October 2008
Do you get bored whilst driving? Why?
A road safety research team at Newcastle University, headed by myself, is carrying out a research study into the nature of driver boredom.
We are interested in your feelings about driving and the way you behave whilst driving as well as the way you are in life in general.
We need as many people as possible to take part in the study. Please participate by following this link, reading a bit more about the study, and completing the questionnaire which should take about 15 minutes to complete: www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=6l2EXEoSiLw3wmkPuyk...d
I am also interested in comments you have about driver boredom which I am sure is becoming more and more of a problem as roads become wider, straighter, more congested, and safer.
Thanks for your help. It is greatly appreciated.
Simon Read more
Car turned over but wouldn't start, breakdown guy took it to my Opel garage (Im in Germany). No compression in 2 cylinders, so its an engine out job and cyl head off to have look at valves,(dont imagine motor needs to come out just to get head off) been warned to expect up to 900 euros!
Car is a 99 model, Im original owner, but spending that kind of cash is heartbreaking!!
Its done 110K with FSH, is now the time to get rid, or do I keep it as I know it shouldnt happen again?
Its a 1.8 manual. Read more
Is it an Ecotek engine in it? They;re well known for head gasket problems, which would tally with poor compression on two cylinders.
Shouldn't be too much to fix it, perhaps £250 from a good independent.
The car has a 1 metre black aluminium flexible whip aerial. The aerial is fixed in the middle-front of the car roof.
(Note: the aerial may be an after-market replacement. Anyway, It's not the old-type Micra pillar aerial).
Question: Is it possible to adjust the angle of these aerials? It gets tangleed up with the garage door every time I reverse out of my garage. It makes a hell of a noise and will probably eventually knacker the aerial or scratch the roof.
Thanks
Mike Read more
> Not sure for your particular car but sometimes the bracket is adjustable. If you can see a screw on the side, give it a turn and see if it loosens the bracket.<
No screw on the side. If you look from the back, there is some sort of metal bracket/fitment. I tried to move this with a screwdriver with no luck.
> If it is not adjustable, how about weighting the aerial down whilst you reverse out of the garage. Would a plastic bottle slipped over the end be heavy enough?<
Good idea!
I get the feeling some of these aerials are at a fixed angle. Not adjustable.
See www.motocare.co.uk/product.asp?strParents=91,393&C...3
Fixed at 52 degrees.
Mike
As I was driving into work this morning I could have sworn that I heard a piece about Ford buying out GM on the radio.
Does anyone have news on this or was I hearing things? Read more
There is a perverse kind of logic to that. I guess what's more likely in such circumstances is not outright bankruptcy, but a slow steady shrinking until hardly anybody cares if they go bust or not.
c.f. BL -> MG Rover
Don't forget that Ford/GM/Chrysler aren't the only manufacturers making cars in the USA. Toyota, Honda and others have several big plants too, partly to muddy the waters on pro-US / anti-Far East sentiment from many buyers.
Hi, I have a 3 door 04 Micra SE, (Intelligent key) When locking car with key fob, driver's door makes a whirring/grinding noise. Have been told its the door lock/acentuator (sorry not sure of spelling!).
My query is, I have the chance of a part ending in AX10A, however when I ring a car
dealer they say the part is AXA60A. I asked what the difference was and one guy said
it's because my car has the intelligent key, and that the AX10A, would only work for
a normal central locking car, ie without intelligent key.
Can anyone shed light on this.
Difference in price is AX10A £59, AX60A £106!
Many thanks
{volume in header lowered} Read more
My wife has recently purchased a used Punto a couple of months ago. Now the steering has a mind of its own. With very slight movements of the steering wheel, the wheel pulses left and right slightly and it makes a vibrating sound when this happens. The steering works okay apart from this but as the car still has a year's dealer warranty left we want to get it fixed if it could be a problem. There are no warning lights on the dash, but this was definately not happening when we picked the car up. Does anyone know what is wrong with it (if anything).
There is also an intermittent problem with the central locking on the rear doors. The door handle on both rear doors sometimes do open the door even when the button on the key for the central locking is pressed. Any ideas on this??
