I changed all four glow plugs on a Vauxhall Zafira 2.0 DTI less than six months ago after get a warning light on after every start. My car is now in a Vauxhall garage getting the engine replaced as the tip of one of the new plugs broke off, wore the pistons rings, scored the piston and cylinder block. The cylinder liner / block around No 1 piston was that badly worn it was causing extremely loud knocking (slapping). The garage said it was cheaper replacing the engine than stripping and trying to recondition it. The knocking noise did not appear to creep up on me it, it just happened very quickly.

Is there anyone out there that thinks there is any mileage in apportioning blame on the maker of the glow plug and trying for compensation and any ideas on the best way to proceed if there is? The car itself has a full service history, less than five years old and less than 45K on the clock. Including investagtion work by the garage I am looking at nearly £3000 to get the thing back on the road.
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Hi folks,

Basically, my 1999 1.8i Focus Zetec (60k miles) has started to overheat (at least, according to the gauge) but ONLY when travelling at higher speeds on dual carriageways/motorways and only when you've got your foot down and are putting the engine under a bit of strain (accelerating to keep the speed up on hills for example)

A few points that may be relevent :

When it happens, the temp gauge will go from it's normal 12 o'clock position to almost in the red really quickly.

Once you're in or near the red, the car sometimes feels almost sluggish, like the power isn't right - could this be the Cylinder Head Temp (CHT) sensor telling the ECU to take precautions ?

Strangely - if you ease off, it'll often return to the 12 o'clock position really quickly too - takes less than 30 seconds sometimes !?

Both the coolant and oil levels are fine and there are no obvious leaks around any of the visible hoses or themostat housing.

You can drive around town as much as you like doing anything up to 40mph and it won't happen at all, not even in traffic on a hot day or at traffic lights.

There are seemingly many causes of overheating and so far I've been lead towards the following : faulty CHT sensor, faulty thermostat and the blue Ford coolant which has never been renewed, so could do with being replaced.

The fact that the temperature gauge can go into the red and then (once you ease of) back again so quickly leads me to suspect a faulty CHT sensor. Unfortunately, according to the Haynes manual - to remove the CHT sensor on a 1.8i, you have to remove the alternator and to remove that, you have to remove the auxilliary (cam?) belt so I may need a garage if I go down that route.

The thermostat and coolant I can change myself first though.

Has anyone had similar problems or can anyone offer any advice ?

Could it be the water pump, fan or anything else ?

Cheers,
Mike. Read more

Hi guys got a Vectra V6 with a chipped key, got car and immobiliser worked with one key but not with other key,it had no battery in so got a couple of new batteries and put them into both keys ( what a mistake ) now neither key works the immobilser ,but still works the ignition, tried the re-programming turning the ignition on and press the lock or unlock on the key fob but nothing happens, didn't get a Vauxhall car pass with it, so any ideas on how to program key fob
ta dave Read more

The wife?s car had picked up 3 mega chips in the front bumper (her) plus a scrape about 6 inches by 2 (me). The chips were amazing. They appeared to have gone clean through a top skin of plastic and into some black, coarser plastic beneath. For either one we?d probably have pulled a face and left it at that but for the total damage we decided to get it repaired.

A local body shop estimated £95+VAT but couldn?t do it for about 6 weeks. I guess their bread and butter is bigger stuff and they were booked up. Having heard good reports of Chipsaway on this forum I tried them. They came to us, gave an estimate of £90 plus VAT but, most importantly, could do it ?next week?. That plus the convenience of them coming to us swung it and they got the business. Well the guy has been today and, as the saying goes, I can?t see the join. I haven?t looked at it in every light from every angle but it looks pretty darned good to me. A survey was left, which I assume would go to Chipsway but it?s addressed to the VBRA.

All in all, I?m quite happy and I?d recommend them. I have no connection with Chipsaway in any form.

JH Read more

Can anyone explain why there are so many tyre 'speed ratings' available?
Who needs a 'V' which covers up to 149 mph or even an 'H' for speeds up to 130 mph?
As I have no intention of ever going near to 99 mph, should I be looking for a speed rating of 'Q' for 'up to 99 mph'?
Is it satisfactory to mix ratings on the same axle?
Any advice would be much appreciated.
John Read more