Ad-hoc information

[Craig the Princess]

A thread for little nuggets of information you come across.

 

1) When refitting a battery to a Rover R8 have the ignition key in the 2 position otherwise the alarm will sound until cancelled. This doesn't make you very popular with the neighbours when jump starting a car at 6am.

[Jim Bell]

 

 

 

 

The lids from these two things fit each other. And should not be stored together.  Inside a car with running issues.

[twosmoke300]

never jump start an 06 on civic with the keys in the switch as it can wipe the immobilser

[Wackeldackel]

Easy start is like crack! Just a sniff of those aromatic hydrocarbons is all it takes, before you know it it's 2, 3 squirts, bugger me thats half a can gone, soon squirting a whole bastard tin of the stuff into the air intake just to get started, and once that happens its a downward spiral, ending up with the sorry situation of a filthy burning diesely rag held next to the air intake, just till you can get your hands on another tin of high grade Bradex....

 

Just SAY NO.

[twosmoke300]

^^^ makes me laugh when people say its addictive . Its not it just seems it for 2 reasons

 

1 , if an engine , esp diesel , needs easy start in the first place its probably buggered already

 

2 , most people use too much of it and the poor engine knocks its cock off and fucks it royally.

 

 

I use break cleaner now for reluctant vaux 2.0/2.2 diesels that are a twat to bleed. Its a bit more gentle but still works .

[dave21478]

Did anyone else know that the wee hook bit on the end of tape measures is SUPPOSED to be loose? Since I have never ever bought a new one but just seem to acquire them, I always assumed it was buggered due to letting it wind back in too fast and the rivets slowly elongating the holes in the tape but thats FALSE!

 

Turns out that the amount of movement of the hook corresponds with the thickness of metal the hook is made from, so that if you are measuring with the end pressed against something, or hooked over the edge of something, the measure is still accurate.

[Wackeldackel]

Twosmoke - Used to use loads of it on shitty old dumpers, rollers and wacker plates. Diesely rags set on fire, take the glow plugs out and heat them up a bit, burn cement bags under the diesel tank (now you see why i was a shit health and safety man) and naked flame all along the injector lines and then easy start. Quite often in winter it was easiest to start everything up at 7 when we started work and just leave it to blub away for a few hours, regardless of whether you need to use it that day or not.

 

I always been told by grumpy plant fitters that the addictive thing came about as the volatile hydrocarbons ignite very easily and with a bigger bang than just diesel alone, this in turn can damage rings, cylinder bores and cylinder heads leading to lower compression and harder starting, hence more easy start needed.

[Twiggy]

never jump start an 06 on civic with the keys in the switch as it can wipe the immobilser

 

How do you start it without the keys in the ignition switch then ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

[HillmanImp]

I suspect it is some sort of keyless start thing most autoshiters might not understand?

[twosmoke300]

No normal keys just make sure they are out of the barrel when you hook up the jump leads

[beko1987]

When popping out for a drive in your second automatic car after not driving it for 2 months, stamping your left foot through the carpet to stop in a hurry is pointless and hurts your knee...

[twosmoke300]

Or forgetting your driving an auto and stamp like fuck on the brake by mistake and bite the steering wheel rim.

[meshking]

Did anyone else know that the wee hook bit on the end of tape measures is SUPPOSED to be loose? Since I have never ever bought a new one but just seem to acquire them, I always assumed it was buggered due to letting it wind back in too fast and the rivets slowly elongating the holes in the tape but thats FALSE!

 

Turns out that the amount of movement of the hook corresponds with the thickness of metal the hook is made from, so that if you are measuring with the end pressed against something, or hooked over the edge of something, the measure is still accurate.

Wow, I think you have just changed my life. Honestly. Thank you!

[Richard]

If you take the driver's seat cushion off a Mk3 Fiesta you will find money. I took mine off to dry it once and found seven pound coins.

