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• Farewell faithful VW 13 Apr 2007 (Forum)
  On a long test drive today ...it ran smooth as silk, incorporating furniture removal for a friend...no point in wasting diesel, and over the years returned a consistent 30/35 mpg with absolutely no oil needed between changes. I sold it for a very reasonable £1850 (inc new front tryes& exhaust) and what on earth can replace such reliable motoring for that sort of money? Bet the Defender doesn't last that long trouble free....
• Breathing problem?! Golf Mk4 9 Feb 2006 (Forum)
  It leads directly into the engine just below the oil filler cap. I inspected the oil cap and found it coated with a creamy substance. I took the car to another garage to get a battery check but this is going to take about 5 hours, the garage guy said the battery may be flat or faulty.
• Garages - am I being paranoid? 15 Mar 2005 (Forum)
  E.g did they really put Mobil 1 fully synthetic in the car as instructed or just the cheaper non-synthetic oil? Did THEY damage the alternator belt? I'll be interested to see how long it does last despite their 'recommendation' to change it. besides doesn't the warranty cover these things? What would you do?
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  What should I have checked and replaced on my 13-year-old BMW 520i? 11 Mar 2012 (Ask HJ)
  I have a 13-year-old BMW 520i SE auto saloon that now has 106,500 miles on the clock. It has served me well over the eight year period l've owned it, and...
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  Let us pay? 15 Aug 2011 (Ask HJ)
  I recently took my Octavia 1.9TDI into my local Skoda dealership (Progress of Letchworth) for a service prior to its first MoT and asked for a couple of...
• Volkswagen Passat (2001 - 2005) - 02 1.9 Oil from boost pipe.Imminent turbo failure? 21 Oct 2009 (Forum)
  Is this the pipe that is prone to splitting I have noticed people mention? My question is, should there be that great amount of leaking oil from a boost pipe that is after the turbo yet before the EGR? I'm worried that the turbo may be leaking too much oil into the engine. When I purchased the car the oil level was barely touching the dip stick!
• Audi A3-2007 - Shock absorber £replacement -AUDI A3 23 Jan 2018 (Forum)
    My MOT is coming up very soon--and I see on the 2017 Test Certificate that the 2 front shock absorbers --and one rear are noted(advisory) as having "light misting of oil". I may or may not change the car this year-but I want it to pass it's 2018 MOT test, which i suspect it will--with the same advisories, unless of course there has been a detioration in the last 10 months or so.
• insignia elite ecoflex 2.0 160bhp - Insignia knock 5 Sep 2016 (Forum)
  I have a 2012 insignia 2.0 diesel with 35k on clock and get knock/pinking/rattle sound when engine is cold and accelerating at around 2000rpm , as soon as temp gauge hits its normal position the knock/pinking/rattle goes, This only seems to show when weather gets colder as during summer its not there, no fault codes or warning lights have ever shown up,  The car is mostly used with shell diesel, engine oil and filter changed recently as it was happening before I changed it. Not done fuel filter   yet but next on my list.
• Dodge Nitro 2.8 CRD 2007 - Cold Start Problems 3 Feb 2015 (Forum)
  Hi, and help My car is not starting in the cold weather. I've changed the Oil, Fuel Filter and the Glow Plugs. Still not starting. I've taken the plugs out and checked the glow plugs when I turn the ignition on - no glow. They are 4.4v Glow plugs.
• astra mk4 p0340 problems with camshaft sensor 29 May 2012 (Forum)
  hi has anyone found a good solution for 340 code. ive changed camshaft sensor for a used 1, changed air intake valve air mass sensor spark plugs and oil and still the problem persists. when you start the car from cold it runs ok until idle settles down and then the engine revs dip but does not stall even though it sounds like it might conk out.
• Engine worry? 18 Sep 2009 (Forum)
  An HB Viva engine died after a good mileage but I saw the car many years later still going and a Volvo 240 but swmbo came home saying this red light had appeared on the dash but she drove anyway as she didn't know what it meant so that was down to us. in my time cars are changed because I fancy a newer one or a different model or some electrical faults or minor faults make it unreliable. I reckon with regular oil changes and sensible driving the actual engine will go for mega miles.
