November 2005
Our W-Reg Diesel Astra Estate> has recently caused us some concern. There has been a sudden loss of power - hills which we used to fly up over in fifth gear now require us to change down through the gears. This is our second diesel Astra - the other we kept to 170,000 miles and never had this trouble with it.
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We've changed the EGR valve. We've changed the crank sensor. We've had the engine heat shields stripped off, had the turbo, waste gate operation and vacuum pipes checked.
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On the level we fly along. As soon as the engine comes under load, in whatever gear, we lose power. Even when the engine is warm, if we lose revs for any reason (slowing right down for another vehicle, or moving off from a junction) there's hardly any power at all and going up over steep hills we sometimes have to change gear right down through the box.
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Our fuel consumption remains steady at around 60-63 MPG. Any other ideas we can try to fix this problem or shall we just get rid of the car?
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Sorry, this is a bit dull. I shall need to travel from Bath to Boston (Lincs unfortunately, not USA) and was wondering what the best route is. Multimap takes me up the M5 and then across East.
Has anyone else done this or a similar journey? Read more
Fascinating article on the BBC News website about reaction to alternatives to speed humps.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4459056.stm Read more
Nothing new in this. The dutch have this "shared area" concept for years, They put benches in the road, plant pots, (big ones mind) tress, - all sorts of things to break up the "percieved right of way" thinking.
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RF - currently 1 Renault short of a family
I've just bought a second hand radio for my 1996 Megane to replace the dead original, having spent a year looking for the right model - new one is identical. I've hooked it up to the remote controls, and all seems to be working fine, but......none of the controls on the actual radio work except the mechanical ones for the cassette player. All steering column control controls are fine. So I can't adjust balance, bass, treble, or manually tune a new preset. Am I missing a trick or is the unit faulty? I did notice there was an earth connector on the back which desn't seem to have a sitable lead, but I'm assuming this is irrelevan as the actual thing works OK. Anyone any ideas?? Read more
If the set starts working when the remote controls are disconnected, this would throw suspicion on the remote control harness or even a compatability problem. However since my last post I have remembered the exact nature of the corrosion problem on the fascias. The corrosion is in fact a manufacturing based problem on the fascia circuit board where the preset switches are mounted. The contamination forms around the switches and takes the form of a black "sooty" deposit on the circuit board tracks. This deposit is conductive. If it is cleaned off (use switch cleaner or lighter fuel), the set should work. You will need to dismantle the fascia circuit board. You will require miniture Torx drivers (T8, T9) to dismantle.
If the old set was functioning, you should be able to swap the front panel and board OK.
Hope this helps.
My sister recently advertised her Renault Megane for sale in Autotrader.
She received persistent calls from a person representing 'Renault Finance'.
They claimed the had a customer for the car at or near full asking price. They wanted an upfront fee of £90 to introduce the 'prospective buyer'.
I advised her it was probably a scam and she didn't get involved.
Anybody any experience??
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I sold my car through Autotrader and, funny enough, I had no dodgy calls 3rd time around
(1st and 2nd time round, I had no calls at all).
3rd time, the only calls I had were from genuine purchasers and finally sold the car to a chap not too far from me. Met him at his work, went with him to his bank while he organised transfer. It hit my account in 2 hours, he got his car that night. Am I unusual?
My 5 year old / 85,000 mile Toledo TDi suffered an engine mount failure, with no advance indication that this was about occur. The car has been serviced from new at a Seat Service centre at recommended service intervals.
As there is damage to the block it will necessitate a new short engine at best and therefore high repair cost.
I contacted SEAT Customer Care centre, UK, but after limited investigation they have dismissed the failure as down to normal 'wear and tear', and,as vehicle is out of warranty, all repair costs are my responsibility.
I'm contesting this, on the basis that this is not a component expected to fail in the lifelife of the vehicle, but I'd welcome any comments on the specific failure, or approaching this type of claim in general.
Thanks Read more
The following event happened last night and I felt other Back Roomer?s should know about it and comment about the service. All references to the motoring organisation concerned have been omitted under the naming and shaming policy.
