Loopy the 1.4

[myles983]

Yep.

[Skezza]

£0 excess for me.

[myles983]

You lucky sod...

[mattarosa]

£150 for me, £350 a year fully comp

[myles983]

This makes me sad...  

Mine is roughly 8 yours Matt.... 

But can I ask something?  This might sound like a stupid question, but what is excess for? 

My understanding of it was that if you were in an accident, and then  wanted to claim through your insurance, the excess is the amount of damage you have to pay for before your insurance company gives you the car back? 

My stepmum (whom I do not like very much anyway) has said that because my excess is  £950, I'll have to pay that for the other guys repairs? 

But my dad said that that's what my insurance is for; the company cover the cost of his repairs, and then put my  premium up and I lose my no claims as a result. He's had multiple incidents, and not had to pay a thing?  

I just want clarification because I'm hearing a lot of stuff and I'm not sure who to believe. 

Edited December 8, 2015 by myles983

[Skezza]

Your step mum is talking arse gravy.

[mattarosa]

I am 23 mind... Although I am an engineer which is apparently one of the higher insurance jobs but I don't know. The only time the other guys repairs come out of your pocket is when it's cash and the insurance don't know.

[myles983]

1 hour ago, Skezza said:

Your step mum is talking arse gravy.

I thought as much. 

 

51 minutes ago, mattarosa said:

I am 23 mind... Although I am an engineer which is apparently one of the higher insurance jobs but I don't know. The only time the other guys repairs come out of your pocket is when it's cash and the insurance don't know.

Im an engineer too, but I'm only an apprentice. 

 

Thanks for the help guys. 

[Skezza]

I'm going to give your step mum the benefit of the doubt here and assume that what she means is, you'll pay back his repairs via your premiums and, to an extent she's sort of right, but not really. If you have any NCD, you'll naturally lose that which will probably increase your premiums and if you don't, you will not gain any NCD, as such your premiums will either stay the same or go up. I had an accident and lost my 1 years NCD. My renewal premiums stayed exactly the same for the next year. So while I lost my NCD, I wasn't penalized too much, in as far as I simply had another year of paying the same (£800 premium with a £500 excess). With just two years NCD and known high mileage on my file, my premiums are now seriously low at around £300 (I'm 25) and I have a £0 excess.

If your step mum actually believes you would be forced to pay for the other vehicles damage then she clearly has no grasp on what the hell insurance is even for. The whole point of insurance, is that it's welll, insurance... against the worst case. I don't know what car you hit, but what if it's a Bentley, an AMG Mercedes, a Lamborghini? Can you afford to pay for those repairs? I can't. The whole point is you pay your premiums and they pay when an accident occurs. Why does third party insurance exist?

Come your renewal, you should shop around. Your file is now somewhat tainted at your current insurer and therefore they will consider taking advantage of that (business is business), shop around, try a few different places and see if any will give you a cheaper quote. Don't always think that a super high excess = lower premiums either. That isn't always the case. Inflating your excess a little bit will reduce your premiums, but if you keep going can actually lead to higher premiums. £950 seems particularly high. When I set my excess to £1500 as a test, the premium flew up by about £800. I'm guessing the rationale is that inflating your excess through the roof is a sign that you're unlikely to claim therefore you're simply turning your comprehensive cover (Which includes benefits) into a pseudo-third party cover.

Consider asking how much for a £0 excess. For me, it was only about £50 and that to me, is money well spent. Safe in the knowledge that if I ever do have an accident and need to claim, that I will not have to fork up any immediate cash is very reassuring.

[myles983]

17 minutes ago, Skezza said:

my I'm going to give your step mum the benefit of the doubt here and assume that what she means is, you'll pay back his repairs via your premiums and, to an extent she's sort of right, but not really. If you have any NCD, you'll naturally lose that which will probably increase your premiums and if you don't, you will not gain any NCD, as such your premiums will either stay the same or go up. I had an accident and lost my 1 years NCD. My renewal premiums stayed exactly the same for the next year. So while I lost my NCD, I wasn't penalized too much, in as far as I simply had another year of paying the same (£800 premium with a £500 excess). With just two years NCD and known high mileage on my file, my premiums are now seriously low at around £300 (I'm 25) and I have a £0 excess.

If your step mum actually believes you would be forced to pay for the other vehicles damage then she clearly has no grasp on what the hell insurance is even for. The whole point of insurance, is that it's welll, insurance... against the worst case. I don't know what car you hit, but what if it's a Bentley, an AMG Mercedes, a Lamborghini? Can you afford to pay for those repairs? I can't. The whole point is you pay your premiums and they pay when an accident occurs. Why does third party insurance exist?

