Magnet

Hello Simon, I certainly don't want to put you off buying this car, but simply to stand back a little and give it a coat of thinking about. The 'odd tyre issue' might be a bit of an understatement when this car has had a number of MOT failures for tyre cords exposed! Now Michelin Kojaks is one thing, running tyres until the cords are exposed really does smack of a glorious lack of maintenance! If the owner has been prepared to run tyres beyond the legal limit then personally, I would be questioning the level of care and maintenance this car has enjoyed. I'm sure you will make the decision that best suits your requirements Simon. Good luck with this, Kind regards, Gareth. p.s. No apologies about Metros - I have a 18k from new one here.

Hello Adrian, Yes, you should take this apart and reassemble it correctly. Mintex ?? Were once a well respected make, but regrettably now just a bought out brand name to add some supposed credence to their manufacture. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Phil, That's about it for locating the washer reservoir. UndeI the wheel arch, so the liner etc. has to come out to get at it - pain in the posterior! Might be worth mixing say a 25% strength mixture in a jar and leaving it there for a month or two ( I don't buy the ready mixed since the wallet gets upset at buying water). You will probably find by then it stinks and will start to coagulate. Kind regards, Gareth.

It's all useless information Adam! , but hopefully adds to the interest. I like your reference to the Discovery. Another useless piece of information but topical for this forum:- At the time VW took over Skoda (yes, I remember all the Skoda jokes) we started supplying steel into Skoda and I was involved on the quality advising side, and VW sent their inspectors into Skoda to train them. Such was Skoda's commitment that within a year they were sending Skoda inspectors back into VW to update VW's quality systems. I guess that is why in my area anyway, you have a predominance of Skoda taxis - good value for money. Kind regards, Gareth.

Good question David, but of course, tyres are indeed not just categorised under 'budget' or 'premium'. Throughout my motoring life, the tyre trade has also used the term 'mid range' into which I would have categorised the two brands you mention. Manufacturers can and do use, what the aftermarket tyre retailers, would refer to as mid range, but my understanding is that they place specifications ( for volume purchases) on the tyre manufacturers which may exceed that of their aftermarket equivalent. In other words, your like for like purchased-from-tyre-retailer tyre may not perform as well as the tyres originally fitted. A similar situation applies to batteries fitted at manufacture (say Varta) where the original may well last for 10 years, but you would be very lucky to get the same service life from an 'aftermarket' battery to the same characteristics from the same manufacturer. Kind regards, Gareth.

From personal experience, and possibly not shared as an opinion by others but, I have long since given up filling the washer reservoir to full - particularly in the lower useage summer months- due to the mixed solution 'going off'. I now just add about 2litres from empty since. Irrespective of the concentration, this fluid (or the water content anyway) has a tendancy to coagulate when left standing, and smells and tends to clog the pump filter and jets after time. In effect, in summer in particular, keep the volume in the tank to a minimum and top up frequently. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Callum, OK cold, problem when hot tends to suggest the car is running with a rich mixture. There could be a number of reasons, inc. the coolant temperature sensor, and although I am not a fan on being solely dependent on getting the car plugged into the diagnostics, it may well be worth doing so to hopefully determine the cause. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Lavelle, This is very much a personal choice, but it is alway a temptation to buy budget tyres which give you the same amount of tread for far less money than premium brands. Perhaps two points to consider:- the 'performance' of budget vs premium? Budget tyres are highly unlikely to provide the same degree of road holding or braking performance, and that difference might, just might be critical at some point in the future. Worth the risk? Life of budget vs premium? My belief is that the general rule of thumb is that you will not get the same mileage out of budget, so miles per £ in the end run may not make these the economic buy they are thought to be. For me, I tend to go with premium brands at best prices. No recommendation here since they are yet to be proved, but I have just put a pair of Continental Premium Contact 5 on the A3 and these 16 inch cost me £68 each fully fitted. Perhaps I could have got budget for upper £40s but.... No doubt you will get a variety of responses. Kind regards, Gareth.

Well done Steve. Top marks! Yes it was the the Austin 7, the most widely known pre war British car. BMW started their car manufacture from a base of making these cars under licence from Austin. They called the car the Dixi - sometimes quoted with an e on the end. So you can tell your friends with their impressive M3s and 5s where it all began! Couple of marks for you too Paul. Datsun also built these - I would need to google what they called it! Datsun were very much maligned when they were first imported and treated as if they would never catch on, but were to have the last laugh on the British motor industry, by drawing buyers away simply by including a radio as standard equipment. Unbelievable but true. Thanks again folks. Knife regards, Gareth.

Next week's question early. Sorry won't be able to post on Monday. BMW (am I allowed to mention them?! ) started their car production by making a British car under licence. Indeed Nissan's predessor - Datsun- also made their variant of this car. What was that car? NO GOOGLING! Good luck, Gareth.

