Problem with your car?

[LooLoo]

Re: Problem with your car?

Can you come down and give my peice of italian shite an MOT and service there's a dear.

I'l make you a cuppa?

Don't get me wrong - I love my car - just everything goes wrong with it

What do you have?

Mine's an Alfa 147 (Mr Looloo got an Alfa GTA - his pride and joy but has cost an absoulte fortune over the last 2 years!)

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

I know they have a bad name for reliabilty,but I love Alfa's.

Mr Looloo has good tastes, I have had two 147 GTA's, one standard spec 3.2 lt 250bhp, and the other was an Autodelta (they are down your way) modified 3.7lt 328bhp, both great fun, but not very practical for everyday use, and too bloody thirsty !

I now have a 2.0 JTD 16v M-jet GT coupe. I hardly ever take it out of the garage, had it from new in 2005 and it still only has 11,000 miles on it, I would like to sell it, but the problem is Alfa's depreciate in value at a hell of a rate, and even with the condition and low mileage,I wouldn't get back anything like I paid for it.
I leave it up for sale on my company web site, just in case anyone spots it who also appreciates Alfa's and makes me a sensible offer on it.

I'll put a piccy of it in my pictures gallery later...

[LooLoo]

Re: Problem with your car?

Yep put the piccies up!

Mr Looloo is an Alfa freak - his is a 156 GTA.

Yep they don't keep their value at all. I really want a Gulietta........

[Angelic]

Re: Problem with your car?

Alland why do mechanics charge £300 for a service?

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

Alland why do mechanics charge £300 for a service?

What you should have asked Angelic is why do "SOME" mechanics charge £300.00 just for a service...well unless you have some exotic car that requires specialist servicing then you are being ripped off big time !

Even by main dealer price menus, £300 is over the top in most parts of the country for a standard service on regular makes of vehicles.

But in defence,I would say are you sure it was "just a service" people do get a bit miffed when they send a car in for service, and then it needs additional work such as brakes for instance,or maybe the mileage says it needs a cam belt change, which will put the final bill up.
Unfotunately £300 does not go a long way when a car needs more work than a basic lube service, which should cost no more than around £75.00, depending on where in the country you are, as labour rates vary...from absolute rip off around London to more reasonable rates the further north you go.

[Elsie52]

Re: Problem with your car?

Alland,

What a brilliant thread this is going to be. I can imagine that many folks may be asking you for advice.

Elsie

[MrsD]

Re: Problem with your car?

Help
mr Dopey has a mondeo 2lt diesel saloon type thingy

its costing a fortune at the moment but we can't afford to change it

he thinks it needs new glow plugs, I've bought them (£38) but he can't see where to put them, how does he get into them, does he have to remove the inlet manifold??
(this last bit was obviously dictated by Mr Dopey, could anyone tell?????)
thank you you wonderful man

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

Help
mr Dopey has a mondeo 2lt diesel saloon type thingy

its costing a fortune at the moment but we can't afford to change it

he thinks it needs new glow plugs, I've bought them (£38) but he can't see where to put them, how does he get into them, does he have to remove the inlet manifold??
(this last bit was obviously dictated by Mr Dopey, could anyone tell?????)
thank you you wonderful man

Ok first remove the plastic engine cover, and Mr D should see the glow plugs near the fuel injectors, they have a single wire going to each of them, and are screwed deep into the cylinder head.
They are relatively easy to change if the glow plug tips are not swollen. You just take the wire off the end via a clip or nut then take a deep well socket and remove. If the tip is swollen and the plug won't just pull out I would suggest taking it into a garage.


But if Mr D fancies doing it himself then getting a swollen plug out, it's a little hard to explain but I'll do my best.


Once the plug is loose and can be almost pulled out take a pair on vice grips and clamp it straight up and down on the nut( not the spade terminal or the wire stud). Down on the actual nut. Then clamp a second pair of vise grips on the vice grips themselves so now you have one pair straight up and down attached to the glow plug like you were going to use it like a screw driver and the other pair clamped to the vise grips forming a letter L. Hit up (gently) on the sideways vice grips with a hammer. It should force the glow plug to pull up through the hole.



This is the only way I know of to get a swollen glow plug out without breaking it off and removing the head. It has worked for me 9 times out of 10 this way and I have replaced tons of glow plugs over the year’s . If they are not swollen then it’s as easy or easier than changing a spark plug. Oh and do it when the engine is cold.


But very important to remember when tackling this job, if the glow plug breaks off in the cylinder head while trying to remove it, it means removing the complete cylinder head to get it out, which means a BIG GARAGE BILL !

[MrsD]

Re: Problem with your car?

thank you Alan, have despatched Mr Dopey forthwith, listen for the yells anytime now.

I hate cars when they won't work!!!!

[MrsD]

Re: Problem with your car?

thank you Alan, mr Dopey cannot get the pesky thing out, the one he was hauling has 3 wires though, so all mucking about has ceased until he can get the car to a man who can.

thanks for your help, wish you were closer as mechanical things are not Mr Dopey's forte!!!!

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

thank you Alan, mr Dopey cannot get the pesky thing out, the one he was hauling has 3 wires though, so all mucking about has ceased until he can get the car to a man who can.

thanks for your help, wish you were closer as mechanical things are not Mr Dopey's forte!!!!

No problem Mrs D, Surprised the glow plugs have 3 wires on?. maybe Mr D is mistaking a fuel injector for a glow plug? but hey if he is not sure, it is better left to a garage.
The task is easy enough for a mechanic, and as you have aready bought the parts, it should only be around an hours labour charge to do the job.

[Angelic]

Re: Problem with your car?

What you should have asked Angelic is why do "SOME" mechanics charge £300.00 just for a service...well unless you have some exotic car that requires specialist servicing then you are being ripped off big time !

Even by main dealer price menus, £300 is over the top in most parts of the country for a standard service on regular makes of vehicles.

But in defence,I would say are you sure it was "just a service" people do get a bit miffed when they send a car in for service, and then it needs additional work such as brakes for instance,or maybe the mileage says it needs a cam belt change, which will put the final bill up.
Unfotunately £300 does not go a long way when a car needs more work than a basic lube service, which should cost no more than around £75.00, depending on where in the country you are, as labour rates vary...from absolute rip off around London to more reasonable rates the further north you go.

Oh yeah...my focus is totally exotic

My last service cost £250ish...that was for an oil change, oil filter and whatever else it is they do during a basic service.

Labour here varies between £40-£50 an hour. A wheel bearing for my focus plus fitting was going to cost approx £200 (luckily the lovely Jen helped me out with that though!)

Nothing around here is a reasonable price

EDIT - Even the wiper blades I had to buy a couple of weeks ago cost £37!!

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

Angelic you need to find a NEW garage to look after your car !!

[Angelic]

Re: Problem with your car?

I wish I could...there are only 3 garages here! One is the ford garage and charges so much I don't even know what the cost is, one charges £52 something for labour but is slightly cheaper for parts and the other is £40 something for labour but the parts are slightly more expensive.

I bought the wiper blades from Halfords haha!

[alland]

Re: Problem with your car?

I bought the wiper blades from Halfords haha!

NO not Halfords !!

You must have a few local motor parts factors in your area that the motor trade buys from, have a ring round and ask them if they supply to the general public, most do these days, and you will save a lot instead of paying retail superstore prices such as Halfords.