June 2007
Been musing over the last few days about the subject header. Are cars getting too big?
Nicoles clio 3 parked next to sons clio 1 is a graphic example, for a car that has a "small" image and "small" sales sector its really quite big. The new mondeo is huge, well bigger than the old granada- which in its day was consdered a big car. The new twingo is the same size as the old clio.
Its all brought into focus when you see a mini on the road now, and think "wow is that realy small or what" - when in its day it didnt seem that small.
On a restricted island, is this trend sustainable?
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF > Read more
My rain sensor does not work and just defaults to intermittent.
After removing it I found that one of the gel pads are missing.
Does anyone know where I can get these gel pads from or a cheap used sensor.
Also has anyone had any success bodging the lens ie clear silicone gel or some other clear plastic.
I assume that since it is optical the material of the lens is important.
Neil
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Just found a cheaper solution.
I cut a slice out of the sucker cup of an old mobile phone holder and it seems to have done the trick.
A cheap quick solution for anyone else.
Hi all,
I have a 1.9tdi 2000 alhambra mk1. My engine sounds very "rattley", i had the cambelt changed in February. My mate has the same engine galaxy and recently had a cambelt done, he has said that after the cambelt change his engine sounded the same as mine, after taking it back to another garage he had the timing and cambelt changed again, it has cured the "rattle".He reckons my timing may well be out "slightly" and i should get the same work done again.
Bear in mind neither of us are mechanics.............any advice would be greatly recieved.
Subject line altered a bit to reflect fault - PU Read more
cambelts dont usually become rattlely could, (be the tensioner) and if the timing is slightly out then it would misfire like mad ,check the timing marks on the crank pully agen the timing marks on the timing cover
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6241400.stm
So the Mets 5000 cars traveled 62 million miles last year.
Thats 12,400 miles each per year
1529 claims means 1 claim every 40k miles, or one claim per car every 3.3 years
£1.9 million paid in claims means £1,250 per claim
Now if everyone drove as badly as that, there would be complete chaos
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TourVanMan TM < Ex RF > Read more
I reckon that the claim rate/cost is very reasonable, given the Met's duties, the location, and the potential for some quite large claims in a multi-vehicle/person accident.
would like to know whos doing any bargains with tyres at the mo? 175/70/r13 thanks all Read more
Hi
I have just bought a 51 reg mondeo with 99000 on the clock. The dealer has sold it cheap (at least I am led to believe at £2300) and I have been given a 28 days engine and gearbox warranty. I took it for a test drive and all was OK.
Having driven the car over the last few days, the car seems to be juddering when in 2nd/3rd gear. Also, it is taking two/three goes for it to start. Does anyone have any ideas as to the problem? Someone suggested spark plugs.
Would I be covered for the above issues under the 28 days engine and gearbox warranty?
Thanks guys Read more
See my post above! Just what Dr LY suggested.
I do 40k ish miles a year, and on yesterday was informed that, 2 tyres had worn shoulders, 2 others have cracks and perishing on the edges and range from 1.6mm -4mm - so I'm sure they all need replacing- not working tomorrow so intend to get sorted first thing
Also front pads are 70% worn -would it be worth while doing these at the same time.
I carry heavy loads, in my Espace, and so have always used Michellin Primacy hp, 225/55r/16/95w (x,y,z) this evening I have looked at many companies from "mytyres" good price £116.50 to "Kwik fit" £178, more convenient and often have matched other quotes and several other companies in between.
One company mentions that filling the tyres with nitrogen at £1.76 /wheel
provides better road handling, upto 25%increase in life expectancy and can reduce fuel consumption - so how come I've never heard of it before and nor has anyone I've spoken to, admittadely non are petrol heads.
Is this a good idea, and do all garages provide this service.
any recommendations greatly appreciated, as will contributions to the cost !! Read more
Before changing my tyres, the car continually verred to the left , (checked it going along the A3), so had it all balanced and wheel alignment, but it hasn't made any difference -is it likely they didn't actually do it, difficult to prove, or is it more likely to be another reason ??
My scenic (1998) makes a whirring noise/wind noise generally only when engine is cold and only in 1st and 2nd gear. When ever I take it the garage it doesn't make the noise. Today it has also decided to keep re-setting the trip meter when it feels like it. Any ideas?? or do i have a resident gremlin!
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blimey
Hi, I?ve recently bought a Vauxhall Vectra 2.5 v6 CDX 1998 on a R-reg,and I?ve got no heaters. They blow very well but it's just cold air, not hot. Can you tell me what the problem is? It?s got climate control, and the temperature runs at 90 degrees if this helps, thanks for any suggestions, messa.
{Shouting, ie typing solely in upper case amended. DD}
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Offhand, I couldn't tell you. However there is a simple test. Run the engine for a while with the heater set to hot. Switch off and feel the pipes going to the matrix. Whichever of the two pipes is the warmest will be the inlet pipe.
However, don't dimiss earlier suggestions that the hot / cold operating valve is duff.
Random question, is there anywhere private in the UK like an old air strip or such where you can run your car up to maximum speed?
Not in a Santa Pod kind of way...I just really want to see what my car's like at 114mph (I thought it was faster than that actually, but a Google search reveals the top speed is a mere 184km/h...) without having to worry about a ban.
I don't have any trips to Germany coming up either. :o(
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....114 doesnt feel any different to 100.....
The Astra is fine at and indicated 100. Anything over 120 and the front end goes very light indeed.
Contrast with an old 3.0 Senator we borrowed, that got better the faster you went (I ran out of bottle at 245kmh).
The A5 south of Frankfurt runs arrow-straight to Darmstadt (about 20 km), is 8 lanes wide, and a good place to see if your tyres will cope with the theoretical maximum speed of your car :-)
I´m pretty sure the MG racers set category speed records on it between the wars.
Browse
It can also be a Hyundai Getz or a Lotus Elise - easier to get into that a real Elise though.