Car Talk

[grendel]

when i got my v50, they could not find any paperwork to suggest the timing belt had been changed and as it was nearly up to the mileage for a second change, for peace of mind I paid the extra to have the belt changed, in the knowledge that it would then probably see me through the time I would have the car.

I dont mind spending on the repairs, even though if they come near the value of a car, as by then I know the car and have an idea what is good and what needs replacing, if I just scrap the car and get a new(er) one, then I have no idea what work has been done, and what might break a month down the line, so I could find myself forking out even more in the long run - better the devil you know so to speak.

but there will come a time when I have to decide to fix or not, at that time I generally replace with a similar car and keep the old one at least for a few months for spare parts (bought one v70 to replace another and within 3 months had swapped out the power steering pump and the alternator from the old one.)

[Happy]

10 hours ago, LondonRascal said:

I have my Mercedes SLK oil changed that often without fail, despite the fact it lives in the garage and came out 6 times this year. Why argue with a customer wanting to spend their money? Better than a customer arguing something does not need doing when it really does need it, or chasing customers for payment..

Excuse me but where did I say I argued with the customer.  As I said, the customer is always right.  Advising him to try and save money is not right then?

[Gracie]

50 minutes ago, Happy said:

Excuse me but where did I say I argued with the customer.  As I said, the customer is always right.  Advising him to try and save money is not right then?

You didn't argue with the customer and you are right, customers are always right although they're not all of the time, they are a ruddy pain  I don't normally get involved with this topic, a car gets me from A to B even then I still manage to get lost x

[Bikertov]

1 hour ago, Gracie said:

You didn't argue with the customer and you are right, customers are always right although they're not all of the time, they are a ruddy pain  I don't normally get involved with this topic, a car gets me from A to B even then I still manage to get lost x

If you are getting lost going from A to B, then maybe you should stop using your 'A to Z' as the different letters are clearly confusing you, and use a modern Sat Nav instead ...

(maybe you need to be of a certain age to appreciate this one)

[annv]

Hi by going to a main dealer you get all the latest info/settings. The down side is, there hourly charge is higher and any repairs they do is to bring the vehicle back to as new condition. A typical example is when you go to have you brake pads replaced they will want to replace the discs as well, this is often not required as a few scores on them wont effect the stopping power. By going to a local garage they no this and will often only replace the pads at a quarter of the price.   you dont always need the disc's replacing. Its the same with other item's like door mirrors your local garage will be happy to fit a second hand one where as the main agent wont. You pay's your money and get what you pay for(mostly). John

[floydraser]

2 minutes ago, annv said:

Hi by going to a main dealer you get all the latest info/settings. The down side is, there hourly charge is higher and any repairs they do is to bring the vehicle back to as new condition. A typical example is when you go to have you brake pads replaced they will want to replace the discs as well, this is often not required as a few scores on them wont effect the stopping power. By going to a local garage they no this and will often only replace the pads at a quarter of the price.   you dont always need the disc's replacing. Its the same with other item's like door mirrors your local garage will be happy to fit a second hand one where as the main agent wont. You pay's your money and get what you pay for(mostly). John

My understanding is that since they banned asbestos from brake pads the compound is harder and therefore the discs are more likely to wear. However, you are correct, a main dealer will want to change both to maximise profit. When I did the brakes on the Corsa I went by the thickness of the discs. There is a specified minimum thickness and the rears were nowhere near it so they stayed. The fronts were a bit close so they went.

[floydraser]

I mentioned my Father-in-law earlier. Apart from the service paperwork for his Venga we also found a half bottle of whisky in a door pocket!

When I first met him back in the early seventies he ran a small car workshop with his two brothers. They did mechanical and bodywork, private hire and light haulage. His car was a Humber Hawk. One brother had another Hawk and one a Super Snipe. Then for weddings (including mine) they had a lovely 1966 Humber Imperial.

[OldBerkshireBoy]

Have fond memories of the old Humbers as my mum and dad also ran them for private hire and weddings in the early 70`s. 

Neighbours must of thought that I was nuts washing cars on a Saturday morning in the rain  

[oldgregg]

18 hours ago, dom said:

I had a 99 2.2 VTEC Prelude. It was the absolute top spec Motegi model with 4 wheel steer.

18 hours ago, dom said:

The really mad thing is, I eventually traded it in back in 2015. The new owner stuck a private plate on it, and when I last checked it was still on the road.

18 hours ago, dom said:

I always vowed to never buy a Japanese car. I'm now on Honda number 5. I suspect the only reason I'll ever buy another brand is due to the diminishing range Honda now offer.

