Conference terri::cars_uk

    Renaults do not hold their value very well, fixing the indicator on the
    polo (I assume its the new-ish shape) will cost less than a new set of
    brake pads on the front of the renault.  Also VW's tend to hold their
    price very well, and I have yet to see a new shape polo rust anything
    like that on a Renault!
    
    Carl (who drives aVW so I'm a bit biast)
    

    Re .0  indicators..... 
      I am sure I have had this happen, just replace the bulb and it
    should revert to normal.
    
      I wouldn't have either, although have had a Polo before and it was
    OK.....can't speak for the Renault.... let us know if you find out
    the reason for the 6 inch black square.
    
    Ray.

.0�    to make the other indicators that side not flash, I would have thought.  But
.0�    they flash very rapidly.  Offside all work and flash at correct rate.  Is
.0�    this just a VW gimmick to let you know when a bulb has gone, or is there

    Yes, that's exactly what it is.  It is mentioned in the handbook,
    and the idea is that you notice the light on the instrument panel
    flashing more rapidly and realise that a bulb has gone.  Quite a
    good idea, really (as long as you notice it).
    
    Ian.

    HELLO
    
    I 've used to have a RENAULT 14 one year ago. I've bought it with 
    70 000kms and sold it with 140 000kms (4 years later). I've never
    change any things in it except tyres and oil. The price in France is
    low for this model but it's a good car (I think) for job's trip.
    
    I hope this will help you 
    
    Philippe

I know nothing about the R14 but I have a  1980 renault 5 TS with 130 000 miles
on the clock which is still going well and is great fun to drive. As far as I
know the only mechanical work ( apart from the usual cluch and brake renewals )
has been a new head gasket at 100 000 miles.

 The bodywork on old renaults does tend to rust and usually when it is visible
on the surface it means that there is a lot of corrosion underneath the panels
that would need erradicating before fixing the exterior of the car.

 I like renaults as they tend to be mechanically rugged, reliable and
comfortable,but before buying I would examine the body very closely for signs
of corrosion. - 

Check inner wheel arches, floor pan, sills suspesion mounting points ect.
( and anything else you can think of )

	Good luck
		Barrie.

    
    I was talking to someone last night who told me that the Polo was OHC,
    and that if it rattled - don't have anything to do with it!
    
    Elaine

Well thanks for the advice everyone.

Re: .-1, I rang a VW garage yesterday and asked them about the tapping.  From a
friend's suggestion (his car taps in the same way and he's had a garage look at
it) I suspected camshaft bearings, but the VW bloke said he doubted it would be
as major as this, just minor adjustments.

Note the noise is a tapping (=> camshaft / rocker problem) and not a
rattling (=> timing chain and gear problem) or knocking (=> crankshaft). Elaine,
maybe your friend was thinking of the latter two, which would be harder to fix.

But VWs do have hydraulic tappets so the mechanism could be a bit more complex,
which may explain the "don't touch it" advice.

Anyway, the people selling it weren't in last night, although I'd arranged to go
back and see it again then, so I think I'll wait and see if there's anything
better being advertised this week.

Scott

>>              <<< Note 1040.3 by AYOV27::ISMITH "Mr The Fish?" >>>
>>                            -< Performing to spec >-
>>
>>.0�  to make the other indicators that side not flash, I would have thought.  But
>>.0�  they flash very rapidly.  Offside all work and flash at correct rate.  Is
>>.0�  this just a VW gimmick to let you know when a bulb has gone, or is there
>>
>>    Yes, that's exactly what it is.  It is mentioned in the handbook,
>>    and the idea is that you notice the light on the instrument panel
>>    flashing more rapidly and realise that a bulb has gone.  Quite a
>>    good idea, really (as long as you notice it).
>>   
>>    Ian.
>>
    
    Yes good idea, but not a VW special! Just a by-product of the very old
    technology used to create the flash. i.e., the flash unit is a
    bi-metalic strip with a heater coil around it, which breaks the circuit
    when it bends far enough. The lamps are in parallel with each other, in
    series with the relay. If one lamp is out the resistance is higher, the
    wire doesn't heat as much, the bi-metal strip doesn't move as far, the
    off period is very short. 
    