Last night my wife?s car broke down on a rural section of a main A road. She thought the cause was a broken accelerator cable, as the pedal lay on the floor. She tried calling the well know motoring organisation on her mobile, but she was left in a queue. Worried she would run out of either battery or phone credits she ended the call and phoned me at home. I then telephoned the motoring organisation on her behalf and the call was recorded at 7.05. They advised they were busy but someone would be there in about an hour to an hour and a half. As my wife was about 2 and half miles from home and loaded with the weekly shopping I decided to find her. When I got there at about 7.40 she was in a tearful state, so I decided to load the shopping into my car, which she then drove home in my car.
I should mention I dropped what I was doing at home and came out without any money, but did have my credit cards in my jacket, also I do not have a mobile phone (after this event I think I will get one). Well I sat there waiting and getting colder by the minute. I worried for over an hour about the engine not starting and the excess petrol killing the Cat. Luckily the engine started first time without any accelerator and I could get warm again. I was beginning to feel very hungry, as I had not had supper. Well I thought by 9 I would have seen the motoring organisation, but no. Well at 10 I decided to walk into the nearest village (bypassed by the main road) to find a telephone box to find out what was going on.
The motoring organisation call handler exclaimed and said they thought we had been dealt with at 9. After checking she then said someone was looking for the vehicle and to return to the car. Luckily I had been advised there was a shortcut pathway that made the return journey only 7 minutes rather than the 13 it took by the circular road pattern. When I returned there was still no one there to help, so I sat back in the car and a few minutes later a vehicle pulls up behind the car.
Strangely this was not a vehicle from the motoring organisation. If this had been my wife in the car I think she would have been very worried by this. On both occasions when I spoke to the motoring organisation they did not advise that someone other than their own vehicle would turn up.
After a quick check of the car, it was confirmed that the accelerator cable was broken. But this Land Rover and trailer was for recovery only, with no spare parts carried at all. I know that cable is kept on the motoring organisation?s vans as many years ago I had an identical breakdown. That was repaired at the roadside, meaning this recovery was not necessary. After a chat with the man and their office I was advised to have the car taken to my home as the motoring organisation would come to the house to fix it. He also confirmed that his firm was not contacted until 9 about this breakdown.
When finally I arrived at home at 11.20 I called the motoring organisation and they confirmed they would come out in the morning and replace the cable, but it could not be pre booked so I must phone in the morning.
At 8.30 this morning I followed instructions and called the motoring organisation to come out and complete the fix. They point blank refused and they would not budge. They claimed I was told it could be up to a 3 hour wait. They also claimed that they had affected a recovery to my choice of destination and therefore the matter was closed, despite being told the case was remaining open at 11.20 the previous evening.
By this time I was going to be late for work so I grabbed the motoring organisation?s file and left. When I checked their handbook I saw they had a complaints number. I rang this number at 9.15, firstly being put on hold and then being asked for my name and number so they could call me back as they were busy. At 9.55 the call was returned and I went over the details of what had happened. The lady in complaints tried to get a supervisor to check on the action, but could not find one available. She then decided on her own initiative to start a new call out to my home (despite being only roadside membership) due to the very poor service we had received last night. She did mention they did have a red alert last night for the number of breakdowns (or in other words they did not have the capacity to cope with demand). The car was repaired within 60 minutes of the end of this call, so this saga has finally come to a satisfactory conclusion.
Do you think the motoring organisation was wrong to leave a lone woman stranded for over 3 hours? (They were advised I might change with her, but they still thought it was a lone woman when I telephoned at 10.)
Why did they not telephone my home, the contact number, with any updates?
Should they have advised that the vehicle coming was not one of theirs? Especially as it had no repair kit and was recovery only.
Why did they advise that they would repair the car the following morning and then say no?
Should it have been necessary to use the complaints procedure to get a satisfactory result?
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Roger
I read frequently, but only post when I have something useful to say.
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So much for gender equality eh.
