When I worked as a contractor on the railways I used JSA https://jsagroup.co.uk/

I found them to be good, easy to get in contact with to discuss things and I didn’t have any issues – but I only contracted for a few months

Right. Forget about the air con gas/ refrigerant for now, firstly you need to fix the leak.

To start with the leak needs to be identified, a UV dye injected into the system when the system was last re gassed will be visible as a fluro green, a UV light will make it easier to spot.

However if what is leaking is obscured such as the evaporator (the thing that gets cold and the air blows through, located in the dash) or the condenser (like a radiator, located at the front of the car sandwiched behind/infront of the actual radiator.) You won’t be able to see the leak.

The best way is to use nitrogen to pressurise the system and then identify the leak, spraying soapy water if it’s in a visible area to see bubbles will help confirm the leak’s location. A car garage can pressurise with nitrogen for not a lot of money or if you can find a way yourself to use compressed air that will achieve the same thing.

Leak found, you will need to replace the leaking component, but also the receiver dryer canister as it is full of a moisture absorbing material, that when there is a leak moisture from the outside world gets in and oversaturates the absorbent material making it ineffective, so after you re gas the system, any moisture will not be absorbed in the system.

After a proper car garage will test the system for leaks with nitrogen then vacuum the system again removing any moisture and air from the system, then hold vacuum pressure for 10 minutes to check for leaks, then fill with refrigerant to a measured amount set by the manufacturer.

A plug and squeeze halfords can is no good

Johnathan Pie Brexit: What’s the **** is going on? https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=-IL2XwSkFJQ

I work as a truck and bus mech, know a few things about cars, I would be more than happy to help you out as best as I can, I’m Yorkshire based. Or just drop me an email

I don’t know what you guys are on about,

I’ve heard Honda are leaving on thier own Accord..

I’ll get my coat

I I went into the army office in Leeds, showed them my qualifications, their response was unless I had university level quals that I would have had to start from basic training and go through their training process and it’s associated pay grades, so me a qualified mechanic with experience of working on trucks, trains, buses and cars, would be no better than a 16 year old school leaver.

Edit: yeah just looked at that RAF advert £18k – I appreciate what you’re saying but that wage is tragic

Reliant

As in a Reliant Kitten

I get mine from Cromwell an nationwide industrial tool supplier, you can order online or call into a branch,

https://www.cromwell.co.uk/shop?query=cr2032%20battery

I did, got my renewal from admiral for £1666 it was up by £300, I rang them up and asked what it was all about, the lady on the end of the phone said oh yes we can reduce that by £200, I just started laughing, I said to her Is this a joke I’m insuring a diesel Volvo saloon, not exactly a sports car is it, that’s ridiculous, I then asked her if she would pay that much for her car insurance and she went silent for a bit then retorted with ‘well we do encourage people to shop around’ I just carried on laughing and told her to cancel the auto renew.

Shop around I did, I increased my mileage from 8k to 12k and paid £900 with esure, a saving of over £700

I don’t have anything to play cds or dvds.

I have bought many films on google play, as recently as last week. I pay a subscription to apple music monthly.

A lot of people are like me, I am genuinely surprised HMV haven’t folded sooner.

The death of faceless high street dinosaurs is a brilliant thing for the highstreet, lets think back to when HMV was putting independent record stores out of business.

Hopefully in time the high street will be different in every town and city, with different independent shops each providing a unique shopping experience.

A few things I don’t understand with the current scenario, if we by some means we remain, how would we stand within the EU, how would we confront any future issues we may have with the EU, as we would be in a weaker position than what we were pre referendum, as it’s not like we would decide to leave again right.? Their attitude could well be ‘shut it Britain, just be glad we let you stay’..

Also granting the UK a good deal would be suicidal for the EU surely, as if we leave and do well out of it, then that will set a precedent for other EU members and in turn spell the end of the EU..?

Additionally as I see it the UK has everything to lose; but what has the EU to lose should negotiations break down and a no deal scenario occur, with that in mind TM is not negotiating but making a plea to the EU, their leverage is no deal and various other consequences, what’s our leverage?

Just a few thoughts..

How many times you will swear when it rounds off

I could only swim basic poor breaststroke with my head above water, which I was taught at school until about 3 months ago when I started some swimming lessons, I can do a good front crawl now but I struggle to do more than 4 lengths of a pool due to not pacing myself..

