December 2008
Having to jump start the step daughter's Rover 25 today I Placed one end of the red lead on her positive terminal and the other end on my negative (it was going dark and the insulation on the leads runs down the back of the battery). I then put one end of the black lead on her negative and was just about to put the other end on my positive terminal when I realised my mistake, phew!.
This made me ponder, what exactly would I have damaged on either car if I had connected them the wrong way round ?
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We only have one key for our passat, which fits the ignition and the passanger door, we unlock that and reach across to open the other doors(wife not impressed and 2 kids out of sight)
The fob would not unlock the car about 6mths ago, so i replaced the batts and it still would not work as i could not reprograme it via the drivers door, then it started working again, until recently,now deceased-is there any way of checking if the fob is working or should i replace 6 month old batts and try again?
also can i get a drivers door lock to match the other keys? or would it be a lock set off of ebay etc?
Thanks
Ray Read more
If you've got a company called DUPLICUT in your area try them.
I should say that the car is a 1.8 petrol model.
I checked the oil level on the dipstick after the car had been stationary overnight (the car was on a slight incline in my back lane facing upwards). The level on the dipstick was only a few millimetres (about 4 mm) above the minimum mark.
Although when I check it on the level it is at least halfway between min and max.
My concern is that there will not be enough oil in the engine to lubricate it when I start the car when it is on a hill for example or is this assumption wrong ?
thank you. Read more
Your engine oil level sounds fine to me.
The level should always be checked when the car is on level ground.
Your handbook will tell you the procedure. On some cars, the level is checked with the engine cold, on others 10 minutes after stopping a warm engine.
Don't leave it until the oil pressure warning light comes on - you've left it too late.
On one occasion, I drove a company pool car from the Manchester area to the Cambridge area. Towards the end of the journey the oil pressure gauge (it had one of them) was a bit low. I checked the dipstick, and there was nothing on it. So I bought a litre of oil and put it in. The oil then just got up to the bottom of the dipstick!
I'm looking to change our faithful 10 year old Corolla for a Corolla Verso as I can't get everyone I need to into the back of the Corolla.
Have seen one advertised locally and am going to have a look. It is 04/54, VVT-i 1.8 T3 version with 60k on the clock, 1 owner, on at 5,990 GBP. Not looking to px my car and have cash available.
I paid for a glasses valuation which was way over this so have paid for a Parker's mile adjusted one which came out as 5,510 GBP.
Would some of you very knowledgeable people mind giving me your advice as to what you think I should be offering the dealer and what price I should be able to realistically achieve ? Or should I hold on for now and start thinking about the whole thing after Christmas ?
Any help very gratefully received, many thanks ! Read more
Yes, we've got blue, a change from silver for the last 6 years ! It is a T2 rather than a T3 so I guess it hasn't lost quite that percentage but still a lot. It has got everything we need though apart from parking sensors but I shall look into that.
Good luck with your car hunting. I am hugely relieved mine is finally over and will sleep well tonight as a result ! Thank you again for your help.
Should you replace car tyres that are 8 years old but still have ample tread left? The car has done a very low mileage, but are there any dangers associated with running tyres of this age? Read more
Here are a few (useful?) references re the above
snipurl.com/8a8vv [www_conti-online_com]
snipurl.com/8a974 [www_chicagoaccidentlawblog_com]
snipurl.com/8a9ee [www_californiainjuryblog_com]
www.tiredefectslawyer.com/aged-tires.php
www.aa1car.com/library/tire_expire.htm
This morning was cold, -and so, when I started up my Espace The Race 2.2.dci -52, with its digital speedometer, the numbers flicked from figures recognisible to saying zero - once the car had warmed up and driven a few miles, it reverted to normal, and I could tell what speed I was doing -any one else ever experienced this occurance, and could it be a major cost solution
moved over from Discussion, engine and year details added - I assume its the 02 model year one Read more
i have a 2.0t mark 4 grand espace and had the same problem with my dash....infact alot of the digital dials had gone a bit potty also telling me that the airbag was faulty.
after taking the keycard out and returning the card back in and starting it seemed fine...
this happened to me also on a very cold day, i have been told that it could well be just a simple car battery replacement ....phew... thought it was going to be the electrics going up the creek ££$$££$$ ! i still have not changed the battery yet though but no recurrance of the prob yet.
