November 2009
currrently have w reg astra 1.6 petrol club, thinking diesel is a way forward...
any ideas on switching to a 1.7 or 2.0 litre diesel autobox for ease of use + the increased MPG.l
good idea, or stick with what i have?
finances dictate no more swiching of vehicles that as above, due to a few grand ready cash + trade in value.
other option, upgrade to 1.8 or 2.0 litre petrol manual... i like my car setup, how much bother to stick a nw engine in what i have already - ie swap the 1.6 with the 1.8/2.0 engine?
I'm after a bit more power.
I have non standard air intake + customised exhaust in what I have already, hence the idea of switchin the engine, but no idea if this is possible!
Current on 72000 miles, meaning in 8000 the timing belt needs relpacing.
cheers
Dave H Read more
Once again I'm contemplating changing my car! I go through this process far too often of spending hours trawling Autotrader and then end up sticking with the Saab. More often than not, SWMBO reins me in.
I quite like the idea of going automatic, but other than one or two hire cars, I don't really have much experience of them.
Is there anything I should be looking out for when buying that I wouldn't with a manual apart from the mpg issue?
(For the record, I've seen an Astra 1.8 vvt auto and a C-Max 2.0 auto. Ok, as a curve ball, I've also seen a Volvo S60 manual 2.0 which I quite like for some reason too. Thoughts on any of these much appreciated!)
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I had a 1986 Prelude auto - 4 speed and really rather good compared to my 1980 Maxi 4-spd auto :-)
Just wondering if fuel economy improves in colder weather or gets worse in winter if the same journeys are made.
For me I noticed with petrol engine cars the fuel economy goes down in colder weather.
Does this also apply with diesel engine cars or does this improve (air density etc) ? Read more
>> the infernal combustion engine uses more fossil fuel in the winter months is because
our
>> planet is further from the Sun at this time of year
No it's closer now. Perihelion (147 million Km) in January aphelion (153 million Km) in
July.
but its winter in australia in july, swings and roundabouts
Just looking for a bit of advice..
Have had a few issues with a BMW AUC car I bought a few weeks back and have been complaining about the pulling to the left almost ever since.
The car has now been KDS and was found to be out of alignment. This has been done at their cost (thankyou)
I do however, feel that the tyre should also be replaced as to me it is worn on the inner edge.
The salesman (and tyre tech) say that the tyre does not need replacement ?
I know that a legal tyre has to be over 1.6mm over 3/4 of the tyre but what about inner edge wear ? what is the required limits ?
here is the tyre which is the rear passenger side :-
tinyurl.com/yl5btds
when this picture was taken I had put on about 670 miles
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If the tracking is wrong it would tend to wear both front tyres on the insides or outsides.
Whenever I've had tracking problems in the past, it's only ever worn one tyre on the inner or outer edge, not both of them.
hi guys, still trying to sort out my uneven and eratic idle problem. what i have noticed since the problem arose is the mpg gauge has stopped working|. mite there be a connection? Read more
Hello everyone, I was just wondering if any of you know why the 87000 mile service on a Mazda 6 diesel is so expensive. I rang today and was quoted £375 by a Mazda dealer, that's a standard price. This does seem very high as I had one before costing £approx £200.
Any help?
Cheers,
N-I Read more
My number plate light switches on only when the rear screen demister is on. I have spoken to a garage and they say its to do with them both sharing the same electrical feed and needs to be stripped and looked at by an auto electrician to isolate the problem. Is this something I can check myself?
The garage says it will pass the MOT because it will be tested with the rear demister on but has advised me to get it fixed by an auto electrician. Read more
The rear demister would not be on for MOT(unless to make light work).
Help! Forester 2.0 Turbo 52 plate.
Fr n/s and rear o/s brakes locking on. Replaced ABS unit, replaced master cylinder bypassed valve between master cylinder and ABS unit and still brakes lock on. No pressure at master cylinder when we loosen brake fluid pipe. Is there a valve somewhere in the system we cannot locate??
Any suggestions welcomed.
Thank you Read more
Has this model got a hill-holder system as most Scoobys do? (The valve that applies all the brakes to stop roll back on hill starts:-when brake & clutch are pressed together on an incline & then the brake released but clutch held down- valve actuated)
Try backing that right off & see if that has any effect?
my citreon xsara has developed a high pitch rattle which has got progressively louder. it sounds like its coming from the sump area but doesnt sound like a crank grumble. the turbo still works, the cars not down on power and doesnt use oil. any idea,s please as this car is sound other than the rattle. ps the car has done 122 thousand. cheers rich Read more
It's a long shot but does it have a damped crankshaft pulley?
If so paint a line across it and keep checking to see if the line becomes mis-aligned. If that happens have the pulley replaced before it flings the aux belt into the timing belt and wrecks the engine.
Steve.
Just looked at the Skoda website. Who was it done by? a one eyed colour blind 10yr old?
Golly gosh, I'd have thought a better job could have been done. There is nothing there to make you want to explore further (IMHO) Read more
Euro NCAP comments on the lack of standard ESC and curtain airbag fitment on the
Octavia II however it seems ESC is standard in other EU countries so perhaps our
market just doesn't demand it ?
You pays your money and takes your choice - I ordered mine with side airbags but don't see the need for ESP.
Have driven over 300k miles in the last 10 years with ESP equiped cars and have NEVER seen it operate.
Back to topic - I like the scrap car on the belt - wonder if the sleighster will be back for Xmas!
Browse
It's not worth the switch too much work and parts save the cash you will spend service the one you have and drive more sensible to save fuel.
Also when you do the belt on the astra stick a waterpump in too.
If you decide to do the diesel route is yours already auto not manual because that would be a nightmare too!