A chip caused by a motorway speed stone has now grown into an L shaped crack about 25cm long. I will be getting a new windscreen (via insurance claim) and remember some talk a while ago about what is desirable or not e.g. original equipment or any brand, insurance tied fitter or independent and so on. I've spent longer than I want to on the forum search and couldn't find the threads.

Do you knowledgable people have any advice?

I've already delayed the replacment for a couple of months to make sure the job is done in the warm and I'll time it so that it's not raining either. An unrushed, unhassled fitter must be a better fitter. Read more

Saab has recently been trumpeting Hirsch performance upgrades (i.e. ECU remaps) for new 9-5s, but it turns out that anything you can do to a new 9-5 can also be done to an old one, with full Saab and dealer support. This has set me thinking; key points go something like this:

* I really like Saabs - the 9-5 estate in particular - and Saab dealers, and would be very happy to renew my association with them.

* BUT I can't afford a new one and in any case, I'm not convinced - aesthetically or ergonomically - by the 2005 facelift.

* That rules out a diesel, because the 2.2 TiD engine is awful and the new 1.9 is only in the post-facelift model.

* Never mind, I can save some money and buy a petrol instead, but the 2.0t engine is short of oomph in such a big car - it struggles to maintain 50mph up my modest test hill even with only me and one small boy aboard.

* OK, I could seek out a 2.3t, but there aren't many about and I haven't even found one to test-drive yet.

So how would it be if I bought a (manual) 2.0t and gave it the Hirsch treatment? 150 bhp becomes 210 and torque is up to 320 Nm, which is only 20 short of my Volvo D5, and available from barely 2000 rpm to 4500. This suggests there'll be easy, relaxing power when I want it, and when I don't, it's still only a 2.0 engine and should be capable of the kind of early-to-mid-thirties mpg I got from my old 2.0 Saabs. No need for for an attention-seeking badge, let alone the cheesy Aero body kit, just a rather nice, fast, comfortable, discreet family wagon.

So where's the catch? Apart from the £900 or so to install the upgrade, am I letting myself in for a huge insurance premium, a car I can't sell, or what? My Volvo has more torque and doesn't shred front tyres, so I'm confident that will be OK, and the flat torque curve (there are some handy graphics on a dealer's website here: www.westernsaab.co.uk/htmls/range/hirsch_data9-5.p...p ) suggests it won't be an undrivable monster.

As you can probably tell, I'm rather taken with this idea - especially if it's Cosmic Blue and has those gorgeous three-thick, three-thin, six-spoke wheels. So does my picnic need piddling on, and if so, who's going to do it?

Much obliged,
WdB

}:---) Read more

So daughter's month old Colt is proving a little difficult to get into first from rest, and the 1st to 2nd gear change can be a struggle. It's just the same after a month and 1000 miles as when new.

I remember that the gearchange in the (brand-new, 4 miles) car we test drove wasn't quite as slick as our Jazz, but it was more 'clunky' than 'baulky'.

What do other Colt drivers / owners think of their gearchange?


Otherwise she's very happy with the car - I can really feel the quality difference between it and the Jazz, but then it did cost £4000 less, so something has to give.
Read more

I have in my wallet a cheque from the university for an expense claim (£108 worth of van diesel). Unfortunately, they've written the correct amount in words but put £180 in the number box. It takes ages to get a cheque issued from the university and the office is only open at stupid times. Can I correct the amount to the lower (correct) figure myself or does it actually have to be done by them? Read more

Just before Easter I bought a dinghy with a road trailer on ebay. My car did not have a tow bar, so I decided to fit one myself. Found a supplier on ebay at just a couple of pounds over £100 including relays and delivery. Checked the fitting manual online, seems simple enough and an estimated fitting time of 2 hours 10 minutes. Went ahead and purchased it, and was duly delivered. Checked the parts and everything seemed straight forward.

It is only when you start fitting it do you find 2 badly corroded bolts that have to be drilled out, the exhaust (even when dropped) always seems to be in the way, I kept dropping the nuts, I picked up the wrong tool, etc. Then you realise after 3 ½ hours you must be somewhere and have to dismantle everything to make the car driveable.

The following afternoon you think you can complete the job as the basic bits should fit quickly. So after another 4 hours I get the tow bar fitted and again I realise I should be out for my Mum's birthday meal. No time to start the electrics, but decide to skip the starter and order the main course by phone and arrive 25 minutes later as the rest are finishing their starters.

The following morning (Good Friday) I then had a 180 mile drive each way to collect the dinghy, so I planned to leave at 7am. But I still did not have the electrics fitted, so I left at 6.15 missing all the hold ups except where the A303 goes from dual carriageway to single lane by Stonehenge. Arriving a few miles from my destination I then start on the electrics, only to find that part of the fixing plates obstructs the removal of the interior plastic panels to pick up the electrics. Finally I wire in all the lights except right hand indicator as I did not have any spare cable for an extension (but the car indicator can still be seen over the dinghy). The only thing that went smoothly was testing the light board - everything worked first time (except the right indicator!).

The moral of this tale is that no manufacturer's claimed fitting time is to be believed - use a multiple of 3 or 4! Remember your hands will take a lot of knocks and become grime encrusted, plus a few face fulls of road dirt.

Would I do it again? Probably as I did learn a lot, as I had not fitted a tow bar before. Also I expect I could fit one in 6 hours now, not 9!

By the way the dinghy towed exceptionally well and I laughed at all those stuck in traffic jams using the route I had zoomed along a few hours earlier.


--
Roger
A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.

Read more