February 2007
From today's Guardian: football.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,20170...l
>>> Small ad may be formula one's smoking gun <<<
Towards the back of this month's Motor Sport magazine a company based in America announces the sale of a Benetton B194 formula one car, the very machine with which Michael Schumacher won three grands prix on his way to the 1994 world championship, running Damon Hill off the road in the final round at Adelaide in order to secure the title.
Clearly the dents from that notorious encounter have been straightened out but the car is otherwise advertised as being in original condition - "exactly as 'in the day'," to quote the ad, a statement reflected in the asking price of just under half a million quid.
What is really interesting, however, is the information that the originality of the car's condition extends to certain electronic features - specifically including traction control, a "driver aid" outlawed under the 1994 regulations.
This, it may be remembered, was the season when there was a lot of fuss over whether Benetton were breaking the technical regulations in order to achieve a competitive advantage. Ayrton Senna, who perished in the third race of the season while trying to stay ahead of Schumacher, certainly believed something naughty was going on. And here, all these years later, is grand prix racing's equivalent of the smoking gun. Is it too late for Hill to demand his title back?
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I have 97 B5 Passat 1.8T with 80k on the clock. I bought ot for £1900 6 months ago. I knoew the a/c wasn't cold and went ahead as i hoped a re-gas would do it. The car had very low mileage for it's age and was at the time decent deal (well so i thought).
Sadly a re-gas did not do the trick and it was discovered there was a leak in one of the seals on the compressor.
An independent reckons it will cost about £700 to fit a reconditioned one and re-gas (inclding the receiver dryer), or he said i could chance it and do it for £500 without the receiver dryer (cost goes up because to change you have to take the front bumoper off etc etc).
Anyway my dilemma is do i flog it now for what i suspect will be at best £2k and start again or do i spend some cash on the car and get the aircon going?
Your thoughts please folks? Read more
I was faced with a similar sized bill for my Merc E-Class air con system - silly money for an old car really. In the end I got a reconditioned compressor from the Parts Gateway for £150 with a 3-month warranty, and got it regassed and fitted for £80. It's been fine for the last 18 months.
Good luck
I would like to add Air con to my Meriva. How big a job is it and what would I need? Read more
Dealer fit AC is quite common in the US - eg:
www.duncanmargetts.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/200...g
I have just been quoted 250 euros by a French main dealer for Picasso 1.6HDi 1st /12 mnth service. This seemed to be taken from a printed book of prices, and I forgot to ask if it was TTC.
Has anybody got represenative UK prices or experience of regional French variations please.
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pmh (was peter)
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The OP mentioned 250 Euros and that was probably what was meant - which would equate to approx £170.
I have a 2004 Meriva 1800cc 16v. In the last few days it has been difficult to get it into 2nd and sometimes 1st. From a cold start it is ok, but as the car gets warmer the problem gets worse.
Any ideas anyone? Read more
was it hard to change the linkage and how to do it briefly ,ie can i get under car or is it from the engine part thanks andy
I had a major service 2 weeks ago on my Golf at a main VW dealer, including cambelt, water pump & a few other bits. Came to £900! Looked at the recipt carefully at home and saw I'd been charged twice for the new belt & pump, so went back & asked for a refund... also spotted they charge £10 for the spare oil - I thought for some insain reason that it was complimentary - so I asked to return it too as I already have 3 at home! The gave me the refund of £130 and even fitted a new bulb to my instrument cluster FOC (after an impassioned plea from me, pointing out their charging mistake). They then processed the refund, which took three people 5 minutes and three atempts to do - in the guy's words "shows how often we do refunds!" I was left feeling fairly satisfied as my expectations had been lower but I felt I had lucked out to some extent too.
Are there any manufacturers who make performance cars whos dealers are really focused on customer satisfaction? Where they are glad for custom? As I am now looking at a new car and although I like the 3.0 litre BMW Z4, I'm wondering whether a Honda S2000 may prove less stressful experience from this point of view? Read more
Although I've just sold a Passat, I can recommend White Rose in Petersfield for exemplary customer service, and they're open till 7 pm.
Limited edition 1992 " Pink Panda " K69 GYA , was sold on Ebay on the 16th March 2005, at which time it appeared to be in VGC.
I seek only to establish if this vehicle is still alive or if it has been scrapped. I do not seek owner details. DVLA will only say that it is unlicenced at this time.
If anyone knows of this or any other " Pink Panda " I would appreciate being advised.
Thank you. SG-CVT3@uwclub.net Read more
Thank you for your help. When I did the same search on the DVLA website, it came back as unlicenced. Perhaps finger trouble on my part. This is good news and again thanks for your help.
Rgds.
Just wondered where this is on my VW because I've always assumed that the creaking from my car is my dash as per the extract from the HJ Passat review below.
'Creaking dash' might actually be the underbonnet plastic cover over the scuttle plenum chamber creaking. Cured by silicone grease on the tough points. Read more
i'm building an AUTOMATIC trike for a disabled friend and he wants me to use his alfa flat four engine from a 'cloverleaf'? did alfa make one? is there one made by someone else that might / will fit? it needs to be the transaxle type to allow it to be mid engined and also to gain access for the rider. many thanks in advance. Read more
That's why it was in inverted commas!!!!!!
I have a 2001 Alfa 156. The button on the remote key fob no longer works - I have been quoted £200 !!!!! by my local alfa dealer for a new key (reprogramming etc). Has anyone had a similar problem? I would be very grateful for any advice - thanks Read more
I had a 51 alfa sportwagon, mine went a bit wonky when i dropped it. I took it apart and re-sat all the connections and membranes - cant remember how, but it was a bit fiddly, but fairly obvious. Take note of how you took it apart!
Worked fine after that.
the screw holding it together was under the alfa logo - glued in.
got to be worth a try. better than £200 anyway.
btw the alfa went after a catastrophic engine failure (cam belt - you did get it changed didnt you?) and a selespeed gear box failure. Oh, and the cover under the engine fell off and the fuse cover would never stay on. But apart from that........
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remember that the car and drivers are weighed at the end of every race.-a few grammes underweght and your disqualified.You have to allow for variances when ballasting the cars. the changes in a drivers weight,during the race,fuel amounts(which are measured in kilos,not litres)oil loss,tyre rubber loss,wheel and tyre sets,even the loss of skid plates etc.When I was racing we were adding up to 80kg of ballast.