Conference terri::cars_uk

    I had the same failure on my girlfriends Metro 1.0L, the rear nearside
    radius arm bush died on us. I had the car in Halfords service centre in
    Reading and it obviously failed its MOT. They gave me a quote, and I
    shopped around - they were very reasonable indeed.
    	The work involved removing a welded on bracket and radius arm and
    replacing it with the later style which bolted on. I cant remember the
    cost but I will find out for you.
    	With regard to doing it yourself, the part will cost about 100
    pounds. If you have the tools it should be fairly straight forward, be
    carefull when depresurising the system. When youve replaced the radius
    arm, if the garage that can pump it up for you is near you could drive
    to it with probably no adverse affect on your suspension. If its a long
    way then maybe you could pump it up with air and drive very slowly and
    carefully - I dont know for sure.
    	My honest advice would be to leave it to the profesionals though.
    Shop around and get some quotes, if you go to Halfords like I did they
    wont charge you if it goes over their estimate.
    
   Andy

    You can obtain a repair kit which costs about 40 quid. It is made up of
    a needle bearing which is fitted into the sleeve of the arm, unless of
    course you have failed to notice the knocking coming off the back-end!  
    
    If you ain't heard any knocking than the repair kit will suffice, if on
    the other hand the knocking is apparent, then you will probably need
    the whole arm assembly (145 quid).
    
    Unless you know what you are doing, then get a garage to fit the repair
    kit or the complete arm. There is approximately 2-3 hours of labour
    costs involved, regardless of which option your car requires.
    
    TIP: Always GREASE these bearings every 6000 miles. Start by doing the 
    other side NOW, before it too packs up!
    
    Cheers...John.
    

    
    
    re: .2 anyone know why my metro  judders.........
    
    when did it last have a PROPER service?
    
    is this the same car with the "worn-out rotor arm"
    
    Richard

    The rotor arm was replaced about 3 weeks ago by Mr. RAC man.
    
    D'ya reckon it's the wheel balancing? It seems as if it's the engine
    that's faulty?!?
    
    It last had a proper service back in June and has had a proper service
    every 6 months of it's life!
    
    Trev$stilljudderingalongtheM4!

    Nope, it's not the wheels, it something to do with the engine.
    
    Dan$who's been in it

    What's your Diagnosis Daniel?

    
    I experienced a simliar problem with a VW Jetta, in extreme cases such
    as a long motorway journey at fairly constant speeds it would start to
    smoke a lot and then stop, starting again after a minute or two.
    
    The cause of all this turned out to be a small hole in the fuel line,
    which eventually starved the engine of petrol as it sucked in more and
    more air - particularly at higher revs...
    
    hope this helps,
    
    
    Graham 

    Now that's sounds like a feasible explaination for what's going on.
    Except there is no smoke, and it isn't only long motorway journeys.
    Apart from that it sounds like like a probable cause!

    Its a 1986 D Reg City, does that help?

    I'm pretty sure it's an ignition problem rather than fuel, but don't
    quote me on that :-)

	If I were you, I'd replace the plugs, leads, points,
	condensor and distributor cap for starters.   It's 
	not expensive and it's a good idea before the real
	damp weather sets in.   Then check all fuel and air
	hoses for splits etc and any that look dodgy, replace.

	Dave

    
    
    I'll go with -.1
    
    Richard
    
    Ps what about the coil

	Go mad, replace the coil too.  I must admit that I've
	never had a coil go.  Despite once leaving the MG's
	ignition on over night - the coil was warm in the morning
	and the battery was flat.  I replaced that one anyway.

	Obviously, when you replace the points and condenser it's	
	a good idea to set the gap correctly, preferably with a
	dwell meter.

	Oh and if it's got an SU carb, check that the damper is full of
	oil.

	Dave

    
    ....replacing everything in sight, works with TV's, competers, HiFi's
    and even cars....
    
    what it doesn't do is find the cause !
    
    ...if a quids worth of petrol hose is at fault, I'd feel pretty daft
    having replaced all the electrics; and as I know of someone who bought
    a brand new *faulty* coil, you could just introduce another problem...
    
    anyway, good luck, whatever's causing the problem.
    
    Graham
    
    BTW, carb's sound plausible as well, esp. if you've run it low/out of
    petrol at any time.
    

