October 2005
Hi All,
This is my first post on this site and I was wondering if anyone could help.
I have a rather annoying problem with a 'squeaking' sound that seems to come from the passenger side of the vehicle when driving between 50-75mph. The 'squeeking' can be best likened to the sort of noise radio or mic. feedback would give although not as loud.
I think it may be the wind flowing through door seals but can quite pin down where from. I guess it is still there over 75mph but the road noise begins to mask it.
Does anyone have any ideas?
Cheers Read more
My 6 month old new shape A6 2.0 TDI, which has now done 20k miles, has been plagued by problems.
The clutch has just been replaced because of a severe judder when cold but the new clutch is very "snappy" the pedal having to be pressed into the carpet to disengage and a very short travel between disengage and engage.It makes driving the car quite awkward.
The main agent says the clutch is not adjustable as it is hydraulic but its operation is certainly very different to the original clutch when new.
Does anyone know if this clutch is adjustable?
The second issue is the car is now on its fourth litre of oil(at £13 litre) but the main agent tells me this is normal.The car spends most of its time on motorways but I find this very hard to believe this is acceptable oil consumption as I have never had a car use oil at anything like this rate in the last 25 years.(The car has been given a thrash from time to time as has been suggested before in these pages to no apparent effect.)There is no sign of any oil leakage so I assume its burning the oil but to what effect on the catalyst, I have no idea.
Am I being unreasonable in expecting low/zero oil consumption?
(Ironically another fault has been a jaming dip stick which took the agent's service foreman half and hour to remove but which, with practice, I can now do in about 5 minutes..... usually!!) Read more
I have an A4 with the same engine and 23000 miles so far. It has settled down to virtually negligible oil consumption. Although 1litre to 5000 miles isn't too bad. I dont think it is true that these VaG diesel engines are prone to heavy oil consumption, as many of my work colleagues have cars with this engine, as well as my father and brother in law, and I have never heard any of them comment on this.
I think the VaG FSi petrol engines have this reputation though.
The Trafficmaster Oracle on our C5 is only operating occasionally and seems to switch on and off at random. I contacted Trafficmaster about this and they have a £79 (IIRC) callout charge before they start talking about rectifying the problem.
Is there any other way of getting this checked out without involving Trafficmaster? It really isn't worth spending a lot of money on it. Read more
Yes - Freeway is what I've got - agree entirely. I think Oracle has a display is is more akin to satnav.
Thanks, Mapmaker: I was going to the M11 (to go to Churchill College via the A1303) so that would have been a good idea. Once they've built the Baldock bypass (about 50 years late) this will I think be a better way from the South and South West to Cambridge - perhaps Norfolk too - than all the way round the M25 to the M11.
I damaged the windscreen of my car when I was in France and RAC Windscreens are unable to repair the chip and so I'll need a new screen. However, before I bought the car I recall reading in one of the reviews that Honda had fitted a thicker windscreen to the diesel models in order to reduce engine noise. RAC Windscreens do not have have a different screen for the diesel models according to their computer.
Does anyone recall the mention of this thicker than normal windscreen in reviews of the diesel models? Read more
There is no difference between the screens on diesel or petrol cars. There are such things as acoustic screens that have an altered interlayer to reduce Db but it is only minimal and generally fitted in Renaults as its made by Saint Gobain (often OEM to Renault)
see www.saint-gobain-sekurit.com/anglais/produits/acou...p
(Glass-Tech)
Anti-roll bar? The Fabia has just failed its MOT on it. It felt perfectly fine to me when I dropped the car off to them
I'm a bit suspicious as when I dropped the car in, the service bloke was telling someone else that theirs needed replacing. Do Skodas have a bad reputation for these or does my dealer have a technician who needs to practice a few at our expense.
Also, does anyone know of a decent independent VAG/Skoda specialist in the West Yorks/Manchester area who I could trust with the car? I'm really fed up with main dealers.
-- Lee .. A festivus for the rest of us. Read more
Haven't got their number to hand, but they'll be in the book. You can find them about a mile from Fairfield Hospital in the direction of Bury on Bury and Rochdale Old Road. Open 5 days plus Sat AM. They always seem v busy, so book ahead. I believe one of them used to be service mngr at Smith Knight Fay.
You could also try Castlefield Garage in Bury town centre, just off Bolton St. If you do and you deal with Keith (Europe's grumpiest man), tell him he owes Nigel from the Pack Horse a pint. Good luck
Barrelling down the country's motorways at 130mph in a people carrier covered in blue lights and making a variety of very loud howling noises, it is absolutely remarkable to watch how the great Brtish public react, or more often don't.
