June 2006
Help!
We have a MINI on loan while my BMW is in for some work. Tomorrow Mrs P needs to use it with two child seats on board. So I only have tonight to work out the best way to fit them in. There is, of course, no instruction manual in the car!
I can see that there is a "Passenger Airbag Off" light, but I can't see how to actually turn the airbag off. Maybe it requires an option that this car hasn't got, but if I can turn it off then I'd like to.
Does anyone know how to do this?
TIA. Read more
Is the end in sight for petrol cars after todays result of the Le Mans - Audi R10 diesel 1st and 3rd. Read more
I believe the Rolls Royce diesel plant was bought some years ago by Perkins and is now known as PESL (Perkins Engines Shrewsbury Limited).
I recently tried to check on a squeeking sound coming from the rear brake of my MK3 1.1 petrol Fiesta. I tried dismantling the rear drum but can't see how. It was easy enough on my past cars but this seems to be difficult. The Haynes manual says that the four bolts connecting the whole assy must be removed. Is this possible? Read more
just my opinion but if your going to all the trouble of undoing four bolts , you still have to remove dustcap to align "stub axle" up to axle , and the thought of spending 90pence on a new nut and setting torque is off putting then should one really be doing brakes at all?
At the end of a shift 0100 hours discovered that my remote key fob for VW Passat 51 reg stopped functioning!
Can still get into the car using the actual key,so could get home!
Suspect that the batteries have run out.
Does anyone know a good site to obtain these batteries online?
The other key fob wasnt working when I bought the car and I was told that it had to be reprogrammed???
Thanks for any suggestions on where to go for this. Read more
£1.99 at Maplins.
The fob needs to be split twice to get to the battery. Just done it!
Hi, just put my 2001 Mondeo through the MOT and its failed its emission tests on CO, HC and Lambda by miles.
Uses about 1 pint of oil per month, 140k on the clock.
Any known problems with the 2L Duratec engine?
Many thanks Read more
Agree don't consider replacing engine until mixture has been sorted out, if lambda is at 0.7 it is way too rich. Could be coolant sensor. With mixture corrected and possibly a new cat (if it doesn't recover after giving it a good run) might scrape through HC check if engine oil is flushed/changed and an additive such as 'stop smoke' might help. Make sure oil is on minimum mark on dipstick before test, plugs and air filter are clean.
Hi all
My wife's Yaris needs a top-up with oil and I can't find the user manual... does anyone know what type of oil would be happy in this car?
We're heading out in a bit and will pop to Halfords on the way to pick up a litre... I was thinking 5W30...
Thanks in advance! Read more
I use 5w/30 as reccomended in the handbook (either Quantum or Halfords whichever is cheaper)
With 10w/30 I found the top end tp be a touch noisy on a cold start.
Mark
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Most multi storey car park operators do not allow, and try and prevent leafletting of the cars. Mostly because they charge a fee for this activity.
{Although this thread is now closed, please continue with any questions in the next volume - DD}
Friend has just moved into new house. No cable available in area ehich was her previous broadband provider.
Has a BT phone line which she must keep for at least 3 months.
Looking for broadband, more for surfing, sending emails etc rather than downloading songs, videos etc.
Tiscali have a deal at £13 per month which is unlimited downloads on speeds of "up to 1mbps"
Similar deals from AOL, etc.
Is there any accepted "best and cheapest broadband provider". I think the Tiscali and Talk Talk combined broadband and phone deals seem good but she wants the cable in just now, doesn't want to wait till the end of her 3 months with BT.
Any thoughts / advices on what is best in current market? Read more
Some Canon MP800R feedback.
Photo printing up to A4 on pro glossy paper is simply stunning. For very good reason Canon claim photo lab standards and this machine blows every other multifunction printer I've used in to the weeds. Printing the same photos recently ordered over the web and home delivered from Photobox, the Canon results are always as good and some times better.
The WiFi enabled features are all working perfectly on my "WEP and every other security measure available" network, with the same IP address issued each time by my Netgear Router (I chose to do this for ease of troubleshooting should the future need arise). Neat and tidy and none of the "WiFi printer server" compatibility issues that some colleagues have had when using the advanced features on their printers via plug-in wireless devices. The only cable plugged in is the power cable, allowing me to hide the printer away (despite it looking rather good in gloss black!) in one of the "stowable shelves" in my home office that pull out like a kitchen drawer but hide behind a double cabinet door.
Scan saving to any PC or laptop on the home network couldn't be easier to do, with each machine listed on the printer's LCD display and selection being by paddle button and . When the scan is complete the folder with the resultant file automatically opens on the destination machine so no searching "where is it?"
Printing directly from SD and CF memory cards pushed in to the printer's slots also couldn't be easier; with my laptop running 24x7 when at home I doubtless will never use this feature (I'll download to laptop first, and often edit first) but should the surprising need arise at least I know there is no learning curve or funny tricks.
One of the features I won't often need but which none the less came bundled with the new printer is OminPage SE 2.0 optical character recognition software, so I just tried it with some pages from books chosen at random; perhaps I got lucky with font and print clarity, but I was impressed with the results. Import directly in to MS Word with not a single spelling mistake or misinterpretation. SWMBO could have saved a hill of time with this during her studies when required to quote often technically complex passages of reference text in what is her third tongue (English)!
Have now tried the 35mm negative scanning option, which I hadn't when I posted feedback in another printer thread below; as expected it won't stand scrutiny at A4 size compared to a conventional print directly from a negative, but surprisingly good and perfectly up to 4x6 prints which is all that will be required for the snappity-snap family albums SWMBO seems to accumulate by the dozen.
The four "colour" ink cartridges (black, yellow, cyan, and magenta) are supplemented by a double size "page black" cartridge for normal printing like other Canon colour printers and those of some other brands; although I don't do a massive amount of printing, this should help operating costs by allowing individual replacement.
All in all, highly recommended and well worth £238 (From DABS, who I am happy to deal with, though slightly cheaper elsewhere).
Stonking kit.
Hi,
My mothers Rover has developed a problem. The gearbox is constantly noisy when in park, and the car has started to stall intermittently when you open the throttle to pull away.
The reason for posting is that we have been advised to scrap the car because it is uneconomical to repair. This goes against the grain because the car has been in the family since new, covering only 32,000 miles and is immaculate.
The concensus from the mechanics I've shown it to is that the "damper plate" is likely causing the noise problem and will cost £500 to fix. The stalling is likely to be something else on top. They advise that the repair will be £1000+ and not to bother.
Is anyone familiar with these symptoms? Does the diagnosis look to be correct? Am I being quoted a fair price? Any advice would be welcome......
Thanks,
Mark
P.S. I've checked the gear oil level and it looks fine.... Read more
Hi Robin,
Read with interest your post! My wifes 216sli auto gear box is getting very noisey when driving off. Fluid level is ok. Car in pretty good condition. I am handy with my workshop and tools and had been wondering if it is possible to swap the auto box for a manual from a car breaker - plenty of 200 series Rover is the breakers yards....
Average speed cameras are to be installed in Camden, North London to enforce 20mph speed limits.
Is this the first time we have seen average speed cameras in the London area? Read more
there is often someone sat in the van, so if approach one on your motorcycle as it was facing at you, thinking, " Oops... but i'm all right jack", don't be surprised if the fine fellow in the van clocks your plate as you drive past and you still get the ticket......... that is how i got my 3 points 18 months ago
Browse
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Would those airbags not also be disabled if the passenger airbags were turned off?