July 2009
I went on saturday and I could fill a volume or two of "Unusual Sightings".
It has lost a lot of its garden party atmosphere since I was last there about ten years ago, due to increased crowds and commercialisation, but there is certainly something for everyone - motorbikes,race cars,road cars, rally cars, old cars,new cars and some that never should have existed.
I drove down on friday as the public were leaving and the last 20 miles had a constant stream of interesting cars coming the other way - Ferraris including an F40, Maseratis, TVRs, 7s, lots of vintage cars, and a Toyota iQ.
I went with a friend who now lives nearby but has never been before, and whose interest in cars is limited, so I was uncertain how he would react. However the first car we saw when we arrived was a Matra F1 car with Jackie Stewart climbing onboard to go for his run up the hillclimb. From then on time just flew by as I showed him around the event.
The road cars included almost all the cars on Top Gear's lap time list - Zonda, Koenigseggegg.., Caparo, Mercs, BMWs, Lotus Evora, Bugatti Veryon (with or without roof), Maseratis,etc The Ferrari California was almost ignored!!
The bikes came in all shapes and sizes from a 50cc bike with a top speed of over 100mph ( but a frame and tyres smaller than my mountain bike ) to GP and Superbikes and a couple of sidecar outfits.
The F1 cars ranged from Auto Union to last year's Mclaren,Red Bull and Ferrari.
There was a line of beautiful vintage Bugattis, an Aston Martin Bulldog and a strange collection of mini specials.
Rally cars being driven on their special forest stage included an Audi Quatro, mini, MkII Escort, Lancia Stratos and Skoda Estelle.
There was almost too much to take in but the display by the Eurofighter Typhoon produced some lovely noises and appeared to defy the laws of physics.
Were any other Backroomers there and what was your favourite part? Read more
Coming home tonight - quite a bit of rain so the wipers were going through their paces - fast / slow / intermittent.
Then when the rain had stopped slipped them on again to clear some spray and nothing.
Probably a daft question but presumably the motor has gone - if so is it an easy job for a DIY merchant. Or could it be something else like a fuse?
Thanks Read more
is there power to the motor? Could be relay or a switch on the dash stalk. Otherwise sounds like the motor is a good plan.
hello, the air bag light is flashing, could you tell the reason for this and how to sort it thanks john Read more
We need more information as there are several sequences of flashing.
Is it the common four flashes and pause the another four flashes and pause etc. etc.?
...or are they simply selling themselves at the moment?
Salesman we spoke to on Saturday suggested that 'a customer' might be able to 'negotiate' a free set of mats and a tankful of fuel, but that would be about your lot!
Funk White teamed with Red Leather, tinted glass, front fogs and those lightly anodised(?) 16" alloys is a most attractive package for sure... Read more
Blast... beat me to it by a nanosecond rtj70!
The acronym stands for "Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino" which means in English "Italian Car...
The brochure (a truly outstanding brochure delivery service you've got yourselves there FIAT ? ordered online Sunday evening, delivered to house Tuesday morning) and supporting literature contradicts itself a number of time ? FIAT, Fiat, FIAT GROUP, Fiat Group Automobiles UK Ltd, etc., but the coloured FIAT logotype is without doubt the primary brand ident, featuring extensively throughout the printed material.
Glad we got that sorted then...
I drive a 88 Polo CL which for the nearly 5 years I've owned it has had a bit of a leak. I only realised when the carpets in the front footwells were saturated with water. I've been informed that something to do with the back windscreen but if this is the case how come its only the carpet in the front that gets wet?
Not sure I want to spend money getting it fixed (unless I cover the car in bathroom sealant) but am curious as to what it could be. Is this a common issue? Anyone any ideas?
Thanks Read more
No idea if it could be the same thing but Audi's (obviously related to VW's) have an issue where water runs in through the heater air intake in front of the windscreen and then into the car through the heater floor vents. Maybe the same thing is happening here?
Hi all
My friends 406 is slow. You can just about feel turbo kicking in at 2500 rpm.
We checked all hoses even at the back of the engine no leaks.
No excesive black smoke either
Is this a common problem?
BTW I has 3 406's 1.9dt and 1 306 1.9dt and they all much quicker.
Thanks Read more
The 406 is a very heavy car for a 1.9, so they do tend to feel slow, the 2.1 is much better. Has the performance dropped off or has it always been like this? If you can feel a boost at about 2000 - 2500 rpm then it sounds like its working OK. The usual problem is the small pipe from the intercooler to the pump, it goes hard and cracks, this senses the boost pressure and increases the fuel accordingly.
