cmcm789

Mine did this last year, and after a lot of searching on here (thanks for the advice) i managed to remove the boot cover and re-attach the hose. I also took the time to remove and wash out the jets while i was at it. I had problems replacing the boot cover. Being 6ft 2in and trying to re-attach it myself caused a lot of headaches and scraped knuckles. I made the mistake of not taking the metal clips off the cover and placing on the boot first, so the lid was never going to go back on like this. After several weeks and several attempts and give-ups, i finally got it back on single handed by taking the clips of the panel first.... . But guess what, two weeks ago no water...... It can sit like that for another few weeks before i can be bothered attempting the refit again.

As it says, new battery went in on Saturday and the fuel consumption from the multi trip is much lower than it was. I have a tuning box which over estimates the efficiency anyway, but before it was averaging (on the long-term trip) about 58mpg. Now i can't get it above 50? I have looked through a few threads and i see people talk about intelligent learning in terms of the ecu. I also read that if you disconnect the battery for about 5 mins then all setting will reset and your car will be starting from scratch. Mine was only off for maybe a minute, but all the settings went in that time, i.e. one touch window, clock, radio (aftermarket) and all trip info. Would this be enough time to reset the intelligent learning (if there is such a thing). The one touch windows have come back on since. Can anyone explain if there is such a thing as intelligent learning, and if so, if and when my fuel consumption figures will increase. Thanks JD

Got my battery tested at Halfords before i bought the new one. I haven't fitted the battery yet, but from what i could see in the dark when halfords were testing the old battery, it was an Exide with 650mAmp rating. Couldn't see any more than that as it was still in place. The one which was in the car was tested and the start up capacity was reading 38% with the text below that saying "Battery Unserviceable":( Have been lucky as it's been mild the past three days, so the car has started (just about at 4 degrees). Will get some daylight tomorrow (and lots of rain by the looks of it) and change the battery. JD

I can recommend Photobox for canvas prints. i recently ordered a 400x400mm and was very pleased with the quality. Also, because i have ordered a few snaps through them in the past and have registered, i was able to make use of an offer at the time:)

Personally i think there is very little seperating any of the currently available entry level cameras from the most popular manufacturers such as Nikon, Canon, Sony etc. For what you are looking for, long shutter speed, quick fps etc they all cover. Its probably only personal preference which would sway you in a single direction. Things like screen size, live view, movie function, mega pixels and inbuilt image stabilisation will vary. I have a reconditioned 350D and sometimes i would look at the newer models, but then i catch myself on, because as far as i am concerned for someone with my limited ability, it doesn't matter if i have a £1000 camera or a £300 camera, i am the limiting factor. I would say though, if you have the choice of a £350 reconditioned 450D from the Canon outlet centre (ebay) or a £500 new 500D, i would advise going for the 450D and spending the extra money on some quality lenses. A cheap camera (my 350D) with an expensive lens will take a much better quality photo than an expensive camera with a crappy lens. And even i can tell the difference. I have never been disatisfied with my camera, but i have been with the lens.

Yes i have a multimeter. Have just ordered the Bosch Silver from Halfords.... £109!!!!!! oh well, it's only money:O. Now i have to worry about not losing nuts etc when fitting it in the dark tonight. Halfords fitting seems to end when there is any potential of buggering up immobilisers etc (so the girl on the phone told me). That must rule out about 99.9 % of cars now on the roads. Thanks all for the quick replies.

I replaced the original battery on my 110tdi when the car was about 4 years old. As far as i can remember the one i replaced it with was a pretty cheap one, and now two years later its dead. How long should you generally get out of a car battery? Can i assume that the battery has expired and the cold (had to jump start this morning) has shown that its done, and not a fault of an alternator? Have been advised to buy a heavy duty replacement, but not sure what in technical terms heavy duty means? is it the voltage rating or what should i be looking for? Thanks JD

That's the problem, it was, and a reputable one at that. Thanks for the prompt replies. JD

Had a fulls service yesterday and noticed the glove box not fitting as well as it had, and the carpet below it left lose. I will refit the glovebox and tidy up the carpet myself (not a big issue), but i am curious as to why the glovebox was remoeved in the first place.:confused::confused: Anyone know what's behind it that needs attention during the big service?? JD

