cliffcoggin

After having the third tyre in ten months wrecked by unavoidable potholes, I am looking at alternative wheels and tyres as there is little prospect of Kent County Council compensating me or repairing the holes. I am considering changing the standard low profile tyres and alloy wheels for smaller wheels with higher profile tyres to maintain the current rolling diameter. Has anybody here have experience of this practice as all the queries I have seen involve fitting even lower profiles? I would even accept steel wheels if that was the only alternative, though naturally I would prefer the lower mass of alloys.

If the moped rider was blameless I wonder why he is not claiming from Praveen. Somehow I don't think we have the full story.

In that case I don't know what to suggest. Sorry.

I know you say the steering lock is releasing, but have you tried wriggling the wheel each way as you turn the key to ensure it is truly disengaging?

Thomas. Like Steve I can not hear anything unusual in your link. To pinpoint the noise you could try an old mechanic's trick with a screwdriver stethoscope. Place a large screwdriver tip firmly on various parts of the engine, then hold your ear against the handle. You'll be surprised just how noisy the bearings and pumps can be. I shan't insult your intelligence by warning you of the obvious dangers of this form of testing.

As Adam and Gareth have said, the creamy stuff is emulsion caused by water getting into the oil. How the water gets there has several causes: a faulty head gasket, condensation, fractured water gallery, faulty crankcase breather (if there is one,) are just some of them. I suggest you have the water system pressure tested as a first step.

I would think it more likely that the filter was not installed correctly rather than being faulty, but that's not really important. What is important is the possible damage to the engine, which can not be assessed without stripping it. As long as the garage will stand by their new car guarantee you should be covered for any problem that develops in the future. As for the lack of apology, that's discourteous and irritating but words are cheap. Actions are what count.

I suspect that cutting the plastic bumper might reduce the crash resistance of the car even if there is a steel beam behind it. Get some specialist advice before doing anything drastic enough to fail an MOT.

No computer in the car can detect every fault. If you have a knock you need to get it examined because it could be caused by innumerable problems: worn track rod ends, worn CV joints, worn steering joints, worn suspension mounts, loose steering rack, worn wheel bearings. The list is nearly endless.

Faulty or not, the garage that fitted the filter is responsible for rectifying the problem and any associated engine damage. Is the garage disputing that or somehow trying to shift the blame?

Thanks for the clarification.

That's good to know Ross. The attachment of the two lugs to the inside looks messy. The Ebay ad says the item is metal while you say it is plastic. Can you elaborate on the construction?

Well you mentioned bits of plastic in the fluid, though I don't understand where they came from. I guess if some it got into the system it could limit the piston travel, score a seal, jam a valve. In your position I would dismantle both cylinders for thorough cleaning and blow compressed air through the pipe.

Stephen. If the pedal travel was right before you worked on the hydraulics , and if the only change you have made was the master cylinder, then I still believe you have air in the system. On the other hand if the pedal travel was wrong beforehand you could have a worn clutch.

Ten to one you still have air in the system. Since your Eezibleed kit doesn't seem to work properly I suggest you adopt the old-fashioned way of bleeding that requires two people to do the job: one to operate the pedal, the other to operate the bleed screw and top up the reservoir. Briefly the process is: Fill the reservoir. Attach a clear piece of tubing to the bleed nipple with the lower end in a jar. Open the bleed screw about half a turn. Push and hold the pedal down. Close the bleed screw. Lift the pedal. Repeat those steps until no bubbles are seen in the fluid coming out of the slave cylinder. It is essential the reservoir level is not run down to the point that air is drawn in again.

I know nothing of Audi headlight washers but those on my old Granada worked entirely automatically: both the headlights and the wipers had to be on for the washers to operate. Mind you that was 25 years ago, maybe things have regressed since then.

Has it always behaved like this? Have you changed the wiper motor perhaps? The last time I opened a wiper motor (a few decades ago,) the arm travel was fixed by the size of the linkage within.

I have not changed the pads on mine, nevertheless I agree with Gareth. The clips exist for a reason; if they were unnecessary they wouldn't be fitted and pads would be cheaper.

Jess. You need to bleed the air out of the fuel system all the way from the tank to the injectors. Usually the injectors have to be removed and the engine cranked until nothing but fuel comes out of the injectors. It's a messy stinking job which your partner should carry out to ensure he never runs out of fuel again. <G>

Lindsay I am not sure what fault you are describing. Are you saying the key won't enter the barrel, won't turn once entered, or won't operate the switch once entered and turned?

Hello Geoff. (Love the beer name.) I can't be certain, but I would expect sports suspension to have tighter shock absorbers as well as shorter springs so its possible you would have to change both. A change may also affect the steering geometry so you need to be certain of the answers before committing to altering anything.

Chris. Car dealers are not renown for their charity and you are now discovering why the car was so cheap. In my view if the engine is clapped out, then it's likely the rest of the drive train will also be marginal and the car will become a money pit in the years to come. I'd get rid of it as soon as possible.

Please do Martyn, particularly with the source of the unit and your comments on it as I am interested in getting one.

Was the fuel consumption normal before you changed the induction kit? If so, the solution is obvious.

It is possible that non-sensor pads have been fitted as an economy measure.