Also when I had just learned the front crawl I would swim one length and be hanging out of my arse, gasping for breath at the deep end, I can do it in 30 seconds now and not be too out of breath, that took me about three months including lessons and practicing in the pool 2-3 times a week, It’s not down to fitness that I am better so much as it is technique

I’ve found with swimming more effort does not equal speed, it’s heavy on the technique.

Not gonna lie I did find it wierd as an adult I’m 24, after work telling people I was off for ‘my’ swimming lesson.. it cost me £90 for 4 lessons at 30 minutes each one to one.. best money I’ve spent, I’ve now been open water swimming and really enjoy it.

edit: swimming caps are ace, it allows the water to run off your head and for you to take a breath instead of it running off your wet hair and into your mouth and the wet hair getting in your eyes

ZF is who you need,

they are a German company who design and manufacture gearboxes for trains, tanks, armoured and offroad vehicles, wind turbines, cars, automatic and manual boxes for trucks and buses..

Voith is their competitor and Allison is in the bus industry.

I know ZF have a remanufacturing centre in Nottingham along with offices, they have various sites throughout the UK

https://www.zf.com/unitedkingdom/en_gb/corporate/homepage_corporate/homepage_corporate.html

I have an S40 and I’m 24.. I got mine 59 plate 66k miles and had to regas the aircon twice it has a leak I need to sort it, fit a new alternator, get the srs airbag module sent away for repair, fit a new boot wiring loom, fit a new battery  in the first 2 months of owning it. Seems to be fine now.. what i’m saying is unless you get a showroom fresh car you’ll probably have issues with it too maybe even worse ones than what you have now.

All your faults so far are to be expected, cables wear out and break, consider them consumables, no different to bike cables in a way..

again abs faults are also a common thing on any vehicle, at any age or mileage.

a dodgy sensor, again common fault, we had steering angle sensors fail on 17plate trucks when I worked at Scania

As for the turbo whoosh, you can leave that, let it develop worst case is you start to experience a bit of a loss of power. My turbo makes a moaning noise, but it works and hasn’t sounded any worse over the 5k miles I’ve done since getting it so it’ll be alright..

If the car itself is in good condition and you like driving it and meets your needs, if it’s battered, full of dog hair and childrens vomit maybe get shut..

When I worked as a bus mechanic, some vehicles in the fleet would have fault after fault and they would only be a few years old other vehicles would be over ten years old and will have had nothing done to them besides servicing.

Jolene as the Dolly Parton song,

Don’t choose Lola

I’m called Gene, so people often sing Jean Genie at me, no bad thing

Looks like a thread for the STW resident truck and bus mech…

Since everything is bigger it is also easier to get to, most work compared to a car is a lot more straight forward, you don’t need to remove half the vehicle to get to stuff and the lack of fiddlyness is refreshing. Changing pads is easy, discs also, you will be able to lift the callipers off on your own certainly on a 7.5tonner, if I can lift bus callipers on my own which are bigger.

Most of the issues will be much like a car, so worn bushes here and there, worn ball joints, a big sledge hammer helps, split hoses, the radiator and intercooler are really easy to change, you will unlikely get problems with the engine bar the odd oil leak.

The other thing is on a truck everything is designed for use in a industrial environment so once repaired will last a good while longer than it would on a car.

The biggest issue is cost of parts, things like tyres won’t be cheap due to their size, a service will cost a fair bit as you will need about 15 litres of engine oil for a start, there is gearbox and diff oil to change also, along with many filters. There are ways to reduce costs such a parts from a scrappy and retreaded tyres, there are a good few reconditioning firms out there too.

You will need a 1/2 inch drive good quality (i.e snap on) electric impact gun, and an impact socket set, you won’t touch m18 and m22 bolts with a ratchet, some jobs like the clutch you won’t be able to do without a gearbox jack. Slogging spanners are a good tool too.

142k not worth bothering with trying to repair, it’s only a (short) matter of time until something else expensive goes.

Even if you find a box cheap, the amount of man hours to fit it will cost you.

Well… if you get a box from a scrappy, doesn’t have to be good, just work for now, get a back street garage to fit it, then immediately flog it, this is also an option…

Sell for parts on ebay/gumtree will be your best bet though, well easiest..

