[twoshoes]

Anyone got any tips for removing hi-vis strickers from the back of a van? (The stuff they use on highway maintenance and emergency vehicles.) I've tried a hair dryer and a steam cleaner and it's proving a right sodding bugger awkward to remove - to the point that I've taken off fist-sized patches of paint (the paint is surprisingly thin...) Which brings me to question number 2: anyone got any experience of respraying cars/vans? I've only really got access to Halfords spray cans and am going to need to do a fair bit. It doesn't have to be a pro job but I'd like it to look half decent.

Alternatively, anyone got any idea how much I'm looking at to get the rear doors resprayed on a Berlingo van?

[creedence]

Awesome, cheers TTT (&BTOL for the garage details). That's exactly what my colleague's just said to me as well.

If I'd have have thought about it properly I would have realised that there's an error log saved by the computer. 

It's working fine so I'll just carry on as usual. Service & MOT due in a month so that will hopefully pick anything up.

I can't remember the last time I didn't have a car with the check engine light on.  It's become something of a tradition.  As long as you're not in limp mode, ignore the shit out of it.

Disclaimer:  I also only buy heaps of junk with long MOTs.  Then just drive them till the wheels fall off and they move on to a better place.  So if your car is worth more than your climbing rack, unlike mine, you can get a USB tool to plug your laptop in for about a tenner on eBay if you want to see what the issue is.

[Obi-Wan is lost...]

Anyone got any tips for removing hi-vis strickers from the back of a van? (The stuff they use on highway maintenance and emergency vehicles.) I've tried a hair dryer and a steam cleaner and it's proving a right sodding bugger awkward to remove - to the point that I've taken off fist-sized patches of paint (the paint is surprisingly thin...) Which brings me to question number 2: anyone got any experience of respraying cars/vans? I've only really got access to Halfords spray cans and am going to need to do a fair bit. It doesn't have to be a pro job but I'd like it to look half decent.

Alternatively, anyone got any idea how much I'm looking at to get the rear doors resprayed on a Berlingo van?

if you can get the non permeable layer off leaving the adhesive I've found that most adhesives will dissolve with one of the following:

- Lighter fluid
- Meths
- Nail varnish remover
- WD40

They tend to dissolve with only one of these, when the others won' touch it. you can buy numerous specialist removers but I doubt they are much better than the above. http://www.ebay.co.uk/bhp/adhesive-remover

In terms of spraying a whole panel yourself, I did this once myself and swore to never do it again. To do it properly you need to do primer (if bare metal), undercoat, multiple layers of topcoat, plus multiple layers of lacquer, not to mention the sanding down, dust removal cloths etc etc. Not only will this cost a lot in cans and other stuff, the finished product will be patchy as hell and you'll wish you forked out to get it professionally done. If the car has any resale value at all don't even think about doing it yourself. Probably only a couple of hundred if you shop around. You'll probably find somewhere who will do the lot including remove the tape.

[twoshoes]

Ta. I'm still optimistic about removing the rest without causing more damage, which will only leave a couple of fist-sized areas to paint. I'm equally optimistic that I can do this with a few cans of primer, paint and lacquer... I'll probably feel the same way as you about respraying in a day or two.

[tommytwotone]

Awesome, cheers TTT (&BTOL for the garage details). That's exactly what my colleague's just said to me as well.

If I'd have have thought about it properly I would have realised that there's an error log saved by the computer. 

It's working fine so I'll just carry on as usual. Service & MOT due in a month so that will hopefully pick anything up.

Yeah, just bear in mind that an engine warning light on is now (I'm pretty sure) an MOT fail. That said, most of the lights are on a cycle, so if you've got a persistent one you can just keep starting the car until it goes out (yes I have done this before!).

[andy_e]

Or go behind the dash and take the bulb out...

[Fultonius]

Ta. I'm still optimistic about removing the rest without causing more damage, which will only leave a couple of fist-sized areas to paint. I'm equally optimistic that I can do this with a few cans of primer, paint and lacquer... I'll probably feel the same way as you about respraying in a day or two.

