March 2011
So at the end of the week I will be driving London to Tuscany!
I have a choice of of 2003 BMW 320d estate or a 2004 VW Polo 1.9 diesel. Any idea on which one will be the most fuel efficient? I will be in no rush, so 65mph will be fine. All motorway but will be quite heavily loaded with holiday gear.... Read more
I have a 2.2 Vauxhall Omega Auto and the trip display is no longer showing anything. Someone suggested it has two bulbs and they have blown. Everything else on car seems to be working so guess it's not a fuse. Any ideas on how I get at it? Do I have to remove the dashboard facia and any advice on how to do that? Read more
Not a straightforward job but not too difficult.Firstly remove cowling around steering column to access screw holding pod to dash.Remove centre airvent assy.Look through the grilles of the vent and you will see 2 screws diagonally opposite.Once removed ,there are 2 screws that secure the end of the instrument pod to the dash.Lift the left side of the dash forward and release connector to trip computor panel.This will allow the complete pod to slide to the left and be released from the multipin connector to the instrument panel.Once the pod is out,I would suggest change all the illuminatin bulbs to gauges also ,as you may find some not working on re-fitting.hth
Bought Showroom Shine after watching it on Ideal World.Do not believe the hype its only an ok cleaner/polish.It takes more like an hour to clean your car properly.It does NOT clean plastic without leaving white marks.DO not spray it directly on your car like I did as it goes everywhere in all the little gaps and is very hard to remove from these places.
There are much better Polish/Cleaners I have tried. Read more
Hi Chris
I would imagine that you dont kow how to use it correctly....
hi, i have a vectra 2.2 sri direct. could anyone tell me if the pipe that leads from the fuel pressure regulator to the cam driven high powered pump is in fact the return pipe, as described in the haynes manual, or is it the feed to the pump? the only other pipe from the pump is a metal one which leads into the injector rail, so by deduction the so called 'return pipe' must be the fuel line into the pump surely?
hope this makes sense to someone out there. Read more
There are 2 pressure systems on these.The low pressure system is from the in tank pump module which has its own pressure reg built in.This supplies the high pressure pump which is driven from the camshaft.Excess fuel is returned to the input side of the high pressure pump.There is no fuel return to the tank.If that makes sense.hth
thanks for your reply, i think it makes sense yes. so what the haynes manual describes as the return pipe, that leads to the high pressure pump, is in actual fact the supply to the pump?
Gents, Wonder if you can advise me about what could be an awkward situation. Just heard the FIL has had his beloved Rover 75 stolen from a mechanics yard. FIL is old school and is of the mind, "Ah well tough!". It is probably complicated by the fact that there is a long standing friendship between the mechanic that runs the yard and my FIL as he has helped him maintain a procession of old Rovers over the years.
In principle should the mechanics insurance cover this? And if so how would you go about any haggling where the insurance co inevitably(and probably rightly for a Rover 75 circa 2002) make a derisory offer?... Read more
if the insurance company does not offer an acceptable amount tell them you would like them to supply you with a car like for like ie spec, mileage, age. that will get them thinking.
by the way i get my parts from www.roverlink.co.uk...
as an auctioneer i see many low mileage cars but on thursday 24th i am auctioning a 1978 beetle which has covered only 41 miles from new !!! the chap that bought it new did not even register the car but put it in dry storage as an investment, he paid £2500 for it, i reckon he will make an excellent return !!! Read more
I've only ever been in one of those, many years ago in the 1980s as a front seat passenger.
Three things I remember about it...... it sounded like the engine was there in the cabin with us; the vibration/noise of the whole thing made it feel like the driver was driving with the handbrake on all the time; and the windscreen was completely vertical about 6 inches in front of your nose...
I bought the 24 inch and 30 inch knuckle bars in 1973 while I was on my mechanic
apprenticeship 1973/77.Over the years the end bit broke on both of them,which were replaced by Snap on man in the van wherewer I worked .But I made acomplaint in 1982... Read more
As a Technician of many years, I too have snap on tools. It was always my understanding they were guaranteed for life against faulty manufacture. I don't think that applies to corrosion which is your responsibilty to prevent. Chrome does chip off with age and use - so unless its physically broken then you don't really have a leg to stand on.
