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• Astra H 2009 1.6 petrol - Oil non return valve issues on Astra H Z16XER 24 Jul 2025 (Forum)
  It has a VVT system and when I first start the engine it has a knocking noise for 1 or 2 seconds and then goes. After this the engine runs fine. It only does it when the car has sat for hours without use. I’ve had lots of work done to the car recently. New camshaft dephasers, solenoid valves , aux belt, timing belt, and many other things.
• Snapped coil spring- outside lane of the M5 7 Jul 2025 (Forum)
  A scary experience in the Mini on the M5 near Exeter yesterday on the way back from an excellent week in Brixham. We initially thought we’d run over something after a loud bang, but then the tyre deflated and we quickly pulled onto the hard shoulder. Turns out the front offside coil spring had snapped and then dragged on the tyre, bursting it and damaging the wheel.
• Volvo V50 1.8 Petrol - Small Japanese Car to replace Volvo V50 28 May 2025 (Forum)
  My wife recently passed her test and is feeling too nervous to drive the Volvo. 3. I am finding that the cost of running the Volvo is getting a bit noticeable now, when it comes to servicing, parts tax etc. I would love to get something like a Honda Jazz and was wondering whether this was a good idea (or perhaps any alternatives).
• Hyundai i20 - Engine noise. Is it all over for the car? 27 Mar 2025 (Forum)
    The other day I noticed what I thought was an engine noise, a kind of tapping in sync with the engine running when idle. It seemed to still be there when driving. I wasn't sure if it had always been there. I was about to do a long journey so drove ten miles to local garage, checked the oil which was low and topped it up.
• Audi A4 - Audi A4 1.8T BFB single cylinder misfire 18 Jan 2025 (Forum)
  i have an audi a4 2004 1.8t that i recently bought, the car has a misfire on cylinder 2  so i replaced the coilpack and the problem went away but only when the car is static, asin not moving and engine running it has no misfire but when you put the car under load after 2000rpm cylinder 2 has a dead misfire, no stuttering or hesitation just goes completly dead, i have ruled out that its not the piston rings as it dosnt smoke i would need to do a compresion test to confirm but im pretty confident it isnt that i know its not a stuck valve as its not constant its only under hard acceleration, i have replaced the coil packs and spark plugs also i checked the coil wires that sit above the exhaust as they are known for splitting due to the heat of the exhaust, cylinder 2 had 2 wires that had the outer case breaking away but not damaged the wire to what i could see so i eletrical taped them to see if the problem persists, which it did. is it the wires that are causing me the misfire, is there damage that i cant see thats caused by the heat and the wires actually need repairing 
• Jaguar XF 2009 - Restricted Performance warning persisting 28 Sep 2024 (Forum)
    Any insight and advice welcome as I am still trying to get to grips with learning all the foibles Jaguar seems to have, including the battery going flat if it’s not taken for a long run every week which I can’t always do. If I can get rid of the RP warning, it’s going up for sale.
• New Suzuki Swift 27 Jun 2024 (Forum)
  Just taken delivery of a new Swift and running it for a couple of weeks. I’ve done a predominantly motorway 180 mile drive in it so far, but initial impressions are very positive. There are two trim levels, Motion and Ultra, with Motion supplying lots of standard equipment (including heated front seats, adaptive cruise control, wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay, rear parking camera).
• Rural bumpy rough roads – would MPV or SUV be best 17 May 2024 (Forum)
  Hi   I’m after any thoughts or suggestions on what car/vehicle to get, please, and thoughts on MPVs vs SUVs…       Here’s the low-down: - I live in a very rural area where the roads are in bad condition - It’s used mainly for short journeys of just a few miles - But a couple of times a year or so it will be needed for a motorway run of a few hundred miles - Annual mileage around 8k     It would be good to have: - A decent mpg (petrol) - Good road clearance - Good boot capacity  - Budget = around £12k.
• SEAT Leon - SEAT LEON 2014 FUEL SYSTEM 30 Apr 2024 (Forum)
  Hi, 2014 Seat Leon 2.0 Diesel   I've run into some car trouble recently and have been told I could be potentially looking at a brand new fuel system due to particles and debris getting into the system and destroying everything. Very expensive unfortunately.
• Hyundai i10 - Hyundai i10 2015 plate Oil Light and Noise 9 Jan 2024 (Forum)
  The noise is coming from the area the pump is apparently located however. I'm also warned there may be serious engine damage and I may need a replacement engine. The runs as well as it always has, the temperature gauge stay at the level it should. I've checked the oil which is at it's maximum level, perhaps a tad over.   Any advice please everyone?
• N/A - Low-profile wheels/tyres 31 Dec 2023 (Forum)
  I've been meaning to post this for a while. As some may recall, I'm running a Mazda CX-5 and have been very impressed with the car - except for one thing. It's the SportNav model and that means the dreaded low-profile wheel/tyre set-up. (The specs are 225/55R19/99V.) The ride, on original Toyo Proxes tyres, was pretty harsh.
• Automatic 7 Seater under £10k... 7 Nov 2023 (Forum)
  We don't have any hobbies which require a large boot space but we do occasional lifts for friends which would make an extra row come in handy (eldest is early teens). It would do around 12k miles a year, with 80 mile motorway runs three times a week, so diesel would be fine. I currently get about 50mpg on mine so wouldn't want to veer too much from that if possible. I know older automatics can be problematic so preferably trying to avoid any with widely known issues (aren't we all!).
• Volkswagen Polo - Polo 1.2 Timing chain pre-emptive measures 21 Oct 2023 (Forum)
  It's been bugging me that what if I just brought a ticking time bomb with the chain. So far the car runs really well, has full service history, and was well cared for.  Is there any pre-emptive measures I can take to make sure I can get as much life out of the timing chain as I can?
• Can an independent car dealer find you a car? 20 Oct 2023 (Forum)
  So I’m finally learning to drive and I’m looking at getting my first car sometime this year. However I’m running into brick walls when it comes finding the right car. I’m learning to drive automatic (I find manual too hard) and I’m looking at all the dealerships websites in my area and all I’m finding is mainly manual cars.
• Time to choose another car 19 Oct 2023 (Forum)
  My wish-list includes: Good fuel economy at motorway speeds Must be reliable car, cheap to run, and easy to obtain and fit parts Boot big enough for 2 large suitcases Must have space for a full-size or space-saver spare wheel, the foam stuff is useless if the tyre gets shredded on the motorway at midnight.
• 1986 Daihatsu Skywing - Cylinder Wall Pre-Ignition Damage? 10 Jun 2023 (Forum)
    (The top ring gap was probably roughly in the right orientation on removal) When I first got the car it seemed to have some pre-ignition on idle and had some run-on after switch off, both of which went away after a water decoke. 
• BMW 2 230i or a 3.0 litre - Thinking of buying a BMW series 2 30 May 2023 (Forum)
  I'm on the cusp of buying a BMW convertible , either 220i or 235/240i around the 2017 date. I have just had a quick test in 240i and I love it but the running costs are a tad worrying – I am now retired . The guy selling the car here in Purbeck is a mechanic with a small forecourt . He has warned me off buying into the four cylinder range as they have proved troublesome , namely timing chains .
• Citroen C3 Aircross - Hire Car 22 Apr 2023 (Forum)
    Somehow both crashy and floaty with 1980s style understeer. Probably one for the school run and shopping, as long as you've got flippers for hands. I should add, as it's come up before, it was three years old 50,000 miles, had quite a few dings and three of the tyres were well worn (about 3mm left).
• Pollution River and Seas 14 Apr 2023 (Forum)
    If it is not sewage being discharge into rivers and streams then it is silage or chemicals and fertilisers spread on farmland.  From my own experience the rivers from the coal valleys in Wales used to run pitch black with coal waste from the tips.  Now this has been cleaned up and fish and wildlife largely restored the rivers have to contend with ever increasing incidents of sewage overflows when we have heavy rains.
• Ford Fiesta 1.6 - 2014 Fiesta 1.6 going into limp mode 20 Feb 2023 (Forum)
  We can get a garage to reset the codes and the car drives fine but a) there's obviously a problem and b) it costs us money every time. So, we stopped using the car until this week and it again wouldn't start - we start and run the car every day, even when we weren't using it fully - and again went into limp mode. We found a decent garage who shared all the codes with us and who also just said "get rid of it, it'll always be a problem.