August 2007
Hi all I just brought a car an MG ZR 105+, very pleased with it ....so far.
Does anyone else own one on the forum?
I know it's not everyone's favourite on this forum from reading posts from previous topics, but i chose it because it made me smile during the test drive...... the sporty half leather seats hold me tight within, has enough grunt to wheel spin everytime you pull away (i just need to get used to the clutch!)
What i do need to is get used to is the power delay during acceleration, it does start to kick in after 4000rpm.
What does anyone else think of my purchase? Crazy or sensible beyond belief?
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Its not what you drive, its how you drive it! :-) Read more
Hi there, I have just bought a 2002 Astra 1.6 Club (8 valve engine) that is five years old and has just covered 50,000 miles. I am considering changing the timing belt and tensioner which I suspect are original, but have been told not to worry as on these engines they are safe for 80.000 miles or 8 years which seems a long time.
I know the 16 valve models are worth changing at 40,000 miles - has anyone other ideas about the 8 valve model?
Thanks Read more
When you do change the cambelt & tensioner, change the water pump as well - it's one of the pulleys on the cambelt routing so water pump failure on a Vauxhall often cause the cambelt to break! Once the engine has been "stripped" to replace the belt there's virtually no extra work to replace the pump but if you do it any other time then the stripdown labour will have to be paid for twice. And anyway, 80,000 miles is an acceptable life for a water pump.
My daily commute is only a 3-4 mile journey. My current car (petrol) gets up to normal temperature by that time; will a diesel?
Thanks in advance for any advice on this.
Jon Read more
The more fuel-efficient an engine is the longer it takes to get up to temperature.
Cars run most efficiently at full operating temperature (both in terms of fuel and emissions), so surely an efficient engine with decent thermal management will warm up quickly in order to reach peak efficiency sooner rather than later. Isn't the purpose of the thermostat to hold back the cooling system until the engine has reached a decent temperature?
My new car overheat today. I have changed the thermostat which seems to have helped, been out for an hour in it and hasn't overheated but didn't get stuck in traffic so couldn't tell. The fan is not kicking in as early as I like the only time I have seen it work was when it overheated but I suspect it needs to come on earlier.
Does anybody know where this switch is I just cannot seem to find it and I do not have a Haynes manual.
It is the 1.3 Endura E.
The radiator has a few kinks in it but seems to work fine (it is hot to touch) and you can feel the water pumping through as normal. Read more
It could seize, but then the belt would squeak. Basically it cant (AFAIK).
After searching through many posts I've come up with lot's of solutions to these problems but I still can't be certain. So, from the beginning...
A few weeks ago the timeing belt went. My Dad and I got the engine apart and found 3 of the valves bent so my Dad decided to replace all of them anyway. When we came to refit the head and all other parts removed the weather was awful - lots of heavy rain. He stopped when the weather was bad but needless to say the engine bay got fairly wet. When it was all back together the car ran almost perfect - it seemed a little bit rough or like it was hunting for air or misfiring (not sure what exactly is causing it). So this is the rough running part of my thread - it does it all the time not just when idleing.
I read through the Haynes manual looking for what could be the cause and searched the internet. I checked all the electrical connections which seemed OK. Having had this problem on a Ford Escort a couple of years ago I thought it could be the idle control valve playing up. So I decided to unplug it and start the engine. It idled way too high so I thought great this must be the cause and plugged it back in only to find it was still idleing too high! I got a new idle control valve which didn't fix it but then found instructions to reset it and that fixed the problem (although the engine was still running rough).
Since then the problem of idleing too fast has come back. Turning the ignition off then restarting the engine will sometimes fix it. Disconnecting the battery for 10 minutes to reset the ECU also fixes it, but the problem always returns. Also, I removed the coolant/engine temp. sensor and cleaned that off which fixed it temporarily. When turning the ignition off, it idles normally on restart until the throttle is pressed. When reseting the ECU it last for 5-10 minutes of driving before idleing too high.
I took it to Renault to get a diagnostic check - no faults on the ECU but cos it was idleing high they disconnected the battery to reset it and that fixed it. Of course by the time I got home it was idleing too high again!
Sorry for such a long description of the problem but hopefully somebody can spot the problem in there! I need to know:
1. What keeps making it idle too high? (Which only started after I unplugged the idle control valve electrical connector)
2. What is making the engine run rough?
Thanks in advance,
Alun
{edited to make use of drop down menus that weren't originally here when first posted} Read more
Just check the throttle cable is not too tight first. Also redo the tappets and leave them slightly loose, tight tappets on these engines make them run like a badgers .........
Check also all the vacuum pipes from the throttle body especially the servo hose.
Interestingly you mention the coolant temp sensor, a failing sensor would not neccessarily generate a fault code but could keep telling the ECU the engine is cold which would raise the engine speed and slightly over fuel the engine.
just heard a colleague had his car towed for having no tax.
Apparently it's £160 release fee, plus you'll need to provide a valid tax disc before they'll release it.
But it also has no current MOT.
So how do you get the tax without the MOT, when you can't get the MOT because the car's impounded?
