October 2009
I am sure most people here drive modern cars with Fly by Wire (FBW) throttles. What do people think of them? I have rather negative views of FBW....
My experience of driving modern cars with FBW has been limited to hire cars such as Astras, Vectras, Focus etc... I have not driven high performance FBW cars so cannot comment on those.
There are two main things that are annoying about FBW:-
-The cars I have driven have been setup to not have a snappy response to the input from my right foot. The input I give with my foot does not equate to the response from the car I am after (in relation to cable throttles). It often gives an ON and OFF style of driving. This is particularly bad with Vauxhall cars that I have driven. Maybe altering the computers that deal with throttle control would result in a much better response.
- The actual feel of the pedal is 'fake'. Like playing on an arcade game. This is purely down to the springyness of the throttle. It is usually not resistant enough to being pressed (I like the feel of a pedal that requires some effort.)
Please can people post their experiences with modern throttles and if anyone drives a high performance car, please let me know if your throttles feel natural and as responsive as cable ones.
I used to own an Alfa 164 V6 manual a couple of years ago. It had a cable throttle and had the most incredible response that I have ever come across. Read more
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We have a similar problem with analogue UHF TV. Basically we are on the edge of the transmitter service with other houses and trees further restricting our line of sight to the mast
IME you need to appraoch this very logically only changing one thing at a time. Your physical location and any obstructions between you and the satellite are factors you're stuck with. Check the disg alignment then the LNB, particularly for water penetration. Is the downlead as short as it cna br and of the best quality? Same for the aerial fly lead and the way it connects to your Sky Box.
In our case the answer was that the builders had used cheap co-ax and then wandered all over the house with it getting frm the chimney to the lounge immediately below.!!
Hi,
I recenlty came across a post on Audi-Sport from a member who had his misfire mystery solved by kind members of this forum. I'm hoping you can do the same for me.
My Audi S3 (2001) AMK keeps having multiple misfires across cylinders 1,3 and 4. Coil packs are new, new MAF, new plugs but still a misfire. I used VAGCOM to log the misfires by cylinder and found that they only misfire when I take my foot off the throttle and coast.
Looking at the Engine error codes I get...
4 Faults Found:
16684 - Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected
P0300 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
16687 - Cylinder 3: Misfire Detected
P0303 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
16688 - Cylinder 4: Misfire Detected
P0304 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
16685 - Cylinder 1: Misfire Detected
P0301 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
Readiness: 0000 0000
Through research I understand it could be the injector amplifier? I have the car in this weekend to MRC Tuning who are installing new injectors, fuel pump (it's done 100k miles!). Not sure if the injector amplifiers come with the new injectors but we'll have to wait and see.
The car has already blown a HG when cylinder number 1 head cracked and leaked oil round the seal. All now reconditioned after a £2k repair bill.
Anyway, I really don't want another big repair bill so I would really like to solve my misfire asap. Can anyone help shed any light on why the misfire would ONLY be happening when my foot comes OFF the accelerator?
Thanks for listening guys.
Cheers,
Gav
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I am having this misfire problem on my 03 S3. My codes also say the same thing, random misfire. I just want to be sure that is the PCV valve, because I don't have it right now, I had to change it, so actually, there is the hose without anything, only a screw to prevent something enters. Also, my fuel pressure regulator hose is broken, And I'm waiting til' monday to get it replaced. Which is exactly the valve you replaced? Thank you. From Venezuela.
Driver's side window will not open. All other windows work perfectly. When I press the switch for 'open', I can hear a faint click from behind the door trim. I get the same noise if I lift the switch as if to open the window.
All wiring to the switch appears in good order.
I have not removed the insulation behind the door trim, so I have not yet looked at the window regulator mechanism.
Is it likely to be a fault with the regulator motor?
If so, how do I test it to be certain that this is the faulty item? Read more
If you can identify that a rear offside window motor is the same as the front (no reason not to be) i'd go for the rear motor as it will have less use than the drivers window.
I know, I know, this has been discuused before though it is a constantly changing situation.
As mentioned I have an attractive job offer with a company car element, I am still not sure of the value of the scheme though it features a cash option.
To measure this I reckon I should calculate:
A/ Take home pay based on salary + the cash allowance.
B/ Take home pay based on salary - car BiK (typical car).
A - B = what I can spend on running a car (finance, depreciation, servicing, parts, insurance etc) without being worse off by not taking a company car.
Anything I have missed?
