November 2005
Just dropped the Fiesta off for its service and camblet. I wanted them to refit a loose mudflap and adjust the hand brake lever as it comes on too high.
I mentioned the handbrake first....'That's £35 for that sir..'
WHAT?
How long can it take to adjust the hand brake - five minutes? I told them not to bother, and I'll get a local garage to do a few other minor jobs that will save me a lot of money.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive? Read more
The electric power steering on my 2002 corsa is intermittently failing. Family owned from new and just six thousand eight hundred miles on the clock, the car had a new rack under warranty 18 months ago with 4000 miles on the clock. It spent a year off the road before my dad passed it onto my daughter when he had to stop driving.
Now just as my daughter is to take her test in the car in two days time the power steering fails intermittently whilst in heavy use, eg part way round a three point turn. The problem is worse if you do several thee points or other manouvres in succession. On driving away it soon recovers. When it fails it loses total power assistance in both directions of the wheel. It shows itself first by stiffening up at full lock but then fails completely. As soon as you drive away it seems to recover.
Does anybody know what may be causing this and does anybody know if Vauxhall are likely to be sympathetic or will I have to stand the cost now the warranty has expired (in July).
All advice gratefully received
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Check the front tyre pressures, if they're low that'll make the steering heavier and add to the overheating of the steering motor.
I need to get some more oil for my 1.9TDI Touran (It's used the 1l of top up oil it came with). However, I can only find Castrol "EDGE" oils now, no Longlife SLX II, and none approved to 506 01. The one Castrol says is the replacement for SLX II is the wrong viscosity, and approved to 504 00/507 00.
Is it OK to use 507 00 oils in a PD VW on long service intervals?
Thanks
Joe
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I've looked at the German VW website; by a tortuous means*, I found a table of approved oils for the various engines in their cars. From this the recommended oil for 3, 4 and 6 cylinder diesels on long-life servicing is 507.00; if the engines do not have a particulate filter fitted (my 05 1.9 Golf TDi does not), then 506.01 is an alternative.
(I paid £11.56 in July for a litre of Castrol Longlife II from my VW dealer; another dealer wanted approx £16 for the same oil, so it pays to ring around...)
*If you want to see the German table;
www.vw-service.de, scroll down and click on the picture of the Castrol oil bottle, then the grey box "Das richtige Oel fuer meinen Motor" then click the underlined link "Schautafel Taschenkarte". I couldn't find a corresponding table on the UK site...
Just found out how much a new map sensor costs for my astra 1600 gls its a m reg so instead i thought of getting a second hand one but where is it located? i know they are quite small about 4inches long and its plugged in somewhere but thats all i know.
(apparently its a common problem on these engines)
thanks Read more
The MAP sensor can be tested quite easily. There will be a three pin plug attached to it. The outer pins will be a 5V supply (with ignition on) and the other will be earth. The centre pin will be the signal to the ECU.
1. Check for voltage supply with ignition on, around 4.5V
2. Make sure earth connection is good. Earths should always be <5Ω. Make sure ignition is off when you check resistance, or you will not get an accurate reading.
3. Remove vacuum pipe, use voltmeter to probe centre pin with ignition on and gently apply vacuum to pipe. The voltage should fall down to about 0.5V, and return to around 4.5V when vacuum is released. If it does the the sensor is working and need not be replaced.
4. Check continuity of wiring from MAP sensor to ECU.
These vacuum oil extractors are quite popular in the USA enabling quick and easy oil changes but I've never heard of anyone (DIYers I mean) using one.
I'm thinking of buying one as my car has large sump shield that is very difficult to get off when the car is just raised on front ramps (attempted once!).
The unit is a plastic reservoir tank capacity 6.5L with a manual vacuum pump attached and a 3/16th dia. plastic tube which is inserted through the dipstick tube into bottom of the sump. Pump the handle to create a vacuum and the oil is sucked out (takes about 15/20 minutes .
this is the unit (there are others similar):
www.cdet.co.uk/catalogue/product/default.asp?produ...0
and this is how it's done:
www.bmw325i.net/maint_oil_extractor.shtml
So has anyone any experience? Do you think they are any good?
My initial thoughts were that the conventional method was best but nowadays many garages use a similar system of "top extraction" the local BMW dealer definately does.
With 2 cars it would soon pay for itself I'm thinking.
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I bought one of these:-
Someone told me that using de-icer is not a good idea as it damages paint work and the rubber on wiper blades. Can anyone tell me if this is true and if so, how much damage can this actually cause? I would've thought that using an ice scraper is worse as this could (potentially) scratch the glass if done too roughly.
Cheers Read more
My pre-heater starts via timer and 45 mins or so later I go out to a toasty warm car with clear windows and a warmed engine.... bliss ;-)
Anyone know the significance of those painted white sqaures I keep seeing on the roads ? Usually on a dual-carriageway, each lane will occasionally have a white square on it about 18" sort of size. Read more
Thank's, I've often wondered what they are for...
Are they related to those shallow silver metal pyramids you used to find in pairs on the road surface ?
My niece has just purchased a 1.2 Vauxhall Corsa (1999).I have not seen
the car, but my sister has informed me there appears to be a problem with the clutch (i.e.It is difficult to select reverse gear without crunching, and the gearchange is generally poor).
My sister also informs me that the biting point for the clutch is very low (near the floor).
I believe this car has a cable clutch but I stand to be corrected (I have not seen the car),is it likely the cable has streched out of adjustment (i.e.Failing) or is the problem likely to be the main clutch components contaminated with oil.
Any comments would be most welcome.
Andrew Read more
hi well ive got a corsa b i put on a new cable and clucth kit on it but now i find that now d pedal is heigher dan d brakes an also it bite very high any idea on wot to do or is that normal an also sum times i find 1st gear a bit hart to get in
Hi,
Could anyone recommend a website that rivals Autotrader's? or maybe even a website that you believe is better than Autotrader's used car search?
Thanks,
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Worth a look in as it it likely to beome the new way to buy a car
About as likely as my becoming the next Messiah....
Hi all,
I would like to know your opinions on purchasing a car that has been catogarised as 'Stolen Recovered'.
If a car has been put in this catogary does that mean that the price of the insurance premium will go up or be affected?
Will this also mean the vehicle has been involved in any type of crash?
If anybody could get back to me concerning the above information or even more info I need/should know, I would be very grateful.
Thanks,
Chris
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As michael caine would say "not a lot of people know that".
They should if they read the backroom ;-)
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=35...4
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Well, I said something right then! ;-)
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L\'escargot.