Many thanks in advance. Read more
Electric steering problems are endemic on Fiats; back to the dealer for [another?] complete new system.
The rear doors could just be sticking lock motors - another thing that your dealer can fix.
London Underground (LU) and Network Rail today announced that Blackfriars Underground station will close from 2 March 2009 until late 2011 as part of Network Rail's Thameslink upgrade programme.
tinyurl.com/4z2k7z
I used to work here (Blackfriars) so I already know how busy this environment is.
When this area gets closed down the strain it will put on to the surrounding area & transport infrastructure is somethng I would not like to be embroiled in.
I 'pity' any commuter that has to endure 2+ years of this...
{typo in header corrected} Read more
Temple & Mansion house are close true, as are
Chancery Lane, St Pauls, The Bank, Farringdon, Barbican, Moorgate but to name a few.
Displaced will be (as I have read) 100,000+ daily commuters and travellers that currently use Blackfriars.
The surrounding variables and options can only just now cope with their own passenger demands placed upon them - especally during peak periods. When they close Blackfriars - how will they cope then?
Motorcycling commuter: I started to do this back in 1987. I left London in 2000 a lot richer for not having to pay LRT (Zone 1 to 5) fares and with more time on my hands for not being at the mercy of the commuter network that so often failed.
I need to buy a new small car as we need two cars. We currently have a 1.3 Fiesta Ghia which is ok but has lots of annoying problems nobody can fix although its a simple engine.
I am thinking about buying an old style Corsa B 8 valve, 1.4 is there anything I need to be aware on these engines?
I believe the FIAT FIRE engines are very good but ewith my budget £700-£1000 the car is likely to be well tatty by now.
I love the 1.25 Ford Zetec S but I am right in the fact these need careful servicing? Something which will be hard to find on the used market.
Then there i s the VAG engines, seem to be a bit ove rated from the cars I have seen so far.
Basically I want a car I can run into the ground without having to worry about cam belt changes every two minutes etc. I also need something new enough for turning up to jobs in.
I've been told to avoid the Corsa 1.0 as they are too slow and too easily to stall.
I am going to see P reg Corsa 1.4 8 valve tomorrow with 1 previous owner for £750, if it has complete service history I might consider it, the bodywork is described as exellent. Read more
Borderline but the Micra just fell into the 2 star category... Probably fairly decent given the K11's age (car of the year in 1993 or thereabouts) and the general average rating for a small car between the start of the ratings and 2002 when it was replaced by the frog eyed one with a much better safety rating.
The rating was part of the reason I got rid of mine though... Given that I'm doing 14k miles a year now I thought a few extra stars would be worth it just in case. Plus it really wasn't handling that mileage too well.
I have just returned from sunny northern California after a late summer holiday with my GF, and decided to 'haggle' with the car hire companies whilst in SF rather than pre book.
My CA friends informed me that Prius rental charges had increased substantially this year (although they got a good deal on one for me in May), although petrol is now down to $3.50 from a high around $4.00 earlier this year.
An almost new Mustang convertible (we compromised and went for the 4.0 V6 rather than the big block V8)cost us $499 per week + $7 CDW daily...a Yaris (albeit with a smaller engine) was offered at $299 per week.
Being late in the tourist season such deals abound, and by all accounts this was nothing special.
Should any BR's be contemplating a trip to this part of the world, then I recommend the experience, although next time we shall hire the V8. Read more
The last time I got a hire car in the States it was a Chevrolet but not built in the USA-it was built in Canada!
When, would you say is the best time to get a truly cracking deal on a car?
What cars are dealers desperate to get rid of and when may be the right time to capitalise?
Obviously the big, petrol engined stuff springs to mind.
Has anyone out there been to a dealer recently and bullied out a terrific bargain? Read more
Taggarts
New car £12,000 discount 10% for no T/I = £1200
Instead give £6000 as T/I (£4800 +£1200)
New buyer buys T/I for £6000
Dealer makes £1200 on 2nd hand sales and effectively sold new car at list less 10% Magic for the garage!
Browse
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He can't spell, either.
Bu then, he is at a university, so what do you expect?