September 2008
Hi all,
Just got a year old Corsa with 14500 on the clock. Problem we're having is that when we first use the car for the first time that day, it seems to have no power to get properly moving. We live in sheffield, which is quite hilly, and as soon as we turn left at the end of our street up a small and not very steep hill, the car just hardly moves and takes about 3 seconds until the revs finally start moving and you rely on the turbo to kick in. Once you've used it for about 5 or 10 mins though, it seems to be alright. I've been beeped by so many cars already where I've pulled out in front of them with loads of time to spare, but the car just dies on its pink fluffy dice - who HASN'T read the no swearing forum policy then!!
Surely I shouldn't have to 'warm up' the car before it gets any decent pulling power? Anyone else having this problem? Do I need to return it for repair? Read more
Hello i have just bought my first car a 1.3 ford fiesta finesse 2000.
Its done aprox 47,000 miles.
Everything seems fine with the car (except one thing) and on the test drive everything was ok. However on the way home from picking it up i've noticed there is a fault with the speedo. Sometimes it sits at zero and othertimes it jumps into action.
Because im a new driver who lives right down a road with about 11 speed camera(traps) i need to sort it pretty quick so i dont get any points!!!
Anyone know what could be wrong, if its a big job and how much i'm gunna be looking at spending?
Thanks for anyone that helps me out.
Louise Read more
its stopped counting the miles which it used to before this core plug was replaced?
Because the intermittant speedo fault has turned into a pernament one! I'd be sure it wasn't counting all the miles before!
The gearbox-mounted speed sensor is a common failure point, especially on Focuses.
Any ideasi've heard the speedo was linked to the gearbox from 2000 models?
Take 100 years off that and you might be nearer the mark.
The alternator on my 1995 K11 Micra has packed up. And possibly the battery, too.
What's the cheapest way to get working replacements?
* Ring round some scrap yards. But a friend at work advised me that there is no guarantee that their alternators would not be duff also. He advised I look for a reconditioned alternator. Where is the best place to get these and what is the likely cost?
* Maybe a daft question. Is it possible to buy second hand batteries?
Thanks
Mike Read more
If you can find a good local auto-electrical place they will have the facilities to test the alternator for you if you take the component into them. Should they find something wrong then they should also be able to repair it for you, e.g. change the diode pack or regulator, which should work out cheaper than a reconditioned alternator.
If you're changing the battery anyway, and the alternator isn't putting out over about 15 volts (they can, undercertain fault conditions, output a very high voltage which will "cook" your new battery!) then just see how you go in the next week or so. With luck it might just have been the battery.
One final thing. Make sure that you haven't got a permanent load drawing current from the battery, even when the ignition is switched off and the car is locked-up for the night. I once needlessly changed a perfectly good battery for a brand new one, only for the new one to be totally flat the next time I came to use the car!
The reason?
On carrying out some investigative work I discovered there was a fault in one of the two horns fitted to this particular car. The horns were permanently live, even with the ignition switched off, and this particular fault was causing a current of about 3 amps to be permanently drawn from the battery even when the car wasn't being used. The horn didn't sound, it was just drawing this current continuously.
You can check for something similar by removing one of the battery connections and placing a digital multimeter set to measure current (amps) between the battery terminal and the removed lead(s). There is bound to be some current drawn in this condition with the ignition switched off due to alarm systems, etc, but anything over about 100mA needs further investigation.
It's time to get rid of our 2002 V6 Omega, so just looking for some views from you knowledgeable lot.
As a family we take a leaf from comrade Stalin book and plan 5 years ahead budget of all our motoring needs for 10000 miles/year.
We do mostly motorway miles. We includes all of our spendings = petrol+insurance +maintenance+VED , never buy new and try generally to drive the most comfortable car we can get for £3000 x 5 years = £15k.
Just had a look at Autotrader and found that four years old VW Phaeton petrols go for £8000 to 12K. Say we get a not very high miler (at 50k miles+) do you think we can run it within our budget? or are we looking for troubles?
Our budgeting system worked well in the past and we like to keep it that way.
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The Phaeton is built in Dresden I have been in and watched them being assembled
Ditto. Well worth a pilgrimage to worship the cut-away W12 engine on its pedestal.......and then walk back to see the even more complicated astronomical clocks built nearly 500yrs ago.
[there's also palace room full of rare expensive trinkets to entertain a less mechanically minded partner while you're contemplating these marvels....or driving the Phaeton around their virtual circuit ...it's free!]
My 1.3cdti won't start from cold, and misfires when coming out of overrun. When starting, the tank fuel pump runs for a fraction of a second and stops. I have to keep turning the ignition off and on without cranking the engine until the tank fuel pump runs continuously and then it will start.
