August 2006
I read an article in the paper here in France today: total sales of Renault cars for the period January-July 2006 are down by more than 11%.
In the same period, UK sales of Renault cars fell by a staggering 23.7% over the previous year! They are blaming it on an ageing product range, with the exception of the new Clio. Sounds more serious to me: I don't consider the Modus, Megane, or Scenic to be that old? Sounds like trouble ahead for Renault UK in any case... Read more
Hi Volvo V70 2000 year.
2.4 (140) Se full leather only 20,000 full documeted history. £5000
Looks and drives well. Seriously considdering, good buy?
thank you Read more
I thought all V70's were estates.....
they are it was a trick question you win a balloon well done.....im off for a lie down :-(
i failed the test.......
We have just bought a T regFord KA, We cannot get the spark plugs out to change even with WD40? also rear wash wiper packed up suddendly today just stopped working, contacts cleaned and checked that the prongs touch contacts when boot closed?? any help?? thanks Read more
have you got a voltmeter or test light (screwdriver with lead type tool) or even a bulb and wires you can rig up to test voltage to the contacts and then to the wiper?
if any of this or can rig up a test bulb will be happy to lead you through a series of basic tests to see where your problem lies.
Not seen it anywhere today...
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/shropshire/5284962.stm
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On the advice of a backroomer who shall remain nameless, I am now locking this thread.
There are really only two points of view - yes they should speed /no they shouldn't speed - and we've had both.
The law remains clear that although, as we already knew 'no they can't' drive dangerously, 'yes they can' exceed the speed limit when necessary, including training and self-assessment. The guilty finding was on the facts, that the driving was dangerous.
DD.
I have an L reg pug 106 that is leaking a lot of water. when i fill the car up with water and then drive it there is water pouring out from the back of the engine, i can't quite pinpoint where it is exactly coming from. has anyone had any similar problems like this or knows what the problem could be. just had the car 2 days. cheers x Read more
My money's on a blown head gasket
my monies under the bed........................ooooooops
I have just returned from holiday to open a NIP for allegedly doing >30 in Oxford over three weeks ago. The car is registered in my name but is mostly driven by my wife. On this particular day, she was taking me to Oxford bus station so I could catch a bus to Heathrow and as is always the case if we drive anywhere together, I drove the car there, and she drove home after dropping me off. From the stated time of the alleged offence, nor indeed from the location of the camera, we genuinely cannot tell who was driving. We don't know Oxford and went round in circles a bit before finding the bus station, so the offence could have been committed on the way to or from the station. I'm already on 3 points and have no particular desire to double this, but it would be unfair and wrong to simply say my wife was driving if indeed she wasn't (she has a clean licence from 30 years of driving). If it was me, then I'm prepared to take it on the chin. The NIP says that photographic evidence will automatically be produced to backup the prosecution (is this new? it wasn't the case when I was done 8 months ago in Milton Keynes). I have no idea what type of cameras are used in Oxford, but on the assumption they're GATSO's then this evidence would be taken from behind and would purely prove the speed of the car rather than who was driving - correct? Can I ask for photographic evidence to show who was driving? What if there is none - would I automatically be the guilty party as registered owner? (As an aside, I recall a conversation with a friend after I had simply pleaded guilty 8 months ago when he said I should have asked for photographic evidence of the speed of the car - he reckoned that in most cases, the Police don't have the time/funds to respond to such requests and the case would probably have been dropped - is this so? Let me emphasise I'm only asking this out of interest, not as a possible way out of the offence). Read more
Lud,
Don't know what websites you've been looking at, but Vampire Solicitors is a new one on me
I own a year old 05 55 Astra 1.8 Design 5dr and would like to sell it as I haven't been offered enough in part exchange. I am a little concerned about advertising in Auto Trader etc because the car isn't that old and is worth about £9500 if I sell privately. I guess I'm just worried that some scam artist will run off with my car. Does anyone have any tips of how best to sell a car of this age and get the best return?
Many thanks
Matthew Read more
It's not the car I got compensation on but the one
I bought using the compensation! I have been offered £8300
to £8500 for trading in against a Focus but if I
sold privately I could get over £9000. I can't really
afford to trade in with those values.
Sounds like you need to make yer mind up! Yes, circumstances do change, but through our lives, before marriage and through 26 years of it and raising a small family we have bought and stayed with most cars, mainly older, but not all and have let dealers have 'none of it'. Just run them into the ground. Cannot recall ANY major hurdles. B.T.T.B. means **something** to the badge. Stick with that idea. It is only a means to get from A to B. Spend the saving on something better unless of course you have disposable dough.
V V BR to all...............................................MD
My sister has just picked up a really tidy 1998 Ka 1.3 from a friend for £500. It's in lovely condition, has done 77,000 miles and has a full service history (part Ford, part indie). I haven't yet seen it apart from in pics, but I've offered to give it a check over for her and make sure all the safety related stuff is OK.
The seller was very honest about the car, and pointed out two potential problems which will need looking into, hence it will fall to me to sort out.
The first is "stiff" steering, particularly when applying left lock and with a cold engine. According to her friend, it was perfectly OK until about a month or so ago when it suddenly started playing up. My sister reckons it's very noticeable on cold starts, but then slowly improves with running time. However, even then it always requires more effort to turn left than to turn right. The seller had the garage look at it, and they drained the PAS fluid, flushed the system through and refilled it (documented in the s/h). This apparently seemed to cure the problem for a week or so, but it returned. By which time the seller had her new car and decided to knock a couple of hundred off the price for my sister, and left it at that.
The second problem was an advisory from the last service that the spark plugs have "corroded in" . I've heard this mentioned on these engines before, and just wondered what the best way is to tackle this. I'm presuming Plus Gas, patience and perseverance, but I don't want to go down this route if there is an easier way.
Other than that, I think she got a bargain. It's a lovely little runabout.
Any suggestions on either of the above welcome, plus any particular things worth checking over on the Ka when I get around to looking at it.
Cheers as always
DP
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Thanks for your help guys. Plenty to go on for now!
Cheers
DP
Recently on holiday in Italy the wife and I fell completely in love with the new Alfa 159. There was a black one sat in front of the hotel all week and we both thought it was absolutely stunning. We also saw a few Alfa GTs which I suppose is the Coupe version and we think this is arguably even more stunning.
The question is this. If I had a company car I'd have no hesitation in getting one but because I'd have to buy it privately with my own hard earned cash I'm reluctant because of all the negativity that surrounds Alfa and its cars. Am I being over cautious and a chicken or should I just say "sod it" and buy one? It's a classic head v heart scenario I suppose. Has anyone out there "gambled" on an Alfa or another dream car and regretted it/not regretted it?
Maybe I'm getting old but I think I must be getting bored of being sensible and buying sensible cars. Unfortunately, I'm not so well off that I can afford to just throw money away. So it's quite a big decision. Read more
I'm so glad that everyone thinks Alfa's are so horrifically unreliable. When the time comes to replacing the Focus (Christmas-time probably) I hope to be able to consider a nearly-new 159 JTD. The reputation does have it's plus-points people - look at how easily you can get a gorgeous 156 for £2k!
Umm... I think the line "Though I didn?t check accurately, it probably will do around 37mph" probably has a misprint or typo in it!
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Look on the bright side, should get great mpg at 37 mph!
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