Thanks. Read more
Good point, might want to though ;-)
No, as you say it's worth checking.
We have two VW?s with dsg in our household. I have a 1.4 tsi Golf with the 7 speed trans, while SWIMBO has a 2.0 tdi Eos with the 6 speed.
I?m aware that the 7 speed is rated for less torque than the 6, and that it has dry clutches rather than ?wet? clutches running in oil.
I find that the 7 speed Golf has a much sharper clutch engagement from rest, such that I have to ?squeeze? the throttle carefully to avoid a jerky takeoff, and in general I have to be much more accurate with throttle inputs.
This is giving me an aching ankle when I drive the car.
Any others out there with similar problems. ( hello Mr. Tack ? )
(My thoughts are that the 7 speed clutch must be programmed to engage quite fast to avoid slip & compromise the life of the lining / facing. I?ve had it checked by my dealer who states that all is ok)
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Diesel has plenty of ticker torque and when you release the brake pedal the car will creep with no gas input.
The petrol may not be able to do this so needs to apply the clutch at a certain level of revs to prevent it stalling.
Hello!
Further to my other post (snapped timing belt) being sorted, I find we have one further problem, in that the radiator fan is going all the time the ignition is switched on.
It cannot be an overheating problem as it comes on as soon as you turn the key, even when engine is stone cold.
I found the wire and plug that goes to the thermal sensor/switch for the radiator fan, it was unattached and the previous owner had connected 2 terminals up with a bit of wire. Pull these out and the fan dies. The switch itself was corroded and all the points had snapped off and worn away.
It seemed obvious that the switch needed replacing, which I did (with a motor factor part).
Unfortunately, this did not solve the problem, as as soon as it was all connected back up the fan resumed running all the time.
My dad seems to think the new part I have bought might be defective, as why would the fan stop running when it is totally disconnected and yet run when connected to the new switch?
Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of this problem?
Cheers
Minski Read more
4 more years on and I too am having trouble with this exact issue, anyone manage to sort it out? I thought maybe relay but cant find where it might be. 1996 Astra-F rjpartridge@windowslive.com
Had to go from Barnstaple to Minehead today with the truck, not as easy as one thinks.
Haven't been down that way for donkey's, so from my and colleague's memory Porlock Hill is/was weight/length limited which scratched the A39 route.
The alternative i took was fine until i encountered another restricted route which wasn't signed until well committed down the road...that's not unusual though.
Residents and drivers in Bampton, Morebath and Upton on the B3190 had an unusual sight today, but the driver's i encountered were mostly forgiving..;)
Does anyone know the HGV situation A39 route Minehead to Barnstaple, particularly the Porlock Hill restrictions.
The Minehead dealer assures me it still causes chaos when something large tries to negotiate. Read more
Yes, and if you take the real coast road out of Lynton, via the Valley of Rocks and Woody Bay towards Parracombe you'll be right on the edge of some real drops. I did that road for the first time - going east so on the cliff edge against traffic coming the other way - as a learner in my father's Austin Cambridge. All I learned was to try and keep my trousers clean. I did the Col du Turini a bit ago and it wasn't as scary.
When I was a youngster we used to stand at the bottom of Porlock Hill and watch the drivers who took a look at the first right-hander and decided they didn't need first gear. Then we'd watch 'em rolling back...
It was news to me, so it might be for you also. Lists all 'advisories'.
www.motinfo.gov.uk/
Handy when planning a purchase.
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Seems to have been reported in June 2005
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=32...6
and repeated a few times since. www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=34...0
hi, my car takes multiple attempts to start. it happens all the time- in the morning when its cold and damp or just after i've filled up with petrol when engine is hot. it always starts eventually but its slowly getting worse. first noticed the symptons over a year ago when it would only happen once in a blue moon. any suggestions on what i should look for? Read more
Well my initial thought would be that the coolant temperature sensor for the ECU may not be opertaing properly, thus making the car hard to start because it can't tell whether it is hot or cold and so can't adjust the fuelling to suit.
Browse
Jokes like that deserve a shoe-ing.
Actually, now I think about it. I can manually release the handbrake by pushing the brake and pushing the handbrake button.
Going slighly OT here, but it won't start unless you fully depress the clutch pedal, and oddly I've driven with heavy packages on the passenger seat with no effect, but a local curry takeaway in its carrier bag will set off the seatbelt alarm. This means two things, the seat must have heat sensors in it, and as such you can transport a dead body without the seatbelt on.