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• Honest John’s Motoring Agony Column 05-05-2018 Part 2 7 May 2018 (Forum)
  Why do people think that a hire car is there right after an accident and are quite happy to run up a £2920 bill and expect someone else to to pay it. BP. Our car was written off last year when another driver went through a junction and despite the Police saying he was 100% at fault we decide that it wasn't a good idea to have a hire car as we could end up paying for it.
• Toyota Auris Touring Sports - DPF Issue - EML AUris 12 Apr 2018 (Forum)
  Hi All , I have a 2014 Auris estate 1.4 Diesel...The Engine light has come on. Got it checked by a mechanic who said it's the DPF and advised to run it hard on the motorway. (I've noticed much lower MPG and the start stop doesnt work since the light has come on) I also bought a few bottles of Wynn's DPF cleaner and have tried to do the regen on the motorway but the light is still on.
• 2011 Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi Sport Hatchback - Fuel filling problem with easy fuel 3 Apr 2018 (Forum)
  Can you change the fuelling system or do we need to stick it on diagnostics as someone said it may be due to a previous theft of fuel from vehicle and them removing easy fuel cap. The owners are my parents and they let it run down very low on fuel often due to difficulty of filling up car.    
• Volkswagen Polo III (2000 - 2002) - 01 1.4 Tapping Noise 22 Mar 2018 (Forum)
  However when I asked about this during the annual service MOT I was told by the mechanic that the tappets were self adjusting and that the engine was just "noisy". The car still runs OK and it passed the MOT but the tapping is getting louder and louder , particularly when accelerating . I have a feeling that sooner or later something catastrophic is going to happen but I can`t seem to find any garage prepared to take me seriously.
• Ford Fiesta 1242cc 2000 - Clutch failing - Options? 21 Feb 2018 (Forum)
    Gear selection has become more difficult (but still fine with the engine off). No unusual noises with the engine running in neutral with the clutch up. Considering the overall condition of the car, paying for a full clutch replacement would be a stretch too far, so I just want to ask: Could there be any cause less costly than a replacement clutch that would be worth investigating?
• Ford Fiesta - 59 plate 1.6 TDCi rear exhaust replacement 20 Jan 2018 (Forum)
  Hi, the rear box on my wifes Fiesta 1.6 TDCi (2009) is almost rotted away and will start blowing soon. I had a look underneath today and the box is in one piece with the centre pipe which runs down the underneath of the car and joins the flexi pipe via two bolts. Now, my problem is that I am being told this can only come from a main dealer (quoted £300 including labour). I have called a lot of independant fitters and exhaust suppliers but they are not getting back to me.
• Peugeot 307 SW - Fuel prime? 20 Jan 2018 (Forum)
  Added fuel but clearly, the system needs to be primed. continuous cranking does not work.I looked at the handbook, but could not follow the diagramme as differs from my car.I contacted the dealer who after putting my reg into the computer explained there is a hand bladder style pump on fuel line at the timing belt side of the engine, look as I may I cannot locate this component, can anyone tell me if there are variations of the theme and if there is  a different type or no pump fitted what is the best way to get fuel up to the manifold?Turning the key to the second position I do not hear a pump running in the fuel tank as expected, but cannot remember if it ever did before I ran out of fuel. thanks for looking, Mike.
• vauxhall corsaB1200,16v/ 2000 - juddering and over revving 8 Jan 2018 (Forum)
  when it starts it revs at 1300 unless I throttle it ,it judders and feesll ike the engine is going to fall out.so I throttle it and stay at 60 or 70 or on high gear throuhg the streets or it judders like hell .when idle it rave and sounds like it is hunting.I have changed the air mass sensor(used one) in the plastic pipe that connects to the airfilter and carb looking thing.I took off the egr valve cleanded it still no improvement.when it is juddering the engine mangement light comes on and been told it is running on safety mode and uses more fuel. any advice would be helpful please this girl needs her car to go to Munich in a few months.
• Micra k12 1.2 - Micra battery drain problem 6 Dec 2017 (Forum)
  Hi, I have a 2005 Micra 1.2 that runs its battery down over a period of a week if the car is not used. I have eliminated the battery as this has been replaced and the new one has been tested. I have checked the current drain on the battery when the vehicle is parked and it appears to always be at least 200mA, I have read it should only be around 30mA.
