Email Tim with your questions
I have a new Mondeo since Sept 1st, twice now the fuse for the cigarette
light where I plug my mobile phone charger has blown, I had same problem
with the previous model, my local garage ( FORD ) say that no fault found,
have you heard of anyone else with this problem
Thomas Hewitt, Manchester, UK
You’re certainly not alone, and it’s not your phone charger that is causing
it. Ford seem to have bought a mighty big batch of these and they have a
design flaw that can blow the fuse. There is a U-shaped heat sensitive
clip at the back of the socket which allows the cigar lighter to pop out
when it has heated up. The U-shaped clip lines up with gaps in the cylinder
of the lighter, which allow the arms of the clip to move out when the
charger or cigar lighter is pushed in. Sometimes there isn’t enough
clearance between the slot and the clip and they touch. The result is a
short circuit and a blown fuse.
I believe Ford has had numerous complaints from customers, and I expect they
will be modifying the design very soon, if they haven’t already. I am
surprised your dealer doesn’t know about it, I suspect there’s some
technical information they haven’t got round to reading yet. I suggest you
let the dealer know that you are aware that this is a known problem and ask
them to let you know when Ford have the solution to the problem. Then
modified or improved parts should be fitted under warranty. In the
meantime, be careful how you fit the charger connection into the socket -
make sure it goes in 'square' and is not inserted at an angle. There is no
danger of fire – the fuse blows to protect against that – but it would be a
good idea to plug your charger in before you connect it to the phone each
time, just to be on the safe side.
I’m having starting problems on my 316 sprinter van, hot or cold, it just
takes a lot of winding over before it starts. glow plugs are fine, as are
the injectors.
Carl Rimmer, Southport, UK
A few possibilities for this one. There have been low fuel pressure problems
on Sprinters. One cause can be air entering the fuel system through a
slightly loose union on the fuel pipe. The system is self-bleeding, you
simply crank the engine and the air works its way through the system and
escapes though a valve, but it does takes a while to bleed the air out. The
next possibilities are relevant if you have done quite a high mileage, or a
lot of town driving. If the high pressure pump is getting a bit worn, low
fuel pressure can result. And as with any diesel engine, high compression
is vital for easy starting, so engine wear can be a cause of endless
cranking before it bursts into life.
Finally, it’s worth checking the cranking speed. The various joints and
connections in the starter circuit can build up resistance after a while,
meaning that there’s less power available to the starter motor, so the
cranking speed drops a bit. Although it may sound healthy, even a slight
reduction in cranking speed can make it hard to get quite enough compression
for the fires to ignite. A good electrician will do a volt drop check on
the live and earth sides of the starter circuit and if there is a problem,
test each joint and terminal to find the culprit(s). How do you find a good
auto-electrician? Ask them to do a volt drop check on the starter circuit.
If they look at you blankly, go somewhere else. If they get a device with
two spikes out and poke it into the battery terminals, go somewhere else.
If they get a multimeter (smallish box with a dial or numbers on it and a
couple of cables with clips on the end), connect one cable to the battery
and the other one to the starter then ask you to crank the engine, stay
there – he or she knows their stuff!
Hi,
I have a 2001 BMW 530i Sport and recently had problems when my ABS &
traction control light comes on. When these lights come on my speedo and
mileometer stops working completely. I have taken it to a specialist
electronic garage where they have plugged it into "Autologic" - the BMW
electronic system and it showed that the ABS sensor was not working on the
left rear wheel. I have since had 2 new ABS sensors fitted, a new wheel
bearing and the electrics tested and the lights still come on! The lights
either come on whilst driving or stay on once I've started the car with no
common reason - what else could this fault lead to?
Nick Allen, London, UK
The short answer is that there’s a bad connection from the wheel sensor.
