May 2006
I know you're not allowed now to route electrical wiring through wall cavities. However, the question is .... where the cable to a 13 amp socket is already routed through a cavity would it be detrimental to the wiring if the wall cavity was then insulated? Would the cable tend to get excessively warm if it was loaded with a high current i.e. 13 amps? Would a small current ~ say, for a table lamp ~ be OK?
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L'escargot. Read more
Hi everyone, back to pick your brains! I finally found a car I liked and after a short test drive put a deposit on it to secure it while I wait for my loan to come through. I picked a Y-reg 1.3 Yaris GLS for £4700 with 28,000 miles on the clock because everyone seems to agree that it is a good car (everything else I picked seemed to be too controversial e.g. Rover 25!).
In the meantime, my mum persuaded me to get a Dekra inspection done because I know nothing about cars. I have just found an e-mail in my inbox from the engineer to say this was carried out yesterday (a bit naughty considering he was supposed to call me to give me a verbal report after seing it...) and he has said overall it is ok for the age but he raised a couple of points:
1) "The sidewalls of the rear tyres have suffered ultra-violet damage, causing a multitude of small cracks in the surface of the rubber. Moisture entering these cracks will eventually affect the tyre structure. It is recommended that the tyres are renewed but if this is not the case then the engineer recommends that the tyres be stripped from the wheel and the structure examined."
2)"A loud metallic rubbing noise is evident when driving the vehicle. This appears to be from the OSF corner. The engineer believes this to be caused by the OSF brake disc rubbing on the brake backplate, but further investigation is required to confirm this."
Am I entitled to have this sorted before I pay the balance? My heart sank when I saw the second one - is it serious?
Oh, and anyone considering a Dekra inspection, personally I don't rate it
Allie Read more
A german private company that has hundreds of Mot testing stations in the fatherland and throughout the world.
Can the airbag be deactivated? Official answer is no, but there has to be a way.....
A colleague purchased a new Astra convertible in October last year, stressing to the salesman the need to be able to put in a child seat. "Of course" says the salesman, "they all fit".
Naturally when the time comes to buy a babyseat it turns out that none can be fitted in the rear due to the very narrow recess in the squab (bucket seats) and there is no way to put a rear-facing seat suitable for a newborn in the front as Vauxhall in their wisdom don't provide a passenger airbag deactivation switch.
Dealer and Vauxhall don't want to know. So does anyone know of an installer of aftermarket deactivation switches? My colleagure has no plans to sell her car at a loss, likes the car in every other respect and simply wishes to transport her newborn in safety.
ND
You ain't seen me, roight? Read more
I've been reading this thread and not commented so far, becuase I don't want to appear insensitive to a situation which has taken a lot of stress and heartache to reach.
However, the thought of carrying a young child and all the stuff that goes with in the rear of a two door car, let alone a convertible fills me with dread. SWMBO had a 2-door Golf when child #1 arrived. I had a big Saab at the time, so it was fine for family trips etc, and she coped with popping around town in the Golf. However it wasn't long before she got fed up fastening the car seat into the rear of Golf and straining her back doing it. I came cross a good value Spacewagon and it soon got swapped over. Ah bliss, that car lasted five years and apart from 12 months in a CRV she now has her Trajet for the three children.
Yes, we could cope with a smaller car, but its very convenient and no longer or wider than my old Volvo S80. When the last child is at least five and capable of being trusted to fasten their own seatbelt, will be the time to go back to a two door car or a convertible; not before.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
Hi, My car has failed its mot because of corrosion of a body panel within 12 inches of a steering component. Garage advises welding (about£150 job)but is there any reason I cant attempt the job myself and just use fibreglass resin,liquid metal etc.
I've removed the rust and left a hole and I fancy having a go at a cost of about £5! Don't care what it looks like as long as it passes.Any help appreciated.
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Since it has now been established that the hole is not an MOT failure point, you would be within your rights to patch it up without welding.
I'd cover it up cosmetically to avoid drawing attention next year.
This is about the USA but I'm sure you guys on the other side of the pond should find it interesting too.
"And under these guidelines by the Environmental Protection Agency, carmakers are allowed to test miles per gallon by running the vehicle not on the road, but on what's essentially a treadmill for cars.
During an EPA spot check, the car ran with no air conditioning, no inclines or hills, no wind resistance and at speeds no greater than 60 mph."
"For example, Chrysler says the four-wheel drive diesel version of the Jeep Liberty gets 22 mpg in the city. Consumer Reports tested it and found it got more like 11 mpg.
Honda claims its hybrid Civic sedan gets 48 mpg in the city. Consumer Reports found it only gets 26 mpg -- a 46 percent difference.
Chevy's Trailblazer EXT four-wheel drive is supposed to get 15 mpg in the city. For Consumer Reports, it was 9 mpg.
