December 2008
My car is revving erratically. It seems to only happen when it is cold after i've driven about a mile. It also seems (or maybe I only notice it) to happen when I am stopped at a junction or traffic lights. It revs up to 20 for about 5-10 seconds and then drops to below 10 and revs down and up (but on low revs) erratically for anout another 5 seconds and it seems there is no power - I can't pull away. It's done it a couple of times now and this morning it cut out on the low revs and wouldn't start again until the fourth attempt.
Do you have any ideas what could be wrong? Read more
hope somebody can help,the lever is not working to open the front bonnet,i have taken the lever off & tried pulling the cable but still cant open it. any tips to get it open?
thanks Read more
Try getting someone to gently press down on the bonnet (where the catch is) while you pull on the handle. Once open, adjust the slack in the cable and give the catch mechanism some lubrication.
Hi
Just had my picasso serviced (3yr service) and had aircon serviced for the 1st time at same time, since then the aircon fan is cutting in and out non stop- seems to do it every 30seconds or so, also aircon does not seem quite as good as before the service. Called the garage today who said that when they drained it there was so little gas in there that the aircon wouldnt have been working well at the time (it seemed to be working ok to me) and that the fan is now cutting in and out because it has been refilled? does this seem right or do I need to take it somewhere else? Any thoughts would be most welcome
thanks Read more
When you say air-con fan do you mean the cooling fan at the front of the car?It will cut in and out as required when a/c is on but if the efficiency of the system is poor then it is possible that the system has been overfilled with refrigerant gas.hth
Changed oil at 3,000 interval (total 50,000) - its quieter warming up on the drive at -1C this morning. This is the old 1.9D, indirect injection diesel - which seems to constantly juggle large balls of soot - letting one fall on its head every seven seconds or so.
Yes, its desperately dirty, when contrasted with Common rail with DPF. The oil change interval is 6,000 miles and it seems as though its absolutely gagging for a change at half distance.
It was using Mobil Super M 15w40 - but this time I used Shell Rimula 15w40. With the viscosity being the same - I was surprised it was quieter.. I had assumed the old oil would be thickening up with soot and as such it would be noisier with new oil.
Or is it likely that the the old oil had sheared and was yet to thicken with increased soot loading?
The engine sounds like new though actually - perhaps in part due to its half distance oil and filter changes.
And worth noting that this is the constant cold running - ultra short journey - stop start, home care car. Averaging 53mpg on this sort of work. Its around double the mpg of the petrol engined car that did the same round before the diesel was bought.
Future plans?
Bought new in 02, the plan was for ten plus years or so. But with DPF seeming to rule new diesels out for my wife`s sort of work - I`m looking at it differently. The same with the 2005,Euro 4 - but non DPF - Multijet Van.
Perhaps DPF has been a `tipping point` where diesel cars made before that will be seen as similar to the `simple` cars of the 90`s?
The manufacturers must surely be sweating to sort out the `unfit for purpose` DPF fiasco before the general (non technical) public realise that there`s another reason to not buy a new diesel - other than the recession.
Cheap soot and stink? Or expensive and constipated DPF with failed laxatives?
The old `juggler` is seeming more attractive to us by the day, we might just continue to keep it going - until perhaps a new pure electric car can undertake its daily 20 miles of around 40 cold stop starts.
Thoughts? Read more
>shows not a spot of rust, yet.
Well it wouldn't, would it - it's all under the Waxoyl ...
I'm after buying a replacement idle control valve for my Daewoo Nubira 1.6.
The Daewoo part number is 59602. Looking on the web it would appear that this part may well be identical to the valve suitable for the 1.4/1.6 Astra (91-98 model), which is part number 17113196.
The Vauxhall components are available from ebay among other sources for about £20-25. The Daewoo part, however, seems to be like hen's teeth in this country and seems only to be available from GM themselves at a cost of over £100.
The 59602 part is available from a number of Polish websites (I believe this car is still built over there and sells in quite large numbers) for about the same price as the Vauxhall part is in the UK. I refuse to believe that there is any fundamental difference in complexity between the two.
I have ascertained that, physically, 59602 and 17113196 are indeed identical, and so the Vauxhall part would physically fit.
I have sent off an email to the Polish suppliers in question in severely broken Polish to see if they will sell to the UK. Meanwhile can anyone confirm if indeed these are compatible parts? Read more
I'll have a word with Autovaux, thanks.
The problem with buying one from a scrapper is (a) if it doesn't work, I won't know if it was faulty or incompatible, and (b) it'll probably end up almost as expensive as a new one....
Looking at the various parts it seems that they aren't quite the same after all. The direction of the socket on the back is different depending on part number.
*If* that is the only difference, then the difference between Vauxhall part 17108187 and the Daewoo part is only a few degrees (the Daewoo part is around 25 degrees clockwise of the Vauxhall one).
At the prices they're going for I may well take a punt -- they're a five minute fit and I could always resell the part for a small loss if it's no good.
How many metres? Read more
Run TomTom on them legally? I doubt it.
Hi,
Have just brought a second hand ford focus with the 6000 series CD player, this works fine with CD's, but I only get static from the radio. I am guessing this means that the aerial is somehow disconnected. It appears to be fitted to the top of the car correctly, so wondered if anyone knew where else this break might have occurred, the only other place that I can think of is the point the aerial reaches the radio, so would also like to know if there is a way I can check this without having to take the radio out as I don't have the code to restart it.
Alternatively, does anyone have any other thoughts on what might be causing this problem?
Many thanks in advance
Daniel Read more
There is a known problem with the 6000 series radio that causes a lot of
static type noise to occur your Ford dealer will know the component that needs replacing.
Any chance you could give us a clue, so as to avoid having to visit a dealer?
My car's got a problem. It's started intermittently cutting out when accelerating. The revs drop to 0, but it doesn't stall as the motion of the car bump starts the engine. It usually accelerates fine after this. It's also started revving higher when in neutral - the engine revs somewhere between 1500-2500 rpm, when it usually revs at 1000 rpm or less. Any suggestions of the likely problem, and if it's going to be econmical to fix, would be very gratefully recieved.
My car is a 10 year old 1.6 Megane, hasn't had a service for almost two years because it hadn't done enough miles since the last service (which is what the manual recommends). Passed its last MOT in Feb no problems. Read more
I've posted this in 'Technical Matters' but perhaps it's better here.
Recently inherited Grandfather's '01 (Y) Focus 1.8 zetec petrol. 11,000 miles, garaged most of its life, FSH. Only done 500 miles pa since 2002.
My concerns:
1. Doesn't run very smoothly and lots of condensation from exhaust.
2. Original tyres (2000 manufacture), too old?
3. Still on its original cam belt.
4. Disks are a bit rusty, brake fluid last changed 2005.
5. No ABS.
6. Reg 04/01 so liable to VED rises.
Any other potential causes for concern?
Will engine and breaks improve with use?
Advice?
Thanks in advance. Read more
I would only add that the brake discs may be corroding, most likely where you can't see - but the MoT should find that.
Recently inherited Grandfather's Y-reg Focus 1.8. 11,000 miles FSH and always garaged. Only done 500 miles pa since 2002.
My concerns:
1. Doesn't run very smoothly and lots of condensation from exhaust.
2. Original tyres (2000 manufacture), too old?
3. It's on its original cam belt.
4. Brake discs are rusty & fluid was last changed in 2005.
Any other potential causes for concern on such a low-mileage car? Read more
Under debate here :-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?f=2&t=70...7
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It could also be a faulty engine temperature sensor