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Hi,

I have a friend (seriously...) who has been involved in an accident, not their fault apparently (is it ever?)

Their car was a write off, and they have received a letter from the insurance company with an offer of cash for a replacement, and requesting all paperwork be sent to them.

At this point it has transpired that the MOT has expired before the accident.

(1) Can anyone confirm what the conseuquences of this are? My first reaction was "well, you're screwed, as you policy is now invalid."

(2) Will they pay out at all for a replacement now?

(3) If the other driver sues for loss or earnings/whiplash or whatever, will the driver now be liable, assuming no MOT=no insurance at all?

(4) What are the legal consequences? points/fine etc

(5) The accident happened on private property, does this have any effect? there was a low speed limit, obviously exceeded by the other driver, but I don't believe this is enforceable on private land

(6) If it is provable that it was the other drivers fault, does this affect the chances of a payout even with no MOT?

I've given them my views on this, but whats happened has happened, so I'm only really interested in advice that may assist them in what they can expect. I said they should invest in an hour with a solicitor as soon as possible

Thanks very much for any advice
D Read more

Corsa 1.2 1995
We have bought the above car with 15 inch Vauxhall alloys with 195/50 tyres. How can I find out the correct pressures for these tyres as there is no reference to alloys in the owners manual? Read more

Hi all,

New to the forum - apologies if I spare the introductions for now. I have a 2001 Focus 1.6 with 90k on the clock - got it just over a year ago with 79k. Price was possibly a bit on the steep side, but time was short and I got £250 for my worthless old VW Polo and a year's warranty.

Anyway, at Christmas I had the car serviced and the cambelt done at my local Ford garage. To cut a long story short, the new tensioner failed and they ended up replacing all the exhaust valves along with a few other bits and bobs. So far so good, car was running fine when I got it back.

Since Christmas, it's used 4.5 litres of oil - it would seem the piston rings are shot. Oil consumption didn't seem to be a problem beforehand, but there's no sign of damage to the pistons themselves. The car is currently in the garage with the head off - I've seen it myself, there's a lot of movement on the pistons.

I have been quoted £1500 (or, in other terms, half the value of the car on a good day) for a replacement 'short block' engine, including fitting and VAT by Ford, and a bit less (£1k-£1200) by an independent specialist (using a brand new Ford block). Apparently piston ring renewal is not an option.

My questions are as follows:

1. Is this a common occurence on this engine?
2. Is the price I've been quoted decent?
3. Would I be mad to spend that much on the car given what it's worth?
4. Is it worth considering a 2nd hand engine? Any ideas how much that would cost?
5. Would I be as well to trade-in/flog/scrap the car and get something different?

Really I'm looking for the cheapest overall solution, but don't want to throw money at something that won't last. The guy I spoke to at the independent said a 2nd-hand engine was more trouble than it was worth and would cost the best part of a new engine in the end.

The warranty company don't count it as a mechanical breakdown, so they won't pay.

Thanks for any advice,

Niall Read more

With SWMBO's 1995 306 Sedan on axles stands for it's annual service I took the opportunity to perform a pre-MOT check. Everything seems fine apart from noticeable play in the left hand front wheel assembly. The front right hand wheel assembly, which doesn't bear so much roundabout loading or clattering through potholes and kerbside water, is as sweet as a nut.

With the suspension unloaded, grasping the top and bottom of the roadwheel and performing an in-out rocking motion gives a very slight but noticeable "clonk". Repeating with hands at "quarter to three" gives exactly the same "clonk". The steering wheel was free to rotate so I don't think steering joints are at fault, confirmed by having an assistant rotate the steering wheel whilst I held the road wheel; no play. Likewise I don't think it's the wheel bearing as there is no bearing related noise when driving under any condition or when spinning the roadwheel.

A penny to a pound the fabled inner rear bush on the front lower wishbone has worn.

If it is a wishbone bush, I know that Peugeot only sell a complete assembly of lower wishbone and bushes but motor factors sell the bushes separately. If I purchase the latter, is it an easy job to press the old bushes out and the new ones in, please?

For info, whilst it's all apart I'll replace the balljoint too for the sake of the few quid it will cost.

I think I have deduced the only component that could cause what I describe, but if you have 306 experience and think otherwise, please comment!

Cheers. Read more