Hi

What engine oil would people recommend to use in a Volvo S60 2.0T registered Sept 2001 with 72k miles on the clock?

Thanks, Chris. Read more

Last night, at a family gathering, we were talking about the holidays years ago, and especially how the seven of us used to travel in my dad's Cortina Estate, 3 in the back and 2 in the boot, all over Europe at holiday time, as well as in Britain every time we all went out together.

This was of course before seatbelts, airbags etc. Someone else mentioned how we have all grown older, we have all spent our childhood cycling, but never wore a helmet. But now we wouldn't think of going out without a helmet.

Now I know everyone will have seen the various emails doing the rounds, you know the one that lists all the things we used to do and eat and how we managed to survive!

But as my dad says, he has driven for best part of 50 years and has never had an accident, although he wouldn't now do it, with hindsight he says he could still have been driving about without seatbelt, having people in the boot etc.

Is the risk todays now more than it was say 20,30 years ago? Anyone got the stats to hand? OK, if you do have an accident nowadays then you have better chance of survival but did lots of people really die in car accidents 20/30 years ago?

Has the advent of ABS and other such aides made cars safer, or made drivers take more risks? I understand there will be more vehicles on the road nowadays but there are also more roads?Where Mr Butcher may have driven his lorry and dropped off to ten retailers, nowadays he just drives to Tesco / Sains etc and does one delivery surely?


Read more

My most enduring apprentice popped outside on a visit this warm February weekend. Its been pushing 15c on the south facing micro climate of our drive here in Yorkshire and a plaque of midges joined me in the spring (6 monthly) servicing our two vehicles.

I fished a few out with a screwdriver but then gave up and drank them as they entered the mug, making perfunctory grinding motions with my remaining back teeth.
Small black flies, crawling on my balding head and getting into the paper filter elements as fast as I blew them out.

Said apprentice now almost 20 years in learning from the master, looked at the proffered old air filter element and went back inside with no comment.

I thought things were looking up after 18 years when I was asked `is that a screw`, referring to a bolt I had left on the kitchen table, but to my chagrin, elemental interest proved secondary to its location and theory delivered with enthusiasm to the apprentice has not translated into practice.

There were earlier apprentices many years ago, these were not indentured and tended to be attracted to the master when their own car needed servicing. Often disappearing afterwards, I can still access a long term memory of one approaching me in a smiling multi teeth American sort of way with a can of Duckhams. ;(

In retrospect I think it was the can of Duckhams that caused this memory to endure.

Nature or Nurture? But still no luck in finding a suitable apprentice for role reversal experiences all those years ago and now the enduring apprentice has undergone response habituation to the kitchen bolt leaving me alone outside with the flies.

How`s your `apprentice` ? better luck?

Regards ;) Read more

a family friend has a bmw 323 auto (about R reg {That'll be about 1998 then?} ) and it needs dampers

i will offer to do it if its straightforward

is there anything tricky that might catch me out? any special tools i might need?

anything other than the dampers i might need ...top mounts /bump stops etc

im not near the car so i cant lean under and see whats what

will the wheel alignment be upset? Read more

This is a long, rambling post and you are under no obligation to read it in its entirety unless you are the luckless moderator who is on duty today.

9:15 Friday morning and elder son is on the phone saying his car has no power and is making a "crazy noise". He has had his mirror full of HGV lights and much blowing of horns and rude gestures from other motorists as he made his way to the hard shoulder of the A1 just south of Scotch Corner, so he is too rattled to tell me what might be wrong. I tell him to stay out of the car and wait 10 minutes for me. My money is on the 12-year old exhaust falling off. I throw some tools, jack, axle-stands, coat hangers, gaffer tape and tow rope in the car and stick the amber beacon on the roof. There's the Citroen AX, hazards blinking, just north of the services, so I light up the beacon and my hazards and pull in behind him. Son is looking extremely forlorn as though it might be his fault. A paternal arm round the shoulder and some reassurance about all cars breaking down eventually is called for. The weld holding the collar on the front down pipe has rusted away and the exhaust's front end is resting on the ground. It only takes 2 minutes to drive the car up on a stone, tunnel underneath and coat-hanger the exhaust to an engine mounting. I am keen not to tow because son has only been driving a year and his experience of towing on a rope is nil. A Highways Agency Discovery clocks us from the other carriageway. We plan the best route home for a small convoy and son asks what would happen if he were stopped by the law, given that he has an illegal exhaust. I tell him that a policeman would have to be very, very grumpy indeed to penalise him and I would be behind him for moral support anyway.

2:30 Sunday and one of the ladies I have been on a course with appears at the house saying that her Astra won't start. It's been left round the corner with the lights on for 6 hours and there's just enough juice to make the dash lights glow until the key is turned. I press the newly-exhausted AX into service for a jump start. It takes only a minute to realise that the jump leads that have been sitting in the AX boot for over a year are useless, dangerous even. The plastic insulation of one clip bubbles, melts on to the battery and then smokes vigorously. I return home for the jump leads from my car. While the AX is running at a brisk tickover, I look in the battery cells. The plates are scarcely damp. Even the manufacturer's sticker from 2004 is covering two of the cells so I doubt they have ever been topped up. My delightful colleague is determined to justify leaving the lights on by claiming that there was no warning beep when she opened the door. That would be because the interior light switch on the driver's door doesn't work. After a few minutes charging, the Astra starts and runs sweetly. I recommended a new battery as the concept of having the car serviced reliably seems alien to her. She gushes thanks and leaves.

Comments welcome.
Read more