October 2008
has anyone got any good ideas from removing the dust on wheeltrims? ive tried scrubbing them with washing up liquid and a brush but it still wont come off. I think they havnt been cleaned by the previous owner for ages so it has set and is baked on! Read more
My girlfriend bought a brand new 56 plate Yaris from Toyota back in 2006. The gear change has always been a bit crappy, but then about 6 months ago the gearbox started leaking oil.
Still being under warranty, we took it into the Toyota shop and they 'repaired' it. The gearbox stopped leaking, but now the gear change into first and second was _very_ poor.
Being a bit upset with this my girlfriend took in back into Toyota. They had an 'engineer' drive it who said that it was the best gear change in any Yaris he'd ever driven. Girlfriend was understandably upset at this blatant lie and eventually kicked up enough of a fuss to get them to replace the clearly screwed gearbox.
After nearly a month in the garage they 'replaced' the gearbox. At least they said they did. They haven't really. They've just replaced the alignment rings. I'm confident about this because they won't give us any paperwork showing that a new gearbox has been put in.
I'm also confident about it because the gear change is now awful. It's extremely difficult to get the car to go into first unless you wait quite a while for the oil to warm up.
After some more fun, Toyota have now admitted that there is a design flaw on the Yaris that makes the gearboxes behave this way. They say they can't fix it because the replacement gearbox hasn't been designed yet, so we should wait a few years (!!!!!).
When she asked what they could do about it now, they said:
* They'd take the old one off her hands for £3500 (it was £10500 two years ago)
* She could buy another one (she was very amused by this I can assure you) and they might consider offering her more money
Taking it to a Peugeot dealer we asked what they'd give us part-ex and they offered £4700.
If other people have had a similar experience I'd be interested to hear. Also if anyone has advice on what the hell to do really. Read more
>>The other thing is I wonder if this is related to the strange idea of having to hold the clutch down while the car is started<<
To be fair, this is actually recommended by many manufacturers and also motoring organisations. Holding down the clutch while starting the car reduces drag on the engine as it isn't spinning the clutch/drive mechanism. This slightly helps starting and reduces wear on starter/engine parts.
I believe Hyundais have a switch that prevents you starting it without depressing the clutch.
Hi,
Great place here,loads of information.
Looking for advice really.
My x reg kangoo van has slowly been making more and more noise from the nsf whee now it's pretty constant so I took it to a local budget and they said it was the wheel bearing then said it might be the driveshaft.
Now having been shafted by these kind of firms before .e.g they Know what it is but are looking for more cash I am wondering if I could change the wheel bearing on the van myself,is it a big job or relatively straight forward.They quoted £90 which tells me it's not a hard job.
I have some basic mechanical know how but haven't done a wheel bearing before.
I realise I'd have to get the haynes manual just looking for pointers as to wether this is diy or not.
Also id the driveshaft hard to do as I'd have everything stripped for the wheel bearing anyway.
Thanks for any help guys would be much appreciated.
I'd like to be able to do some work on a van myself. Read more
Thanks for the replies guys.
Think I'll pass and get a someone to do it for me.
Without the advice here I'd have prob tried it and caused myself alot of grief so replies were appreciated.
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Did you spot this link?
www.insidemoneytalk.com/news/sta/sta000.html
Perhaps the FSA can provide the details?
www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/index.shtml
The front passenger seat on my 2002 Citroen Berlingo does not fold flat, if it did I would be able to get my tandem cycle inside.
Does anyone know if the seat can be altered to fully recline or alternatively is there a reclinable (if thats a word) seat that I could replace it with.
Thanks
Clive Read more
I had a similar problem when I needed to transport 6' long fence panels. Took the single back seat out (it unbolts easily) and slid the front seat as far forward as poss - a bit inconvenient but no extra cost. Short sighted of Citroen not to have reclining seats - difficult to have a nap on long journeys sitting bolt upright so hope newer models have been upgraded. Otherwise delighted with mine - also 2002 model.
Granny J
I own a Vauxhall Vectra. When servicing the car on Saturday I was shocked to find that when I went to change the spark plugs each of them was sitting in a pool of oil. As many of you will know the plugs on this car a sunk down into the head vertically above the engine.
Has anyone else experienced this problem and if so what was the solution........
