March 2008
Hello, am hoping someone can help, i have a Ford Focus C-Max Zetec 1.8 on an 04 plate. It's constantly needing to be topped up with oil and sometimes doesn't start very well. I took it to my mechanic who said he found oil in the 'inlet manifold'? and he cleaned out a valve - something to do with the breathing system i think? Either way i still have the problem. It doesnt appear to be leaking so the oil is going somewhere? Doesn't really seem to be too smokey either? But it uses lots of oil especially at long distance motorway cruising speeds or when i'm towing my caravan.....My mechanic spoke to two ford dealers and they too didnt know what the problem was.....has anyone encountered the problem before or any suggestions i could pass onto my mechanic would be REALLY appreciated! thank you, Emma x
{Shouting in subject line amended} Read more
Have read on the car-by-car report that there has been an issue with the air con on cars of my type/year. We have had a problem with the air con.
Has anybody had any experience of going back to Honda to take advantage of this 'extended warranty' that's been mentioned? Read more
Kudos to Honda. That's good going on an 03 car. >>
The "Hooray!" comment was in 2008, so within 5 years for an 03 car.
Standard 5 year warranties are not unheard of, and so IMO it is to be expected for an "extended" one.
In a complete change of direction, the misses and I by chance stopped at the Subaru dealer and have fallen big time for a 2004 2.0 X All Weather auto for £8450 with 30k.
I know there are plenty of owners here so before we sign on dotted line, what should we know and what price should we pay?
Cars really can be an emotional thing, theres something about these Subarus that even my new driver misses who thought a 207 Pug was a bit big can somehow get on with so easily :-) Read more
Here is the story as far as I see it regarding alarm fitment on early-to-mid 00's UK Subarus:
Subarus for the UK market were factory fitted in Japan with an engine immobiliser (information about the immobiliser is included in the Driver's handbook). Local Japanese market RHD cars had no alarm. When Subarus got to UK they were all upgraded to an integrated Cat 1 Alarm/ immobiliser based on a Sigma alarm. (Hence separate booklet).
Prior to 1999 all alarms were dealer fitted,
1999 Model Years /2000 the alarms were fitted by International Motors/ IM Group (the UK importers) at their centre in Quedgeley, Gloucestershire.
2001 MY/ onward: only the alarm wiring was factory installed but the rest of the assembly continues to be physically fitted in Gloucestershire (with the possible exception of Imprezas from Sept 2007 on).
Sources: subaruforester.org, scoobynet.com, thatcham.org
Below is a detailed post I found on scoobynet.com dated 25 jan 2005 by Sigma Sam (a top engineer working with Sigma alarms and Subaru):
QUOTE
The standard UK security system on earlier vehicles was refered to as Sigma M30 security systems - these security systems were fitted to all vehicles at the import centre in the UK, but the system was categorised as an "aftermarket installation" and relied on the Sigma M30's product evaluation number (see below).
As this was classed as an "aftermarket installation" a certificate of installation may be required by your insurance company.
Quick identification - the siren is visable under the bonnet & ultrasonic sensors on the A-pillar are of the "canon type".
On later vehicles & Imprezas from 2001 MY, the same Sigma M30 alarm system is used, however the security systems wiring loom was integrated into the vehicles wirng harness during production. This was now classed as an "factory installation" and the vehicle was assesed as a whole, to obtain a lower insurance grouping, and the vehicle given it?s own unique ?Thatcham Evaluation Number?. The combined "factory" security system was now refered to as the "Subaru Category One Alarm System".
As this was classed as a "factory installation" a certificate of installation is not required by your insurance company as it is a standard item - just the evaluation number for the vehicle.
Quick identification - the siren is not visable under the bonnet & ultrasonic sensors on the A-pillar are of the "sphere type" and colour matched to the trim.
The following evaluation numbers are given as a guide only. Please consult your dealer for the correct evaluation number for your vehicle:
:
Impreza:
1999 & 2000 MY (Sigma M30) TC2-808/0198
2001 & 2002 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2-1199/0501
2003, 2004 & 2005 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2-1265/1002
Forester:
1999, 2000 & Early 2001 MY (Sigma M30) TC2-808/0198
Late 2001 & 2002 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2-1202/0501
2003, 2004 & 2005 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2- 1265/1002
Legacy:
1999, 2000 & Early 2001 MY (Sigm M30) TC2-808/0198
Late 2001, 2002 & 2003 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2-1203/0501
2004 & 2005 MY (Subaru Category One Alarm System) TC2-1265/0803
END QUOTE
For an update of this list see: www.thatcham.org/security/pdfs/categories/Passenge...f
Hi all,
A few weeks ago SWMBO started a new job in south London to which she's been commuting every day. Yesterday, a couple of envelopes from TfL dropped on the doomat showing she'd been flashed in a bus lane, by the same camera on successive nights over a week ago. It was an honest mistake on her part, it is near a left filter and she thought the bus lane ran out there - obviously not! The thing that scares me is that she's evidently been doing this habitually (she's obviously stopped now!) so I don't know how many more identical notices are in the post. Sure enough another one turned today, same time, same place, and now I'm dreading the postman.
This is going to cost us an absolute fortune - £120 per offence with a bargain 50% discount for prompt payment, so we could easily be shelling out over £300-400 if she's offended every day since.
Naive question perhaps, but does anyone seriously think it worthwhile appealing to TfL for clemency, and perhaps escape SOME of the penalties? Right now I'm feeling very poor and a seething resentment of that nice Mr Livingstone.