My zest has developed a starting fault---sometimes it wont!! Doesn't matter if it's hot or cold and if I leave it awhile it will usually go again.
It let me down this weekend and while I had the bonnet up I heard a click from under the ecu plate.
I think it was from the fuel injection relay. Anyway, it started then.
So......is it an ecu fault.? or something in the fuel circuit ??...it doesn't idle very well either.
Can I fix it without going to a dealer?? Read more
The 106 immobiliser problem is well known: had it on son's. It is VERY common..
No idea on 206s.
You know the little tricks at the reception desk (key post or what!) that is if you have mechanical knowledge and are sitting nearby listening.
It seems it would be a good way to assess for honesty - if you could just get in there and sit, pretending to read the paper for a couple of hours.
Ive sat in some Dealers over the years listening and have hardly been able to contain myself, not to chase after the `customer` (best use that word lightly) and tell them with honesty that they are being tricked out of their money.
There seems to be a trend. `being on the make` seems to be there all the time (if it`s there at all) and your ears prick up to a steady stream of issues as customers come and go - some just a light warning tinkle - others resonate through you like being inside big Ben..
Just occasionally you find an honest main dealer, (although I`ve only found two since 1966) here you hear an honest discourse - and the difference jumps straight out at you.
What price then an advertisement `booking` a steady stream of potential customers into the dealership to listen in?
They could also hand out `complaints` slips at every first contact and even allow recording/video of interactions for customers not sure of their treatment.
Much as we did, if requested, for clients receiving a service in my area of the public sector - as an aid to demonstrating transparency, honesty and integrity.
Can you imagine the response if you wanted to record your discussions with main dealer service reception and then expect a video tape of the car as it was serviced?
I recon a marque who dare do this would be deluged with sales.
Read more
I once had a call from a well known chain of exhaust and tyre fitters. They said they had broken a manifold stud so I told them to just replace it (the stud). It was their policy to fit a new manifold so I told them to put it back together (wouldn,t let me do it on their premises). Turned out to be a straight forward job to replace the stud. Although they were not ripping me off, if I had not done this job many times in the past I,m sure the cost of a replacement exhaust would have been excessive.
Hello all,
I bought my Y-reg Corolla (my first car) in early April of this year. I am a new driver - qualified last year at the age of 23 - and have little technical knowledge. Prior to the Corolla, I learned on a Fiesta 1.4, and also drove a Focus C-Max 1.6 and an Astra Estate 1.6. While I would hardly call the Corolla sporty, compared to those other cars I initially felt it was fairly 'nippy', which was one of the reasons I chose it.
Unfortunately in recent weeks, I have been experiencing a noticeable loss of power in lower gears. Once I shift up into second, fairly moderate acceleration now seems to send the revs flying - it begs me to shift up into third much sooner than it did previously. And yet, once I change into third I no longer get the 'boost' that I did before. This is most noticeable when going up familiar hills, which now require much harder acceleration and where I now find it difficult to overtake. Also in traffic I now have to change down more often as it takes longer to pick up speed in third.
Oddly enough I do not have these problems once I change into fourth; acceleration is still good even when I have slowed down quite a bit.
Could this be an issue with the gears, or possibly with the enging management system? Or is it just me? As I said, I am new driver so please forgive my ignorance. Thanks in advance for any advice or thoughts. Read more
SQ - no need to quote the message as you're the only one who's replied so far
Revs rising with poor acceleration suggests the clutch is slipping and needs replacing.
I suggest you ask a trusted friend with some experience and /or mechanical knowledge to try the car and give an opinion.
How many miles has the car done? Did you get any warranty when you bought it?
I have an air con compressor with the No. R-1580023 ref v699423-vau stuck on it. A year ago I bought this for an Astra but I never bothered to fit it. Can anyone confirm what models this pump will fit or where I may check the numbers myself. I would like to e-bay this item but want to be sure I list it correctly. As I didn't have to fit this Item I assumed I was sold the correct part but didn't check at the time. Read more
A quick google of R-1580023 suggests it fits the 2.2 all aluminium engine as fitted in the VX220, Vectra-B, Astra-G, and other Vauxhalls of that era.
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Just noticed there is a one hour review programme of this on ITV4 today at 5pm.