Rusty Nail

So to summarise - Diesel Galaxy's aren't efficient????? I lost track :D All I know is that previously we had a 1.8 Auto Zafira which did about 28 MPG, I also own a petrol 3 series BMW E46 saloon which will do 33 MPG and the Galaxy which returns 43 MPG - all on the same journeys. I can comfortably fit 3 kids with thier appropriate seats in the Galaxy and still fill it up with loads more and still get great MPG (in my opinion). I feel better now :D

You could always buy and install an engine pre-heater to keep your wedge nosed brick elephant warm??? I consider less than 40mpg around the local area poor - the wife manages 34 with her lead foot. We tend to take the kids to school (3 miles each way) go shopping (5 miles EW) and other short trips. On a run to Weymouth the other week I managed 48mpg - well happy. The Galaxy is a brilliant tool, brilliant flexabillity (not many cars you can carry 3M lengths of materials inside or as much rubbish as you want), great fuel economy, comfortable and so on and so on I think I may buy one - well I would if I didn't already have one ;)

The article is long - your not wrong there, but yes there are some points of interest. With regard to the distortion, yet again you're right. Any medium within glass, be it a wire, a coating, a laminate etc can cause a slight distortion and the different light frequencies will be affected in different ways by these components. The drivers own sensitivity to different kinds of light will have an effect also. I personally do not like the view especially at night through my heated screen - but I do love the way it clears so quickly on a frosty morning. I managed for many years without this feature, is it a gadget that is compromising safety??? Just my thoughts

Hi Nige22 I made a removeable bracket up to mount my Garmin Sat Nav from the RHS of the silly little centre thing. I took the box out to route the cables through from behind the dash. I think you may struggle to fit anything in that space as there isn't any. It was hard enough getting 2 cables through. The dash appears to be made up as a all in one metal and plastic contraption. Good luck in trying though. I looked at the in built Galaxy Sat Nav (bit expensive for what it is), but as usual you would have to look down to see the screen, with my Garmin, it is easy to see, the wife can reach it to change MP3 tracks, make phone calls etc and when its not in the car the bracket slides out and is put in the centre hole thing. I installed a wired FM Modulator for the music and phone calls (not wireless as I didn't want everyone listening in) and it all fitted in behind the stereo. Nice. Hope this was of some help Russ ;)

It looks a nice job, well done and good pics too. I fitted a motorised flip down DVD/TV in my MkII to keep the kids happy. They do not use a PS2 or anything on it yet but the option is there if I need to fit something. My install differred in that I didn't cut the roof lining out to fit the unit, instead I made a 1mm thick 'H' shaped metal bracket which fitted above the roof lining (you can carefully get your arm between the roof skin and the lining by removing the rear door rubber, grab handle etc) and the Monitor bolted through the lining onto the bracket. As the monitor isn't very heavy, the lining supports the unit just fine. The cabling was fished to the RH mid pillar for the power connection and the aux in (easy access if needed in the future for games console) and the audio out and RF input were fed via the rear courtesy light appeture to the NS rear window where I fitted an FM modulator and a powered TV aerial. The whole lot is fused and powered from the stereo power feed (ignition controlled) and I mounted a small rocker switch next to the ash tray to switch it all from - I didn't want the modulator, aerial and monitor powered all the time when it wasn,t needed. The screen - being powered - is easily controlled from the front via the remote and the picture is great even in the day. The only downsides are - the TV reception is C**P and the screen obscures rearward vision slightly - but otherwise it has to be the best mod ever to keep the kids boredom at bay. I have also now fitted a second FM modulator to the stereo which is fed from the Sat Nav so I can use the Bluetooth handsfree enabling me to hear the caller and use the integrated MP3 for all the music rather than just the six discs in the changer. This modulator is a wired version as I didn't really want everyone in a 10M plus radius to hear my phone calls and music. So there we have it. If anyone has any questions, I will do my best to help Good luck with any mods peeps ;) Russ

I feel a little concerned that my standard Mk2 Galaxy is now going to seem just a little bit - boring? Saying that, I really couldn't be doing with all the leopard skin, pink fluffy things and green lights etc - so do you have a pic?

You mustn't think in such ways, there was obviously a very high end important meeting on making the intermmitent feature as flexible as possible. Of course a multi position switch as in the Mk2 Galaxy, in BMW's etc was far too restrictive and didn't require any R&D allocation in the extensive buget justification. Also there would have been no bonus for the given to the aspirring rocket scientist.. not that I too am a cynic..... B)

I'm not really sure - maybe it is just there to remind you that you are / can drive at a constant speed without concentrating on what you're doing???? May be it is just there to help light the interior at night so you can read better??? I think your guess is as good as the next man's / womans (don't want to be sexist) B)

Would that be an something I should worry about - is the immobiliser / alarm going to pack up on me and cost a fortune? I do hope not but I wouldn't be supprised as I'm not having much luck with cars at the mo. Thanks for your thoughts - I will carry on looking and praying B)

So should mine work or not then? It has never worked. Since owning the vehicle I have always wondered if it should or shouldn't. I too have driven mondeo's where the light has worked - is it a Galaxy thing? Can it be made to work? B) I know it isn't an important feature but it would be nice to have things working

Hi there all Can anyone explain why the following may occur? When the engine is hot and then stopped but the ignition then put back on for a couple of minutes for the kids to open windows etc, should I try and start the car from this ignition on position, it will crank, catch and fire as normal but then immediately die. If the ignition is then switched off and the car started as usual, all is fine. The car always starts straight away if the ignition is off immediately prior to starting. Is this a common problem or do I have an oddball motor? It isn't really a problem but I would like to fix it if its fixable, else I shall carry on regardless. Any feedback would be appreciated and thank you for your time in reading this. Cheers

Hi all Just an update on the saga. I managed to get hold of a new stub shaft and intermediate shaft from Ford for

Hi there all. I have just had the intermediate drive shaft / stub shaft failure on my 2002 TDi Galaxy (103K miles). Same scenario as many, pulling away from a junction, there was a bang followed by a horrible mechanical grating noise and no drive. On dissmantling the faulty components (only takes about 30 mins) it appears that the failure may have been accelerated or contributed to by the failure of a seal. It looks as though there should have been a rubber seal between the stub shaft assembly collar and the intermediate shaft. With this seal gone, water etc can get in and corrode the splines. This along with general wear and tear of use/abuse over its life leads to the failure. I have contacted my local Ford dealer who couldn't find either item on thier high tech system, then tried a parts supplier - no luck there either, before finding the parts readily available from VW. They had no history of these parts failing but could not guarantee this as the just had a new computer system and all thier records had been lost. A mechanic at the ford garage commented that he had only just replaced the same items (pattern parts supplied as Ford on back order) last week on a 2002 model also. I shall continue to search for the parts but would be greatfull if anyone knows anywhere I could get them Thank you for your time to read this Russ