Nothing clever or expensive, but over the past few months, my average fuel consumption has dropped from 53mpg to 59mpg (long term test - avg over 1,600 miles). Basically about 2 months ago i had a 1.4TDI Polo as a courtesy car for a few days. I was appalled by the lack of lift and torque out of this diesel engine. Accelerating from 2,000rpm was rougher than my Octy from 1,000 rpm. I got used to the lack of power and having to rev high, which made me appreciate the pull from the Octy more. When i got back into my own car i decided to conciously drive at lower revs where possible. My daily commute is 28miles round trip into the centre of Belfast. I am always late and therefore end up in tail backs on the motorway from about 4 miles out of the city. Then when i leave the Motorway i have about 1.5miles of stop start traffic light traffic. My weekend mileage is somewhat better (countryside), usually with a few short drives (to the takeaway etc) and some longer runs to see family (50ml round trip). I have a tuning box, and still give the car the odd blast when on my own (short runs), this hasn't changed:D. Anyway, now in towns/ cities etc i only let the car get to about 1,500rpm (1,750rpm if on a hill) before selecting the next gear then it drops back to about 1,100rpm. I don't feather the accelerator, but keep my foot firm and get the car up to speed probably as quickly as i would have previously. The nice thing is that i now realise the car pulls fantastically well from 1,000rpm and is smooth with it. At proper road speed (50mph+) i drive as normal and overtake as normal. I haven't made a sacrifice in speed or smoothness, and have not altered anything other than my town/city drive style. The tuning box does over exaggerate mpg (so i'm told), but this is true all the time, so the 10% increase in mpg is (as far as i'm concerned) accurate. If you're still awake, thanks for reading. I was so chuffed when i saw the long term mpg on the computer this morning (while changing from miles left in tank) that i had to proclaim my good news. JD

Not always the case. I had a £400 digital Hopa tuning module (German make, dogs b***s) in my MK3 TDI Golf which was not noticebly smoother than the £60 ebay resitor in a box i have in my 110 TDI Octy now. Old golf did 135k before i sold it with no issues (80k with box on), Octy is at 80k (last 60k with box). If i can remember the name of the one i have i will post it, but remember, the TDI and PD engines require completely different boxes (not sure exactly what you have), which does impact on the cost. JD:thumbup:

Bowders All the metal clips were retained on the plastic cover. Didn't realise they weren't meant to be, maybe this will make things easier:O Ken Oneill Good simple logic (which i wouldn't have thought of) Cheers:thumbup:

Darren, this is a minefield question. The range of entry level DSLRs at the moment is extensive to say the least, and everyone will have an opinion. I was in as imilar position a couple of years ago and due to budget i went for a reconditioned Canon 350D. Can't say i have any complaints at all. Depending on your budget, you could get a number of entry level cameras with the kit lens or possibly 2 lenses. But, be warned, depending on the IQ and sharpness/ fringing/ vignetting etc etc, you may want to upgrade the lens straight away. Also, i am sure you will want a similar zoom range to what you have currently, so again, more cost on additional lenses. if i were you i would start buying some camera mags. I found that i based my decision on which camera to go for from a very good review of DSLRs in WHICH Camera magazine. I would highly recomend you start looking at them in your local newsagents. I am glad you mentioned dpreview, as i found it very helpful, although to be honest, it's unlikely you will see any entry level DSLR now which isn't "Highly Recomended". It would be benificial to register on AVforums and check out their photograpy forums. you will find people asking the same questions about their first DSLR almost Daily. However, have an idea of what exactly you want the camera for (sports/ low light/ concerts/ family shots/ wide angle or zoom etc) and specify this in your post otherwise you won't get as many replies. P.S. i bought my 350D for £210 with Kit lens. I have since spent the same on 2 more lenses (portrait lens and zoom lens) and am considering spending another £200+ on replacing the crap kit lens, so think carefully..... Hope this has been helpful. JD

Just had the boot cover off, and as expected the pipe was disconnected at the rear of the motor, no wonder my boot was wet:O I also removed the jets and washed with warm water/soap as suggested. After some hoking about with a pin and some adjustments, both jets are working perfectly:thumbup: Unfortunately as i was on my own, i have been unable to refit the cover:( I just give up and threw it in the boot for now. I was thinking of putting some soap around the top catches at the window to make it fit easier (as they seem a bit tight). There is so little space it is impossible to see where the top clips go when fitting. Has anyone else any shortcuts or suggestions how to refit it correctly? Again, thanks for all your help.

