Scorpiorefugee

I dunno! Some of em do I hear say. :lol:

Re Gerry's comment about closed lanes, I believe that the advised procedure IS to use all lanes up to the filter. I stay in the outside lane and match my speed to the next lane, even if that leaves a gap in front, and filter in one on one. It works beautifully and doesn't slow the traffic at all unless there is one dimwhit who can't understand the principle. This is the sort of thing that needs to be explained to some drivers. Question. What do queue jumpers have in common with computers? Answer. The information has to be punched in!

I've only just picked up on this topic and read it through... And to think, I only bought the Gal because I needed a good all round vehicle... To all you great chaps (I'm too old to use 'guys') and gels out there, thanks, for the help and entertainment It was good to see a post from Seatkid and some of the others. Good luck to the new moderators, I don't know where you find all the time. Ron.

Well said John and Katman. If we tried we could make a list of hates that would go on for a very long time. I think that it could all be simplified down to a few generalisations. Bad attitude. Selfishness and arrogance. Anyone who thinks that he/she can break speed limits because they are a 'good' driver in a well equipped car is missing the point completely. Lorry drivers who compete for lead positions taking miles to overtake another are an absolute menace. However I have great sympathy for their problems in moving their huge loads over great distances and will always give them priority if I can anticipate their problem. Education. We have the highway code, which no-one reads. I believe thai it should be compulsory for all TV stations to transmit 15second 'Ads' on driving safely free of charge as a small penalty for making money from filling our screens with other junk. We, the majority, seem to be silently intolerant of those who treat the traffic laws with utter contempt. Perhaps we should become more vocal. We all have horns and lights. But first we need education and some publically specified driving standards! Finally, I think that the manufacturers and law makers need to behave more intelligently. I always think if front fog lights as "I am a PRAT" lights. Most drivers haven't got a clue what they are for and use them because the must be there for some reason.. In fact, I have never found a single case where thay do anything useful, at least not since the pea soupers that we used to get in the 60s when the technique was to use fog lights instead of dipped headlights - not possible with many cars now! So why is it common practice to arrange switches so that front fog lights, which can only ever have any value at night, must be switched on before the rear fog lights, which are an absolute menace when used in the dark? Maybe some idiot in Europe would like to justify that one! I am a great believer in speed cameras but the shoud be hidden and mobile and USED INTELLIGENTLY! Sorry, this is getting too long. Next moaner please.... Ron.

Just to clarify... When you're sitting in the cold waiting for the D.....d thing to go out, maybe 5 secs seems like 15. If you disconnect the sender, it's certainly nearer 15 sec 'cos it then thinks that it's real brass monkey weather. If yours doesn't change, methinks you may have a problem. Mine used to start quite well, even with no glow plug activity at all. Another silly thing I've found. If it thinks it's very hot, even if the glow plug light comes on for a second, the feed to the glow plugs is never activated. I know this 'cos I've had it. It is quite possible that there are different version of ECU and that the glow plug light does not alway indicate what is happening. It seems that there is more to this than meets the LEDs on the display. As I pointed out in a post a while ago, it would be helpful to know EXACTLY what the management system is programmed to do then we could make a list of simple unplug/short out tests to help each other and avoid going round in circles looking at misleading symptoms. I did this with a range of video equipment years ago and it then became possible to diagnose any fault with a maximum of 6 simple tests and the control system of those things was and remains far more complex than anything used to control a motor car. Ahh well.... dream on! :(

Much too good for kids! :D I feel a "You've gotta be kidding!" coming on Yes my love....

I have a picture but I can't work out how to shrink the file size to send it!!! Anyway. On the top of the engine is the black rocker cover. Below that is the Headand near the right hand side of that, looking fron the front, is a 2" (approx) rubber pipe going ito the head via a casting. The temperature sender plugs into the right hand side of this casting somewher at about the same level as the wires for the glow plugs and (in my case) right behind a green plastic thingy which must be removed to get any where near it. The green plastic thingy is about 4" long by 2.5" diameter. Sorry I can't send a picture, I was a mainframe programmer for 12 years but I hate PCs and windows! :o Blooming over rated games machines! :huh:

For what it's worth, I have both models and the steering on the old one is much better than the new one. I felt the same way when I first drove the 115 Ghia and noticed the tyre wear. Now, 1500 miles on, it doesn't seem so bad. I think that tyre type/wear can be very misleading with this type of problem and, in view of my experience with 'expert' tracking adjusments etc. I would always start with a new set of tyres 'cos they do have a habit of tweaking things which are not the cause of the problem and only mask the true cause. Uneaven tyre wear can be caused by bad driving habits and lots of other conditions so don't assume the worst immediately. My old banger (140k of hard work) when I bought it had well scrubbed tyres when I bought it. I put new Avons on (

It's not easy and depends on the model. A Picture is not easy either 'cos you have to take bits off. It is mouted on a plastic lug coming out of the head at the front of the engine not far from the gearbox end. It has a 4/5 pin connector clipped into place and the device itselv fits in a tubular sleeve with an O ring to act as a seal. There is another clip which holds it in place. You need to take the top cover/soundproofing off the top of the engine and, on mine, it is hidden behind a greenish plastic filter/coupler which is part of the emmision control system. This has to be removed also. It's a mucky job and you'll probably skin your knuckles if it's an old dirty engine like mine. ( another reason I'm reluctant to take a picture) I paid about

I go with GalaxyKid. Your heater will tell you if the engine is up to temperature. The sensor has 2 senders. The one for the gauge appears to be totally separate from the one that the ECU uses. The glow plug lamp is a good guide to the operation of the other half. i.e. about 15 seconds when very cold to a second or so when hot. Do be aware of the point about the wires. the most likely is the earth wire breaking off at the lug. The two sensors can fail independantly.

