July 2007
It isn't always convenient living where I live but it has some terrific advantages.
Parking outside the house 5.30ish today with my 11-year-old granddaughter, saw a pull on the other side of the road (a far from rare event actually in these parts). A navy blue Vauxhall people carrier with discreet behind-the-grille blues had pulled a 3 Series BMW convertible, same colour, roof up. You couldn't tell who the plod were, unless you assumed they were the three who were neither a black guy nor a blonde woman. One of them looked Middle Eastern. Then two more arrived in a maroon Mondeo with a magnetic blue on its roof.
'Look, darling,' I said to my granddaughter. 'Detectives!'
She gazed in considerable disbelief at these two thuggish young guys in grubby patterned tee shirts, both with their hair dyed a luridly brassy shade of blond, as they swaggered across the road to the incident. On arrival they blended in perfectly with their colleagues and possible victims. Not one of the six or seven people looked anything like a copper.
As I said, there are advantages to living here. Didn't stay rubbernecking for the end of the story though, to see who was arresting or releasing whom. Too busy, and I think people are entitled to a bit of privacy. Anyway there were two bus stops right there, one on each side of the road. Read more
Bought this car new last November and within a week the engine management light came on. Took the car back to the dealership where a new ECU was fitted. Two days later the light was back and the car yet again returned to the dealership. After a lot of scratching of heads the consensus of opinion was that there was nothing to worry about and it would probably disappear of its own accord! The light still comes on intermittently and keeping a log of the times doesn't help. Before taking it back yet again, any ideas? What can I say to the dealer to make him do something about it?
CaroleG
Slight subject alteration to show problem - PU
(used new pull down menus for car details) Read more
ECU light came on a week after purchase. In the last year dealership have replaced the ECU twice and still the light comes on intermittently, usually after sitting on the drive or in the garage overnight. My husband and I both drive the car and the garage is now saying that when we turn the engine off one or both of us leaves our foot on the clutch pedal too long! They have given the car back to us with "some clutch cables disconnected" and we are to take the car back in two weeks. Any idea what my nest step should be? Car is superb in every other respect.
on a 106 1.5d the car since bought 2 years ago has always needed a 'blip' on the throttle to make the battery light go out and for the power steering to kick in.
This has never been a problem until now and it takes a few minutes of driving for the power steering to start.
Ive tested the battery which is strong and the alternator belt is new but havent tested the alternator itself as yet.
Could there be a problem with the pump itself or does this sound like a electrical problem? Read more
thanks for the replies ill do some more investigating and update the 1st chance i get
My Passat has started to "hesitate" at low revs - 1500 to 2000 ish. It feels like maybe it's not firing on all cylinders briefly. The exhaust seems dirtier, I think fuel consumption has got slightly worse and wife reckons there's a whistle from the engine on the driver's side that wasn't there before (my ears aren't up to it). Any ideas? It goes in on Thursday for a "diagnostic". I'm hoping for a nice cheap, dropped off / split pipe. Oh - 46k miles.
Thanks,
JH Read more
Full marks and virtual pints all round. A great big split in a pipe attached to the turbo. By this morning the car had gone past it's interpretation of a corporation bus and was looking more like destroyer laying down smoke.
Thanks,
JH
I gave my 2 years and 10 months old Audi A4 its regular bi-annual wash today and noticed some bubbling of laquer on the spokes of the front wheels only. It looks like bubbling but it is very firm when pressed with say your fingernail - I didn't want to get scraping just yet.
The 3-year warranty expires in a couple of months. In anybody's experience, is this a warranty issue or would I be wasting my time going back to the dealer? Read more
Sometimes in life you get a result. I clouted an invisible kerb on the mega floods day when the entire carriageway was a river with no obvious edge. The alloy wheel was pretty scratched up.
But, today I got rid of it when the dealer fitted my 3 new and very shiny wheels under warranty. How long until I kerb one?
