February 2006
My Pug 405 estate if left for a couple of days won't have enough oomph in the battery to turn it over.
The AA man says battery OK (its less than 2 years old, but I'm not saying it isn't, as they can lose a cell or somesuch) and that I have a current drain of half an amp somewhere, which is a problem - we pulled out all the fuses, and checked cooling fan relays but it wasn't there.
S I disconnected the battery for two days to remove the drain, and of course the car started up
Then, another guy told me that half an amp is normal, as the clock and radio memory use that much when the car is sitting. Just seems like a lot of current to me for a clock and a memory on a radio......Leave the interior or side lights on (I think a 25 W bulb is about half an amp) and you'd expect your battery to take a tumble afeter a couple of days.
Anyway my last 405 (a saloon) would sit idle over a two week vacation and start up easily when we got home.
Anyone know what the usual drain on the battery of a 405 is, with all the doors shut, and just the clock and radio memory drawing current, etc.
Better yet anyone had this problem and got an idea ?
Thanks all.
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as the name says ,looking for mazda 6 diesel ts
which broker if any to use as the dealers dont seem to be offering more than 1000£ discount on rrp
the delivery times how reliable are they when buying from brokers
all help gratefully received Read more
My personal (and slightly biased as i used to work for toyota) choice would be the Avensis - especially if you can get a better model for the same money.
A lot of people say the Mazda 6 is a good looker but it does very little for me personally - in fact i think the lexus style rear lights make it look cheap.
Anyone see the proposed new Mondeo due next year in Auto Express this week. Never thought I'd say it but if this goes to production as in the photos then all I can say is wow! I want one!
Anyone agree/disagree? Read more
>> Anyway, back to motoring. It looks beautiful. As a Fabia
vRS
>> driver, I am not a badge snob, though....
>>
>> I like the new Focus, too. DOes that make me
a
>> bad person?
Not at all, sir -- of course you're not a bad
person. Now would you like to take my arm while
we got together to the optician? Oooh, do mind the
step there, yes, it is hard to see isn't it ...
;)
Name-change time: NoWheels + Almera = NowWheels
And that is from someone who has just bought an Almera!
;-)
Hi, My local authority (Basingstoke and Deane) should get some sort of award for silly road ''improvements'' :road humps, entrances to roads made one at a time only, marked residents only and no one takes a blind bit of notice and it just winds folk up.
Roads half blocked with give way to oncoming traffic in places it baffles the mind to understand why. £800,000 on a roundabout improvement which seems to amount to a few new white lines...very pretty but what expensive paint. Local tyre dealers and wheel alignment places are overjoyed. Low slung sports cars have to avoid humps or lose sumps. I could go on, what has your lot done that gets you going...or not as may be the case. Read more
When I push the button I expect the lights to change
to favour me promptly. This is why people ignore the
crossings and cross roads anywhere.
*Rant over*
Just to take the pressure off councils for a moment: I've never noticed whether those pedestrian crossing buttons work or not and frankly don't much care, but I do harbour feelings of murderous hatred for people who walk down the pavement pushing every one they pass just in the hope of slowing the traffic down. One of these enemies of the automobile (and urban efficiency) is a friend of mine, and we have twice come close to quarrelling about it.
Cav SRi 16V 1994 model 'hunts' when cold. Engine revs fluctuate up and down 1400-1700 RPM when idling, then suddenly drop away to nothing and engine stalls. Always re-starts and starts from cold, but this intermittent problem re-occurs regularly. Seems to go away when warm. Engine management shows no fault lights. I understand that there is no user adjustment possible to the injection/Siemens EMU, but could it be something thats easily sorted or is it an expensive throttle body (but why only when cold if so)or similar. As car is only worth £5-600 it's not worth it unless it's something I can fix myself/minimal garage time! Read more
Thanks Dave, fully understand what's needed now...Will do this once bought carb cleaner and gasket, and report back on success
I have a Laguna 2000 w reg with a radio/cd that the cd player is jumping,can anyone help in how to fix or what i can replace it with
Thanks
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I would go with that
------------------------------
TourVanMan TM < Ex RF >
Hypothetical question .. Would there be a noticeable difference in fuel consumption on a long journey, carrying one, two, three or four people ? ( say a 1200 kg car carring an extra 75 / 150 / 225 / 300 kg. Read more
I guess it depends partly on the journey. If you drive the whole journey on a perfectly straight, flat road with no other traffic, then the weight won't make much difference -- the issue is wind resistance.
However, if you are stopping and starting a lot, or going up lots of steep hills, then extra weight will make the engine work much harder. If the car has huge reserves of power, it may not make that much difference, but a lower-powered vehicle it could be significant.
Hello all.
At the minute, i have a W210 mercedes E320 CDI Elegance estate and am looking to buy a new car in the next month or two.I am looking for reliability, economy and good value for money (around 15-20k).
Could anyone recommend any good cars, cars to avoid or any information at all regarding the above?
Thanks Read more
"Cheese Hospital; Punters bring their ill and neglected fridge dairy products in to a team of dairitinarians. Under the watchful eye of Rolf Harris, the cheese is carefully nursed back to health.
The problem is usually that the wrapping hasn't been replaced properly and it's gone a bit crusty round the edges.
This is easily solved with a quick operation with a cheese knife"
Gotta love Google.
hi sister hasjust bought a '96 mgf 1.8 vvc from a dealer in deleted. the car was sold with 3 months warrenty and in working condition excluding a few faults( slight hood damage, paint chip run of the mill stuff). the other day at work she picked up a puncture and took the wheel in for repair, whilst there she was informed the tyre and the rest on the car were below legal limit and would need changing. reading through some trading standards info i beleive the garage have a legal responsibility to sell the car in a roadworthy condition? i assume 4 bald tyres does not constitute roadworthy? therefore is is reasonable to expect the garage to meet the cost of replacement tyres?
chris Read more
>> Glad it got sorted. Mind you, with a 10 year
old MGF tyres would not be my biggest worry.....<<
Nooo - tyres on the MGF are always a worry.
The original NCTs were not highly regarded (to put it mildly),
and there are many good recommendations on various forums for tyres.
Always put good quality tyres on this car - and
check them regularly.
I didn't quite mean it that way.....
I have been offered an ex fleet Octavia vRs for ~£5000. It's on an 03 plate with 42,000miles and a full history. It was on lease to my company, but has come to the end of the tenure, so the lease company has offered for sale for this price.
The engine sounds a little 'diesely' (for want of an better description) at tick over, but has been serviced religiously. Is this common with the VAG 1.8T 20v engines? Is this a good price, and worth pursuing? Read more
(Dating myself here) I remember that you used to be able to buy 'Turbo Timers' to idle the turbo after running the car. I only remember seeing these available from Courtney (GM specialists). A) Can you still get them, and B) Are they worth it?
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Maximum acceptable drain is about 0.1A (100mA). Don't forget that the alternator could be the problem as the windings could be the cause of the drain due to a faulty diode. Disconnect it to see if the drain then disappears....