October 2007
Has anyone experienced a snapped timing chain on their SLK 230 Kompressor?
I have a 1997 model whose chain snapped a couple of weeks ago. The garage says I need a new/second-hand engine. Would it be worth trying to assess the damage before doing this bearing in mind the labour costs? Finding another engine seems to be a mine field!!!
Help!!!!
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I have a '97 325tds touring which I'm very happy with but I'm beginning to notice a lack of power at low revs, lumpy running from cold, poor starting when hot and occasionnal the fuel injection warning light comes on and the car looses power but this rectifies itself when I lift off and re-apply the throttle. The car has done 133000 miles and had a new diesel injector pump 2 years ago at great expense, I would like to keep it for much longer. I'm wondering weather it's worth have new injectors fitted or the original ones refurbished. Do you think this is necessary and if so what sort of costs would be involved? Read more
richy
Try your local garages; there are literally tens of thousands of scantools around now.
Most of the e-bay rubbish is for the US market and probably won't be much use on that year.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/7058736.stm
..Jurors heard his high-performance BMW 6 series car.....
....the boxer did not accept his car was a high performance vehicle capable of rapid acceleration.
He said it reached 0-60 in 7.2 seconds which was "just like an average car".
Mr Khan, who denies dangerous driving, reached a top speed of 47mph as his BMW hit Mr Hatton, breaking his leg.
Perhaps I do not understand what a high performance car is.
The BMW site states:- base model 530i 6.2 secs and the 650i 5.2 secs for 0-62.
Perhaps he had an old base model ?
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13 months to come to court, playing the system to its limits.
Once met Khan at Leeming Bar McDonalds (of all places) and he seemed a decent kid but surrounded by pink fluffy dice.
A lot of the money he will make is based on reputation; looks like he's taking that apart bit by bit, a shame really he should have a look down the road to Hamed and see where he could end up.
I've just been quoted £70 to supply and fit new glowplugs to my 1995 peugeot 306 turbo diesel (Bosch pump). Does this sound a bit too cheap?
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Bang on Peter....
Our ZX TD stopped starting and I was in a rush so changed the 3 easy ones in abuot 1/2 hour. The other one got left for about 10 months before I summoned up the courage to have a go - took another hour or so to change it. If anything, as I remember it, worse than the BX - there's a coolant pipe that comes out of the head right about the plug and REALLY restricts access, and the injector pipes seem more awkward - you can *just* get your hand in behind the pipes with no 3 plug out to turn no 4 1/2 a flat at a time with finger tips. Better than my Sister's 'easy' 1.9 N/A Lucas pumped ZX where the plugs were v tight and I sheared a big lump off the cylinder head.....
Whilst they will start on 3 they're lumpy and smoky - better with a full set!
--
RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
Central Scotland Police caught a real speeder - not 34mph in a 30 (as many people who are caught) but 122mph in a 60 limit at 11pm on Saturday night.
The local by-pass is 60mph for much of its length and 40mph at other stretches.
Should make interesting reading when it gets to court - cannot imagine it will be £60 and 3 points for this one.
Maybe this driver needs the help of a well known traffic offences lawyer! Read more
which one of these is dangerous at 122mph on a deserted, straight, public road?
-traffic cop on police bike.......just passed his bike course and this is his first run 'in
anger'. Was weak on his course and only just passed.
-fire chief in official fire car going to a genuine emergency...has had pains in his chest
and has been meaning to go to the doctor.
- NHS driver, seconded to Blood Transfusion Service, driving marked car with blue light
delivering urgent blood supply. Had a few too many last night, is under the limit, but
feels 'rough'.
- young lad, mid 20's, on his own bike, does track days and 'knows what he's doing'.
Dad is a bike mechanic and makes sure the bike is tip top.
Three are legal, one is not. Are they all dangerous? Or maybe just the illegal one is dangerous. Or maybe each set of circumstances need to be looked at to establish the danger, if any.
