Refine by channel:  Forum (1857)    Ask HJ (509)    News (30)    FAQs (6)    Article (3)  

Sort by: Relevance | Newest first | Oldest first

• '03 MGZR 1.4 cylinder liners 25 Jun 2007 (Forum)
  last year the head gasket was replaced as the car was overheating. In the last couple of months I have noticed that the car is loosing approx. 1/2 inch of coolant / week - I have taken the car back to the same garage who undertook the head gasket repair who now say that the liners are faulty and it will cost nearly the price of replacing the whole engine and it's not worth it either to replace the engine or the liners.
• Engine failure TWICE - Peugeot 306DT 23 Feb 2005 (Forum)
  I bought it from an independent garage with a 3-month warranty included. The same garage has regularly serviced it. I also check the oil and coolant etc. on a regular basis. In September 2001, whilst on the A1 motorway, a con rod shot through the side of the engine. The car had only done 45,000 miles. Neither the garage or Peugeot accepted any liability, the latter stating the car was ?
• Any - Turbocharger Care 1 Dec 2021 (Forum)
  # If it’s a petrol, chances are the turbo is water cooled. Do not neglect to maintain the cooling system. Change the coolant at the manufacturers recommended interval or earlier if there is any signs of loss or corrosion in the header tank. I recommend a mix of 25% coolant, 75% de-ionised water and one bottle of water wetter.
• 
  Should Volkswagen replace my my Golf's EGR for free? 12 Jul 2017 (Ask HJ)
  I own a 2011 Volkswagen Golf Mk6 1.6 TDI, bought in in December 2015 from a local independent Volkswagen dealer. My mechanic noticed a water leak after...
• 
  Problems with an Almera 6 Feb 2012 (Ask HJ)
  My Almera 1.8 has done 60k easy miles 'never driven hard' and is regularly maintained. I recently had to replace a coil pack on No1 piston, which...
• 
  Vauxhall Zafira cutting out - how to get fault codes? 4 Jan 2012 (Ask HJ)
  I have a Vauxhall Zafira 2000yr. A few weeks ago I was driving and the car cut out, stereo and lights work ( ruling out battery ) but the windows wouldnt...
• 
  The head gasket has gone a car we bought two weeks ago - should we reject it? 13 Oct 2025 (Ask HJ)
  I have recently (2 weeks today) purchased a car through a sales garage. After six days the car engine warning lights came on and it went in to limp mode....
• Honda CR-V - Suggested price for CR-V 2009 automatic 5 May 2024 (Forum)
  Following has been done: #Flushed auto-gearbox oil (genuine Honda) #Replaced transmission filter (genuine Honda) #Replaced differential oil (genuine Honda) #Replaced coolant (genuine Honda) #Replaced sparks plug (Denso irridium) #Replaced drive belt #Replaced alloy rims for nice looking diamond cut. #Replaced all 4 tires for great quality all season Good Year Vector 4 gen 3 #New compressor clutch #Twice changed engine oil and filter #Changed air and cabin filter It's passed the MOT which is valid until April 2025, but has advisory that The last MOT advisory says: Front Sub-frame corroded but not seriously weakened.
• 
  When should I change the antifreeze in my car? 15 Mar 2024 (Ask HJ)
  I have a March 2018 BMW 530i. Can you please advise on the recommended time interval before changing the antifreeze? I thought it was every six years but...
• Ford Focus misfire after rebuild 18 Dec 2023 (Forum)
  It's slightly over 100,000 miles and no the timing belt hadn't been replaced, but it has now. After like a week the head gasket blew going down the motorway after all of the coolant leaked out.  Apparently a common problem on this model. I bought it from a dealer, it was under their warranty and they rebuilt the engine, with a new head (they sent the old one to be skimmed, but that was unsuccessful for some technical reason).
