Show Posts

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.

Topics - Paul M

Pages: 1 2 [3] 4

Omega General Help / Testing rear multi-ram

« on: 27 August 2006, 16:13:22 »

Mark thinks my rear multiram isn't working properly as I describe the car as being gutless below 4500 RPM. I'm not sure, because I'm comparing with a 4.4 V8 in my BMW that pulls well from 800 RPM! However I'd still expect the Omega to be better than it is, being a 3.0. My dad's 330Ci feels loads better in normal town driving - not sure whether this is a VANOS engine.

So how do I test it? Seem to remember some thing where you start the engine, open the bonnet and quickly open the throttle while watching the front & rear flaps move under different conditions of throttle + RPM.

Omega General Help / Gas pedal like an on/off switch in slow driving

« on: 26 August 2006, 11:42:28 »

I have the 98 cable-driven throttle, and sometimes when driving slowly when you have to take your foot completely off the accelerator (but still in gear, with the clutch up) you can feel the engine hold the car back as expected - I believe this is called overrun and it's designed to cut off the fuel during this time as the momentum of the car will keep the engine turning and it also helps with engine braking.

However, the problem comes when re-applying the throttle. Instead of it smoothly re-applying power, you can press the pedal a little and nothing happens, then all of a sudden the power comes back but because the throttle is already open a little it causes the car to surge. This is especially bad in lower gears for obvious reasons - the weight of the car having less of a damping effect on the engine output - but is noticable even in 5th gear.

I've checked both the cruise and throttle cables, both appear to be correctly adjusted: the throttle returns to the closed position with almost no slack left in either cable. My other concern is the throttle position sensor giving dodgy readings around the closed position leading the ECU to think the throttle is still closed after it starts opening. Has anyone else experienced this kind of effect, and what was the cause?

As well as being annoying it can be a nightmare in sharp corners in the wet especially with my awful tyres, a sudden jolt of power is not what you need in those conditions!

Omega General Help / Adjusting headlight aim (pre-facelift HIDs)

« on: 04 August 2006, 20:29:11 »

The headlights on my car are definitely aimed too low, compared to any other car I've driven recently (including my BMW with HIDs) their range stops much closer to the car meaning you can't actually see anything on the road until it's really close to the car. As most of you will know, there's no interior adjuster with HIDs as it's done automatically to compensate for load etc. So I reckon the actual baseline adjusters on the lights themselves have been incorrectly set. There is no warning on the MID so I expect all the sensors and motors etc are working OK.

Does anyone have a diagram of which screw does what? I guess it may be in the owners' manual but I don't have one. I have a copy of the facelift manual but those have different headlights.

Cheers
Paul.

Omega General Help / Trim below high-level brake light sagging

« on: 08 August 2006, 22:55:50 »

How is the plastic trim directly below the high-level brake light at the top of the rear screen held in place? Mine is sagging very slightly, not normally noticable but it's enough to let some of the light out so when driving at night you can see the brake light illuminate the parcel shelf!

General Discussion Area / Postage cost for sending a parcel shelf

« on: 22 February 2008, 13:35:10 »

Hi guys

I am selling my parcel shelf with built in rear blind (see "car parts for sale" forum). Ideally I wanted to sell it somewhere within driving distance due to the size and weight, but I'm willing to consider posting it. Does anyone have an idea of the cost, and what courier would you use?

Cheers
Paul.

General Discussion Area / Valuation of facelift MV6 wheels

« on: 30 January 2008, 00:48:00 »

Hi guys

I am considering removing the facelift MV6 wheels from my Omega before selling it, as that way I can drop the price a bit without significantly losing out. I suspect most potential buyers couldn't care less that there are a nice shiny set of wheels that have only been on there about 4 months and owe me £300 + tyres

So basically the point is, will it be worth my while going to the hassle of sourcing some suitable replacements and selling these? I'm thinking of picking up a set of prefacelift Elite wheels or similar, as trying to find prefacelift MV6 ones that aren't buckled and/or corroded to bits is damn near impossible (the reason for removing them in the first place). I'd rather sell it with 16" wheels that are round and in good nick, than original 17s that are egg shaped and generally shagged. So I need to account for the cost of buying those wheels into the equation.

My MV6 wheels are mint, I have just bought a brand new set of centre caps for them as they weren't supplied when I bought them, and they have four good tyres of the correct size (235x45/17).

Thoughts? And before the vultures descend, these are *not* for sale at this time, not least because I have nothing to prop up the car with in their place (no, I won't use bricks)

General Discussion Area / Took the Omega for an MOT today....

« on: 12 January 2008, 20:45:53 »

Dropped it off at 9am, collected 10.30am with a nice new cert, no advisories (same as last year)

Not bad for a 175,000 mile, 9.5 year old barge 8-)

General Discussion Area / Couriering large items

« on: 07 January 2008, 15:58:24 »

After the highly entertaining "postage costs" thread, I thought I'd post one of my own on a similar vein.

