August 2008
Hi All,
I have a 97 1.9 Diseal polo whose brake lights have failed I have checked the bulbs and fuses but both seem to be ok - Any ideas on what else it could be?
Also the engine starts fine from cold but won't restart when hot - i had the starter motor replaced in Feb and the car normally restarts fine when it has cooled down a bit but im baffled?! Was told it could possibly be the relay for heater but im not techinally minded so wanted to have some idea before asking a garage!
Thanks! Read more
I am looking for a contact number or the provider of the TMC service to Vauxhall fitted NCDR1100 Siemens combined tuner Satnav with RDS please.
Managed to find the software provider (Navteq or via Fleabay) for the mapping - just the TMC to sort out now...
All of the hardware is there to receive TMC - just need to find the provider! Read more
Actually, just checked, its 2007. It was in car when I got it, but it's yellow with a vauxhall logo.
The system pops up a menu after a few seconds of using satnav, asking if it can retune to a TMC station, so I think the settings are right. Here's the strange thing - last summer, when I went over to Belgium, it was working.
I have contacted Navteq, and they don't know if the disks for this unit can do 'UK RDS-TMC', and the dealers are clueless :(
I'm wondering if it needs a different disk to somehow enable it, but neither Navteq or Teleatlas can say (Teleatlas don't actually do one for my unit).
Hence, I'm desperately trying to find out how it worked for Tron, ie, any particular files on the CD, that I can then go back to Navteq with and ask if that exists on their disks? Or do I need to go for another car manufacturer that uses a similar system to my NCDR1100?
Hi,
I am a owner of HONDA CIVIC 1.6 SE VTEC (Y-REG 2001) and for the last few weeks my front workers are not working properly. Only the fast mode on the wiper works but i cannot turn off the wipers or put in either slow or intermittent mode. I showed the car to a mechanic who said that the relay has gone and for me to buy the part from Honda but he will not be back for 3 weeks as he is going on holida. I took the car to Honda who did not know how many pins my relay needed and asked for one of their mechanics to have look. The Honda mechanic said that my whole fuse box has gone and the parts department told me it would £283 for the part. It sounded like a rip off so i did not order the part. I took my car to another mechanic and he advised me to buy a wiper stalk which he fitted but still the same problem, he also checked the fuse box and the relays inside the car and the one fusebox under the bonnet still the same problem. I have now just bought a front wiper motor and am taking this to the mechanic later this week. Does this sound right so far? Is there any other issues that i may have missed? My MOT is due in 3 weeks time and i would like to get this sorted. Read more
The wiper motor replacement (Cost me £40) fixed the issue as a few of the pins stopped working. I have learnt that the Honda dealer in are more interested in trying to sell parts which are working perfectly fine than actually repair a problem.
I wondered lonely as a cloud
by ugly motors large and loud
All gas guzzlers plain to see
waiting for a monster fee
Wheels to grace a road going tank
tyres to bust a modest bank
in your face with lack of grace
dominator`s of rat and race
puff and pomp, supercilious glance
a personal lack below perchance?
Six, nay, eight, cylinders roar
as Egbert peers, over the door
Air-con on, to help survive
bacteria out, to grow and thrive
A road hump shunts and shakes the liver
and Egberts knees are all aquiver
The Wobble Master lurches on
But, `t schools runs over and the con
Cos, small is good and big is bad
you know it is, it`s not a fad
So snort and pomp and gloat at leisure
till, Gordon hits you with his measure.
(Inspired by looking around a couple of main dealers yesterday)
;)
Read more
Do any Back Roomers ever get the time to actually get out
(of their institutions)?
1 as in over $1 billion profit *PER SECOND*
tinyurl.com/5hcbhs Read more
>>And most importantly we need oil for food: to make fertilisers and run tractors etc...
Good point. In years to come we'll look back and think it was mad to waste such a wonderful chemical feedstock by burning it simply to keep warm and move around.
My Sapphire Black VX Zafira is suffering from the swirlies in the paint, along with some minor scratches that always look much worse than they are on a black car.
So before I go with the 'best wax\polish" thread suggestions, I need to get the swirls out. Any advice on what to go for and the best method to do it?
I used to have some Turtle Wax scratch remover, but I think that might be too abraisive to use on the entire car. Read more
Im not sure if i'm allowed to recommend or not, but a good friend of mine runs his own car detailing company, and although he specialises in Prestige cars, he did a lovely job on a Golf i used to own, and I can throughly recommend his services. He has worked on Maybachs, Ferraris etc and is very competent.
As I said, he is an old friend, but that is where my connection to his compnay starts and ends; im sure he would provide you with a no obligation quote; details can be found at www.theshinexperience.co.uk/ and i believe he offers a very comprehensive, and reasonably priced service.........
