October 2005
hi hope someone can shed some light on a job ive done vehicle was stood for about 6 months customer brought it down with a blown head gasket white smoke from rear.
changed cylinder head gasket and cleaned everything out now engine rattles like mad.
do you have to bleed the hydraulic lifters on this engine 2.0l 16 valve?
is so how do you do it the cams were out for about 4 days in total.
cheers rob Read more
Hi all, my sons girlfriend has just got herself a new job on the road in the north Nothumberland area, she loves the job but not the bit trying to find her way around. My son now wants to buy her a cheap sat nav.
Neither of them have the time to find out which one to buy so that job has been given to me. I have been doing some googling and have come up with the "Navman ICN320" available for £179 at Dixons online.
Has anyone any negatives or positives about this unit? or any other
recommendations for a unit under £200.
Regards Mal. Read more
Thanks for the comments re: Memory Map - I'll check the website.
I think that a 10 fig grid ref (i.e. 5 eastings, 5 northings) should take you down to a 1 metre square. The first 2 figures identify a 1km square.
I've been using a handheld GPS unit which gives you 10 figures, but accuracy depends on local GPS coverage and, I suspect, cloud cover and atmospheric conditions. I haven't used it for a few months but IIRC, at best, it was accurate to 10-20 metres. I suspect that, just because it gives you 10 figures, it doesn't mean it's accurate to 10 figures [just as my my Mondeo speedo goes up to 150, it doesn't mean it'll do that!].
My boss told me that he will be testing a new 'GPS' unit which uses land-based stations in addition to satelites - and that is reckoned to be more reliable. I must remember to ask him how he got on with it.
Apologies for all the queries on my car but going in for service on friday and want to get anything done that I should.
I don't drive the car often, usually SWMBO drives it. However I have been driving it this week purely to check if there is any issues.
I have noticed that the brakes are very "snatchy" ie the pedal seems to travel quite a bit and then it suddently bites. There doesn't seem to be any gradual braking. Noticed it especially today when stuck in a traffic jam.
Is there any issues with Scenic brakes like this or is it just down to me switching from my normal car (the Saxo) Read more
I would suggest you get them Loctited so they don't come lose,a nasty accident could well be scarry.
Last week I accidentally bumped over a raised kerb in my 2002 Ford Focus, Bodywork on underside behind n/side wheel scraped on top of kerbstone. I checked and found seam in front of jacking point was slightly bent, but thought I'd got away with it until I drove home in a rain storm last night and a big puddle formed in passenger footwell. Does this sound like a coincedence - or serious (expensive) damage to floorpan? Read more
What year Mondeo is it Henry?
The earlier ones (93-2000) had a problem with the seal around the air intake under the passenger side scuttle panel, remove the cover (three srews with covers above the bonnet and three T30 torx screws under the bonnet) once off you'll see the intake. Remove clean up and refit using a silicone type sealer to get a good joint.
I would be grateful for advice on whether or not I ought to declare a motorcyle theft claim when seeking car insurance? I am a 21 year old student and have just passed my test so insurance for my vw beetle is going to cost! I moved onto cars because I had my motorcycle stolen last year. The police caught the cuprit and are prosecuting them and as I had done nothing wrong I claimed and was paid out for the bike(less a retention of £500!). They then bumped up my bike premium from £300 to £1200 thus making sure I did not renew the bike insurance and all other quotes were of a similar amount. So I got a car instead but I have been given conflicting advice by two insurance companies, one says I must declare the claim and have an additional premium to pay the other said it has nothing to do with car insurance and not declare. I am in a dilemma, I do not wish to tell lies but equally I do already feel rather hard done to and have no wish if I can avoid it to have to pay a loaded premium. Views please?
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Honesty is the best policy with any insurance company.
Remember too that there is now a comprehensive database that such companies and the police can quickly access.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
On yet another satellite channel with no money for programmes they show a series called "Serious Crash Unit" from New Zealand,which investigates the causes of accidents.
Tonight a guy had crashed his nasty Pajero and been killed when ejected from it as the car rolled along the road. There was a piece about the guy and how he was so proud of his two young daughters, who of course would now be without their father.
