June 2013
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
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....
Has any one heard of a problem with the swirl linkage to the 2.4D 183 engine. I have owned my current car since 2005 and this is the 4th replacement kit I have had to fork out for. At £184 a time it is becoming quite a bore. I do not notice any difference in performance. Therefore I was wondering what the function of this is. Read more
Ooh! You do realise firstly you're replying to a 9 year old thread and secondly no car manufacturer is above criticism. Unless you're being ironic and I've missed that.
I like diesel engines, with low rev torque, having driven Audi 1.9 for some years. But I do few miles now, so which petrol car do I choose for similar power at low revs? Budget is not high, so Chevy V8 is not a choice! Read more
Mitsi's 2.4 4 pot as fitted to our Outlander fits the bill nicely, as probably would most petrol engines 600cc or above per cyl.
MB supercharged engines and Volvo/Saab turbo petrols have some serious torque too....
Hey guys,
I am having my EML come on steadily for the past number of months. Plugging in Vag-Com throws up the following error code.... Read more
This code is set for a fault with the egr flow system.This is monitored by the maf sensor.So it is possible that a faulty maf can flag this code,but I would also check the air intake and breather pipework for any air leaks.hth
I'm looking to buy a used Honda CRV (probably 04-06 reg) for occasional use (less than 7,000 miles a year). It will primarily be used to cope with adverse wet (floods) and winter weather on rural roads, plus motorway journeys every now and then. My search criteria have generated a range of vehicle options spanning Executive (leather trim & bonus gadgetry), SE and Sport models. All fall within the £4,000-£5,500 price bracket; some with automatic transmission, some manual.... Read more
In low traction conditions there's nothing "smart" about only driving the front wheels and then bringing the rears in when the car's already in trouble. Nothing gives you better traction than permanent four wheel drive - no matter how dumb it sounds.
Thank you Steve Lee! Engaging straight mechanical 4WD immediately shares the engine power between 4 wheels instead of two, so halves the power each tyre is trying to put to the road....
I was wondering if anyone could help me in this situation.
I am interested in purchasing a Kia Optima. Beautiful car but unsure how it drives.... Read more
@1litregolfeater. With fleet based demonstrators, you don't actually buy the car you test drive!
It just gives you an idea of the engine/trim variant you want and how it's going to perform day in, day out.
Hi,
I bought a BMW 3 coupé (2007) from the Cargiant about six months ago. The sales guy persuaded me vigorously by showing a leaflet saying things such as, this a very transparent high quality warranty governed by the Cargiant safeguarding and it is only administered by the AA. Now after about six months the car has developed some fault with the fuel system. The AA designated repair centre couldn't diagnose the problem so they told me to take it to the main dealer. The BMW specialist diagnosed the problem and need to change the the fuel injectors, injector coils and also spark plugs. But the AA peaple said that these components are not covered and also the labour is not covered so they will not pay.... Read more
"I think they refunded you, that is Car Giant (not AA) refunded you because you did a decent job of persuading them"
"No of course it doesn't give them any right they have to have that right accorded them in the agreement which I bet is in black and white in your agreement and provides for them to take the first and subsequent payments at certain dates. Why else would you willingly hand over your credit card details?"
I am afraid you happen to be wrong. Cargiant refunded me because they misled me on the description of the AA warranty. Whether these things are intentional (easy profit) or due to ignorance is not for me to investigate. As far as I was concerned I had been deceived. Also it wasn't a simple matter of persuading them. the issue was reported to a number of related authorities including trading standards, FCA, CAB and some others. I was also about to initiate a litigation after gathering professional advice from the relevant authorities at which point the Cargiant got in touch and offered to resolve the matter before it goes any further....
Manual states power steering oil reservoir is below battery on n/s. I can't locate it? Is it necessary to dismantle anything to get to it? Read more
Exactly what it says,below the battery,but you need to remove the battery for access.
Am going to look at a New Yaris Hybrid tomorrow, I like the idea of a hybrid and would appreciate the reliability of a Toyota! We currently have a 2010 Doblo which isn't proving to be very reliable, or economical (is the 1.4 petrol and does around 30mpg).
We are only a small family, wife, seven year old and 2 dogs. A big question will be whether the dogs will fit in the boot. They have rather been spoilt with Doblo boot, but rarely go in the car anyway. As a family we have occasionally used the space of the Doblo but not often and really want something smaller and cheaper to run.
The Doblo has had suspension issues front and back, has just failed the MOT with a frayed seatbelt and I am not confident that it will be reliable now that the warranty is about to expire!
0% finance on the Yaris and Auris Hybrids at the moment, might even get a fiver for the Doblo! Any thoughts on Yaris Hybrid? Or the Auris Hybrid (which I gather HJ is rather fond of!). Thoughts on long term reliability of the Doblo (no laughing at the back!)? Will update tomorrow! Read more
Thanks for the update, good going that fuel.
re small niggle, lots of rear wipers are puny little things, suggest you turn on the rear wiper when the rear screen is covered in condensation, then go and have a look at the sweep and see if a longer blade could fit without fouling, you might be able to chuck a 2 or 3" longer blade on.
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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 ).