June 2007
My 1999 (S Plate) Audi A3 1.8T is due for a service. Mileage is 70k. Can any recommend a good independent garage in the NW London area? As I'm near to the M1, somewhere in Watford or St Albans would also be an option.
Thanks!
Just added a bit to the subject line to make it clearer - PU
Read more
The renewal for my wife's Yaris came through the other day from Norwich Union direct. Last year we paid £220, renewal this year was £290. I went to gocompare.com last, after trying moneysupermarket and confused.com. I have just bought cover from Zurich for £178 which also includes £50 worth of M&S vouchers if bought on line so a net price of £128! Includes roadside assistance and car in the event of an accident, protected NCB, legal assistance and a £100 excess. The offer is valid until the end of the month so if you are about to renew must be worth a look.
I also got an online quote from NU direct which was a little more than we paid last year. I have had good service from them and would have been happy to sign up again and telephoned accordingly, they could only offer vouchers in order to match their own price. I turned it down as vouchers have a funny habit of ending up in somebody else's pocket. Goodness knows how I am going to be able to sneak the M&S vouchers and buy wine with it, there could well be a pressing and as yet undiscovered need for more towels or worse...
MGs Read more
The cheapest gocompare.com found me was £499. I am 21, 2 years NCB, no accidents/points/convictions, Citroen ZX 1.9TD. TPF&F.
My renewal with Quinn was £454, so I renewed. When I went to the site as a new customer and reentered all my details, it came out as £513, so the renewal is actually cheaper than a new customer quote for a change!
Confused.com was useless as usual (for the young male driver) - I've used them every year for 3 years and they've never found me a decent quote. I still use them in the hope that one day, they do.
Hiya,
Just booked my hols in Florida for October, got a dodge charger on reserve from Dolllar, can't believe how cheap it is to hire a car over there, anyway, i wanted some forst hand advice on driving over there, a few guides on the internet state that it is pretty simple, I have only driven abroad once and that was france for 1 day!
I'm stopping on International Drive and arrive in MCO (orlando int) apparently its the left turning that can be a little tricky,
Any advice or tips appreciated!
Jon Read more
i told an american gut it cost around $100 to fill a car up over here...
I'm surprised he didn't belt you one for calling him that ;-)
Glad you enjoyed your holiday!
I have just driven down the A41 south from Chester.
New signs have been erected saying 'Police Notice' (I think) 'Aircraft Traffic Surveillance'
Does anyone know what this is all about.
Are they going to start issueing fines from the sky?
How much is this 'service' going to cost us? Read more
Just make like Ray Liotta, you put the guns in a paper bag in the boot/trunk, do a line of coke, issue really precise instructions about stirring the meat sauce and then make your deliveries whilst leaning forward at the wheel looking up for the circling helicopters.
Oh and then rat on all your mates and end up living in a pastel coloured dressing gown in the suburbia of some nowhere town in Iowa regretting every minute.
The vehicle in question is an Leyland Daf 200 model 280cc with a luton body and single wheels at the back.
The vin plate is confusing and has several weights that seem to relate to differing dimensions / axle weights etc
Thanks in advance.
David. Read more
David,
Some Googling found the below link, you would probably get the answer there....
www.ldv.com/gb/aboutask.asp
some further posts hidden after the original edit by one of the Mods
I have noticed in my area that learner drivers are being taught to drive as if the car is rear wheel drive, i.e. Brake at the apex of the corner, instead of before and accelerate through the corner. Or is it just me?
{Typo in subject header corrected - DD} Read more
Me I was always taught to lose all the speed you need for a bend
before you go around it and follow the "arrowhead" so that the speed of the
car always matches the speed at which the "arrowhead" opens up. Brake on the apex
of a bend in a rwd car don't think so unless you want to experience
the sensation of a terminal spin !
You should have done all braking before the bend, and the engine should be pulling you through the bend, i.e. not coasting and not big acceleration. In this case the car is properly balanced.
Or that's how they used to teach it.
Anyone know the valve clearance for a Vauxhall Chevette HS 2300 Twin Cam engine & a clue how to adjust them if poss
{Moved from a reply to a 4 yr old thread and subject header re-titled - DD}
Read more
I've had a look on Piper and Kent cams websites and they only list modern stuff. maybe if you rang them they could help you?
Car is a 52 plate 1.9TDi 110bhp Octavia (not the PD engine). 85000 miles. Cambelt replaced @ 80,000 miles service.
Was driving to work this morning when, having braked reasonably sharply, I discovered upon moving off again that I had lost power steering and the battery light on the dashboard was illuminated.
A quick check under the bonnet didn't reveal anything obvious and as I was only half a mile from work I thought that I'd drive the rest of the way, which I did without steering assistance. Upon looking under the bonnet again I discovered that the belt which is visible on the left hand side of the engine bay (I hadn't taken the engine cover off) was no longer on its rollers at each end. Is this connected to the power steering pump / alternator? Is it serious?
Thanks
--
Soupytwist ! Read more
Drove it all the way to the repairers - about 40 miles ! - without problem. Apparently the bit on the alternator that the pulley connects to had broken so it needed new alternator, new pulley and tensioner. Grand total of £373 fitted. Drove it there on Friday afternoon, ready on Monday afternoon which was good.
--
Soupytwist !
Following on from my earlier thread, I have come to the conclusion that my next car should be a C-Max.
I have gained the impression from here that the 2.0 TDCi may be the best engine from a driving point of view, but I have also gained the impression that there could be issues with the long term reliability. The FFOC has many posts commenting on the EGR valve, as well as a host of other niggles that Ford dealers, in general, seem incapable of fixing first time! I get the feeling that maybe CR diesels haven't got the long term staying power that diesels of old have.
My idea at present is to buy around the 2yr/60k mark from auction, Zetec or above to get the sliding seats. I would be planning to keep the car for 4 years and taking it up to 120k. Now I know there are backroomers who have hit 100k plus in their TDCi's - but they won't be 6 years old.
Should I stick with what I know i.e. petrol, because I think that will do that age/ mileage without problems, or do I risk, if it is a risk, the long term uncertainty of a CR diesel? Or am I paranoid?
{Subject header made less vague - DD} Read more
Thanks for all the useful replies. I'll have to see what the budget will get me.
My recently acquired 2000 (X reg)Astra 1.6i 16v estate 111k exhibits a 'drumming' noise increasing pitch/volume somewhat with speed on normal roads at speeds 5mph to 50ish but is not present at 70-80 on the 'new' smooth m-way surface. The noise continues with the gearbox in neutral. The tyres are budget (made in Poland) and are at the recommended 32psi front and 28 rear. The rear n/s wheel bearing has been replaced to no effect.
Could it be the CVT joints?
Tyres? or even the non-standard plastic wheel covers?
All thoughts welcome
Regards
Brian
Read more
Thanks, everyone, I think i've bottomed it..on www.tyre-Online the rear tyres firestone firehawk 700 fuel are noted as having noise as a downside!
Unfortunately threr is no report on the Arrowspeed HP130
Best Regards to you all and have a good weekend
Brian
Browse
Green Garage, in a railway arch just off Kilburn High Rd at the bottom of Shootup Hill, is an established VW, Audi and Porsche independent specialist. The founder was a Czech I used to know, and he was terrific. He's retired now, but is still in touch with the English guy he passed the business on to. I think they will do a decent job. They aren't super-cheap, but you get what you pay for. And they will talk to you. And there's a damn good body shop next door.