May 2007
Honest John forum,
I have a huge problem! I have just purchased a 205 GTI 1.9. Its only got 72k on the clock with old MOT's to prove it.
Its just plagued with lots of faults.
List:
1) electrical problem. NO reverse lights, brake lights (i think they are the wrong bulbs) and when you press the brake when car is off, the off side side light comes on. also when the lights are on (side only) and the car is off. the whole dash instrument panel lights up like a x-mas tree. all gauges read.
2) exhurst spits gases out. petrol and oil smell.
3) engine rattel when at standing and you push the gas pedal (rev the engine). I have been told this the engine mount. needs the rubber replaced?
4) auto choke i believe is on the way out.
5) doors need painting as there is a miss match of paint due to fading.
6) no rear demist (i know why)
Now can any one suggest any solutions for electrical problems ? and also is it really worth putting this car back togather?
Many Thanks for your attention guys/gals!
Mishal
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Hi guys,
One of my friend's car is cutting out during; engine braking, down shifting gear when approaching traffic lights, pulling out of junction.
When the problem occurs, the engine light does not come on at all. The indicator light flashes a few times, and other dashboard lights come on. The car has been back to the dealer and an ECU has been replaced, but the problem still persist. No fault code was recorded by the ECU.
Any clues trying to get it fixed before the warranty runs out? I have told the friend to get rid of the car if the dealer can't fix it. Its too dangerous to drive when the car drives like a Pug 206, which cut out unexpectedly.
Regards,
Perfect. Read more
Hello folks
I'm looking for a new car around £8k-£9k budget [max].
I've short listed following cars
Suzuki Swift GLX 1.5
Hyundai Getz 1.3 [5 yr warranty]
Honda Jazz 1.2/1.4 [bit over budget]
Mazda 2 (but it's Ford basically, isn't it?)
Toyota Yaris (but looks over priced and awkward)
Any other suggestion??
I'm mainly picking Japanese/Korean brands because of their value for money and reliability ratings. I'm yet to take test drive in all the cars.
I tried Kia Picanto but didn't like it. New Nissan Micra is also very odd shaped.
My first and foremost concern is RELIABILITY and good fuel economy. I don't bother much about image. And the car must have height adjustable driver's seat (because my height is short), AC, PAS and 5 doors must.
Central locking, electric windows, ABS - I can live without them.
I like to keep the car for at least 3 years but prefer to keep for 5 years.
Car will be used mainly on town with weekend long journeys on motorways, however, if I change job, I may need to travel on motorway everyday.
Not willing to go for used car as I suffered in past with used cars. Read more
For Kia well I'm bit doubtful about them. My current car is (was) Hyundai Accent
whose engine has recently seized following engine oil leaking.
So bit skeptical about Korean cars even though Hyundai Getz I've shortlisted solely based on
5-yr warranty.
Unfortunately neglect affects all makes of car! Maybe you'll dip the dipstick from time to time on your next one? ;-)
I've noticed that Motorpoint have currently got some very lowe prices on Nissan XTrails - for a new unregistered car, the Aventura spec is £16000, compared to an RRP of around £24000.
What Car? Target price is £21400 for a UK car.
Has anyone any idea what the warranty is on the 'Motorpoint' import stock? This is probably one of Motorpoint's best sellers, so there must be an HJ forum member or two out there who knows???
Also, I've seen a few reports of the turbocharger being a problem on these - anyone any knowledge on this issue? Read more
Great Price but it will be the "old model" the new model is about 2 mths old - Warranty will be what is left as it could have been sitting around for a good few months - warranty starts when it is sold by the "Original Dealer"
tinyurl.com/ywknvh
Any other interesting examples? Read more
A couple of months ago I went to my local DVLA office and bought 12 months tax for my wifes newly bought Peugeot 307 1.4 hdi I was charged £50 and given the disc.
Now upon investigation I read the V5 and see the carbons emmision of 120 and thus is in group B = £35 a year.
Has a mistake been made?...there is no road tax band of 12 months for £50!...the next category is C and is £115!!
Anyone? Read more
I had been thinking
about buying a second hand Panda and getting tweaked to get the 85 bhp out
of it.
Might want to be careful there - I understand that the reason it's de-tuned in the Panda (70 bhp but torque output down to 106 lbs ft, as opposed to 133 or so in the 70 bhp versions in Puntos and so on) is because it uses the standard 1.2 Panda gearbox, which can't deal with big torque.
I agree that it's faintly annoying to pay more road tax for a bike than for a car, though - £46 for the Bandit (600cc) as opposed to £35 for Mrs B's Panda Multijet...
Help appreciate here..
As a treat (2nd car for fun purposes) I bought a Nissan 200SX Turbo (S14A touring for those who know these cars).