Anyone got any idea why?
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My 04 1.3 cdti car in this cold spell over the last month seems to be getting worse to start. Today it is stuck at my work car park in Greenford and finally after 1/2 hour still won't start. It was needing on off on off etc key turning until I heard a sort of extra pump noise to the fuel pump clunk..then it would start. I also wonder if it could be something to do with the inhibitor security. How much is the injection system relay and where is it located ? I can't see it being the fuel pump as once it started it would run fine.
Just very early stages of looking at used cars, any one have experence of owning a Volvo 850 GLE 2.5 Estate with a manual gearbox circa 1995/6 vintage. Just really interested in likely fuel consumption. I live in fairly mpg friendly Norfolk which helps a little. The fuel consumption figures are likely to determine if i look at them any further.
Anyone know if govt fuel figures were compiled for cars back in the mid 90's? and if so can one access them anywhere.
Thanks in advance
Mark W Read more
Many thanks guidence so far. Think i am going to hold fire for the moment, but this is the ebay car that sparked my interest. Should point out i have no interest other than the fact i have followed this seller over last few months and is not that far from me, and i like his selling style! Have never met the guy.. Specializing in Volvo's and Rover 75's.
220279230140
As always your thoughts welcome.
Thanks again
Mark W
A fire officer told me a few years ago that since unleaded petrol has been introduced they have been called to lots more vehicle fires, and that more catch fire in collisions than they ever had before.
What brought this to mind is that there was a recent accident nearby where the vehicles burst into flames on impact according to witnesses. I have noticed quite a few patches of burnt tarmac on our travels down the A9 where other accidents have occurred so wondered if there was something in what he said. Read more
Carbed car engines would run at AFR around 10:1 to perhaps 12:1
Not if they were correctly adjusted they wouldn't! Nor am I convinced that hot manifolds were the likeliest ignition source.
There was certainly a Watchdog type featue on flammability of brake fluid on hot manifolds
Yes; I recall watching it. The anecdotal evidence from the period of sudden increase suggested that the cars exploded on, or shortly after, impact; suggesting that it was leaking fuel that caught fire, rather than the slower fire spread that would be associated with brake fluid.
My second Ring RAC600 tyre inflator (see tinyurl.com/5euotr), which was an Autoexpress best on test, has just failed after 15 months. The first lasted only 5 weeks. It was a great piece of kit, but I don't really want to buy another given it's poor reliability record. Have I just been unlucky? Can anyone recommend an alternative at a sensible price? TIA. Read more
"much quicker than a footpump"
I nearly bought a bicycle 'track pump' from Lidl on that basis recently, as I think the length is the important thing (or more exactly, the swept volume). I do have an electric one in one of those emergency start boxes, which usefully makes it self-powered, but it's noisy and slow, and the idiotic 0-300 psi gauge annoys me, when I only use the first tenth of the scale!
Let the system take its course first at least.
The system says
McLaren?s appeal to the FIA Court of Appeal in Paris is not expected to be heard before the Italian Grand Prix in Monza next weekend, but an FIA official said that he was ?not sure if it would be admissable [sic]?.
So it seems the only way to make the FIA aware of the widespread concern about this matter is via the petition.
Read more
>>>No not this time but at least the FIA can have a weekend off
What, with Hamilton trying to get past Raikkonen again???
Hello everyone
Just replaced the indicator relay on our meriva under the passenger side wiper under bonnet the yellow one and made no difference they are still flashing very fast. very confused was led to beleave this was a common problem. now very stuck and out of ideas.
any help much appreciated Read more
Do the hazard warnings work ok?Also is the fast clicking evident with the indicator switch in the neutral position?
Good stuff.......I've just read the thread and you have been led astray a little bit. i have the same engine in a Meriva that's done 43000 miles. It pulls strongly from 1500rpm in all gears, sets off without revs just by releasing the clutch, and flies on A roads and mWays, whilst doing 52 to the gallon. Now, a Meriva is a heavy car (1500+kg), so obviously you knew that your Corsa should do better than 35mpg !
From now on, you should log your MPG with receipts, so that you can "benchmark" the proper economy that it now achieves.
If it occurs again, log all the details of the run and get them involved asap. If they have little or no experince of the 1.7cdti engine in a corsa, ask them to compare your car to the same engined astra or meriva. they should have plenty of those.
I had trouble from the start with the car intermittently cutting out after decelerating, and numerous software upgrades failed to address the fault. Eventually, after a very strongly worded letter was sent to the dealer principal at the supplying garage, about the car being dangerous (it was great pulling out from junctions and roundabouts), they took it in and replaced the whole injection system and ECU. It has been faultess since - and I wish you the same trouble free ending !!