July 2006
Evening all
Recently bought 55-reg Mondeo TDCi 130 Zetec, 5-dr hatch. Very pleased with it except for one thing - an unpleasant intermittent noise coming from the area of the near-side front wheel.
The best way to describe the noise is as a sharp metallic clonk or knock, suggestive of bits of metal that are under considerable load shifting around when they shouldn't.
Usually occurs on right-hand turns on uneven surfaces, such as mini roundabouts or side turnings with odd camber - anything where the nsf wheel is subject to any sort of lateral force. The noise can also occur when travelling in a straight line, if the car hits a bad bump - and again, where the surface causes lateral force on the wheel.
Car used to belong to one of the big rental firms and given that the nsf tyre is rather newer than the osf one, I am inclined to think that one of their customers might have met a kerb rather hard at some point. The supplying dealer (a very helpful low-mileage used Ford specialist near here) has already had it back once to try and fix it, and improved matters a little by tightening up various subframe mounts and so on, but I am starting to wonder if it is a CV joint or some steering component that needs attention. It is booked in again for another go, but it would help me save time when I go back to them if I had some idea of what might be the cause. Can anyone help? I'm anxious to get this sorted as it's starting to spoil my enjoyment of what is in all other respects probably the best car I've owned.
TIA. Read more
I am advised by the Caravan Club that when touring abroad (they mean Western Europe) that I must carry the vehicle log-book at all times.
You would have to be stupid to leave the log-book in the car, yet what are you supposed to do with it? Leaving it in the caravan is non-too secure and if one were a motorcaravan user, leaving it in the 'van would be just like leaving it in a car. It is a somewhat bulky document and the thought of carrying it everywhere with me is not a pleasent one.
Can I ask what other board users do in these circumstances and also is it a requirement to carry the wretched thing in the first place?
Thanks for any advice ......... Michael
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'They can & will, if inclined, impound YOU in the local nick if you do not carry recognised proof of identification (passport or residence card) at any time you are in a public place'
Does this rule apply to non motoring tourists? Or if you left the car at the hotel and walked to the beach??
When overseas I usually keep a photocopy of passport with me and leave original in hotel safe ... but would always keep original V5 / MOT / driving licence & insurance certs with me, with copies in safe. Thankfully never been asked to produce proof of ID before, UK, Europe or Americas.
I bought R reg Renault Laguna 1.8 RT Sport 6 weeks ago.
All was A ok until 2 weeks ago. In the last 2 weeks I have had...
Mid & end exhaust fitted.
Wheel nut snapped.
5th gear slipping out of gear (5th gear nut now tightened and problem fixed)
Starting to pull to the left.
Oil leak.
Tyre slowly going down (not to do with car pulling to the left).
Front mount fitted.
Stopped by the police for the first time in 15 years or so.
and today the Catalytic Converter went.
All this and the electrics are fine.(At the moment :-) Remember this is a Renault Laguna.
ps.
Renault Laguna for sale. Many new parts..... Read more
You're heartless man !
A friend of mine has bought a Lotus Elise (about 4 years old) from a sports car specialist, the car came with one of those one page RAC reports (not a full car buying survey) stating no problrems, and all was well for 2 months and 600 miles, then one of the front tyres was wearing unevenly on the outer edge, she took it ot the local Lotus main dealer who checked it over and road tested it and said the handling was very poor, all four shock absoebers needed replacing as well as the goemetry resetting and 2 tyres replacing. On being informed, the specialist dealer says it is not his problem , the warranty company says it is not covered as ii is wear and tear.
Can someone please remind me of her legal rights against the supplying specialist dealer, I have done a forum search but could not find the threads I sort of remembered where it is up to him to prove the car was ok prior to sale...
thanks Read more
Shockers,unless they are leaking is a matter of opinion,and can she
prove she has not kerbed it in 600 miles.Thought not.
TL, yours is the second post to that effect.
Shot shock absorbers are not a matter of opinion. If you know how the car ought to drive, or even if you don't, a fast bumpy bend will tell you whether the dampers are working as they should. My daughter's Golf, a sweet example of its kind despite the treatment she gives it, originally came with shot back dampers. The rear would skip out a few inches on bumpy bends, not too frighteningly in dry weather but I worried about them overdoing it in the wet one day. Whenever the car went to the independent VW specialist who maintains it, I would mention this in a mantra. But no one changes them until they actually leak, or the rubber bushes break up or something of the sort.
Eventually this happened and they were changed, long after they should have been. The difference at the wheel is very obvious to me, but I'm afraid my wife and daughter haven't noticed.
My air con on the modeo (2001 petrol) only works for a few minutes before blowing warm wet air into the car. On cool days the air con works for ages, on hot humid days it stops very quickly. My Haines manual says to check that the evaporator drain is clear but doesn't say where it is.
