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• Volkswagen Golf VI - VW Golf VI 2.0 GT 13 Apr 2010 (Forum)
  The steering was quite nice, the car went where it was pointed but the ride! Oh my god, what a bone shaker! I found it less comfortable than an original (rubber suspended) Mini, at least that gave a bit before your spine got hammered. The road noise was quite deafening too - awful. No Focus I've ever driven is this bad for harshness or road noise - including the ST. Why are the press raving about this awful car?
• Ford Fusion (2002 - 2008) - 03 1.4 tdci stopped after fuel fill. 16 Jan 2010 (Forum)
  I went in to a long established independent dealer (35 years) this afternoon, in order to pick up a second hand fusion 2 1.4 tdci (03 plate), I'd done the usual vehicle check using mycarcheck.com; all clear and the dealer seems genuine: an elderly one man band with about 18 other half decent cars on his mini forecourt not a smug salesman. I'd taken the car on a test drive earlier on in the week and all was fine. Anyway the car was mot'd yesterday I got in it today after handing over the money drove about 50 yards to a filling station (the fuel gauge was on the bottom bar), put a tenner in got back in and nothing, so the car was pushed into a workshop, The immobilizer light remained on, so the dealer rang a ford contact who said becuase it was low on fuel there might be an air pocket in the fuel pipe so for about 20 mins 4 of us tried to get the car going pumping the black fuel valve Any ideas please, I left the car with the dealer (minus the paperwork he'd given me of course) to sort out, is this a regular occurence on fusions.
• Market share by manufactuer: 2000 vs 2008 9 Jan 2009 (Forum)
  Citroen - 3.81 11. Mercedes - 3.51 12. Nissan - 3.11 13. Fiat - 2.60 14. Mazda - 2.34 15. Mini - 1.91 16. Skoda - 1.74 17. Volvo - 1.56 18. Land Rover - 1.53 19. Kia - 1.47 20. SEAT - 1.38 21. Hyundai - 1.32 22. Suzuki - 1.22 23. Jaguar Daimler - 0.95 24. Daewoo/Chevrolet - 0.86 25.
• Renault Scenic (1996 - 1998) - 1998 1.6 Head gasket - Again! 1 Jan 2009 (Forum)
  As they can't afford to get it fixed, I was wondering about doing it myself. I've done gaskets before (a long time ago), lots of minis, couple of 6 pot BMWs, Ford essex V6, WV etc, I was wondering if any special tools were needed, is it a complex job, how do those weird french ignition coil pack things work? etc. How hard is it to get the inlet manifold off, it looks really inaccessible.
• Irrational fondness 21 Jul 2008 (Forum)
  Despite the current vagaries of the economy, things have not been too bad in our little niche market and I could I suppose reasonably easily replace it or even trade up a bit if I wanted. My mini dilemma is that I really like my car. Like a favourite pair of old jeans or a battered old pair of shoes it just sort of fits me. Thankfully, it has thus far been totally reliable. Two headlamp bulbs have been the only non-scheduled items in its life so far.
• Volkswagen Polo III (1994 - 1999) - Rear wheel bearing - lose hub 14 Oct 2007 (Forum)
  It was obviously OK at the time the MOT was performed - just puzzled as to how/why the hub became so lose? I had this once before on a front wheel bearing on a Mini. I would tighten the nut up - lock it off and the thing would still become completely lose after a few miles. Only a new bearing sorted it out. Any ideas? I will replace the bearing anyway as it's only about a fiver for a new bearing and a really easy job.
• Your favourite..... 5 May 2007 (Forum)
  Years ago when I was considering if it would be cheaper to enter historic motorsport, or just throw £20 notes into a burning barrel, I noticed these little cars with their delicate styling and 700cc boxer twin engines in the rear. Surely an interesting alternative to the Mini Coopers and Austin A35s? Abarth were doing fiendish things with little Fiats, more carburettor than engine, surely a lightweight BMW would be an interesing project? I went to a classic car show at the NEC a little later and spoke to a few people on the BMW owners club stand.
• c'etait un rendevous \ snow patrol 5 Feb 2007 (Forum)
  I saw it briefly on friday evening on some channel or other and at first when I saw the video I thought to myself that it looked like\was the aforementioned video. I think the video may be a modern day remake as there seemed to be far too many Minis and 2CVs on it for my liking and it seemed to be quite slow but I also remember that criticism (Speed) being made about the original. I've only seen a dodgy copy of the original film on the net\my hard drive and there was obviously no engine sounds on the music video that I saw either.
• Do dealers know what they're doing? 7 Jan 2007 (Forum)
  Bit of a generalised question I know, however I dont think I have had a positive experience with any franchiesed car dealership. Current issue is with my girlfriends MINI, she has only had it 3 months and there are some problems that need sorting from when we bought it. The brakes are grinding so obviously need new pads or disks however they cant hear it (they must seriously be deaf because its blatent and happens every time you apply them - worse when not used for a few hours).
• Northumbria Police 3 Good PR 0 27 Sep 2006 (Forum)
  For my sins I sometimes drive a minibus containing elderly passengers and last Sunday I was turning at a well-known roundabout in Gosforth when a fool pulled onto the mini roundabout in front of me requiring a complete emergency stop. I indicated by use of the horn his stupidity and lack of knowledge of Highway code. Some 200 yards later I was stopped by a another young fool in a Panda car who proceeded to berate me for using my horn.
• Mondeo TDCi nsf clonking noise 13 Aug 2006 (Forum)
  The best way to describe the noise is as a sharp metallic clonk or knock, suggestive of bits of metal that are under considerable load shifting around when they shouldn't. Usually occurs on right-hand turns on uneven surfaces, such as mini roundabouts or side turnings with odd camber - anything where the nsf wheel is subject to any sort of lateral force. The noise can also occur when travelling in a straight line, if the car hits a bad bump - and again, where the surface causes lateral force on the wheel.
• X Reg Corsa Starting Probs 13 Oct 2005 (Forum)
  t, made a horrible whining and died. (I know very little about cars but I use this description because I once drove an old Mini which had starter problems and it sounded just like this). On the fourth attempt I gave it a bit of gas and the car started but as soon as I released the gas it began to splutter so I put my foot back again and kept the revs at around 1500.
• Peugeot 306 noise 24 Aug 2004 (Forum)
  The noise occurs when turning at slow speed with about 3/4 lock or more applied while accelerating (eg car parks, mini roundabouts, etc. The noise is a continuous, whining/grumbling noise (ie not a clicking CV joint type noise). It never occurs when the accelerator is not pressed, regardless of speed or amount of steering applied, and this applies whether the car is under engine braking or coasting.
• Time for a change of Identity 16 May 2003 (Forum)
  I dont like the fact that it only returns 30 mpg and uses 1/2 litre of oil every 800 miles on a 30 mile a day journey So what should I be looking at ? It has to have 4 doors, not me a mini/supermini size, preferably have a boot, must be a good car to drive (a drivers car ?), and have a good 'feel of solidity' When I bought the Bora, it was a toss-up between that and a Honda Civic 1.5 vtec, and I went for the VW because the Honda appeared under-equipped (too many blanks on the dashboard) and you had to push it a bit to get the benefit of the VTEC but I could concede I made the wrong decision I drive 15 miles each way to work but then might well put a couple of hundred motorway miles in at a weekend, and at a push want something that's going to take me to Innsbruck in relative comfort, which is why I don't want a small car I eagerly await your opinions....
• Boredom relief shortlist 13 May 2003 (Forum)
  Yes, it's still not exactly an automotive Nicole Kidman, and the fascia looks like the front-panel of an Alba mini-system, but at least you get a nice Momo wheel to hold, and good seats. In terms of price/performance ratio, this option might well be unbeatable, but can anyone think of any obvious alternatives to try?
• Hitch hikers 22 Mar 2002 (Forum)
  Fortunately, I was looking back down the road when I saw three males tearing towards us with goodness knows what in mind. A set-up. Go Go Go, I cried in pre-Murray Walker days. Off we squirted in the little red Mini to safety. That was of course a rarity and generally there were no problems. Is it more dangerous now, or we just more aware of potential problems?
• Top 10 diesels on the market 11 Feb 2007 (Forum)
  Cons: From around £77,000 that 10% deposit would buy a real-world diesel. Tiscali verdict: 10/10 ---------------------------- 8. New Mini On sale: Spring 07 Pros: You won?t have missed the brouhaha about the spot-the-difference new Mini. Understandably, BMW took an if-it-ain?t-broke approach to the second-generation car, on sale now.
• Ford Torneo - Keyless ignition risk for non-premium brand 1 Aug 2023 (Forum)
  There have been a lot of car thefts in our neighbourhood although I think they have been premium cars rather than anything as utilitarian as a Ford mini van. My wife is paranoid that it's going to be nicked from our driveway. I suspect thieves are only going to be targeting expensive cars and a bright red van is not going to be at significant risk. From what I've read, the main risk is the use of relay devices to access the car where there is a proximity/touch entry system.
• Reliable Used Hatchback - £10k Budget 5 Aug 2021 (Forum)
  Hello all, I am relatively new to the world of cars (and this forum) so thought I would seek some expert advice... I bought my first car from a private seller at the start of the year - an 8 year old Mini One with 50k on the clock and in otherwise excellent condition. Unfortunately, on my first motorway outing the timing chain snapped (something that wasn't picked up in its recent service), causing expensive engine damage and resulting in the car having to be sold onwards to a trader (not the best start to car ownership...!).
• SUV - Help on How many KM on a used car 13 May 2021 (Forum)
  I also need something for lugging stuff which includes 2 elderly Grandparents comfortably. Originally I had my sights on a mini SUV like the Honda HRV but I am thinking a compact SUV like a RAV4 or a Honda CRV is a better value. I also giving a lot of thought into a Hybrid. I think my budget will be in the low-mid 20Ks I have never bought a used car, the Jazz was bought new.