August 2008
I have a Zafira on a 56 plate with the panoramic roof option and now I wish t add a set of roof bars to carry the children?s bikes. I already have tailgate bike carrier so I need to explore this option. Has anyone purchased a set of roof bars for a Zafira with this option and if so could you tell me which set? The middle section of the panoramic roof is about 2 cms above the level of the roof rails so there is a clearance issue that I am concerned about.
Thanks
Paul Read more
does any one know how to beat the tracker on my audi rs 8 as it keeps sending out gprs signals and i have had it into local dealer 3 times to be told it fine any ideas thanks in advance
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sorry to all. my mate was messing around and posted this under my name. sorry for wasting your time chaps
In which case, LOCKED.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/kent/7583788.stm
I guess this occurs in other parts of the country.
From the above link
" But Nigel Humphries of the Association of British Drivers said speeding should only be monitored from the ground.
"The way it should be worked is that the police officer decides a person is going too fast for the conditions, then uses the radar gun to check what speed they're doing," he said.
"Then they can produce evidence to prosecute them for that. You can't do that from 3000 feet." "
I suspect the heli is more likely to notice vehicles that are way over the limit so the " for the conditions" would not apply. Read more
VASCAR was the equipment-Visual Average Speed Computer.
My 2l petrol Hundai Coupe has cruise control- my first experience of it.
Going north on the French A75- pretty steep and twisty at times and rises to 1500m- the cruise control could not maintain the desired 130kph (80mph) at times and just cut out. The torque gauge indicated 175Nm max in 5th.I could only get up to the desired speed in fourth which was a rather noisy affair. Miffed to be overtaken by a bog standard Corsa on one hill.
My old 100Ps Passat diesel turbo would have taken the hills easily with its greater torque.
The scenery was very spectacular and the Millau Bridge is worth a photo session at the north end aire.
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You're not the only one to struggle on that road. I was there a fortnight ago, and there were plenty of cars which had earlier shot past me at high speed who I then reeled back in on the hilly bits because they simply couldn't keep up the pace.
As motorways go a lovely drive though.
I would agree about the rest station on the north end of the viaduct, although I have also now found out (since I got back, annoyingly) that there's a little road you can go on from there which leads under the viaduct, and from which can be taken truly breath-taking shots.
Does anyone know about this please?
I have had to replace 3 tyres this year because of damage caused by debris on the roads - it is now getting expensive - surely cheaper for me to insure and just pay a one off premium? Read more
I managed two in the space of two weeks. Both had loads of life left in them and both could not be repaired.
First was a cut in the sidewall, probably caused by the tyre slipping off the edge of the raised tarmac on a single track road. This has led me to be a bit more careful when trying to pass cars on single track roads but taking the tyres off the tarmac can't always be avoided. The narrow lanes can't easily be avoided either.
Second was a 4" nail stuck in the tyre which I probably picked up on a visit to the local tip. Sadly the length of the nail and the angle meant the tip was rubbing against the inside sidewall, thus gouging a crater in it otherwise it could have been repaired. How a 4" nail stands upright enough to poke into a tyre I don't know.
An expensive two weeks!
Hi NC,
Do you know of any links to info on the pros and cons of heavier and lighter flywheels and technical stuff behind these pros and cons.
Thanks. Read more
>>too light causes NVH issues
Yes, there's an element of customer acceptibility here. The Vauxhall 3 cylinder engine, for a modern example, has a heavy flywheel which makes gear changes a little bit slow.
The effect of a flywheel is most keenly felt at tickover, because, say, a 50 rpm difference between the crank speed at its fastest compared its slowest is significant, and easily felt at at 800 rpm, and lost completely at 6000 rpm!
Despite us always looking at the rpm counter and accepting the number, the crank is constantly being accelerated back and forth, by compression and by power strokes - what we see on the clock is some slower moving average.
