Refine by channel:  Forum (2069)    News (1367)    Ask HJ (1269)    Article (86)    productReview (59)    FAQs (16)  

Sort by: Relevance | Newest first | Oldest first

• Golf 1.6 MKIII Missing sometimes 21 Sep 2006 (Forum)
  When I replaced the plugs I did have a small problem with one of the HT leads which I repaired by crimping the end again. maybe it needs new Ht leads ? Please can anyone help point me in the right direction? If its important - The car isn't back firing, just missing a few beats.. Thanks Paul
• Merc v's BMW v's Audi A6 28 Mar 2006 (Forum)
  I am thinking of keeping the purchase for at least 5-10 years, so durability and reliability is important. 10-15 years ago such a decision in my opinion would have been striaghtforward as Merc were the best, but today al premium band German cars cost the earth for so so reliability and quality...but i any event what do fellow back room guys think?
• new small exec car, which one? 3 Nov 2005 (Forum)
  Choices hes narrowed down to are: BMW 320D Audi A4/A6 2.0TDi Alfa 157 JTD - may have to keep Audi a bit longer for this! He will be doing 40K a year and running costs are not that important as company pays, however he only gets 9 pence a mile for his diesel so needs to at least break even with this. Current Audi has been faultless however he ran Rover 800s for years so wont be too bothered about reliability!!
• Coolant Change - Volvo S40 1.9 TD SE 17 Oct 2005 (Forum)
  As I'm going to go for a complete rad flush - can I replace green with red?? On another site I been advised that the colour isn't important just flush well - but I don't want to make an expensive mistake Thanks and regards
• diesel estate for £4-5k? 4 Oct 2005 (Forum)
  Hi all, I'm looking for recommendations for a diesel estate and have at most £5k to spend. Economy and size v important to me, toys (eg air con etc) nice but not essential. Am thinking something like a skoda octavia estate, maybe 99-01 with 90k miles or so on it? Any others worth trying? For some reason I am put off focuses or anything french (bad experience with a xsara a while back) but not for any really good reason.
• Boulogne 5 Sep 2005 (Forum)
  I have been driving in France for 20 odd years so I don't need the sort of 'Don't forget the red triangle' or 'keep on the right' type of advice but any tips on how to avoid getting lost in Boulogne appreciated especially if combined with where to get that all important tank topping fill of fuel before returning to the UK. Unfortunately I will be returning on a Sunday night - never the best time to get cheapest fuel. Is there anywher near the port that does a good deal on fuel?
• Zymöl polishing products 8 Apr 2005 (Forum)
  I have recently discovered these. Marketed by Turtle Wax, and imported from the US, where I live a one pint of cleaner wax along with a one pint of glaze sealant in a dual pack costs a tad over 3 quid your money. That's a quarter of the price I normally pay for Mothers polishes, good as they are.
• Insurance for 'weekend' car 21 Jan 2005 (Forum)
  We are thinking of replacing the Merc with a reasonably modern sports car for use at the weekend - could be a Jap import like a Skyline, or even something like a Ford Puma - totally undecided as yet. Anyway - does anyone know how I might be able to insure this additional car for sensible money? Obviously no classic car policy will cover it.
• 3k diesel 29 Oct 2004 (Forum)
  diesel (or high mpg petrol) he does minimum 50 miles a day less than 60k ideally no more than 4 years old 5 door refinement not important band 5/6 insurance maximum (only 23) decent size aka fiesta upto lantra size. told him i would ask you boys ofr opinion. i recommended peugeout 206 1.4 hid or hyundai lantra 2.0 diesel (but the insurance would kill him) he has 3 grand to spend - maybe a little more if worth the extra.