Just curious how they'll handle this. Read more
If it has been towed by DVLA they will not require a valid tax disc (or MOT or INS ) to release the vehicle. All they require is the release fee.
which will be about £80 within the first 24 hours (from the time of 1st clamping)
after 24 hours you will (if towed away) be charged for the towing fee another £80.
If they towed you immediately they do not charge for the tow until 24 hours has passed, (because they gave you no opportunity to pay before the tow).
After this they will also charge you a storage fee per day.
On top of the release fee is a deposit of I dunno... £100? which if you tax the vehicle within 7 or 14 days (I forget which) You will have returned to your credit card. You have to show the tax disc to a the people at the storge compound or your nerest DVLA office who will fax a form to the clamping compound saying the tax disc has been shown. and you get your deposit back.
Friend?s car (75k miles) is suffering an intermittent fault. Brought to idle a few miles after a cold start it misfires badly. EML sometimes illuminates. Misfire won?t clear until car is switched of and restarted, after which the problem will not occur for the rest of the day. In addition the EML sometimes illuminates when driving without causing any obvious problems with the car?s running.
MB dealer charges £250 for diagnostic and says ?unknown? fault code, finds one cylinder slightly low on compression (3 at 11 bar, one at 9bar I believe) and suggests fitting new cylinder head for £3k. Friend leaves MB dealer??..
Specialist confirms the above (for free), including unknown fault code. Thinks problem may be coil packs, but these show up as OK under test. He offers head repair for much more reasonable price, indicating it may be a sticking valve. Friend is going along with this. He?s going to keep the car for a while; reasons a burnt out valve won?t get any better and it eliminates one possibility.
We still think it may be electrical, but thought coil packs would tend to fail completely and not intermittently. Why does it happen only once after a cold start? Any suggestions greatly appreciated.
JS
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Update - haven't seen it myself, but I'm told that the head came off and one inlet valve guide was found to be loose in the head. The associated valve and seat are both slightly burned, hence the low compression. The theory is that this guide moved during warm up, held the valve off the seat, and caused the 'misfire' - actually a spell on 3 cylinders as that one lost compression - and the consequent burning of the seat. When the engine stopped it went back into place. So, just as well this problem is sorted. Head is away for repair. We shall see......
JS
Yesterday I did a very vulgar booze run to Calais, so in the space of a few hours joined the P and O ferry traffic both ways.
I was struck by how few cars/vans had bothered to display GB stickers or plates. That included some very newy-registered cars where I would have thought it would be the norm now, rather than the exception, to specify a GB plate when buying it.
P and O , both at Dover and on the ferry, made announcements re Euro driving requirements ( obviously hopeful of selling some kits) but few people took any notice.
It's not like people had rushed there at short notice- there were some very-elaborately organised roof racks/Thule boxes/trailers - but for some reason a lot of people ignore a basic requirement which I think has been the law for 20 years , and where as I understand it French police can have an on-the-spot fine from you .
It seems very arrogant behaviour but is there some deep-seated philosophical/political objection I haven't spotted?
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One week to Germany next month, Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance
UK Airport Hotel and 8 days parking £92
Flights for 2 and checked in baggage £86
7 days hire of a Focus estate £160
That is about £350. At say, 30p a mile, plus a channel crossing I don't think you can get your own car from Dover to Bavaria and back for less than £350. That's only my take on it and I do agree about the faff at the airports BTW!
A friend of mine is at his wits end with his X5 whose battery keeps going flat after a week or so.
It's been into the local BMW dealer numerous times, for new battery (x2), new ignition switch, new alternator (£1000!) but still the battery flatens after a week or so.
Any suggestions on a technical level, or recomendations for a company that will diagnose the problem?
Thanks in advance
MVP
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Alll BMW dealers should have a data logger system that they can connect to the car to monitor the quiescent current drain on the battery. When the ignition is turned off there is a 'shutdown sequence' as the various ECU's etc turn off - there is a spec for this sequence and for the quiescent current drain and the dealer should compare this against the current graph show on the logger.
It could be many things. I had a 7-series that had a fault with the system that applies pressure to the wiper blades. On a 5-series I had a fault with the heater ECU - difficult to find but by chance I heard the heater valves randomly 'chatter' whilst I was working on the engine. In both cases the battery would go flat overnight.
i own a 1997 p reg fiesta 1400cc zetec 16v ghia x and when the engine starts to warm up its making a loud ticking sound from the engine department, the ticking sound increases and decreases depending on the throttle but there is no smoke, oil loss ect but i hear if you use the wrong oil it can damage the engine? its done 109k miles any thing wrong/damage done or is it a case of a sticky valve/tappet
thanks Read more
oh and forsgot to say, tends to wobble/vibrate if i go over 4k rpm (??) the car shakes but not through the wheels but only if im driving, if i free wheel it doesnt do it.
thanks again/
Browse
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2002 ZT 190bph V6.....one of the best cars I've ever owned.
Actually saw it in a dodgy dealers last year (while looking for a runaround for the MiL), and sorry to say it looked a bit rough round the edges. The latest owner had obviously canned it and it was covered in scratches and damaged alloys. I felt like buying it back and putting it back to the condition it was in when I sold it..