Molgrips – you missed my sarcasm,

Like you say electricfication is being rolled back so much for the environment and all that.

Also could someone tell me what euro emission standard a class 150 diesel train complies to since that type is currently being run in various parts of the country and was built in the 1980s, so I’m sure it’s nice and clean running and that’s just one example.

Trucks, buses, ships, wood burning stoves; there isn’t a effective workable ‘green’ replacement for them, whereas trains there has been that replacement since the 1950s and yet in amoungst all this hype for electic transport being the future and how everybody should scrap their Skoda Octavia, it is fine for there to be absolutely no interest in electrifying the rail network and all new trains to be electric.

I keep looking at my bike, but can’t bring myself to sell it in case I regret it, but it hasn’t been ridden in almost a year.

I live in North Leeds so can’t complain on the riding front

To determine if the starter is at fault, when the van won’t start use a screw driver to bridge the main positive lead to the starter signal connection, or use a wire from the battery and brush it against the starter signal connection (there will be sparks!) effectively supplying a voltage to the signal connector straight from the battery instead going through the ignition wiring and ecu. If the van turns over the starter is fine as it works if you supply power from elsewhere but the ignition circuit.

Could it be something simple as some corrosion in the signal wire from the ecu to the starter, or it has rubbed through the insulation and occasionally shorts depending on its position which is altered by the vibration of the vehicle.

Like you say it seems that the signal isn’t being sent to the starter, I would imagine it would be because the ecu is receiving a signal that the engine is already running, from my experience this signal can be sent by the alternator, or the crank position sensor. I would check the condition of the alternator wiring and the plug connectors if it has a plug, for a start..

I could be wrong as I don’t know the vehicle, but I have had this on vehicles I’ve worked on.

I was quoted £60 to scrap my micra. With it being a 1994 model, I’d list it on gumtree or ebay as spares or repair, there is a fair bit of love for these cars especially the older ones, depending on mileage you will probably get more for it.

Where are you based btw I might take some bits off you also..

If you list the spec and mileage, colour..

Regarding essential, well I’d think a set of spanners and sockets, screwdrivers are about as essential as it gets right… work only provide specialist tools such as a specific hub nut socket for a Volvo hubs for example.

I assume I would fill in a separate form for each tax year in which the tools were purchased?

If it’s spitting it’s coolant out and the coolant temperature gauge is showing a normal 80-90 degrees, it’s the head gasket as it is obviously not overheating, and the head gasket is the only place pressure from the cylinders can get into the cooling system. VW’s don’t blow head gaskets.. what a silly thing to say.

I like them, not fast but they ‘cruise’ rather well, if you’ve never riden one, definitely give it a go for novelty if nothing else, maybe hire a brompton too for the full London cycling experience.

Yeah they have dyno operated front and rear lights, more led markers though than lights, don’t expect to have the road illuminated at night. Gears you get are 3 a low one for setting off, a middle one for most riding, a high one for when you hit hyperspeed…

I wouldn’t flush the coolant, adds potential for an air lock, making things confusing to diagnose.

Having new coolant won’t affect the temperature. The additives in coolant are mostly to prevent corrosion and freezing. You could fill one car with water and another with coolant, they would run at the same temperature, it’s the pressure in the system that prevents the coolant/water boiling and turning to steam.

Don’t underestimate the coolant filler cap, it works as a valve, allowing air (preventing a vacuum) into the cooling system as the engine cools, it also works as a pressure relief valve allowing excess pressure in the cooling system to be vented out, otherwise the excess pressure would burst hoses.

That is perfect the fan is fine

There is a serious problem if after a run the silicone hoses feel rock hard, the coolant is being pressurised by compressed air entering from the combustion cylinder.

Otherwise, it looks like just an overheat, which can be caused by: coolant temperature becoming excessive – fan inop or blocked rad. Coolant not circulating, failed thermostat (doesn’t allow coolant to the radiator – engine overheats pretty quickly with this one from cold), a failed waterpump. Coolant doesn’t turn to steam because it is held under pressure, a dodgy hose or hose clip could be opening up under pressure a pressure test would identify this, however such a fault is usually accompanied by a visual leak, a faulty cap can cause the system to lose pressure and overheat.

I personally would fit a new cap and keep an eye on the temperature gauge see if it does it again.

possible just a simple overheat, if it gave up in traffic it could be down to the cooling fan not kicking in, if it overheated on the motor way possibly a failed waterpump.

