cold. Does this point to air leak somewhere on the power steering system or is this normal. Should take it back to the dealer but the local one is awful and its a long trek across town to the other....
Any ideas would be welcome! Read more
Thanks for your prompt response - I'll get it booked in again and see if they fancy changing the pump under warrenty!!!
No problems with cruise!!
hi could any1 tell me where i can find the rear coolant drain plug on a 306 1.9td 1996, the haynes doesn't have a picture and i can't seem to find it, does any1 have a decent description or picture of it's location?
cheers
chris Read more
The fault, as we guessed, is the NSF wheel sensor. Thanks for the advise guys.