Particularly fun things to do when an emergency vehicle comes up from behind fast:
1. Slam on your brakes. This is properly scary - and usually results in a swearing driver and a couple of bug-eyed elite healthcare professionals. This happens more often than you'd believe.
2. Do absolutely nothing. Even when the driver puts on the second, even louder siren and pulls over the right side of the lane so the blue lights are blinding you in the wing mirror. Some people honestly don't notice - usually women (just an observation). Others notice, but just stare at you evily - usually White Van Men (just an observation). If the emergency is particularly pressing, and/or the driver is particularly gung ho we undertake in the middle lane.
3. Say to yourself, "I'll just overtake the next car, or maybe the next one... actually there's a space in front of the next one." This is very, very boring. Get out of the fast lane immediately. Into any space. People WILL make room for you. Women are slightly more guilty of this than men.
4. Pull out into the fast lane without looking just as we are about to pass you. Usually superminis with a death-wish. This will get you and others killed.
5. Pull over immediately - then slip stream behind. Men driving big recent german saloons are at least usually subtle and hang well back, 200-300m. Boy racers hang on the bumper (more usual on city streets). Whether people speed or not is not really any of our business, but if you are thought to be endangering our lives we will not hesitate to make a 'phone call and get you busted even faster than your hot hatch can go from 0-60.
Obviously anyone on this forum would never do any of these things. The writing style is meant to amuse rather than lecture.
The offenders are a minority, yet a persistant one. The vast majority of people do the right thing and get out of the way as soon as they spot us, even if that means flooring it past a vehicle inside. If your car is not powerful enough to do this then don't brake, put on your indicator and wait until you're past the inside car - hopefully they'll brake and make room for you.
Stay safe
Ronnie Read more
I know I kinda started it, but can we now end this discussion here, and hope that the Back Room collectively takes note? (i.e. not directed at anyone in particular).
Thank you
smokie, BR Moderator
can any one tell me how 2 remove the heater matrix without removing the dash. Read more
Try links
www.clubgti.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1398&KW=...x
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=9804&m...e
Do a forum search here, you may find that some vw garages will still do a free 'warranty' replacement if it has never been done before. They were still doing them about 3 years ago!
--
pmh (was peter)
I'm more perplexed than mad...
Looked at my car today and noticed someone had nicked one of the plastic hinged covers that go over the wiper arm nut. It was the passenger one as well, so they would have had to leant into the middle of the bonnet to pull it off.
Has anyone else ever had anything similarly useless or unmerchantable taken off their cars?
--------------
Mike Farrow Read more
Friend had his garage broken into, could not see anything amiss immediatly. Next morning in the light found all 4 carbs gone of his Kawasaki.
Bill
Almost two months ago I ordered a new Volvo V70 from Smart Volvo in Edlesborough, Beds, paid £1,000 deposit by credit card and was given an eight week build time as the car would be a factory order with a few extra goodies such as a sun roof and winter pack.
Smart Volvo are part of the Smart Car group who also sell new Saabs and Fiats, the latter for whom they seem to have a good reputation.
For the past two weeks I've been trying to get a delivery date from them, numerous phone calls have gone unreturned and e-mails un-responded to, I'm beginning to think I've been shafted...
Has anyone used them to supply a new Volvo? If so what was the experience like and how long did it take to deliver?
Comments on what my next move should be would also be appreciated.
Z Read more
Also, if you do read that, note that most of the 'pro's' have veeeery similar posting styles...
My friend had an accident whereby she came out of a road junction to turn right on a main road and you have to go half way as the road is the size of a dual carriagway and as she was waiting to go over the other side of the road a car came down and wrote the car off. This is put down to her fault as she was in the path of the vehicle. She has since found out that her MOT expired 3 days prior, any idea what the consequences will be?? Her have now written the car off and asked for her Log book and MOT Read more
Hang on it seems to me there are two scenarios here. If she has pulled out INTO the path of an oncoming vehicle, or has pulled out and was waiting on a blind corner then definately her fault imho.
However if she has already pulled out on a straightish road was stationery and then the other party has just bowled into the side of her then I think it might be argued that he/she was either driving too fast or without due care and attention.
Obviously this is v difficult to prove after the event unless there were any witnesses.
Browse
Sounds pretty similar in terms of the description of the sound, although would that be speed related because it is definately not audible below around 50mph?
I'm looking for a few ideas to check out myself before it goes to the dealer. Its one of those really annoying things which I hope they can sort out!
Cheers,
Andy