May 2009
i have just bought a new car and when i switch off my engine and lock car, the information panel stays lit, so i can go out a few hours later and see my mileage etc all in bright red. Does anyone know why this stays on or how i switch that off along with all the other panel instruments
Thanks Read more
Help/advice needed please for an unusual situation.
Son-in-law had his car broken into so invested in one of those stoplock anti theft devices that hook through the steering wheel. Unfortunately he has lost his keys so the question is how can the lock be removed without damaging the vehicle? Read more
Unfortunately, there is no way this website could post the answer to this question.
Sorry. Thread locked.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8074947.stm
The garage owner at the end of the piece has it right in my opinion,why spend even more money on something you dont need when your customers all come due to word of mouth. A piece of paper saying approved means nothing to me ,but can be used as a scare tactic by large franchised organisations to scare the punters into work that is often led by monetary need and bonus schemes rather than for the safety and benefit of the consumer.
message ends...... Read more
Hi, I wonder if anyone can help me with a problem that I have trying to get on OEM cruise control for the Nemo Multispace.
The handbook spends about 4 pages explaining how it works but I have been informed by Citroen UK that CC was never intended for the UK market, although it is available for some of our european cousins.
I put it to Citroen UK that I would be happy to pay for a "European" unit to be sourced and then to be fitted by a Citroen dealer. I was told that this was not possible but not told why.
Does anyone know why it is not possible? I thought that the beauty or the CAN-BUS system was that various things could be added and the ECU programmed to work the new addition.
If I cannot have an OEM unit I will have to go with an aftermarket CC. Does anyone know of a reliable aftermarket unit? The engine is the 1.4 Hdi.
Thanks for any help you can offer. Read more
Having eulogised the Triumph Herald on a separate thread I have to own up to having been a Ford man for most of my (considerably long) driving life. For the most part I have found Fords to be what they set out to be - mass produced cars built to be affordable to the ordinary Joe. The current range has probably gone beyond that parameter and stands comparison with most other manufacturers' products, price notwithstanding.
One small feature of the ongoing Ford range that has baffled me for many years concerns the fuel filler cap. As far as I can recall every Ford model over the past 45 years or so has had the fuel filler cap on the driver's side of the car with the sole exception of the Fiesta which, from its introduction back in the 70's, has had its cap on the nearside of the vehicle. I'm not sure whether the new model Fiesta has the same arrangement but can anybody throw any light on why they should only have this arrangement on one of their long list of different models. What has prompted me to write is the state I got into earlier today when I (very unusually) took my wife's Fiesta for a fill-up, went to the 'wrong' side of the pump, and got into a very unseemly struggle with the filler hose which I had to feed over the roof of the car. Why can't they all be the same and do other manufacturers vary the siting of their respective filler caps? Read more
Our local Sainsbury's rebuilt their petrol station with longer hoses and have had the sense
to put up signs saying fill up either side. Sensible idea.
Our local tesco also has signs saying fill upeither side, the hoses are some of the shortest I have used, so you can fill from either side but if the filler cap is on the n/s the drivers door is going to be very close to the island.
My car has just had an MOT, and passed, but was I was told my plates were illegal as the gaps between groups exceeds 19mm.
Now my car is 4 years old and the dealer supplied the plates ( my own reg though) I never thought to question the gaps, nor did the MOT last year.
Just wondered how serious this is taken by the plod?, the gap is 75mm in fact which is large, I thought it made the number clearer, but obviously not.
The ltters look standard and there is no funny writing to make them look like a name.
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"And here was me thinking the MOT was a safety check. "
That's a very common misconception.
It isn't, and hasn't been for a very long time.
(and that view is freely admitted by VOSA)
I was looking at motoring stuff in Halfords this AM and was standing in one of the isles - considering the tools - as you do when retired and slightly bored with lolling on the sofa.
Suddenly i was aware of a rapid movement from my right - and entering the isle. So I naturally stepped forward as there was around 2ft clearance in front of me and 3ft behind.
Whoomp - This bloke ( another customer) then almost burst his nose on the end of my shoulder. Automatically i said "sorry about that, I thought you were going to pass behind me"
Silence from him. Then I realised that he had intended just to bustle straight in front of me (as they do in Smiths). Not only that - but that inadvertently I said something that could almost be considered `smart` and that it might be considered that i had given him a bit of a `put down` having purposefully impeded his right to walk straight in front of me.
I thought about that (and Rattles smart parking retort) and decided to do it on purpose.
Next time you motor into town and try to walk straight in front of this (referring only to myself) slack jawed looking old goat who`s looking at motoring magazines - watch out - he might just step forward - have nothing to loose and be looking for `bad manners payback` ;-)
Question - Is it purposeful or not?
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Nice one Pugugly. Nice to know there are still gentlemen around. I did the same once, but the kid was only 20p short.
Hi,
I am looking for a pair of roof bars and have more or less narrowed the choice down to the two below. I simply want the bars for carrying my surfboard as I doubt I will carry anything heavier.
The two choices are:
tinyurl.com/ne3a3v (links to Roofbox website)
and:
tinyurl.com/lfmkrb (links to Direct 4x4 website)
Can some of your people more experienced in choosing roof bars take a look and give me your views on them?
Thanks,
T.
Edited to make first link a shorter, TinyURL one... so did both for consistency. Read more
Oops, forgot about the tiny url thing. Sorry... Got excited... sun is out, need roof bars for surfboard...
Thanks to whoever changed the links...
For a while now, a friend and I have had this notion of touring Britain by car to investigate various places of historical, georaphical and cultural significance. We were thinking of spending a week or so during summer and just staying in B&B's and/or camping. I have picked up a few guides such as the AA's 'Best Drives' and a couple of books recommending places to visit and stay. I think it appeals because I enjoy driving would quite like to explore the motherland a bit having spent most of my life north of the border. It would also provide some useful expierience in my still-young driving career.
My question is, is this a flawed notion? Would the reality be the stress and drudgery of driving on England's roads? Perhaps the appeal of this kind of trip belongs in a bygone age? Read more
If you missed it on TV recently, Richard Wilson did exactly this in a six part series, and he drove "classic" cars to do it.
It was called Britain's Best Drives, and he found routes of interest all over the country, some spectacular (apparently - he's terribly laconic).
Anyway, there's a book, so there might be some inspiration in there.
And Robbie Coltrane did a Britain's B roads program that was pretty similar.
Hi,
Long time lurker, first time poster..
As a huge car geek I like to change my cars regularly to experience different vehicles although I have recently hit a wall.
I usually use the excellent autotrader website to sell my cars after I have them for a month or two, the problem being that I have sold 5 cars in the past year and I must now place a trade advert if I am to place another ad.
I was wondering, what are the ramifications of placing a trade ad ? Do I have to be a registered trader with a business ?
Many Thanks Read more
tinyurl.com/kutp7t (Links to Telegraph article)
Which includes this totally incorrect gem:
The spokesman from HMRC said: "We won't be bothering with a mother flogging her old cookbooks or reindeer jumpers.
"Even if someone sells a car online, it is of no interest to us. However, they might be liable for CGT."
There is no way, ever that a car can ever, ever, ever be subject to CGT. Journalists, don't you love them. (Whomever they claim to have said it.) And the reason for this is that everybody loses money on cars - and they don't want you offsetting the loss against your share portfolio gains. Thus any profits are tax free (some hope).
Dead right, though pd. They'll quickly decide you are not a trader.
hi
my focus lll does the same, it goes off after a while. i don't think you can turn it off or alter the time period