January 2006
Hello,
The earth strap on my starter motor perished about 12 months ago. As a temporary bodge I attached a new earth strap by clipping it to the remenants of the perished one. This bodge is now failing.
My mechanic advised I need a new starter motor (£120 plus Vat and fitting), but I don't think I do as its only the earth strap thats broken.
So...now to my question... I am going to attempt to remove the starter this weekend so that I can remove the crocodile clips and make a permanent repair. How do I go about attaching bare wire to the body of the starter motor? As far as I can see the original was 'stuck' to the starter body rather than attached via a bolted connection.
Thanks for reading. Read more
I have a ''w'' Merc C class diesel and whenever I turn off the engine what seems like a fan of some description runs on. It seems to be located under the drivers side front wing and does not appear to be the cooling fan for the engine. Read more
Any mu old Volvo - used to avoid condensation in the car after it is turned off in the Volvo.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
My 2000 Lupo has developerd a weird fault in the central locking of the drivers door lock.
On turning the key to unlock, the lock seizes and both front windows decend fully! The key can then only then be removed by turning it back to vertical against a very strong resistance force (almost breaking the key) which also grips the key when in the vertical position for withdrawl.
The passenger lock still works fine and will lock the drivers door as normal.
Any ideas?
Bt.
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And once you've loosened the lock up with wd-40, then take note of Cyd's suggestion in the following thread:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=8483
I've just got a 2004 1.8 T3-S Avensis (petrol) and I'm trying to find the the recommended timing belt change interval.
I don't think there's a Haynes manual out yet and theres some confusion at the dealership (they originally said it has a chain, but then changed their minds and said it has a belt as its the 2.0 that has a chain, and they would 'get back to me' on the interval)
I'm guessing along the usual lines of 5 Years/60k maximum, but would be interested in anyone elses knowledge. After my experiences with Ford dealers I take main dealers information with a large pinch of salt!
Strangely the owners manual makes no mention of the belt at all.
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It is a chain on these engine, off the top of my head the only engine in the current toyota range with a belt is the D4D engine.
Can anyone out there clear up once and for all what size the head bolts and type are on my 1998 1.8 20V Passat, which I need to remove after the dreaded Cambelt failure (I notice that VW have now recommended changing at 60K or 4 years instead of the 80K in my service book...a bit late now!!!). My friendly local independant has a tool which is a 10-AST 4426 Polydrive(replaced by 3452A according to a mail to AST), but Seally dealers advertise it as an M9 RIBE (SX110). I thought RIBE and Polydrive were the same thing, and if so I assume that it should be an M10 RIBE. Clarification would be most welcome as I will have to order this tool from somewhere, as no local tool companies sell RIBE or Polydrive Read more
Just to clear this one up, I don't need the 12 point bit, as per Alec's message, I need the later 6 point Polydrive (RIBE) bit, which is listed as Part MN3452 - Head Bolt Bit for 1.8T ® and 2.0 Gas Engines on MetalNerd. This still doesn't clarify whether it's 9 or 10mm RIBE (Sealey say it's 9mm but list it as SX110). I'm going to get a 10mm RIBE and hope it's the right one...they're very difficult to source as one off bit.
BK
I've seen a lot of posts on here about useless components ranging from brake pedal clips to timing belt/crankshaft pulleys (The rubber damped ones)
Thinking about it, it wouldn't be too hard to remake them out of metal I imagine. I'd have to ask the experts but would it have an impact mechanically?
One half of me thinks "They make them like this just so they break." The other half thinks "Would they have made them like this unless necessary?"
Thoughts? This is more out of boredom than anything else, but I know a few people who work with CAD/CAM and could probably make these bits...
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I quite agree with the above two posts suggesting caution.
For example, the rubber two part crankshaft pulleys are made like that for a very good purpose. The outer mass of the pulley is sprung from the inner mass by the rubber. This acts as a rotary mass/spring system, which absorbs crankshaft torsional vibrations over a narrow range of frequencies - this is done to protect the crankshaft. If you made a solid pulley, the crankshaft would be run under a more onerous torsional stress regime, and could fail in fatigue some time later.