Since you’ve had two new ones, it’s not the wheel sensor itself or the wheel
bearing, but somewhere in the wiring between the sensor and the ABS and
traction control computers. The sensor has a long lead coming out of it
that ends in a plug which connects it into the loom. I would start at that
plug, since it’s fairly exposed to dirt and water, and workforward from
there. If you want to know why these things are all connected, click here…
A bit of explanation might help to start with. Both ABS and traction control
need to know how fast each wheel is turning, so speed sensors are fitted
near the hubs on all four wheels. Virtually all movement sensors involve a
magnet. Either the magnet moves and generates a small electric current, or
it’s interrupted by something turning. Either way, the sensor picks up
speed related electrical impulses caused by the magnet and sends them to the
computer that does all the rest. On your BMW, the wheel bearings are the
moving magnets, – that’s why they are so much more expensive than
conventional wheel bearings. However, the magnetic part of the bearing is
just a permanent magnet, and although the bearing can wear out in the same
way as any wheel bearing, it won’t simply lose its magnetism. It certainly
won’t lose its magnetism intermittently, so unless you had a lot of play in
it or a lot of rumbling noise, it seems a shame that someone put you to the
trouble and expense of replacing it.
The next bit of explanation, that you may know already, is that there is no
separate speed sensor for the speedometer. Until fairly recently, the
gearbox had a cable going to the back of the speedo, or there was a speed
sensor in the gearbox that sent a signal to the speedo. Nowadays all the
computers on a car share information, and since the ABS and traction control
computers are already measuring how fast the wheels are turning, they pass
that information to the speedo which converts it to a road speed. It all
makes for wonderfully clever technology operating on a minimum of sensors.
Until something goes wrong!
ABS and traction control swing into action if they sense that one wheel
suddenly starts to turn at a different speed from the others. If it spins
faster and the brakes aren’t on, it’s lost traction and traction control
kicks in; slower with the brakes on and it’s locking, so ABS comes to the
rescue. However, if one wheel suddenly doesn’t send a signal at all, the
electronics don’t know what to do, so all sorts of lights come on to tell
you that if you get into a skid, you’re on your own. Now, for older cars
with that primitive cable going to the speedo, it didn’t really matter. For
most driving in most conditions it’s very rare for either system to be
needed, so most of us would have simply carried on driving – albeit a little
more warily – until we had the opportunity to get things fixed. But now we
have clever systems that talk to one another, you lose the speedometer as
well - a pretty crucial piece of equipment on today’s camera strewn streets.
To make matters more annoying, it’s not an uncommon problem, or even an
unpredictable one. Because wheel sensors are out by the wheel they get
caked in salt in Winter, dust in Summer and drenched from puddles all year
round, so it’s not surprising to get the odd failure. Never mind, it’s all
progress!
Hi,
I have a 2000 W reg Chevy Blazer as imported by GM. It is my second and
they are great far cheaper to run than people think. However this one has an
annoying habit that even my excellent local garage cannot resolve.
It will not be left for more than 36 hours without the battery running
flat, once it is jumped or the batter charged it is OK again. The battery
and alternator are fine. We think it is the immobilizer draining the
battery. Any ideas it is worth spending a bit on as it only has 69K on the
clock
Thanks
John M Smith, Stafford, UK
You need to find out how much current is flowing out of the battery when you
think you have turned everything off. This really should be pretty basic
stuff for any garage, so I’m not sure whether “excellent” means that your
local garage is a nice guy, or that he’s competent. All he needs is an
ammeter connected to measure the current flowing from the battery. Then
lock the car as you would normally and look at the reading on the ammeter.
The alarm will drain a small amount, but this should be 0.1 amp or less,
usually around 0.06 amps. If it is more than this, the easiest way to
isolate the circuit causing the problem is to leave the ammeter in place and
remove the fuses one at a time. When you remove the fuse from the problem
circuit the reading will drop to 0.1 amps or below. Then do a bit of fault
finding on that circuit. If you have removed all the fuses and the current
is still draining the battery, the culprit could be one of the alternator
diodes, but then the alternator output would be much reduced. As I said,
this should be elementary stuff to a competent garage – ask yourself why you
think yours is excellent!
Dear Tim, I have a Skoda Octavia Estate 2 litre. It is Y reg and has only
done about 35,000 miles. It has proven very reliable in all regards, and
has a full service history, mostly with Skoda franchised dealers. In the
last 18 months, however, it has developed a high oil consumption. It needs
to get oil topped up every 3 months/ 300-500 miles. This is obviously
extraordinary. We have had it checked by a number of garages, including our
nearest Skoda garage, but they all claim to have fixed it, and then it needs
more oil after 3 months. The engine was stripped down at the last service
and the piston rings have been replaced. I now think I have to get rid of
what is otherwise an excellent car, just because nobody can find the cause
of high oil consumption. Do you have any suggestions?
