May 2015

misterbee

Looking for a power point under the bonnet to get an electrical charge , i have some pictures if someone can pinpoint the correct connections for me , email mrbhammonds@hotmail.com thankyou Read more

Tanfies2

I don't think it's a bearing, I've had all 4 changed recently, but when the car gets to around 80mph, a whiring grumbling type noise kicks in, just like a noisy bearing sounds. Thing is, you can't drive through this noise, it gets worse more with more acceleration and then decreases without. Any ideas?? Thanks in advance. Read more

slkfanboy

Maybe stay within the UK speed limit?

tdenson

I am about to buy the new Ford Galaxy but have a dilemma. I want the most powerful engine but I would also like the All Wheel Drive option. However, for some curious reason you can't have the two together. I don't do any off road and am troubled by snow perhaps once or twice a year, but I don't really know if AWD has every day benefits that would be better for me than the extra power. What would folks advise ? Read more

Nezza

We have the current 200 bhp Galaxy and don't find the power too much for the front wheel drive system. Saying that, I am also interested in the AWD version but disappointed that to get this you have to spec the 150 or 180 bhp model. Does not seem logical to me.

I have been stuck twice with the Galaxy, hence the interest in AWD, firstly in a muddy car park in the Yorkshire Dales, and secondly in the snow where the car is utter rubbish. We also tow a large twin axle caravan often and having the power and AWD would be spot on. Starting on a wet up hill road towing the van can be interesting.

Here's hoping Ford may reconsider the line up or even better stick the 2.2 back in with a twin turbo. Emissions targets make me think this will not happen.

Oli rag

Very interesting report. On your last point, even if I could afford a new car, I think I'd buy an ex demonstrator, maybe something up to 1 year old. The initial depreciation is something I'd be keen to avoid.

40mpg for quite a big petrol estate with such good performance is really good, hardly seems worth going for the extra cost of the diesel. Read more

focussed

Nothing like a first-hand report - thanks Avant.

As regards actual purchasing I have a choice of either buying an ex-demo in the UK or buying new here in France. Buying here will obviously be a left-hooker which I'm not wild about but is probably the way to go as I'm permanently resident and if I need to sell it in two to three years time will sell better here. ...

David Benyon

It looks like my comment which I took so long to write has been binned. OK a mate phoned up in the middle of my work but this still sucks. Read more

David Benyon

I cannot find a way to enter this information in the proper forum but here goes.

WORST BREAKDOWN RECOVERY EVER! My recovery was done through my insurance company but it turned out to be the WORST RECOVERY EVER bar none.

The situation was that my best 4x4, the one with a new head, new pistons, new radiator, new timing belt kit etc etc has been stolen by a sociopath (Police not interested but Small Claims Court Pending) A stop-gap Discovery was bought as spares-or-repair, cooling problem. After cleaning out the cooling pipes the problem seemed to have gone away and topping-up of the coolant was no longer required.

A speedboat hull, no engine, no steering, no trailer was spotted on eBay. It was a Glastron GT-150 similar to the James Bond boat that jumped over the Louisiana Sheriff's Police Car in the film Live and Let Die. I won the auction and set off for Woking. Sadly the Discovery never got there as it seized on the M3 near the Reading turn. I phoned the number on the insurance company badge and someone said "Yes we'll send the RAC". After a while a double-cab recovery lorry arrived. My free recovery was however just a tow of twenty miles as the full recovery had just been an introductory bonus for new policy holders.

When one has just broken down one is usually shattered and in a state of shock so when a double-cab lorry arrived that was not sign-written I did not quibble as I just wanted to get away from where a police officer had been accusing me of causing an obstruction. The driver did not introduce himself or show any ID which seemed very odd. The 4x4 was put on the lorry and the four wheel trailer was put on the lorry tow-hitch. I was taken to a motorway services and my stuff was dropped-off in the car park. It was late December and although the weather was cold there was no wind or wind-chill so my clothing was perfectly adequate. I was still of course in a state of shock which is normal when one's whole world goes down the tubes. I wanted to get the trailer hitch lock out of the 4x4 to secure the trailer but at this point something very strange happened. The driver who I thought was from the RAC and was there to help me turned very very nasty. He was bellowing repeatedly at the top of his lungs "GET BACK IN THE LORRY!" I was unsure whether he was worried about me catching pneumonia and suing the RAC or whatever but with hindsight I would say that HE DID NOT WANT ME TO LOCK-UP THE TRAILER. I only went along with this nonsense because I needed a lift to the railway station. It was a terrible rail journey as at Bristol the station closed at one thirty am and I was turfed-out into the freezing fog. The "24 hour McDonalds just down the road" was a myth used for clearing the station and with having to wait outside in the frost all night I got Frostbite. When eventually I got back to the services there was no trailer and no 4x4. This was terrible as keys for lots of other things were in it. Security and the Manager never remembered seeing the 4x4 or trailer which suggests that they were taken away very soon after they arrived. One hardly needs to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out what happened! Enquiries revealed that the double-cab lorry and the driver were NOT FROM THE RAC. It was some kind of a subcontract job. It was really a first class scam but when one is shattered by events one is in a weak position.
With hindsight I should have given the bellowing bloke a Scotch Kiss and decked him BUT I THOUGHT HE WAS THE RAC!
My insurance company who in effect organised the theft are being very sheepish and don't even want to hear the Crime Number. The way that things are going it is looking like a job for the Financial Ombudsman. Take care!

the grim reaper

Current trip reading is 42mpg & actual is 38mpg, this is measured on a brim to brim fill & divide gallons by miles driven, miles covered was 477 & 12.5gallons (=38mpg) to bring the tank to the brim.

The car has so far been driven with restraint, to see how it slurps (or not) the fuel.... Read more

sportbrake

have a sportbrake 200 and always employ the tank to tank technique rather than the trip. The official fuel figures are on average 20% removed from reality! Consumption has improved in the warmer months.

Recent tank to tank on long runs achieved 48.2 on the trip, never ever bettered that. in winter I have to accept about 39/40 actual....

not very handy andy

Hi I've recently bought a vectra c and noticed that the h7 headlights don't work, and strangely the indicator light stays on on the left side when lights are on. I've bought new bulbs and tried changing them on left side but the lights still won't work. I'm not great at cars but I'm trying to learn, is this a fixable problem or will I need a mechanic Read more

old-school-tech

indicator switch....possibly..

frogmarch

hi got a vectra c 1.9 cdti 120 and when i accelerate through gears there is a rattle , i done water pump and cambelt and rattle was not there before also have like a screeching noise when accelerating in fourth to fifth gear , i had to give the crank pulley a smack to get it off could i have damaged rubber in it , thanks Read more

frogmarch

hi no noise when clutch dipped only when accelerating

greg50

the dmf on my mondeo is rattling like a bag of epileptic spanners, i took it to the garage to get it confirmed (which it was) but when it was plugged in to diagnostics it was showing a turbo fault code. The turbo was rebuilt in october 2014 and the actuator repaired in april 2015, the question is would a knackered dmf trigger a turbo fault code or is my turbo knackered again. Read more

greg50

pretty sure they cleared the codes, the turbo is still under warranty so back to the garage i think, definately not the best car i ever bought!

harryburgundy

The engine management light (the engine shaped warning light, not the circular EML light which I believe is the fly by wire throttle light) DOES NOT come on when I turn the key prior the starting the car.

I have scanned the car for faults using a C110 scanner which did reveal a faulty MAF which I have since replaced...but nothing else.... Read more

elekie&a/c doctor

It is possible to plug in a s/hand ecu to test the eml light,but the car will not start as it is a coded unit.