Ivor_E_Tower

If you take the V5, you get 12 months from date of first registration, and you can have the test done up to 4 weeks before date of first reg, so as Feb has only 28 days, 13 months on MOT. Simple :rolleyes: I did this with mine last year when it was 3 years old (and on my previous car too).

IIRC wastegate is purely mechanical - spring rating etc. I think the linkage for the vane control is similarly "powered" too, buy may use a solenoid or stepper motor driven by ECU, based on inputs from throttle, road speed etc. Anyone know the real answer? - and a while back, someone stated that the turbo doesn't have variable gemoetry anyway. I've not checked this out myself yet.

What's that all about? :lol:

Not too bad - seen 11,000 mile, 6 month old Ford Direct 115 TDI with "all extras" incl leather, DVD, xenons for just under 21 grand.

Rumour has it that there are no electronics associated with the turbo :lol:

How old are the bulbs? They do lose output with age. May be worth changing them for a start. IIRC the previous thread remarked on how good the standard lights were on both Mk1 and Mk2.

Check the wires again - difficult if the door dead-locks in the closed position so you cannot open it to check the wiring loom between door and pillar. Otherwise you will need to remove the door card and manually open the door, by-passing the deadlocking. This was covered a few weeks ago, I'm sure, so try doing a Forum Search. HTH Ivor.

You should be able to buy headphone extension leads too.

..and if the fluid is disappearing, get it fixed ASAP, because you're in big trouble.....

506.01 is made by Castrol - give their helpline a ring, it's on their website (sorry don't have the number to hand). They are very knowledgeable and helpful.

506.01 if you are on extended service intervals, 505.01 for "normal" change it every 10,000 (or is it 12,000) mile intervals. Oil use when new is normal, nothing to worry about-just keep checking the dipstick every week.

After market pads will not cause difference in brake pedal travel. Also, diesels don't have a servo (no inlet manifold vacuum) - they use a brake booster

..and he's given it a good name too (right-click and see :blink: )

Any sign of a leak? Are you having to top the cooling system up? - is the expansion tank cap correctly fitted and has it been checked to make sure it only opens under the correct pressure?

Glad you got to the bottom of the problem and sorted it.

He's talking through an orifice other than his mouth ! First get them to check the transmission fluid level and top up if necessary. Second, check for fluid leaks from the transmission (in the morning, look underneath where you park it overnight). Be prepared to reject the car; however much you may like it apart from this fault, there are others out there that are better.

You can do this - rear wiper and washer are not MOT items. But where would you put the rear washer bottle? Next to the CD changer so if it leaks it deposits water into the rear wiring looms etc? What about a custom hollow rear spoiler that is really a water bottle? Now there's a challenge for anyone who's handy with plastic moulding etc - if I made one out of wood, it wouldn't hold water :lol:

Yes - try VW dealers not Ford though, as they don't seem to have heard of them. If you search the forum, you will find some photos of them too (and maybe the part numbers).

...because if the thermostat has "gone" engine is running cool, so ECU richens the mixture because petrol engines need more fuel to run properly when cold - this is one reason why diesels are so much better for mpg on short journeys when the engine does not have time to warm up. Also, internals of petrol engine wear faster when cold, you are ageing your engine unnecessarily.

There are loads of different theories on re-gassing. Personally I'd never go longer than 4 years. My parents last car however went about 7 years and the system still appeared to be working properly. I let my Renault Scenic go 4 years with no top-up, then had a full drain and re-fill. My Galaxy was re-done in June 2003 after a full system failure (under warranty) and I intend to get it serviced this August, because the Galaxy is prone to problems - otherwise I would have left it another year or two.

Livechat, in "general"

Well, that's someone else who doesn't want another "normal" car so I'm not alone :D Mine is also X-reg Ghia - if the windows are steaming up then there is probably something wrong with the aircon, sorry to say. You have got it set to "auto" I hope? Give the windows a good clean on the insides to remove grease, traces of emulsifier from the interior plastics etc. If it hasn't been re-gassed yet, take it to an aircon specialist.

Try pleading on bended knees to AlarmMan (or you could do a search)...

..where "few" is a large positive integer (as they used to say in our school maths classes) :)

Watch it! I'm already first in line for her phone number if he can find it (see another thread!) ... and it's NOT his wife. :)