• Civic - worth the trip to view this Civic? 14 Nov 2017 (Forum)
  Can anyone give me some advice on car I am looking to view. Looking for a reliable petrol car which is cheap to run with lots of space and the Honda Civic seems to fit the bill . I have a budget of £4000 ( less if possible ) . I would like an 1.8 but the insurance is too high in my area so it will have to be the 1.4 .
• Vauxhall Astra 2.0 DTI fault light ! 15 Sep 2017 (Forum)
  I had a similar fault with an old Vectra - with the same engine. There seems to be no symptoms - no jerkier running, no extra smoke, nothing, and is there isn't a murmur or twitch when the light goes off either. As it goes out after a while - as if something has warmed up - could it be the air mass meter is coming to the end of it's natural ?
• Mazda 3 - Mazda 3 chassis rust / corrosion 25 Jul 2017 (Forum)
  I'm looking at buying a cheap second-hand car and a 06 Mazda 3 1.6 has caught my eye for around £1500. I'm looking for something reliable that I can basically run into ground over the next few years. There appears to be a lot of a rust / corrosion between the rear wheels of this one, which to my untrained eye looks bad, but I'm not certain. The underside of my Punto of a similar age looks nothing like this, but I wonder if this could be quite superficial.
• All - Conventional cars on way out 14 Jul 2017 (Forum)
  No petrol or diesel tax for HM Gov so what scheme will they come up with to replace the cash lost? Electric equals almost silent running so you'll never hear the car that comes towards you? What next? electric aircraft? ships? They pollute plenty. 
• Toyota MR2 1994 - Intermittent fault, misfires and revs only to 3500 7 Jun 2017 (Forum)
  Have had the vehicle looked after by a first class independent garage, who have changed the HT leads, Distributor and HT pack about two weeks ago, and done the usual code checks on engine to no avail? Problem has resurfaced again after a brief run? Problem appears after engine has warmed up with "Engine" fault lighting up on dashboard accompanied with engine misfiring above 3500 rpm?    Any ideas?
• Lexus LS430 - Short term insurance on a big engine car 19 May 2017 (Forum)
  My 2002 LS 430 has been declared off road but has the MOT date coming up as I have use of another car for until the end of June 2017.I am hoping to transfer the insurance in end June to the Lexus but the problem is that the MOT runs out in a week.   Restarting the Tax is easy as I am on direct debit,but looking to get a days or a weeks worth of insurance is less straight forward. This is just to drive to the workshop to get the MOT sorted.
• Audi A3 Sportback - Audi A3 Sport 2.0 TDI - engine noise and metal in 14 Mar 2017 (Forum)
  It doesn't smell great with the bonnet up and and on start up there is a slight puff of smoke. I haven't run it simce and waiting for a mechanic to come tomorrow.  I'm no car expert so any advice on here appreciated?            
• Land Rover Freelander 2 - Freelander Alternator Diagnosis and Replace Cost 14 Feb 2017 (Forum)
  Diagnosis I put a volt meter on the battery when engine off and it read 12.1 . When the engine was running it dropped to 11.5 When revving it did not move from 11.5 When off it went back to 12.1 Does this mean the alternator is not working?
• Ford Transit - Ford 6000/6006 code unable to input numbers 21 Jan 2017 (Forum)
  Luckily I had one more look at the radio before spending £80 on a second hand unit from ebay. I noticed the CD & PHONE BUTTONS were stuck down, the removal keys run across them and must have damage the buttons. After freeing buttons refitted radio and imput code all working fine. Hope this may help someone and save them buying a new radio.
• 28 Dec 2016 (Forum)
  Get that chassis steam cleaned in the spring then coated in something like Bilt Hambers underbody waxes and you will still be driving that old beastie round in 20 years when almost all cars made today will be heading back hence they came in cube form, you will struggle to find an ecu anywhere on it and they were built to last and made to be serviced easily and worked on, so easy to keep them running.
• Ford Focus - Noise after pull off 25 Aug 2016 (Forum)
  It happens at the exact same distance from my parking spot every time. It only happens once from starting the engine, if I stop handbrake neutral ( leave engine running) and then pull off again it won't happen, but if I switch off then on and pull off it will happen again. It's a focus 2010 23k on clock petrol 1.6 . It's under warranty. Taking the car back after holiday as radio is having problems.