Thanks Read more
The editing is irrelevant. Undertaking is no justification. You were in the bus lane for 5 metres. The road was quiet; you needed a bit of patience, that's all.
We can argue for a long time about the use of bus lane cameras, speed cameras, yellow box cameras and so on. They are all there because, without them, enough people drive in such a way as to be a PITA for others. Of course they are blunt instruments, but they are a fact of life and only an unobservant or careless driver gets caught.
Hi All,
My '05 primera 2.0 started misfiring after it was serviced about 8 months ago. The symptom is the rev needle kicking down at idle - I can feel the engine sort of "kicking", intermittent loss of power when pulling off, accelerating etc. It sometimes feels like the engine is "stuttering". Before the service there was no problem. The problem was only slight at first but it's getting worse. Trying to crawl along on the M25 this evening was a nightmare as the problem seems more acute at lower revs.
I'm assuming it's gonna be an electrical thing - faulty coil, spark plug or HV lead. Is this a reasonable assumption or are there other things that could cause these symptoms?
What's my best way to diagnose the fault?
I'm not a mechanic, but I can manage a basic service (better than nissan can judging by the loose, leaking oil filter I found), so any help much appreciated!
Thanks,
Matt Read more
For anyone interested, there was a crack in the ceramic of one spark plug! New spark plugs fixed the problem.
The \'official\' fuel consumption (and CO2) figures for vehicles are about as useful as a luminous sundial. Real-world mpg is much lower than implied, and because the relationship between \'official\' and real-world varies from marque to marque/model to model, the published figures can\'t even be used as a reference for comparison purposes.
Trying to get a fix on likely fuel consumption is made even more difficult by test reports\' preoccupation with the official mpg and CO2 figures and not bothering to record their own. I keep being told by Whattiresomecar? that \"a tankful will take you 700 miles\" or some other such inter-galactic distance. Yeah, right.
Underlying the official figures lists is a fun, intra-industry game in which one firm\'s boffins try to outsmart another\'s by ECU tweaks and other arcane manoeuvres. Intellectually satisfying to them, results in league-table positioning for their bosses, but of no consequence to the rest of us - apart from how the resulting VED hits our wallets.
As official fuel consumptions have fallen dramatically, my own fuel consumption has risen. Funny that. Read more
I entirely agree with the sentiments you express here, cjehuk, though I suspect that we lost awareness of the true cost of motoring when we started paying for insurance etc by reading out numbers over the phone and using a bit of plastic instead of fivers at the petrol pumps!
Could anyone please explain how to tell the difference between the 70bhp 1.3 ka engines from the less powerful 1.3 engines? Is the difference stated on the cylinder head or is their another way of telling? Did one version come out after the other or at different times to the other? The reason I ask is I have test drove a view and some seem faster than others. Is there a few checks I can do so I get a good one. Any help is most appreciated. Read more
Permission to hijack thread?
Is changing a clutch on the later type "similar" to the earlier one.
I ask because little brother wants help changing his clutch but all the usual Haynes manuals only seem to have the earlier engine in them. Seems straight forward enough at first glance.
Please can anyone help? i recently bought a 99 plate mondeo zetec.. and never thought to try and unlock the car with the key in the door,, as ive allways used the keyfob,,,, but for some reason i tried the key in the door and it wont unlock.... the only way to unlock the doors is with the button on the keyfob...... but it works fine to lock the doors with the key in the door.... it just wont unlock,,,
any ideas what might cause this please? Read more
update had a quick look on their site the £7 is for building the lock to suit, but you have to buy the lock off them as well.
I would be interested to here of others thoughts in respect of mpg numbers for a CRV oil burner. Am looking to buy and use for 600 miles per week and have gathered that manufacturers claims are often not being met. Does mpg improve with a few miles? Am looking to buy with 40k-50k miles.
Also, any reliability issues?
My alternative is an X type 2.0d.
Thank you
Billy Read more
Might as well buy the petrol version and enjoy.
We recently bought this car and have noticed that the engine intermittently cuts out. This has happened 4 or 5 times and is always at low speed - i.e. when stopping in traffic etc. It doesn't stall, just loses power completely. As we use the car mostly in London, this is going to be a pain if it continues! The rev counter is very low, seems to hover around the "5" mark and then suddenly plummets and that's it, engine off. Otherwise great and seems to be OK when cruising at steady speed. Any advice - oh, and please, I am not technical at all so answers in "idiot speak" would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you.
{typo in subject header amended. I presume you meant 1.4 and not 4.1?} Read more
Sorry but I don't know engine version.
megasnipquote
the engine code consists of 3 letters eg AWH,APE.AUA,AFH,AFK,AQQ,AUB, these can be found at the front of your service book or on a white sticky label stuck on top of the timing belt cover.
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It sounds like the mechanic cleaned the EGR valve, which can jam up and cause oil to enter the inlet. Poor starting could be linked with oily plugs, which might have been caused by oil leaking past a worn valve guide. If you stand behind the car when it is started from cold and you see a puff of blue smoke, that would tell you about a guide problem. Synthetic oil gets past very small gaps. It is probably not smokey when hot, although if too much oil is getting past the valves, then your emissions will be high. In a recent model like that, you should be able to breathe the exhaust it should be so clean. I think the small ford engines do have valve problems. The oil can only go out the exhaust, fall onto the road or go into the antifreeze. The mechanic can check all this and do a compression test to see if there is a valve problem.
You probably need a really good Ford agent who knows the engines to sort this, but not necessarily a dealer, as they are not always careful with your wallet.
good luck with it