charlie_pank

here

Thanks I also know what Caterham recommends, as Caterham in Caterham is where I purchased said jugs of red coolant. However it is interesting to note that I bought it on the understanding that it contained polypropylene glycol, as confirmed by one of their staff at the time of purchase. Clearly it doesn't, as stated on the side! I guess what it boils (ahem) down to is what you feel comfortable with. Caterham cars used to insist on Coldstream, and have changed their tune in the last 18 months. Where's Oily when you need him?

Graham, I know what it says, I've got 2 big jugs of it sitting in my garage, however, it doesn't contain polypropylene glycol: Have a look at this thread http://www.blatchat.com/T.asp?id=22028 - particularly the stuff about blowing radiators, then if you need more convincing do a search for "coldstream". polypropylene glycol is much less prone to localised boiling than Ethylene glycol. Aluminium oxide is very hard but can be eroded by the localised boiling, aluminium itself is very soft and is easily worn away by the water, oxide then forms from the exposed metal, which is then worn away again... rapidly leading to "pock marks" in the head. One a pock mark has taken hold its shape means that there is likely to be slower moving coolant there, so it gets hotter leading to localised boiling etc... (you get the idea). Some people on this forum have suggested that this is contributing factor in the unreliable head gaskets the k series is famous for... I guess the ultimate experiment would be with a thermometer and an old saucepan... any takers for coolant soup? Anyway, it's no skin off my nose what you choose to corrode your engine with... I'm very bad about cleaning the chassis so I'll be smug up to the point that I get a cracked de-dion tube!

Assuming you have a K-series: In the absence of Peter C who must be still up a mountain somewhere, I feel (allegedly) compelled to point out that Xtream is ethylene glycol, not polypropylene glocol and is thus evil. It should be (allegedly) avoided at all costs in an ally engine as it (allegedly) damages the head through localised boiling... (allegedly) - I have 2 flaggons of Xstream going for free if anyone wants them as I won't put them near Kermit...

Popping and banging doesn't NECESSARILY mean there's something wrong - think about the cars at Le Mans that pop and bang all over the place. OK so they don't have to pay for their own fuel, but the noises are certainly not an indication that something's wrong. If there's been a dramatic and sudden change, then maybe something's happened to the ECU - if one of the wires has come loose from one of the sensors then it might be in get you home mode...

I also think that the car helmets have larger chin bars. Which are not allowed on bikes because of the restricted view. Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Mark, are you sure that this isn't just approved for Motorcycle track events? I thought that motorcycle helmets were more abrasion resistant whereas car ones tend to be more fireproof... C Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

He's already changed plugs and leads, which alleviated (not completely removed the symptoms for 3 months, now they are back again. I'll suggest the coil to him, at which point he'll go "what's a coil?" (yes it's going to take a while to help him!). Just so I can give him some decent instructions, can you tell me whether it is single coil + distributor like in the good old days, or is it 2 coils + 4 plugs and ECU triggered wasted spark like them thar modern thingummies? I suppose it might even be 1 coil per plug if it's only affecting 1 plug... Thanks C Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

A friend of mine's golf is playing up - the symptoms are: Jerky drive when cold, less bad when warmed up but jerkiness still present fouled plug on no. 2 cylinder smell of fuel when revved hard The dealer says they've done a check of ECU and sensors and can't find a problem (but I don't believe them). Any suggestions appreciated

What did the Romans ever do for us? Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Have you got a new toy Steve? I was advised to get a couple of SMALL hammers and TAP simultaneously from both sides, then it will just pop out. Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

My car doesn't have a distributor and it seems to go ok! - I don't know if the EU2 has all the same crank sensor bits as the EU3 - which are necessary to let it know when it should be sparking... C Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Pete, take the sensor out, wire it up to a resistance tester and bung it in a pan of boiling water. This will tell you if it's working or not. I suspect that you have a wiring problem, this will confirm it. Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Don't know if it's right or not but I think of engines like animal hears - an elephant's heart beats very slowly and they live a long time, a mouse's heart beats very fast and they only live a few years - the idea being they have roughly the same number of heartbeats in a lifetime. Surely there must be more wear on an engine that has its peak torque at 10,000 rpm than one that has its torque at 5,000? I'm buying a bike at the mo and I get the impression that a lot of people buy new rather than s/h whereas I think the reverse is true in the car market. I think that this is because the price of new compared to s/h is pretty good, but also because higher mileage bikes are a bit of a no-no. Eg. 50k is a long way for a fireblade to have gone, you're into the realms of "it'll be ok, so long as its been looked after"... Then again the engines are much easier to work on as you can lift them onto your dining room table yourself, and there's no reason why it shouldn't do another 50k after a rebuild... C Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN Edited by - charlie_pank on 20 Jan 2004 08:19:23

How did you get hold of my drill? Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

If the key was stuck in position 3, then after the engine fired the starter motor continued to try to turn the engine whilst under petrol power. If it was successfully meshed with the ring gear then you've probably got a burnt out starter motor and possibly some mangled electrics from the current generated as the motor worked as a dynamo. If it wasn't successfully meshed then you've probably got a stripped ring gear or stripped cog on the starter motor. You can tell which of these it is quite easily - if the starter motor is spinning when you try to start it (it makes a noise) then it's turning and the electrics are not fried, if it is not spinning then you have the first problem I described above. From the fact that you said the alternator belt was screeching I suspect some nasty reverse currents in being generated in your electrics doing something funny with the alternator when you had the problem, so some mangled electrics are quite likely to result. If you push start the car does everything work as normal? Does the alternator still charge the battery? Does the battery still hold charge? Charlie Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

I did have to get a new rack (mine developed a terrifying habint of locking up), but it was more like 6000 miles than 3500. I wonder if it's the ones that are "sticky" during the build that end up being lemons 6000 miles down the line... Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

How's this for a start? http://thebody.dnsalias.org/~charlie/Emerald/CharliePank/ Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Only 1 interested party then ☹️ Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Obviously those competing may not be interested in this, but for everyone else with an emerald: Would anyone be interested in a web library of downloadable emerald maps - it would be very easy to set up and would likely be a great help to those with emeralds...? Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN Edited by - charlie_pank on 29 Dec 2003 10:56:17

Flaps, where are you based? Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Yoko AO21Rs 185/70/13s only £35 a corner from George Polley last time I looked. Best handling upgrade I've ever seen. Changed from Avon CR322s which I suspect are a bit like the Michelins. NB They're not called Michelin "Pileups" for nothing!

Thanks Chris, actually I took it right out of the circuit - nasty puny little thing!! Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

I finally got the time to do this today and the instructions were excellent. I found the most difficult bit was getting the starter out from between the primaries and the engine block. Once I got the thing apart I found that the solenoid piston had a mark all the way around it about half way down and quite a lot of other grubby marks too (is this normal?). There was one vertical line of slight corrosion down the length of it too. Cleaned it all up with wet and dry and put it back together and it works a treat. But then it did before most of the time! It's one of those problems that you will never be sure you fixed, the only confirmation you can have is of failure - ie it won't start again! Anyway, I really recommend this fix to anyone who has ongoing starter problems - I can't be sure that it works (see above), but it is a zero cost procedure and is not difficult to do. Thanks again for the clear instructions Mark Charlie Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN

Starting to stray from the original question but... I thought that you shouldn't need to clear the water off your visor on a motorbike if you keep your speed up and have a clean visor - the shape of it and the wind should push all the droplets off pretty effectively. Did this not work for you with the aeroscreen Mark? - perhaps the answer is brooklands screens then? C Charlie'n'Kermit The plan is: There is no plan S5EVN