Roger Blassberg

Hmmmm. I thought that turbocharged cars demanded special oils because of the extremes of heat-soak from the turbo bearings. Not saying your advice was wrong, just slightly uneasy. Cue OILMAN. Best wishes RB

1.3.4.2 is definitely correct. Best wishes RB

Specialist breakers. Not near you, but give Clive a ring on 01525 210978 (Hockliffe, Bedfordshire) as a starting point. Get a copy of Volkswagen Driver magazine, it has a page of specialist dismantlers near the back. If you have a fax , I'll send you the relevant page from a recent edition. Best wishes RB

mid 90s Passat with "plus" running gear (GL16v, G60syncro and VR6, all quite rare in UK and often supplied with alloys). Best wishes RB

How much????? I paid about £40 a year and a half ago at VAG. They change the prices like most people change their socks. Still, at least you got your lights going again, so you can see where you are going in the dark and the rain. Best wishes RB

Do you have the uprated looms for both main and dipped beams, ie 2 relays? To check a relay, apply 12v to the switching terminals and listen for the solenoid-operated contact to click over. If it doesn't, the solenoid is most likely burnt out. If it does, check that the switched circuit is closed by putting a multi meter across the switched terminals and looking for zero resistance. If it remains open circuit, the contacts are dirty or burnt. There should be a wiring diagram on the side of the relay casing. A new 40A relay shouldn't cost more than about £10 Best wishes RB

Do you have a relay-operated headlight loom modification? If you have, maybe the relay has packed up or the inline fuse has blown or both. But for both main and dipped to fail, this seems unlikely. If you are operating standard wiring, it may well be the infamous headlight switch failure. A new switch is quite expensive, but I have heard of people taking them to pieces and repairing them. I think that it is unlikely to be fuse-related in the standard set-up as there is a separate fuse for each phase of each headlight and the chances of all four going at once tends to zero. Best wishes RB

Correction to the link; it's http://www.spark-plugs.co.uk Best wishes RB

Don't remember the exact number of the wrong ones, but they were Bosch plugs for an ABF engine, not an ABV. Once I put in the correct NGK items, BKR5EKU, all was back to normal. I got 6 of them from http://www.sparkplugs.co.uk, £23 incl. VAT and p+p, delivered 18hrs after ordering. That's a,..........er..........."plug". Best wishes RB

If you are getting pinking for a reason unconnected with ignition timing, such as incorrect plugs or carbon deposits in the combustion chamber, the knock sensor will detect this and try to compensate by winding back the timing and flattening the top end power, and you'll still have the pinking !! I speak from the bitter experience of having the wrong plugs installed by a garage (which shall remain nameless) which was causing very bad pinking. I had both knock sensors replaced at great expense, to no avail. Once I had spotted the problem and rectified it, the engine was back on full, smooth power and without a trace of pinking. And fuel economy improved substantially. The moral is; "check your plugs". Even if they are the correct specification, they may be defective. Best wishes RB

The correct torque for the VR6 is 15 lb.ft. As Steve says, too loose and it doesn't pick up the detonation, too tight and you'll probably crack it. Best wishes RB

Not quite. DIN = Deutsches Institut fuer Normung. ISO = International Standards Organisation. Best wishes RB

Sliding switch is for your MFA. If you slide it against the spring towards the 0 and hold it there for a couple of seconds, it zeroes the miles driven, time taken, average speed and mpg for the relevant memories, either 1 (short term) or 2 (long term). Sorry, can't help with your wipers other than to suggest that maybe the relay is faulty. Best wishes RB

Yes, it sounds a bit James Bond-ish. Probably Armenian by descent in fact. best wishes RB

It's an American predatory financier by the name of Kirk Kerkorian, according to report in today's "Independent", who tried to take over Chrysler 10 years ago and has 9,5% of GM. Best wishes RB

"...for less than half a crown". Showing my age now. Best wishes RB

Serpentine belt. The length depends on whether you have a/c or not - afraid I don't know the part number. Best wishes RB

Well, the last laugh seems to be on the hoarders; supplies are almost back to normal and the price is coming down thanks to a price-war between the supermarkets. Actually it will probably lead to the closure of even more small filling stations, unfortunately, as they can't survive on the cut-throat margins,or even dumping, that the supermarkets can for a while. Here in St.Albans the supermarkets have just about destroyed all opposition. Best wishes RB

The trouble is that OUR railways were stolen by a previous government, and sold to a load of carpet-baggers. So whatever government does to improve them is frustrated by dear-old market forces (i.e. looking after the interests of the shareholders before considering the overall national strategy). Best wishes RB

1954 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing. In Silver grey, naturally. A great car, a vintage year.......... Best wishes RB

I would think so. Yes, it sounds as though you have a pressure leakage somewhere in the cooling system, unless it is running much too cool so that pressure doesn't build up. Looking back to your earlier messages though, you say that the coolant level isn't falling, which contradicts that idea.. Best wishes RB

The leak would be internal, from the water to the oil circuit or vice versa. I don't think you could easily see it without having it pressure tested at operating temperature, which is not a practical proposition really. They are not that expensive; a bit of a pain to fit, and make sure you use new sealing gasket(s). Best wishes RB

Yellow sensor (or whatever colour it is now, probably black) is a 4-pin connection I believe. Best wishes RB

Anyone turning up at a fuel station with more than, say, a quarter of a tankful remaining should A) be refused service B) have the word "HOARDER" scratched good and deep into the paint of his driver's door in letters a foot high. Best wishes RB

It's a metallic casing, about 100mm square and it sits behind the oil filter with 2 rubber water hoses running to it. Best wishes RB