September 2009
About to start work on a three year contract. I need to use a car to get to/from work and to use it at work around Essex (for which I'll be paid at local authority rate per mile)
I will be driving about 40 mile round trip to get to the office, against traffic both ways (thankfully) 90% of it on dual carriageway (A12)
I have a new Golf Mk6 and don't want to put all that mileage on it, so am looking for suggestions for cheap & comfortable and economical. Tall order? Happy to pay up to £5k....oh and prefer auto!
Suggestions welcome, thanks Read more
Just coming to the end of an 8 night break in SF. I have come to the conclusion that the 'septics drive some of the ugliest cars in all of christendom. Ugly, ugly, ugly. However, they have some of the best road manners I have come across. They stop at crossings, stop at right turns to let you cross or even to cross where you are not supposed to.
Public transport is excellent so city does not appear to be rammed with nose to tail jams. Some buses (take a note Boris) have bike racks on the front nose! I loved the cable cars, hanging on for grim death on the outside as they shoot up and down hills. The "Elf n safety" brigade would have a pink fit in the UK.
Cars are not really welcome in the city, hence usurious parking fees. Still can't ween some of them off their big thirsty V8's
Walked some of the hills featured in Bullit. Flipping steep! more so than it looks on film (Russian Hill/Fillbert/Mason/Chestnut streets) Read more
I would recommend LA first....via Hway 1 and stopping off at the Monterey Aquarium. Fantastic for all people of all ages, and I know a great Mexican restaurant in Monterey!
Heading back N after LA, drive up the E side of the Sierra Nevada on 395, entering Yosemite through the eastern portal of Lee Vining near Mono Lake. Book accommodation for Yosemite in advance! Head out W on 120, reaching the scenic 49 then a short drive N to see the Redwoods at Calaveras Big Trees State Park. Hugely impressive if big trees are your thing! www.bigtrees.org
i have an intermittant knocking on the front which increases/decreases with wheel speed. i am pretty sure its the n/s cv joint
can anyone advise if i should replace both sides and how difficult a job it is on the auto Read more
Hi no need to change both, its the same to change as a manual not hard are you sure its the cv? does get worse when turning on full lock?check your wheel bearing, if not steve
I seem to remember that our host, Honest John, has stated on several occasions that if one is the victim of an accident that is not of one's own making then the culprit's insurance company must put you back into the position that you were in before the accident happened.
I was such a victim this week. A driver reversed her large vehicle at great speed and demolished the front near side wing of my car (I was stationary at the time). My car is 7 years old and was in immaculate condition. It had done 70,000 miles and was probably good for another 3 or 4 years of enjoyable motoring for me.
It seems likely to me that her insurance company will consider my car to be a write off. For me to be put into the position that I was in before the accident I would need enough to be able to buy at retail cost a similar vehicle. How likely is this to happen? My understanding of these things (fortunately very scanty, not having been in this situation before) is that the insurance company is likely to offer a figure something close to the trade value of my vehicle which will be a pittance. To replace the vehicle on a like-for-like basis would require a figure far in excess of the trade valuation.
Can anybody offer me any good news? Read more
Afraid to say my experiences are only good. I've been involved with a couple of written off or stolen cars for family members. The ins co has usually made a reasonable starting offer, but as a matter of course I have always told them that I don't consider it enough and they have increased it without argument to a better figure. You don't need to be aggressive, just firm - and if you can support your argument with evidence (cars for sale from Autotrader) then all the better. But remember that you would usually expect haggle a few ££s off sale price, so take that into account when deciding what you will accept - and don't try to be unreasonable.
engine revs does not come straight back down going up the gearbox, then comeing down the box it is very jerky, ive been told by a local mechanic that there is a sensor/valve connected to the clutch operation, which is magneticaly operated by the engine revs, can you advise, have you heard anything, walter ferguson. Read more
hi, this has just began to happen recently but as i drive my car around, the car vibrates intermittently for around 30 seconds. i have not had the chance to take it to a garage as yet but its happend for around a week.has anyone else had this problem or does anyone know what i should look out for?the oil and coolant and brake fluid all seems to be fine.the car steers ok, i think it may have something to do with the engine.please help Read more
Is the vibration at wheel or engine speed?
Can anybody help, My Ford Fiesta TDCi has Km50,000 & this afternoon car couldn't start. The mechanic came to see it & he said he has to examine it tomorrow. Basicallay battery power is ok, the only signals lite up are the oil (red , stays on) & the seat belt sign ( yellow, for a couple of seconds ). The ignition dosen't even try to start......................is this serious or just a fuse ? Read more
dont do it again
you were lucky
buy a new battery
or find out what caused the old one to drain
When was the last time you saw one of these :
www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C112472/
As a youngster, I remember a guy round the corner having one of these in metallic mid green. Looked like a bloated, more luxurious Avenger. Read more
You are right of course, everything rusted for fun back then.
The only difference between cars was how many "rust traps" they had, to provide a good place for the tinworm to take hold and how thick the steel was, which dictated the length of time it took for the rot to become terminal....
Hello,
Passat recently had a 2nd hand turbo installed after the other one went bye-bye. Mechanic said I should install a new air flow meter since his test drive had picked up on a loss of power after 15-minutes or so of driving. I bought a replacement air flow meter and installed it but the loss of power is still happening - tonight I drove for about 10 minutes and almost as soon as I hit 70mph, there was a definite sensation that acceleration just fell away.
Any advice?
I've heard various solutions ranging from going up to 4000rpm to physically cleaning the air flow meter but these does appear to be suitable for my situation as the air flow meter is new. Read more
I'm not sure how sure I am on the worthiness of the replacement turbo but the mechanic seemed reliable. I've not changed the airfilter.
Tomorrow I'm going to see a 1994 1.4 Nissan Sunny [135k miles].
Does it have cambelt or chain? If belt, what is replacement interval and is it interference engine?
It will be used by my wife for learning to drive. But just don't want it to break down next week.
Read more
Good. Enjoy!
Sounds like excellent bangernomics to me.
Like this, perhaps: tinyurl.com/pw8m3t ?
;-)