I must admit, when I've had to call out my breakdown service (twice) they've been great. There within an hour, friendly, helpful and courteous. I'm with the 3rd one, through my car insurance.
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Life is complex; it has real and imaginary parts.
Think that the thermostat on my 1.6 Astra 8 Valve (1997 era) is not working properly, car normally only just reaches the lower part of the temperature guage, and we have had sludge for as long as I can remember.
Whereabouts on this engine is it, and how do I check if it is knackered or are they cheap enough to replace anyway? Read more
you are probably giving it only short journeys,give it an oil and filter change and then a good run for 40 miles,that should cure it,try this medicine every other week
I have to go to a conference in Bath on Friday from Leics - need to be there by 9.30 and it finishes about 3.30/4.00pm. What's the best route??
Obvious one is M69, M6(N), M42 round south of Birmingham, M5, M4 east to A46 then A46 into Bath.
But via Michelin suggests M69 then continuing onto A46 past Coventry, to Warwick, then A429 to Cirencester, then Chippenham (bit of A350) then A4 to Bath.
I have also wondered about M69 to J1, then the Old Fosse Way (B4455) down past Coventry, RLBS, before joining A429 just north of Shipston on Stour then to Cirencester etc.
Any opinions?? I know you all like proving you are better route planners than viaMichelin, Mappy, AA, TomTom etc!!
I'm prepared to set off very early to get a relatively quiet journey (some hope!!)and would prefer not to be stuck on motorways in crawling traffic for hours on the way back(fat chance at that time on a Friday)!!
Phil Read more
mare,
better than viaMichelin, Autoroute and Mappy combined! printed out for reference.
Hope to hit that McD's for breakfast if I make good
time!!
Thanks also to marc for suggestion -
Phil
Welcome. For where you're going, coming in off the A4 somehow will be least hassle and direct. The main problem is getting across the river Avon, which the A4174 does painlessly.
Can't really offer any comment on which route to go on a Friday Afternoon. Ordinarily, I would say M4/M5, but it can get snarled up at the interchange. A tweak to Marc's route is to carry on down the A34 and pick up the M4, more miles but that A420 is very slow and a bit confusing at the Swindon end.
I?ve often moaned on this forum about the dreadful standard of driving here, in particular the reckless overtaking on single lane country roads - the kind that makes you wish there was a plod lurking or better still, an oncoming bus.
Well it actually happened on Saturday afternoon as I was approaching Lodz. The traffic slowed up to as we came to an accident and what did I see as I passed but the idiot in a Vectra who had zoomed passed not two minutes ago. He had rear ended a car in front and his radiator, lights, grill and bumper were all over the road.
Then as luck would have it, not five minutes later we had to slow again to pass a much more serious accident. This time Idiot number two who had been desperate to get past me after the delay from the first accident had managed to come together heavily with two oncoming cars and a wall.
Fantastic I thought. Does it get better than this? Well it did as it happens. On my return journey, in exactly the same spot we were delayed by nearly an hour. When we finally passed it was a new shape Avensis and a C-class Merc that had hit head on and somehow involved an articulated lorry that one of them was probly overtaking. There was nothing at all left of the Avensis forward of the firewall and the Merc was in a similar condition but I was most surprised by the truck which had been completely devastated at the front, it?s wheels were pushed right back and it was leaning into a ditch. Clearly, nobody had walked away from that one and won?t be walking for many months.
I might have been able to summon just an ounce or two of sympathy or compassion if it hadn?t been snowing and below zero. It?s a shame I suppose, that innocent parties get involved in someone elses crass stupidity and reckless behaviour but no sooner had we passed the scene than they were all at it again. Dogs learn quicker than that. Read more
if everytime this has happened to me i wish they would end up in the ditch round the next bend we wouldnt have any ditches.glad to see someone got their just desert
Browse
Xileno,
Might also be worth you looking at a thread I recently started - Leicester to Bath advice - At the moment it's next one down!!(see you on the way??)
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=2&t=36...2
Phil