Mako

Tell me about it - I have lost £6k in the last year on my current car, but have had to bite the bullet and take the hot in order to get a diesel....

Thanks for your responses. I am a rep for my sins and do 30k + a year (hence the fuel bill!) - the Landy only gets driven by me at the moment as I dont trust it to get the missus home in one peice at the weekends - as well as the fact the gearbox takes some getting used to . Its a choice of spending £14k on an estate - or £11k on a saloon and doing up the Landy with a new engine and gearbox..... I cant really get a seriously cheap car, as it needs to last me 4 - 5 years (I also need to retain some credibility in the car park!) I still haven't a clue what to do... I would love the Landy to be 'reliable '...... I think I am going to have to toss a coin!

Ok - I currently have an '88 2.5 turbo 110. I also need to replace my very thirsty Petrol 'everyday' car to get a diesel (as i am spending £700 a month in fuel through work - and not getting that much back in expenses). Bottom line is that I have two choices - buy an estate to carry my 13 stone dog around in as well as use for work. Or, spend less on the everyday car and replace the 2.5td and the knackered gearbox in the 110 in order that the missus can drive it (hopefully a lot easier than the 2.5td) to take the dog walkies.... So - A: Is it worth it (also any ideas as to cost - I reckon if i did it myself £2500??? - also how much would a specialist Garage likely charge?)? B: Will there be a significant enough change in useability to make it worthwhile? C: or would it be best to leave it as it is and resign myself to the fact I am going to have to drive an estate?? Thanks in advance

Just found the cause (I think) - looks like the alternator is on the way out.... as the revs increase the fan thingy moves in and out of the alternator and i think/hope that is the cause fo the problem.

I appreciate that this is a little vague, but am hoping someone mught have a clue as to what is making the strange noises when driving. Ok - its a 2.5 turbo (early). When idling, or revving while stood, it sounds fine - however, when driving there is a sound not unlike a household radiator filling up when the heating comes on. I can't link it to anything really, not to steering, or to the suspension (bounced up and down on it just to check!). The noise comes regardless as to whether I am turning, breaking or accelerating.... I know this is really vague, but i haven't a clue as to what could be making the noises. Any ideas????

Well thanks guys for making me feel like a complete plank for buying an '88 110 with a 2.5 turbo engine!! Spent the last 5 weeks getting her road worthy (Not just Mot'able) - then the majority of you say the engine is likely to be poor..... The only issue we have had so far (after doing 800 miles or so), is a couple of injector pipes cracking. Unbeknown to me, there were supposed to be rubber brackets in place to stop them vibrating against each other/ the engine. Hopefully, nothing too catastrophic is going to go wrong in the next year or so. I intend to service the vehicle again (after 1000 miles) and then every 4k as mentioned above. The reason for the 1k service is the fact that it is supposedly a 'new' replacement engine that has probably been stood for a while. To be honest, this is my first Landy - and from what I have seen/heard/experienced in the short time I have owned it, is that there doesn't seem to be anything majorly wrong with the engine. Yes, there are better ones out there (Tdi), but as long as you treat it with kid gloves and look after it as well as possible, there is far less chance of it going Bang. It really does come down to budget/needs. If you have the money, then the 200/300 tdi is the way foward. If you are looking for a machine that is likely to do the job (albeit slower!) and haven' neccasarily got the cash for a 200, or 300 tdi, then the 2.5T is the way foward (unless of course you have the patience to save up!). Bottom line is that my Landy will get used every other weekend at best - as long as it starts and has a good chance of getting me to where I want to go, then I am happy. After all - that is what the RAC/AA were invented for!