June 2017

Question VW Up - VW Up alternator belt change

Leif on 29 June 2017

I need to change the alternator belt on my VW Up. It wasn't done by the dealer at the service as they had no belts in stock. Someone kindly gave me a diagram of the belt arrangement on the Up, and how to change it:

www.upownersclub.co.uk/forum/topic8648_post95978.h...8... Read more

Leif on 30 June 2017

Not too difficult to change .You need a long breaker bar and a a good fitting socket,or a long spanner with not too much off-set.

Thanks. I'll fiddle around first, see if I can get my fingers into the compartment and give it a go if I think I can. Otherwise, do Halfords, Kwiq Fit el al do this sort of work? VW want £100 which is steep for a simple job.

Question ford focus titanium x - drivers door seal

joewright on 27 June 2017

having gone through a hand- carwash my wife noticed the rubber seal on the driver's door hanging down. This possibly could have happened when the 'cleaner' wiped the underside of the door, as the joint is underneath. What I would like to ask is, can anyone recommend an adhesive I can use to fix it back on . Read more

joewright on 27 June 2017

Gorilla glue is the brand, it is a super glue type, seem to remember the seal was originally just glued in place at that point, don't remember clips, but could be wrong

any type of clip or retainer would need to be close to the joint of the 2 ends and there is no sign of a retaining clip or peg. thanks

Question Vauxhall Corsa D Auto - 2008 Corsa D - coolant pump replace

happyvaux on 24 June 2017

hi fellas,

hardway on 25 June 2017

Just checking but it seems the petrol coolant pump repair times is actually double the time the diesel!

So yours may be easier.

Question Ford Focus 1.6TDCi 105PS - 2013 Focus DPF problems

G0llings on 24 June 2017

Hi

I've been struggling with DPF regeneration on my company car that the lease company refuses to take seriously.... Read more

G0llings on 2 July 2017

Well, no surprise there. No fault found. The independent garage said they were unable to confirm the AA's diagnosis because the patrol had "deleted" the fault codes. This is despite me giving them a printout of the AA's report with the codes on it.

Oh well. Next time the EML comes on I won't stop driving.

Question Volkswagen Passat B7 - Revs for DPF Regen?

fredthefifth on 23 June 2017

My Passat has had the emissions fix which I read can result in more soot and earlier DPF failure. Guidance is that I should have regular runs with revs over 2000rpm.

Trouble is on motorway runs in 6th at 70mph my rpm is just below 2000rpm. So do I have to change down? How far for? etc... Read more

fredthefifth on 23 June 2017

I have no idea when the car is carrying out a regen.

You won't. The ECM doesn't tell you. Passive regenerations take place all the time when the exhaust is sufficiently hot. The cooling fans will run during an Active regeneration, so that is an indicator of when it's in progress. If all else fails anyone with VCDS can carry out a forced regeneration. Check the VAG forums for someone who has VCDS near you. ...

Forum Renault Koleos - 08 Koleos - the forgotten car..

vidapura on 23 June 2017

Hello,

I recently bought a 08 Renault Koleos.... Read more

Barsus on 12 September 2018

Here's an update for anyone interested: As intimated, I came across a later year of the same model (2014) so decided to upgrade. A family member is buying my old one - how many folk say, in later years, "I wish I had bought my father's car - serviced correctly, reliable and immaculate?"

The newbie is essentially the same, but is white, rather than black, with sunroof x 2, a two-tone light coloured leather interior and a (basic for them, but good) Bose sound system...4WD again since I have a boat to tow....

Forum Mercedes-Benz 190E - Should I buy a Mercedes 190e?

Alfred Rees-Glinos on 21 June 2017

Hey guys. Our Mondeo's head gasket is beginning to go. So after some searching online, I came across an advert for a 1989 190e 2.0 auto. 200,000 miles on the clock, one owner, full service history, and a years MOT. My main question is, should I buy it? I would rarerly be taking it on significantly long distances, mostly commuting 20 mins to work. Second, how easy would it be to find spare parts in the future? Would these parts be signifianclty expensive? Thanks in advance. Alfie. Read more

Avant on 22 June 2017

A 190E sounds like a great idea for a 'leisure car' - one that you might enjoy driving for fun - but not ideal for being relied on to get you to work.

I'd suggest only buying it if it's going cheaply, and you have enough left for a new head gasket. If that's all that's wrong with the Mondeo, repairing it is the cheapest option.

Question Seat Altea - Seat Altea Breaks Down Randomly

Momo92 on 20 June 2017

Hi all,

A bit of a longer post to explain a difficult problem I am experiencing with my Seat Altea.

Last month I bought a used Altea 1.6TDI DSG Auto, 2011, 61k miles from Cargiant with full Seat service history. The car came with pre-sale check from Cargiant and a new MOT.

After around 2 weeks of driving (around 600miles - mainly on the motorway), the car suddenly broke down on the motorway. The glow plug warning light came flashing on and the car lost all power and came to a standstill. I restarted the motor and the warning light disappeared and the car drove again for another 3 miles before the same warning light came flashing and I lost all power again. Restarting the motor allowed me to move again and I was luckily close to home and didn't experience any further issues.

I contacted the dealer who told me to take it to Halfords for a diagnostics test which I did. The mechanic did a cold read which indicated that there was a fault with the EGR valve. However, since he didn't have any capacity to check if there was any problem with the EGR valve (as it was a big job) he told me to try another Halford branch for an earlier appointment. In the meantime, he reset the ECU.

When I took it to the other Halfords, I was told that their diagnostics did not pick up any error (even after they drove it around for 10 miles) and that it might just have been a sensor error. They then told me that I should drive it around and take it back to them if the error occurred again. I did another 60 miles or so (again mostly on the motorway) and everything seemed to work fine. The next day, I took the car to the shops and when I started it again it went into limp mode, doing maximum 20 mph and jerking heavily back and forth when I hit the accelerator. I also noticed that the Emissions Control System Light (check engine light?) came on. Restarting didn't help either and the problem stayed.

I brought it back to Halfords who this time told me that the diagnostics indicated a Gear Box fault (gearbox not engaging gears 1 and 3). They then told me that they don't deal with gear boxes and I would have to take it to a Gearbox specialist. They then reset the ECU and gave me the diagnostic report. The dealer authorised me to take it to an auto gearbox specialist for a 1h diagnostics. However, the specialist couldn't find any error codes, even after driving it around for a while. Again I was told to drive the car around and bring it back when the error occurred again (being the third time now!).

The specialist told me that the diagnostic checks would unlikely have shown that gears 1 and 3 weren't engaging if it was an electronic problem. He told me that the problem was likely to occur again and he was surprised that the car was still driving at all. Anyway, that was last week and I have done around 80 miles (mostly motorway) since then and haven't had any issues to date. However, I cant use the car much as I am avoiding longer trips with it, in case it breaks down.

Any ideas what it could be (I am suprised about the gear 1 and 3 fault, since the first breakdown occurred while I was in gear 7)? And do you recommend returning the car at this point or what other steps can I take to ensure that the problem is identified soon?

Thanks in advance.