[oman5]

Twosmoke - Used to use loads of it on shitty old dumpers, rollers and wacker plates. Diesely rags set on fire, take the glow plugs out and heat them up a bit, burn cement bags under the diesel tank (now you see why i was a shit health and safety man) and naked flame all along the injector lines and then easy start. Quite often in winter it was easiest to start everything up at 7 when we started work and just leave it to blub away for a few hours, regardless of whether you need to use it that day or not.

I always been told by grumpy plant fitters that the addictive thing came about as the volatile hydrocarbons ignite very easily and with a bigger bang than just diesel alone, this in turn can damage rings, cylinder bores and cylinder heads leading to lower compression and harder starting, hence more easy start needed.

Yes I'd go with that. I briefly owned a Bedford midi 2.0 diesel on which the glow plug circuit was totally mullered. Easy start was the only way to get it going, after a couple of months it blew a couple of piston rings and ran away, feeding itself on its own oil at max revs. I hated the proxy thing so much I let it go bang.

[warren t claim]

Yes I'd go with that. I briefly owned a Bedford midi 2.0 diesel on which the glow plug circuit was totally mullered. Easy start was the only way to get it going, after a couple of months it blew a couple of piston rings and ran away, feeding itself on its own oil at max revs. I hated the proxy thing so much I let it go bang.

It's called borewashing.

[PiperCub]

For anyone going to Oz - Easystart in Australia is marketed as 'Start ya bastard'  -  I've got a can somewhere, didn't need to use it but wanted the can!

 

http://www.nulon.com.au/products/Aerosols/Start_Ya_Bastard_Instant_Engine_Starter/

[twosmoke300]

It's called borewashing.

It's called using too much of it

[gordonbennet]

Another jump start issue, applies mainly to Fords but maybe good precaution for any make fitted with central locking.

 

When you connect up the leads make sure a door is open, or you have the keys out of the ignition, some Fords especially but i know some others do this (might be Volvos in the Ford years), the central locking will trigger and all doors lock just as you connect the leads up.

 

Wedge shaped Rover 200/400's, may apply to others in the range, make sure you lift the internal locking tab manually, or remove the igniton keys when you close the doors, once in a while (if you happen to have slightly leaned on the sticky up locking tab) when you get out and shut the door the central locking can trigger.

Happened to me on a 216 when i had a load of renters on board at one of the London sites, a right pain in the arse especially when its the one on the peak.

 

Another thing, if you have to jump start a car with alternator that has a completely flat battery, and are going to leave it ticking over for an hour or so to charge it, turn something on like the sidelights or similar, give it something to work on...yes i know it sounds counter productive but there have been many times in compounds where cars have been left ticking over for hours on end after a flat start, yet haven't put any charge in the battery, give it something to do and that never happens....in compounds they usually put the hazards on so the car doesn't get left ticking over indefinately, like several days.

 

There, thats a load a shit you didn't wanna know.

[twosmoke300]

On modern fords ALWAYS take the key out and put it in your pocket or on the roof after opening the bonnet.

Ive seen too many people either leave the key in the bonnet lock and snap it off or open the bonnet and put the keys on the battery etc . Then close the bonnet and realise the keys are now locked in there. Doh

 

 

On a similar note to what gordonbennet has said , any renault with the smart card key , take it out and put it in your pocket as soon as you get out

[mercrocker]

Did anyone else know that the wee hook bit on the end of tape measures is SUPPOSED to be loose? Since I have never ever bought a new one but just seem to acquire them, I always assumed it was buggered due to letting it wind back in too fast and the rivets slowly elongating the holes in the tape but thats FALSE!

 

Turns out that the amount of movement of the hook corresponds with the thickness of metal the hook is made from, so that if you are measuring with the end pressed against something, or hooked over the edge of something, the measure is still accurate.

 

Damn...I used to blame my bad saw-cuts on that....

[richardmorris]

Procedure for replacing the battery on a citroen c5 goes something like (no warranty is given or implied)...

 

Open drivers window

turn off engine

leave key in ignition for a couple of minutes until the ecu powers down - the dashboard dials will twitch.

unplug battery (quick release levers!)

put new battery in and connect up.

turn ignition on to position one.

turn lights on

start engine.