July 2008

torribaz

Can anyone please advise me on how to change the cigar lighter on my Zafira A 1.6 16v. REG.2004. The lighter housing is lose in its facier mounting, the female part of the unit appears to be well worn, causing the power to it to be not constant to any of my plug in gear. Can I get to it without taking out the centre console ? If so can any of you guide me though the procedure as I am a relative novice with cars.
Any help with my problem would be greatly appreciated.

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burge

My indicators have been playing recently andf I believe its may well be the Relay. only thing is I cannot find it. I have looked in the fusebox beneath dash and the one on lhs engine bay but I cannot find it, does anyone know where else to look. Read more

burge

Indicators now working. it was the relay and it is at the top right of the fusebox under dash, coloured black so you cannot see it well in the gloom.

spudgun

I have an electrical warning light that sometimes comes on and the computer says it`s an exhaust valve sensor. Does this sound right? Is it easy enough to remedy? And how much do you think the part would be to replace? Read more

Screwloose

Not sure but my mate`s replacing it tomorrow.


How does he know what to replace and £160 is a lot to spend on something that may only need a clean?
watkins3651

Problems with car overheating, found that fans are not kicking in, have run a drect supply to them and they work, tested sensors in boiling water, they are ok, suspect the relays could be at fault but not able to find them, any idea,s ? Read more

watkins3651

Ok thanks mate, there is a box between the 2 fans i couldnt open, ill drill out the screws and take a look

Graham J

I bought my 130PS Sport Estate last autumn with 41K on the clock. Earlier this year, it lost power a total of four times, twice on the same hill and then twice on the same stretch of dual carriageway, accelerating out of a roundabout, all after about 40 minutes to an hour of driving . In every case, I had a warning "beep" and the instrument panel showed "EMISSIONS WORKSHOP!" The problem persisted for about 24 hours, but then cleared itself.
After the fourth event, I took it back to the dealer, who replaced a valve on the turbo under the extended warranty. A week or two later, the problem recurred and the car is now back with the dealer again, who is trying to recreate the fault, presumably by driving it around. I have read suggestions of an air mass meter fault, or a turbo variable vane problem. Any more thoughts or suggestions out there, please?
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Screwloose


I'd take a stab at 17965 - overboost. The coked vanes are very common - cleaning does work and is a far better option than a re-con turbo - but a brand-new dealer's turbo, for nowt, is even better.

Use good fuel and drive it hard; then it might take longer to clog again.

telecaster

Can anyone tell me if replacing rear tca bushings on this model is a diy job.

Can bushings be removed manually or do I need to get them pressed out and in?

I know there is a tool to do the job without removing arm from the car, but my budget wont allow im afraid.

Any advice most appreciated. Read more

Ed_too_much_m4

Recommendations on a fuel frugal semi-auto, focus sized (5 door)

BMW 118/120 seems expensive. Read more

boxsterboy

Citroen C4 HDI EGS or Focus TDCI Powershift are worth looking into - should be cheaper than a Golf DSG.

Lud

A friend's car has been hit while parked and the insurance wants to write it off. It is a red 1994 Golf III auto, in what I would describe as average condition. They have been offered £750 for it.

Is this a decent offer? Sounded like it to me, but I'm hopeless at that sort of thing.

The owners are Iraqis and I don't think they could cope with buying it back for peanuts and shepherding it through the body shop. Indeed not having seen the wreckage I don't even know whether that is a worthwhile option. The car was idling too fast and drinking petrol before the incident, and the local garage they were using in Richmond was obviously pretty hopeless having failed to deal with that or even mention it. So many garages are such incredible sluts I don't believe it sometimes. Read more

Lud

Thanks chaps. I think it is safe to regard this as a quorum. I have passed on the word (including onb's blue oval suggestion).

brashquido

Girlfriend and I have a 98 VW 1.9 TDI Passat Estate which until a recent road trip holiday was working perfectly (despite the 150,000 miles on the clock). During the last few weeks of this 4,000 mile driving holiday the car developed a problem with a pretty severe, but intermittent lack of power when on a motorway doing 60~70mph or when the engine is under load (such as going up a hill or accelerating to overtake). At first this happened very rarely but by the time we got home from our holiday a few weeks later was happening pretty much every day. This problem (or similar) seems very well documented on the web, and from what I've read it would seem there is potentially an issue with the MAF as when I turn the engine off and on again it operates normally again with no power issues.

As the amount of car knowledge my girlfriend and I have (especially TDI) could fit on a pin head we really are not in a position to try and fix this ourselves. I was going to just take the car into a VW dealer to see if they could fix it, however their hourly rate is fairly astronomical (plus I've read a LOT of threads where people seem to have gotten fairly poor service from VW dealers) so I was wondering/hoping someone could recommend a VW/TDI specialist in London to take our car too? Read more

JasonV

Depending on whereabouts in London you are I've used these people before and been very happy (they solved a problem on my car which one VW specialist said would cost 350 pounds for just 50):

Volkspares Ltd
104-104, Newlands Park, London, SE26 5NA
Tel: 020 8778 7766

Lucky 7

Hi all

A friend is having trouble with his old mk3 Fiesta - the idle speed is too low so, although it runs okay on the open road, slowing down for junctions etc. requires fancy footwork!
I initially thought the idle control valve would be at fault, however he turned up in it yesterday and it's spluttering and blowing black smoke, which would suggest overfuelling?
I think these ones are injection and ECU controlled, so no carb to fiddle with.
He also reckons the temp gauge barely moved off cold even when stuck in traffic on a day like yesterday - seems odd! Not sure if this is related or a separate problem to investigate!

Thanks in advance chaps...

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Screwloose


Start by checking the air filter, a blocked cat and for the presence of a thermostat.

What engine is this; single-point/multipoint etc.?