Many thanks,
Name and address withheld
I think the clue here is the mileage you do. 300-500 miles in 3 months is
pretty low – about 25 – 40 miles a week – and I suspect that might include a
lot of short journeys with a cold engine. When the engine is cold the
clearance between the pistons and cylinder walls is greater and more oil
will be burned until the engine warms and the pistons expand to close the
gap. When the car is fairly new, everything is quite tight and you wouldn’t
notice extra oil consumption. As things wear, the consumption becomes much
more noticeable, and short journeys certainly speed up engine wear. You say
that the oil needs to be topped up, which implies that it’s near the low
mark on the dipstick. Typically the difference between high and low marks
is around half a litre, which is not excessive for lots of short journeys in
three months. I really don’t think you have a serious problem, just an
unusually low mileage.
Have there been any reports on defective ford turbo diesels? The turbo in
my ford mondeo glx 2.0 has packed in after 37,000 miles.
Patrick Love, Carryduff, Northern Ireland
Although there are tales of failed Mondeo turbochargers, Ford have not
released any technical bulletins suggesting a particular problem. However,
with proper maintenance a turbo should last as long as the engine. As yours
has failed at such a low mileage, ask your dealer to see if he can get some
goodwill from Ford. If you have a good service history, with all oil
changes at the right time, you should have a strong case.
Turbochargers do need a bit more TLC than a basic engine and there are a lot
of failing units on cars old and new that could have spun on happily with a
bit of understanding and consideration. And that’s not just from owners or
garages. A turbocharger is a very simple machine, in essence, simply a rod
with a fan fixed on each end. One fan gets spun around by the exhaust gases
as they come out of the engine, which makes the other one blow extra air
into the other end of the engine. More air going in means you can burn more
fuel and if you burn more fuel you get more power out. The problems arise
because turbochargers operate in just about the most hostile environment
this side of a Top Gear tent at a Greenpeace convention. Scorchingly hot
exhaust gases heat one end to almost red heat, while an inch or so away, the
other end sits in cold air. The turbo spins at enormous speeds as well –
20,000 rpm is quite normal – so the shaft has to be well lubricated to keep
it spinning freely, and the slightest imbalance will make it shake itself
apart.
So, what keeps all these extremes from blowing it apart after just a few
seconds? A good dose of clean, high performance lubricating oil. Engine
oil is pumped up to the bearings in copious quantities, to keep the shaft
spinning freely, and to carry away a lot of the heat. The oil must be clean
and it must have all the additives that keep it flowing freely. A bit of
dirt and the bearing will be scratched, reducing the surface area. Some
sludge building up and the oil won’t drain away fast enough and force its
way through the seals into the engine, producing vast clouds of smoke. A
breakdown of the additives that keep the oil forming a protective film at
extreme temperatures, and the bearing will melt in the blink of an eye. So,
clean, good quality oil is a must, and, simple things that they are, clean,
good quality oil is all that turbo chargers ask. If they get it, they’ll go
on more or less forever.
I mentioned that the manufacturers don’t help with the TLC. That’s because
they are rather obsessive about minimising the disruption to our lives
caused by taking the car to be serviced. 12,000 miles is a normal service
interval these days, and some cars are intended to go for 20,000 miles
before a technician lifts the bonnet and looks to see if there’s any damage.
Now, 12,000 miles is half way round the world. Even if you average 50 mph
it will take 600 hours of non-stop driving. In 600 hours, that little turbo
shaft, red hot at one end, ice cold at the other, will have spun round about
72 million times. That’s an awful lot of spinning before anyone looks in to
see if everything’s OK. Apart from quite long service intervals, not every
manufacturer recommends the use of flushing oil at an oil change. This is a
shame because dirty oil starts to get thick and form a sludge, which builds
up in important small oil passages – like the feed passages and drain holes
for the turbo bearings. Sludging is even worse when oil gets very hot, as
it does when it tries to cool a turbocharger. You end up with the engine
equivalent of high cholesterol and clogged arteries.