They're a bit of a collectors car and I suspect will go up in value.

It is very sad though that Honda do not offer a lot in Europe any more.

I was going to buy the latest Civic but lead times made me think again and I've ended up with a Kia. There's nothing that Honda offer customers after something a little bit more sporty than a Civic.

Hyundai group really have upped their game. Ironically, in Norwich, Holden have swapped sites around and Holden Kia is in the old Honda showroom and Holden Honda has been relegated to an even smaller site. Holden know which brand they're going to sell more of.

[dom]

19 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

They're a bit of a collectors car and I suspect will go up in value.

As time goes on, I'm kicking myself a bit for not hanging onto the Prelude. It was almost certainly one of the last manual 2.2 VTi Motegis on the road when I got rid of it. I suspect you could count the survivors on one hand now. The fact it has the H22 engine (which Clarkson always used to call the best engine ever, with no material failure in millions produced) and 4 wheel steer made it a bit unusual, and quite possibly something which'll attract decent values as a classic.

19 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

It is very sad though that Honda do not offer a lot in Europe any more.

I had 3 Preludes then an Accord. I really struggled to find something I wanted to own last time around. The 8th gen. EU Accords were all getting too high mileage by then and nothing came along to replace them. The HRV was too girly, the CRV was too big, so I ended up buying a diesel Civic Sport. I had to buy nationally to get one in the right colour and it's an OK car - surprisingly quick for a 1.6 diesel, zero tax, 60mpg - but it's a bit rattly and very definitely in a different class to the models I'd had previously.

[Smoggy]

5 hours ago, Gracie said:

a car gets me from A to B

I'm with Gracie on that comment, we run a 13 plate skoda fabia estate with 115K miles and plenty of battle scars, it has a gouge in the dash from a length of stainless bar I got for the boat, too many stains inside to list, stoved in radiator and intercooler with all the surrounding bits bent from a large brick that bounced from a skip lorry 80k miles ago but runs absolutely fine, apart from usual service items and consumables it had had a rear wheel bearing that cost me £45 and took 15 minutes to fit, and it happily drags 200 litres of diesel plus our stuff to norwich on a regular basis at "just over 70 officer, honest" that's my kind of motoring, a proper workhorse. (and the emissions lie apparently, naughty vw/skoda )

I say we run but it's her car with me as named driver, I've not owned a 4 wheel vehicle myself for over 30 years, 2 wheels is plenty.

[BroadAmbition]

Got a rare early finish today. It wasn’t raining for a change either

So, got the rims swapped over on Trevor with the winter boots now on. 
 

Tis a time consuming affair, then having to deep clean the summer units prior to storing them. They are currently in our conservatory drying off MrsG being away I can get away with this!

Next time, put away the summers and repeat the exercise on MrsG’s Q5

Griff

[oldgregg]

22 hours ago, dom said:

so I ended up buying a diesel Civic Sport. I had to buy nationally to get one in the right colour and it's an OK car - surprisingly quick for a 1.6 diesel, zero tax, 60mpg - but it's a bit rattly and very definitely in a different class to the models I'd had previously.

That would be a 9th gen then I guess? I had the 1.8 VTEC for almost 9 years and they're a very reliable (and economical) car. But the chassis really was quite underwhelming and though I think they made suspension tweaks with the facelift, mine was an earlier 62 plate car and had none of that.

But... It owed us absolutely nothing and having paid £12,500 for it secondhand from the main dealer in 2014, we sold it in August for £3400 with about 96k on the clock. The only thing that ever actually failed in that time was an ABS sensor.

It had a few sets of tyres of course, brake pads, one set of discs, one set of iridium plugs, bulbs and a battery. No exhaust components, nothing on the engine, nothing on the suspension.

We did main dealer service it, but when an MOT and service (plus AA breakdown cover) is around £300 a year then it didn't really feel excessive.

[annv]

The trouble these days with diesel cars is they are so complicated to combat the emissions they have become more unreliable with more things to go wrong. When diesels where agriculture they had little to go wrong providing the fuel was clean. Now you need AdBlue plus the fuel plus a expensive exhaust system lots of add ones all to get the emissions down and a few more miles to the gallon plus a 0to 60 time that equals a petrol engine. I have all ways had a petrol car for private use. Diesels in boats are reliable as they are just basic no emission control or 0 to 60 rubbish. Petrol car is cheaper and more reliable on the whole than diesel and easier to repair and service. John

[dom]

7 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

That would be a 9th gen then I guess? I had the 1.8 VTEC for almost 9 years and they're a very reliable (and economical) car. But the chassis really was quite underwhelming and though I think they made suspension tweaks with the facelift, mine was an earlier 62 plate car and had none of that.

