April 2020
My passenger window only operates from the drivers side.
i noticed some damage to the passenger switch but a replacement has not fixed the fault.
cant be the motor as the window works but wonder whether the leads may have been damaged by the previous owner as the switch surround is damaged.... Read more
I bet the entry level model will cost near £30k when launched - new model launches from most manufacturers now include a HUGE price hike.
Even though this car looks like the last model, and all Audis in general, what puts me off even more is that VW/Audi aren't as reliable as some other cars and despite paying a premium for them, still only offer a 3 year warranty for their 'superior' cars.
A quick scan of some nearly new cars from other, more mainstream, manufacturers uncovered some cracking deals on much more reliable cars with longer warranties whose driving experience is also the match of any prestige make on our congested / potholed roads. Read more
I don't like the interior of this Audi though, and I don't expect to pay thousands more for just a squashy 'quality' dashboard - there has to be more substance than that to justify the premium price, but the engines / mechanical bits of Audis are shared with cheaper cars like the Polo and Golf.
On top of that, VW/Audi interior quality is getting worse in their new models (maybe as a result of Dieselgate legal action cost cutting) with some mainstream manufacturer's interiors now being on a par with them despite costing a lot less. A busier looking (and messy) design isn't going to hide cheap materials being used here and there.
Hi All,
I'm just looking for some opinions/advice on the following situation regarding my wifes car (66 plate 520)- ... Read more
My 2008 Volvo v70 had a nasty front end smack in 2016, almost wriitten off but eventually repaired...took ages but came back immaculate and I've had no problems. Shows that different people have different experiences with body repairs.
Hi everyone,
I'm a key worker who used buses until now, but I work with people who are very vulnerable so I've been walking to work for a month now. But now I'm getting a lot of shifts with a 9pm finish and the trek home isn't very safe and takes me almost an hour. I got an especially unpleasant experience last week. I had been looking to buy a car before that, but the fear of using the same bus as dozens of other people and the night encounter of groups of drinking young men pushed me over the edge over the weekend and I got a car on Sunday.
Being a key worker also means I don't get paid very much, so I was looking for the cheapest possible option. I bought it off a private seller nearby, as I don't currently have a car and am not to keen to be spending time on a bus, so that I can avoid spending time on a bus. When I got home I looked at the V5C and noticed that the name on it matched the name of an ad for a similar car 30 miles from here. That first ad was posted on the 14th of April and the seller I got it from posted it on the 18th. The first ad was £550 lower than that of my seller, so I'm guessing they were just "wannabe traders" making a quick buck.
What worries me is that the V5C has the name of the previous owner(the guy from the old ad), not the guys that I bought it from. I realise now that I should have checked that before buying, but I didn't. They said that I should text them my name and address and I'll get my V5C in the next 3 days.
My question to you guys is should I phone the police about this? I read somewhere online that if the name on the V5C doesn't match the one of the seller I should phone the police. It does match to the seller of the old ad - I did message that guy and told him I had his car(same licence plate) and asking him if it was stolen or just resold. No reply yet, and I did pay via bank transfer so have quite a bit of the seller's details, so I assume they didn't steal the car.
My other question is when should I pay the car's tax? Also when should I expect to get a V5C? Is there a way of knowing whether the seller actually passed my details onto the DVLA(they said they would do it this morning) or if they're just not going to do it and I should send a V62(although I have a V5C it doesn't have neither my name on it, the name of the seller I got the car from(they definitely weren't registered traders), or the correct date on it.
Many thanks in advance for any help and advice. Read more
I just realised that I don't have the whole V5C. First time buyer/owner, so I've never even seen a V5C before. I don't have section 1 and 2. Section 2 is the one for selling it, so maybe the previous owner did send it. I'll wait 4 weeks and fill out a v62 if not. I used the number on the green slip and it did let me tax it.
It's all been quite confusing to me, so I think I am overreacting a bit. I got thrown off by the fact that someone else was advertising this same car 5 days before, so I thought there must be something wrong with it. Thank you for keeping a level headed and unbiased perspective and helping me out.
Battery went flat and alarm kept going off so somebody removed something either under bonnet or wheel arch but cannot remember where to disconnect sirens. I have 2 keys, not fob type, and only one appears to work to switch off thatcham alarm immobilizer. Every 3rd attempt at opening doors the engine turns but alarm immobilizer stops it from working. I have to keep unlocking and relocking drivers door and wait and try again until it starts. Failing that I disconnect one lead and try again, then the other. Sometimes both and leave it sitting for some time. Then it starts or it doesn't. I go back to relocking doors to unlocking and keep repeating process until it starts. I find if I do a long drive and stick to one key it resolves the problem. Any ideas anyone please? Thanks in advance.
How old is this car ? Is it a Frontera A (with push button switches each side of the dash pod) or the B model , with regular column stalks ?
"we should not stand for this"
Ok - sit down and calm down then!... Read more
I told you, Sam: this correspondence is now CLOSED.
Defending BL/Rover
I’m not intending on entering a debate about who was to blame be it workforce, management, unions or government. I agree that the firm produced some terrible cars over the years (Allegro, Marina, Maxi, Princess, Stag engine) but I am going to argue that they did occasionally and despite gross underfunding manage to produce a good car. I am including the BAperiod here.
Under BL they created the Montego which may make some laugh that I’d suggest it was a good car but it was. I sold plenty of these in the 90’s and not a problem was had and if you look up period road tests from the 80’s you’ll find the Montego in the top tier of all of them. It was a good car spoiled by early quality issue but once sorted in 88 it became a comfortable, quick and efficient family car. The closely related Maestro wasn’t as good since the majority were saddled with the robust but ancient A series motor that struggled in such a heavy car plus the styling didn’t work as well as the saloon.
There were some on paper classics like the Dolly Sprint before this of course but quality didn’t allow them to reach their potential.
The best move they ever made was the team up with Honda in the early 80’s which produced some great cars and really bolstered the firms reliability record. Triumph Acclaim, Rover SD3 213, Rover 800 (once they sorted it out) the Rover R8 which was probably the best example of getting value from one design I’ve ever seen and the most reliable of the lot the Rover 600.
The K series engine in its intended size (sub 1400cc) was a great design far in advance of rivals and rarely suffered any HGF issue unlike larger versions. It was never meant to be larger than 1400cc with Honda units taking up any gap between them and the T/M series 2.0 or all being covered by Honda eventually. The Metro they put it in was a joy too, a brilliant thing to drive and far superior to rivals of the time even the Pug 205.
Had this continued or Honda had seen the worth of Land Rover and Mini then bought the full firm then there would be plenty production at Longbridge today. Sadly BMW bought it with only one plan in mind and despite the distraction tactic of paying to develop the 75 they broke the firm up and binned Rover which was then unsalvageable.
Rover created the Discovery on a shoestring and despite early gearbox issues it became a very well liked model with a particularly robust Diesel engine.
The Freelander would’ve been a real winner had they retained access to Honda’s petrol motors and advice but although being quite nice to drive and selling well the bigger k series motors were notorious for cooking themselves and the rear diffs were made from jelly.
Once Honda went the quality tanked as BMW had no intention of seeing Rover survive. But during the time the Japanese firm were there they built some great cars. All of which I sold to happy buyers often in the case of the 213 and Honda engined R8’s I had a waiting list.
Triumph Acclaim
Rover 213
Rover 827
Rover R8 216/416
Rover 600
Imagine today a range of Honda engineered but British designed and built Land Rovers and mass market Rovers. Had the 75 and the R8 replacement had all Honda motors they would’ve been some of the best cars on the road. I just don’t think Honda really knew what to do with Rover itself and never understood the market for the new Mini which was already well under way when BMW arrived.
Sadly the remnants were taken over for the price of a packet of fags by a bunch of conmen and creative accountants who only wanted to feather their own nests for as long as possible. Instead of pourIng money into mainstream models like a new lifesaver R8 and Metro replacement they frittered away what little they had on creating daft V8 versions of the 75 and on jollies to Italy to buy a bankrupt supercar producer with an out of date ugly car that no one wanted to buy. Had they managed to recreate 1989 over again with an outstanding supermini and mass market premium hatch (R8) they could’ve saved the firm exactly as BAE did by making it appealing to another partner or buyer. They wasted a great opportunity for short term greed.
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You haven’t mentioned the greatest idiotic joining Tata.
Their cars were the biggest failure. There was not a straight panel anywhere on the car and the worse car to have rolled on UK roads.
Hello,
I need an urgent advise. My kit car broke down some time ago. I was driving from one electrician to another to fix it and now it's finally starting with a new ECU. ... Read more
THANK YOU FOR THAT. Just to let you know, somehow I've found a person who sold that ECU and apparently it's 1.8l Petrol - i'm just unsure if it's VVC or not.
