italiastar

Whilst tidying up the car at the weekend, I noticed two threads pulled on the fabric covering the side panels behind the rear door - I can only suspect my son's watch caught it. I'm not very impressed as the car is only 9 months old, covered 7K and is not abused. This fabric is clearly not fit for purpose (In my opinion). My previous Space wagon (and I belive the MK1 Alhambra) has a velour fabric which is impossible to damage. Has anyone else experienced this - I'd like to take it up with Customer Services, but after the response I got about the mudflaps (I've still not finished with that - only resting before another attack) they'll only tell me it's all my fault - my fault for buying the thing in the first place! In case you get the wrong idea from my postings, I actually think this car is one of the best I've ever driven, even better that the Passat which I previously thought was the best. If only they could sort out the problems, offer better customer service etc etc.

Ditto - I agree. Mine does not rattle either, but it is only 9 months old. My dealers going to be asked to sort out the ticking noise from the aux heater at 1st service.

I've read in a magazine that it is no longer required to convert headlamps for holidays, that said I still think it's a good idea. No you definately don't have to paint them yellow - even the French no longer use yellow headlamps, apart some few very old cars who insist on sticking with them - Personally I preferred them, and even used to use yellow bulbs in the UK. No the tricky bit. I assume your car is a facelift one - I have no experience of the Ford, but the blanking areas must be similar to the Sharan / Alhambra. The blanking areas consist of 2 areas of diffent size on my Alhambra - my dealer gave me a photocopy from their tech manual which gave details and positions of the blanked out areas - no more wedges on these cars! They worked because I never got flashed once! See if your local friendly ford dealer can help or possibly someone here with the TIS. On this subject, have you ever noticed how many people get their blacked out areas wrong? I play a game whilst waiting for my crossing (we'll you need something to spend the time, and it's cheaper than a magazine) ans I guess that the vast majority of cars either don't bother or get it wrong.

.....By the time they launch the MK 5, replacement of the headlmps will require removal of the front wings!!! - I think car design is going backwards. On the subject of Torx screws, during one of my trips to france I bought a small set of drivers which fitted 40 different "security screws" for

I had the same query with mine. The V5 states it's a 130, but that would be what the garage told them - I was even more concerned when I saw that the 130 ones had a badge showing 130 - mine didn't. I asked the dealer, they confirmed it was a 130 but could not help with the badge. A quick call to SEAT customer services confirmed it was a 130 (but how can I really tell) and they told me to buy the badge. One major ruck later and they sent a badge to the dealer free of charge. One thing I can confirm - it does shift!!

Thanks Nimrod - I've passed the details on - also looks like the eBay ones at

Does anyone know how to remove the speakers grilles on a Mk1 Alhambra - my neighbour has a broken one and I've suggested he gets one off eBay - someone is selling them for

My neighbour had a similar problem on his 3 year old MK 1 Alhambra. The technician at the dealer replaced the motor to no avail. FOUR months later (It took that long to get the parts - honest) and they replaced the siezed linkage - why didn't they un-sieze it I hear you ask - I don't know I'm not a highly trained, expensive technician. Good Luck, Gerald

My 1986 Astra (yes I did like them once) still had the original exhaust and had only had the original battery changed the year before, when it was written off in 1996!!! - It was Petrol, not garaged and mostly used for short journies, apart from holidays. It's probably the best car I'll ever own!!

I've always wondered why I had warn lights - what did I do??? OK I don't like main dealers in general, Vauxhalls and Vauxhall and SEAT customer services - am I alone??

I phoned the dealer today who said that the computer must have got confused and I can ignore it until the next service when they will sort it out. I feel re-assured now!!! My car has probably got 100 times the computer power of the processor that landed man on the moon - imaging if that got "confused"

I was afraid of sticking anything to the poly lenses, so invested in a set of covers - as luck would have it, the tape came off without residue, but I bet if it was the actual headlamp ......... You could even leave the tape attached to the covers and clip them on when you go abroad. With regard to standard wedge type deflectors, these get no where near the correct design. On this subject, how may European cars have you seen in this country with deflectors or tape - or even a country sticker for that matter? Gerald

In my view, get onto FORD Customer Services and ask them for a replacement free of charge - warranty or not. You could add that you know of a number of others with similar problems (vis this forum) and it's not a very good advertisment for the quality of the car. If they're anything like SEAT Customer Services, you'll end up feeling it's all your fault! Hoever, we shouldn't put up with this poor quality.

