21
votes
Accepted
Should interior panels be held together with cable ties?
Any vehicle worked on by a professional mechanic should be re-assembled properly
You have a real mess with the zip tie. Obviously that damage cannot be undone, you can't undrill a hole. It looks as ...
- 32.9k
17
votes
Accepted
Should I avoid full throttle when driving with a cold engine?
Yes this is bad for your engine for a multitude of reasons. In fact, it's not good to run your engine at full throttle for extended periods of time unless the engine is designed to take it, whether it'...
- 152k
14
votes
Accepted
Does wheelspinning damage my car?
The short answer is probably not, but you are creating undue hardship on the internals that will likely lead them to fail earlier than they would otherwise.
When you drive your car, you are putting ...
- 2,055
14
votes
Should interior panels be held together with cable ties?
As I stated in my comments: They did the damage; they need to fix it (or pay for it to be fixed). This is worse than shoddy craftsmanship. Any reputable shop would not look like this. Their mechanic ...
- 152k
12
votes
Accepted
Why is there a hissing noise when I open my petrol cap?
Regulations limit the amount of unburnt hydrocarbons that can be released into the atmosphere, therefore fuel tanks on cars now have to be sealed to stop these emissions. The noise you hear is air ...
- 24k
12
votes
Accepted
Does rolling forwards while in reverse gear damage my car?
Absolutely not. There's no issue here. The engine/transmission were not coupled. There was no stress on the transmission. It just was running backwards from what it usually would. Really, it's no big ...
- 152k
10
votes
Accepted
Is it bad to shift into reverse while still moving forwards?
You say that the gearbox won't be turning, but since the car is moving forward, the gears in the gearbox must be turning. Reverse doesn't usually have a synchromesh, so the gears won't synchronise ...
- 24k
9
votes
Accepted
What are the implications of driving through flood water when I have a high air intake?
If you really want an intake that will likely survive deep water, you're going to need something more like:
However...
Is the height of the bottom of the chassis the maximum height I can
drive ...
- 24.3k
7
votes
Accepted
How to remove coolant hose from T piece
Yes, you need to cut them - difficult but possible with sidecutters, they do make special cutters for these, but you can grind them : be very careful where the sparks go : cover everything...
For ...
- 34.6k
6
votes
Accepted
Should I pull up the handbrake as high as it will go when parked?
All you might be doing is putting the cable under more stress than it needs. The cable will stretch over time. This is normal. It will take a long time for the life of the cable to expire.
I ...
- 538
6
votes
Accepted
Wobbly clutch pedal
An "unhappy" amount of movement in the pedal doesn't seem right, especially in a new car. If no one here can give you a definitive answer, and looking at the pedal mount and linkage under the dash isn'...
- 14.4k
6
votes
Accepted
Opel Astra J: passenger seat belt warning isn't working, does it affect airbags?
Yes, the passenger seat belt warning chime and the passenger present systems are linked.
I can't speak about Opel directly, I'm familiar with Mazda and Honda. The way the passenger present systems ...
- 16k
5
votes
Does wheelspinning damage my car?
In theory, the harder you accelerate or decelerate(brake), the more you put stress on the different parts.
Most stressed parts when accelerating, in this order:
Gearbox gears
Crankshaft
Fly bearings
...
- 61
5
votes
Service intervals of different cars
Finding information on the service required: call a dealer and ask them. Look online at forums. Etc.
How to tell if it's been neglected, that's the more important part of your question IMO.
You ...
- 536
5
votes
Accepted
Are thick bands of rust on brake rotor indicative of a braking issue?
The inside band is not an issue. There is space between where the brake rides on the rotor (the shiny part) and the hat (the hub area). There has to be space here to allow the rotor to rotate ...
- 152k
5
votes
Accepted
Strange Artifacts on Astra H Info Display. Scratches?
The LCD panel is failing internally and will need replacing with another one. There is no way to repair the panel itself.
- 66
4
votes
Vauxhall Astra Rear Jet Washer
I just did this last weekend. It is an easy job!
The consensus on must of the Vauxhall/Opel forums is not to try and poke anything into the hole, you'll just ram the blockage further inside the nozzle....
- 195
4
votes
Accepted
How to make ride less bouncy?
To check if your suspension is kaput you will need to stand near each Axel and depress the fender, if it bounces up two or more times than they might be shot.
Alternatively you can manually inspect ...
- 8,956
4
votes
Accepted
What is this recall for my Vauxhall/Opel Zafira heating?
Who is affected?
If your car has had any previous work on the heating system, I would STRONGLY advise that you take it to a local dealership. Non-genuine parts may have been used, which could ...
- 6,535
4
votes
How to unblock washer jets?
I've personally had success clearing these nozzles using a sewing pin; the type that a seamstress may use to pin a garment together just before it is sewn.
You can not only use the pin to clear the ...
- 23.4k
4
votes
Accepted
Brake lights don't illuminate until pedal is pressed by about 5-10mm
Above the pedal should be a button, with 2 wires coming out of it. When your pedal is up, the button will be pressed all the way down, as you press the pedal, be button will release. At some point ...
- 8,443
4
votes
Accepted
Likely cause of poor performance at low RPM but normal at higher RPM?
Before everything else i would check the spark plugs.
Under certain circumstances a crack in the insulator can cause problems at low rpm's but would be not feel-able with high rpm's.
Edit, and ...
- 8,363
4
votes
Wobbly clutch pedal
The first step is figuring out where the wiggle is coming from. Stick your head or a camera under the dash and check the pedal assembly. If you don't have an Olympic gymnast-like ability to contort ...
- 6,037
4
votes
Accepted
Speedometer on Opel Corsa sometimes not reacting
Often times the speedo cable just needs lubrication. You can do this by disconnecting the speedo cable at the back of the speedometer and dropping some oil down the cable. Happens on Miata's all the ...
- 411
4
votes
Replace whole turbocharger or only the waste-gate actuator?
This is an opinion question, so you may get varied answers. This is my opinion.
In my experience, I have found it is always best to start with the simple and work toward the difficult. In your case, ...
- 9,035
4
votes
Accepted
Replace whole turbocharger or only the waste-gate actuator?
It really depends on which part is sticking. If I've reconnoitered your turbo correctly, it has a built in wastegate. If it's the wastegate which is sticking and not the actuator, then you're wasting ...
- 152k
4
votes
Car manual recommends ACEA A3/B4 oil, service personal put ACEA A3/B3. Is this a big deal? Will the car break down?
There is no need to change it immediately IMO.
The main difference between B3 and B4 is that the TBN number is higher for B4, which gives more capability of neutralizing acidic contaminants in long-...
- 2,954
4
votes
Difference between bulb sockets
You can see the different shapes and dimensions of the bulb holders in these images that I collected from the Ring website. Probably best just pick the one that looks the same and has the same ...
- 24k
3
votes
Accepted
What is brake imbalance? How can I fix it?
What does this mean?
Brake imbalance is caused because one side of the braking pair (front or back axle) is not applying as much power as the other side.
What's wrong with my brakes?
There are ...
- 152k
3
votes
Accepted
Does "bumping" up and down a kerb damage my car?
The slower you go, the longer they'll last
All suspension components (springs, shocks, control arms) are made of materials that last for a certain number of cycles before failing due to fatigue.
How ...
- 39.1k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible