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• Indian Summer 30 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  Helicopter Junior is in India backpacking with two mates - I just thought I'd share with the backroom his friends report of the latest bus trip they took - ' As we rattled along (the state government buses don't run to the wanton excess of providing suspension), we took part in some of the most audacious overtaking manoeuvres I have ever seen. In one memorable swoop, our bus took on three goods lorries, taking the first two, swerving in front of that second to narrowly avoid an oncoming coach, and looping out again to thoroughly skin lorry number three.
• The life of a turbo... 27 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  I've seen a lot of the 1.8T around at the right price, but I'm a bit worried the life of the engine... a turbo with that many horses running seems a bit risky, even for an Audi. Do you think it's still a safe buy? I'll be doing only 10-15K miles a year in it. Otherwise I'll probably go for a slightly high mileage 1.9 130 TD. What do you think?
• What Fun for £20K? 26 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  It'll probably need to be new unless there's a particularly tempting reason for going second-hand. In the running at the moment is the Mini Cooper S. A possibility is the Mazda RX-8 (though some reports say the rear seating is too small). I'm going to suggest also the Saab 9-3 2.0 Aero HOT as I've just seen it for under £20k on this website.
• pug 406 turbo diesel problems 21 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  THis came to a head yester day when an alarming knocking sound was heard as the tacho went passed 2,500 revs ( about when the turbo normally kicks in) running normally the engine sounds okay its only when the revs go above 2,500. Am I right to suspect the turbo and if so can someone give me a ballpark figure on how much this is likely to set me back?
• Petrol Toyota Hilux stalling at junction 9 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  Well, i\'ve been well and truly convinced by the Toyota Hilux on Top Gear, to the extent that last friday i went out and bought one - a 1986, 2 litre petrol 4WD. A couple of bits and pieces need seeing to, first of all the engine runs fine, but as you come to a standstill the revs seem to drop very low, and occasionally it stalls. It starts up again fine, but it\'s quite inconvenient having to start it again at every junction!
• 2001 vectra leaking oil from EGR 7 Jan 2004 (Forum)
  Friend has 2001 vectra 2.0 tdi, it has done about 50k miles. It is running fine but is leaking a small amouont of oil from the underside of the exhaust gas recirculating valve. On this model it is a circular plastic thing that sits at the front of the engine. There is a small hole in the underside that leaks oil, not enough to make an impact on the dipstick level, but it does make rather a mess of the engine bay if not regularly cleaned up.
• Justice? Law is unenforced, Farce 16 Dec 2003 (Forum)
  yet Ibrahim would be free in two months. \" Forget the asylum seeker facts. A banned driver kills a girl and runs away.. and will spend 2 months in jail.. NEW LAWS? Forget it. ENFORCE current ones properly.. madf
• Punto Sporting 2cylinder misfire 12 Dec 2003 (Forum)
  I,m investigating a problem on a Punto Sporting 1.2 16v(old model - 98). It starts and runs a tickover perfectly on all four cylinders. If you floor the throttle (at rest or on the move) it seems to drop to two cylinders(yes two - not three!). As soon as you back off the throttle all is then well.
• really weird electrical problem - VWPolo 12 Dec 2003 (Forum)
  I took my 96 1.9 diesel polo to a garage the other day due to poor starting. But whilst fixing the problem, they managed to set fire to some of the wiring (the battery had run flat and they were using a mains powered device to turn the engine over). After repairing the alternator, they were unable to work out why the alternator light was still on (the battery is charging fine) and why the rev-counter was reading artificially high (about 3000 rpm) whilst idling.
• 2.0HDi Starting Problem 24 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  On returning approx. 1 hour later the car started instantly and has done so ever since. Although I am pleased that the car runs OK I am somewhat concerned about its future reliability. Has anybody experienced problems of this nature and can you suggest what may have caused the problem. Should I be concerned with the cars future reliability?
• Golf VR6 Surging 23 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  Also recently changed head gasket, had major 20,000 service and 12mth MOT on it and don\'t want to have to PX my baby for something else....but can\'t afford to spend any more money on it. Any suggestions much appreciated as aside from the above runs beautifully and so fast. Cheers
• Escort TDI (1998) 14 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  hopefully people can use this thread to share some of their common (or uncommon) problems relating to this type car. To start off the A/C hose running from the front to rear of the engine bay rubbed against the bracket for securing it which eventually cut through the pipe and released the gas (this pipe is £30 from Ford garage) An oil leak which appeared to be coming from the joint between the intercooler and intake actually turned out to be from the oil feed pipe going to the turbocharger, the power steering pipe was rubbing against it and eventually rubbed a hole causing the above leak (this pipe also costs £30 from Ford) Hopefully somebody will be able to prevent their pipes from getting the same problems.
• Porous BMW Heads ???? 13 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  I know its a load of old tosh since BMW engines can do more than 200K with no bother but I just thought I'd run it past everyone just for a laugh and to see if there was any tiny incling of truth to it. Perhaps the salesman thinks I have a "porous head".
• Escort lacked power then stopping 3 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  The return trip was ok aswell. At first I expected fuel starvation, it does not have an inline filter, but as it started ok and runs ok since I have discounted this. Could it be the ignition coil? Is this a warning that something is on its way out? As you may expect, we now have no confidence in say overtacking just in case the same happens again.
• LR Discovery Power Loss 3 Nov 2003 (Forum)
  When the oil cooler pipes were changed it was steam cleaned at the front of the engine bay. The car was running perfectly prior to this work. I am desperate for some advice to sort this problem. Please, please, please help.
• Everybody Hurts, Sometimes 21 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  People were getting out walking up the road, there were a few picnics at the central reservation and embankment. Then suddenly we saw people running back to there cars then we all started moving again. The hold up was due to merging 4 lanes to 1, then onto the hardshoulder, once we started moving it didnt take long to get through so i'm not sure why it was held up like that for so long.
• JAP engines. 20 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  Simple side-draft carb. Great big flywheel and I guess a handle to crank start. One looks complete and might run. The other looks identical but is missing cylinder barrel, piston and carb. Wonder what they were for and do I really need them cluttering up the workshop..or should they just go to the tip? David
• What Car? 19 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  These have included the 306 Gti 6, the astra coupe turbo (although these are still a bit more than i'm looking to spend) and cars that are not of the hot hatch type such as an MGF VVC or even a Merc C230 Kompressor. Can anyone suggest any alternatives or offer any advice (ie. running costs and reliability) on any of the cars i've listed bearing in mind that i'm 20 and so insurance on any of these is going to be high enough so group 16 is about as high as i can feasibly go. Cheers guys.
• Best BR suggestions 9 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  One I have seen this week has been the one that on a dual carriageway or motorway, there should be a double white line running between the inside lane and the next lane at on ramps so that cars cannot join the motorway and move straight over, and this also eliminates possible accidents where drivers move from the middle lane to the inside just as cars are joining!
• Tyres-how much difference do they make? 13 Sep 2003 (Forum)
  I drive a 940 se turbo estate and have had the tyres on in different combinations at different times and on both front and rear axles but have never noticed any difference whatsoever in roadholding, noise, fuel economy, wear etc. whether on local runs or motorway driving. I don't drive to extremes and if this is the reason I'm not noticing any difference I just wonder if it's worth the average motorist driving an average car buying expensive tyres they don't need and won't derive any benefit from.