April 2009
Report in the Manchester Evening News today about a local South Manchester MP using his car with a tax disc which had expired at the end of March.
Not a major crime against society...9 days out....but this fine member, who seems to be a transport spokesman for his party, when challenged, blamed the DVLA for not sending him a reminder .
He then went on to say he would be making a serious complaint against the DVLA and the Royal Mail over the matter and that he ' Was finding the renewal system a nightmare '. ( Easier than ever, IMO .)
So, what about personal responsibility for these matters ? A perfectly good and visible reminder is usually stuck on the windscreen about 4 ft from the driver !
Ted Read more
i was just wondering if there was a way of getting a little more power out of this 1.7td izuzu engine as it seems a little flat, but just coming from a 200bhp mx6 im not expecting peformance eneven close to that.
the engine seems a little flat esp going up hills needing to change down and redlining it to get it to go up a hill at the speed limit.
{I presume you meant 1996, not 19 for year of manufacturer?} Read more
agree with previous post valve clearances first, check throttle cable make sure that you get fully open on the pump,Regards TB
aec.middx.net/frames/framephotos1.htm
Does anyone remember the huge fleet of ancient red AEC tippers that worked on the construction of the M25 in the 1980's?
I used to see them working everyday and it always facinated me how they kept going judging by the heavy punishment they used to take.
Anyway I came across this excellent site, and thought some of the pictures might be of interest to some.
(scroll halfway down the page and click on the mammoth major motorway tippers link) Read more
Taking about AECs. Does anyone remember the Albion R229s with the AEC 505 engines? They were built in the late 60's for a special order for Ready Mixed Concrete and had LAD cabs fitted plus front mounted pumps, hence the bulbous grilles.
I saw this and thought one or two of you may be interested,
tinyurl.com/d8caht - Amazon link, "The Best of Car Magazine"
JH Read more
After buying these two volumes I went and bought a load of old 70s and 80s Car Magazines for buttons on eBay.Quality writing that kept me entertained for hours.Setright is great too (God rest his soul) and I have several of his books. He demands concentration but I find his stuff fascinating, especially Drive On.It was tragic that he never finished his Autobiography.
Everytime I travel on Eurotunnel and have a chat with other passengers, I seem to be the only one that's paid full whack for the ticket.
I never see any offers on their web site, apart from the short stay savers, which is only slightly cheaper. They used to be a lot cheaper at the early hours of the morning/night, but even they're not that special anymore. So am I missing something by just going to their website and paying full whack? Read more
Except of course last September when they managed to
burn it while I was in Germany.....
Yeah, we got caught in that as well. Found out about the fire by a mobile call from a concerned rellie as we were just entering Austria from Italy heading for Calais and an 8am crossing next morning. Hearts well and truly sunk!
Brilliantly handled on the French side though. We were delayed just 2.5 hrs, 1 of those being the extra time taken to cross by boat.
I am a big fan of the tunnel, mostly because I detest boats. ;-)
Hope this post will be of use to someone - car just stopped in traffic in outside lane. breakdown assistance could not jump start. Suggested fuel pump problem. Recovered on lorry home a few hours later. Get my mechanic friend over next Morning and get battery charged and guess what car starts first time. We now think that maybe we left the lights on etc which would explain why the battery got drained as had checked altenator and was ok. Drive it arround 40 miles on a number of trips over the rest of the day and everything is great. However later that evening will not start again. The engine turns over but will not start. Call breakdown again and again cannot be jump or bump started. Checked immobiliser etc. Mechanic friend now stratching his head as says that this is the first diesel he has failed to start in 3 years and thinks it is a fuel related issue. Get car recovered to home again. next morning now try to charge battery again but the car will not start. Decide to ask local garage to put it on the computer. The result -- they fitted a new camshaft sensor and fingers crossed looks like it has solved the problem. Read more
I've got a C-Max 2.0 TDCi - a different engine but had exactly the same symptoms (including where the engine chose to stop). New camshaft position sensor and 5k miles with no further incidents.
With mine, I noticed the problem occured on a warming engine (i.e. 10-20 mins after start).
It's a fairly cheap part to replace (~£27 +labour & VAT on mine) which was welcome relief as the manner of the breakdown had me thinking dark thoughts about fuel pumps, injectors and four-figure repair bills.
I expect this problem is not confined to Fords (especially in my case as the engine comes from the PSA joint venture). Also an example of the diagnostic systems pointing directly to the fault and no mucking about trying this and that to find the problem.
I have recently bought an import Lucida estima, but only have one remote key.
Does any one have a suggestion for obtaining or reprogramming another key.
Read more
Sadly the frequencies used by the japanese market for their remotes are already in use in this country for other reasons, and and it is technically illegal to sell or even use them over here! , so unfortunately you will not be able to replace the remote by any normal means.