Right you are! I'll just go and ask permission......

Pleasure mate! :blink: It took me a long time to get around to that one. Took all the damned fuse panel out and worked back from there. I assumed that, since the glow plug light came on, the circuit was live. (silly me!) I also assumed that, since the temperature gauge showed normal, the ECU knew that everything was OK(Silly me!!!) Never mind. I'm glad that you're moving forwards. It sounds like you have a fuel line problem also. I can't help you there but there are many who can and will. You may have to keep at it or start a new thread but the old Gal should be worth it in the end. Good luck. Ron.

'Ere! I only dropped in to ask about my air con. and I get all these extras! :D :D :D My three words are.. "Yes my love." (repeat with a big silly grin untl peace returns.) It's worked for 36 years. :blink: :blink: :blink: And in reply to the "What do you take me for? "Better or worse my love." :blink: :blink: :blink:

50K p.a. ????? No Motorways?????? :blink: :blink: :blink: Ever thought of buying them wholesale?

Must be mad. :D Thanks anyway. :D P.S. Takes after the ancient one. :D

I've been there. Try this simple routine and checks. When warm, the voltage on the heater rail only exists for about a second or two at most. Down around freezing, the glow light and heater rail are active for several seconds. A quick check, disconnect the coolant temperature sender - its behid some gubbinry on he front of the cylinder head near the gearbox and its a sod to get at. Do not be misled by the fact that the engine temperature gauge reads normal. There are two sensors in the package and it's the other one which the ECU uses for making decisions. A quick clue - does the engine fan always come on for a few mins after switching off, irrespective of temperature?. When disconnecting this thing, you will possibly find that, like mine, the wiring is brittle and the earth connection breaks off. ( Also a sod to reconnect.) However, once connected, the glow plug feed and lamp are active for up to 15 seconds. If the light comes on for a while and still now volts and yours in a 110hp unit, ther is a 60A fuse and some relays on a panel hidden behind the main fuseboard. If you're chasing this, try to pick up on one of my topics, similar title, a month or so ago. Sorry can't be more help right now, gotta go - bushed - need sleep. Ron.

How on earth do you manage to wear tyres out on the IOM? :D

Thanks John. It may be a while. No. 1 son has just announced wedding plans - 3 weeks! Aaagghh! Ron.

John, Thanks for confirming my thoughts on this. Sorry about the comment about the control panel but I find it annoying to have to grope down below knee level to press a selection of buttons which cannot easily be located without taking your eyes of the road and could be much simplified by the use of electronic analogue controls placed where the cup holders are fitted. However, I do agree that it does work well, even if somewhat slowly in my case. That doesn't excuse the fact that it could be made much safer and intuitive without the fixation that everything should be controlled by fiddly little buttons with the gratuitous but totally unnecessary LCD display. There! I've said my bit. On with the plot. It looks as if I must suffer it or start taking bits off, starting just behind the gearstick, until I can get access to whatever it is that is jammed or broke. It looks like a long summer weekend job. I think that the HDCP (I think that should be accepted as a valid new acronym) is OK becouse everything I press causes the right sort of change but much reduced in effect. Thanks again for your interestand helpful comments. Ron.

John, My old S reg has basic air con and blows a gale of whatever you set it to. My Ghia has that horrible digital panel with Auto temperature control and seperate blowers for front and back. It seems to work perfectly in every respect except it is virtually impossible to detect any air flow, even with the fans on max. I am assuming a jammed control vane or other blockage and also assume that by getting identical results from recirc. that I can eliminate blockage associated with the pollen filter. It is possible that the problem is restricted to the centre and side vents as the screen keeps reasonably clear but I have no means of knowing what is normal. Nor, it seems, did the ford mechanic. Thanks for your interest.

I've had this problem on a couple of old grannies with 2L engines and a couple of other makes on mates cars, all having been misdiagnosed by main dealers!. Try cleaning around the butterfly in the throttle mechanism. I haven't looked at this on the galaxies but my probs were caused by a build up of gunge which caused the slow tickover gap to close up and the anti-stall valve to work hard causing hunting and stalling at tickover. Fraud bent the sealed stops as a temporary measure and tried to charge me 1/2 day's labour for a 'demon fix'. I did it myself in 5 mins with a piece of rag and a screwdriver! I only had to do it once and it lasted another 200K!

Can I jump in on this with another aircon problem? My old S reg blows enough hot or cold air to be used as a hair drier. You can feel the draught of the centre vents in row in the back seats. My fully air con 52 Ghia hardly raises a flutter from a toffee paper held in front of the vent. I cannot believe that this is normal. I queried this with the dealer and the mehanic pressed all of the buttons in no particular order, muttered for a while and said nothing of interest so I gave up. I've tried it in normal and recirculation mode with no change. The fan makes all of the right noises but very little or no air comes out. Very little comes out of the rear vents either but it does seem to keep us warm - eventually Any comments or suggestions which do not involve physical violence towards Ford mechanics would be gratefully received. Ron.

According to the info on http://www.dvla.gov.uk/vehicles/taxation.htm#Private our 02 Ghia 115 at 173 gm/km sits comfortably in the

Just kick a wheel and watch it run off. :D

Well done Mustie. It looks like the diesel Gals, rated at just under 200gm/km, will stay in the