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• Dishonest John's Guide - all true 7 Oct 2001 (Forum)
  Problem was a faulty knock sensor (£60), but you can bet that if I had taken it to a garage, I would have ended up paying £600 plus for a new ECU.
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  Faulty used car - what are my legal rights? 8 May 2015 (Ask HJ)
  I bought a car, which less than 2 months down the line has a ruined fuel injector and ECU. I was not expecting such an issue because the engine management...
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  Getting a classic back on the road - what should I do? 12 Mar 2014 (Ask HJ)
  My 1991 Nissan Sunny has been off the road for many months. I've bought a new battery as the old one is completely dead. I haven't fitted the battery yet...
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  Ford Focus management light 2 Jan 2013 (Ask HJ)
  I own a 2003(53) Ford Focus TDCi, and over the past months - now and then even mid journey - it goes a bit sluggish, as if turbo not kicked in! Then lots...
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  Who is at fault for the light failure on my Mondeo? 5 Sep 2012 (Ask HJ)
  I had the AA out to fix my rear lights - they then realised that the parking lights weren't working and the bonnet catch wouldn't close, they fixed this...
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  Why is my Volkswagen Polo's engine cutting out whilst I'm driving it? 2 May 2011 (Ask HJ)
  I bought a new Volkswagen Polo SEL 1.6 CR/DPF 90PS 5-speed manual in November 2010. It now has 1,500 miles on the clock. It stalled at a junction soon...
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  Who is to blame for the misdiagnosis of an airbag fault? 6 Jul 2010 (Ask HJ)
  A few weeks ago the airbag warning light in my 2004 Audi A3 2.0 TDI came on. I took it to an independent Audi specialist for diagnosis, hoping it would...
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  No recollection 1 May 2010 (Ask HJ)
  I'm wondering if the furore over Toyota and Honda recalls may be a bit over the top. My 2006/56 Focus has had two recalls, one for loss of braking effectiveness...
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  Flywheels of mass destruction 10 Oct 2009 (Ask HJ)
  I am having trouble with my Vauxhall Zafira 1.9CDti Sri, which is registered 06 plate. I bought the car in January 2007. In January this year I had to...
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  Doom mass flywheels 19 Sep 2009 (Ask HJ)
  I bought a second-hand Mondeo TDCi reg 04 in December 2007 from a local main dealer with 46,000 mile on the clock. I bought a two-year guarantee with...
• Ford Fiesta (2002 - 2008) - 04 1.4 TDCi Engine Swap 9 Jul 2023 (Forum)
  A new radiator and heat exchanger later, I figured we were ready to go, not at all, now the engine management light is on and it will not turn over more than 3 times then it stops. Somebody told me they are not the same, and i'll need a later ECU to run it, is there any end to it,can we not work on our cars any more, I would welcome any suggestions, thanks
• BMW M135i - New car broke down less than 60 miles 14 Nov 2022 (Forum)
  Having spoken to a specialist this is a fairly serious fault and the vehicle should not be driven. The fault was logged in the ECU over 1000 miles before it was delivered to me so was 100% there prior to purchase, just not showing in vehicle. I am calling the dealership tomorrow, I need to know where I stand. I know I can reject the vehicle.
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  Need a reliable, used car for Under £6k - any suggestions? 4 Sep 2020 (Ask HJ)
  I am replacing my old 1.2 petrol Vauxhall Corsa, as it has developed a problem with the engine. I would like a similar-sized car, that is cheap to run...
• BMW 330d - Disabled EGR results in signifcant DPF mileage 24 Apr 2020 (Forum)
  I am a bit of a numbers geek and use the bimmertool app coupled with a bluetooth v-link in the ODB2 port so can see everything that the ECU sees. Having had the EGR function removed from the vehicle, the amount of increased miles i get before the DPF becomes full of soot is outstanding, before the most i could get was around 300-320 miles before the soot quantity was c.26-28 grams (the point where mine tends to regen), now with the EGR disabled, i am well over 300 miles and the DPF is only at 10 grams of soot.
• Opel Astra GTC 1.4T (SRi)(2016) - Turbo engine issues? 2 Jul 2019 (Forum)
  “As another poster pointed out there were problems with the new Astra turbo engines that were solved with an new oil spec and an ECU upgrade, if you do get one make sure this has been carried out.” ...and I’m thinking should I bring my car to the garage and specifically point this out to them? It wasn’t too long ago it was in for a service so I don’t want to pay for one again so soon unless there’s a good reason to.
• SEAT Leon SC - Non-starting Seat Leon S 03 1.6 16v 1 Aug 2016 (Forum)
  Sparks, coil and ht leads are all OK. New alternator and battery has been fitted.  O2 sensor and ECU maybe faulty, but don't want to go down the route of sorting that out unless needed, as have already forked out over £400 trying to fix this. Any advice on faults that may be causing this or anyone who has experienced similar issues and knows where to go, would be much appreciated.
• Vauxhall Zafira - 56 Zafira B 1.6 Petrol power steering issue 12 May 2015 (Forum)
  my power steering went hard winter 2014, my ex-mechanic blamed the fluid in cold temperatures so I put up with it, warmed up, still same issue found out its electronic power steering on this one... (hence ex!!) Took it to a recommended garage who said the key wasnt communicating with the ECU, he reprogrammed the key and it came steering instantly came back, 3 weeks later same issue. 3rd party key that came with the car was blamed (transponder?? had failed in it i believe he said dont quote on the word.. the chip inside the key) went to dealer new key, reprogrammed steering came back. 3 weeks later issue is returning....
• Renault Clio 1.4i 16v 2001 - Stalling at junctions, rough idle, cut out 30 Nov 2014 (Forum)
  I have finally solved my daughters cars problems.  If you have arrived here you will have already heard about ECU cages cutting into wiring, generally dodgy wiring and TDC sensors.  None of these applied to this car. Wiggling stuff under the bonnet led me to suspect the underbonnet fuse box. The first thing that made a significant improvement was "servicing" the underbonnet fuse and relay box.
• Citroen Xsara Picasso - Dash warning drivers door is open and not locking 16 Feb 2014 (Forum)
  Im not using the manufactured central locking, I had a different one installed a few months back as i needed to replace the ecu unit. but locking the doors with my key has also not been an issue (I have only used the ignition key in the drivers side door).  The doors don't seem to be locking  and whilst im driving the warning light for the drivers door being open is constant, also with the courtesy lights - I have turnt these off to not drain the battery-  Also not sure if this is linked but I have recently noticed that the hazard light in the centre of the dashboard has recently started flashing when I turn the engine off.
• Vauxhall Astra G Petrol (1998 - 2004) - 2002 1.6 8v Surging and stalling 19 Jan 2014 (Forum)
  Have read here that other Astra owners have had problems with the EGR valve but was told by Vauxhall and my mechanic that the fault light would show on the dash. Also read here that there has been a ECU update from v5 to v6 which in affect shuts off the EGR valve. Also that blanking off the EGR valve could be an option. The car starts perfectly and idles well (except when stalling, as above). Would appreciate any help as my wife (who's main driver) is giving me considerable grief!