Come your renewal, you should shop around. Your file is now somewhat tainted at your current insurer and therefore they will consider taking advantage of that (business is business), shop around, try a few different places and see if any will give you a cheaper quote. Don't always think that a super high excess = lower premiums either. That isn't always the case. Inflating your excess a little bit will reduce your premiums, but if you keep going can actually lead to higher premiums. £950 seems particularly high. When I set my excess to £1500 as a test, the premium flew up by about £800. I'm guessing the rationale is that inflating your excess through the roof is a sign that you're unlikely to claim therefore you're simply turning your comprehensive cover (Which includes benefits) into a pseudo-third party cover.

Consider asking how much for a £0 excess. For me, it was only about £50 and that to me, is money well spent. Safe in the knowledge that if I ever do have an accident and need to claim, that I will not have to fork up any immediate cash is very reassuring.ca

Well since this is my first year driving, it's going to be a little tough finding less pricey insurance I imagine come next year. However, I'm going to start saving after Christmas, in the event that I come across an insurance that is a similar price or cheaper to what I'm paying now. Im paying 2.5k for this year, but I'm paying it monthly. Purely because of engine size and age. If I pay in full next year (couldn't this year due to my financial situation), then it should automatically be cheaper right? They add on interest for monthly payments I found. And I think the car I hit was a Citroën C3. It was the long, slightly ugly looking sedan one. 

 

 

Edited December 8, 2015 by myles983

[Skezza]

Jesus, 2.5 grand? That's ludicrous. 

Monthly is significantly more expensive so annually would help.

[myles983]

Im definitely going to go annually next year. Without a doubt.

 

[myles983]

Alright so, I now have this weird rumbling/knocking noise. from the passenger rear wheel.  Ive jacked the car up and tried moving the wheel, and it doesnt move at all, so its not the bearings. 

Any Suggestions? 

 

[mattarosa]

You did take the handbrake off? And just because it won't move doesn't mean it's not the bearing... In fact I'd suggest it's something to do with the bearing 

[myles983]

22 hours ago, mattarosa said:

You did take the handbrake off? And just because it won't move doesn't mean it's not the bearing... In fact I'd suggest it's something to do with the bearing 

... I did not.... :') I thought with the handbrake off it'd roll ...  Alright, well how difficult is it to replace them in the event that it is the bearing?

 

And this morning, I pulled away from my drive and noticed that loopy was chugging and very sluggish, reminiscent to the issues i had when i fit my new exhaust. ODB2 tool told me it was the same issue, so i limped back home, replaced all 4 spark plugs, and now its running smoother than ever. To the point where i had to check i hadn't stalled or the engine had gone off whilst waiting at some lights because it was so quiet.

Next thing im going to address is the knocking/rumbling, and also the gearbox fluid. 

[mattarosa]

is it flat where you are checking your bearing? I hope so if you're jacking, just leave it in gear and it won't roll. The bearing is a few hours I believe, they might have to be pressed in and out see.

[myles983]

44 minutes ago, mattarosa said:

is it flat where you are checking your bearing? I hope so if you're jacking, just leave it in gear and it won't roll. The bearing is a few hours I believe, they might have to be pressed in and out see.

Im going to take it to a garage. From what I've heard, the bearings are pressed in and if they're on their way out, the make a whining noise, not usually the rumbling/knocking ive heard. I've ordered bearings all the same, and ill get my local garage to fit them. I've already had a quote for £50 to get them fitted so. Just have to wait and see.

 

EDIT: I havent checked the bearing itself. It's just the knocking and rumbling that I've heard and just looked up on the internet what it could mean. It's usually pointed toward the bearing, but the guy at the garage said it could be something else. 

 

Edited December 14, 2015 by myles983

[mattarosa]

usually bearings, my mrs had a front bearing go and that was like a box of rocks tumbling 

[bailside]

Nice progress so far, loving the work you've put into it, I got myself a 1.0 2003 recently and loving it, currently only cheap mods for it so far, but changing for a HID kit is up there in what I want to do to it next, do you have a direct link to the exact kit you bought, I'm worried I'll get the wrong fitting!

Was it farily easy to install most of the bulbs ect and do you need any adhesive, tape or anything to fit the new parts?

[myles983]

 

So this happened tonight. Car completely cut out on the way home. Was driving normally, and the car jumped and then slowed. Had to restart the ignition and then cautiously drive the rest of the way home. 

