April 2011
After reading the road test I popped into the Lexus showroom to have a look at the practicality for my circumstances.
The prices is right and the car is beautifully designed and made, and I'm sure will be more than satisfactory for a couple or a family with two chiildren (albeit wealthy). But, for my purposes it seemed that the car had been designed for luxury and not for access. The lady who showed me the car had to agree that Aunties over 70, wearing skirts as they tend to do, would find it difficult getting into the back seat, especially when they have glaucoma, as one of my occasional passengers has. The alternative is the 450 model, which is out of my price range. Read more
How does one take out the headlamp cluster to change the sidelight bulb ? I read long ago on Technical matters that there are 5 screws to undo, but which ones ? And, when I've got the cluster free, how to change the bulb ? The socket /holder appears to be a double tube pale grey plastic fitting. Does the holder / socket pull straight out, or is it a bayonet fitting ?
I see three screws holding the cluster at the top, two metal and one plastic. One of the metal screws is beneath the radiator grill, which has foiur plastics 'fixings'.... Read more
Trying to avoid naming and shaming..
www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2011/46-11... Read more
Surely OFT has already done the very necessary "naming-and-shaming" based on hard evidence - I don't see any advantage in protecting their name.
I have owned this car from new and it has just rolled over 165,000 miles.A year ago it intermittently started to rev up and down erratically when started from cold,and once on the road it will momentarily falter/hesitate for a split second ,then run normally.Other times it will suddenly cut out while idling,but will start back up ok and then run fine.Other times the car will jerk as the power comes off and on ,and the revs will stay at 1200rpm if i engage neutral while coasting and will finally settle at 950rpm once the car has come to a halt.Now and again the fault light comes on and records "Irregular fuel delivery".I have so far renewed the following ,Throttle Potentiometer/Stepper Motor/Oxygen(Lamda) sensor/Throttle cable,reconditioned ECU. The Master Tech at my dealer has reset the "Auto-adaptives " for me . This car is in excellent condition and drives beautifully 99% of the time,but i really need help with this fault as it is very hairy when it cuts out approaching junctions.
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I don't know what other BRers think about this, but it's an upcomimg private members' bill for next parliamentary session - but this is 'business time' dependent, apparently.
It applies to any single occupancy vehicle in urban areas (exceptions planned for rural areas on receipt of a 'statement of usage' - whatever that is) between the hours of 8am & 6pm Mon-fri (weekends excepted).... Read more
Best April fools joke was in todays local paper. They printed a story complete with pictures that they were now printing all issues out of edible paper. I watched a bloke read the article, sniffed the page a couple of times, then after a bit of hesitation he actually licked the corner of the page!
OK, was at a well known family holiday centre like Haven, Butlins etc.. in the car park (with gates and barriers to prevent public entry)
I went into reception leaving my 12yr old son and 5yr old daughter to get out the car and come in when they were ready.... Read more
Why would somebody want to claim on insurance and risk higher future premiums and lose their no claims over a 2cm scratch?
Hi,
Sorry to bother you all again - a little more progress from my previous post: www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=90361... Read more
With respect-If you just muck about turning this and adjusting that, and using a guy off ebay,you'll only cover up the original problem and cause lots more !
Eat some humble pie (we all have to sometimes with modern cars) and take it to a good independent garage....
Hi there, i'm new in the word of motoring and need some help.
I currently drive an 02 mazda 6 2.0 TS. I really like the car and the handling but the MPG is a little low for my liking. I drive 80% motorway and even if I dont exceed 60mpg with cruise control on (no AC on) I can still only manage 37mpg!... Read more
Hi there :)
I would say whoever told you only the Germans make reliable cars are being unfair, thats quite a generalism and the fact is there is no right or wrong. Ive had people ask me before if a Golf is an "ideal used purchase" and things like that and the fact is there is no answer to that, it all depends on the specific car, service history, condition etc....
A report from the EU group that decides European Traffic Regulation throughout the EU has been leaked, which states that the UK "MUST" change from left to right driving by 2020. 1st. of January to be exact. Just like the Swedes did in the 60s. This gives enough time to have steering amended on present vehicles. New ones will already come left hand drive. All signs, markings will be moved two weeks running up to change over. Bl***y EU!!!!!! Traffic Regulation passed 2011- 1/16/18/9/12-6/15/15/12DOH Read more
I observe that a young lady in Scotland had already thought the changeover was underway ...
Hi there
Had a new head fitted to my 2001 VW Passat 130 TDi Sport last year and ever since then it's been really heavy on fuel and doesn't start as readily as it used to. I used to be getting high 40s on my commute to work and it's now mid 30s and that's with me totally changing my driving style and driving like a granny. Theres no loss of power or any other symptoms apart from the occasional black smoke cloud if i nail it. It's been back to the garage that done the work twice and they've said they can't find any problems. I took it to another independent VW specialist who told me it was the coolant temperature sensor, charged me £50 and gave it me back with the same fault!
This morning I received a Vag Com lead and was having a nose about, just following some things off the net, and there were no fault codes listed but I discovered the cam timing is running at -4.4 and if what I have read is correct it should be between 0.0 and 0.5. I spoke to the garage that fitted the head and they said they've checked, checked and checked the cam timing again and it is correct but he did admit they do it manually not with a laptop. Am I right in thinking this could be causing my problem? If not could anyone give me any advice on anything else it could likely be?
TIA
Jamie
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Sorted! Went from -4.4 to 0.5 and the fuel economy is back to normal and the hot start problem seems to have disappeared. Thanks for all your advice chaps much appreciated
Browse
If you have seen the latest Toyota ad it shows a Prius MPV which will probably be a better option for anyone with mobility problems. No idea when it is due to be in the UK though.