nta16

Bi-directional scanners are the ones to have as you can test things without taking things apart or getting your hands dirty, always a big plus to me, and that means two ends leaving the middle to check. My neighbour has one that he's transferred to an old laptop which is very useful as his eyesight is even worse than mine and the larger screen is much better than the actual unit size and so much better than a phone screen size, even the larger phone. As with most things, the scan tools are much lower priced in the USA than UK, and I guess Europe, my neighbour got his at a lower price as it was a model that was superseded but it was still many hundreds of pounds because of the professional features on it, but the (European) software only goes back to 2004. Your chipper possibly did notice the fuel consumption but again I doubt that would have left him to concluded the coolant, it must be an unusual occurrence. I do know many years ago a friend of my wife's was they need to antifreeze as there was only water in the system and the water was drained but misunderstanding 100% added. I was helping a friend with a girl friend's car that showed signs of a previous problem because there were still dried residue spots of rusty water but the clear plastic reservoir showed very clean coolant to level. Looking in the radiator it was half empty, turned out the hose from the reservoir was blocked solid with rust bits thrown up previously but just lifting the bonnet and looking it appeared the coolant was so clear and at level.

But not V2000.

As it's from the top it would only include and floating debris, if you saved it in that cup and left it to settle it might show stuff on the bottom of the cup. A photo only shows very little but it does not seem to look too bad to me. I do not know how colour-fast the dye is that is added. What is the consistency/viscosity like compared to new fresh oil. If you still have that oil in the cup I would put a drop from the top of it and carefully get a drop from the bottom of the cup and put both on to a clean bit of white kitchen towel or similar and see what they look like, especially compared to a drop of fresh. Again this is only oil from the top, more interesting would be any from further inside the system but all things considered things do not seem to look too bad at the moment and even promising.

Thoughts. What makes you say the engine is still running a little too cold, are you going by the dash gauge reading, the heat in the coolant hoses and radiator, or other. More info helps, how long has it been since you fitted the sensor, have you used the vehicle much since, did you do anything else when fitting the sensor. What's your history with the vehicle, what servicing and maintenance has been done before or since this problem arose, apart from the sensor what other work or new parts have been recently fitted or before the problem started. Do you fit a good quality sensor or just go with what was low priced.

Sounds like laziness on the part of the mechanics and just trying fitting parts at your expense. Also as your car is 'chipped' it might be they do not want to deal with it in which case they should be honest and say so. You must realise a lot of chipped cars are done badly and to cars that have not been sorted to a good running order before being chipped but again the mechanic should be honest and say they do not want to work on the car, there are two people to every repair. With all the technology nowadays often basics can be overlooked particularly by the lazy mechanics, somebody who really knows what they are doing will always start at the very basics despite what they are told others have done or found but the basics are not flashy or high level or sexy or always involve impressive manly tools so do not appeal to all egos. It may be if the garages have a good scan tool that it may not go back as far as your car although the programs can be bought they may not be worth the costs if they see so few of your model and year plus the information from them might be limited and better assessed using other types of diagnostics. The cheaper scan tools seem to be little more than basic readers on the more modern cars. I think unless by accident discovering the coolant strength would not have been early given the symptoms but should have been checked and found at some point, taking the cap off I would have thought the look and even perhaps smell might have warranted investigation. But it is now all in the past and sorted.

Regardless of tread depth left tyres that have been on a vehicle a long time that does little mileage and has lots of periods of inactivity may not handle as well as they look. Particularly summer tyres now it is cold. As with looking at the front for the bushes possibly front tyres (possibly in combination with other tired parts like front bushes) ETA: I was typing this as you posted that the front bushes look bad - so possibly not tyres too but I would look at the date on them if you don't know when they were fitted especially if it has been low mileage and a lot of periods of non-use.

To be fair it would not be something to normally consider but a quick, easy test on the coolant would have at least highlighted the coolant was over strength. Keeping records is fair enough as long as it does not distract you from your driving - as taking photos would, you would be in trouble for doing that over here. Well done on sorting it all though.

@Mikerp whilst I was checking my wife's 2015 just now I actually remembered to check. Each of the four doors has the black rubber grommets, they have a partial indent slot in them and if you look hard enough a lock symbol on them. I have previously checked the rear doors when rum4mo previously pointed this out but I didn't bother on the front doors. Just now I didn't expect there would be one on the driver's door as that has the hidden barrel lock on the outside but I didn't remove the grommet so don't know if there's the same behind there as with the other three doors. IIRC behind the grommet is a white-ish bit of plastic with a slotted indent that the keybblade goes into.