Robin the Technician
Over the last year or so I have seen an increasing number of people riding mopeds/scooters/ motorcycles with one foot (and sometimes both feet) just above the ground. I am not talking about being at a virtual standstill but at speeds above walking pace. The reason I find it scary it that when I broke my leg some years ago there was a guy in outpatients who had done just exactly that. Unfortuneately his foot had dug into the road and in his own words he had polevaulted using his leg. This resulted is a very unpleasnat compound hip fracture as his femur had been forced into the pelvis. Extremely nasty! So why do people do it? Read more
Over the bank holiday weekend I saw someone riding a three wheeled scooter with their nearside foot about 2" above the road. They were doing about 30 mph. Truly bizarre!
Me again. Problem with the Peugeot again. Grrr! The car starts fine from cold, but in the last couple of days, it has started to stall as soon as I come to a stop (for example at traffic lights or a junction). The revs just die - even though the clutch is disengaged. It starts up again immediately, but I have to keep the gas pedal slightly depressed to keep the revs up. HOWEVER - when I eventually park, switch off completely, then start up again but DON´T actually move off, it doesn´t stall at all - and continues idling just fine. The idle only dies when I come to a stop from a moving position.
Any ideas/tips/suggestions welcome - including taking an axe to it (as seems likely by the day!)... Read more
It was low on fuel when the problem occurred a few weeks ago. Infact, it was only 2 days later that I tried it to drive it again - and went straight to the petrol station nearby for a fill up (because I didn't want to stray too far from home incase it stalled for good). But you may be onto something when you mention the stall only occurring when in neutral - because that day, the stalls only happened when I tried to bring the car to rest from a moving position and in doing so, I would naturally press the clutch down in order to take the foot off the gas pedal and onto the brake.
The other problem that I'm still sometimes having (same car, regardless of amount of uel)) is that when the engine is cold, it almost always strats first time. But after a journey, if I switch off for 5 or 10 mins and then I try to start again, I still get that 'choked cough' response - then I turn the key back, wait a few seconds, and try again. It usually starts after the 2nd or 3rd ignition. ...
Hi, bit of a dilemma...I have agreed to (finally!) make the change to an MPV for the wife, 3 kids and 2 dogs (bit of a squeeze in a 10 year-old Mk IV Golf!) I can't really avoid changing as I'm swanning (very comfortably) in a 13 year-old E39 BMW 535i (absolutely gorgeous to drive, smooth and reliable, but drinks the juice at 24mpg, and I'm really starting to feel this in my wallet!) But which to sell - the Beemer or the Golf (worth about £2.5K each, I reckon). Both due MOT in Oct 2011; Beemer's immaculate, Golf clean but EPC light on and beeps "Engine Workshop!" warning every start-up (I left it with a good independent garage (ex-BMW/VAG) who cleared the EPC code and fitted a new brake switch but this didn't solve the problem - driving perfectly well though). I've read the MkIV Golf isn't so reliable and I guess I'm concerned things are going to start going wrong. Against that the Beemer is a bit longer in the tooth (94K done,regularly serviced) but then again, all the depreciation is out of the car. BMW insurance £450/Golf £250 annually.The Golf will do 32mpg(urban),50mpg(extra-urban) and the Beemer averages at,as I say,24mpg. So which motor to sell? And what to get? I'm thinking sell the Beemer and get a 1 year-old Zafira....any ideas? Or is getting rid of the Beemer stupid? (in a couple of years, it'll qualify for classic insurance!!) Read more
if they're both worth about the same, if I were you I'd try to PX the Golf for the MPV - you might get more against another VW (Touran) than a Zafira. Toyota Verso, Mazda 5 and Ford C-Max are also worth looking at in that size of MPV.
You could then do most of the miles in the MPV and just use the 535 when two cars are needed. 94k is just nicely run-in for a 535 but the Golf by the sound of it could start to get expensive at 10 years old....
Browse
I have a 2002 320d 5 speed and get 42mpg in mainly urban driving and 49-50 on longer runs (the trip computer optimistically says 4 mpg more).