Masked Marauder

Blue antifreeze is standard life, 24000 miles or two years Orange/red is extended life antifreeze, 100,000 miles or five years. They use different chemicals for anti-corrosion etc. Whilst they can be mixed, it is best not to as the active ingrediants can react reducing the anti-corrosion properties.

The speed sensor in the gearbox says 20mph and the unit checks the ABS sensors on the wheels. And if one is not working...... The light comes on! EDIT: I see you have had them tested. It must be something else then, but the sensors are the first thing you should check.

In my personal experience there is no such thing as "the correct tyre pressure." Different makes of tyre run differently and different driving styles are a factor too. Even the season of the year can make a difference to the more enthusiastic driver. Buy two things, a good quality tyre pressure gauge and a good tread depth measurer. Inflate the tyres to what looks right by eye and go for a drive. If the steering is too light, drop a few pounds out and try again, if it is too heavy then add some air. Always use your own pressure gauge, never trust the garage's one. Once it feels right, it usually is, but use the depth gauge to keep a good eye on tyre wear, if the wear is even across the tyre then you have hit the right pressure. Higher wear on the edges indicates too low a pressure, and higher wear on the middle is too high a pressure. Tyre wear on one edge is either a tracking problem or your driving like a nutter!

I took the sticker off my Blupunkt for just that reason. It won't stop it getting nicked but at least it will be useless if it does.

All modern vehicles use the same interface plug. It is DIN standardised.

The whole code generator thing is not the issue, it is in the wild and not hard to get a hold of. I have it (but don't ask for it unless you have a load of posts on here) and have used it to calculate a few codes for myself and some mates. The guy who gave me the calculator is a recovery driver who takes cars to the breakers (or sometimes not) and sells on anything that is worth anything that the people who don't wan't the car have left in it. As for the guy on eBay, perhaps he has a legitimate source for all the radios he deals in. I was laughing when looking on eBay the other day, someone had bid

60K miles or 6 years.

Also the filter holder has been modified to include a cover over the kerb-side end as water splashes up onto it in the wet. Check and see if yours has been done, if not it is a good idea to have it sorted out.

There could be a few causes. But the greasy film prompts me to ask, are you losing any coolant from your engine? Other causes could be a dirty & wet pollen filter (left hand side will mist worse) or your heating stuck on re-circulated air.

I don't think it too much trouble and I am doing it for something to do as well. It is not really a lot of work, just a matter of a few tests etc.

I have a friend who is an electronics engineer who is doing some work. The control module for the system will be worked on after a few basics are dealt with. Currently however, he is working on a modular TFT dashboard and heads up display system that can be retrofitted to many makes and models of cars. His time is scarce! The idea of using a converted central-heating timer was the versatility of it. We did look at other options too, including the use of a Ir remote or radio remote, which is our fall back if all else fails! If the timer uses a voltage below 14 volts and miniature relays for switching then it is simple to modify an off the shelf unit. But for now I have testing to do.

The booster heater will be the heater on the timer. Using the positive supply from the alternator when the engine is running will cut the timed operation out, and it will then revert to it's normal function. This will be made all the easier if a few things I will be testing at the weekend work well, including using the vehicles fuel pump for the engine to supply the heater.

Easy-peasy-lemon-squeeze! It is still a good old waxstat! Take the cover off the top of the engine, and look at the brake servo. In the area between it and the engine there is a pipe with a retaining screw on the top and bottom and a ring on the end nearest the engine. Remove the screws and undo the ring. Now rotate the thermostat anti-clockwise to remove it. Retfit in reverse order but use a new O ring.

Don't go on about it! :lol: B) B) B)

Yes, but there are two versions of the additional heater. One is refered to as a "booster heater" and has no pump installed in the unit and no controls. This is the version the vast majority of us have. And the one I want to modify to heat the car on a timer.

The circulating pump needs only to pump 250 litres an hour, which is not much, about the same as your windscreen washer pump! The issue will be getting a pump that is reliable enough to put into the system. As for the fuel issue, the metering unit is fed from the return from the fuel pump. It should be simple enough re-plumb it using a low flow fuel pump commonly available that would suffice, as it needs a supply of less than half a litre an hour at high output running. At the moment the main issue I am having is finding a suitable timer, although it is possible that a digital central heating timer may be the way forwards. It looks prudent that a sealed lead acid battery on a split charge relay will have to be fitted. I did hope that the whole project was going to come in at sub

I am not at crossed purposes, I know the booster heats the coolant and as you said, the coolant heats the car. But the fact is that the water from the booster goes through the rear matrix before it goes anywhere else, and low coolant temperature has little to do with engine wear these days. The sole purpose of the booster is to heat the water warm enough to heat the car. My sole purpose is to design a PCB derived module to allow the standard booster to be turned on at a set time, at high output, and drive the rear heater fan. And work is progressing nicely.

Did you give it a couple of minutes with the leads connected before you tried to start it? Were the leads connected properly?

OK, so have I got this correct? The booster ALWAYS works if the coolant is below 75 degrees Celcius. This is at low output. If the condition above is true and the outside temperature is below 5 degrees Celcius then the booster heater runs at high output. After running at high output the fan in the booster heater continues to run until the unit has cooled.

It is up to yourselves whether you choose to struggle or do the following: Headlamp Removal -Pre Face Lift Remove the indicators and the grille by removing the screws (1) and clips (2) http://trevor.dynip.com/gifs/pflhlr1.gif Unscrew the headlamp retaining screws and withdraw the lamp assembly http://trevor.dynip.com/gifs/pflhlr2.gif Headlamp Removal - Post Face Lift Undo the two lower screws http://trevor.dynip.com/gifs/headlamp_lower_screws.gif Undo the two upper screws and withdraw the headlamp assembly http://trevor.dynip.com/gifs/headlamp_upper_screws.gif Points to note: All alignment, beam hight motors etc are in the headlamp assembly so refitting is as simple as removal. HID bulbs MUST be changed by removing the headlamp assembly.

Yes, my money is on failing elecrolyte, not just needing topped up. When a battery goes totaly flat over a slow drain (like a light left on) the sulfer (S) in the elecrolyte (H2SO4) becomes detached from it's oxide and attaches it's self to the metal plates of the battery. This causes the acidity level of the battery to fall. Acid, as you may know, works better when heated and conversly, worse when cold. So exhausted acid in a car battery makes a cold morning start failure.

Calcium batteries for a Galaxy are available from Halfords or, cough, Vauxhall as part of their "GO" range of aftermarket parts. If yours has Ford stylee square clamps you can buy converters to round ones.

[cough]VAG/SEAT[/cough]

Well I read somewhere that after five failed start attempts it gives up and needs re-set.

Ah, yes, but was it below 5DegC in the engine compartment, because that is where the sensor is.