Hello Lee, Sorry to hear of your issues. It seems to have been an expensive route to nowhere at the moment. Apologies for not being too up on diesels, but I would ask if the garage who has been carrying out this work are diesel specialists or not. It is my belief that diesel specialist garages are the only way to go for such issues. From my very limited experience, I would have thought that fuel pressure being within spec. the next port of call would be a leak-back text on the injectors since this does seem to be typical of injector problems. Of course, your garage may well have been down this route, and if so, it may well be with asking where they sourced their injectors etc. Sorry I cannot point you in any other direction. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks for the update Adam. Quite right of course that the AA's link is as you say. Now masons and the meaning of colours? Well at least these questions are providing a platform for gaining more knowledge. I've learnt something new today. I would have no means of knowing that otherwise! Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello folks, Thanks for the good attempts. Lonsdale belt, which was presented by the 5th Earl of Lonsdale - Hugh Lowther - in 1909. He had been elected the first president of the AA in 1905. It seems he had a penchant for the colour yellow, and in fact was know as the Yellow earl. His carriages etc. were always painted in yellow - one surviving example in the National Trust Arlington carriage museum in N. Devon. No, they don't know he was the yellow earl or of his AA connections either! So, the Yellow Earl was the first president of the AA and the AA's livery is yellow. Bit of a coincidence? or choice? Try asking any AA patrol this question. Good odds they won't know, but you do. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, I really don't want to get you to change you mind, but just to question the logic which has led you to make your decision. Logic is:- back sits about right, front sits low, so why play around and spend money on the rear? Anyway, if you are now rethinking this, it might be worth thinking about replacing the front springs with ones bought direct from a VAG dealer. If it were me, I would just do the fronts first and see what happens. My way of working is to change one thing at one time and 'test' , otherwise you will never know which of the more-than-one component change has sorted the problem. If it helps, I have used Rainsworth Skoda (somewhere in your end of the country) for Audi parts since they will often give you a discount. Always ask. They operate on EBay as the Skoda Parts Shop from memory. Mail Oder is not a problem to them. Check chassis numbers with them to ensure you get the correct springs. Checking with previous keeper re. any information they can give you about how long it's been low at the front and if they know why - modifications? Etc. I would most certainly have a go at this before doing anything else. How to do this? Front page of V5 lists previous keeper's name and address. Access the BT directory enquiries on line system and input the detail and see if it comes up with a telephone number. If not, an old fashioned letter and SAE might work. Good luck Chris, Kind regards, Gareth.

Well Chris, all I can wish you is good luck and a trust in the opinion that the rear is currently riding high and your wallet dieting will sort it out. As you know, I believe the rear ride height is as you would expect it, but as you will appreciate, all opinions on here are given without an opportunity to to actually assess the vehicle in question. Logically, I cannot see why replacing springs at the rear where the rear height is within expectations, is going to raise the front height - which is currently riding low! It's your money Chris, and obviously your call, but if it were me, and I wanted to throw money at this, then I would be first replacing the front springs with ones purchased from Audi, but as I keep repeating (sorry to bore) I would most certainly be attempting to talk with the previous keeper first to gain any prior knowledge of the history of this thing before even opening my wallet. Good luck. Kind regards, Gareth.

Thanks Jay. I didn't make my reply clear, but it was meant to be addressed to Dan. Any response Dan? Kind regards, Gareth.

As a matter of interest and understanding, could this not- quoting for cover be anything to do with NI perhaps? Kind regards, Gareth.

Very interesting Steve. I have here (somewhere!?) a 1928 supplement from a daily newspaper which predicts that by the year 2000 we would all be flying around in mini helicopters rather than cars. One guessed that close proximity control systems would be in place - as they now are with adaptive cruise control etc. As I see it, we spent billions of pounds on roadway structures and maintenance, so we can wear out our tyres in record time, yet we have virtually unlimited air space which does not cost us anything! Daft isn't it?

MAGIC Trevor. Spot on. The initial president of the AA back in 1905?? (or there abouts) was a keen sportsman, and attempted to "tidy up" boxing from its previous bare knuckle affair. He dedicated a still-contested boxing belt to this sport. Now parts 2 of question:- What is the name of the belt? What is the connection with the AA's livery yellow colour and this first president? By what I understand the choice of yellow had nothing to do with standing out/visibility as we now associate the colour being good for. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Nathan, As with all intermittent electrical problems, the first post of call should alway be eliminating poor battery performance, and indeed ensuring the alternator is giving sufficient output. I would take it for at least a 10 mile run and get the battery efficiency checked by say Halfords. Buying replacement batteries at Halfords? Would need to leave that for you to check. Flickering xenons? Might be worth checking all light associated earths. In fact, I would be tending to check the main earth onto the engine/chassis to make sure it is serviceable. Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Carl, Others with more specific model information will no doubt advise you, but cambelts are normally recommend to be changed at mileage intervals or a certain number of years- whichever comes first. My feeling would be that it would now be advisable to change the belt on this 6 year old vehicle despite its low mileage. 5 year intervals come to mind. I take it you will not be buying the car from a main dealer (too old?). Independent car sales can sometimes arrange to get this done for you, but to me this is one if the most critical applications on a car, and it's important that good quality parts - main dealer - are used, rather than aftermarket. Who are you buying it from as a matter if interest? Kind regards, Gareth.

Hello Chris, A couple of points:- is this 2015 car still within its 36 months warranty? Was the clutch first replaced less than 12 months ago? Hope you are not fitting the bill! Kind regard, Gareth.

Now just have to think about sport sports, not vehicle sports. Dont fail to get this one Steve. I'll give you another clue tomorrow if you don't get it from the earlier clue! Well, have another one today - don't think team sports. Good luck, Gareth

Hello Jay, Peter Best? - believe they may only have a sub 20 year concession for MGs. Could also try:- Lancaster, Haggerty, Carole Nash, Heritage, Gotte & Wynne, RH; etc. Also, any insurers linked to this forum? Some 'everyday' car insurers will also consider doing an additional 'classic' vehicle as an add on you your policy, particular if you have owner-driver (just policy holder covered) on the basis that you can only drive one car at a time! Only other suggestion is to try the performance VW websites and forums and magazines, since some of these cars may come under the sub 20year old category. Good luck with it, and thanks for being able to update this forum - always useful. Kind regards, Gareth.

Got the gist of the clue Steve, but nothing to do with vehicles.