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• BMW 3-Series E90 (2005 - ) - 05 2.0 (e90) Oil service and sump nut location 8 Nov 2008 (Forum)
  Hi all, I've been looking at servicing my (E90) BMW , I've done various cars in the past but the BM has a slightly different set up as most of you will know! I've looked underneath the car and found a "trapdoor" which appears to house the oil sump, mine is black with a 17mm black bolt but this points straight down, unlike other cars I've had it would mean you can't use a regular ring spanner to undo the nut, can someone let me know if this is actually the oil sump nut before I undo it?!
• '94 Golf MK 3 Tdi - Radiator Hose Leak. 12 Jul 2007 (Forum)
  hi, I am currently driving a Mk3 Golf TDi Estate. Bought the car cheap with 12 months MOT on it in March for £350. Car has got 155000 miles on a M reg. Yesterday I noticed the water temperature light starting flashing as I pulled up at home (lucky!!!) Opened the bonnet to see and what did I find.... the small hose that goes from the expansion tank to the top of the radiator hose is squirting out water.
• Mondeo TDCi air rush noise.... 17 Dec 2005 (Forum)
  Anyway there is a massive dent in it which pushes it back so it is just touching the intercooler and to me it looks like the car was driven into a post or something. Yet the plastic bumper and grill in front of this are perfect and I have never damaged the car in any way. I guess I wonder if this damage was done before buying it in 2003 and somehow covered up.
• Am I asking the Impossible 17 Oct 2005 (Forum)
  my probelm therefore is that i want a small, fuel econonic, cheap to buy (ie around £8k), automatic that doesnt look like a skip on wheels (as i have got used to my little luxuries like electric windows, heated windscreen and cd player). it would be a newish car (maybe 02 plate onwards) can anyone recommend such a car? I weas thinking of a clio diesel? any comments on this? i have read some of the posts on the diesel/auto thing, but it mostly seems to cover large/ expensive cars thanks for your help!
• Fiat Punto Power Steering Problem 14 Jun 2005 (Forum)
  Last night she was driving home from work when the power steering failed for no apparent reason. She managed to get the car home and when she turned the car off and restarted it the steering came back. She says that it just went when she was driving up quite a main road. Not long after she got the car the power steering warning light came on, the steering remained though.
• Should I change my auto box oil? 19 Aug 2004 (Forum)
  As far as I know, the auto box fluid in my Omega GLS 2.0 16V hasn't been changed. The car is only 3 yrs old and has covered nearly 90,000 miles - probably mainly motorways. I noted in the Haynes manual they suggest replacing the auto box oil in high mileage vehicles after 3 yrs, but when I called Vauxhall they told me it isnt necessary to change it.
• Corsa Diesel - Glow Plug Problem 10 Jul 2004 (Forum)
  The problem that we have is with starting. It "eats" glow plugs. We have had 3 new sets within a few months of each other. When I take the car to the garage it may be that 2 plugs are not working and are covered in black. This is after a we have had to get the AA out because the car won't start. Even when we had the latest plugs fitted it didn't exactly "leap" into life upon cold start.
• Diesel starting - glow plugs help 24 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  Can you help with the folowing problem - now when starting the glow plug light comes on constant, then starts to flash, then goes off. Car turns over very well, but only starts reluctantly. Once started the engine runs fine, glow plug light then begins to flash on and off about 6 - 8 times then stays off. Its not damp and all connections seem tight and OK, there is no Haynes manual for this car, and the Haynes generic Diesel engine manual only covers the VW 1.9 D engines, and says nothing about starting systems anyway, the VW Golf manual with car only says "if Glow plug light begins to flash call expert assistance" Any constuctive advice would be helpful, thanks
• Saab 900 Convertible. 12 Jun 2001 (Forum)
  So are they any good as a family car? Is the HJ guide right in saying they are poor to drive? How much of the Vauxhall floorpan/suspension do they use? What goes wrong that HJ hasn' covered? Do the hoods last, how much to relace? I was horrified by the prices when checking this morning, £10,000 for a '94?
• Need a new car, how much should I spend? 2 Feb 2023 (Forum)
  Hey all  My car looks like it's on its way out and it may be time for a new old one. I don't have a max budget per se, as I'll be taking out a loan for it (I very recently got a relatively well paying job so I don't have the cash to hand to buy a car outright, but I know  I can cover loan repayments) In theory I could spend up to £5k on a car, but I don't want to do that unless its necessary.
• BMW 120D MSPORTS - MOT pass but should be fail? 5 Oct 2018 (Forum)
  I purchased a car from a dealer on the 19th September.  As part of the purchase the car trader was to MOT the car and provide a 12mth ticket which he rang to inform me had been done on the 18th September and in his words it 'sailed' through.
• Luton meet and greet valet parking crashed my car 11 Sep 2014 (Forum)
  My insurance company phoned me a couple of days after that to tell me that the valet driver had crashed my car into another on the way to dropping my car back and the driver was looking to claim on my insurance as the valet parking company. When I described the new damage to my car, it matched completely to the report of the accident contact between the cars.
• 
  Can you recommend a car that's suitable for motorway driving? 20 Sep 2013 (Ask HJ)
  I’m searching for a car that’s suitable for motorway driving. I will cover around 90 miles each day and have £2000 to spend, plus a 2005 Nissan Micra to...
• Alfa Romeo 156 (1998 - 2005) - Broken down - dealer's liability - help!! 6 Jul 2009 (Forum)
  I was informed that the big end had completely broken and it would cost more than the car was bought for to repair it (a new engine, labour costs etc). I contacted the dealership where I bought the car and the dealer told me that my warranty would only cover £300 towards the cost of repair.
• Buying car from dealer & Motability? 3 Aug 2007 (Forum)
  How do I safeguard myself to show that he is actually the owner? He said the DVLA have the piece of paper showing that the car is owned by him and that he is in the motor trade. 2. He told me that if I were to buy, he would need an insurance cover note from me so that he can get the car re-classified from disabled to normal PLG so I am able to tax it.
• Handbrake Calamity 21 May 2007 (Forum)
  Of course, there is also the matter of insurance - would household buildings/contents cover the garage door and would there be a query over the safety of the car? Any advice gratefully received.
• What is a car? 19 Apr 2004 (Forum)
  The discussion re "no car" lanes has sparked an interesting conundrum - when is a four wheeled vehicle a "car" and when is it not a "car"? Now, clearly there are variants on the car such as coupe, cabrio, SUV etc and I'm not intending to address that, but it seems to me that there is a potential for confusion and that this could be significant.
• Embarrassing moments 31 May 2003 (Forum)
  Drove for miles looking for somewhere to stop. Eventually turned off at jcn 4 and soon found a dark patch of road and jumped out of the car. My carriageway seemed deserted so I didn't think to take cover and simply stood by the car and commenced. Blow me down but I was in full flow as a car with main beams on came quickly round the corner (followed by several others) illuminating me for all the world to see.
• Hmmmm 26 Jun 2023 (Forum)
  It would offer free travel to and from my work and mean effectively a free car purely from fuel savings. Do I or don’t I?
• Mini Cooper - Trade sale gone sour 17 Oct 2021 (Forum)
  I offered the customer a full refund or as an alternative, to recover the car and have the repairs carried out for her. As she was a distance from me, she took the car to a private garage who ran up a £350 bill. Knowing this had voided her warranty but not wishing to leave her dissatisfied, I offered to help the customer by making a contribution towards the cost of said repairs as a gesture of goodwill.