December 2009
with the current frosty weather we are having i have noticed that my heated screen clears all but the right hand 6-8 inches.
it was the same with my last car, is it typical of fords? (current transit, previous mondeo)
OR
is it something to do with most cars being destined to be LHD. the left side clears first and quickest.
any ideas or thoughts on the matter would be appreciated
cheers, alf Read more
Hi all,
Whilst window shopping this weekend, I've seen that a garage local to me has 3 defleeted, black 06 reg focus estate 1.6 tdci lx's.
First of all the long shot - does anybody out there have an inkling of which outfit runs / ran a fleet of such vehicles?
Secondly, they were all priced around the £4k mark which struck me as quite reasonable for a 3y old example with 100k. Recent experience with mine and my wife's 10y+ old cars seems to suggest that it is age and neglect that kills cars far more that mileage. If a car has seen this intensity of use, I would expect the mileage to be mostly motorway miles and the cars to be mechanically pristine. Also any common rail -diesel related horror stories should have raised their head and been sorted by this point. Any opinions?
I'm close to being more than a window shopper.....
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is the owner called paul?
When I put my car into reverse it works fine, but if I reverse then let the car roll again and reverse again etc, the more times I do this the less I have to let the clutch up and eventually the car will end up reversing whilst my foot has pushed the clutch pedal right to the floor and it even over powers my brake and then eventually stalls, at this point my gear stick is stuck in reverse and will only free up once my foot has left the clutch. All my other gears are fine, it just seems to be reverse, any ideas what this could be?? Read more
>>>>normally they change the friction plate in the clutch its self and leave the hydralics alone.<<<<<
No one in their right mind would NOT change the tthe master cylinder in this car!
>>>>If's it just a seal in the master cyliner then shouldn't be too expensive to change, or it might just need a fluid top up.<<<<<
It will be about the same price to change as a clutch since most of the work is labour!
About a 3 hr job.
Hi all im a newbee so please bear with me. My rear demister and heated mirrors have stopped working. The power light does come on when you press the button but i checked at the rear screen and there is not a feed. The fuses are ok. Does this sound like a relay. Would i still get the light on the switch if relay was faulty. Also when i pulled the fuse for the rear demister the light at the switch stayed on. Im confused. Read more
Thanks for that, had a good read but it seems that is a slightly different problem as the light on there switch comes on but then goes off again mine stays on.
I have a suzuki swift 1.5, last week on checking the oil their was a white creamy deposit on the dip stick, this is an 2009 model and has only done 3500 miles.
I suspect the cylinder head gasket. What to do? Read more
Is it losing any water?
I would be suprised if there is anything wrong with this car. These a great little engines and will take a lot of abuse without falling out of bed.
I would recommend changing oil and filter every 6 months/6 thousand miles to keep it all sweet (timing chain engines like regular fresh oil). Properly serviced this engine will give you many years of excellent performance.
I like suzukis, generally good motors but the spare parts prices can give you a shock sometimes!
I wondered if the incredible amount of tools and bits and pieces that I carry around in the boot are common to many HJ readers, or if (as I suspect) I am in fact a complete anorak:
Engine starter (one of those battery things with crocodile clips that is supposed to get you started in the event of a flat battery). I carry it because the battery is 5 years old and is bound to fail the day I decide to leave the device in the shed! I charge it every 2 months
Selection of bulbs and fuses
Foot pump and separate LCD gauge
2 litres of water
Tool kit with screwdrivers, sockets, insulating tape, pliers etc etc
Jump leads
WD40
Inspection light
Full gown that came with Duckhams Hyper Grade oil about 20 years ago. This fits head-to-Toe and the idea is that you wear it over your smart suit if you need to change a wheel
Ready mixed coolant (I have a weeping water pump)
Oil
Multimeter
5 metres of wire
12v inverter to 240v. Never used
Non-Tools:
Torch
Biscuits and drinking water in case we get stuck
4 x Tesco ?Rain Poncho and Emergency Foil Blankets? kits in case we have to hike in the howling rain or camp in the wilderness. (well?.)