A judder at idle might (or might not) be effected or exasperated by other items and systems cutting in and out on the car so have you tried the free, quick and easy battery disconnect and systems discharge as detailed in those two videos,. That is good - but car services now often mean very little as they often only cover really little more than changing the engine oil and filter with the rest as mainly visual checks. I have no idea as I do not have the information you have, your car may well be one that has had a full and proper timely service and maintenance on the whole car, proof of that may be lots of paper for lots of servicing and maintenance with your car's details on, stamps in books tend to tell very little. Your car seems to be be in very reasonable condition and has lasted about 170,000 miles so that says something. Does your servicing information include when things were done like the brake fluid changes, (tyre changes, though not relevant other than current set), brakes, coolant change, (previous spark plugs), air filters, cabin filters, air-con work, (battery, if changed, though not that relevant other than current one) and other information. How long have you owned the car, did you have the spare plugs fitted two years ago?

Replacing the spark plugs is inexpensive - but always buy good quality - so perhaps worth doing if only so that you know for sure than new plugs have been fitted and when and that they are the correct type in good condition. But it is no good just guessing at what might be wrong, anyone here can make suggestions but those can only be based on the information you give and even then only you are seeing and experiencing the car. As I put if the car is a fairly recent purchase then a good start is always a service or service check at least of the whole car. For the engine checking or changing things like the engine oil and filter, air filter, spark plugs is a good base. With modern cars a (good level of) scan tool is often really need to point to where the start of the diagnosis should start but often that is just the start. If the scan tool gives an error code(s) to a part you need to interpret this information as it does not necessary mean that the part needs changing and that will resolve the issue. Sometimes it may be that simple but often it is not. Once you have removed the current spark plugs a (clear hi-res) photo of their condition may (or may not) be helpful but obviously driving the car with the new spark plugs will given you more information. If you are lucky that might be the solution, fingers crossed for you, good luck. No sorry I do not but lots of cars can have judders for lots of reasons, many other posters here will know of common issues for your model and engine, or just generally.

D.FYLAKTOS, I am with the possibility of the coolant mixture ratio you had perhaps causing an issue but just to be clear the ECU work you had done was this before, after or at the same time of changing the coolant mixture ratio by the water delusion and what where the readings during all of this? Also was the TC-6 changed / altered / recalibrated during the time of ECU work and/or coolant delusion?

Uhm, definitely a bit of brain fog yesterday, I wonder if I have got Covid coming on - for the last few decades! Lost in (non) conversion rather than translation. ETA: BTW I meant my day on the M6 and not D.FYLAKTOS trip, I've edited in an asterisk to that post. Being taught as a youngster in feet and inches then meters and decimeters (never see them around now) then the next year back to the imperialist system learning about things like chains and furlongs as little Britain rails against the Europeans, truly Groundhog Day. I was thinking 21+°C but typed as 70(+°F). I doubted the coolant would make a difference but when the antifreeze ratio was given and that the coolant was a cocktail perhaps the coolant did have some effect, unless anyone fancies mixing up that cocktail and trying it again I think it might be a possibility unless any other changes took place at the same time.

I think because you are dealing with a smaller number like 6.8 (l/100km) that you might might notice the difference more than here in the UK. Going from 6.8 to 6.9 stands out more than the UK equivalent of 41.54 (mpg) to 40.94, we would just see both as 41 or "over 40 mpg" and not count the difference. Doing 276 miles of the type of driving you put I would never expect 41mpg but if challenged to do a fuel economy run only over the trip I would probably do very well until going up the mountain roads which I love to attack but I am not keen on the decent. roottoot will understand this more, a few years back I travelled for 100 miles (160 km) at 50 mph (80 km) on the M6 motorway during the day* to do a fuel economy check on the car I have now (roof down) and check carbs and tuning settings, confirmed as previously at 50 mpg (5.65). My wife begged me to give it up and go faster as we still had a good few miles to go but I stuck with, and we overtook 10 or 11 vehicles. Later friends in a Toyota Supra and Honda S2000 joined us on the M6 and we followed the S2000 (roofs off/down) and at Teabay petrol station refill stop I worked out 25 mpg (11.3) following the Honda. ETA: * the ambient temperate IIRC was about 70+C 70+F, a nice sunny dry day at end of April or start of May.

No, I was not thinking of in the power steering, engine perhaps, the power steering fluid boat has sailed and now almosted docked.