I have a spare BMW 850CSi lower valance that fits onto the front bumper. It's been stored in my folks' garage for a while now, and as my 840 already has one fitted I have no need for it so decided to sell it. These are about £600 new and are quite in demand as they can be fitted to standard non-sport models to improve the look.

Enough of the background, I have a guy who wants to buy it (well actually there are a line of people wanting to buy it...) but inevitably he's too far to collect. So I need to courier it, but I've never sent something this large! It's basically the size of a front bumper (not as tall as it's only the lower half), but it's just a plastic outer part so doesn't weigh much -- maybe about 6-8 Kg. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can send this, and how much it will cost?

I need to package it up as well to prevent it getting damaged, any tips here?

Cheers

General Discussion Area / Re: Anybody want a 2002 CD facelift with LPG

« on: 08 January 2008, 10:38:01 »

This probably should be in cars for sale

You've omitted one very important detail, and it's the first thing I would ask: Is it a manual gearbox?

Second thing: what colour?

If you give us a ball park figure, that would be helpful. Good luck.

General Discussion Area / Question for LPG users and/or Polish members

« on: 29 October 2007, 10:42:10 »

I've been looking around for some interface cables to tweak my dual fuel ECU and came across this page. The price is LOTS cheaper than they usually sell for in the UK, and it appears to cover most of the LPG manufacturers that I've heard of. Can anyone vouch for these guys? I'm sure most of the people selling cables in the UK are buying them from places like these and simply slapping on a huge markup!

Postage is a little expensive at around 25 euro, so it would make economic sense if a few people were to get together for a combined purchase. The other thing is I'm not totally sure how to pay, as there doesn't seem to be a credit card option. The English is a bit sporadic in places so if anyone who knows Polish could translate for us that would be great.

Anyone else interested?

General Discussion Area / How gay....

« on: 17 November 2007, 19:00:03 »

Oh well it's all over for another campaign, have to say we have achieved far more than anyone could have expected. Beating France home and away was unthinkable with the level of our performances after Vogts' reign!

Here's hoping for a less savage group in the world cup 2010 draw

General Discussion Area / Cheers Markie!

« on: 02 July 2007, 15:19:20 »

Just a quick post to say thanks to Markie for picking up two nice new 72Ah batteries for me to replace the now very close to dead ones in my BMW. It was nice to finally meet you and SWMBO, and to have a look at that ever-expanding fleet of yours. I get the impression you may be adding another car to the fleet after my visit, only this time it'll have a propellor badge on the front and a V8 engine under the bonnet

.

BTW The meega is back in full working order now as my dad spontaneously decided to replace the rear dampers for me

so I may go back to using that more often, 17 MPG is really starting to bruise my wallet :O. Maybe I should park my cars at my parents' house more often!

Hope to catch up at a meet in the not too distant future

General Discussion Area / Anyone around in Glasgow/Edinburgh with TC card?

« on: 22 June 2007, 11:59:59 »

Further to my batteries thread in this forum, I'm needing to pick up two long-overdue replacement batteries for my BMW, and VX trade club is probably my best bet in terms of getting quality batteries at a good price. This weekend would be ideal, but it's not urgent in that I've got other transport so can just do without the BMW for a week or so.

Cheers
Paul.

General Discussion Area / Batteries on Trade Club -- prices and sizes

« on: 16 April 2007, 15:10:29 »

Hi all

I plan on replacing both batteries on my BMW as I have no idea how old they are and they struggle to start the car if it's been parked for a few weeks. It has two identical batteries, one on either side of the boot (apparently it's done like this for weight distribution... personally I'm not convinced). I replaced my Omega battery about a year ago on TC and was surprised how cheap it was, around £40 for a monstrous thing which is actually too big for my car, I had to remove a piece of plastic trim and do some shuffling to get it fitted, that's what the VX dealer said was the right one for the MV6! The BMW ones are definitely smaller than that, they're still reasonably large though so I'm guessing the next size down.

Does anyone know the specs of the batteries available on TC, in terms of Ah, CCA and physical size if possible, and also the corresponding prices?

Incidentally I need a new battery for my SV650 before selling it, and it's probably going to cost me more than the Omega one did, despite being about a tenth of the size!

Cheers.

General Discussion Area / Heyo from Cali!

« on: 04 June 2007, 17:45:19 »

Just thought I'd make a quick flying visit to say hi from San Diego... arrived here on Saturday evening after a mammoth day travelling, helped in no part by my flight to New York being delayed which caused me to miss my connecting flight

. Well used to it though, it happens more often than not when I travel to the West coast of the US.

Anyway... it's a little warmer and a little dryer here than it was in Scotland

Oh and I managed to make it out to a few pubs on Saturday night despite being ready to fall asleep while standing up lol. And I can safely say there is some rather nice talent round these parts too, a far cry from the hoards of barbie girls in LA (which I'll be visitng later this week probably).

Have fun guys and enjoy the meet next weekend for those of you who are going. I won't make it but will just have to console myself with the fact I have tickets for a party over here and it's a free bar all night. Hopefully I make it out in one piece