    Richard

    I don't know about the Polo, but the Golf, anyway, certainly DOESN'T
    have hydraulic tappets, in it's OHC version anyway. I had an elderly
    Golf GTi with a noisy top-end, and my-mate-wot-runs-a-garage
    told me it was seriously expensive stuff to fix.  I had the tappets
    reshimmed to n effect whatsoever.  It would take a top-end rebuild,
    including ne camshaft,to fix -- several hundred pounds.
    
    	John
    

Actually the Golf (since about 1985) does have hydraulic tappets.

Before then, they were shimmed.  Noisy tappets could be caused by
either too large clearances (new shims required) or by the tappets wearing
their bores in the head (new head required).  The latter is common on high
mileage engines and the cure is to ignore it.

The 1050cc Polo engine is quite different to the Golf 1457cc and larger engines
and I don't know off hand whether it suffers the same problems.

Mike.

    Hello Scott,
    
    I have a 1980 VW Golf 1.1, which I think shares the same engine
    block and layout as this Polo.  My tappets were adjustable with
    an allen key on that car.  Are you certain that it has shims?
           
    John, I am interested about getting the shims done on my current
    Golf.  Could you reply in topic 544 with the time allocated
    and cost taken by the Garage for your shims.
           
    Thanks,
    Robert.

    I've got a 1989, poverty model, Cavalier 4x4 with 125,000 miles on the 
    clock which I've owned since new. I plan to keep it for another two 
    years or until it falls apart, whichever comes first.

    It's started costing a bit more money recently and I was wondering what
    sort of things are likely to go.

    A few months ago I started to notice that it was losing water slowly.
    This was no great problem. I just checked it regularly and kept it topped
    up. It must be a minor radiator leak, I thought. Then a few weeks ago I 
    started seeing drips under the car when it was parked. "Fair enough", I 
    thought. I probably have a split hose. I'll book it in to the garage and 
    have them renew some/all of the hoses. No hurry, so make it in a week's 
    time.

    Then, two days before it was due to go in to the garage, the drip turned 
    into a flood and the water was coming out only marginally slower than
    I could pour it in. I cycled into work and then filled the reservoir
    before driving to the garage. There they diagnosed a shot water pump and
    replaced that. I also had the oil and filter changed as the oil brobably
    got well and truly cooked.

    This put a slightly different complexion on things. I remembered that
    the water temp guage used to climb very quickly in slow traffic and the
    fan was on most of the time. If the pump wasn't working properly for some
    time then maybe the engine wasn't being cooled properly?

    As I originally planned to keep the car a long time I Slick-50ied the
    engine after 30,000 miles. So that probably gave some protection. Also
    this last weekend I drove Paris-Munich-Paris and at times the car was
    singing along at 115 MPH quite happily.

    Nevertheless, I have a nagging fear at the back of my mind, am I likely
    to have damaged the engine in any way by driving it for several months
    with a dodgy water pump?

    Also, what additional expenses am I likely to face in the next two years
    as old age and high mileage take their toll?

    To date the only major expenses have been the water pump, the rear
    silencer on the exhaust and the cam belt (more than once I think).

    Cheers,
    Brian
    PS I'm rather more impressed with the standard of servicing in Munich
    and Paris than I ever was in the UK. On the other hand it is a LOT more
    expensive.

    I shouldn't worry. The car would have overheated and stopped way before
    the engine received any permanent damage. Sometimes things like modern
    ECU electtronic ignition will shut down and engine before any serious
    problems arise.
    
    DOn't worry about it, I'd say (besides there's little you can do
    about it now, anyway). Any damage done (if any) would almost certainly
    require and engine rebuild of some description so, as you say, drive it
    'till it breaks then fix it.
    
    IMO
    
    Regards,
    Dan