June 2013
about 6 weeks ago we replaced the crankshaft pulley, yesterday i drove down the road and heard a clunk and the battery light came on, got the car home again, the crankshaft pulley bolt and belt had come off and were sitting on the underside engine cover thing, put it all back together again and started the engine but noticed the bolt was undoing itself again, so took it apart again, checked everything, all seemed fine, put back on tried to start the engine again and now it won't start, the crankshaft pulley is turning and the bolt does not appear to be undoing (hard to tell with the engine not actually starting) but cannot get it to start now.. my partner has done all work and is flummoxed, any help would be much appreciated, many thanks in advance Read more
Has anyone had any issues with the paint on the latest golf ? Mine is 2.5 months old and , when I've cleared bird mess from the bonnet with a brand car shampoo and car sponge , small ' swirl ' scratch marks have appeared. I've never had these problems before and washed my wife's Hyundai at the same time , with the same bird markings and no marks were left - and her new car cost 1/3rd of the price of the Golf ! VW are currently referring the matter to their Head Office for , I think , permission to undertake work under warranty to rectify. Read more
Bird poo can scratch, I soak a sponge in warm water and leave it for 15 mins or so, give it another soaking and it falls off.
Seaside bird poo can be seriously abrasive because of a significant sand content....
Hi,
A friend of mine has misplaced the spare keys for his Ford Transit 06 reg 2000-2006 model.... Read more
Exactly,a clone key cannot be used to programme another.High street stores like the timpson chain of key cutters/shoe repairs and the obvious junk available from flea-bay.No idea on price,
Hi I am wanting to turn my v70 into a 7 seater but I just cant seem to find the right conversion pack anywhere all the breakers dont seem to have them and if I do end up finding some then they sre for a pre 2000 v70 and apparently they are completely different. Can any one help? Oh snd does anyone know if a 850 and xc70 reat boot seat fit in a v70? Many thanks. Read more
Were those the Camrys with double rear wipers??
An answer to the origninal question: My family had a couple of Volvo 240 estates over the years. My parents bought them second-hand as 5 seaters but Volvo would install the 7-seat kit, which folded into the existing underfloor compartment. This retro-fit option was one advantage over cars like the Renault Savanna/ Citroen CX/ Pug 504/5 where you had to search out an existing 7 seat model. I'm afraid I was too young to realise the implications on insurance etc! I'm not sure if Volvo still do it, probably not....
Hi,
Question as title : is it possible to permantly switch off Start Stop on a 2013 year Focus Econetic ? Or if nt is there a wire you can cut or a fuse you can remove to achieve that ?... Read more
Don't know about Ford in particular but most systems do not operate if you keep your foot on the clutch or don't put the handbrake on.
Can someone here shed some light on the correct intervals of the cambelt change?
Got the car at 90k in 2008 and got it changed as it was missing from the history. It had a new belt and new water pump fitted (metal impaler).... Read more
VAG Cambelt service interval was revised a few years ago to 4 years 60k.
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Hi,
I just bought a C5 2.2 VTX plus HDi 173 Auto with Sat Nav (57 plate) yesterday. The owners manual was not provided with the sale as they did not have it. The vehicle drives good. There are some small problems like i could feel the Air con was not exactly working well which i possibly can figure out and is not heart stopping. Purchased and drove 90 miles to my place and almost reaching home, i saw the Anti Pollution system faulty sign come up and the engine light switched on on the dash board. ... Read more
The problem is more likely is the car being low on Eloy fluid if you have only just bought it from a dealer take it back and ask them to repair it.
Last Sunday when I was up visiting my folks in Birmingham steam started pouring out of the right hand side of the bonnet and the temp warning light came on, then the following sequence of events took place:
- AA man attended, refilled water tank with water/coolant, then noticed the water pouring out of a crack in the inlet manifold/gasket. We managed to limp the car across town to where my dads mechanic lives and left the car with him. (I had to travel home approx 2 hours away to go to work)
- Mechanic fixed the leak, drove the car around several times to check it was all ok, and in checking over the coolant system noticed that the theromstat wasn't working and he couldn't get the fan to kick in, but the car seemed fine.
- My dad drove the car back across town to my mums house for me to pick up (approx 6 miles). After he drove it across town (with no problem) he fitted a new theromstat and left the car for me to come and pick up.
- Picked up the car, had driven less than a mile from home, temp light came on, on opening the bonnet, no leak but you could see air bubbles in the water tank, and when I released the cap water came flooding out pushed by the air.
- Next day I took the car to a local garage, mechanic there spent all day looking at the car but couldn't see anything wrong. No Leaks, thermostat looked fine, everything else was fine, but any time we drove it, after less than 1 mile the temp light would come on and you could hear the air bubbles and water bubbling round the system.
At this point the mechanic and my dad came to the conclusion that the car had definitely been fine before the new thermostat had been fitted, so the mechanic 'broke' the new thermostat (he took something out of the centre of it??) and since then the car has been fine.... Read more
The engine will use more fuel without a working thermostat, also the heater output will be poor in winter. Suggest you take the car to a competent garage & get a new thermostat fitted ( let them order the part ).
I have read other threads - we too have a 07 Golf TSi only done 49600 miles, exhaust management light came on and took it to VW garage. They had to take the engine apart (£100 cost) to confirm it is the timing chain. They offered to ask VW for goodwill on parts as timing chain has stretched but VW refused. Cost of repair? £2800 !!! Rang VW customer service who denied any problem, said part is only guarenteed for as long as the warranty of three years and though it could last longer that's not covered by warranty. When I mentioned this was a known fault and did some research on the internet she said that meant nothing and people on internet could be making it up. They make thousands of cars and we shoudl be aware that any part can just fail, we cannot assume they should last. I pointed out this is a known fault, she said it wasn't and there was nothing they could do and she was closing the case. Read more
I'm not gonna get into whether VW are liable or not. There are others who can advise and know more about the problem
However, I'm of the opinion that the work required isn't £2800 worth. A timing chain kit from Febi Bilstein can be had for around £220. And there's no end of videos on youtube showing how to change the timing chain....
I use fully synthetic oil in a Citroen C1 and a BMW 530i. Does the precise specification of Citroen, BMW etc really matter that much. Have they got different standards? Europarts had 5 - 30 synthetic approved by Mazda at a very reasonable price about £18. Would this be unwise to use in non Mazda cars. How do the manufacturers come up with their different specifications of the same viscosity oil?
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The extended oil drains of upto 2 years are interesting to say the least, As none of the filter manufacturers I've asked would recommend using a filter for more than 12 months. Alot of people have had filters break up and block oilways on vauxhalls with the cartride filters.
Vehicle manufacturers only give the minimum specification required and in the past it was based just on the API or ACEA ratings of the oil. API has been out of date for many years (even the Americans themselves will admit to that)....
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If I am correct,the crank sensor(rpm/engine speed sensor),picks up a signal from a magnetic strip attached to the back of the crank pulley.This may have been damaged when it become detached.Best to use a new bolt when replacing pulley.If the engine control system can be checked on the diagnostics,then you may find a code for no rpm signal.hth
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