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• Fuel Guage Accuracy 25 Jan 2003 (Forum)
  Almost laughing at the fact my 6000mile S60 is not starting (A bit of a pattern in my car buying history) I start to wonder if I had run out of petrol. Surely not, the light only came on about half a mile way from my house last night. The RAC chap arrives, pours in some petrol and hey presto, the engine comes back to life! How can the red light possibly leave half a mile left in the tank before coming on??
• Golf Heater Problems 21 Jan 2003 (Forum)
  I have flushed and back flushed the heater matrix, I have also drained and refilled the cooling system several times. Once the engine is at it normal temperature, if I then hold the hoses running into the heater matrix, the incoming hoses is red hot, there is a thin bypass hoses which is also red hot. Beyond the bypass hoses incoming is warm, the outgoing hoses is cold until the point were the small bypass hoses joins, were it becomes red hot again.
• Low idling rpm / stalling Astra 1.4 13 Jan 2003 (Forum)
  However noticed that at a standstill it was idling at about 500rpm, wasn';t stalling but engine sounded like it was only one step away. AFAIK It normally idles around 1000rpm, maybe a bit more. Any ideas? Has been running fine, has had new HT lead on one spark in last 3 months, but that was different symptoms, this has power without problems when foot down, and in this cold wet weather I suspect it's not going to get better on it's own!
• BMW 518i Rubber Smell 1 Jan 2003 (Forum)
  I have a 25,000mls J-reg BMW 518i which has a rather odd problem. Since a new timing belt & exhaust manifold gasket were fitted, as soon as the engine has been running for about 5 mins, there is a very strong smell of burning rubber. On closer inspection the smell is worst around the top of the exhaust manifold adjacent to no.s 2&3 spark plugs. The cause was at first thought to be the timing belt (despite it being enclosed within a metal cover) so a new one of these was fitted with tensioner & idlers & the tensioning procedure was adhered to the letter (there was no sign of anything on the belt which would indicate a problem).
• Loss of power in Rover Metro 998cc 20 Nov 2002 (Forum)
  She has always lost coolant (throught the heater fins), so its difficult to know whether she has lost more than usual, but I have a suspicion she HAS lost coolant. No bubbles in the radiator filler tank when running though. I am hoping (probably in vain) that the overheating and the loss of power are unconnected, and that I haven't blown the head gasket. Any thoughts? Thanks, D7
• Fiesta Problems 18 Nov 2002 (Forum)
  At low revs, such as slowing up to take a roundabout, the engine just cuts and dies. It starts again straight away, but there's no guarantee that the engine will stay running when you need it to. The problem seems to independant of temperature and can occur when the car is well warmed up. Also happens when you're sitting in neutral too. I've changed just about everything I can think of in there and it's been into get the diagostics checked, but come back with zip.
• Do you see what I see 1 Nov 2002 (Forum)
  One 'gent' even threatened to report me because I took exception to him driving on the pavement, (after getting out of his car to move a cone) and then almost running over a paramedic who was knelt ddown dealing with a casualty. Oh well.Only four more days and nights till my next days off. MLC
• Bad drivers - what is the answer? 23 Oct 2002 (Forum)
  Just watched the re run of Britain's Worst Drivers and Im absolutely appalled. How on earth can they give the 'most improved' driver amongst this lot new cars? It is ludicrous! The standard of driving left me speechless to such an extent that Im considering giving up my car because I don't want to meet any of these loons onthe road.
• Battery mystery 23 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  When you spin it on the starter it actually sounds like a V8 under there, not like a diesel Land Rover on a cold morning which is how it was before. Do new batteries need a 'running in' period before they can deliver their full performance? Richard Hall http://bangernomics.tripod.com
• 309 stalling and clunking 5 Aug 2002 (Forum)
  Acceleration when warm is fine, and I got 43ish MPG on a long journey recently involving not the kindest of treatment towards the car. However is there anything else to consider as a reason for stalling and the iffy running from cold? Clunking: still a problem; I posted a while ago. Both driveshafts have been replaced (CV joints failed on the nearside and the offside shaft became very loose at the gearbox casing recently, causing the 'wobbling' which I have also posted about.)