• Mk 2 Polo fuel pipes? 27 Apr 2004 (Forum)
  (it took me a while to get to a bit of road i could stop on) One of these tubes goes to a straight to a wee hole underneath the petrol filler cap and the other dissapears up into the car somewhere. questions: what are they? are they important? is this very dangerous? where are the two loose ends supposed attach to? any help would be much appreciated. Ross
• Shoestring Rentals, Bexley 30 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  I will soon be needing to hire an MPV, and telephone calls to the big companies around here have produced very disappointing results (ie having to pay to have the car on a Sunday even though I don't need it, because they don't open to let me return it). I found a company based in Bexley called Shoestring Rentals who rent out imported Toyota Lucidas. They seem to fit the bill perfectly, but I am a little worried - a case of too good to be true? If any of you have had any experience of this company (good or bad), please let me know.
• Getaway cars. 19 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  The car (from the factory) had modified branches, camshaft (i think it was a 275), high compression pistons, modified cylinder heads, and most important ...3 42DCNF downdraught webers. All cars were numbered ..1 to 250, and all came out with 13" ronal (i think) mags. The rest of the car was standard XR6." Yeehah!
• 4X4/SUV - Spare wheel mounting 17 Sep 2003 (Forum)
  The position of the spare wheel on 4X4/SUVs generally seems to be; a. on the tailgate - Honda CRV, LR Discovery, Toyota LC Colorado, Isuzu Trooper, Mitsu Shogun etc. b. under the rear - Range Rover, Toyota LC Amazon, Nissan Patrol etc. However, UK spec Amazons/Patrols have their spare under the rear, but imported ones have them on the tailgate. What's the (manufacturers) reasoning behind this? Chad. PS. Yes, before all you Landies start shouting - I do know that you have the choice of mounting the spare in various places on a proper Land Rover.
• What denotes Date of Registration? 11 Mar 2003 (Forum)
  DVLA have allocated a 52 registration to my new V70, despite the fact that it was never 'permanently' registered in the Netherlands (export plates only), that my invoice is dated 1st March 2003, that I collected the car on 1st March 2003, that I imported it to the UK on 2nd March 2003, and that it is deemed new at first registration with 390 miles on the clock as it sits in the garage at home. Does any other Backroomer have similar experience please, advice on how to get to the bottom of this, or any reason why my belief is wrong?
• Delay on V5s 14 Feb 2003 (Forum)
  Well I have finally got to the bottom of the delay in my V5 being issued. For those who don't know, I picked up my Irish-import Alfa in December. After several weeks of calls to the DVLA I have now been told that there was a hold on issuing the V5 as the dealer paid too much for the tax disc. That's right, paid TOO MUCH for the VEL.
• Airbags, Seat Belts & Steering Wheels 12 Feb 2003 (Forum)
  forums.mg-rover.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8965 I\'ll leave this here because I think its important. However, I have changed the link so that it won\'t work automatically, you will have to cut and paste it to your browser and I would emphasise the warning that Dave gave to the squeamish etc. Mark.
• 95M Fiesta si 1.4 60k any good? 27 Oct 2002 (Forum)
  Can you good lads and lasses tell me please General reaction to this offer Any specifics to be wary of What is mpg like - pretty important as he and family live in the sticks and it's to do about 200 a week to and from work does that little 'i' in the title mean nasty things like high insurance, big expensive tyres, exhausts etc. Any sort of comment about it would be greatly appreciated.
• mercedes e320 coupe tyres 13 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  Is there a tyre that suits the car better; I do not drive it like a maniac so comfort, low noise and tyre life are more important than grip 2. Do I need ZR rated or is the most common recommended V rated tyre sufficient. Thanks
• French Heater Matrices 12 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  OK so service history, condition and so forth are highest on a list but these seemingly little things I believe are also important. Coupled with those dash lights which seem to fail so often. But then that's just annoying!! One more thing. In the last week I have seen 2 206s stranded on the motorway with seemingly collapsed front suspension on one side.
• Buying a VW Vento 9 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  Its a replacement for my nan's 1987 Nissan Sunny Auto that has been so reliable. She has a £1500 limit and Insurance cost is important. The cars that match her size and insurance requirements are Vento, Rover 416 & Astra Saloon, all Autos. I have seen a nice M-reg Vento, 92k, 2 owners etc etc for £1395, which matches the middle price in Parkers guide.