Oddly the rubber is employed more as a springing medium in the two part crankshaft pulley, although most would call it a damper. The damping properties inherent in the rubber actually hinder vibration reduction at the design frequency (which may be tuned to a torsional mode of the crankshaft), but as compensation, the vibration is reduced over a broader range of frequencies.
If engineering were as straight forward as coding up some CNC part programs and putting a nice billet of raw material in the machine vise, then a) I'd be out of a job!, and b) engineering would be a really dull job, with no hidden surprises and I wouldn't be interested in it then!
Number_Cruncher
Has anyone else purchased a turn-up and go peak hours train ticket recently?
Normally when I travel by train, my secretary buys my ticket in advance which is cheaper. Today however that wasn?t possible so I purchased my own ticket at Euston.
The First class return to Brum Int?l (a 75 min journey) was £196. That was just silly, so I asked for Standard class which came to £90 for two separate singles (bizarrely, that?s cheaper than a single).
Luckily for me, my company will reimburse the £90 and luckily for them the value of the client work I did on the train will more than recoup the cost. But ?.. would anyone spend £90 of their **own** money for a 75 min journey?
No wonder the M1 is so crowded.
//rant mode off Read more
In rural areas public transport will never be the best option. The demand for it is just too low for it to be economical, even with massive subsidies. Where I live, getting a car is the first thing a teenager does to gain independence and freedom. There are two buses per weekday, one on Saturday and none on Sunday. Not convenient for all but the retired.
There used to be a railway station in the village. Now it's just an interesting house with a noisy patio, due to the "progress" imposed by Beeching. What makes this really annoying is that trains trundle up and down every 20 minutes. If I wanted to get to work it would have been really convenient to walk 10 minutes to the station and catch the train. Instead I have a couple of options, all of which are nowhere near as convenient.
1. Drive to the local station - in the opposite direction to where I work - passing the defunct railway station at the end of my street, and arriving at my destination, York, a 10 minute walk from work.
2. Drive to one of the Park and Ride sites dotted about the outer ring road and pay 2 quid for a day's free parking and busfare in to the city.
3. Drive to York city centre - taking a long time due to very inconsiderate Vikings and Romans - and pay between 7 and 9 quid for parking, still with a minimum of a 10 minute walk. My employer do not have car parking facilities and don't contribute to parking fees.
When I travelled around the country I would always find a hotel on the outskirts of London, abandon the car and jump on the tube to get me where I needed to be. No getting lost or stuck in traffic and being late. If I was late, chances were that half the employees at the place I was visiting were also late!
Either that or get the train from York straihgt to Kings Cross, tubing it from there.
Anywhere else I took the car. Mainly because public transport was unreliable and inconvenient for the journeys I needed to make, at the times of day I needed to make them..
You just have to use your judgement.
Simon
Hi I have a 1.4 honda civic x reg. My question is honda want £150 to service the car (which doesnt include plugs as its the 45k service)
I could buy oil,filter, air filter, fuel filter, pollen filter, spark plugs and do it myself for £50 in parts, but no dealer stamp.
Will the SH affect its value in 2 - 3 years time when I sell it?
I would retain all receipts and make a note of what I did and when.
Thanks in advance Read more
Thanks for all replies. I think I have found the answer. I am going to buy all the bits myself, and then take it to guy who works in a garage. He is going to fit the bits and give it a once over in his dinner hour for a bit of beer money.
Wife's Clio uses a 10/40 semi synth, I read a few good things about Halfords semi synth a few years ago (inc who makes it though I have now forgotten) and have since used it in the Clio, approx six monthly changes. My ZRX1100 also uses a 10/40 semi synth, I have used Rock Oil as sold by the Kawasaki dealer.
Halford semi synth is on offer, meets the same standards as Rock Oil, is there any reason why I should not use it in the ZRX? I guess not. Things are confused by the fact that Halfords do a 10/40 semi synth motorcycle oil which is more expensive that the 'car' oil though even the guy in Halfords reckons it is the same stuff and is simply branded to attract motorcyclists.
