Ask a Shiter

[oldcars]

Whilst the MG is away at the LFG having the rear subframe removed and suspension rebuilt ( broken offside coil spring and rotten upper suspension arm... Sigh ) I have resumed work on the Oldsmobile. Interior totally stripped out to remove the horrible oily and soaking wet carpet. Carpet is now out and lies stinking and dripping in the garage. At least I can now, hopefully find the source of the water leak and fix it. Stupid question is how can I clean, and more importantly, dry the carpet? It is thick and heavy with a pre formed rubberised sort of backing.

In summer I would just jet wash the thing and leave it opened up in the sun to dry, but in winter it will never dry I suspect. Just re fit all the seats and carry on without the carpet until next year?

If you have a wetvac you could jetwash and scrub it then wetvac the worst out and leave it to air dry for a bit.

[Bobthebeard]

If you have a wetvac you could jetwash and scrub it then wetvac the worst out and leave it to air dry for a bit.

Sadly no wetvac. Am now looking into the possibility of hiring one though...

[sierraman]

Put in the airing cupboard with a few of those polystyrene damp absorbers.

 

Instead of wet vac have you thought of steam cleaning it?

[forddeliveryboy]

Good find, thats £82 the pair with the code

What do the pro's say, Sachs or Bilstein? The Bilstein are an extra £9 on the Sachs once delivery is factored in. Free Parcelforce delivery 

 

Gamble at this price, but I fitted a set of 'cheap' Bilsteins to a car which is used fairly hard over roads which are known to knacker dampers, and they're performing as well as ever over 2 years/30k in. A set of KYB on another family car went a little flat feeling (but still worked just fine) after a similar amount of use, as did some Boge/Sachs on a Volvo.

[Bobthebeard]

Put in the airing cupboard with a few of those polystyrene damp absorbers.

Instead of wet vac have you thought of steam cleaning it?

No airing cupboard sadly.... If I had one it would have to be huge! Steam cleaning yes, but how?

The carpet is big and really heavy/unwieldy. Plus wet and smelly...

I can't understand how it got so minging.. Like some previous owner spilt some oil into the car, then poured some oily water on top and sprayed the ensuing mess with milk and urine. It stinks...

[forddeliveryboy]

The 2005 Lexus RX300 seems to be due its annual brake disc and pad replacement, it seems to consume discs with the same veracity that I inhale chocolate Hobnobs.

 

The last set fitted were Blueprint and lasted 15000 miles before warping, what makes do the Autoshite collective recommend Apec? EBC? Toyota/Lexus oem?

 

Would there be any benefit to a set of slotted or drilled discs in heat dissipation? Ive always had the view that it less mass of metal in a set of slotted or drilled discs so they must heat up more?

 

Lexus do a fixed price repair of a very reasonable* £295 for front pads and discs (and as many coffees and cookies i can consume) and the tiny ball of anger that is my wife is muttering about getting a "proper job" done by the main stealers which naturally goes against my shiter views and my wish to support the Local garage that does all of our work to a very good standard, I'd rather spend out on better parts and get the local guys to fit them.

 

Look on ebay and Amazon and if you have time use one of the brake X-referencing sites to find bigger bargains - at a glance, there appear to be good brands available for your car from c£50 for a pair of front discs, and c£20 for pad sets and rear discs. Borg and Beck, QH, Brembo, Ferodo, Delphi etc.

 

I replaced all the brake friction parts on a family V70 earlier in the year, there were some stupidly low prices through Amazon so ended up with a mix'n'match of Motorcraft discs and QH pads on the front with Motorcraft pads and Apec discs at the back, the Mintex handbrake shoes were the most expensive at £11.72, the cheapest the rear pads at 99p. All up incl. p&p was about £60, with unlimited funds it'd be same make pads and discs back and front, but hey! 

 

Performance is spot on, cold or hot, although when stinking hot something does start to squeal. 

[Dave_Q]

I've got one of these for wetvac purposes, pretty good for the price and did a great job of sucking all the mingwater out when I first got my Berlingo and washed the carpets - it had been used as a van.

 

http://www.diy.com/departments/performance-power-corded-240v-bagged-wet-dry-vacuum-pp20-aa/81198_BQ.prd

[Craig the Princess]

<p>

 

If you know/can find out who the original selling dealer was, give them a ring. Ford dealers have access to a database where the numbers are held. You might have to take the radio out to get the serial number, mind.

 

If it's a 6000CD , you can get the serial number as follows:

• Turn on the unit
• Hold down buttons 6 and 1, and then release 6 (keep 1 pressed).
• The unit will then cycle through a load of stuff. The first screen ends with the serial number of the device:
• Mxxxxxx

Cheers, he should be coming round later so I'll have a gander.

[forddeliveryboy]

 

I was wondering (..wandering through my mind).. why were Citroen 2cv and some other older car's wheels so deeply double dished ?

 

 

Beyond the design permitting the perfect centre-point steering geometries of the Michelin-era cars, with the kingpin axis in line with the tyre contact patch, I came to the conclusion it was the lightest, most effective way of producing a wheel which was sufficiently strong but which would distort rather than break a tyre on hitting a big pothole or other obstacle. I've driven 2cvs and DS/IDs over rutted tracks flat out, occasionally there would be a bent rim which was easy to sort, the nave always retained its shape. Tyres (when Michelin) were ok even when the rim was distorted.

 

Citroën's history includes traversing continents before any other manufacturer, so presumably they valued being able to remove a tyre from a rim at a blacksmiths in the middle of China and have the rim hammered back to shape - an hour's work rather than waiting for a delivery which may have taken weeks back in the 1920s.

 

It was also probably a lot cheaper to have a garage remove a tyre and hammer a rim back to shape rather than buy a new tyre, right through to the 1960s.

