September 2011
I have a new Ford Ka which doesn't come with a spare wheel, I would be reluctant to use the repair kit it comes with it as this renders the tyre useless. I was wondering about getting them filled with a tyre sealant such as puncture safe and would welcome any comments. Read more
I'm interested to find out what is generally considered best practice for using air conditioning. My car is a 1.7 petrol honda FRV, I'm not concerned about mpg but am interested to learn what approach is most sympathetic to the air conditioning system.
To put this into context our car is used mainly for local urban journeys with occasional longer runs at the weekend. We fortunate to live close to work, schools and church and most journeys are less than 5 miles/15 mins each (Yes we do use bikes when we can). We don't have any specific need to run the climate control all of the time although a wet pram in the winter will increase the need.... Read more
It is advisable to us the a/c at all times regardless of outside temperature, but if you tend to leave the a/c off for long periods of time, then it is advisable to switch it on for 10 minutes each week so that the lubricant in the system and compressor is circulated, this will prevents compressor seizure and a/c leaks.
<a href="http://www.coldstar.co.uk">coldstar</a>
I am driving to Europe from the UK this weekend and have the problem that my replacement driving license hasn't turned up yet!
Unfortunately I hear many stories about on the spot fines for drivers without their license but really can't cancel my travel plans. I'm also aware that there's a certain amount of scaremongering that goes online!!... Read more
The Home Office website seems a little bit out of date because the chances of being given a 'producer' now are extremely slim. They can ascertain your legality to drive in minutes with a computer they dont need to issue them. The only time you might get one is if for some reason the Police deem the data on the ANPR to be inaccurate or unreliable. If you've just bought the car on a Sunday afternoon and the database hasnt updated, something like that then they might give you the benefit of the doubt and issue a producer.
Its correct the police can stop anyone, you're right they dont need to give the driver a reason but they need to have one or whats the point? They'll usually give the driver a reason mind, such as 'good evening sir ive stopped you this evening because...' the point i was trying to get across is Police dont waste their time with doing it randomly for no reason anymore. The days of the police officer standing at the side of the road, waving down every 10th car for an afternoon to check documents are long gone, with the computer systems at their disposal theres no need to waste their time doing that. So in theory you'd never get pulled over purely for a document check, as you seemed to be saying earlier. Of course if you do get pulled for whatever reason and they dont need much of a reason, you will be asked for ID....
Hi guys,
Bit of advice needed. I have a Citroen Xsara X reg. At the end of June I have the front pipe replaced on the exhaust system, that connects the engine to the cat. This was done in a very large chain garage as I couldn't get into my usual mechanic. The first pipe that was fitted was faulty due to a very loud noise of gringing metal when going up hill or turning tight bends, after taking the car back to the garage they replaced the pipe no problem at all.... Read more
The exhaust was fitted about 3 months ago now.
Bought this car from a main dealer in 2006 with just 15K on the clock. 4 months later when my wife was on the motorway she got a low oil warning. It went to another Nissan dealer who topped up the oil and the original dealer apologised and covered the cost. Sadly the warantee on the car had expired before we got the same happening a few weeks later. Since then the problem has got worse. The car eats about 2 litres of oil every 200 miles if not more. The strange thing is, the car has never blown smoke and shows no sign of any leakage on the driveway. I've no doubt we were sold a duff car but I guess it's too late now. Any ideas what the problem might be and what the solution is? Thanks Read more
got similar with my 2004 Tino - using 1 litre per 1000 miles. no leak. no blue smoke. has been suggested to me that problem due to oval bores caused during manufacture. you will see no blue smoke as the cat is burning it
Hello all
I have a 2001 y reg passat estate tdi avb engine with 264000 miles on the clock wich has just had its first clutch & turbo replacement , since i got it back it has developed a missfire while idleing and it doesnt pull like i thought it would considering it has a new turbo. I took it back to the garage and they tested the turbo , they say it is "spooling up "perfectly and they cannot find any leaks on the pipes , they have put it on the computer & it shows no faults. the garage says it could be a faulty injector or the wiring loom or the pressure boost valve or even a dirty fuel filter but its only done 1000 miles since the last service... Read more
After things have been disturbed my money is still on the injector wiring loom! The wiring goes brittle in time and breaks if disturbed in any way.