Yes, 9th gen facelift model. The Sport model comes with some pretty wide low profile tyres, so the handling keeps up with the power. I'd rather have had the VTEC (or even the type R), but was doing 50 miles a day at the time so had to opt for economy. Typically, I bought it just before covid expecting to keep it 3 years or so, but then lockdown kicked in and I ended up working from home. I've now had it 4 years and probably only done 15k or so miles.

Throughout ownership of 5 Hondas, aside of routine servicing, I've had to change 1 ABS sensor and an idle air valve, which I think is pretty amazing reliability over what must be getting on for 20 years. I did also break a cambelt, but that was due to being stupid and accepting that because they were a well off middle-aged man, the seller was being genuine when they claimed it had been changed. After strip down, it was glaringly obvious it was the original belt and had done 90k miles, but fortunately I got away with just a belt change and no major damage.

[oldgregg]

The 1.8 was great when on song, but it needed to be worked fairly hard to be in that sweet spot.

The thing with the R18 engine was that it was designed to be economical but with decent power, so it needs the usual 'drop a gear or two, foot to the carpet' treatment. Although it technically has VTEC, it's SOHC and doesn't give anywhere near the kick that a Type R does.

Although you still get decent MPG, the 1.8 is a bit tiring compared to a turbo car where the torque is available nice and low down. It's still very economical for a 1.8 though, even when driven hard.

I know a lot of people swear by the 1.6 diesel because of the 300nm it gives without a remap, and it's pretty conservatively mapped (as you'd expect from Honda) so many people do up them to 150hp and over 400Nm and that makes quite a nippy car.

On the other end of the scale, I've seen those with a more sedate driving style posting up pics of 80+ mpg out of the 1.6 diesel. It's a very good engine, coupled with (in the 9th gen) a very aerodynamic body.

[dom]

47 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

On the other end of the scale, I've seen those with a more sedate driving style posting up pics of 80+ mpg out of the 1.6 diesel.

My last car was a 2.2 iDTEC Accord. It did 50+ mpg all the time and I could manage 70+ mpg on long run. The Civic averages 61mpg pretty consistently, so I expected to be up around 80mpg on a run, but actually found the exact opposite. On the run up the A11 to Norfolk, I struggle to match the usual mileage. Initially, I thought it was just me. I used to drive the Norwich-Cambridge route twice weekly, so know it like the back of my hand and don't tend to hang around, but even driving sensibly, I can't get much more out of it.

I still miss proper VTEC. The thing which first prompted me to buy a Honda was collecting a Prelude from a customer. On the short drive back, the handling was just millimetre perfect, but what really sold me on it was the noise and sensation from the VTEC. As soon as I got back, I went looking for one and ended up with a 4th gen 2.2 VTEC JDM import Prelude. I've driven some pretty exotic stuff over the years, but still think the 4th gen is one of my favourite cars to drive.

I came close to buying a DC5 Integra on a few occasions. I think if I won the lottery, I'd have to have a DC5, an S2K and another 4th gen.

 

[oldgregg]

You'd need a lottery win! My mate has got an AP2 S2K and he's spent loads on it keeping the tinworm at bay.

Having said that basically there's nothing I like... The Fk8 Type R is actually getting sensible money now and in Sportline trim it doesn't look quite so ridiculous.

The current-gen FL5 model is also really good but I think the pricing is ludicrous given that it's essentially a reskinned Fk8.

[dom]

4 minutes ago, oldgregg said:

The Fk8 Type R is actually getting sensible money now and in Sportline trim it doesn't look quite so ridiculous.

I think the ridiculous looks are half the appeal. That's probably a side effect of growing up in the era when every teenage boy aspired to own a Countach.

[oldgregg]

They're getting a bit less mad pricewise.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309141977349?journey=FEATURED_LISTING_JOURNEY&sort=year-dsc&advertising-location=at_cars&aggregatedTrim=Type%20R%20GT&body-type=Hatchback&make=Honda&model=Civic&postcode=nr70hr&fromsra

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310253332834?journey=FEATURED_LISTING_JOURNEY&sort=year-dsc&advertising-location=at_cars&aggregatedTrim=Type%20R%20GT&body-type=Hatchback&make=Honda&model=Civic&postcode=nr70hr&fromsra

They were about £35K new, and at the peak of the silliness they were on dealers' forecourts for over 40K with way more than just delivery miles on. Pricing now seems to be much closer to what you'd expect to pay for a five year old car.