• Mondeo 1.8TD Performance (Turbo??) 11 Jul 2002 (Forum)
  It takes ages to build speed up which can be quite hairy when joining motorways from the slip road. Basically - it is running like a straight diesel - not a turbo diesel. I am not too worried about the cost of the repair as I have a warranty that I have purchased after the Injector Pump went (at 70,000 miles!!!!), it is the dreaded "Diagnosis" time that scares me (the Ford garage is quoting £55 per hour) This started happening after spending 3 hours sat in gridlock around Reading last week - don't know if this could be connected.
• Vacuum Gauge Tests 8 Jul 2002 (Forum)
  In the continuing quest to get to the bottom of my 200Vi's poor running, I have invested in a Vacuum Gauge. History of problem; Misfire at idle/down on power/jerking on part throttle. Session on Rover Testbook diagnostic system revealed no faults. Compression test revealed no serious problems (all within 10% of each other) Recent service and replacement of HT Leads & Plugs.
• Toyota Carina Oxygen Sensor Problem? 30 Jun 2002 (Forum)
  Dear Forum, I have reason to believe the oxygen sensor is faulty on my 1991 pre-cat Toyota Carina 2.0i auto. (There has been a long history of running and starting problems in cold damp weather caused by a fuel mixture that gets weaker on its own a few weeks after adjustment). I have 3 questions. 1) How easy is it to test an oxygen sensor to be sure that it actually is faulty?
• Astra Ecotec Cam Belt Failure Info 12 Jun 2002 (Forum)
  Point of the story is, like David W's job, these belts made by Gates for Vauxhall/Opel are suspect as well. As the engine was running on the later modified parts it seems that the belts are letting go now instead. Has anyone else experienced a similar scenario and, more importantly, did they get anywhere with Vauxhall? Charles
• Things you notice 1 Dec 2001 (Forum)
  If there is front end damage the bill would be expensive, GM have tucked in the fan and the turbo intercooler right behind the bumper member and the compartment must be expected to run hot since there is a neat insulating jacket over the battery. The "deluxe" front seats have a strange panel at the front which is free to slide forward about several inches, it looks like it's meant to support your leg further towards your knee but it seems more comfortable if left alone.
• Road Tax 29 Oct 2001 (Forum)
  I recently heard that camers to detect road tax dodgers are in use in London, (soon to be everywhere else as well no doubt), why for god's sake don't they just scrap this outdated nonsense and put 2-3p a litre on fuel instead - those who run bigger engines/do more miles pay more road tax. Think of the benefits: 1)The Government would probably cover the revenue gained from tax discs. 2)Because the treasury could sack a whole workforce of pen-pushers and bureaucrats, they would save money not having to administer the current scheme (they could also shut down the ridiculous 'road tax cheats hotline'). 3)Less queueing/time wasted in post offices. 4)Cash flow of any road haulage company would be enourmously improved (by not having to shell out thousands up front to tax the trucks).
• Ford Fiesta 1.6 tdci - Garage diagnosis does not make sense to me 2 Apr 2016 (Forum)
  I questioned the fault they had found and they said that the coil was open circuit at start up and then were ok once running. I said this seemed unlikely as a coil is good or bad and never in between. I said this and explained I was an electrician and understood how coils operate. I was told that it was possible due to the needle on the injector being part of the coil circuit and that the other garage had not diagnosed it as they dont have the test kit that we have.
• 2003 Ford Mondeo 2.0 Tdci 130 - 2003 Mondeo 2.0 Tdci 130 Trusty Glow Plug Light! 13 Feb 2012 (Forum)
  It belches out plenty of white smoke smelling of unburned diesel if you try and rev it. Eventually, the car starts on what feels like three cylinders, and when it is warm, it runs okay in limp mode (clearly no turbo etc), but it does go. It restarts from warm fine too. I can't help but think, if I can get the car to run right in limp mode, the problem will go away once the car is recoded.
• 10k in an 'ugly duckling' ? 28 Jul 2005 (Forum)
  Handling (I'm starting to smile) now the warmer weather is here has been absolutely fantastic, empty roundabouts are a particular joy when driven properly and you feel the rear squat down when the torque of the engine comes in when accelerating away. I mention the warmer weather because I was not sure about the run-flats during the colder months, but that may have also been because they were slightly under pressure and a few extra pounds seems to have made a big difference to both the grip and feel. These tyres run at much higher pressures than any of my previous cars .
• 150 k Miles in a Berlingo 31 May 2021 (Forum)
  Was up Birmingham onn Thursday and Liverpool and back yesterday.    It will be run into the ground.