January 2009
I wish to respray the rear moulded rear bumper of my car.
Any advice on process involved i.e priming, undercoat, top coat etc ?
I will be using a small spray gun.
All advice gratefully received.
Freman.
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My daughter's Micra recently went through the MOT with a wash. Great wee car but for some reason the nearside headlight refuses to come on but will light if you pull the flasher proving the bulb to be operational. Is there a problem in the light switch or even a relay? Over to you folks. Thanks Read more
Just had the car back from its service and they said that there was a slight oil leak from the gearbox on the n/s and o/s diff seals. Is it a big job and what can i expect to pay ?
Its a Xsara 2.0 HDi
Many thanks
Richard
model year corrected Read more
My 2004 1.9dci has been returning poor mpg for a few weeks. Couldn't find problem so took it to local Renault dealer. They say its a faulty "Air compressor sensor". They say that I need to replace this sensor and have air con re gassed in the process. Cost of £320.
Is there any fuse I could take out to stop this happening and just live without the air con? If so where is it at?
Any help would be much appreciated. Read more
did you fix your problem with your megane, i have the same problem, only getting 30mpg on my dci, i took it to renault they said its a faulty egr valve, but i have replaced it and still have the same problem.
My car (1996 A4 1.8) pulls to the left, when I swap the front tyres with each other, it pulls equally to the right, so I conclude the front tyres are worn rather than the tracking being drastically out. They have 4mm tread.
Is it safe to move them to the rear? Does 'wander' occur from the back?
I'm keeping the car for 3 more months so don't want to buy new tyres, but feel free to advise me to.....
Thanks
Stewart Read more
Oh Lord, let's not start this debate again!
I am driving to Italy next month on a skiing holiday and obviously I will need snow chains.
However, my Jetta TDI Sport has 17J alloys with 225 - 45- 17 tyres. According to my handbook my wheel size is unsuitable for chains. I' assuming this is because of clearance issues with the suspension/braking components.
Does anyone know of a chain system that will fit my car? I will ask at my VW dealer on Monday when it goes in for a service.
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Lots of people don't look at the dates just as they don't look at previous posts on radio codes!!!
Hi,
My daughter is today having trouble with a stuck filler flap and is opening it manually via the boot (a real pain !). The switch on the drivers door appears to operate (noise is heard) but fails to release the flap. With the flap open and operating the drivers door switch the plunger does not seem to retract which I think it should.
Has anyone had a similar problem or can anyone offer any help /suggestions for a cure ?.
Thanks. Read more
Hi Andrew,
Thanks for your reply. I visited my local VW agent today to seek some help but all for nothing.Was just told " book the car in and we will have a look at the fault "
No thanks .I will have a look myself this weekend and see what I can find.
Regards
Mazda60.
Hi all,
I have a Mondeo Mk 3 TDCI, on an 04 plate. since i've owned it the clutch pedal has had quite a strong spring movement which isn't too bad when moving and changing gear in lighter traffic, however when driving through London traffic i find that the constant depressing and controlling of the clutch pedal gets uncomfortable after a while and makes my leg ache!! i have looked at a few forums and people seem to be saying that "snappy" clutches are common on MK 3 TDCI's: - it isn't the snappy clutch that bothers me, it's the strong spring in the pedal!!
I have been to a clutch specialist who said that the pedal should be "light as a feather" and that it sounded like the dual mass flywheel (DMF) was seized or sticking. I understand from what he told me that the "DMF" is like a shock absorber to absorb the engine torque as the clutch "bites" and that this was designed to make power take up smoother - how this affects the actual spring strength i don't understand, however the specialist said that it was because it was all interlocked?? as the cost of replacing the clutch, flywheel etc is going to be £600++ i want to be more certain that having the work done will actually rectify the problem.
I also asked about changing to a solid flywheel, which i understand will make the biting point more noticeable as it will not be "dampened" as before, however i could probably live with that if the clutch spring was lighter!! can any one advise further??
Many Thanks,
Robbo. Read more
I look forward to HJ's review of the new Honda Insight. Just Googling for the new Prius now on Google News I came across a review on USA Today of the new Honda Insight which was most interesting.
I will be interested to see what HJ's thoughts are compared to the USA Today reviewer. I note that it apparently is 'roof touching' for 6 footers so no good it seems for 6 foot plusers plus apparnetly it only does about 40 mpg - which is not impressive? Or am I missing something?
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Now had a decent test drive. If you need a family sized car which sips fuel and has £15 road tax it's probably for you, if you still like to have some enjoyment from driving it's probably not.
Over about 15 miles of urban and some NSL roads I managed mid 50s mpg and this without trying to keep the spedo backlight green. I'd want the option of being able to turn all the driver info off though as it's a gimmick, which you don't monitor while driving.
I tried the next to top spec which has lots of goodies, but 16 inch wheels provide a very skittish ride. On a rural NSL it didn't feel very well planted once above 45mph.
No spare as standard and whilst the boot is quite deep front to back it is shallow due to the battery pack. There is a small underfloor storage area, but I suspect the optional spare wll eat this up.
Rear visibilty through the split screen is dire and the thick rear quarters will make reversing difficult. The engine cuts out at lights, but only when you have your foot on the footbrake. "Handbrake on and neutral"technique results in the engine firing up, but extra fuel usage due to this will be minimal.
Looking at the info I now realise the car was in 'Econ' mode for all our trip so it's difficult to comment on performance as this mode cuts engine output to preserve fuel. It did seem noisy under heavy acceleration - probably another gimmick to stop you doing it and 89 bhp will never see rubber burning getaways from the lights anyway.
The green credentials will see some convinced, but not many will be those who enjoy driving.
Re my previous post about the rear washer not working......
If I have a rear wiper/washer fitted does it need to be working to pass the MOT (due soon-ish) ??
The Front wiper/washer work
The rear wiper works
The rear washer doesn't (fills rear footwell with fluid)
I know some cars (even some hatchbacks) don't actually have a wiper on the rear. I am just wondering if its there does it have to work to pass ??? Read more
Well criticism accepted Simon !
The OP has started three separate posts on the same problem - we tend to link these when this happens - In fact there is a join in the middle of this one. An object lesson in why posters, if posting about a problem, stick them all in one thread and not start random posts all over the shop. End of rant.
Edit: Surrey Scientist - not really a dig at you.


Thanks but headlight won't come on dipped or full beam so theory about the relay might be worth investigation. Thanks