September 2018
I have a Ford Focus MK2 1.6 petrol 74KW 100PS and have been told by a Ford dealer that my timing belt needs done after 8 years or 100,000 miles. My car has recently became 8 years old (end of July 2018) but has only just done under 69,000. I bought the car April 2017 when it had 47,500 miles on the clock so am wondering if the timing belt will need done?
The vast majority of my driving is motorway driving so shouldnt have done too much to the. At this moment in time I am unaware of the condition of my timing belt (will have a look) but think its in decent condition as when my MOT was done in March this year there was no mention of it looking worn etc. Any help in what I should do? Thanks Read more
Hello, I recently bought a 64 reg Peugeot 208 with the 3 cylinder 1.2 petrol engine, relatively low mileage @ around 23k as we speak, I recently had an alarm sound on the dashboard indicating an emissions fault, so took it to the dealer fpr diagnostic check which apparently told them it needed a new engine mounting fitted, and mine wasn't the first one with this problem, just how that works I have no earthly idea. Whilst there I mentioned my concern at engine oil useage to be told that 1 litre per 1000 miles was acceptable, surely that cannot be the case?? As of yesterday I opened a fresh 5 litre of the correct engine oil with a note of the current mileage to see the outcome.................... anybody else have these issues?Thanks for reading :) Read more
My 308 is nearly eleven years old, needs a regular oil top up but is still on its original cat.
Sailed through all previous MOTs with low emissions.
A word of warning to anyone considering buying the revised 1.5 diesel Qashqai....dont !.... well at least not yet.
To comply with the latest 'real world' emission figures Nissan has added adblue to the popular nissan/renault 1.5 diesel engine however it appears to rush and get this to market it hasn't been fully tested. ... Read more
The Renault 16 was a car I would have liked.
One I know of has just sold for £15k . These cars that you wished you have had in the seventies are the hottest property at the moment.
Rust was a massive problem and my friend solved this by pouring a gallon of araldite into the footwell and coating it underneath with under seal....
Picked up my new/old car, a replacement for a contract lease Honda CRV I was tired of paying for. I needed space and wanted comfort and reliability so went for a petrol 60 plate Toyota Avensis 1.8 Estate with 70,000 miles and full history in a local private sale for £4150, around £1500 less than dealers are asking for similar.
I prefer buying privately because you get to meet the last owner face to face and seeing where they live tells you a lot about how their attitude to maintenance and their personal finances. This one was on the drive of a particularly nice large home and the very pleasant lady who occupied it had recently had a promotion and car allowance which was the reason for selling despite recently having shelled out for new tyres, rear calippers and a full service.
First appraisal done now it’s on my drive and it’s in near perfect condition inside and out, drives exactly as it did when new and is genuinely vast inside. It managed more than 40mpg on the run home and is quieter and better on the road than the much more costly CRV it replaces. A win win so far and all for a fraction of the cost of another new SUV or large estate. The good lady wife is of course less than impressed with having to slum it down among the plebs on the road again but if she wants another SUV she can fund it.
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Absolutely no reason to change at all then - unless you are embarrassed by the date on the numberplate ....
Beyond 4yrs old, no-one except petrolheads and mathematicians know what year a car is from the plethora of 0 and 1 or 5 and 6 followed by any number from 1-9 without resorting to a reference table.
Hi all, I’ve brought a 2010 Corsa 1.0 ecotech with 52000 on the clock. I got the car with a misfire. I had no issue with sorting this. But there is a ticking sound, not a constant tick. It sounds like it’s coming from the thing sat dead centre on top of the engine (pipe from airbox joins onto it) anyone know what this could be? I’ve raided YouTube but nothing sounds the same! Any help is appreciated! Read more
Sorry, failing. Surely the car would tell me it’s on its way out no?
Not necessarily. It doesn't work like that. The ECM would only generate a fault code if it was receiving information that was outside what it's expecting. So unless it was open circuit or short circuit, or its failure was having an effect elsewhere that the ECM wasn't happy with then the ECM would not know anything was wrong with it even if there was.