He was not, of cousre, using his belt despite it being the law to so in NZ.
I'm sorry it happened to him but I have a problem accepting the testimony to his value as a a parent when he did not take a simple, and legally-required action that would have saved his life .
Surely even if you don't care about your own safety , you have a responsibility to those who depend on you. And more broadly you are responsible to society as a whole , as his death will have significant cost implications for the state, as well as cranking up insurance premiums for the rest of us. Read more
David Horn: natural selection
Unfortunately, natural selection does not work like that. It is supposed to weed out poor samples from future breeding. In his case, this chap has already been bred from, so his genes carry on.
A more accurate medical term to apply is 'organ donor'.
Greenhey - what a fascinating choice of programme watching...
Some interesting vehicles here : stores.ebay.co.uk/auctioning4u_Other_W0QQcolZ4QQdi...m Read more
Always nice to see those old merc convertibles.
Being new to car ownership, I'm learning lots from reading this forum's postings. Thanks to all of you.
My problem is a 1997 VW Polo 1.9 L Diesel. It's shredded 6 'fan' (alternator, coolant pump & power steering) belts in 4 months, with only 2000 miles done. The ribbed V belts look like they've been scored into between the 4th & 5th rib. Three garages can't see any rubbing & are at a loss. £600 has not remedied the problem. Any ideas are more than welcome. Interestingly, alignment seems ok, but the alternator pulley has 6 grooves, whereas the belts & other pulleys only have 5!?!
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Hi All, SUCCESS!!!!!!!!
Thanks for all your contributions, since 26/10/05. I risked a visit to the car's 5th garage! This time the mechanic listened to my current view (damaged pulley(s) & possibly seized bearings). I supplied all my paperwork & the cleanest/tidiest garage seemed to have sorted the problem.
The mechanic removed bottom crank & water pump pulleys. Studs were seized/cross threaded & had to be drilled out. He reckoned that a heavy handed mechanic wielding a hammer had struggled removing/fitting the pulley(s) & had damaged them in the process . Solved... I think! This 'little' problem cost £800 in total. Crikey! I'd better get a job! Thanks again all.
On the subject of DIY oil changes, when is the best time to change the oil, engine hot or engine cold ? I was of the old school of, warm up the oil so it flows better and stirs up all the crud in the sump and brings it out of the drain plug. The reason I ask is, IIRC modern oils are actually thinner (less viscous) when cold, so would actually flow better cold. Based on this (and maybe answering my own post), would it be best to run the engine up for a few minutes to stir up the crud and then drain the oil whilst still cold. What do you guys think ? Read more
Why should there be combustion products in the oil anyway?
As with all engines, when the air/fuel mixture is compressed and ignited, some of the gasses and fumes will leak past the piston rings. It?s almost impossible to make each combustion chamber 100% sealed, especially when compression pressures are in the region of 10-15 bar (double that for diesels). This is otherwise knows as 'blow by'.
>>Surely,
the bottom end of the engine is much the same as
a petrol version and the oil has much the same routing
as in a petrol version.
Yeah, that?s correct, but those blow-by gasses or fumes will contain particles like soot which would collect on the pistons, piston rings and oil galleries. Bearing in mind that the combustion of diesel fuel generally produces more soot that petrol (hence your oil turns black quickly). It is therefore essential that oil for diesel engines contains enough detergents to both clean those deposits from the engines components and keep them in suspension without clogging up the oil ways.
I thought these days with catalysors fitted, crankcase breathing was very
controlled to keep the emissions down.
Yes, crankcase emissions are tightly regulated for that very reason, but it has nothing to do with the oils (if I understand your questions)
Hope that helps, and likewise, if I?m wrong (likely), then please correct what?s wrong.
It seems that every time I hire a car in France, I get a Clio. Now, just when a new Clio is out, and getting a Clio would be interesting, Budget give me a Nissan Micra. Even the Twingo that companies always promise (?Twingo or similar? according to the blurb) which would be moderately newsworthy, (since I assume that few backroomers have driven them) never turns up. Nor does the supermini that strikes me as ideal for a touring holiday - the Citroen C3 with its large windscreen, which would allow me to see more of the hills as I drive along valley roads.