Anti pollution warning keeps coming up - had it diagnosed, additive delivery system faulty, additive level low - (except it aint). Undocumented error in ECU, also have cooling fault code. The undocumented error is the EGR valve which I have now blanked off, car ran fine for 2 days, fault now back - limped home mode - no turbo
HELP please....... Read more
I had this fault on a peugeot derivitive it turned out to be the filler cap for the fluid tank.You cannot just blank of the EGR valve on a HDI engine perhaps it needs a new or cleaned EGR or there is the possibility that the matrix is blocked.You need the vehicle putting on a Citroen dianostic macchine I think its called "World "the Peugeot is different and is called "Planet"although the cars are the same mechanically they use a different diagnostic protocol no other system works correctly unfortuneatly.
Hi all
I purchased my golf a couple of months ago and had the cambelt & water pump done straight away. It had 112000 on the clock with FSH (nearly all main dealer) and drove very well. On the way to the specialist I use to get the job done I was cruising along the dual carraigeway at 70 thinking how quiet and smooth it was. After it was done I was driving back the other way and couldn't help but notice 2 differences, 1 that it was noticeably more responsive (they said the timing had been about half a tooth out) and 2, it was noticeably louder with a low pitch droning seemingly coming from the engine. I took it back the following day and the technician who did the job got me to take him out for a spin and he said it just sounded like a combustion type noise and was probably the increase in power since the timing was put right. I wasn't convinced though and in the last few weeks it has developed an intermittent flat spot usually when I'm on the dual carraigeway trying to accelerate on a slight incline in 4th or 5th gear. The engine management light doesn't come on and so far it hasn't thrown a fault code. This would usually be attributeable to the turbo wastegate in my experience but I've also noticed a shiney area above the oil filler cap area on the top engine cover. I took the cap off with the engine running and there seemed a fair bit of pressure. The car starts perfectly every time and there is no smoke whatsoever even at higher revs so I doubt it's the rings. Could it be a blocked breather and if so which ones? Would the MAF cause these sort of problems or even the air filter as I did an oil and filter change recently but not the air filter as on inspection it seemed not too bad? I'd also like to ad that my drive is very steep and I usually park nose up as I don't want to kill the DMF constantly reversing up it. Could oil be seeping back into places it shouldn't. I've also noticed the sulphury smell a cat usually gives off a few times in the last week so maybe that could be another consideration. Any suggestions please. Read more
It has a variable vane mechanism that is part of the turbo.
Here is a link showing how it works & how to clean it....
What cars do you often see as taxi's in your area? Theres alot of old 406 HDi's round here, some new Mondeo's and estate variants. The odd Volvo. What surprises me is how the Prius which i reviewed a few weeks ago isnt more commonly used as one, specifically in cities. Large car, excellent round town economy, low tax, tyres cheaper to replace than alot of other cars, no clutches to replace and they dont break down. Weird, i think New York has quite alot of them though. Read more
Late 90s/ early 00s Avensis are by far the most numerous round me. Lot of them are petrol as well.
The I'd say the van-type conversion things
Does the 1.6 hdi 90 brake version have one fitted?
Many thanks. Read more
Thanks Collos.
Thats a shame. I did read elsewhere though that the 90 brake version did and the 110 didn't but I wasn't convinced that was correct info....
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Just an update on the lack of a spare wheel. There is an option at the time of ordering the car for a spare wheel for an extra £50, I didn't know about this at the time and after contacting the dealer they have agreed to supply one for £50, so at least I won't have to bother with the repair kit. Thanks for the help, it made me think twice about the tyre sealant.