I know this is a bad case of 'what if' and there is a degree of training for some of the above, which the young lad couldn't have....but i'm trying to make the point of not making automatic assumptions, which many, inc courts and the govt, often do.
hi quite recently i have found an odd warning light come on it seems to come on when i brake though wether it indicates a braking problem i cant say as my brakes still seem pretty responsive. the light comes on just above the temparature gauge and is a bright red i stil do not know what it is as it is an odd shape that i cant describe and it will only flash up momentarily so i cant get the detail either but it is a good size, when driving the car it all seems fine nothing out of the ordinary. although service is overdue by about 4 months. i would greatly appreciate any help with this knowing next to nothing about cars. i have checked the brake fluid oil, water levels etc and all are fine. thanks in advance for any help with this matter the car is a 99 T plate and has about 115000 on clock radiator was replaced at about 98k and temp seems to be fine. Read more
Hi
have you had your AC checked recently I think this light indicated that your AC fluid is saturated with humidity check the colour of fluid in condenser pot,
but if you never had AC drained and refilled it most likely the problem, costs £44.00 at Kwit fit
Hi,
I have a Fiesta 1.25 Zetec that is losing power.
It has almost no response to the accelerator, will not go up hills and eventually grinds to a halt. Ford dealer says it is either ecu failure or complete exhaust and catylist replacement but will not commit to either.
Basically they have given up.
All the usuals have been checked: HT electrics, fuel, etc. and seem OK.
Anybody able to throw some light onto what it could be?
Thanks Read more
If the ECU had failied you would not even be able to start your car.
Following on from the 'first plastic wheel hub' and 'last starting handle' threads, does anyone care to hazard a guess as to the first car with plastic bumpers (now universal) and the last car with metal bumpers (once universal)?
My opening guess is Renault 5 (1971?) for first plastic bumpers and 2CV (1990) for last metal bumpers. Read more
>>Replacing the colour coded section of tissue paper on my '96 Mondeo
would probably class the car as an insurance write-off.
>>
I would agree that they are "insubstantial. A replacement was about £200 ( plus fitting) last time I looked.
Hi there, I wondered if you could throw any light on an issue - this morning I noticed when idling in traffic (normal 900rpm) the dashboard display for date, time etc went brighter when I raised the engine revs, the headlamps were on at the time on dipped beam.
I thought it may be either the alternator not keeping enough charge at low rpm or else the battery is not 100% even though the green eye indicator looks fine.
It is a 2002 Astra 1.6 and I suspect on its original battery five years old. At the weekend I changed the timing belt, water pump and thermostat and refitted original alternator belt, it has one of those automatic tensioner wheels so I assume it's at the right tension.
I am considering fitting a new alternator drive belt, then cleaning up battery terminals before looking at the battery.
If you have a voltmeter can you test battery and alternator function by putting it across the terminals and it should be 12 volts or more as the engine increases?
Thanks Read more
Cheers, thanks for replies. Yes it was probably under load with headlights and heater on. Will do basic checks and keep an eye on it's cranking speed. At this time of year you start to notice how cold affects batteries that are getting past it.
So far as possible, I stick to 70mph +/- 1mph. Drivers who speed up and slow down the whole time interrupt free flow of traffic. They are also very irritating; you start to overtake them; they speed up; you drop in behind; they slow down; you start to overtake them etc.
I find I have no trouble at all at cruising at a specified speed. Strangely, nor do other drivers when average speed cameras are around. It does not require me to stare at my speedo the entire time. Traffic flows extremely well in 50mph average speed zones. I suggest average speed cameras for the entirety of our network.
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Of course I understood you perfectly dc. If you insist on driving at the same average speed as these knackered old vans, but without the same spread owing to your vehicle's superior performance, they are bound to annoy you by passing you downhill and then falling back uphill.
The solution for you is to go faster. Or, if you must, slower.
Whether you want to or not has nothing to do with it. If you don't like knackered old vans buzzing round your ears, go faster than them. Or slower.
See? Easy.


Chains rarely just snap, especially if its a dual chain. Out of interest were you on a long oil change service regime?