Hi all, I've been a reader for a while but this is my first post, so please go easy on me. I've got a couple of problems that I was hoping someone might be able to shed some light on.
As the topic title suggests it's a 1.6 16v Clio Dynamique (51 plate), with only 28k on the clock. I've only had it since August '07 and have had no problems at all, passed MOT with ease in November.
1. Last Monday I had some trouble driving back from work, having just got down the road it started 'juddering' and bouncing a little, it was a similar experience to running out of petrol. A warning light came on the dash, which after consulting the handbook, it stated it was the "Warning light for monitoring exhaust gas" and that "If it flashes, reduce the engine speed until the light stops flashing." Which I did.
I managed to make it home and was going to wait until the next morning to get it looked at, but my impatient father insisted on calling the AA for 'Home Start'. They eventually showed up and the guy reckoned it was a common fault and straight away started testing the ignition coils, he decided that two needed to be replaced and did so, only afterwards telling me that I had to pay £97 for the pleasure. Having checked on eBay afterwards I realised I could have bought a whole set for £39ish, so I was none too pleased. :dapprove:
The car drove fine for a few days and now it seems to be jerking a little on low rev's and gear changes, similar to the bouncing but nowhere near as severe, no warning lights either. The guy mentioned that a couple of coils had already been replaced before his efforts and that, for such low mileage, it may indicate a more severe problem. So before I take to get looked at again, is there anything I need to be checking so that I can avoid getting ripped off again?
2. Do I actually need to take the car to get serviced in order to turn the 'Service' warning light off? I know it's probably best to take it anyway, but I was just wondering.
Hope someone can help a newbie out!
As the topic title suggests it's a 1.6 16v Clio Dynamique (51 plate), with only 28k on the clock. I've only had it since August '07 and have had no problems at all, passed MOT with ease in November.
1. Last Monday I had some trouble driving back from work, having just got down the road it started 'juddering' and bouncing a little, it was a similar experience to running out of petrol. A warning light came on the dash, which after consulting the handbook, it stated it was the "Warning light for monitoring exhaust gas" and that "If it flashes, reduce the engine speed until the light stops flashing." Which I did.
I managed to make it home and was going to wait until the next morning to get it looked at, but my impatient father insisted on calling the AA for 'Home Start'. They eventually showed up and the guy reckoned it was a common fault and straight away started testing the ignition coils, he decided that two needed to be replaced and did so, only afterwards telling me that I had to pay £97 for the pleasure. Having checked on eBay afterwards I realised I could have bought a whole set for £39ish, so I was none too pleased. :dapprove:
The car drove fine for a few days and now it seems to be jerking a little on low rev's and gear changes, similar to the bouncing but nowhere near as severe, no warning lights either. The guy mentioned that a couple of coils had already been replaced before his efforts and that, for such low mileage, it may indicate a more severe problem. So before I take to get looked at again, is there anything I need to be checking so that I can avoid getting ripped off again?
2. Do I actually need to take the car to get serviced in order to turn the 'Service' warning light off? I know it's probably best to take it anyway, but I was just wondering.
Hope someone can help a newbie out!