 

2 hours ago, bailside said:

Nice progress so far, loving the work you've put into it, I got myself a 1.0 2003 recently and loving it, currently only cheap mods for it so far, but changing for a HID kit is up there in what I want to do to it next, do you have a direct link to the exact kit you bought, I'm worried I'll get the wrong fitting!

Was it farily easy to install most of the bulbs ect and do you need any adhesive, tape or anything to fit the new parts?

Thanks, it's been slow but steadily getting to where I want her to be. 

As for the HIDs,  I used HIDS4U.  if you go to their website, and type in your reg, it'll give you the kit you need instantly. The whole fitting procedure isn't too difficult, but it can be a bit fiddly. I recommend leaving a couple of hours on a weekend to get them done. One thing you're gonna need are some strong cable ties or double sided tape: The stuff they provide isn't really strong enough to secure the ballasts to anything, so you might want to either improvise and drill some holes so you know they're in a safe and secure position, or simply cable tie them with different ones like I did  

[myles983]

2 hours ago, mattarosa said:

usually bearings, my mrs had a front bearing go and that was like a box of rocks tumbling 

That sounds sort of similar to what I have to be honest.

 

[myles983]

So having sat and pondered it a little, I think I know the cause of the problem. I shall try and use my ODB2 Scanner as little as often. I've noticed that when I have it plugged in, if I'm idling, loopy will cut out after a couple of minutes, providing it's still plugged in. I had it plugged in whilst I was driving, so I'm thinking it's drawing too much power or something along those lines.... Still doesn't explain why tonight when the car cut out, the battery light didn't come on. 

 

[Skezza]

Obd2 device pulling too much power?

No.

[myles983]

Then what else could it be? there's never any issues unless i have it plugged in. 

Either way, there's something up with it. 

Edited December 15, 2015 by myles983

[Skezza]

1 hour ago, myles983 said:

Then what else could it be? there's never any issues unless i have it plugged in. 

Either way, there's something up with it. 

Is it an ELM327? The generic ones you get off eBay or Amazon? They draw next to no current whatsoever, even when your car is on and it is transmitting data. I mean how much power does it take to transmit textual data via a Bluetooth COM and power a few LED's? When the car is turned off, they draw even less (Bluetooth COM switches off). My girlfriend leaves hers permanently plugged in, for days and even weeks on end.

It could be any number of things, but to suggest it's the OBD2 adapter is a bit like saying "I have bad chest all of the time, but it only really gets nasty and painful when I smoke". Take your OBD2 and plug it into another car, watch and observe as it runs perfectly. Then you'll realize there's something else going on. Your OBD2 adapter is actually telling you (in the photo above) that there are unresolved problems, so it's most certainly a manifestation of a different problem. Fix those issues.

Why is your car doing what it's doing with the OBD2 plugged in? Who knows? Maybe it's an earthing issue (doubt it)? Maybe your alternator is ****ed (doubt it)? Or perhaps your battery (doubt it)? Perhaps your spark plugs or leads are toast and plugging in the OBD2 reduces the power just enough to cause all the issues (on another planet perhaps)? Or perhaps there's a genuine problem with your car and it's telling you why and you should follow, logically, those error codes and fix them?

You've got the information above, coming to the conclusion that your OBD2 adapter, a standardized car instrument is causing your problems is well wide of the mark, trust me on that. Diagnosis is the key here.

So start with your adapter, try it in another car. When that car works fine, with it plugged in, you can tick it off. You'll waste five minutes but it'll put your mind at rest.

Personally, I'd fix those issues above.

New spark plugs, HT leads, scan again, if it's still there then change coil pack. That'll fix your misfire.

Have you actually read the documentation on those error codes? 

P0130:

Quote

Depending if the problem is intermittent or not, there may be no symptoms other than MIL (malfunction indicator lamp) illumination. If the problem is constant, then symptoms may include one or more of the following:
MIL illumination
Engine runs rough, missing or stumbling
Blows black smoke from tail pipe
Engine dies
Poor fuel economy

Read more at: http://www.obd-codes.com/p0130 Copyright OBD-Codes.com

Oh look, one of the error codes your OBD2 scanner is flagging up literally describes the symptoms your experiencing? Who'da thunk it?

It's not rocket science. There are problems and they need fixing. Aside from anything else your fuel economy is probably through the floor right now and you'll be wearing out your catalytic converter. It sometimes pays to get these things fixed sooner rather than later. If you're not confident about doing it yourself, take it a garage, although all of these are relatively straightforward to fix if you want to do it yourself.