Lastr week my wife and i went to our honda dealership to collect our new civic cdti > and very nice it is too! anyway i was doing my under bonnet checks to see if they had sorted out a few things and i noticed that a little sticker had been applied to the top valance. it's the one that says Honda recommends castrol oil. if you cant work it out, its the one that protects from the moment you start your engine > allegedly. anyway i went into the service department to buy a litre of oil so my wife has some incase it needs topping up. nice gentleman behind the tall counter say's > Honda uses Mobil 1 oil in all its Workshops. Oh really, so why the sticker under the bonnet? NO answer just a bluff. anyway £10 for a litre it is then! maybe i'll shop around first.

{Oil manufacturers name that had previously been blanked out with asterisks by the OP restored as he wasn't naming and shaming - DD} Read more

Daughter's partner had his car key stolen from his firm's van: he has a spare key but it is not the master so has been quoted c. £150 for replacement from Ford dealer.
Is there a cheaper alternative anyone can recommend, please?
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Last week, whilst driving up the M5 my 02 Focus's engine stopped. I learnt later that the fuel system had failed, with all subsequent consequences. Apparantly the tank was no longer delivering fuel to the pump. The tank was at least a quarter full. The garage poured a further gallon in to the tank and was then successful in hand priming the system. The estimate to repair the fuel system is in excess of £2,000. As the car has now done 205,000 miles I have made the decision to right it off. Any suggestions as to why there was no fuel delivery to the pump would be gratefully received. (The fuel filter was clear).
Boumph.
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Took the family down to the New Forset for a picnic yesterday, and the traffic on the M27 and the traffic through Lyndhurst reached new heights of horrendousness.
I know Lyndhust has always been bad, but yesterday it took us 45 mins just to do the 3 miles from the M27 to the otskirts of the town (A337), not to mention the time it took us to cover the bit of the M27 from the M3.
Has anyone else experienced this torture lately ?
Unfortunately, it is difficult to get most places down there unless you go thro Lyndhurst, unless you go miles out of your way and then get caught on the approaches to Bournemouth.
I will certainly think twice about ever visiting this area again, even though it is not far. Read more

Hi
I was wondering if it is possible to do a DIY air-con condenser change.
We've had two quotes with one just under £500 and the other between £450 - 600 depending on whether the part is a cheap pattern with 0 warranty or a genuine one with 1 year warranty.

I don't know how much work it involves but condensers are on eBay for £160 and about the same from AutoVaux.

According to Haynes it looks like a couple of hours reasonably straightforward work to get access to the condenser & dryer BUT I have no idea how to disconnect their pipes from the rest of the AC system and more importantly perhaps how do you reconnect the pipes to give a good seal? Haynes says you need to get a qualified person to replace o-rings. Is it really hard to change the o-ring or is it hard to obtain them?

Thanks Read more