Ask a Shiter

[AMC Rebel]

A wee shroud can be used to defrost car locks too, apparently.

Apparently Range Rover Classics have a heated driver's door lock.  Not sure how it works exactly.

[sierraman]

I once was gifted a door lock defroster one Xmas. It was basically a metal prong you put in the lock, pressed the button and it heated up. This was fine until you set it off in your pocket by mistake.

[scdan4]

I'm about to recommend a friend buys a 2.0 petrol peugeot 406 estate. 

 

this one in fact: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2002-Peugeot-406-2-0-LX-Family-5-Door-Estate-Silver-Petrol-Manual-/172486246448

 

 

There's nothing endemically wrong with them is there? I had a 405 dizzle and it was lovely, but know little about the 406's. 

 

Quick opinions welcomed.

 

Thanks.

[Lacquer Peel]

Good engine with no inherent issues AFAIK. 406s in general are largely reliable and rugged.

 

I know of someone who bought a similar 406 estate for £300 to replace an Octavia 110 TDI estate that was pressurising its coolant (how do those engines not have a K series like reputation?), it's been super.

[STUNO]

Apparently Range Rover Classics have a heated driver's door lock.  Not sure how it works exactly.

 

Words fail me !

[sierraman]

I'm about to recommend a friend buys a 2.0 petrol peugeot 406 estate.

 

this one in fact: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2002-Peugeot-406-2-0-LX-Family-5-Door-Estate-Silver-Petrol-Manual-/172486246448

 

 

There's nothing endemically wrong with them is there? I had a 405 dizzle and it was lovely, but know little about the 406's.

 

Quick opinions welcomed.

 

Thanks.

I wouldn't unless it was a minter and cheap. From what I've seen recently 2.0 petrol drinks it. Given the 2.0 hdi is fairly cheap I'd consider one of those instead.

[AlabamaShrimp]

So before I start taking loads of stuff apart. My mk2 Fiesta is getting hot but the radiator is cold and the heater blower is cold.

 

This should mean broken, thermostat and/or water pump but it might be an air lock. The header tank was pressurised and it doesn't have a radiator cap so how can I stop an air lock again?

[cobblers]

Could be a stuck closed thermostat - take it out and see if that cures your problem. They're not expensive so you could just change it and that way you don't have to go back in there.

 

It could be an airlock but only if you've been meddling - they don't just occur by themselves. 

[AlabamaShrimp]

Radiator had a leak at the bottom a few months ago. I put radweld weld in

[Lacquer Peel]

The 2.0HDi seems reliable and rugged but they suffer from injector problems in old age, diesel estates in that price range have probably been used hard and have high mileages.

 

If scdan4's pal isn't covering mega miles what is point diesel.

I wouldn't unless it was a minter and cheap. From what I've seen recently 2.0 petrol drinks it. Given the 2.0 hdi is fairly cheap I'd consider one of those instead.

[dollywobbler]

Radiator had a leak at the bottom a few months ago. I put radweld weld in

 

Oh dear. That may have clagged something up then. These rad potions seem to cause more trouble than they solve.

[AlabamaShrimp]

Bugger will take the whole thing apart and start from there...

[scdan4]

The 2.0HDi seems reliable and rugged but they suffer from injector problems in old age, diesel estates in that price range have probably been used hard and have high mileages.

 

If scdan4's pal isn't covering mega miles what is point diesel.

 

An hdi may well be a betterer car. 

 

However,

a) her mileage will be average at most

reliable white goods motoring is desired - no turbo or associated gubbins to go wrong (yes, i know pug diesels are ace, but NA petrol for the reliability win)

iv) "big family car for buttons NOW criteria" makes it more tricky

3) it's there just up the road from her

d) that one there looks tidy, has good mot history and is well priced for empty pocket affordability

d) from a dealer type with an actual forecourt - so she should have some sort of comeback if it's a munter covered in bullshit spray.

 

So i've told her to buy that one. 

 

(as to whether she will or not is another matter entirely!)

[sierraman]

Valid point. Anything could be a pile of shit at that age/money. If she doesn't do too many miles it might be ok. Same as anything for that money though be realistic as to how long it's going to last, if it's got 12 months test you've potentially got a year out of it, happy days.

 

So long as the clutch is ok and it doesn't overheat could be ok. £500 is throw away money though so I wouldn't get into spending fortunes on it - same advice I'd give anyone first sign of serious expense on the horizon, clutches etc then fuck it off.

[Bfg]

.

Talking of flashers  

 

re. A-series Citroen with 3-pin relay ..my indicator tell-tale light flashes just once and then goes back to sleep which the indicators continue to work normally. 

 

Any ideas.? 

 

Thanks.

[Tickman]

.

Talking of flashers  

 

re. A-series Citroen with 3-pin relay ..my indicator tell-tale light flashes just once and then goes back to sleep which the indicators continue to work normally. 

 

Any ideas.? 

 

Thanks.

No idea at all, indicators and their circuitry are done by magic as far as I see.

[xtriple]

How do you stop alloy corrosion? The expensively repaired alloy doors/bonnet/bootlid on the dollop are mostly fine but I noticed three small blebs on the tops of the doors again. I have lifted seals and sprayed in Waxoyl (twice), will this stop it/halt it/slow it down?

 

If not, what will? I have got to stop spending cos skint.

[Bfg]

^ not much more of an idea myself. But it seems as if the connector to the tell-tale might be a bit iffy, twiddle with it (to use the technical term) and it worked for a bit, then stopped again. The relay is getting hot so I think it's passed it best before date. 

