November 2005
My son runs a P-reg Vauxhall Astra 1.6, which is getting a bit tired. It has been in various hands in the family, and had a new engine 18 months ago. However, he estimates that it will cost £200 or so to pass its MOT at the end of this month, as it needs a new wheel, two tyres, windscreen, a mirror, and a headlight dipper switch. No doubt the car is worth very little. It runs well but looks shabby. He doesn't have much cash to spare, having young children, but I wonder if it is worth keeping any longer.
Any thoughts ? Read more
Has anyone had this happen on their 3 door Mk6 and did Ford replace under warranty, and did they replace both sides. Cheap plactic release lever is broken on drivers seat.
Thanks
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Hi
Got the seat catch repaired by ford under warranty, works a lot smoother than the one that broke, only did the broken one though. Hope the other side goes before the warranty expires. Common problem apparently, no threats or arguments necessary.
regards
nivek9876
Hi all, its been suggested I might get better consumption from my Mazda 6 Sport if I switch to Super Unleaded. The car is brand new, its not a v6 but I wonder if its worth it?
Cheers. Read more
p.s. my freind will only run his new M3 on optimax.He reckons the difference is huge.
After 7 November Hoverspeed will be no more, apparently.
tinyurl.com/7wap7 Read more
I believe one of the hovercraft has recently been sold. Certainly the propellors have been put back on in preparation for it being moved.
I've recently aquired an Omega 2.2 manual estate which has done 106k miles. It seems to have been serviced every 20k miles which is less than ideal but I've just replaced the cambelt so should be safe there.
I do about 30 miles a day and have noticed two things - firstly the 'spanner' light comes on (picture of a car with a spanner in it) quite often. It will go out and perhaps not reapper for some time if the car is switched off and restarted. Any guesses as what will light the 'spanner' light? The manual gives no real clues and lumps the 'spanner' light with the 'engine' light as both indicating engine electronics problems - why two are needed is beyond me.
Secondly the LCD info display will report 'Check oil level' often at the end of a run. Again this can be got rid of by cycling the ingnition. Of course I have checked the oil level via the dipstick and it looks fine. There is evidence of a rocker cover and induction system oil leaks but not a huge amount.
I guess the answer is to pop along to the dealers and get them to read the error codes but any backroomer ideas or thoughts would be well received.
Cheers,
Mat. Read more
Don't go to Vauxhall for the cam or crank sensor. Try Autovaux.co.uk. They supply genuine parts, but at a fraction of the cost of Vauxhall. I can't see the parts for your engine listed, but give them a ring and I'm sure they'll be able to help.
What can often happen with these sensors though is that the electrical connectors can become dirty and all they need is a clean up. As the fault is intermittant, that's where I would start first.
Wet carpet in footwell on passenger side. All surounding carpet is dry. No sunroof fitted.Any ideas-- driving us mad.
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1/ did you ever answer the question about front or rear?
2/ Did you look at the answers in your previous question?
This is a charming and touching song about the writer's escapism from educational and social problems when he was a boy. It is also one of the best websites I have seen for a while, and to boot the cartoon video accompanying the song is fantastic.
The motoring links are, er, JCBs and the chorus 'We're holding up the bypass'!
Enjoy it!
www.jcbsong.co.uk/ Read more
Heard it first on Johnnie Walker's R2 show months ago, think it was originally released back in June.
Anyhow, some nice sentiment in it, and it especially appeals to me as I did have a JCB, the traffic does get very stressed behind you, and he's right you don't mind!! also my nephew's name is Luke and he's 5 in march, far too much of a stretch to see myself as Bruce Lee though :-)
If you like it, buy it and make it xmas number one, young boys will love it, and it will keep the usual rubbish we get from known "pop stars" off the top slot.
Just got the message from my daughter that her k plate polo has just failed the mot on high hydro carbon reading, until she returns with the print out i do not know what the other readings are.Last year the hc reading was higher and the co2 was higher than the previous year and the lamda was about the same and passed ok.So it seems it might be a progresive problem.Without throwing lots of money at it immediately can annyone give a clue as the reason ie weak or rich mixture that may be the problem here?
thanks
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rustbucket (the original) Read more
Thanks for the feedback, pleased it passed. Shows how much the old fumy oil pushes up the hydrocarbon levels!
Andrew
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Simplicate and add lightness!!
I have a 97 Clio which I'm currently trying to sell. It doesn't have power steering, which never bothered me because I'd never had it! Now my new car has power steering the Clio does feel a lot heavier, but I didn't necessarily think it was a problem just that I wasn't used to it anymore.
Someone took it for a test drive yesterday and has rejected it on the basis that the steering is too heavy. I am wondering if this is a problem with Clios in general? Or just mine?! Read more
Diesel cars without power steering are more heavier to drive than petrol cars without PAS as diesel engines are somewhat heavier than petrol engines due to more metal in a diesel.My first car was a Peugeot 309 1.9D without PAS- normal driving was fine but parking was somewhat difficult due to the heavy steering. My current Pug 306 TD has power steering and I've been driving that for nearly 3 years, so if I drove a non PAS 309D again I'd probably have a job!!!
Martin.
Driving home the other evening all three cyclist I saw had very bright led front lights. Lets hope its continuing trend. Read more
The problem with these lights is ... oh ... never mind then...
(as it happens, the only problem I have with cyclists and lights is them not having any.)
Browse
Similar dilemma here. The Fiesta has been in the family for years (M reg) but is currently going in each week for something - usually seems to be £80, and I have just block booked it with the mechanic for Thursdays for the rest of the month, as he's had it for the last two, and it's back in again today (alternator) :-)
It's a sound little car with a thirst for oil. New driver is driving it, she'd really like a Corsa like what she learnt in. 05 reg, all the whistles and bells. Yeah right.
Choice is to keep pouring money (and oil) into Fiesta, which I know has a lot of new parts, or swap it for something around (maybe) £700 - £1000 mark, which may come with a whole new raft of problems (or even the same ones we've already experienced).
As she'll be off to Uni next year (hopefully) I've told her that the Fiesta has to stay...