cliffcoggin

Fair enough. I haven't a clue what all the letters mean in the model names.

Does the engine have a turbo-charger? Turbos are supposed kick in at 2000 rpm or just above.

Definitely a short circuit, which is probably why the fuse was removed by the previous owner. It needs to come out for repair or replacement.

David. Of course there is something more sinister going on, because spark plugs routinely don't fail without a reason. You even said that your garage told you the reason and the cost to fix it, so why not go back and ask them again. They have seen the car, we haven't.

Agreed about the clutch, but I reckon the selector linkage also has one or more collapsed bushes.

Worn differentials are known to whine when decelerating. You tell us there is an oil leak from the diff and excessive slack in the output shaft. It seems an open and shut case to me of a clapped out diff.

Can we assume it is an automatic? Have you checked the oil level?

Years ago a thicker oil was used to silence the rattle of a worn engine. If your engine has no serious wear, (which it should not have unless it's been thrashed by a boy racer,) I would stick to the manufacturer's recommended grade of oil.

I agree Gareth. It could be false economy not to renew the slave cylinder. Here's an old platitude that's actually true, "Do a job properly and you only do it once; do it poorly and you'll be doing it again and again."

You may well be right Gareth, as I don't know any details of the circuitry to be certain; but logically it would be a pretty poor design of lamp test if it could be negated by a faulty switch. I've looked in my Haynes manual and it says nothing can be done to the instrument panel and the whole thing has to be replaced if faulty. The circuit diagram is equally unhelpful, but then I am no electrician. It does show the cluster connected to the CAN bus, which to my mind suggests computer control rather than hard-wired.

Dear God. So far you've told us it has bald tyres, broken springs, a burnt out instrument panel, and a dodgy flywheel. What made you buy it?

Gareth. I believe you probably have a failed bulb rather than a failed switch. All the dashboard lights should come on when the ignition is first switched on as a lamp test irrespective of whether the pressure switch etc. is functional, therefore no lamp equals faulty bulb.

How can springs be worn out after just 7 years? Are they made of butter?

OK all you can do is work your way through all the possibilities, but that could take a lot of time and effort. Start by looking at the obvious things like air filter, fuel pump & injectors.

It could be dozens of things causing the fault Tally. Rather than wildly guess at it and send you on many wild goose chases, you would be better advised to have the problem analysed by someone with the right equipment. It would be cheaper in the end.

Not sure I agree with your first paragraph Gareth. Moaning and complaining is a source of pleasure to me, now that the more salacious aspects of life are behind me. Clifford.

I can't answer your questions Gareth, but I do agree the dipstick markings are abysmal. To read the level of black oil against a serrated brown plastic lump is nearly impossible. Years ago dipsticks were bare shiny metal with high and low notches cut into them, and were simple to read.

In your position Ben, I would find out what is wrong with it, (all s/h cars have faults in my view,) get the costs to put right anything you can't live with, add those costs to the purchase price, and then assess if you can or want to spend that much money.

It all depends on condition, and you are the only one who can assess that.

I'm glad it worked out well. The only note of caution is that if one side was worn out, the other won't be far behind, but at least you now know how straightforward the job is.

I can't imagine anything short of a major crash that might bend a hub forging. Has the garage checked whether the various rubber bushes in the suspension and steering links have softened or disintegrated?

Drive train (or transmission) is anything between engine and wheels i.e. clutch, gears, flywheel, differential, CV joints, drive shafts, wheel bearings. Some of those components suffer little or no wear; CV joints and bearings can be expected to wear.

If it only happens under power, but not on over run, my first suspects would be engine mountings or transmission (CV) joints. Is it any worse when turning corners?

Tej. I too have the semi automatic gearbox (I think it is called DSG), and it does actually transmit a tiny amount of power at idle when in D, possibly it's just viscous drag from the oil rather than clutch friction. Not enough to hold on any sort of gradient, but on a level smooth road it will just about try to creep forward. I find take off as the throttle is opened to occasionally be jerky with lots of lurching at about 1000 - 1100 rpm, though most of the time it is smooth and progressive. The whole experience is nowhere near as predictable or controllable as any of the fully automatic gearboxes with torque converters I have driven for the previous 28 years.

I religiously wash my car twice a year whether it needs or not. <G> Seriously, I always squirt plenty of water onto the underside to get rid of salt and accumulated mud. It's a practice that kept my old Granada rust free for 20 years, and I wish I still had it now.