• DS the early years 28 Jul 2021 (Forum)
  The clutch juddered, engines mangled their valve gear, the Italian made carbs were incompatible with French petrol. The low pressure pump generated so much heat it boiled the engine coolant. Steering ball joints cracked, fuel tanks collapsed due to an internal-external pressure differential. There was only a key lock on the drivers door on early cars, so if it was parked drivers side next to a tall kerb, when the suspension 'settled', you couldn't get in!.
• Volkswagen - White smoke from oil filler cap and dipstick 20 May 2018 (Forum)
  My 1999 VW polo TDI has nearly 140k miles on it, and no matter how hot or cold the engine is, there is never the slightest hint of smoke from the oil filler cap or oil dipstick. In older cars smoke from the oil filler cap or dipstick usually meant burning oil, coolant in the oil, head gasket about to go etc. SO you can see my hesitation with buying a car that has smoke comming from the oil filler cap and/or dipstick. Can someone here please give me detail about what seems to cause smoke from the oil filler cap and/or oil dipstick in VAG TDI engines (1998-present, newer TDI's, the less noisey ones than you get in my VW polo and Mrk3 Golfs).
• 
  Could a water leak be a head gasket problem? 5 Aug 2016 (Ask HJ)
  I just put a deposit down on a car. The seller says it has a water leak "due to a compressed water supply" which to me sounds like maybe a damaged pipe...
• Mercedes-Benz C180 - Starting Probelms 7 Sep 2015 (Forum)
    I have replaced the crank position sensor without any change.   I have checked the coolant temp sensor (using OBD) and this varies nicely as expected.   Suggestions I have had include a lazy fuel pump, blocked fuel filter, and a faulty Cam position sensor.
• Had car 2 months, needs 2 grands worth of repairs 17 May 2012 (Forum)
  Bought a car 2 months ago from a decent looking dealership, not a main dealer though. Paid top price for that make, model, age, mileage - £12k Car was loosing coolant rapidly, dealer replaced the radiator to his credit, which didn't quite solve the problem, so I took it to VW and had another component replaced after they pressure tested the system and this fixed it.
• 
  Idling problem with a 1997 Audi A4 18 Apr 2012 (Ask HJ)
  I have an Audi A4 2.6 and it has done 207,000miles. I had been fine for ages but over the last 500 miles it's got a problem with revving up to 1500rpm...
• Ford Fiesta (2000 - 2002) - 01 1.25 Heating only works when engine pushed hard 9 Nov 2010 (Forum)
  t really matter as the weather wasn?t cold then so I left it. About 2 months ago my car developed a coolant leak and needed a seal changed underneath the engine (not sure how else that describe it!) I did some searching about the earlier problem on the Internet and found that it was most likely caused by a faulty heating valve, a common problem in Fiestas like mine.
• Volkswagen Golf IV - White smoke from exhaust 14 Oct 2010 (Forum)
  The oil is definitely not being lost through it dripping on the floor, nor is it being mixed with the coolant so head gasket has been ruled out (by 3 garages). I have been told that its likely to be the piston rings or valve stem seals but wont know unless engine is out - MAJOR and COSTLY! So I have taken it back to the trader asking for refund, and they said they will get it fixed, anyway's to cut long story short I have got it back after a week at this traders garage and it still smokes like a trooper and the temperature gauge has risen several times from 90' to 120' in the 30 miles I have driven it.
• Citroen Xantia (1993 - 2000) - 96 19td Urgent maintenance advice 6 Jul 2009 (Forum)
  t need to heater matrix system and he by the water tube by not going to matrix system. I found the water come out from coolant expansion tank filler cap too corroded and yellow orange. Please advice on this. Clutch engage problem. 1. Even though full clutch pressed the second gear always engage with uncomfortable engaging.
• Renault Laguna (1994 - 2001) - HGF and what next ? 26 May 2009 (Forum)
  Speeding up the engine produced a blast of foam from this pipe into the expansion tank. There was no evidence of any colour to the coolant. I was satisfied that I was looking at HGF but 1) did I spill the beans to the stepbro' and recommend that he didn't travel with his car in that state? 2) not wanting to be the bearer of more bad news, did I keep quiet and hope that the RAC would pick up the pieces later in the day?