Any advise would be well received........ John Read more
Doing the same job on the X20XEV Omega is covered here:-
www.omegaowners.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1152565472/0
Although life is a [i]little[/i] different on the Vectra 'cos the engine is the other
way round. Usually takes my local mobile mechanic about 1 -2 hours including cleaning out
the breathers which like topbloke says is imortant if you only want to do the
job once.
Reading that link, it says:
"Apply the sealing compound to the areas to the side of the cam clamps which are at the pulley end of the cams (i.e. the front of the engine on the Omega). It should be applied so as its parralel with the cams and starts at the front of the head and finishes at the rear of the cam clamp. Ensure that it is a reasonable size bead which is touching the cam clamps."
I can't work out where he is saying to use sealing compound.
Can someone explain or work it out ??
Thanks
Ps: I've just done this job on a 1995 Cavalier X20XEV engine, so not sure if I've done everything right !!
see here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=64472
Just seen this:
Top of the range, 96,000 miles, Full Service History, Mot, Tax,
3 door hatchback in Metallic Blue looks absolutely stunning, Power Steering, 2/Keys, Remote Central Locking, Electric Windows, Driver Airbag, Passenger Airbag, Driver's Seat Adjustment, Driver Seat Height Adjustment, Manual Sunroof, Front Foglights, Adjustable Steering Column, Split Rear Seat, Alloy Wheels, Cd palyer,
Immobiliser, 80 Bhp, Group 2 insurance, 45 mpg
Worth a look?
Luke. Read more
To be fair, the door closing issue may well have been specific to that car -- it felt well built enough (actually "heavier"-feeling in general, if you know what I mean, than the Laguna I've driven), it just didn't sound it.
I was surprised about the interior though. Yes it was all screwed together very well, and I know that hard plastics tend to be more hard-wearing than soft-touch ones anyway, but some Korean and Japanese car makers get a lot of flak for the perceived quality of the plastics in their interiors and yet the Clio seemed no better to my eyes whatsoever.
On the plus side, it drove well, and the controls were pleasant to use, and these are more important to me anyway. One nice little touch was the indicator ticks that sounded left or right depending on their direction -- neat. If it hadn't been so cramped, I might have had more time for it.
Can't really comment on reliability. I know my dad's wife's one has had a fair few problems with poor starting, but this is likely to be related to its age more than anything else -- forgivable.
How do i know when to change the glow plugs on my 124k mile astra 1.7dti? i have no service history for it. Can anyone tell me when the change period for this item is?
Also is there a pollen filter on these cars? The car has AC but i couldnt find a pollen filter under the engine bay. Ive tried lifting the trim around the wipers but nothing there. Halfords computer system says it has one on!
Also how do i know what tre pressure to inflate the tyres to ? - There is no handbook with the car and its not on the inside of the fuel filler cap which is the normal place. They are on 175 14" Michelins.
Thanks in advance
Moved over to Technical Read more
If it still bursts happily into life on these cold-ish Autumn mornings, your glowplugs are fine. Only think about replacing when it doesn't burst happily into life on a cold morning.
As others have said, glowplugs don't affect how the car runs once its started. They're a starting aid only.
hi folks, iv got a vectra sri cdti 150 with a flywheel prob,and clutch needs doing at the same time, who sells them!!! and where can i get the parts as cheap as poss, iv got a cheap price for the flywheel of £165 which sound good to me but i cannot get the clutch please help me Read more
£240 complete on ebay
I've just read HJ's road test of the Mazda pick up, something he mentioned about speed limits has confused me slightly.
Can anyone confirm what i believe please.
HJ mentions that a 2WD commercial pick up would be limited to 50mph on UK A roads, yes i'd agree with that.
But goes on to say that a 4 door 4 x 4 version of the beast would be classed as dual purpose and could travel at 60 mph.
I was under the impression that a commercial would be limited to commercial speeds.
Our beasty is a 4x4 hilux 4 door, could someone reconfirm to me the max speed allowable on NSL single and dual carriageway and motorway roads please, its regd and taxed as a LGV. Read more
Thanks DVD, my van fits into your first category, and my main doubt was the motorway limit, so i can move up a a bit from the 60 i was sticking to, which is good.
inside the police station, a view i happily confess that i have not had for many years, i did not realise that the counter person would be a civvy nowadays, so no, i probably wouldnt expect them to to know. thank goodness for the internet eh!
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I just use ordinary washing-up-liquid and an old washing-up brush. Does the job fine, on the rare occasions I bother doing it