Either way i do have another issue. I've dismantled the loom ( found loads of short circuits) and now I'm check if the ECU is receiving all relevant details. I was lucky because there is no easy way of checking which ECU is that.
What catched my attention is that the owner gave me spare camshafts ( he thought they are broken). I just figured out the the ones fitted in the kit car are different to the spare ones.
Do you have any idea how to indentify them? I've spend few hours scrolling but can't find anything. To be more precise i've got the below camshafts. I need to know which one will be correct for and which one is inlet/outlet... that car is in a mess but i want to do my best to restore it.
Camshaft numbers:
LYD 3 LGC106970
LYD 13 LGC106970
2X LYD 5 LGC 106970
Could do with any help!
Always enjoyed reading James Ruppert’s ramblings in Autocar over the years, I’ve even had a few of my bargain banger appear on his pages but I do often disagree with him regarding what constitutes a good bangernomics buy.
This week he has written an article about buying a car for the price of an annual bus pass (£625 from memory) but instead of suggesting a list of robust, simple, reliable petrol engined mass produced cars for which parts are cheap and available he’s went off on one with a list of the worst cars you could possibly buy on such a tight budget from a turbo diesel Renault Espace to big BMW’s, Mercs, Jags, a V8 Audi through diesel Volvo estates with interstellar mileages and Saab Convertibles even an Alfa Romeo. It is in fact a list of cars you shouldn’t buy for £625. The slightest thing goes wrong with most of them and it’s a write-off.
His list should’ve contained nothing complex at all. No turbos, no diesels, no gadget laden prestige metal or SUV’s. It should’ve been something more like the following but then what do I know?
Ford Focus 1.6 petrol
Ford Fiesta 1.25 petrol
Mazda 3 1.6 petrol
Honda Jazz
Honda Civic petrol
Honda Accord petrol
Toyota Yaris petrol
Toyota Corolla petrol
Toyota Avensis petrol
Vauxhall Astra petrol
Peugeot 207 TU series petrols only
Fiat Panda (sub 70k miles)
Kia Picanto
Hyundai i10
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I'm one of James's ardent fans and have followed him for many years but i was surprised that he recommended the CX5 Diesel in another article view of the reputation that engine has gained.
Still not summoned enough courage to mention the possible forthcoming problems to my friend who has a three year old model which is used almost exclusively for short runs
In the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s we had loads of affordable yet practical sports coupes to choose from but today only the prestige brands really cater for this market.
It gave mainstream brands like Ford, Vauxhall and Peugeot the opportunity to charge a higher price and achieve higher margins from mass market underpinnings with cars like the Capri, Puma, Probe, Cougar, Manta, Calibra, Tigra, 406/407 Coupe, Alfa GTV, Brera, MX6 and Celica without having to invest a huge sum of money. All were based on lower mainstream models in one way or another.
Today the single person or couple with smaller or no children have no options beyond expensive German metal for a sporty looking Coupe which kills it for me as I’m no fan of BMW, Mercedes or Audi mainly due to the nasty image. The Toyota GT86 is great but it’s not practical like a Calibra or 406 Coupe.
I’d love a modern day Capri based on say the Focus or a Calibra based on the current Astra or Insignia. A new Peugeot Coupe based on the already attractive 508 would help bolster that cars image and Alfa have no Coupe in their range today unless I’m mistaken.
The Ford Capri was a legend despite basic underpinnings and the Puma was a joy in every way despite modest cost and low development investment over the Fiesta.
I think the mainstream brands who’ve all struggled in recent years did themselves a disservice by dropping these brand lifting models from their ranges. I remember seeing and selling loads of Vauxhall Calibra’s and Tigras in the 90’s and any Puma was sold before the end of its first day on the lot. A Toyota Celica was very sought after and people would buzz round an MX6 or Fiat Coupe.
SUV’s May be where the money is but brand lifting sporty models are required to raise the whole range and they require little investment to create based on existent underpinnings. Ford could have a real winner with another small Coupe based on the Fiesta as well as the small SUV that undeservedly pinched its name tag. Read more
yeah you'd be right lot more room.
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With any VAG model suffering electrical issues in the doors , the first thing I would check is the wiring where it runs from the door A posts , through the rubber conduit, into the door electrics . Check these areas in both . Not uncommon to find broken / corroded wiring .