There are lots of very long lived turbo chargers, and most of them have one
thing in common. The engine oil and filter are changed religiously at no
more than 6,000 miles and the oil system is flushed at every oil change. It
takes half an hour and costs £20 - £30. So, be nice to your turbo, keep its
arteries unclogged and its oil clean. In return, it’ll blow sweetly for as
long as you want.
At what milage/age should the cam belt be changed on a Rover 75 1.8
Classic, 51 Reg?
Mike Powell, Cambridge, UK
90,000 miles or six years – whichever occurs first. If it hasn’t been done
yet, it’s due to be changed now. Repair time is 2.6 hours, so make sure the
garage knows that you know that. They should tell you that the idler needs
to be changed as well – they’re not trying to rip you off, it’s good
practice, so agree to it. It costs a few tens of pounds, but no extra time
to change and you’re facing a bill of several hundred pounds as a minimum if
it goes bang.
A while ago, I didn't do much travelling and therefore haven’t had much use
for UK road atlases. I am now travelling a lot more than I used to and would
like to know what you believe are the best atlases at the moment.
Thank you for your help.
Adrian Hilliard, London, UK
How refreshing to find someone else who wants a map book! If your nearest and
dearest decide that their search for a Christmas present is over because you
obviously need a Sat Nav, please carry on and get the map book as well.
You’ll thank me when the patient sounding lady in the satellite wants to
send you down an obscure farm track, when she decides that the quickest way
anywhere is round the M25, or when someone decides that their need is
greater than yours and helps themselves to it.
The maps are much of a muchness nowadays provided you get a sensible scale – I
find 3 miles to an inch fine for general navigation and if you need it, buy
a 1 ½ inch to the mile book for a particular area. Other than that my main
criterion for a good useable road atlas is that it must be spiral bound.
That way you can have it open at the page you want and it stays open at it,
and of course it stays just one page big. Paper cover atlases simply don’t
stay where you open them, and they certainly won’t stay folded cover to
cover, so they occupy twice the space. You always seem to be able to pick
up AA Big Road Atlases for a fraction of the cover price in discount book
stores and the like, and they’re OK, but personally I find they are so big,
they’re awkward to use, and they’re not spiral bound. Beware of the year on
the cover as well. I never understood why comic annuals always had the next
year’s date on them and I don’t understand why an Atlas sold in mid 2007 is
labelled “2008”. Anyway, if you want something with all the latest twists,
turns and roundabouts, you probably need to look for a “2009” Atlas now. On
the other hand, if you can get a “2008” or even “2007” decent atlas for a
couple of quid, well, thanks to the government policy of not building any
new roads, they’re not going to be much out of date. Of course, most now
have speed camera sites marked, which I suppose is handy if you’re thinking
of speeding – my advice is stick to the speed limit and you never need to
worry where the cameras are. If the fancy takes you, Collin’s do a “Green”
Atlas, which apparently has thirty odd pages of information about why you
should really be catching a bus, but I’m not sure that the maps are any
different. Maybe the paper’s recycled. Happy motoring.
I have a factory fitted radio cassette Toyota Yaris which is built into the
dashboard. however, i want to replace with non factory fitted cd radio. is
this possible
Thanks
John Woodruff, Warrington, UK
Yes it is, but you may need to buy the plate to convert the dashboard to take
your new unit, and a wiring loom converter so that you can connect the
Toyota wiring to the new unit. It really is worth getting these, otherwise
you’ll have a mass of untidy wires, crackly connections and a load of
problems. Try this
company.
The Service Indicator Lights in my 1998 BMW 318i E36 do not come on when I
turn the ignition to start the car. And seem to be off permantley since I
bought the car about a year ago. Could the fault be bulb failure or is it
simply disconnected?
Rory O’Shea, Cork Ireland
Oh dear! I strongly suspect that someone has disconnected it. If you have
strong nerves, take it to a BMW dealer and ask then to reconnect it, but
once it’s working you may well find that you have more information than you
really wanted.