If it's not the sort of thing you are looking for though, i had some scraches machined out by a "good 'ol boy" in overalls and he did a marvellous job for £100..... highly recommend that approach..........
:-)
On my partners 106 the power steering always needs a quick blip on the throttle to start it off which isnt a problem. However now its starting to stop working during journeys. It passed the MOT today but obviously it needs sorting
Is there a way of fixing these pumps (im thinking it may be an electrical problem) or should i just get a replacement?
The other thing is that its a bit lumpy during cold starts for a minute or so. Its had a full service including glow plugs and injector cleaner
cheers Read more
A colleague took the end off the PAS pump and cleaned the accumulated carbon out on his Saxo which fixed the PAS for the rest of the time he had it. I think he had to take the pump out to do it (although he couldn't release the hoses, so ended up doing it with the pump hanging under the car), and it involves peeling back the tabs to get the end off IIRC.
The lumpy starting may well be valve clearances closed up, or it could be perished leak off hoses letting air in if it has a Lucas pump (Bosch pump + air = no start!).
Thinking - as one does - I had four friends when I was a teenager who had done the IAM test. The end result was that they all drove like maniacs. If they could skid round a corner, they would; if they could go round it on two wheels, they would. Driving was an opportunity to show off.
Is it still like that? Or was I unlucky with my friends? Half of them had prangs which were "somebody else's fault" which actually meant that if they'd been driving sensibly the accident wouldn't have happened.
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As an IAM member of some years standing I do think they have done much good work in the past and are a valuable organisation. They seem to have taken a 'wrong turn' recently in trying to become more 'commercial' and 'business focussed'. Hiring new 'executives' with 'commercial experience' presumably cost a packet, plus they've spent a load more on marketing recently. Probably better to return to their traditional roots and get rid of the costly overheads.
This sort of thing seems to be theme with some of our best loved British organisations - e.g. AA, RAC etc becoming more 'commercial' always seems to lead to a steep rise in costs and few advantages for the customer.
I used to do a fair bit of part-time work for the Open University, a really invaluable organisation. A few years ago they tried to become more commercial and hired various 'suits' to 'take them forward'. The outcome was a poor attempt to expand into the US and a rumoured loss of £60m. To recoup this loss they changed the contracts of us part-time tutors (which led to less pay for more work). I resigned, as did many other experienced staff, leaving a weaker organisation behind.
I have always said that I wouldn't have an auto gearbox at any price and that I really enjoyed driving a manual. I did have a couple of autos back in the late 70s, a Jag XJ6 and a Volvo 164, but I never really got on that well with them.
So what has changed my mind? Well we were in the US in June and hired a Toyota Highlander and drove around New England and I really loved the relaxed driving of the auto, so much so I will be looking for an auto option the next time I change.
Now I know about the different types of auto, CVT, DSG, i-Shift and so on but what are they like to drive in full auto mode? I have heard good and bad reports on reliablity but it's more to do with the driving experience. It would be a new model anyway as I know the technology is improving all the time.
Are there any auto drivers out there who have done comparisons between the different types of gearboxes?
Andyfr Read more
>I admit, I am in a dilemma.<
In my 05 1.8 Almera auto tawse, I often nudge 45 MPG up on the ole computer, which I know is only a guide, Herself - who is the main driver, rarely gets over 40 MPG.
In my mobile car tuning days, we had a slogan which went "Drive as if there is an egg under your right foot" which is good advice for today me thinks !
We don't cover a lot of miles these days, so don't be guided by me, if running cost is a big issue & you cover a fair few miles, then maybe diesel is "The Way To Go"
As a rough guide to how many of my previous cars are still running I checked on www.askmid.com how many are currently insured. The only one shown was my last car, a 2 litre petrol Focus. All the rest are "missing, presumably dead". Read more
Well checking up on this depresses me somewhat.
I've owned 23 cars since 2000.
Excluding the 2 I currently own, 6 of the cars I scrapped myself leaving a possible 15 which could still be on the road.
Out of that 15 a grand total of 3 are currently insured according to the database.
Most of the cars were late 80's/early 90's models so, with the current scrap prices, its probably to be expected.
Browse
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As you say lights makes me think is a problem with the switch from the pedal itself- have you looked at this?
Had a similar problem with a '95 Polo 1.6, rear n/s light used to fail intermittently, but was usually resolved with a good wallop to the light.
One other thing, is a few years since got shot of mine, but is it a brake light/ lights on combo? If so check bulbs aren't in upside down. May be brake lights are on in lieu of lights, and when press on brake pedal reverts to normal 'lights on' dimmer setting. Did this once myself on my Cordoba, but soon realised the error of my ways, and have seen a few colleagues make the same mistake.