I have done some home spraying and plan to do the whole van in the spring (ambitious/stupid...). It's pretty difficult to get a good finish with rattle cans and you can't really just "do a few patches" - it's nigh on impossible to blend. You really need to spray to the nearest discontinuity. It's seems like a lot extra work, but it's only really the topcoat and lacquer that need to go all the way - the primer/high build primer layers will be mainly focused on the bare metal patches.

Probably £200 to get a tailgate done, maybe more. One thing you could do is find a friendly local sprayer and see about doing the prep/pimer yourself (not too hard) then get them to quickly lay down the final coats. Many sprayers will say no though...

[sdm]

What's the spec of your Berlingo? I don't think it's as simple as checking the pedals, I think it depends on the type of fuel injection system you have (Bosch or Siemens). It's been on my to do list to look into this but because mine is Bosch, I think chances are slim. There's more info, but not masses on the Berlingo forum. I'm not sure I like the idea of the after market cruise control systems personally, aren't they a slightly more sophisticated version of shoving a block against the accelerator when you've reached the desired speed? If I'm wrong then fair enough.

*** Edit, cruise control comments were assuming you have a M49 or M59 berlingo, I have no knowledge of the newer ones ***

The berlingo I have gone for is a 2009 1.6 HDi (90bhp) VTR 5d

http://www.parkers.co.uk/citroen/berlingo-multispace/estate-2008/16-hdi-(90bhp)-vtr-5d/specs/

That's all the info that I have unfortunately (pick it up next week). Would there be a way to know which fuel injection system is in there? Or if it's an M49 or M59 even?

Yes I'm still undecided on the parking sensors - I've never hit anything yet! We live in an area that's very limited on space so it might be useful now we've got a bigger car. Though it'll be a little bit before we buy/fit it I imagine so we may find we're okay without it.

Yours is the B9 (second generation).

To be able to retrofit cruise control, your Berlingo needs to have 3 things:
1) A switch on your clutch pedal to tell the car to deactivate the cruise control when you press the clutch. The switch usually has black wires coming out of it, going in to a blue housing and can be seen by getting down by the pedals and pressing the clutch. A mirror and torch may be necessary.
2) A switch on the brake pedal to deactivate the cruise control when you press the brake. All Berlingos have a white switch (I think this activates the brake lights), the switch you want is a second red switch to the right of the white one. This one is more awkward to see. There are some pictures on the Berlingo forums if you are struggling.
3) Have the right version of the software installed in your car. As I understand it, this shouldn't be a problem on yours. Some of the earliest B9s didn't have the right software but I haven't heard of any problems from anyone with an 09 plate.

You then just need to fit the stalk and get someone to plug it in to Lexia to change the right values to activate it.

There is a switch on the throttle which is required if you also want the speed limiter activated. Most Berlingos don't have this switch as standard and the replacement throttle pedal is expensive so most people don't bother with this. If you install a cruise control stalk with the speed limiter but you don't have the right throttle, the cruise control will still work fine.

There's quite a few threads on berlingoforum.co.uk on the subject and you may even find someone local on there who has access to Lexia for a good price.

SDM - Thanks for the very comprehensive reply. I'll check the pedals next week when I get the car from the dealer. Are these the type you mean (so I know what I'm looking for)? https://i618.photobucket.com/albums/tt266/mechcanicolee/100_2371.jpg

After a bit of googling I've found a place with Lexia in leeds, but I'll search the forums you mentioned to see if there is anyone else out there once I get a quote.

Yeah, those are the ones. My clutch switch and wires are different colours but I don't think the colour is important as long as its present.

[Fultonius]

Mini YYFY for the van... After a year of having a dodgy speedo, trying various fixes,  and a new speedo (which we needed anyway for MPH) a new speed sensor finally fixed it! And strangely  it fixed the wandering fuel gauge too...  And the cruise control now works again!