 

Interesting that this design only came along, I think, with the 1933 Traction Avant which coincided with the purchase of the company by the Michelin brothers. I dunno whether or not Michelin had any say on the wheels, although they were Michelin made. 

[sierraman]

You use one of those handheld steam cleaners, good at getting rid of smells as well.

[sierraman]

Any new shocks will feel a vast improvement on knackered ones.

[The Moog]

Sadly no wetvac. Am now looking into the possibility of hiring one though...

Where are you? I have got vax and also a Titan wet N dry you can borrow.

[Bobthebeard]

Where are you? I have got vax and also a Titan wet N dry you can borrow.

Great offer and thank you. But am in Lytham St Annes

[The Moog]

Only in Accrington. More than welcome to borrow them. Saying that the Titan one from screwfix is amazing and cheap enough

[Richard]

Faced with a carpet in the state you describe I would clean it with fire and get another one from a breaker, that's how I cleaned the doggy boot carpet in my C5. Is that an option?

[wuvvum]

I'd imagine it'd cost a fair bit to post a carpet set from Trumpistan though.

[dave21478]

If I were in that position, I would go to a pez station under cover of darkness and use their jetwash with whatever soap/traffic film remover it has, then use their vacuum, which might or might not be a wetvac, but since its not mine I wouldnt be fussed if it wasnt.

[Asimo]

Jetwash and wetvac the carpet then hang for months to dry in a dry but draughty place. But don't even think about putting it back until you know the leaks are fixed and it is next summer.

I like seeing metal floor in a car, much easier to have confidence when you can see the structure rather than worry about what is going on under the soggy cloth......

[Richard]

I'd imagine it'd cost a fair bit to post a carpet set from Trumpistan though.

 

Sorry, I had it in my head that it was the MG. Must learn to read. In that case I'd go with the Davenumbers plan.

[Des]

Good find, thats £82 the pair with the code

What do the pro's say, Sachs or Bilstein? The Bilstein are an extra £9 on the Sachs once delivery is factored in. Free Parcelforce delivery 

 

You're in an ideal position to find out which is best, fit one of each and wait.

[dave21478]

What do we know about Mercedes ML320s? yeah, no, apart from them being wanker wagons.

 

Full time 4WD or selectable?

low ratio box or not?

centre diff or a viscous coupling or haldex?

do they need all 4 tyres exactly the same like freelanders or are they more robust? 

Lockable diffs or electronic traction control?

Structural rot issues?

Anything else explodey to watch out for?

 

What sort of MPGs would one expect in normal use from an auto box?

[panhard65]

Not so much a question but I reckon the turbo on my Mondeo tdci has gone - it had been going into limp mode for ages under heavy acceleration (then just about all the time really), and now it is permanently painfully slow to rev but the limp mode light has gone.

 

Is there any hope it could be anything else, and how can I find out? I cleaned the EGR valve and MAF sensor several times and at first I sometimes felt like it made a difference but in hindsight I doubt it really did. I hardly use the car now that I live in London so don't want to spend a fortune fixing it, but I'd hate to scrap it if there's a chance it could be a cheap fix. The car still drives fine but as I mainly need it for the occasional long motorway drive, the lack of power is really annoying.

 

I know this type of failure on these are old news and there's info online, however I spent ages trying to find answers on forums when it first started to happen then sort of gave up as nothing was really helpful. But, as I visit AS for the first time in yonks, it's just occurred I never asked on here, where common sense and experience always prevail  . Any tips or knowledge to share? 

As has already been suggested it is most likely a turbo hose split. Ford turbo hoses are total shit. I had a Focus one lasted just over a year so out of warrenty. Take them off and check carefully I am sure you will find a split, best to buy one of the lurid blue ones off ebay as they are made of decent material and last longer than the originals.

[DodgeRover]

What do we know about Mercedes ML320s? yeah, no, apart from them being wanker wagons.

 

Full time 4WD or selectable?

low ratio box or not?

centre diff or a viscous coupling or haldex?

do they need all 4 tyres exactly the same like freelanders or are they more robust?

Lockable diffs or electronic traction control?

Structural rot issues?

Anything else explodey to watch out for?

 

What sort of MPGs would one expect in normal use from an auto box?

Test drive first IMO they are awful, was convinced the ones we test drove were massively over wide tyred, but no apparently that's what they are like.

[gm]

I'm looking at one of these tomorrow (2004, diesel, 60k miles, £1k) am I asking for trouble ?

 

[320touring]

I'm looking at one of these tomorrow (2004, diesel, 60k miles, £1k) am I asking for trouble ?

 

IMG_0979.JPG

Yes.

[gm]

'nuff said, I shall cancel the viewing

[stephen01]

I'm looking at one of these tomorrow (2004, diesel, 60k miles, £1k) am I asking for trouble ?

 

IMG_0979.JPG

 

that's like asking if its a bad idea leaving my wife with this guy.

 

[320touring]

They are a great steer!

 

Really 2 things that can be problematic.

 

Suspension knocks and bangs

 

Electrical issues.

 

Go and see it- like any used car buy on individual condition:)

[gm]

Suspension knocks and bangs seem to be an issue with pretty much anything that sups the diz, the problem I have is that I need a boring 300 mile a week commuter-drone but seek something that isn't boring. the current audi a3 is fine on fuel, reasonably comfy, quick if I need it to be but, ultimately, not much fun. maybe one of those Honda Civic spaceships would be a better bet ? they look pretty funky

[DodgeRover]

Any on line sites for getting a reg from a chassis number? Tried putting it into the BMW site but it doesn't work in reverse.

I know trade HPI can do it but I've 5 bikes to run so it comes a bit pricey