Hi There,
I've got a 1993 UK Toyota MR2 GT (with "Moonroof") (Mark 2, Revision 2) and the N/S sill has rusted away, im looking for a supplier of oversills for this vehicle. I am based in Fife, Scotland.
Thanks
Dir
Read more
Spose you could try fensport(.co.uk) who are Toyota specialists.
A man who took an armoured vehicle on a joy ride and flattened a car has been banned from driving.
Jack Carroll "gleefully" drove the 25-tonne Warrior at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, in July last year.
Carroll, from Anfield, Merseyside, pleaded guilty to taking the vehicle without consent ... was sentenced to a one-year driving ban and 200 hours of unpaid work.
In mitigation, solicitor Jane Scott, told the court ... the hangars where the Warriors were kept had been left open and the tanks, which were not armed, were left mobilised, meaning the vehicle could be started by pressing a button.
[b]His mother, Tina Carroll, blamed the Army for allowing the incident to happen.
She said: "They leave the hangars open and the tanks mobilised so anyone could go in and anyone could take them.[/b]
All the army's fault Indeed!
Next thing, it will all be M&S's fault when some vermin gets caught shoplifting: "They leave the clothes on the hangers on the racks, so anyone could go in and anyone could take them!"
Read more
Actually, living in these times of car bombs/terrorist threats etc, I'm a bit surprised that abandoned cars are left lying around army camps. Ah, well. :-(
Quite interesting little article on AOL this afternoon that may interest you!.
tinyurl.com/3ytb3b
Billy Read more
I've never (and I've used many many insurance companies) been required to nominate any workplace.
In fact I don't think I've ever been asked who my employer is.
i'm quite pedantic and want to ensure that i'm covered properly, so ask when sorting the cover out.
Hi,
I have just had my car hit by another employee in the company car park. We regularly have to double park as there aren't enough spaces. I came back from lunch today and double parked behind a colleague. I was later informed that someone had hit my car, I know who the driver is and have spoken to them. However several people are saying because I was double parked it's not the drivers fault.
Any opinions where I stand with this? Read more
This happens all the time in our work car park (in fact, it sounds like you work there too!) and they've always gone through insurance, no problem.
We all do the number on dashboard/keys at reception thing, and are all happy to come out and play car chess, but there are some people who just don't seem to be able to drive, and your heart sinks when you look out the window and realise they've parked near you.
Looks like the showroom is being dismantled, here in Luton, today.
They only had a 3/4 vehicle display, adjoined to the Jaguar dealership. Looks like the poor sales of the brand, weren't helped by the customer base, here.
Would have thought the bling version, of black Escalade, might have tempted one or two of our countless late plate, tinted windows, black Range Rover local owners - but apparently not!!
VB Read more
Pendragon: Profits warning
Subject:
Date: Mon 25th Jun 2007 9:04:16
Country: UK
Industry: General retailers
Company:
Pendragon sees FY opg down by 20 mln stg, 10 mln next year UPDATE
(Adds details about potential interest rate impact, manufacturing industry)
LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Car retailer Pendragon PLC said it expects its
full-year operating profits to be down by 20 mln stg and anticipates a 10 mln
stg drop in 2008, blaming a slowdown in consumer spending.
Of the 20 mln stg reduction anticipated this year, about 5 mln stg is due to
a 4 pct cut in the number of new and used vehicle unit sales, with the remainder
due to a reduction in vehicle operating margin of about 50 stg per unit.
Pendragon said its used car unit performance is below its expectations and
expects a subdued used car market for the rest of the year.
It said its first quarter new car profits remained broadly in line with last
year. Since then, it has seen a gradual reduction in margin due to weakening of
the car market and more intense price competition.
Pendragon said it expects the market for big ticket items such as motor cars
to continue to be adversely affected by the uncertainty around interest rate
movements.
It said it also expects manufacturers to continue to force new cars into the
market either through incentives or pre registration activity, adding it expects
consumer switching to new cars to reduce its used car margins and unit sales
this year compared to last year.
The company will announce its results for the period to June 30 on August 7.
TFN.
madf
Browse
Ah well......locked.