Just collected my Mondeo from my trusted indie after a very near miss involving the engine.

I suddenly experience a tappet like sound from the cambelt end of the engine so off to the lads for some TLC

They found a cambelt tensioner in a very sorry state.
The plastic outer was totally split across its width with a 4mm gap displayed.
There was another split opposite that which was half way across the width.
The whole surface was badly scored so all in all a component that was a wisker from throwing the plastic rim totally off
I am surmising that the belt would have continued to work in some fashion and the damage to the engine would have been even worse than a cambelt snapping.

I bought the Mondeo at 83K and the paper work showed cambelt changed at 80K.
( the recommendation for the older engines rather than 100K for mine).

This failure was at 111K.

I wonder if at the 80K the tensioners were not changed ( as always recommended here) ?
I am feeling a little lucky and I know for certain that a good cambelt change has been done and it should last the life of the car in my hands.

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After my annoying customer last week its nice to have faith restored by oher customers.

Customer came in for 2 broken coil springs to be replaced. Asked for a rough idea on price (I always try to quote a labour price and then say plus parts as required.)

He replied, Happy with that, but if it takes longer than you expect don't rush it I would rather it was done right than rushed and its only fair you get paid if it happens. Job didnt over run so it was ok anyway but was very nice to have any time pressure removed.

Thining about this subject in general and I wonder if menu servicing is responsible for some of the aggro between customer and garage.

For example, a garage quotes a fixed price with all good intentions. Job goes pear shaped (they often do!). A good independant who knows his parts costs are covered would only end up losing his time to finish the job = less pay per hour/job than anticipated but not the end of the world.

A main dealer maybe has other implications. Other jobs must be finished that day because they are promised out, short cuts "may" happen because of it. mechanic is on a bonus system of wages too so unless he does all his jobs he doesnt earn his real money etc.

just thoughts. But I am happy to report I got good customers too !

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Heres one for the petrol heads
www.autobild.de/tuning/news/artikel.php?artikel_id...2 Read more

I think it was Avant who asked me to post impressions of driving a Verso. Well, after cancelling one appointment because the weather was so bad, I eventually drove a T Spirit model with the 2.2 140 diesel engine on a 30-minute route of B-roads and fast dual carriageway to the south of Coventry. Not enough to be sure but here are my impressions from the drive itself and a prolonged family clamber over a T180 in the showroom. Bear in mind that my benchmark for most things is my 52 Volvo S60 D5. Remember too that I'm 1.98m or 6'5" tall - and that my wife and boys aren't small either - which influences my views on interior space.

Comfortable. Allowed me to position myself so that I was far enough from the pedals without being too far from the steering wheel. Not as comfortable as the Volvo, but then nothing else is. Seats in the demonstrator seemed less comfortable than in the T180 showroom model, but this may have been because the salesman did the usual sales trick of starting the engine before I got in (why do they do that?) so I may not have taken the time to get the adjustment quite right before moving off. Backrests seem good, cushions a little short; there is height adjustment but no tilt, so raising the cushion reduced the support under my thighs. I'd want to try a Verso for a full day before committing myself but I think it would be fine.

Driving. Feels very well planted. Hard to convey the tactile impression of driving the thing, but I pushed it as hard as I would the Volvo along a twisty and damp B road and it inspired great confidence. Ride quality I'd describe as solid - not wafty like a Citroen but not jiggly or bouncy either. I liked it very much.

2.2 140 diesel engine is excellent. Recognizably dieselly at low speeds and with a hard-edged note when accelerating - very similar to the S-Max and C4 Picasso in this respect - but never unpleasant and with plenty of power in store. Based on this, I'd feel no need to pay the extra for the T180.

Privacy glass. Horrible. Impaired the view in the interior mirror and made over-the-shoulder checks dangerously slow, since I had to pause every time until my eyes adjusted to the darker image. The children complained about the poor view out too, so I simply don't get it. Fortunately, it's not fitted to the T3, which is the model I'd probably have.

Instruments. No temperature gauge, which is odd. Speedometer graphics are in 10mph increments but crammed in too tight with no intermediate tick marks, which makes it hard to tell quickly whether you're at 30, just below or just above. To me, used to impeccably clear Swedish dials, this seems poor and entirely avoidable. There's also no clock - or at least not a permanent one: you have to scroll through the computer's display options to get to the time.

Gearchange. High-mounted lever with short movements is very quick and pleasant to use, and synchronizes easily with the clutch action. Only downside to this is that the natural synergy of gear lever and handbrake - my hands expect to find them close together - is missing, but I imagine this would ease with familiarity. Proper handbrake too - no electronic nonsense here!

Noise. Some whooshing round the big door mirrors at motorway speed but nothing unpleasant. Noise levels generally similar to the Volvo, which has always been an impressive long-distance car. My highest cruising speed equates to about 2,500 rpm in 6th, which is the same as the Volvo in 5th but quite a bit higher than even a 1.8D S-Max. Didn't try the audio system.

Visibility. Generally very good, and would be excellent with proper glass in the windows. Wipers do an excellent job of clearing the whole screen - no gap in the middle as can be the case with overlapping MPV wipers. (Being tall, I appreciate more than most having a clear view through the top of the screen, which I don't always get.)

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Intersting letter in todays DT considering a link in the 20 percent increase in the death of children in road accidents over the last year with the need to be continually looking at the speedometer.

A difficult subject to research but surely worthwhile?

I do try to keep within 30 limit, even when lack of traffic and pedestrians says it should be safe. Last week it proved my saviour when a large dog appeared from knowhere ad ran straigt in front of me. Was the saving of the dog too but the tailgater behind me got a bit of a fright. Read more