Dave
I"ve had this problem on and off for about 9 months,the reason i say on and off is that i learned what was causing it and managed to fix it since then it happened a few times since but it only took 10 mins to fix. I would like to point out that when my glow plug light came on and the cut out,when i got it started again i never had the problem of the engine management light staying on,so if this is happening to you then maybe you have a different problem. Mines turned out to be the CRANKSHAFT SENSOR, the dust {powder} and very fine metal shavings from the dual mass flywheel were clogging up the sensor,stopping it working properly. This sensor is magnetic so it attracts the shavings etc. Anyway to cut a very long story short, once i learned where the sensor was i took it out cleaned it with methalated spirits,put it back in and that was it for weeks back to normal, when it happend again i just did the same again.When this stpped working i replaced the sensor for £28 from ford and it felt like a new car, power back etc. I should tell you that i use my car as a taxi so i NEED it to be working.I have since fixed about 6 mondeo taxis with the same problem and replacing the sensor has worked in them all so far.I should point out that even if you replace the sensor you may still get the problem back because of a build up of this powder in the bellhousing where the sensor sits.I replaced my clutch last week at 133k and the amount of powder that came out was amazing it was even in my gearbox oil.So now theres no powder in my gearbox to clogg up the sensor its brand new. Anyway i would STRONGLY reccomend trying this first,its probably youre cheapest option and its worked for me on more than one occasion.If you want to know where it is. it fits in to the back of the bellhousing, if you follow the EGR pipe don to the bottom and put youre hand just past it you should feel hydraulic{brake}pipes and if you feel around there you should feel the top of a sensor with a wire comming out of it, this is it.You"ll need a n 8mm ring spanner{preferably rathet spanner} makes it much easier,just unloosen the boly you can feel beside the sensor and slide it out. Repacing it is just opposie from takin it out... Hope this heps some of you and stps you getting ripped off... Let me know if it works for any of you... cheersl
Shouting in header significantly lowered! Read more
It's just another example of bean counter engineering. The engine speed probe should always be at the flywheel end of the crank to avoid torsional oscillations modulating the speed signal with FM. The bell housing is no place for a variable reluctance probe with a permanent magnet.
At least VAG put the transducer and tone wheel inside the engine at the flywheel end. If you get metal filings in there, you have a lot more to worry about.
659.
and on and on. Just read in the local paper a response to a question from Salisbury MP about when the A303 will be upgraded. Yes, you've guessed the answer already! Apparently the next review is not scheduled until 2014, knowing how long discussions will take after the review, then nothing is going to change for many years. I have lived in the area for over 25 years, and nothing has changed yet.
So all you happy travellers using the A303 to get down to the South West had better plan to stagger your journeys. The pinch point at Stonehenge will continue to have long tailbacks, about 3 miles there this afternoon, and again where the Wyle Valley dual carriageway goes back down to single lanes. Oh well, perhaps I'll just open a tea stall in the layby on the hill. Read more
Yep, lots of other ways to go, and it's very rare to encounter a jam on the A303 if you go late at night or very early in the morning.
What's unbelievable to me is the amount of people who set out at 4pm on a Friday and wonder why they get stuck. There's no need (appreciating the fact that I live in Hampshire and can leave at 9pm and arrive in North Cornwall just around midnight - I know it's not that simple for others but even so...)!
Hi,
I tend to know about new models reading as I do various printed and web-based motoring media, yet the first time I see a new model on the road I often am surprised oneway or the other by my reaction this happened just yesterday, and got me thinking about a few other instances over the years...
First there is the "you've got to be kidding" type negative reaction...
first time I saw a jag X-type, something about the grill/front bumper seemed all out of proportion like a sticking out bottom lip, looked terrible in the flesh
first time I saw a Honda CR-V (new shape), thought it was nearly as ugly as the infamous Ssanyong Rodius, but have since grown to like it.
first time I saw a Seat Altea - what a mess..
first time I saw the latest Mondeo hatch - does no one else think that stylistically it is a slab sided lump, though I have to say the estate looks great.
Then there is the "wow whats that!... oh of course it is the new abcxyz" type positive reaction - doesn't happen as often, but here's a few (not including supercars or exotica)
First time I saw the new Fiesta, (in 5 door guise), couldn't and still can't quite believe it, really lovely
First time I saw the current shape Seat Leon - despite the front being basically the same as Altea it just looks great all around. Shame about the interior
then yesterday, first time I saw the new Megane.
its not often that an everyday as opposed to supercar turns heads, but there are a few of my examples that have done so for me. Read more
When the Bentley Continental R was unveiled at the Geneva show in the early 1990s it got a spontaneous round of applause from the assembled journos, etc.
If it was unveiled again now the same thing would happen. Quite right too.
And now you can have one for the price of an Audi, if you're brave. One I looked at even had a baby seat in the back!
Browse
Edinburgh.
Any carpark accessible by public cars must be insured /RFL/MoT!