    Why not join the RAC, AA & National Breakdown, & then go to your
    nearest motorway, call out the above organisations one by one & share 
    your experiences with us in this topic ?
    
    Tony.

The Type Approval regs say (in so many words) that no part of the 
wheel shall touch any part of the bodywork over the full travel 
allowed by the suspension. On this basis I think your Metro, or all 
Metros are illegal :-)

- John.
 

    Is this 'pumping up' something I just have to have done every 3 months or so
    (or when I put 4 people in)... or should I insist they replace the
    hydro-gas things... (especially if they are leaking)... 
    
    
    Xtine

    It shouldn't go down that soon, hence why I suggested you get them to
    look for a leak, or else explain the loss of fluid!
    
    Cheers,
    Dan

    
    re:.0
    
    (4)
    Sounds as though it's just not pumped up to the correct pressure.
    
    or...
    
    Maybe either the seals are knackered on that particular suspension
    strut, or something has been rubbing against it to make a gap that the
    gas is leaking out from.  On my old Metro the exhaust was a bit loose
    and eventually went through the gas pipe, it didn't just lose it all
    though, it was over a few months - like a gradual leak.
    
    
    C.
    

    I am getting Rover to look at it again, but I just wanted to know if
    these things always leaked - or should I be insisting they replace it
    as the car is <1year old.
    
    
    
    Xtine

    Replace or fix - yes. (Replace is obviously more favourable!)

    
    re:.8
    
    Dan will know more 'bout this than I do, but they normally need pumping
    up maybe after 5/6 years or some fair length of time.
    
    C.

    Well, one every 2 years was fairly common for my old metro. I'd say
    anything shorter than 12 months, and there's something wrong.

    Okey Doke
    
    Since this has already been done once since I got the car in September - 
    I think I will try and insist they replace it.
    
    Will let you know what happens... seeing them tonight!
    
    
    Xtine

    
    Xtine,
    
    sorry to hear you're having so much trouble with a Rover dealer, I've
    found the ones I've dealt with a lot more helpful than the norm. The
    kind of rubbish you're getting reminds me a lot of Newbury Instant
    Motors, the now defunct (and deservedly so) Vauxhall dealer.
    
    I found David Ruskin (Winnersh) helpful a few years ago when I was 
    looking to buy a car, but I can't comment on their servicing as I
    bought a Vauxhall at that time (I'm over it now, though :^)).
    
    Mark 

    There used to be a good Rover dealer on the A4 between Twyford and
    Maidenhead. Knowl Hill Motors, or something similar. This is going back
    a few years mind, but my Dad never had anything other than excellent
    service from them.
    
    Clive

    I pass Knowlhill every time I come in from MK - I think I will try them
    out....
    
    
    Xtine

	Knowl Hill Garage ceased to be a Rover dealer some years 
	back. It was Isuzu last time I noticed but that was a long 
	time ago too.

	-John_who_used_to_live_there

    Well, must've got Rover back... cos it was Rover on Monday...!
    
    
    Xtine
    
    ps. wonder why it lost the dealership?

    
    I don't think garages actually lose dealerships, rather the owners do a
    deal with a manufacturer to sell their cars based on discounts, margins
    etc... Then one day it either isn't working out, or they can get a
    better deal elsewhere so the garage leaves the dealership.
    
    Graham

        I don't know about other makes, but a Rover 'dealership' is just 
        a franchise. You can buy one like a "Body Shop" store or a
        Bettaware round!
        
        Ian.

    
    Re: last few.
    
    However, it IS possible for a dealer to be dis-enfranchised. I know of
    two dealers that this happened to.
    
    Mark

This is what all the fuss about Daewoo is.  Instead of having franchised 
dealerships, all "Motor shows" (read "showrooms") are owned by Daewoo.  This 
gives them total control over how their cars are being sold.  

    
    Funny, I thought all the 'fuss' about Daewoo was advertising hype :^)
    
    Mark

that too.  Mind you, they don't need to advertise - the motoring press/media 
are doing a good enough job for them.

    
    There's a lot of very crap dealerships out there, so anything that
    Daewoo are doing can't be a bad thing.  'Honest' pricing and OK
    trade-in's should give 'em a head start...but the biggest benefit to
    buyers will probably be the lack of a del-boy (no offence meant to Mr
    Thatcher if he's reading this!) type character laughing at the price 
    they want for their old car as a trade-in...
    
    Chris.