No matter. The Nissan Micra ?Must? turned out to be a very nice little car. It was spacious enough - though after we had pushed the back seat forward to accommodate our suitcases in the boot, and pushed the front seat back to accommodate my 6 foot frame, there was no room at all for anyone behind me. The car had become a 2 seater with 5 doors. There were lots of little cubbies to put things in - though most of them were indeed little. The car was well equipped. There was a CD/radio - not that I tried either - having no interest in French radio, and not carrying CDs with me when I go on holiday (does anyone?). There was air-conditioning, which we ran for a total of about 20 minutes in two weeks, much preferring to open the windows (electrically, of course). There was a thermometer (most days the temperature got up to 20 to 23 degrees - very pleasant). There were front fog lights, which might have been useful, seeing as there was a lot of mist in SW France when we were there - but which weren?t. They didn?t enable me to see any better, nor were cars with their fog lights lit any easier to see than those without. Are these things merely bling? There was also a rev counter. What was missing? Well, there were no mud-flaps (which would have been useful, because I did find myself driving through mud and getting quite a bit on the car). And try as I might, I could not get water out of the washer jet onto the rear window. Perhaps it was my incompetence; perhaps it was broken.
The car drove very well; the engine was punchy enough (I assume that it was the 1.2 litre 80 bhp engine), and the car coped well with motorway driving (though at 4000 rpm, the engine was a bit noisy - I personally would have favoured a taller 5th gear) as well as with going up twisty roads on steep hillsides. Ride and handling were very acceptable. I was impressed with fuel economy, getting 54 mpg (OK, 53.94) which is a lot better than I get in my Ford Ka. Maybe my driving style is more relaxed when I?m on holiday. (Unleaded, by the way, varied from E1.24 to 1.35 at the places I purchased. The cheapest diesel I saw was 1.10)
The car was a tasteful, but rather forgettable metallic grey. French car colour preferences these days seem pretty tame. We stayed in an Etap Hotel our first night, and the following morning when I looked out at the car park it seemed that 90% of the cars were either silver or white. (We had an interesting experience there, by the way. We went off to breakfast at 8.30, and returned to our room just after 9 to find all the bedding as well as all our possessions stuffed into the ensuite, and a couple of painters busy preparing the room with masking tape. They didn?t seem to think they?d done anything unusual. The young lady on duty at reception apologised and said that they shouldn?t have, but didn?t seem too worried. In future I must be more diligent about using the ?Do not disturb? notice!)
Compared to Britain, one sees more older cars on the road. There are a fair number of Renault 4s and Citroen 2CVs on the go, and Peugeot 205s seemed to outnumber 206s. Ford Fiesta Mk IIIs definitely outnumbered the current model. Roads were remarkably quiet. One afternoon my wife and I walked down a scenic country road near Cahors in a touristy area for 4 km and were not passed by a single motor vehicle. Driving showed little gallic flair - drivers were invariably polite, and in 2 weeks I didn?t see any driving that raised my eyebrows.
If I may be permitted a non-motoring tip, French supermarkets no longer give out poly bags. We learned this the hard way when we popped into a supermarket and loaded up with supplies.
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1 - From October 15 virtually all French chainstores gave up on plastic 'carry out' bags. Instead they are all offering long-life carrier bags - often with free replacement 'forever' - for a few cents. The Carrefour one in particular is really good. We invested 40c in one to use as a beach bag!
2 - The Micra sounds a useful little motor. Shame for all that it still looks like a Fisher Price kiddy telephone...
Browse
The lifters should bleed themselves.
Were the hydraulic lifters put into a bath of oil while the engine was apart?
I had a head gasket changed on a Cavalier once and the hydraulic lifters dried out because they were left lying on a workbench for a week by the garage doing the work, resulting in knackered lifters when the engine was put back together. Garage said they weren't to blame.
I bought a tool to remove the lifters while the head was still in situ (8 valve engine - so easy to do) and gave them a thorough strip down and clean, but they still clattered on start up.
I just put up with it as it only did it on start up and later traded the car into the garage that did the work. Suprisingly they commented on the noisy tappets, the same noisy tappets that they denied were making a noise when I went back to complain after they did the work.