CITROEN'S FLICKERING LIGHT
Q: The airbag warning light of my Citroen Saxo illuminates now and again. Could this be due to a faulty/dirty sensor?
Posted by: christine68
A: It could be, or it might be caused by a wiring or connection defect. There is nothing you can do about this except take the car to a Citroen dealer or auto electrician for investigation.
PERHAPS JUST NORMAL CHATTER?
Q: I have a 1998 Nissan Primera with 95,000 miles on the clock. It makes an intermittent knocking noise from the front when driving at low speeds. Is this a suspension problem, and if so, why only at low speeds?
Posted by: stevesimpson
A: It is a suspension fault, and this sort of 'chatter' at low speeds - usually over broken surfaces - is common, and depending on the car, can be a normal sound. To establish if it is, listen for whether it's coming from one or both sides of the car. If only one, it's due to wear, from a suspension or steering joint, the suspension strut, its top mounting or the lower arm.
IOKAY IF YOU DON'T CORNER
Q: My Peugeot 206 has recently started to illuminate its oil and handbrake warning lights when driving through left-hand turns. In the last day it has also started to lose power from side to side when driving at above 60mph.
Posted by: rossashton
A: We're afraid we don't know what you mean by 'losing power from side to side', but illumination of the warning lamps on bends can be cured by adjusting the position of the warning-lights switch, situated at the base of the handbrake lever.
COULD THIS BE CLUTCH NOISE?
Q: I have recently bought a one-year-old VW Touran 1.6 automatic with 11,000 miles on the clock. I've noticed that it makes a rattly, low vibrating noise from the engine, although the engine runs smoothly. Could this be down to tappets, or something else?
Posted by: dave
A: It could be, but it's difficult to comment without hearing it. If it's only doing this at idle it could be that the tickover speed is too low, and that's confirmed if slightly depressing the accelerator stops it. Alternatively it could be chatter from the clutch release mechanism, and here again, pressing the clutch pedal will quieten it. There's not much that can be done if it's clutch noise.
LACK OF USE COULD KILL THE A/C
Q: I have a four-year-old Nissan Micra with 18,500 miles. I've had to have a new air-conditioning compressor fitted in the wake of problems with the air-con system. Is this usual for such a low mileage and tender age?
Posted by: jus
A: No it isn't, and without knowing exactly what the fault was, it's difficult to comment. However, if the car remained unused for any significant length of time, this could have precipitated compressor failure.
CONSTANTLY AT BRAKING POINT
Q: The brake light of my 1992 Ford Fiesta 1.3 LX is staying on all the time. I have checked everything and it seems the brake pedal has to be raised slightly to make connection with the brake-light switch. Is it possible to adjust the switch?
Posted by: brownies75
A: Yes it is, by means of screw adjustment. It sounds as if adjustment is all that's needed to solve this particular annoyance.
THE NOT-SO-ECONOMICAL OPTION
Q: I have 1996 Astra diesel that only does 30mpg. All filters have been changed, it passed its MoT smoke-emission test with flying colours, and it doesn't consume either coolant or oil. Admittedly I do a lot of short journeys, but surely it should do a lot more than 30mpg, shouldn't it?
Posted by: vinnyhiggins2003
A: Yes. Possible causes include: dragging brakes, incorrect camshaft timing and/or injection pump timing, one or more malfunctioning injectors, and engine valve leakage. Is it smoky? If so that will help with diagnosis, and a good diesel mechanic should rapidly get to the bottom of this.
A HEATING AND VENTILATION CALAMITY
Q: The heater-fan control of my Ford Focus only works on positions 3 and 4, and no air comes out of the vents on the lower settings. Also, the air conditioning doesn't work on any settings - can you suggest why?
Posted by: greenmachine750
A: It's almost certain that the fan control switch itself is at fault here, and fortunately it's relatively easily replaced. As for the air conditioning, either the system compressor isn't engaging when you switch the A/C on, indicating an electrical fault, or the system may need recharging with gas.