Yes of course, sorry another brain-fart, as my wife often says, "no turn the other left" !! Sometimes I mix up opposites, if I had a gun to my head 99 times out of 100 I'd get those wrong, and if I try to think of the opposite as incorrect I'm totally lost as to which is correct no wonder it seemed confusing but I ought to know with tyre sizes as on the present car I've one size over, then under, then several on spec and back to over because of the third -world roads round our way despite our party, leader, Government loyal local MP supposedly getting the area extra money for road repairs. poor fills that the company can come back and and recharge for every few years.

You have obviously had the luxury of the availability of such equipment, I once borrowed a portable compressor, and that was another 'car story'. More wealth and extravagance. 😄 I like my clothes to be 'comfortable' so they are generally well worn (out) I was going to use one of my old t-shirts for rags because it ripped at the back as I took it off over my head but when I looked at it it was too worn thin for usable use as a rag. (Comments about Four Yorkshiremen may follow from others.) Given the explicit detail not to mix and your circumstances I can understand your decision, it was more of a nudge for future decisions and actions regarding good quality (synthetic) oils. 😄 As you would test for shorter term benefits and perhaps appreciate the protective and prevention benefits as well as the medium and longer term benefits with little additional monetary cost of its use and the potential protective and prevention savings in costs of time, hassle and money. You already do a lot more than the vast majority of car owners otherwise you would not have the car so long and it is doubtful it would still be around and used so regularly. I can understand that you do not want to let slip now as it gets more important to do the right thing for the car's use and longevity. I am used to regularly using (not so much now) and maintaining cars older and twice as old as yours for about 30 years now, and like you like, when the suitable opportunities allow, to drive in a spirited manner so I do have some experience if not that much knowledge. Here is a video my neighbour quickly made on very cheap equipment at short notice because of the Covid situation, unusually I had cleaned the outside, my car lives outside all the time, but not the inside or engine bay, the exterior cellulose paint is nowhere near as good as it even appears in the video. As an experiment I turned on the auto-generated (English) subtitles to see if they work and they do but can not cope fully with my neighbour's local accent (which is not as strong as mine) and it misses out the car's model name as the word is now considered an offensive term and there is no laughter just some music. How it all would be in translation would be amusing but the Greek translation subtitles were just symbols to me. - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GWowHiIktA

I suspect some/many in this neck of the woods are traditionalist and stick with full mineral engine and gearbox oils. Having had "classics" as dailies for about 30 years and used synthetics oils, in the engines at least, for just about all that time I know the resistance and non-acceptance of the benefits of (good quality) synthetic (engine) oils. @D.FYLAKTOS Also as Carlston put the 3.1% is a difference so depending on the accuracy of the mileage (kiloage) recording equipment in the car that might even be (partially) countering an existing under reading and really although the tyre calculators go to a decimal place it might be being too precise for your needs. I am confused but I might have missed something, (ETA: my brain-fart explained to me now) the 3.1% difference from 175/60r14 to175/65r14 is an over reading so you would be doing the oil changes a tiny bit sooner rather than a tiny bit later. Not that either way would matter as changing the oils at a certain distance travelled is more about giving a regime to the owner/user rather than when is optimal, it may be later or a lot later than optimal or less likely but depending on the oil used and circumstances too soon. We do not run our vehicles in strict motor laboratory conditions, in the real world the variables are enormous and numerous. If you really wanted to know when to change the oils you would have to send samples off for analysis which you can do as an ordinary motorist but the cost of doing tests would probably make it more worth while just to change the oil (& filter). I think garages can get test papers and do your their own analysis. Would you believe it, and I did not know but a quick Google search took me to Opie Oils and they use Millers Oils! (UK only) - https://www.opieoils.co.uk/c-4933-oil-analysis-kits.aspx Kit Instructions.pdf As for your fuel consumption calculations it is just another variable that has to be accepted, little difference to a change of tyres anyway as you could go from high grip and high rolling resistance tyres to low grip and low resistance and other changes and variations in the vehicle, driving, environment, etc.. You note the change and start a new set of figures for the comparison grouping. You can not have high levels of precision in the real world, that is why even when VW and others are not cheating their vehicle fuel consumption figures they are still conducted under ridiculously precise conditions compared to real world driving. As the fashion for oversized wheels and tyres goes back so far now the tyres available for old size wheels seems to be reducing even more, particularly if you want a more sporting style of tyre, other recent manufacturing and supply issues have added further to this. I wonder if the range of available tyres in the sizes we want or need may remain reduced in the future for other reasons too.