Unfortunately only 2 weeks after getting it, I lost grip on some slimy mud left on the road by travellers exiting a field, and erm... crashed it. I feel a bit of a plonker, never had a road accident in 18 years!. it seems these cars have a tendency to loose grip in the wet, even HJ says so, but still, I am rather upset at the loss of a lovely car.
Anyway, it was a very fine example of this car, and has been declared a Cat C write off. The insurance company have offered to sell the wreck back to me, so if I can find someone to rebuild it (process already started on that) what is involved in getting it back on the road in terms of insurance cover, and any legal issues, MOT etc etc. Once the rebuild is finished, whats the process I have to go through.
If anyone wants to read the whole story, please see
www.sxoc.co.uk/vbb/showthread.php?t=287447
The owners club have been a fabulous support, but so too are HJ contributors, so please any advice?
Guy
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They can certainly be tricky cars on poor surfaces. I am a great Nissan fan but a bit wary of the 200SX for that reason - even at low speed on a wet roundabout you can swap ends.
It will not be a cheap repair if its done properly - I would get a couple of opinions on the damage before committing. Make sure that it is all lined up properly (e.g. a good alignment jig - something like a Chief laser-aligner). Also when the repair is finished have a full 3D laser alignment done at the wheels - if its not spot on you'll have a lethal handling car.
In the announcements forum I've added a function so that you can make your overlong links shorter without the need to first visit TinyURL.com
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=33877&...e
Please note, you only need to use this IF you think your link is going to be too long in your post and thus screw up the page width of the site.
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I've just seen some low car ramps on Wikihow:
www.wikihow.com/Change-the-Oil-in-Your-Car
These must be ideal for jobs when you just need to get the car a few inches off the ground to do things like oil changes. Does anyone know where you can buy these ?
I personally don't enjoy driving up big steel ramps. Read more
These would do the job - motorhome / caravan levelling ramps (with built-in chocks) - as recommended by Steptoe.
Not really expensive either - just the job if you need a bit more clearance underneath.
www.milenco.com/levelling_ramp.html
Well
Nicoles "old" clio has been snapped up by a new owner.
So 7 years and 59k miles of renault ownership caused the following unplanned mechanical disasters
1 defective seat belt switch - diagnosis and replacement £50
1 weeping oil pressure switch - changed at service £7
1 broken air filter housing - changed by me - £28
1 x battery £39
1 sticking rear seat belt, dismantled and cleaned by me - £FOC
4 x mots = 4 x passed flying colours
Its provided 7 years of reliable, economical, comfortable, and sometimes fun motoring and still looks fresh and stylish. I have no doubts it will provide its new owners with many years of similar service. If it had aircon it would be still be plying its trade in the RF household.
Renaults? everyone knows they are rubbish.
------------------------------
TourVanMan TM < Ex RF > Read more
My aunty has owned a succession of new petrol Renaults (5s, Clios and Meganes) every three years since the 70s. She's never had any complaints hence why she keeps going back to them. I remember her getting a Citroen AX (when they axed the 5) in the early 90s but it wasn't for her...
On a personal level I inherited my late uncle's 89F R21 diesel. In 1998 the car had 75k on it and the 2.1 67bhp engine was tough as old boots (I used to service it myself dropping the oil out every 6k). The car had no rust at all and was extremely comfy (loads of rear legroom) and a good cruiser once up to speed. Being a saloon model in black made it look like a French embassy car or something...quite rare - never saw another.
Problems I had were driver's seat bolster cloth worn away, numerous failed dashboard bulbs and a failed diesel pump. My uncle told me it had had a brand new gearbox from Renault at around 70k.
I got peanuts for it when I traded it in at around 130k but I believe it's still going somewhere.
Mishal
I have a 1990 1.6 205 GTi that I have owned from new, has been very reliable and I have carried out all the servicing and repairs. The car has only let me down once (failed fuel pump relay), I agree that with a car of this age the possible modifications and abuse carried out by previous owners can be a source of many problems.
It is best to deal with each problem separately.
1. Check or change the light bulbs that are suspect. If the problem persists check the earth connections.
2. Clean out all the engine breather pipes and the flame trap in the oil filler cap.
3. Replace engine mountings from GSF (German Swedish and French) or EuroCarparts, both have good web sites.
4. There is no choke. There is a supplementary air device (SAD) that increases the air flow when the engine is cold and a temperature sensor on the cylinder head that tells the fuel injection ECU that more fuel is required. The SAD is a common problem on 205s.
5. Have doors re-sprayed when more important problems have been solved.
6. Check the fuse and the connections to the element in the rear screen.
After trying the basic attempts at solving the problems register with the Peugeot forum
www.psooc.com/
There are some people very knowledgeable on 205GTis and will offer practical advice as many contributors carry out all of their own maintenance, modifications and repairs.
Good Luck!