I am looking to quickly jack in my 2000 MkII 1.8 petrol Mondeo before the clutch finally gives in, but unfortunately as per usual on a budget (circa £2.5k)! The trouble is I'm not quite sure where to look. Despite the credit crunch, fuel prices etc. etc. I enjoy driving too much to be overly sensible and want to upgrade to something possibly bigger, probably upwards of 2litre, that will be comfortable and sensible when I need it to be, but also enjoyable when I want it to be, and something that isn't going to hit me with four figure bills every time a bulb or fuse goes... I don't ask for much :) I have one or two ideas but not enough, so all thoughts positive or negative are welcome :) Read more
Re the 1.8T engine. I had one in a Audi A4 for a while. Nice enough drive but thirstier than you would imagine. No real advantage over some bigger engines in that respect.
Hi all,
Clutch cable on my Espace snapped last week. I replaced it and have struggled a bit to get the adjustment just right, but is now reasonable.
Since replacing I'm getting strange noises and things just don't feel quite right:
- On starting the engine there is a single thump/knock when it actually starts
- First and second gear are noisy, juddery and feels like slipping
- Increased vibration at high speed
Could this be simply not having the cable adjusted properly, or is it more likely that damage has occured to the clutch/transmission when the cable broke? Or maybe the cable breaking was a sympton of something else?
Any help very much appreciated.
maceman
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hi how long did this take you to fit roughly, and was it a very hard job, do you need any prfessonal tools like a ramp or can it be done from jacking up the car. and how much and were did you purchase your cluch cable if thats all it is from as im sure mine is about to go struggle to get it in gear and very slacky cable at engin end.
kind regards luke
Not sure if theis is a general discussion point or if the mods want to move to SatNav specific thread.
Blaupunkt have a new system coming next month which uses a camera on the back of the unit to give a realtime image and overlays the directions.
It also recognises speed limits and provides warnings.
www.blaupunkt.com/de/7612201660_main.asp
Can't help wonder how it will look when driving in a blizzard at 3am. Read more
The £69 unit was advertised on a flyer I picked up in store.
Hi, I got bitten by the bugs on the later shape (2004 on) DCi's with the turbo's and intercoolers failing amongst other things. But now my extended warranty has left than a year to run, and the car looks like its going to have another replacement turbo and intercooler, what do I do now because Nissan obviously have not really fixed the problem? At just over 54K miles is it acceptable for Nissan to just keep changing the items until the warranty runs out without addressing the underying cause?
I drive fairly economically (sometimes get over 40mpg), I fill up with Shell fuel most of the time, I treat the vehicle carefully and I change the oil and filter every 6K miles, not the advised 12K. I also have the air and fuel filter changed ahead of schedule too. I tow small trailers fairly regularly and a large one occasionally.
The intercooler and pipes around it are leaking again, so it sounds like another turbo is on its way out (booked in tomorrow). This is in addition to a whole host of problems with the gearbox (now replaced) but still not selcting smoothly, timing chain changed, timing guides changed and some other more minor items. The car has been into Sturgess at Leicester so many times and for so many weeks at a time (I have to say they have been pretty good & very understanding).
Nissan themselves (or should I say the RAC who are Nissan apparently run UK Customer Service) have been less than understanding, I managed to squeeze a years extended warranty out of them which the dealer and myself topped up to 2 years to try and get these issues sorted out. The thing is, is it acceptable for them to just keep changing these items and not addressing the cause of the problem?
I feel like taking a small-claims action against them for the cost of a replacement engine because of there reluctance to address an underlying issue. The inconvenience you go through when it's off the road (try getting a hire car with a tow bar ..?). Banging another turbo on every 8K miles until the warranty runs out & then trying to wash their hands of it surely cannot be right.
I would like to keep the vehicle quite a lot longer (it drives beautifully), if anyone can give me some advice as I don't want to be forking out for huge bills after next April I would appreciate it.
I'm sorry to say we bought the vehicle on Honest John's recommendations, I can see now why he withdrew this. I blame Renault meddling about with Nissan!
Thanks, Peter
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Browse
I'd suggest consulting your dealer's parts desk first. I wouldn't think you'd have a problem - the roof bars for both our rail-less cars (Volvo and Toyota) have more like 50mm of clearance from the centre of the roof. In any case, my experience is that you pay about the same for manufacturer-branded items as for the likes of Thule - and the quality is comparable, since I think my Volvo bars are made by Thule anyway - so that's what I'd be inclined to do.