April 2009
Does anyone know if there are petrol stations that still allow you to put the nozzle in the car tank and then rely on the auto cut-off to stop the pump?
I can see on most of the nozzle hand pieces that there is still the little catch that engages with the trigger but they seem to have been disabled.
Unfortunately I have developed osteoarthritis (I'm in my early 40's) in my hands and I'm finding it increasingly painful and difficult to maintain my grip on the trigger while I fill up, on some slow pumps this can take up to 10 minutes. Read more
While looking around for a car in the price range of £800-£1000 (so around 10 years old), I've seen one or two automatics for sale.
It's a big gamble buying a car of that price range and vintage anyway, but do you think that a car with an automatic gearbox would be a risk too far? Or were the auto boxes quite reliable by the late nineties?
Would welcome your thoughts on this please... Read more
Probably no more risky than buying anything else in this price range.
A clutch change on a £1k Mondeo is more involved than you'd think....
Why can't I get medium wave in my car? - I had it when I got the car about 2 years ago but it just went a few months ago. FM reception is fine. Read more
My Skoda Octavia had exactly this problem, I understand it was to do with power to the booster (which is part of the bee-sting aerial base).
I removed the (perfectly functioning) Skoda stereo cassette radio when the car was a few days old and fitted a CD head unit in its place. The CD unit would only pick up AM very weakly as you describe, but FM reception was excellent. As I never drove the car on Saturday afternoons I didn't miss AM at all. Before I sold the Octavia I re-fitted the original Skoda stereo and AM worked once again - I can only assume the feed to the booster was absent from the back of the CD unit.
HTH.
Dave TD
The car is a Xsara 1.4 petrol model. I would like your opinions on whether the mpg for the engine seems ok. I have used the brim the tank method, run for a while and fill her up- so i the figures are as accurate as possible.
1) 82 miles all around town, mainly short journeys 2-3 miles at a time, max 5 miles in one go. So lots of cold starts, but i only got 27 mpg (refill 13.9 litres @ 93ppl).
2) Just done 87 miles all motorway -Leicester to Solihull and back pretty much at indicated 80mph. got 53mpg (Refilled 7.5litres at 92ppl).
Obviously im v. happy with the later, but i was expecting 4-5 more mpg from town as most my driving is in town. Read more
i managed 60 mpg with the same 1.36 engine in a peugeot 306 style, crossing Europe on autobahns/autoroutes, slipstreaming lorries at 55mph. Nice engine.
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Pressure washer.
Do heat reflecting windscreens work ? They seem to be common on Renaults. Does anyone have any experience of a car with and without ? Can a heat reflecting film be applied to existing glass in the same was as tints ? I'm also curious as to why this treatment seems to be applied to windscreens only. What is the sun supposed to do when it strikes the other windows ? Read more
I had one on a 406 estate, I believe they are fitted to cars with climate control to reduce hot and cold spots inside the car. The screen cost in the region of £450 when I had it replaced, but it did have a sensor for the auto lights/wipers too. The back window of the 406 had a ~40% conventional tint, I assume for the same reason.
Aftermarket satnavs don't work very well through the coating, there is an uncoated area near the rear view mirror which is why you sometimes see satnavs stuck at the top of the screen. The alternative is to add an external aerial or (in my case) use the built-in but rubbish one.
Dave TD.
Hi, I have a 2005 KA 1.3 which is missing the rear sensor rings off the inside of the drum. I called ford and ordered two replacement rings but the ones that arrived appear to be too big. They are smooth and appear to be magnetic. I have checked on an older abs equipped fiesta with the same size drums and that has a bumpy (corrugated) sensor fitted which is the same size as I appear to need. Have ford given me the wrong part or is something amiss. At present the abs light is on due to no signal from the rear sensors. Will the old style ring fit my car or does the abs work differently on the later cars. There are 2 different electrical sensors listed for pre and post 2004. Any help gratefully received.
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You should always check the build date(last two letters before the five numbers in the VIN);registration dates may be something else.
A rapid pootle back down the A12 again in my friend's very nice Octavia, now coming up to 50,000 miles and still feeling hewn from the solid. Most of its life is spent pootling in South London. I don't know how much fuel it uses but that low-pressure, modest-output petrol turbo while not quite a gem is a very nice unit indeed. Perhaps it would feel more of a gem when one got used to the location of its high torque band which seems quite narrow for a turbo engine.
It was a relief being allowed to drive because the owner, a very good and close friend of 50 years' standing, suffers from a restless right foot and is absent-minded, so often in the wrong gear. He's perfectly safe and competent but after a while I find my teeth being set on edge by slightly jerky progress that could be quite a bit quicker and just as economical. I caught him holding the car on the clutch at an uphill junction too and simply couldn't keep stum about it. He didn't mind of course.
The rumble of all the extra transmission machinery under the floor is still fairly subdued (i.e. not noticeable to the vast majority of people). A non-4X4 version would be a bit quieter and a bit quicker except of course in the wet. The temperature gauge still only works sporadically, loose sender connection probably. The car has given virtually no trouble in two years.
If you are looking for that sort of car and find a good one of these, it comes very highly recommended by me. Read more
I've fond memories of the 1.8T engine in one of its first incarnations, when fitted to the A3 mk1 1.8T - hope it doesn't appear too arch italicising my own pun btw!
I loved it - plenty of oomphh (for 1998 anyway..) , with economy around the 30-40mpg mark - dependent upon journey type. It was the torquiest thing of its size - even amongst many contemporary TDI diesels - with very pleasing 5th gear acceleration for the M-way. What shines most brightly really though, was its low weight - diesel pull, with 4 cylinder petrol-engine lightness. It also seemed that its relative understressed-ness lent it quite a smooth demeanour with no (perceptible to me,anyway) turbo lag. I could quite happily buy similar again
Hi,
I have a question about the parking brake on the CRV III that hopefully some of you can help with?
The manual says you engage the parking brake by pulling it back fully. However, long before it is in the fully back position the red brake indicator on the dash comes on but the car is not braked - if on a slope it will roll downwards.
On other cars I have had as soon as the red brake indicator comes on on the dash I have been able to take my foot off the brake pedal and the car is secure on the slope. I then have had the option of pulling harder on the hand-brake if I so wished.
Anyhow, is this common in the CRV or do I have a loose parking break? I thought that parking brakes got loose over time and hence needed to be pulled further and further 'up' to obtain a secure brake, often requiring the brake to be tightened by a mechanic?
Thanks,
T. Read more
I am definately hearing what you all say is clatter more so in first than second but still hear it in second. You all call it clatter , i was going to post it as don't laugh tappitts rattle. I dont know if my Diesal CRV even has tappitts. Oh and by the way i am hearing this at very low revs pulling away i mean low revs. can someone give me some reassurance its ok and normal. I havent done 600 miles yet. Maybe i should av posted this on CRV thread not parking brake thread. Help.
My focus has started flashing the oil warning light. No problem i thought, oil level must be low. Checked the oil level and its fine, but added in a drop more anyway.
Its still continuing to flash the oil light - its more of a flicker, flickering on and off.
Now it's not leaking oil, as I have checked the road where its parked and I cant see anything. I only just had a full oil service 2k miles ago, and it's never done it before. I have done about 6k in it before the oil service and never once had the light on.
Any idea's? Im thinking oil pump or sensor fault? Anyone came across this before?
Cheers Read more
probably the wire to the oil pressure switch earthing out due to chafing - possibly disturbed when you had the oil change.
(Its a pressure activated switch, not a sensor, and simply provides an earth path to light the dash lamp.)
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Not if you've got a new Mondeo ;0)