Neils TDi again

The cause of BSE By the end of 1987 Mr John Wilesmith, the Head of the CVL Epidemiology Department, had concluded that the cause of the reported cases of BSE was the consumption of meat and bone meal (MBM), which was made from animal carcasses and incorporated in cattle feed. This conclusion was correct. It had been reached with commendable speed. - the source of infection in the MBM was tissues derived from sheep infected with conventional scrapie; - the MBM had become infectious because rendering methods which had previously inactivated the conventional scrapie agent had been changed. BSE probably originated from a novel source early in the 1970s, possibly a cow or other animal that developed disease as a consequence of a gene mutation. The origin of the disease will probably never be known with certainty. The theory that BSE is caused by the application to cattle of organophosphorus pesticides is not viable, although there is a possibility that these can increase the susceptibility of cattle to BSE. The theory that BSE is caused by an autoimmune reaction is not viable. The full and truthful events are here This will give you all some interesting reading.

On a 96 TDi there are two belts one multi V belt for the alternator and water pump and compressor and the single v belt for teh power steering at the bottom, thisis adjusted by a toothed bolt on the mounting point of the pump. Access is from below the car.

Well Wolfie I too love the classics hence the two GT6's that grace my garage and not a square spot light in sight, although I do have a nice line in wing mounted chrome bullet style mirrors.

1) wind noise around drivers door at about 65mph. This is normally due to either damaged rubbers or a twisted door lower the glass and carefully push the top of the door inwards to reduce the noise. 2) slight brake vibration through steering wheel. (she had been stood for a while when I collected her and had rusty discs) Most discs will rust within 1 hour of a journey if the atmosphere is moist due to the heat retained by the discs, more likely it will need pads and discs replacing. 3) steering wheel off centre, how can I take the wheel off to centre it up properly without setting off the airbag? NO.... The alignment has been incorrectly set, are you aware of the history of the vehicle this and the twisted door may not be related but it would start me thinking about a "repair" of some description.

Oh dear I feel a war coming on....... :blink: :blink: :blink: :20: :21:

The noise your hearing is the accesory belt tensioner bouncing up and down as the belt starts to flex, there are two causes firstly the belt may just be worn and need replacing or secondly, the tensioner itself may be weakening and will need replacing. My suggestion would be to replace the belt first then see if the noise abates.

Sounds very much like the nearside drive shaft is breaking down. Try taking left hand corners slowly and see if it gets worse. Also get the grease level checked in the UJ inside the gater.

USe Excel to open the asc file as a text file then save as a CSV.

150,000 or 100,000 if one driver.

Hi Neil If you are looking to see if it has been a taxi check for wiring through the bulkhead and any rubbing marks around the opening of the rear hatch, the coaxial cable tends to leave a dirtywear mark on the tailgate and sealing rubber. You can also check the carpets around the rear seats, if it has been regualrly used by adults in the six and seven seat arrangement then the carpets will be worn at the rear. You can also feel the steering wheel as one driver will naturally hold the wheel in one area, indicating the same driver over 100,000 miles is actually quite a good thing as may drivers would indicate a lack of care for the vehicle, fleet or company taxi. Careful checking that the cambelt has been changed and regular service maintained should ease the worry, my first did 220,000 miles before I gave it away and the second is now at 120, 000 in under three years. reliability is key if the car had not been reliable it would have be "got rid" long ago if it were a taxi so even if it was the 100,000 mile tag should actually re-assure you of its worth. Other areas to look at would be the tips of the mirrors as they tend to get tapped as you navigate little lanes and parked areas, the drivers footwell carpet normally takes a permanent depression near the accelerator pedal and the recesses behind the exterior door handles tend to get scratched evenly if its being used to carry passengers, where as the tendancy for private vehicles if to use the passenger side more to access the rear of the vehicle. Hope some of this is usefull as I have a Taxi and have been totally pleased with it having covered the 110,000 of the 120,000 miles in under two years.

Thank God I didnt say to the engine..........

OMG did I really say on the engine ? I do really mean as Nik has said on the main start terminal on the starter motor, not the little one the big 13 mm one.

Although most would point at the battery have you tried putting a jump lead between the negative on the battery and the engine as on most transverse mounted engines after a period of time has elapsed the earth cable to the engine tends to fracture and cause high resistance, the warming of the cable causes the copper to expand and hence, the engine starts to turn more easily after the initial attempts which heat the cable. This also applies to the cable to the main starter feed but you should apply the jump lead to the positive for testing the starter cable.

Its a system the forum Mods use to warn of bad behaviour or language we all have them but can only be seen by yourself or the mods. 0% is good beleive me

With someone elses help get them to move the gearstick from left to right while you try and observe the top of the selector where the cables terminate. You should see the cables moving the selector shaft, if my theory is correct and it happened to me then the shaft is moving but the selector inside the gearbox is not and the 7mm Metric Fine threaded bolt which holds the selector arm onto the shaft inside the gearbox has sheared off and is now stuck between the selector and the housing. I am afraid if this is the case then it is a gearbox out and stripped job, if the bolt had sheared and dropped into the sump of the gearbox you may have been able to get away with lifting the selector stack out the top of the box and replacing the bolt but not if its jammed into the selector.

Try here first then if you cant find what you want i will try and dig out some more info later tonight.

The quoted part of the post describes the "special test" conditions actually these are just real life configurations which are normally ignored at MOT stations as the original handbook required the vehicle to be elevated from the ground to test the suspension and steering. For vehicles with suspension types figures 3, 3a and 4 shown on Suspension Type Diagram, lower the front wheels so that they bear the weight of the vehicle, and are resting on turn plates which enable the wheels to be turned freely lock to lock or if ATL approved resting on wheel play detectors

Even with a new rubber at the top there will still be "excessive play" when the vehicle is lifted on a four point lift, there is a set of specific notes for this type of vehicle for the MOT inspector regarding the floating nature of the strut. It should only be checked when the vehicle is in its normal driving configuration eg on the wheels. I will dig them out and post them here.

The brake pedal switch has two distinct switches on operates the brake light system through the ECU and the other indicates to the ECU a confirmation that the brakes have been applied. If either of these fail (very common on the Gal) then the resultant ECU confusion will illumate the MIL and subsequently the engine will go into limp home mode. Replacing the switch is very simple and can be carried out with minimal tools (screwdriver and torch IIRC).

If your suffering from a "heavy Rattle" from the front in the centre it maybe that it isnt the drop links but it may be the centre roll restrictor on the bottom of the engine.

The Ford version is the same as the Sealey version an dit does rest on the wing mounting area but it has a brace to the top of the suspension mounting and is a very good tool, I chose not to buy it cos I am a cheapskate and thought I could do it without but it would have been soooo much easier if I had one. If your gonna do more than one then it would be worth investing but for just one job ?

Cant be surely it aint Maz.

A four post lift is the easy answer but i have completed a clutch change using a Hoist and two trolley jacks but it was hard work. Reaching the mounting bolts for the offside drive shaft bearing housing is extremely difficult from underneath without the hieght of a ramp. Plus the scars on my head have only just healed.

Yes it costs about 8 quid and has an o ring seal mine leaked and was the cause of many issues with over heating before it was noticed. Easy fix Slide pliers and a ten mm spanner and about 2 litres of anti freeze.

Just do it ! The forum will survive even if a few may not agree.