sdwilliams72 PM sent Bowders Pics would be useful if there not to difficult to get hold of. Cheers

I went home and removed the CD Changer and material behind it. No sign of any water round the CD Changer and i couldn't see any signs of a lose pipe either. The only pipe i saw was a blue one which seemed to run from the top of the wheel arch down and through the floor to the rear of the arch. Not sure if this is the washer pipe, but it was intact from what i could see. The floor carpet was wet the entire length of it where it meets the body work at the rear of the car (welded seem).:( i had a quick look into the spare wheel (without removing it) and could not see any signs of excess water. Pulled a couple of the catches off the plastic boot cover (at the lock) and stuck my hand in. There was definitely moisture when i felt around, but that was as far as i could get with the allocated time. Will have to refrain from accidentally jetting any water into the boot from now until the weekend and get the carpet/ hardboard flooring dried out, something which is not so easy in this weather. I suppose i should have noticed something was up a week ago, when the windows kept steaming up for no reason:O:O sdwilliams72 Do you mean remove the hose, or remove the jets and plastic housing for washing? JD

Thanks all. KenONeill It's the hatch, and on your advice and subject to availability i will rope in a suitable mate to assist with the task. I may have to leave the panel off for a few days, but i shouldn't think that will cause any issues. sdwilliams72 One of the jets was not performaing correctly before it stopped completely, so i will take some warm water and soap/bleach to both jets before i close up the panel again (that's assuming i get it off) I have yet to check if there is any leakage in the boot/ CD Changer area yet. Will have to turf out the usual junk and Golf Clubs tonight and have a look.

I have an issue where the rear washer motor is working, but the water is non-existent. One minute it was fine and the next no water. I have read through the numerous posts about the potential locations for the pipe to have disconnected and was hoping someone who has experienced the problem can help me confirm the location before i pull the rear panel off. Here are the facts: Very cold weather full water bottle no rear wash water healthy sounding motor oh, and a very wet boot strap/handle and some sings of water on the rubber seal that the boot sits on. I am assuming the problem is inside the boot? Thanks JD

The steering wheel on my wife's Toyota Yaris is off level by 20-30 degrees and i have noticed recently from driving behind her that the car crabs slightly. The car is 3 1/2 yrs old, and was owned by her mother before her. It was never in an acident. Except, someone did nudge it in a car park once, but not even enough to mark or dent the rear bumper. Her mother did drive up and down kerbs quite often, so would it be possible that the alignment could be causing crabbing and an off level steering wheel? JD

Fingers crossed. I checked the air filter and airbox, and no sign of any water ingress. When i opened the bonnet i discovered that half way up my radiator is covered in grass :( JD

I took my Octy I through a flood last night on the way home from work. The water was easily up to the bottom of the number plate at the front, and the whole of the underside including exhaust was submerged. I kept the revs up and took it easy. The car came through alright, but afterwards when i started it, there was a loud rattle from the engine. It's running fine, but still rattled this morning on starting. The ratlle is loud and sounds like it comes from the bottom of the engine, but goes away pretty much instantly. Anyone know what this could be. Starter??? Thanks in advance JD

Only getting round to fixing this now as the MOT is due in a week. Phoned Eurocarparts for a price and they said it would be

A friend is buying a new printer, but was none to impressed by the selection in Currys/ PC world, or their customer service. Would anyone be able to recomend a decent printer (

Cheers I wasn't sure whether or not to attempt to fix it myself or not. I phoned the garage (independent) this morning, but they can't fix it until 17th April at the earliest!!. He did say he could remove the door card and wedge the window closed as a temporary measure, but then i could do that myself. Will open it up later and see what greets me. Fingers crossed it stays dry for another few days!! JD

Put front pas window down this morning to clear condensation, but when i went to put it back up, it got half way and then stopped. I tried a couple of times, but it just made a grating sound, like someone trying to file glass. I have read some previous posts about this problem, but was wondering if anyone would be able to diagnose the problem, i.e. broken regulator, window out of runners etc, as i don't want to go to the dealers and pay