This Is Progress?

[Scorpiorefugee]

Hello folks,

I am a relatively new owner, having been a Granada/Scorpio owner since the mid '70s. Mine is a 98 TDI GL something or other bought in a scruffy state from E-bay with 140K for probably more than I should have paid. Nevertheless, it does exactly what I want i.e moves me and several hundredweight of tools around the country at 750 miles per tankful. In that respect, it far outclasses even my favorite L reg Granada Scorpio and I am delighted with it.

 

I have only two quibbles so far and they do seem relatively minor and more related to dubious improvements in design across the board.

 

Why Oh Why do we have cam belts? Throughout 40 years of motoring at an average 50K a year I've had no cam drive problems at all and owned cars with chains and direct gear drive (Those lovely old V6s) 250K on an engine with years of careful neglect, no main dealer attention and oil changes only every once in a while without a hint of a problem. Now we have better oils, better materials, engines that give plenty of power at low revs and should give several 000ks of reliable performance. Unfortunately, we now have cam belts and the risk of sudden catastrofic failure without warning. Please don't tell me it's reliability or noise, especially on an engine that rarely revs above 3000 and, even in good condition, generates far more noise than any engine in any car I have ever owned.

 

Another point which may be purely personal. Which idiot designed the indicator stalk on this thing? It's short and fat and has no feel at all. Unless I take my hand off the wheel I find it almost impossible to operate without flashing the lights and, even worse, whatever happened to that nice positive up for head and down for dip? I suppose that some continental clown thought that we were due for another change to go with putting the stalk on the wrong side i.e. not the right, as was forced on us so long ago that nobody ever thinks what a daft idea it is any more.

 

I could go on about standard fit Fog lights which are not really needed these days and everybody uses wrongly because they don't know what else to do with them, but that's another story.

 

Ron.

 

P.S. can anyone tell me why a fan comes on for a short while after I switch off and whether it is possible to clean the MAF as is possible on the now defunct Scorpio?

 

Also, other than the above, I think the Galaxy is a great motor. It's a pity it's not a Ford!

[johnb80]

No you can't clean the MAF like on the Scorpio, I used to have a 2litre Ghia Estate and cleaned the MAF about 3 times in it's life, each time gavce a dramatic improvement.

The MAf on the Gal is a film type MAF rather than the hot wire aparently.

 

Regards - John

[Scorpiorefugee]

Thanks John,

 

I thought that there would be a good reason. I'm not sure if I have a problem yet but having read some of the postings it does seem possible. there seems to be a flat spot at about 2500 - 2800 which appears better if I disconnect the MAF but also seemed still OK when I reconnected it???

 

Funny thing is, I spent a frustrating year of unproven MAF problems on a Scorpio auto estate and if I have the same problems again my wife will probably come in with her favourite 'I told you not to buy another red one!'

 

It's reassuring that they seem to be more freely availabe at reasonable price than those of the Scorpio. Er... MAFs that is, not wives.

 

Thanks again,

 

Ron.