"It's an unrealistic sales and marketing tool that they are actually using. They are saying you're going to get 35 mpg, and you're really only going to get 21," Champion said."[/i]
More - news.yahoo.com/s/kcra/20060508/lo_kcra/3452610 Read more
L Reg Audi 80 2.0 (113000 miles)
66 litre/14.5 gal = 430 miles (31MPG) 50% m'way/50 urban
Ive just learnd to live it, love the car though
***** This thread is now closed, please CLICK HERE to go to Volume 93 *****
In this thread you may ask any computer related question for which you need help, advice, suggestions or whatever.
Usual rules apply,
No motoring related discussion,
No politics,
No Speeding, speed cameras, traffic calming
No arguments or slanging matches
Nothing which I think is not following the spirit of the thread
Nothing that risks the future of this site (please see the small print for details www.honestjohn.co.uk/credits/index.htm )
Any of the above will be deleted. If the thread becomes difficult to maintain it will simply be removed.
There is a wealth of knowledge in here, much of which is not motoring related, but most of which is useful.
This is Volume 92. Previous Volumes will not be deleted.
A list of previous volumes can be found here:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=20892
PLEASE NOTE:
When posting a NEW question, please "Reply to" the first message in this thread, i.e. this one. This keeps each question in it's own separate segment and stops each new question from getting mixed up in amongst existing questions. Also please remember to change the subject header.
Read more
You could, but take everyones advice here and get open office. You wont regret it (it handles all MS office files) and its free.
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{Although this thread is now closed, please continue with any questions in the next volume - DD}
The fact my dad's had his Rover 75 chipped led me to wondering whether I could get any more useful power from my 1.9TD XUD Xsara, which according to the handbook generates a good ol' 90BHP with the turbo and intercooler as standard.
Obviously, it can't be chipped but would it be worth paying to have it "tuned" by a specialist? Would I need to inform my insurance company (this assumes no parts are changed). Can it even be done? Would it positively or negatively impact the fuel consumption?
This is, of course, all hypothetical. :-)
Cheers,
David. Read more
Definately worth doing in my opinion mate - works out to a 22% power increase, now that is pretty impressive for not much over a hundred quid.
Not only will it be more powerful but it will be more responsive and often more economical too.
***** This thread is now closed, please CLICK HERE to go to Volume 131 *****
In this thread you may ask any question for which you need help, advice, suggestions or whatever.
It does not need to be motoring related. In fact, in this thread it should not be.
No Questions About PC's. They now go in another Thread.
No politics
No Speeding, speed cameras, traffic calming
No arguments or slanging matches
Nothing which we think is not following the spirit of the thread
Nothing that risks the future of this site (please see the small print for details www.honestjohn.co.uk/credits/index.htm )
Any of the above will be deleted. If the thread becomes difficult to maintain it will simply be removed.
However, as has been said a couple of times, there is a wealth of knowledge in here, much of which is not motoring related, but most of which is useful.
This is Volume 130. Previous Volumes will not be deleted,
A list of previous volumes can be found here:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=18847
PLEASE NOTE:
When posting a NEW question, please "Reply to" the first message in this thread, i.e. this one. This keeps each question in it's own separate segment and stops each new question from getting mixed up in amongst existing questions. Also please remember to change the subject header.
Read more
Excellent news, enjoy your light !!
Hi i have a gearbox whine thats been developing over time now, judging by what ive read over the internet it seems to be a failing pinion bearing. The whine has started in 5th and slowly worked its way to third, with second just beginning. Ive also been told by the time it gets to first, im running on minutes rather than days.
I phoned a gearbox specialist and he thinks ive got little or no oil in my gearbox, thing is i had the clutch replaced 6 months ago so new oil would have been added? He also used the term 'overburn'? There is no oil leaking onto my driveway.
Can anyone shed light onto this for me? Thankyou Read more
You definitely have to drain the oil from these boxes to change the clutch. Failure is very unusual unless they have covered mega miles. I would definitely drain the oil (if there's any in there!) and re fill - make sure you use the proper Total 75W80 BV oil - these boxes run much better on it.
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RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
Well should I or not? had a look around the internet booked a test ride for two weeks time, any thoughts? Read more
Don't do it! I have test ridden one of these machines and found the engine to be pretty coarse for a new design modern unit, I think the ultra-tight belt drive compounds the problem. Ok that is fine and you get used to any bike but a friend of mine has also test ridden one of these bikes twice, his thoughts mirror mine in that the engine is good but pretty unpleasant. The second machine he rode (again a test ride machine) was knocking from the top end alarmingly. My friend works with someone who purchased one from new, his engine started knocking and BMW replaced it without question. The guy got rid pretty quick after this. I believe that there is a problem with these engines, avoid.
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>>I would be inclined to wait untill you can afford a descent Camera >>
Many of the £100 cameras on sale at present were once £150, £175 or even £200 not so long ago.
The number of new models constantly coming onto the market means that models are quickly discontinued and become available at remarkable prices.
By the way I should also have mentioned www.morgancomputers.co.uk which sells many of these discontinued models as well as new ones, especially from Fuji (a highly respected Japanese brand).
The Fujis are often described as "factory refurbished" but this is not actually true according to buyers - they are, in fact, brand new in original retail packing...:-)
{Although this thread is now closed, please continue with any questions in the next volume - DD}