Check the wiring to the cooling fan, get the car warm and check it kicks in

Whoa, whoa, whoa!

Buy yourself the cooper, when anybody says it’s a womans car, challenge them to a race, when you win.. laugh, tell them they were right about it being a womans car and that said womans car just pissed all over them.

Done

I can’t ask them! It’s a potential social minefield.

Me: why do you have a plastic baby?
Them: plastic….?
Me: erm…

Ah truck drivers a fair few are dickheads, slowing down to 30 through a village causes them much vexation it seems, I like cougars idea.

I over took a tipper truck on the A59 that was doing well above 56mph, are all trucks legally obliged to be limited to that speed?

It’s great when they start playing wacky races on the A1 trying to overtake each other

those snap rings are on my cars gear box main shaft I need to get them off to replace the bearings, then are quite thick, took more than a pick to remove them, two flat screw drivers and a lot of force.

I always prefer a proper tool £30 and many hours of pain, plasters and swearing saved.

This place being the fountain of all knowledge (it really is – never ceases to amaze me) thought I’d ask here

Nope not a troll, just wanted to other peoples views that’s all. I’ve had bad overtakes or rather people driving past at 60+mph as if you’re simply not there on the A635 in the dark peak area. To be fair as long as I’m given some room I’m happy but that’s because I haven’t cycled on the road much, if I did it every day my opinion would be different, hence asking on here

I work in the bus industry, used public transport all my life and also cycled and now own a car.

Firstly public transport is ****. Run by different companies each with their own ideas on how to fleece customers and generally be inefficient and waste money. Transport needs to operate as a network, you purchase a ticket for your journey and use the best mix of public transport to get there. Buses should feed into rail links, maybe even forget bus timetables use an app based service to give ‘next due’ times. Also restructure transport companies, far too many managers and departments mixed in with union members. Also free parking at train stations, why would I get the train when I have to pay some extortionate amount to park my car at the station, nah I just drive where I need to go.

Cycling, not amount of cycle lane will prevent you getting killed, the problem is cyclists are seen as second class road users who’s lives you can endanger with no consequence. The problem here is that the police don’t care that you were nearly killed on your commute until you actually are. Educating road users that cyclist have every right to use the road and prosecution of bad driving.

As others have said cycle to work, great! Showers and good secure lockers are also required.

Taxing, fining, congestion charging, bashing car users for getting to where they need to go as the alternatives are dog shit is just about the worst idea ever.

Lets not improve other modes of transport, no, lets just make using the car equally expensive and shit

Flaperon – Member
Completely agree. In addition…

– Force bus operators to invest in buses with working heaters and air conditioners to keep them cool in the summer months and dry / warm through the winter.
– Employ drivers with an element of driving skill and customer service (looking at you, TFL)
– Congestion charge for any non-electric vehicle driving into a big town or city. Live in the middle and drive a noxious banger? Bad luck. Sell it, or pay the charge. Happy to provide a free G-Wizz or something though to people with disability.
– Change the public perception that bikes are second class citizens on the road.
– Force big companies turning huge profits to offer the cycle to work scheme, along with lockers / showers / secure storage.
– Make walking easier. Fit pedestrian crossings and don’t force people to walk through knee high muddy grass to cross the road. Oh look, London again. Wonder where the money is going?
– Stop giving cars priority at pedestrian crossings.
– Have a sliding scale for road tax, enforced by GPS, that aggressively penalises short journeys for non-disabled users.
– All towns / cities to run 24 hour public transport.
– Force a minimum essential service during strikes.
– Sort pricing out for rail journeys. I can get a return flight from t’north to London for £60 by booking on the day. That’d be £250 to a rail company.

Unfortunately, I think the transport industry would arrange for an unfortunate accident involving me and a runaway bus should I ever come to power with the intention of implementing the above.

New investment in buses is not needed. I am a bus mechanic and when I come across a bus with cold/ incorrectly operating heaters I don’t repair them as I’m told not to bother as they aren’t safety critical, given the time and spare parts I bet I could get every buses heaters working right in our 200 strong fleet. The operator isn’t going to get their arses kicked for cold saloon heaters and doesn’t want buses of the road because they are struggling to make service as is, because they are a backwards and inefficient.

Kayak23 – Haha! Brilliant 😉