Thanks SEATKid. Fortunately I did see the car after it was delivered a few days before I took ownership of it, It still had it protective bits, stickers etc and a printout in the window which confirmed it had been made 4 weeks beforehand. They could have driven it like this, but unlikely. My wife thought I was mad when I visited the garage in the evening, but now I'm glade I did, otherwise I would have been very suspicious. Gerald

Thanks SEATKid. Fortunately I did see the car after it was delivered a few days before I took ownership of it, It still had it protective bits, stickers etc and a printout in the window which confirmed it had been made 4 weeks beforehand. They could have driven it like this, but unlikely. My wife thought I was mad when I visited the garage in the evening, but now I'm glade I did, otherwise I would have been very suspicious. Gerald

Maybe that's why most dealers test the flex in the sills at every opportunity. My only rattle is the dashboard - so far at least.

I think this is another example of poor quality. In 26 years I've owned a number of cars and taken them to different climates - I have NEVER experienced this - I'd give Customer Services hell - the car even comes from a hot country!!!!! My wife's 11 year old golf has lived through a number of heatwaves - it lives on a south facing drive and nothing has shrunk. Gerald

I've removed this and added it to the MPG thread rather than start another one.

Have a look at Auto trader online - http://www.autotrader.co.uk and Exchange and Mart to get an idea on prices. I had a quick look and it looks about right. Remember that petrol galaxies are 2 a penny so you've got a lot of choice. Bear in mind the fuel consumption which will probably be between 20 - 25 mpg (can anyone please confirm this) - during my test drives I got 18mpg from an Auto at about 50 MPH. The Alahambra / sharan 2 litre engines are pretty sluggish and also drink. The best is diesel, but good ones are more difficult to find than hen's teeth and watch out they haven't been used for cabbing. Good luck - your certainly in the right place for advice.

My 9 month Alhambra TDi 130 has just covered 6100 miles and the recommended service interval is 10,000 miles. Earlier today the computer displayed service due in 2000 miles. I contacted SEAT customer services who confirmed that the service was due at 10,000 miles and could not explain why the car was telling me otherwise. They there fore suggested I took it to a dealer to let a "technician" see if there was a fault. I thought it might be similar to VW's variable service schedule, but as the car is only used for longish, mostly motorway journies I would have thought that the interval would have been extended if this were the case - anyway SEAT CS said that ALL their cars are 10,000 mile interval, mind you a few weeks ago they told me that all SEATS were made in Spain! I also walked past a MK1 Alhambra today fitted with SEAT badged mudflaps - they were definately about 1.5 - 2 inches shorter than mine - my argument continues..... Gerald

My dealer copied a page from what I believe the TIS which gives the cutout and size of the converters - These are no longer black wedges. I cut them out of wide black tape and stuck them on with the aid of the template. The cost from my dealer for the copied page - nothing - a first eh. I'm not sure if the Alhambra / Sharan lights are the same as I could e-mail a copy. Otherwise someone with the Galaxy TIS may have a copy. I ahave actually read in a motoring magazine that converters are no longer required for holidays etc - only if you plan to live in the country - I still think it's better to use them. Gerald

The incompetance of main dealers never ceases to amaze me - Well Done SEATKID !!!!!

I agree with the last comment. you can get odd seats on ebay and if your lucky to get one that you need and it matches your car you've got a bargain, but I've never seen a complete set. If the car is really a bargain (why do you think this) then why not go for it - after all, in reality it's for driving, not looking at. A compromise could be to get professionally fitted seat covers (no not the stretchy things from Halfords) but these could set you back several hundred pounds - if you're interested I did have details of a company that did this. If the car's worth it, then think about going for it and foget the colour - that's probably why you're getting it cheap. Ok resale value will be diminished, but it will still have a value. Good luck

As always try ebay - I don't know where this stuff comes from (no wonder the dealers never have anything in stock), but I have seen them on there.

In my view, scrap the scala unit and buy your own - my suggestion is a kenwood MP3 player - www.caraudiodirect.com for