VW say I have already damaged my engine?

forgotmyname

Its the sort of car i would tell everyone to avoid. Not serviced for 2 years. Belt left to the last minute.

Why spend so much on a car and then throw your money away by neglecting it?

jimjames

Marktheshark wrote: »

The urban myth that a car that has been thrashed for 100,000 miles will be a better car than one with 20,000.
Any car dealer in the country will bust the myth in seconds when they value the car.

Urban myth?

Funny how high mileage cars are the ones that seem more reliable if the posts on here are anything to go by.

Valuations don't really tell you a lot. Is a 30 year old Porsche really worth £500k?

Marktheshark

jimjames wrote: »

Urban myth?

Funny how high mileage cars are the ones that seem more reliable if the posts on here are anything to go by.

Valuations don't really tell you a lot. Is a 30 year old Porsche really worth £500k?

Probably because MSE members usually can only afford high mileage bangers or they would not be on a money saving forum.
All high mileage cars were once low mileage cars so the myth is self perpetuation.
Engines wear out at high miles, this is fact born out by the fact very high mileage cars are far between..
Would I buy a car with 20,000 before I would buy one with 200,000, daft question.
You can have the one with 200,000 on the clock.

welfayre

AdrianC wrote: »

You've never opened a new bottle of brake fluid, have you? It's hermetically sealed. Once you open it, it's open to absorb moisture from the atmosphere - just as it is when it's in the brake system in the car.


Nope. The thing that most affects brake fluid is the fact that it's hygroscopic. It absorbs water from the atmosphere, lowering the boiling point and corroding the inside of calipers and cylinders.
.

chrisw wrote: »

It's not use that affects brake fluid, it's being exposed to moisture in the air. It will last virtually for ever in a sealed container, but once that's been opened it starts to absorb water.

Well firstly brake fluid goes in your brake system which is a sealed system so it's exposure to the atmosphere is pretty limited.

Secondly I was going to write a nice long explanation about how use affects brake fluid but tbh I can't be bothered so instead I'll just quote a bit from this http://www.dixcel.co.jp/en/subcontent/literature/literature02.html

"For everyday drivers, who use brake fluid that exceed DOT4 specification, fluid replacement once 2 years is acceptable (still feel it's better to just analyse the fluid instead of going to the cost or replacing but hey if a customer insists on paying me an extra £45 or whatever for 10mins work I won't argue). For people who use DOT3 fluid, fluid replacement every year is recommended. For people who drive aggressively on winding roads, fluid replacement every six month to a year is recommended. For people who drive their cars on the race circuit, replacement before each event is recommended."

What's that?? People who drive hard on winding roads need their fluid replaced more often??? In other words use affects the brake fluid :eek:

And that gents if the difference between theory and practice. I suggest if you want to be cheeky with comments like "you've never opened a bottle of fluid have you?" you should get out and do more of the practical bits instead of reading wikipedia

chrisw

welfayre wrote: »

"For everyday drivers, who use brake fluid that exceed DOT4 specification, fluid replacement once 2 years is acceptable (still feel it's better to just analyse the fluid instead of going to the cost or replacing but hey if a customer insists on paying me an extra £45 or whatever for 10mins work I won't argue). For people who use DOT3 fluid, fluid replacement every year is recommended. For people who drive aggressively on winding roads, fluid replacement every six month to a year is recommended. For people who drive their cars on the race circuit, replacement before each event is recommended."

What's that?? People who drive hard on winding roads need their fluid replaced more often??? In other words use affects the brake fluid :eek:

Nonsense. You have misunderstood your own quote. The use doesn't cause the fluid to deteriorate. The amount of water absorbed affects the boiling temperature and therefore the harder the brakes need to be used, the more frequently the fluid has to be changed to maintain the higher boiling point. The braking system is never sealed to the air.

A quick google search brings up many similar explanations, eg

http://www.opieoils.co.uk/pdfs/tech-articles/Brake-Fluid-Explained.pdf

Westmead_Fan

i love these sort of people who thinks longlife oil means they can do less oil changes to their vehicles. the crap still sits in your engine & builds up over time & can cause problems further down the line.

not even replacing your cambelt is asking for trouble because when they go most cars are written off due to the high repair bills.

shaun_from_Africa

welfayre wrote: »

Well firstly brake fluid goes in your brake system which is a sealed system so it's exposure to the atmosphere is pretty limited.

It's intended to be a sealed system, but it's not guaranteed to stay that way.
Degraded brake pipes, leaking seals on the master cylinder or calipers, loose unions etc can all allow a very slight water ingress.

Many cars suffer from spongy brakes, a problem which is due to air bubbles in the brake fluid. If the system is totally sealed, how did that air get in?

When you think that the 1 1/2 or 2 litres of brake fluid in your car is really the only thing that will stop you in an emergency, do you really want to scrimp on £50 or £60 every couple of years?

whitecloud663

jaydeeuk1 wrote: »

Even if you had 'damaged' the engine, by the time it manfests itself it will be the next owners problem. My IQ I'll be selling soon is starting to burn more oil than it used to, probably because I've thrashed the b#llocks off it for over 5 years, so someone else can pick up the tab. (Avoid any iq's for sale come Feb time )

I plan on keeping my car for as long as I can. But if for whatever reason if I do sell it, I would be transparent so that the next owner are aware of the cars history and make an informed decision for themselves.

whitecloud663

notanewuser wrote: »

For such little mileage do you actually need a car at all OP? Every mile must be costing you a fortune!

I still do need a car and it would make my life very difficult if I didn't have one. I live in an urban area so most of my journeys are short

whitecloud663

forgotmyname wrote: »

Its the sort of car i would tell everyone to avoid. Not serviced for 2 years. Belt left to the last minute.

Why spend so much on a car and then throw your money away by neglecting it?

I understand where you're coming from and to be fair its not like the car has been completely neglected. It's getting its full service this weekend. The only "bad" thing that is subjective is that it was not serviced between September 2012 till now, but bare in mind that the oil used in 2012 was long-life. Yes, that doesn't justify not getting it serviced in the past 2 years but better it was long life than regular oil.