SPARKS IN THE WRONG PLACES
Q: My 2003 Dodge Hemi has lost power. I replaced the spark plugs and HT leads, which improved things, but it's still not as powerful as it used to be. Today, when running the engine with the bonnet up, I noticed sparks on the outside of the engine block while the engine was shaking.
Posted by: rattle1615
A: Clearly there's an ignition-system fault. You're best advised to have an auto electrician help you out here; the ignition HT charges are tracking to earth, and this could be something to do with the replacement leads you've used - it's certainly the reason why the engine is shaking.
A RELUCTANT RENAULT
Q: I have to pre-heat my 1998 Renault Laguna 1.9 DTi (diesel) five or six times before the engine will eventually fire after much cranking. It runs fine once it's going, but if I switch it off and leave it for 10 minutes, I again need five or six pre-heats to start it, even though it's already hot.
Posted by: zr7willtree
A: This may be nothing to do with pre-heating, but instead with air leaking into the fuel system. It's a common fault on this type of diesel engine, and it's the repeated cranking-over that eventually draws up fuel that has been replaced by ingested air - rather than repeated pre-heats allowing the engine to fire.
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Q: The brake light of my 1992 Ford Fiesta 1.3 LX is staying on all the time. I have checked everything and it seems the brake pedal has to be raised slightly to make connection with the brake-light switch. Is it possible to adjust the switch?
Posted by: brownies75
A: Yes it is, by means of screw adjustment. It sounds as if adjustment is all that's needed to solve this particular annoyance.
THE NOT-SO-ECONOMICAL OPTION
Q: I have 1996 Astra diesel that only does 30mpg. All filters have been changed, it passed its MoT smoke-emission test with flying colours, and it doesn't consume either coolant or oil. Admittedly I do a lot of short journeys, but surely it should do a lot more than 30mpg, shouldn't it?
Posted by: vinnyhiggins2003
A: Yes. Possible causes include: dragging brakes, incorrect camshaft timing and/or injection pump timing, one or more malfunctioning injectors, and engine valve leakage. Is it smoky? If so that will help with diagnosis, and a good diesel mechanic should rapidly get to the bottom of this.
A HEATING AND VENTILATION CALAMITY
Q: The heater-fan control of my Ford Focus only works on positions 3 and 4, and no air comes out of the vents on the lower settings. Also, the air conditioning doesn't work on any settings - can you suggest why?
Posted by: greenmachine750
A: It's almost certain that the fan control switch itself is at fault here, and fortunately it's relatively easily replaced. As for the air conditioning, either the system compressor isn't engaging when you switch the A/C on, indicating an electrical fault, or the system may need recharging with gas.
SPARKS IN THE WRONG PLACES
Q: My 2003 Dodge Hemi has lost power. I replaced the spark plugs and HT leads, which improved things, but it's still not as powerful as it used to be. Today, when running the engine with the bonnet up, I noticed sparks on the outside of the engine block while the engine was shaking.
Posted by: rattle1615
A: Clearly there's an ignition-system fault. You're best advised to have an auto electrician help you out here; the ignition HT charges are tracking to earth, and this could be something to do with the replacement leads you've used - it's certainly the reason why the engine is shaking.
A RELUCTANT RENAULT
Q: I have to pre-heat my 1998 Renault Laguna 1.9 DTi (diesel) five or six times before the engine will eventually fire after much cranking. It runs fine once it's going, but if I switch it off and leave it for 10 minutes, I again need five or six pre-heats to start it, even though it's already hot.
Posted by: zr7willtree
A: This may be nothing to do with pre-heating, but instead with air leaking into the fuel system. It's a common fault on this type of diesel engine, and it's the repeated cranking-over that eventually draws up fuel that has been replaced by ingested air - rather than repeated pre-heats allowing the engine to fire.
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