My transmission brake has seized on. In the last week the brake has seized on a few times but came off after moving my 90 back and forward. This time it has stayed on and will not come off.
The handbrake cable and linkage appear to be working ok and the problem appears to be inside the drum.
I had started to remove the prop shaft to try and get the drum off but put that plan on hold in the hope some of you folks have some experience of this
Any thoughts?.
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OK, the problem is solved. I took off the prop shaft and expected to have a huge problem getting the drum off but, the retaining screws were quite slack and as soon as I started hammering the drum to get it over the brake shoes it gave way and the shoes released. The drum slid off with no problem. The shoes, however are badly worn, down to the rivets in fact. So I think I have found the cause of the problem. I will stop using the hand brake until the new shoes are fitted.
Thanks to everybody who responded.
Can anyone help me out of a spot? My dad was loading up my fiesta to go to the dump and dropped the back down, he pulled the seat forward and pulled the blinking thing off! the metal piece that screws into the middle is snapped and the two at each end screw in but come loose almost instantly, pulling the carpet up shows the screw holes have been pulled outwards and are now distorted so the screws dont sit in properly.
Can anyone suggest any ways of getting this fixed tighter?
Cheers Read more
Does anyone know if you can get a bike rack/carrier for a Renault Megane Coupe 96-00 with a spoiler? Been searching but not having much luck! Other option is roof bars, do they fit?
Help greatfully appreciated! Read more
Can't see why not.
I used to run a generic (Judas Priest front man) bike carrier on the rear of my '94 Vauxhall/SAAB 900 with rear spoiler/coffee table. The bike rack sat on the rear bumper and rear window with foam pads.
Just had to remember to pull the rear wash/wipe fuse to avoid mangling the rear wiper.
Some of you may recall that I have previously mentioned the Honda Civic Shuttle 1.4 Auto that we bought in 1997 at five years old and 4,000 miles. It has stayed in and around the family since then and I am driving it now whilst the Outback is being repaired (after my snow slide) and the regular driver of the Honda recovers from an operation.
The car has been driven by three women with no mechanical sympathy whatsoever. So although not 'hammered' it has been hard used on its many many short trips whilst cold. It cannot have done more than 5,000 miles on the motorway in its total of 40,000 miles.
This car is so good! Firstly despite being 17 years old and having only last week just done 40,000 miles, it drives very well. Apart from a slight grind from the starter after the engine has caught, and that the overdrive on the gearbox is a little reluctant to engage as often as it should there is no evidence that the car is old. Its general driving demeanour remains as it was when we first bought it.
There is a little rust in hidden areas, but not 'rot' and despite having been scraped and scuffed, still buffs up to a good shine. Internally, it remains almost new and if the seats were cleaned there would be little evidence of the age of the car except for the general layout and design. In fact the dials are a model of clarity compared to many modern cars.
It has not been cleaned in months if not years, so last week it had a mini valet followed by me giving a deep vacuum and brushed all the dust from the nooks and crannies. I have to say, that if I didn't get the Outback back, I would be very happy with this car (at least until summer car and I missed the air-con).
This was a Honda of the old school - remarkably well built, and with faultless reliability (no major repairs at all in 17 years). The only bug bear is the economy, which is fine on the open road, but dives to about 25mpg at best around town, mainly due to the manual choke I reckon.
Are there other cars out there that have suffered so much but seem to have shrugged it off? Read more
Now here's a funny thing.
When I took over the Shuttle last week, it was low won fuel and I immediately gave it a full tank of Shell V-Power. I filled up last night on regular Shell and the starting is not as good. It churns that little bit more before firing. Otherwise drives fine. Is it me or is the V-Power really improving the starting?
Browse
I agree You were very fortunate to spot it. A few years ago a friend of mine connected the battery up the wrong way round on his Sherpa van, all it did was burnt the alternator out but on a modern car it could very easily write it off.