Can anyone tell me where to find it and how to clear it out?
Thanks
Steve.
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Thanks for your reply - I will have a look. Do you have any idea how to clean it out? Is it something that could be cleared out with a piece of wire?
There was a leak in the system recently - the offending pipe has been replaced and the system recharged. This curent fault seems to have been on the car since we bought it but as we didn't have any really hot weather until the car was out of warranty, we weren't aware of it.
What else might cause the problem? It could be a faulty sensor or a dry joint in the controller (whatever it is that controls it) - I thought that checking the drain was something I should do first as I could probably do it myself.
I have a problem with my left knee and it looks like I need a car with an automatic transmission. It has to be reliable. I'd prefer something small (no bigger than my Mazda 323 because of a narrow garage). I'd also like something with a bit of oomph that handles well. I have a horrible feeling that I'm asking for the impossible, but any suggestions would be very welcome.
Thanks
Pete Read more
> "As I've just said in another thread, you'll be hard pushed to get much 'oomph' out of any automatic under 2 litres."
Well that depends on what type of auto you get. The torque converter ones will not be as fast, but I wouldn't say they are slow. Myself, I have a 1.6 torque converter auto which is faster enougth for me, plenty of oomph.
CVT and automated manual (manual gearbox with auto clutch) auto boxes will generally have similar performance to a manual. DSG autos are actually faster the manuals. However I doubt you could get DSG on your budget cause they are quite new. Lots of NEWER small cars (fiesta, corsa, yaris, clio, punto, Jazz etc) usually have either CVT or automated manuals on thier small engined cars. Like I said they will have simliar performance to a manual. Although whether its manual or auto, the higher the engine size the more oomph you will get.
Though thankfully, I saw her...
In a 30 limit whilst riding the Hornet home today, I saw a car hesitantly being driven out of a car park in to the main road; all the time the driver was looking to her left whilst I arrived from her right. Doing barely 20MPH with plenty of pedestrians around, I thought "uh-oh, she's going to keep coming", bled off speed, and with a gentle bit of brake, fully stopped a car length short of her.
She then completed her hesitant manoeuvre - still all the time looking left - and with absolute shock noticed me stopped as she drew alongside and started to proceed in the direction I'd come from.
At my "Good Lord, where did he come from?" in loud stage voice, she then had the cheek to stop, and through open window deliver a lecture about bikers this, bikers that, and bikers appearing out of thin air! The final sentence was "you're all a menace, no respect for anybody (que?), and anyway, bikes should be banned".
Nice to know that generalisations are alive and well and she knows the real self searching reason for her surprise.
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It's the cars (mainly) who pass horses at 40mph## that annoy me. I'm not a horse rider but there are 2-3? riding schools within 2 miles and we see a procession of horse up and down the road all weekend. The muppets who pass a horse at 40mph (we are talking a country style road with room just for 2 cars and a horse abreast.. but that assumes the horse doe not bolt.
I've seen enough horse under partial control to pass slowly with a WIDE bearth..
## we are in a 30mph limit and near a schooll but neither appears to affect the brain dead around here especially the Saxo VTR at the top of our hill .
In winter they all slow down..
They don't see the occasional speed cop as well.. who caught 20 speeders in 30 minutes last summer on a Sunday afternoon.
madf
Have a problem with the engine on this car. It is only 4 months old yet is "running away". You can travel for miles on a flat road without ever touching the accelerator. The car has ample power of its own.Seat garage say they \re not aware of any prioblems. Can anyone help please? Read more
Does it have a rev counter? If so, what revs does it get to on idle (before and after a longish run.)
I wouldn't worry too much if it runs on its own in first or second gear. I can probably get around 15mph in my diesel without touching the accelerator.
The key has snapped in the ignition of my 1990 BMW 3 Series, anybody got any idea how it might be removed.
I had a quote from my local BMW dealer for £250 minimum as they may have to renew most of the steering column?
Surley there must be a more straight forward way to overcome this problem any advice greatly appreciated.
J.B. Read more
How far down has it snapped? You might be able to put some superglue on the tip of the old key and insert it into the ignition (the right way round), let the glue dry and then carefully try to extract it all in one. You could also try ringing a locksmith. They might be more willing to try to remove a broken key than just to sell you a complete new steering lock.
Hi guys, does anyknow what car apart from the megane and scenic has a 1.9td renault engine???
Thanks in advance. Read more
What makes you think its a reanault engine
Browse
Good to hear it's sorted out and you received good service, always nice to hear about.
Wonder if the exhaust/brackets took a slight bump at some time whilst going over a speed bump or something similar, guess we'll never know. The main thing is it's sorted out and has been thorougly checked over, so now you can enjoy your driving again.