I have an oil boiler in my workshop. It has a Bentone oil burner and a small 250 litre tank for the oil. It's nearly run out of oil, but no-one will supply me with less than 1000 litres, plus they're a bit funny about having the tank inspected first for corrosion etc. (it doesn't have any). It says on the burner to use No.1 heating oil.

I don't use it often, but have nearly run out of oil. I recently changed the filter and cleaned the burner, but need more oil. So, can I use diesel instead of No.1 heating oil? That way I can just buy a little as and when. Read more

The headlights, dashboard lights and interior lights all flicker on my Astra. The problem seems to be worse when the car is first started and on the early part of any journey. I'm still trying to figure out if there is anything that happens while driving that makes this worse i.e. accelerating, braking, cornering etc.

The lights never go out they only flicker.

The drive belt on the alternator is tight enough and the battery seems to be ok.

The car was off the road and unused for a few months before I got it and the previous owner had not experienced this problem.

I would appreciate any comments or advice you may have.

Thanks Read more

Hi,

I have an 05 Focus 1.8 Tdci which takes forever to heat up. I have changed the thermostat which doesn't seem to have helped.

I drive approx 30 miles to work along A roads averaging probably 40-50mph. This morning the temperature gauge didn't get past 1/4 heat and it took about 20 minutes for any heat to start coming out of the vents.

I also find that the car heats up as I go faster and then the temperature drops when I start going slower.

Does anyone have any idea why this might be and how I fix it? I'm in danger of getting frostbite on my way to work!!!

Thanks in advance,

Pete Read more

Hi, I am new to the forum, but Terrano owner over 8 years (two vehicles). Thanks to all in advance for any help you can provide. I don't know a huge amount about technical side as they have both been really reliable - rarely had to tinker.

My tail-lights have failed. Fuse and power supply in fusebox both fine. front side lights are on. All connections at rear clusters appear ok. Tight if a bit muddy! I haven't yet taken them all apart, anybody know the colour code for the loom? Bulbs OK, no power to bulbs though. Co-incidently perhaps, I couldn't find power on tow contacts.

I don't have any wiring diagrams, though possibly available on the internet. Especially for link to tail-light cluster and towbar?

One more Q, have I missed a fusebox? I ask because I have only seen the main box to the left of the engine, but when I bought the car, I found some bigger fuses in the glove box. Once again thanks for any help.

P Read more

Just read a thread about someone 'missing' his Volvo S60 after he sold it recently. Well, we sold a VW Golf Mk V a couple of weeks ago and I won't be missing it one bit!

It was PANTS! Our fault, because we were totally taken in by the marketing hype and the drivel that some reviews contain.

Quality? Do me a favour.
- The paintwork was truly appallingly fragile, prone to the types of vsible scratches that cannot be polished out but are too minor to warrant a respray.
- The interior was full of cheapo plastic, with rough edges in places (e.g. door pockets).
- The doors 'clanged' rather than 'clunked'.
- The drivetrain was very unforgiving, jolting the car with a real bang when changing gear (OK, this was intermittent, but I've never had it with any other car in 20 years of driving)
- Spurious dashboard warning lights. Code reads and subsequent investigations could never identify an actual problem.

I can't believe I let this car get to me....I literally hated it....I actually swore at it I hated it so much...so it had to go. In contrast to other posters' comments about their cars being missed in the same way as a pet that's gone missing, the Golf was rabid dog that needed to be put down. So sold it to the first person that responded to the ad. Good luck to them. Read more