Any thoughts? Read more
And my two penn'orth?
Never handle "wet" clutch plates with hands that have been in touch with gear oil... unless you want your bike to go into "speed-limited torque converter" mode...
(My '72 Triumph Bonnie circa 1978)
r
Coming up to 3 years ago you helped me with my last purchase so hear I am again!!!
With the Focus 1.6 Zetec I bought with 6 miles on the clock back then about to hit 54k and the first MOT due in March I've decided to go for something a bit sporty.
Taking my budget in to account of around £7.5k and having spent a few weeks keeping my eye out I have spotted two cars I'm hoping to look at at the weekend - a 51 Seat Leon 20 VT Cupra on 37k miles at £6700 and a 52 Focus ST170 on 17k miles at £7500. Both are at franchised dealers (although the Leon is at a Subaru one).
Having spoken to my insurer the ST170 is the one which will cause the biggest upset to my premium (higher excess and more to pay for the rest of this year than the Leon). Quite surprising as the Seat is faster but I suppose it's the Ford's image.
Has anyone got advice/experience/opinions of these cars? I note Honest John liked the Leon so much he bought one(!).
I have enjoyed my time with the Focus and see the ST170 as the natural progression. However the Leon seems to make more financial sense and is something different.
Any responses are much appreciated.
Phil C Read more
UPDATE
After several hours sprucing up the Focus we went to see the Leon today and came away totally underwhelmed by the service we got from the dealer and ultimately felt as though they were trying to rip us off.
It made me realise how hassle free buying my last car from Motorpoint was.
Got to the dealership to find the car was still displaying the price it was for sale before Christmas (£7.5k). I pointed out to the salesman that I'd seen it on-line at the lower price.
On inspection I found the car to be tidy enough. It had actually covered 33.5k miles which was less than I thought. However, the bonnet had a lot of stone chips on it. My Focus has a lot less with more miles (is the paint thinner/softer on a Leon?!?). On testing the car I found it drove well and had no rattles. However, the salesman was extremely vague about the car's history (didn't know how many previous owners it had had, wasn't aware of leaking problems etc). I'd spotted that the rear screen was covered in internal condensation, which didn't clear much during the test drive so I was suspicious there was water in the car. My fears were confirmed when I got out of the car, lifted the driver's mat and found the carpet was absolutely soaking!! The salesman said that this would be rectified before the car was sold.
I decided to go and talk figures. Having had a look around my car they spotted two things - one it was from Motorpoint (they suspected it was an import), two it had had an accident repair (during the last week or so the driver's door has dropped slightly and therefore was not flush to the body as it should be).
I had to then reassure them that the car was an UK car (it was in a pre-registered batch sold to Motorpoint by the local Ford dealer - it still has their name on the numberplates!!) and that the door problem would be rectified under the workmanship guarantee from the approved repairer.
I said I was looking for between £5k and £6k for my car as I knew the mileage was far higher than average.
However, the figure they were willing to offer me was between £4k and £4.5k!! He then went on to say, in a roundabout way,
that they had lowered the valuation on the part exchange because they had lowered the sale price of the Leon in order to keep their sales margin up. He actually said he would give me £5.5k for the Focus if I had seen the Leon at £7.5k!!
This whole episode took between 1.5 and 2 hours in which time we were left unattended for long periods while they went away to make calls about my car's value (who are they ringing for prices on Sunday?!?).
Although they coming back to me in the week with a final confirmation on price we don't think the Leon is for us. I found the visibility out of the back a lot poorer than the Focus and the interior, whilst functional, is very dark and austere.
And I've got to find another Focus as the one I had spoken about has now been sold. They say they have a similar 'pipeline' car coming in.....at £7.9k, with more 1k miles on the clock - £400 more expensive for more miles!!) What is the world coming to!!!
Browse
Metal jubilee clip to clamp lead to body. Insulate clamp to ensure it doesn't inadvertently earth @ any other point