Fault codes don't tell what the fault is. They tell you where the fault is being reported from. That isn't the same thing at all.
Hi
Only recently my car oil keeps coming on not the Red one the amber one with the zig zags underneath.... Read more
I check th3 oil via the dip stick but I haven't a clue how to check the oil pressure?
I'm no mechanic that's why I'm here asking...
This car has/is suffering from a unresponsive throttle fault whereby if you slow at a junction and then go to accelerate from a closed throttle position the engine does not respond. It has also started to be suffering throttle lag in that when you are cruising and then want to increase the speed you carefully press the throttle and the response is not instantaneous and the throttle moves what seems a long way before the revs rise. I have had the EGR valve and pipework off and checked. Although not too dirty on the first check on the bench with a vacuum pump the valve worked but on a retry it did not. I then took to cleaning the valve with oven cleaner and brake cleaner and it worked every time it tested then. It was refitted and all seemed well. Previously I had replaced the brake switch in case that was the fault and also fitted another pedal too. This fault comes and goes by the way. I have checked for fault codes and there are none and no fault lights when it happens. I have also had a look at live data but unfortunately at the time the engine was working as it should. Any thoughts? It is a 2008 Mk3 by the way Read more
With common rail diesel engines,fuel delivery and pressure are paramount. When was the last time the fuel filter was replaced.?
I'm needing a couple of tyres and looking around, Avon ZT7 come up quite cheap. They're a new tyre, only introduced this year and I can't find any independent reviews.
On the basis that anything that seems too good to be true is dodgy........................................ Read more
Just put four Avon ZZ5's on my new (to me) Insignia to replace two ditch finders on the front and two OEM Bridgestones on the rear.
After 1k miles on them I can honestly say that the ZZ5's are much quieter and grip wet and dry is much improved (as good as any car I've driven on far more expensive rubber)....
The lease agreement for my 2016 Scout 184 bhp 4X4 DSG is due to end in just under 6 months. I've already extended the lease from 2 years to 3 as I've been very happy with the car. It looks like they will want about £14K if I want to buy it at the end of the contract. Heart says - it meets my needs very well, I enjoy driving it and would miss it if it goes. Head says £14k is a lot to spend on a 3 year old diesel that might start to get expensive to run before long.... Read more
If it were me, the costs being similar, I'd go for leasing a new one without a doubt.
Skidpan is right that you can't guarantee that a new one will be as reliable, but there's a better chance of a new one being trouble-free, as yours has been, than a 3-year-old car. Other things can of course go wrong with a car as well as the DSG as it gets older. If anything does go wrong with a new one, it'll be covered by the warranty....
I have an 2008 kuga 2.0 tdci and I notice a small problem with acceleration. For example I am driving in 3rd gear with around 1600 rpm the engine seems to be fine and running smoothly but atfer 5 seconds of driving constant like this the engine start to shake giving the feeling like its loosing power or the fuel is intrerupted. Then I push the acceleration pedal to 2000 rpm and everything seems to be fine however this is not the only situation when the engine is doing like this but is the situation when i feel this issue the most. Read more
I had similar thing recently on my mondeo 2.0 tdci (08) could be similar engine. I changed the maf and also inklet temp sensor. That sorted it right out. Is recommend FORSCAN obd software to check first. The parts were less then £50 for eurocaroarts so could be worth a gamble. It's an easy diy job.
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I must admit I cannot prove my son's cambelt is original, but he bought the car well before the 80,000 advisory and there was no mention in the service history of an early unnecessary replacement. It is an expensive job best left to experts - I believe the front of the car has to be removed, just like on my old 2.8 Audi A6. Thankfully it is a robust design - only one set of cams being driven by a long sturdy belt, the others by short chains which as far as I am aware virtually never fail.
American servicing ranges between absurd 6,000m intervals and utter neglect - the latter probably explains the preponderance of ancient Asian cars to be seen reliably plodding along the freeways.....