• Mercedes Benz C-Class W203 (2000 - 2007) - 03 270 Noise / loose cabling or wiring 23 Jul 2009 (Forum)
  Nothing found or solved in routine servicing - one specialist talked of having it in for a day or 2 to examine it. Any ideas or experience of this gratefully received I changed the radiator because of fault noted in HJ's text re leaking into gearbox oil matrix. Should I have the auto gearbox fluid checked or changed ?
• Vauxhall Corsa B (1993 - 2000) - 00 1.6 smokey when warm 27 Jun 2009 (Forum)
  does any body know why my corsa 1.6 sport (x16xe) is developing a smokey habbit, ive recently had every single gasket changed i mean evry one, ive recently changed the valve stem oil seels but stil no look, its fine when its cold but after say 20 minutes when it gets slightly warm its booting out grey/blue smoke also when it wars up it idels up 2500 rpm and will some times drops to around 500 rpm its a problem that is anoying me, can any one help.
• Mazda 323 (1998 - 2003) - 99 1.3 Manual gearbox problem? 25 Jun 2009 (Forum)
  - I've noticed that gears are getting harder to select, they work fine, I can select them all, but moving between gears isn't as slick as it usually is. Playing with changing the gears when the car's off and there are audible sounds when changing. It's a manual gearbox, btw. Anyone know if this is likely to be the beginning of the end for the gearbox - or simply a low level of gearbox oil - and, if so, is it likely that damage has already been done?
• Vauxhall Corsa B (1993 - 2000) - 99 1.2 ECU Light comes on on long fast journeys 4 Mar 2009 (Forum)
  It doesn't do it on short low speed journeys though. This has been happening for several weeks now. I have given it a mini service....changed plugs, air filter and oil. She took it to a garage for them to look at and they claimed it was the Lambda Sensor, and changed it.....but the problem is still happening. Apart from taking it back to the garage (which we will do), does anyone have any ideas why this may be happening?
• Volvo S80 (1998 - 2006) - rough diesel engine on s80 2.5d (yr 1999) 12 Oct 2007 (Forum)
  There is a lot of noise and vibration through the car particularly at idle when you can fell the engine pulsing through the steering wheel. I have changed the cambelt, had a new injection belt fitted, had an oil change and a compression test all of which reveal nothing. On a strange note if at some speed I turn right the engine goes completely smooth and silent and then i can feel the vibrations and noise coming back as i straighten up again.
• polo sump problem 24 Feb 2003 (Forum)
  When I had my 98 VW Polo 1.4 serviced last year at a VW dealer they stripped the sump thread when changing the oil.They repaired the sump with a Heli-Coil.I have recently changed the oil myself and found that they had put in the original sump plug which had about 3 good turns of thread left on it.I replaced this with a new plug.Last year the garage told me this was a common problem because the sump is made of aluminium and the plug is steel.Considering this was only the fourth service and had only been worked on by trained VW technicians,I found the "wear and tear" explanation a bit poor.I think the sump plug had been overtightened causing the thread to strip.Has anyone else had a similar problem?
• Clio Auto Warning Light 9 Sep 2002 (Forum)
  There is no pattern to when the light comes on, it can be almost immediately on starting the car or after any number of miles. The coolant and gearbox oil have been changed and there is nothing wrong with the gearbox (in that it seems to be changing up and down as expected and the position of the comfort/sports setting swich still retains an impact).
• Vauxhall Vectra B facelift (1999 - 2002) - Vectra engine management light 18 Aug 2007 (Forum)
  Whats the point in fault codes if you can't figure out what causes them? I change the oil and filter every 10,000 miles and have changed the cam belt with tensioners every 40,000, the car drives fine. Shall I just live with it or is there anything that I might try? Someone suggested cleaning the throttle housing?
• 
  How can I look after my car to prolong its life? 4 Nov 2025 (Ask HJ)
  Having previously owned two Alfa 159s I am currently the proud owner of a 2018 Alfa Romeo Giulia diesel 2.2 180 Super. I purchased it new I have now completed...