I knew there was something I forgot! And it was rum4mo that told me, I checked at least one door and found the small softish rubber cover, I think it had a symbol on it too. @Mikerp this is something that needs to be taken into account, I thought I'd left a post about this but must have decided not to, you need to find if it's your driver's or passenger's door that has the hidden door lock where you remove the cover to expose it and open the door with the keyblade (that might terrify the youngsters), all details in the Driver' s Handbook. The thing is you need to be able to get to this door when you return so if it's the passenger side it's no good parking that side hard against a wall and you also need to allow for another vehicle parking and not leaving enough space. And you need to check and perhaps practice getting the bonnet release handle to operate if you can't open the passenger door, apparently it is possible but remember the handle is plastic. I would make sure the cable and bonnet catch are clean and lubricated so they operate as easily as possible without extra resistance.

I was expecting as much but only really know Mann and Mahle, I've made a note of the other two, thanks.

The compressed air is only for bench cleaning really. I do not have compressed air but you can buy it in small cans (called air duster) for blow out computers, keyboards and the like, or you could do what I do use a hairdryer set to cold or use a narrow hose or tube and use lung power, careful of spittle and no passing out with hyperventilation. "Lint-free" cleaning cloths are cheap and more consistent than rags. If you're just cleaning the outside and inside of a reservoir then the cloth/rag needs to be as lint free as possible, old microfibre cloths might be good. If you wrap them around the end of a thin stick and secure them you have a swab. If it is just the reservoir and the rags/cloths are "lint-free" to a good extent then yes the first few you use could be dry. If using some sort of cleaner you want to make sure it has fully dried or evaporated out. If you have plenty of new oil left after your procedure you could drive the car and the next day remove and replace some of the new oil but remember to keep some back in case a top up is needed. If you have enough left after that you could repeat removing and replacing again another time after driving the car more. Personally I think you missed an opportunity to see if you could decrease your fuel consumption a tiny bit from cold starts as synthetic oils generally flow better when cold than mineral which also helps the power steering components to operate more efficiently quicker, reducing wear and engine power needed. Also synthetic handles heat better, pressure brings heat, The same type of things apply to the engine oils too of course. See this page and all the yellow boxes links at the bottom of that page including 'Flushing System' and 'Bleeding System'. - https://powerracksdirect.co.uk/what-fluid-to-use/ Good luck.

If the battery is well charged before and it's a good run to Heathrow I think you might be fine but I'm not sure, I should be able to do the maths (with the help of a calculator) but with my memory and the evil VW programming I've no idea what sleeps when and for how long. I could leave my car literally months over winter as no electric will be running unless there's a fault so just normal battery discharge, all locks are mechanical only, my previous version of the model didn't even have a boot or interior light. One thing I noticed in the Driver's Handbook was the alarm siren is only good for 5 years! Its own battery I suppose but don't know I must ask if this is true and what you're supposed to do about it if it is true, personally I'd do without all car alarms.

I'm glad you put about both, I thought you were leaving it at an airport (did you post elsewhere) ETA: found it) that is why I didn't reply as I couldn't remember if you could lock the car and disconnect the battery. I'm not sure how you'd cheat the bonnet opening and alarm and then you'd have to be sure to be able to get at the hidden front door lock on your return, I have a feeling some of this might have been covered in other threads but I can't remember and it's too cold to go outside and test out on my wife's car.

Mike, as no one else has replied. The only settings that will be lost AFAIK are the time of day clock. If you have left an electric window down that needs resetting but is very easy, all details are in the Operating Instructions booklet. No the battery will not need recoding again as it is the same battery. Personally I like to also synchronise BOTH remote keyfobs (belt, braces, bit of string and chewing gum assurance) again very easy to do, all details are in the Operating Instructions booklet, but I may well be totally alone in doing this as it's not listed in any instructions. I think you might have seen before me putting about alternating the use of keyfob remotes (and with key blades) to even out batteries. remote, blades and locks and so that you know that the "spare key" works and where it is.. I know someone (BigEjit) put in another thread how long the battery should last connected with car unused but can't remember the details. If you disconnect the battery, unless I've forgotten something, the car will be unlocked.

That can be the problem with some (many) scan tools but many users don't realise this and there can be stored codes that some think they have deleted (or wotever the correct term is).

(deleted as link didn't work, I was wrong about it) But agree fully with buying good OEM quality parts for things like this, buying cheap can be very expensive in the long, medium and even short run.