Loose gear linkage.

"Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell." (oppisitelock) 03/31/2015 at 15:17 • Filed to: None

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I've finally had a good inspection of the Saxo my parents bought. It has the worlds loosest gear lever. I think it just needs new bushes, but it's so loose I wonder if something else might be wrong. The video shows the play when in gear.

Other issues I know of so far, the expansion tank has clouded over so I can't see how much coolant is in it, even when shining a powerful torch through it. Also the bottom inch of the dipstick must've snapped off in the sump because it's gone so I don't know how much oil is in it. It has a lot of top end noise which I'm hoping is just poor adjustment and not something more serious.

I'm yet to drive it so I may find more issues when I do. £500 french cars...

Saoul-Virage > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 15:24

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"£500 french cars..."
For the coolant and oil, I think the car has low level indicator for these fluids so it's fine... if they work.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Saoul-Virage 03/31/2015 at 15:27

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It definitely has an oil warning light. Not sure about coolant. It wasn't too warm when they got home in it after a 20 mile drive so I assume it's okay anyway. Ill dip something into the tank to test the coolant level and I'll get an oil dipstick from the scrapyard.

Saoul-Virage > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 15:32

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Well, try to find a transparent coolant tank at the scrapyard too.
Will you replace the oil and coolant or just top up the fluid ?

Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 15:35

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The last time I saw something with nearly that much play was my cousin's '96 Fiesta.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Zipppy, Mazdurp builder, Probeski owner and former ricerboy 03/31/2015 at 15:46

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This is a 2002 so it's not even that old. Forums tell me theyre a bit slack stock then they just get gradually worse over time.

crowmolly > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 15:46

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http://www.saxperience.com/forum/showthre…

FYI

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Saoul-Virage 03/31/2015 at 15:50

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I can't be bothered to swap the coolant tank, it's not my car. It depends how clean and topped up they are really.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > crowmolly 03/31/2015 at 15:52

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Thanks for the link. I had a quick look through the forums after posting this, seems to be a common problem.

crowmolly > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 15:53

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Yeah, the nylon ball seems to be a pretty strange design. Especially if it's in a spot where road dust/grime can get in.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > crowmolly 03/31/2015 at 15:55

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Because french is often the answer in these cases. Every car in my immediate family other than my Fiat is french. They all have features you look at and think "why the hell did they design it like that?!"

crowmolly > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 03/31/2015 at 16:00

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Reminds me of this joke:

Heaven and Hell:

Heaven Is Where:

The French are the chefs

The Italians are the lovers

The British are the police

The Germans are the mechanics

And the Swiss make everything run on time

Hell is Where:

The British are the chefs

The Swiss are the lovers

The French are the mechanics

The Italians make everything run on time

And the Germans are the police

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > crowmolly 03/31/2015 at 16:18

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This is accurate. Although I'd be happy to have the Italians be the chefs too.

KirkyV > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 04/02/2015 at 14:17

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Oh yeah, I meant to warn you about that. As you probably know by now, they're basically all like it. As long as it isn't slipping out of gear, and you can find all of them with relative ease, I wouldn't worry about it—my 106 has been loose since I bought it, and it hasn't caused me any trouble in two and a half years.

... Looking at the video, yours does look a little looser than mine, to be fair.

Anyway, there are warning lights for the oil and coolant, so you'll know if it's overheating at least.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > KirkyV 04/02/2015 at 16:19

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It's extremely easy to select 3rd instead of 1st so I think I'm going to look into fixing it. Apparently it slipped out of 5th on the motorway a couple times too.

It also has a huge amount of lifter tick (I'm told this is normal) and a pretty inconsistent idle (no idea if this is normal or not.)

Just found out it had a recent accident too. Peeling clearcoat on the bonnet, overspray all over and the mirror pops loose during heavy braking.

£480 cars...

KirkyV > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 04/03/2015 at 12:26

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I've never noticed a significant amount of lifter tick on mine, but it did have a fairly lumpy idle when warm, though it only appeared sporadically. I did some digging, and it turned out that the cause was a grimy idle control valve. Thankfully, it's ridiculously easy to access the valve on the 1.1 engine - it's at the very top - so I just gave it a quick clean, and the issue was sorted.

I hope the accident damage is superficial. Just keep in mind that parts on these cars are ridiculously cheap, by any standard, so most stuff ought to be fairly cheap to sort.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > KirkyV 04/03/2015 at 12:31

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I'll check out that valve then, thanks for the info. The accident damage isnt too bad on.inspection.

In other news I'm now car shppping the Panda is dead...

KirkyV > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 04/03/2015 at 12:38

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I don't know what you've got in mind, but if you're in the mood for something fun and reliable - and can manage the insurance - might I suggest one of these: http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/adv…

Normally I'd be suggesting French left and right, but I know you haven't had the best experience with Renaults, and I imagine you want something a little newer, or at least better-equipped, than any of the PSA cars I'd be willing to suggest. If not... Well, buy this:

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/adv…

Honestly, I just want it off the market so I can stop trying to convince myself that £1,800 is a perfectly reasonable amount to spend on insurance.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > KirkyV 04/03/2015 at 12:49

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Unfortunately they're both out of range. Plus I really want something low mile and young so it's as problem free as possible.

Denver Is Stuck In The 90s > Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. 04/04/2015 at 04:45

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Now I dont feel so bad about the play in my shifter:

Its not good, but its not as bad as yours. Im happy for you that your getting a new car, it seems that panda was alot of trouble for you to keep going

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Denver Is Stuck In The 90s 04/04/2015 at 07:29

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Yeah the Panda was awful haha.