First Aid Kit
Tablets
Disposable Camera, but film is probably well out of date now
Selection of household batteries and fuses
Gloves
Hat
Spare Coat (think I forgot mine once, so that sealed the fate that a spare cheapo would live in the car)
Picnic Blanket
Foldaway Chairs x 2 (the Motorway Services 2 for £10 ones)
Coins for car parks
One thing I note is lacking ? a towrope
Today I applied a little logic and at last removed the bottle of brake fluid from the car, as I check it every week - if the light suddenly came on whilst out and about I guess I would phone the RAC rather than just top it up!
Trouble is, if I ever throw something out I always subsequently need it, so it appears I have applied the same logic over the years with the amount of bits and pieces that I ?need? to cart around
Anyone else carry this amount with them? Over the top?
What have I used over the years? Well the spare bulbs and fuses have been useful, the WD40, the multimeter, the coins and the footpump. The household batteries and fuses have been useful when away from home
Cheers
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anyone who carries a warning triangle and is prepared to use it should also carry a first aid kit, cructhes, spinal board and probably an organ donor card
New at this so please bear with me for the explanation.
The car's done 180k but over the last 40k is been progressively difficult to start needing several turns before firing, otherwise runs fine. Of late I have to pump the fuel primer bulb to get it to go. OK to start inside of 1hr after initial start otherwise back to the bulb.
I think its either getting air into the fuel or the pressure in the fuel system is able to fall when not running thus being a dog to start as the pump is initially starved. There is no fuel leak, any fuel smell nor can I hear any hissing noises after priming the bulb until its hard.
Its had a new primer bulb in case the one way valve was leaking, it wasn't.
I did read through the forums threads on cold starting, while interesting I'm confident its not battery, plugs etc.
Any ideas would be very much appreciated.
cheers Read more
Hi Peter and Dynamic Dave
Thought you deserved an update. it's fixed thanks to your suggestions!
Given I could not find any fuel or air leaks I went for the easier option of testing glow plugs. Two provided no continuity/ohm test at all so I took them out (fortunately they were the easy middle two) and tested again across a battery... neither worked. Two replacements later and she starts fine. The initial smoke on start has now hugely reduced as has the lumpy misfiring like sensation.
With hindsight I think i was getting distracted by the fact that pumping the primer bulb did make it better hence thought it was a fuel problem. I reckon for whatever reason it helped when only one glowplug had gone but with two gone it didn't but I was already convinced it was a fuel related problem.
Anyway job done with little expense.
Thanks very much
See Renault did a part time 4x4, what are alternatives are there to the Scenic RX4.
Thank you. Read more
Mileage between 50,000 to 100,000 (not too worried about mileage as vehicle will only cover 2000 miles a year); A&B roads and occassional Motorway trip, has to carry items to tip and be able to cope with snowy conditions.
From HJs News
www.honestjohn.co.uk/news/item.htm?id=35709
Do you recognise these types ?
Are there other types? Read more
I've always been a bit of, anticipation driving, by the book and occasional engine braking on long downhill stretches. With my current car, a Mondeo Mk4 Diesel Auto, I thought I would have to give up the downhill engine braking bit but this electronic box is so clever it automatically holds on to the gears going downhill without kicking down.
.
Keith
What are the torque settings on a cylinder head bolt for a Daewoo Nexia 1.5 N-Reg SOHC?
Thanks Read more
The info I have is:
Stage 1:- 29Nm
Stage 2:- + 60°
Stage 3:- + 60° + 30°
Stage 4:- warm up, + 30° to 50°
Inlet manifold
10 6 2 3 7
9 5 1 4 8
Exhaust manifold
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If you get a non Ford windscreen fitted during the warranty, any problems with the screen, Ford wont want to know. So always get a Ford replacement.