Sent from my E5823 using Tapatalk

[WillRobertson]

Hey all, hopefully someone has come across this before and has some advice more useful than get rid (it's a Citroen). I've got a 2007 Xsara Picasso 1.6HDI with just over 40,000 on the clock. I've had it about 18 months and over the last 6 or so the engine fault light has come on occasionally. It's always gone off after a week or less (anywhere between 1 and about 8 re-starts) but as it's happened a few times now I thought I'd check it out. I bought a cheap fault code reader and came back with:
P0238 - Turbocharger Boost Sensor A Circuit High
P1351
P1351   P
The P1351 code seems to be glow plug related however I can't find any info about the "P1351   P" code.

Having looked at a few other forums offering advice I can't find any consistent fixes so thought I'd throw it out here.

I'd like it to be sorted fairly soon if possible as I'm driving to Font in April and don't want the hassle of any major issues in Euro-land.

[tomtom]

its a pretty standard engine - used in Fords, Mini's, Peugots, Volvo's... so maybe look in those forums? Ford one might be a good place to start? Its generally known as the 1.6PSA engine I think...

[James Malloch]

Hopefully a quick question on car stereos...

I want to replace mine (Citroen Berlingo (B9 - second gen)) with one that has an aux/Bluetooth input. Last time I did this for another car I just paid Halfords to do it. It also meant that the volume controls on the steering wheel didn't work as I didn't pay the £40 to get the extra cable.


Does anyone know if:

a) it is an easy job on a berlingo?
b) it requires additional cables to make the audio stick thing work?
c) there is anything else I should consider before embarking on such a job?

[cofe]

Anyone had problems with key (not) going into ignition on Seat/Golf/Octavia/A3 etc? We'be got an '08 Seat Altea that's started playing up this morning. Apparently a plastic dust cover that won't retract. Did a temp fix using a screwdriver and WD40, but it's popped out again. Tow to a garage and new barrel required?

[tomtom]

Snap off the plastic cover? Or (risky) a teeny bit of superglue on the cover so it's always open?

[tomtom]

2nd hand barrels 25-40 on eBay... probably not too bad a diy job aside from getting the wheel off. (Airbag to deal with (no idea how hard) and fuck off big spanner/socket rqd for wheel nut)

[cofe]

Green Flag got the key in so I dropped it in the shop. Bit annoying, but doesn't sound epic to fix.

[tomtom]

Car. Money. Fuck. As the saying goes...

[Bubba]

Just a headsup because I know I'm not the only one who runs a high miles Beemer on here...

BMW "Lifetime Fluids" = bollocks.

My E91 has done 97k miles and is still generally wonderful but recently decided to change out the auto gearbox fluid and the rear diff fluid despite BMW claiming that these never need to be replaced.

Massive improvement from the auto box - nice tight changes instead of a sluggish "rubber band" feeling.

Dropped the diff oil and it was in a horrendous state. New oil and the car feels more lively. Easy job, 1/2 hr max.

Recommended 

[Paul B]

Interestingly I wanted to do this on my ~185k mile E46 320d (the gearbox oil) and quarry motors advised me against it (strongly).

[Jim]

also, anyone with a manual box that is notchy or playing up, try sticking some auto fluid in it (the red stuff) really makes a difference. especially if you've got a short shifter

[Paul B]

also, anyone with a manual box that is notchy or playing up, try sticking some auto fluid in it (the red stuff) really makes a difference. especially if you've got a short shifter

Interesting again, second is a bit notchy on mine (~115k miles now I think).

[nic mullin]

Had a leak from the connector at the supply end of the fuel rail, went in to investigate and found that, some time in the past, somebody's snapped the male end of the connector off the rail and reattached it with what looks like (now almost completely decomposed) superglue. Utterly boggled that anyone would do such a shonky repair that will piss petrol all over the hot engine when it inevitably fails.

Sorry, just had to vent about it.

[haydn jones]

Live next to the works can anyone recommend a garage to mot my clio

[Simon W]

Been taking my polo to PLM autocentre on Rydal Road for the past few years, no complaints, owner Pete is a good guy.

[haydn jones]

Cheers