 

Then I had issues with one side ticking faster than the other, so swapped bulbs and redesigned the earthing, and that sort it out.  I guess I'd better get another relay on order just in case. 

 

Thanks all.

[Guest Hooli]

How do you stop alloy corrosion? The expensively repaired alloy doors/bonnet/bootlid on the dollop are mostly fine but I noticed three small blebs on the tops of the doors again. I have lifted seals and sprayed in Waxoyl (twice), will this stop it/halt it/slow it down?

 

If not, what will? I have got to stop spending cos skint.

 

Waxoyl type stuff was always the answer on LRs. With them it was the ali reacting with the steel frame, no idea if that's an issue on a dollop.

[Bfg]

How do you stop alloy corrosion? The expensively repaired alloy doors/bonnet/bootlid on the dollop are mostly fine but I noticed three small blebs on the tops of the doors again. I have lifted seals and sprayed in Waxoyl (twice), will this stop it/halt it/slow it down?

 

If not, what will? I have got to stop spending cos skint.

 

Aluminium alloy naturally corrodes until an oxide layer is built up which then doesn't corrode much further ..unless being attacked by acids or electrolysis. The only way I know of to keep alloy shiny is to clear lacquer it.  Alloy wheels are most often painted silver (for a more even flat look) and then perhaps clear coated as well - to keep the salt from eating them away.  So the short answer is : to stop the oxidation you need to keep humid air out. If the alloy is thick enough (like on  motorcycle engine cases) then frequent cutting back and polish works.  By definition 'alloy' comes in different chemical compositions & grades, and some corrode much more than others. Funny thing is that the old alloy number plates always seemed to survive well - you'd think they were made of cheap as chips metal !?

[JeeExEll]

Have noisy auxilliary belt pulley-gubbins in a soon to be recommissioned budget runabout Puggett 206 pez 1.4. Fix or safe to ignore?? Couldn't care less about a wee bit of noise. Belt is tight enough to do the job and not slipping, it's the pulley meccano that's a bit noisy.

 

The 206 is blue.

[scaryoldcortina]

probably the tensioner bearing - easy enough to change but a pita at the roadside in the dark when it seizes up and throws the belt off.

[scdan4]

Over a year ago i had a motorbike nicked. It was uninsured.

 

I've still got the v5 and had to sorn it a few months ago. 

 

How do i tell the dvla i have no idea where it is? just stick it all in an envelope with a covering letter?

[Pillock]

That seems to work with the "you'll never believe this, but....." stories.

I once swapped a car, the guy wrote my details on the V5 but then changed his mind. A year later I get a V5 for it - presume he scrapped it (since it was a basket case 306) and they read the wrong part of the V5. Anyway, I phoned a Welshman and started to explain and he just said "write a letter saying I AM NOT THE OWNER. Put it in capitals so we can't miss it. Send it back with the V5". And lo and behold, sorted.

 

The DVLA aren't bad people, there's just sometimes things that they don't have a checkbox for on a V5.

[Guest Hooli]

What he said, but quote the crime number if you still have it.

[Noel Tidybeard]

.

Talking of flashers  

 

re. A-series Citroen with 3-pin relay ..my indicator tell-tale light flashes just once and then goes back to sleep which the indicators continue to work normally. 

 

Any ideas.? 

 

Thanks.

 

because french!

[Noel Tidybeard]

Over a year ago i had a motorbike nicked. It was uninsured.

 

I've still got the v5 and had to sorn it a few months ago. 

 

How do i tell the dvla i have no idea where it is? just stick it all in an envelope with a covering letter?

 

more or less yes this- the DVLA wont remove you but will "draw a line" under your name as far as reprocusions are concerned but it will still technically be in your name

[Brodders]

Please be advised that this is a rather long and detailed post.

 

 

Whilst on the A14 this morning, I suddenly lost all heating in the Rover (which was rather inconvenient as a ) it was about -1 degree outside, instead of the toasty 22 I had it set on in the car and b ) it quite possibly a sign that I was going to break down on the outside lane of a busy dual carriageway during a sub zero rush hour, causing most of Mid-Suffolk's commuters a great deal of bother).

 

Fortunately, it didn't break down. However, I noticed some very odd things. Although the heating system failed, the temperature gauge stayed dead in the middle, not dropping off as it would if the thermostat had jammed open, or going into the red as it would if a hose had burst.

 

The weirdest thing was the noise the car made in front of the drivers footwall. It sounded a lot like a scratching sound which a small animal would make if it were trapped in there. However, when I pulled over I had a quick look under the bonnet and under the car and couldn't see anything out of the ordinary at all.

 

After a bit of research, it seems that it is possible that some gunk has built up in the heater matrix or there is an airlock in the cooling system, but I am not sure how something like this would cause the sounds to be made. Does anyone know what could be going on or what to do about it?

[Guest Hooli]

The sounds could be bubbles or 'lumps' of water getting past the blockage - much like the noises a kettle makes as it boils.

 

 

I'd disconnect the heater hoses & back flush the matrix to wash the crud out.

[Bfg]

Over a year ago i had a motorbike nicked. It was uninsured.

 

I've still got the v5 and had to sorn it a few months ago. 

 

How do i tell the dvla i have no idea where it is? just stick it all in an envelope with a covering letter?

 

Just SORN it,  ....then sell the V5 on ebay..     who knows, it might get reunited with your bike !