nira74

Couple of months back I observed a mechanic working on one which had been to the former agents for servicing and had been sent back with the headlight hanging out because they couldn't figure out how to put it back after they removed it. The car was about 4-5 years old and on the whole the construction of the thing was pretty shabby. Panel fit was poor, interior had not aged well at all. Overall build quality nowhere near to that of a similar age Bora or Passat. Definitely not worth paying a premium for....

Guys , They already are. Last Saturday afternoon there was a Cop car parked on Duplication road somewhere near British Council and they were pointing a speedgun at the oncoming uniflow traffic.

Most Likely a leak, but could also be caused by the car overheating due to some other reason such as 1. Radiator and/or A/C Fan Not working 2. Incorrect ignition timing. 3. Blocked cooling system (check thermostat etc..)

Been using a Radar Detector for the last 4 years or so (brought down from abroad) and it worked fine until our cops switched to Laser detectors. (you'd notice the cops aiming the laser detector using a viewfinder, whereas the normal RF ones can be aimed like a handgun) My one doesn't work for Laser, but there are models which do. I don't know how much advanced warning a laser detector would give in Sri Lanka considering the length of straight road stretches are relatively short here and you should already be within the Cops line of sight when you get the warning. Anyone out there using laser capable detectors can comment..

Something we all experience when filling up. Lot of theories about this..... and let me add my own. I feel it has a lot to do the way the fuel gauge is calibrated. In most japanese cars you would observe the first half tank to go down very slowly and the second half finishes much quicker. You would also observe that it takes less fuel to fill your tank from Empty to Half than it does from Half to Full. That means what our fuel gauge shows us as half tank is actually a little less than the real half-tank point.

Actually I saw a couple of them on the road over the past two weeks (Possibly demonstrators to arouse interest). The plan I understand is to assembe the Ssang Yong Rexton (which was available in the market before) and one other model locally. I was rather surprised when I realised the Rexton I was following had a Micro badge on it as well..... Rexton looks nice, but the other one is rather ugly!.

Nope, the WP-GJ Cabriolet which Devinda was talking about.....

Yep. It was parked outside the Sri Lanka Medical Council office in Norris Canal Road this afternoon... Very nice looking machine...

Hi, I don't think you need to replace the starter - you only need to get it serviced, where they'll replace any worn out brushes or bushes. Most mechanics should be able to do the job pretty easily. You can do it yourself too, but it can be messy if the starter is on the back of the engine or if you haven't got the right tools for the job.

Had a similar problem a while back. At first the car didn't overheat, but generally the front fenders and bonnet felt very hot. Later (very much later) on the temp gauge showed that it was overheating. It was finally diagnosed as a Blocked Thermostat Valve. Suggest you get the cooling system checked asap.

I also guess the Price of Tyres over here would also have something to do with it......

Hey Guys, Don't write off Isuzu Engines - Even Lotus chose a Turbo Blown Isuzu 1600cc (Petrol) Engine for their last Elan in the '90s.

Car was previously painted Red and was offered for 2.4 about a year back. Drove it back then and it rode and pulled well but there were signs of damage on the alloys and bodykit and the interior was rather tatty. Looks like it has been fixed up a bit and re-painted since then... Seller said it was imported on a 'Blue Permit'.

There are a couple of EU14 Bluebirds around too with Factory Fit SR20DET Engines. Looks just like the normal SSS but the only difference is that the SSS Badge is in Red.

Hi Guys, Not to put them down, but the models mentioned are mostly re-badged Daewoos and Suzukis coming off their production lines in India or Korea. What we would like to see are the REAL Chevys......

Took car there for Servicing some time back. (when they had just opened i think) They have a lot of fancy equipment but the people there had no clue about servicing cars properly. Plus they had all sorts of dumb rules about not allowing filters or oil to be brought from outside - even though they could not supply the brand of oil required by me or the genuine filter... Haven't sighted the place since.....

Hi, Thats right. That's probably the cause for the change in colour. You should also be a bit cautious if your car has a high mileage there may be a tendency to 'burn oil' a bit at low temp when you move to a thinner oil. I did experience this once when i switched to fully Synthetic on an engine with over 100k on the clock.

Mobile Lightning Conductor ?

Hi, Suggest you check your Power Steering fluid level first, and also check to see whether the new belts have been fitted with sufficient tension. If not, you could have momentary loss of power steering if the belt slips. Some mechanics fit belts with minor differences in length (usually longer cos it's easier to fit) when the recommended on is not available but then forget that the new belt has to be tensioned more than the previous one.

Hi, A Friend of mine took his Civic to the agents with the same issue and they told him it's a common problem in recon Civics is nothing to worry about. Said it only needed servicing and fixed it when they serviced the car. That too had electric power steering. Possibly yours could be the same type of problem.

Hi Guys, Different take on the same topic..... Has anyone noticed that the Nissan Wingroad (Y11) Aero front end seems to be the most popular design which our local bodykit makers are using ? I've seen it on a Old Sunny B310, Honda Integra and last week very surprisingly, on a Carina TI... ! I guess it wont be long before we see Ek3s and EG8s with a Wingroad Buffer.....

Hi, Nissans usually have a speed sensitive central locking mechanism where the doors lock automatically when you touch 20 km/h. I guess your car is fitted with an aftermarket alarm kit. These usually have a sensor input connected to the Handbrake so that from standstill, when you release the handbrake the doors get locked, and when you switch off the engine and pull the handbrake they doors get un-locked. Usually the sensor is wired to the Handbrake light on the dashboard. Some guys get is wrong and wire it to the cars Brake light and the doors get locked the moment you press the brake pedal. (then usually it doesn't get unlocked again when you stop the car) Your problem I guess is that the wire has got disconnected. Best to get it checked by someone who installs alarms.

Hi, Your car's speedo would be is calibrated for a particular wheel diameter. If you are using a different Rim size or tyre size to what is recommended, it could result in a minor variation in the speedo reading. OT: My worst experience with the cops and their speed guns is entirely different - I got pulled over in Hikkaduwa and was shown a speed gun with a reading of sixty something when we were travelling at 40. There were 3 of us in the vehicle all experienced drivers and were quite sure that we weren't speeding (plus a radar detector that didn't go off - which meant the cop didn't actually trigger his radar gun at us) We just didn't want to go through the hassle of disputing his reading etc as we were on the way to a funeral so we just paid the fine and got it over with... At the funeral we met 3 other people who had got stopped by the same guy in the same place and had just paid the guy a small 'something' and come away. There should be some rule where they have to prove at least the exact time at which the reading was taken (ideally from the radar gun) does anyone know if such a rule exists ?