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  I'm getting a 'risk of filter clogging' warning - what do you advise I do? 18 Sep 2017 (Ask HJ)
  I have a 2011 Peugeot Partner which has just started displaying a 'risk of filter clogging' warning. I took it for a run on the dual carriageway, but it...
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  Volkswagen Beetle gearbox chatter 11 Sep 2016 (Ask HJ)
  I have just bought a Volkswagen Beetle 1.4 TSI. The car is a 2012 model and has started making a loud noise from under the bonnet. It seems to go when...
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  Does the C-Class have a chain-cam engine? 9 Feb 2015 (Ask HJ)
  I'm planning to buy a 2005 Mercedes-Benz C320 CDI from a friend for £3750. It's done 155,000 miles, has a full service history and is in a very good condition....
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  Audi A1 13 Apr 2014 (Ask HJ)
  I ordered an Audi A1 in January and have discovered a facelift of the car is in the pipeline, obviously if this is a significant revision I do not want...
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  Skoda Octavia 57 plate 1.9tdi injector failed - do they all need to be replaced? 10 Oct 2012 (Ask HJ)
  My local Skoda dealer has informed me that one of my diesel injectors needs replacement. This is likely to cost around £800. I'm aware that there have...
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  Rights with a faulty 8 Sep 2012 (Ask HJ)
  A relative bought a Hyundai i10 from a dealer near Portsmouth 18 months ago and was persuaded by that dealer to change it after 12 months - this one is...
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  Is this Audi A3 Sportback worth £9995? 3 Aug 2010 (Ask HJ)
  A dealer wants £9995 for a 2005 Audi A3 Sportback 2.0 TDI with two previous owners and 65,000 miles. I need to check out its previous history, but is it...
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  I've just bought a 1989 Range Rover - what should I have checked to ensure reliability in the long term? 16 Jun 2010 (Ask HJ)
  I have recently purchased a 1989 Range Rover with the 3.5 EFI V8 engine. The car is in lovely condition and has covered only 46,000 miles. I plan to keep...
• Renault Megane (1999 - 2002) - 01 1.6 inlet valves bent on test drive after newca 17 Feb 2010 (Forum)
  (The cam belt had never been replaced previously) Once above finished they then test drove the car and subsequently told me that I had an oil leak from crank shaft oil seal or housing. They advised extra £90ish to fix which I agreed. (Don't know why they didn't spot this when replacing cam belt etc...never mind...the story goes on) They changed the crank shaft oil seal and casing/housing, put on another new cam belt (so they tell me) and then took for another test drive but this time it broke down!
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  When do Ford EcoBoost wet belts need replacing? 26 Mar 2025 (Ask HJ)
  We have just had our Ford B-MAX - a 2018 car with only 13,500 miles - serviced and the advice is to have the drive belt replaced as although Ford service...
• how to tell if i've done any damage to engine 12 Sep 2018 (Forum)
  i had the car in a fortnight before for a brake pad change so i took it they would have done all the checks so hadnt looked at the oil level in a fortnight... but i had done a few thousand miles since then..   anyways while driving it home that night after the light had gone off i kept an eye on the engine temperture gauge to make sure it wasnt over heating and it never went above 93 and i felt no engine stutter or limp mode etc...
• Appropriate Oil 12 Nov 2001 (Forum)
  I notice in earliar correspondence on the subject that bods tend to migrate to the more expensive fully synthetic products as being best for their needs, but so far, I have not seen any argument to balance this apart from price and conjecture. I know from reading HJ's books that fully synthetic oils scour engines very effectively, and that care is needed when changing from mineral to fully synthetic to avoid gallery blockage, that they last perhaps 2K longer between service intervals. and that Mobil ran a BMW for 100000 miles using it, with sevice intervals of 7K.
• Risks buying certain 3yr old cars 24 May 2007 (Forum)
  Its often a common policy of economic car ownership to buy at 2 or 3 years old to lose the high initial depreciation, but (IMHO) times have changed and certain models pose enhanced risks. Decades ago when I learnt to drive as a teenager (and as a consequence work on cars) any inadvertant abuse of the car was tempered by a growing mechanical sympathy due to understanding and being able to *visualise* what was going on, in for example the clutch, or oil flow around a cold engine.
• Gearbox / Service problem 14 Dec 2002 (Forum)
  He said it would be 4 to 5 hours work to strip and will cost about £300 to investigate (plus the cost of rectifying the problem). As part of the service the gearbox oil was changed - might this have anything to do with it? The cam belt was also changed - do they have to lower the engine / gearbox to change this? Call me a cynic, but I am convinced that something they did on the service has caused this problem.
• 1998 Fiesta - Timing belts & Servicing 3 Sep 2001 (Forum)
  Determined to begin to take control of some of these servicing costs, I bought a Haines Manual, (for the 1997 Model Year) and am determined to start with simple oil changes at 5000 mile intervals. However, upon reading the Haines manual, and the Ford Service guide, it states that spark plugs only need be changed at 100,000 miles, and the Pollen Filter at 20,000.
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  My car was overfilled with oil during a service and needed repairs - how can I get my money back? 7 Jul 2010 (Ask HJ)
  My car went through a full service at a well known high street garage on 6 April 2010. After this, I noticed the fuel consumption increased significantly...
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  Do I renew the timing chain? 3 Jan 2022 (Ask HJ)
  I have a Hyundai ix20 1.6 diesel active which, I believe, has a timing chain as opposed to a belt. I always understood that timing chains were generally...
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  What would you recommend doing to keep my diesel Audi A6 Allroad well maintained? 20 Apr 2017 (Ask HJ)
  I own a 2011 Audi A6 Allroad 3.0 TDI 240PS 6 speed auto with paddle shifts (98,000 miles). Other than 10,000 mile oil changes, what would you recommend...
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  Citroen C4 Picasso - should I service it before selling? 23 Apr 2016 (Ask HJ)
  My 2007 Citroen C4 Picasso 2.0 HDI Auto is currently at 95K miles. We haven't had it serviced since 68k miles and are thinking of part exchanging it rather...
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  Why is my Fiat Panda losing coolant? 4 May 2015 (Ask HJ)
  I noticed around 4 weeks ago that the coolant level on my Fiat Panda was just below minimum when cold. Therefore, I topped up the coolant with water and...