As it happens, Hilton Garage is a huge car supermarket near Derby and where my Kia came from...

[Bikertov]

1 hour ago, dom said:

I think the ridiculous looks are half the appeal. That's probably a side effect of growing up in the era when every teenage boy aspired to own a Countach.

When I was a lad, the go-to almost-realistic dream car was something like a Ford Sierra XR4i or Cosworth, 2.8i Capri or the 280 and Tickford variants, or even the RS200 if you could get one.

I had to settle for a 2.0L Ghia Capri in Oyster Gold, followed by an XR3i in Rosso Red

[dom]

I still remember vividly working late on a Rouse Sport Sierra Sapphire Cosworth 4x4 304R when a few of my mates came in to see me. We had two sites at work and drove cars between them, so I took my mates for a very rapid tour of Norwich inner ring road. I regularly drove Porsche 911s, big Mercedes, Audi Quattros, etc, but the Rouse Sport was in another league - so fast it actually left me shaking with adrenalin. Funniest part was a bloke in a Cortina assuming it must be a basic model with an RGA bodykit or similar to have me in my teens was driving it. I think I hit quite a few lateral G leaving him for dead round Halfords roundabout!

Ironically, I wasn't the only one to enjoy a joyride in it. It got stolen so many times (including use in at least one armed raid) the owner took to leaving it unlocked to reduce the damage it suffered each time. I managed to return it undamaged (but did once manage to write off an old Maxi by driving a customer's Golf GTI into the side of it). I'd imagine if it's still around the 304R is now a fairly valuable car.

My first proper car was a Ford - a little 1.3s Fiesta (basically a Supersport without the stickers), which I spent a fortune on. I ported and polished the head, had it over-bored, changed the carb, exhaust, etc and fitted tarmac rally spec suspension. It was a great little car and towards the end it did a good job sticking with 1.8 Golf GTIs, especially on winding coast roads. Unfortunately, it got shortened by a few inches when some idiot pulled out in front of me near Horstead Mill.

A couple of friends had Capris, including a 3.0s 4 speed which did about 8 to the gallon and a cammed 2.0S with twin 45 Dellortos which was great for drifting. I never really caught the Ford bug though and switched to German and Swedish stuff instead after the Fiesta got written off.

 

 

[grendel]

17 hours ago, annv said:

The trouble these days with diesel cars is they are so complicated to combat the emissions they have become more unreliable with more things to go wrong. When diesels where agriculture they had little to go wrong providing the fuel was clean. Now you need AdBlue plus the fuel plus a expensive exhaust system lots of add ones all to get the emissions down and a few more miles to the gallon plus a 0to 60 time that equals a petrol engine. I have all ways had a petrol car for private use. Diesels in boats are reliable as they are just basic no emission control or 0 to 60 rubbish. Petrol car is cheaper and more reliable on the whole than diesel and easier to repair and service. John

thats why I like my 2008 v50 2.0, last of the diesels before they went to additives to control the emissions ( the same year model latter half of the year had the small tank of additive that needed topping up every 70,000 miles, mine has a DPF but thats about it, does nearly 50mpg (best I have got was 49.8mpg) probably as fast 0-60 as petrol, but will kick out some smoke if you floor it like that.

[floydraser]

21 hours ago, annv said:

The trouble these days with diesel cars is they are so complicated to combat the emissions they have become more unreliable with more things to go wrong. When diesels where agriculture they had little to go wrong providing the fuel was clean. Now you need AdBlue plus the fuel plus a expensive exhaust system lots of add ones all to get the emissions down and a few more miles to the gallon plus a 0to 60 time that equals a petrol engine. I have all ways had a petrol car for private use. Diesels in boats are reliable as they are just basic no emission control or 0 to 60 rubbish. Petrol car is cheaper and more reliable on the whole than diesel and easier to repair and service. John

Probably with new diesels. My 2013 Volvo D5 has no additive or DPF and a service is oil and filters. My 2015 Corsa diesel has a DPF but service is still oil and filters. I know petrols don't have points to change but do spark plugs and ignition systems last forever now? 

[Mouldy]

4 hours ago, grendel said:

thats why I like my 2008 v50 2.0, last of the diesels before they went to additives to control the emissions ( the same year model latter half of the year had the small tank of additive that needed topping up every 70,000 miles, mine has a DPF but thats about it, does nearly 50mpg (best I have got was 49.8mpg) probably as fast 0-60 as petrol, but will kick out some smoke if you floor it like that.

Not strictly true.  My 2016 Skoda Octavia vRS TDi DSG doesn’t use AdBlue, but is ULEZ compliant with just a dpf in the exhaust.