October 2007
Currently have a diesel Caravelle as my main transport and I can't stand it any longer! I'll keep the old bus, but was thinking of raiding the shoeboxes under the bed for something cheap and sporty around £3k.
Although I would prefer something small to mid-sized I'll consider all sizes if there's a conspicuous bargain to be had. I hired an old 1.8 Focus Zetec recently and absolutely loved the handling, just need something similarly good to drive, with a bit of shove.
Any suggestions?
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According to this www.banditmania.co.uk/servicing.htm I should be only using mineral oil in my 2006 Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit ?
Am I wasting money using the more expensive Castrol GPS motorcycle specific oil........help im confused! Read more
Putoline DXP 10/40 seems to do very well in the air-cooled models - certainly my 600 seems happy with it.
Just bought this Aug 2002 E39 which I did a 500 mile round trip to see. It's in nice condition and I had an inspection done before I went. It has a few wee sorts to do - trim issues and the like. Should I start using the main dealer or an independent specialist?
By the way, I paid £9K. It's done 75K and has a full service history. BMW up to 40K and then specialist after that. It's the Sport auto box and has leather. 2 owners from same family. Drives really nicely. Sound like a good deal? Read more
Isn't that "doomblue" colour of your BMW actually a special edition or individual "midnight blue"
or "aegean blue" or "toledo blue"?
nah, pretty sure, as the code is 'dunkel blau' 263 (non-metallic dark blue)
scrubs up pretty well though
i always thought that doom blue was a lighter shade of dull blu, like you sometimes see on golfs and audis (no jab intended)
I have a 3 year old Corsa 1.2 Design fiited with Pirelli P6000 185/55 R15 on 6J by 15 H2 steel wheels. I recently needed to use the spare for the first time and was surprised to find it was a 175/65 R14 Continental Eco on a 5 1/2J by 14 H2 wheel. My initial thought was that was intended to save space in the spare well as it is 1/2 inch less deep - but more likely it's just the wrong wheel.
Any ideas? Read more
DD
Hmm. The wording is is key here. It says 'nominal size', not matching diameter. The profile example given shows an acceptable variation of 2 percentage points. This car has 15 inch road wheels and 55 profile tyres and a 14 inch spare with a 65 profile tyre. I think it is therefore clearly a different nominal size (15" v 14") and aspect ratio varies by 10 percentage points. Generous tester might say 'you will get that puncture fixed, won't you?' and pass it, but I wouldn't be hopeful!
JS
My daughter's Saturday music centre band has got through to play at the Schools Prom at the Royal Albert Hall. We've organised a coach but I now find myself on a course in Birmingham that week so will have to travel by train or car from there. If it's the car can anybody suggest where I could park from, say, late afternoon to about 23.00. There is parking at the RAH but I think you have to book it with the tickets which we've already got. Thanks Read more
last time at RAH we parked in one of the Imperial College sites just SW
of RAH
if only I could remember the street...
The entrance to the Imperial College car park is on Exhibition Road.
hi guys,
long time no post on here
looking to change the wife's polo to something with a little bit more prestige and comfort for her motorway journey to Manchester everyday.
Currently has a 2003 polo tdi sport 1.9 100bhp.
Have seen a 2004 04 Audi A3 2.0tdi 140bhp 3 door.
Its the sport spec with lots of extras like xenon lights,cream suede/leather interior,parking sensors,cruise control, etc
mileage is 119000 with full Audi history.
We have been offered 4k for our polo as part exchange value and need to pay additional 5k to get the Audi.
My questions are?
Is this a good deal?
Are these engines good....never knew there were 2.0 diesel..assumed all were 1.9
Are these PD engines?
Is the mileage of the Audi going to cause problems?
Anything i should watch out for?
Thanks
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Whether rubber's a closet dealer or not, his question has provoked a decent debate, with much useful information in a very mainstream type of buying decision process, so I welcome it!
One of the good things about the car is that it's only 2004, so parts unaffected by mileage are still new-ish, such as electric window etc.
Mileage presumably only affects shocks, engine, gearbox, and if it mostly motorway which seems likely, each will be in better condition than mileage suggests. Perhaps better indeed than same age and only 25,000 around the centre of Manchester.
Whether it's actually worth paying a premium for the Audi over a Focus or Golf or Astra I'm not qualified to say. Is there really much evidence that the total lifespan and repair bills for Focus' are shorter and higher respectively than for Audis? A Focus Ghia from 2004 with 30,000 might cost only £6,000?
Hi all
On returning form a job this morning, the Orange Glowplug? light started to flash about one mile from base. Continued back to base and switched off. After a couple of hours i have just started it and the light continues to flash.
no other problems - drives / sounds as normal.
Can anyone tell me if this has a single meaning (& what it means) or could it be a number of things?
Could really do with using the van again tonight but will make other arrangements if need be.
Van is a 2002 model with 36k on the clock.
Any help appreciated. Thanks.
Slight SL tweak and Posters own edit edited in ! Read more
Thanks all.
Nearside brake light seems to have been the culprit.
I am currently borrowing my ex's Lexus SportCross and shall valet it before return. Sometime during the last 3 years paint has appeared on the leather seat squab...not looked closely but gloss I assume. How best to remove without marking the leather?
(As an aside, after 15 years of van ownership she continues to treat it like a van for her retail business...the back seats have been permanently down since purchase and it is full of shavings, hay,rabbit food, peanuts...for those people who like to clean their cars every week it would break your hearts!)
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"she continues to treat it like a van"
No wonder she's your ex!
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Tis True! Twas the "Rhino's" ;-) must of won and drunk more pints on other bets than I thought! ;-)
Billy
Hi, i'm struggling to get my rear brakes off.
Namely the drums.
I've released the handbrake adjuster as far as it will go and have given the drums a good battering with a decent mallet to coax them off. But the shoes have produced a lip on the inside of the drums which are catching and making it difficult for the things to come off.
Any ideas? Maybe a puller or somethin similar?
thanks,
Jon
{refomatted layout of post - DD} Read more
I've had the rear drums on my Mk1 Focus off many times.
As mentioned above, undo the 4 bolts at the rear of the plate that the stub axle is bolted to - this will allow the drum/hub and stub axle to be removed together and doing it this way removes (a) the need for undoing the hub nut and (b) the risk of damaging the bearings.
In my case, one of the bolts is tricky to remove as it's obscured by the brake pipe. The only way I've found to get this one off is by using a 10" breaker bar with pivoted head and the correct size socket.
When it comes to putting them back on, it's obviously extremely important to put them back on at the correct torque !
Browse
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Yes, I've read a lot of the owners' reviews and cautionary tales about big ticket repairs...excellent advice about avoiding sludge build-up btw.
The one comforting thing is the fact that the owner was obsessive about caring for the car (he was a Saab nut) and had a friendly independent specialist to keep bills sensible - I think that's the key to running a risky choice like the 9-5 well past its first flush of youth.
I drove three examples and found the manual version very nice but not quite as 'urgent' as the autos - they seem to match the power better with more 'real world' shove.
I have owned several turbo cars, including a Scooby import and the sublime Bimmer 330D and you cannot beat the feeling of forward motion a turbo gives you - it's very addictive.
It was a real head/heart battle and in the end the heart won the day!
R