My first car...what to check

SixTwoSix

SixTwoSix

SixTwoSix

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After passing my test a few weeks back i'm now the proud (...and I use the word proud loosely) owner of a 1999 V Reg 1.2 16V Vauxhall Corsa. It's not the best car for sure but it's got nearly the cheapest insurance of anything I looked at, it's small and nippy and will hopefully see me through until my first no claims :)

Now i'm after the wealth of experience here on what to check first. I think I know the obvious ones but spell them out to me anyway in case I missed anything.

I've had about 4 people in the last 24 hours tell me to get the cambelt checked, been told if that goes then i'm basically screwed. I checked a few online sites to find out where it is, just had a look. Now, obviously i'm no mechanic but it looks clean, no obvious marks or anything, I would say it's new...but who am I to say. How much would the average garage charge me to have a quick check over the engine/gears/brakes?

Thanks in advance for any help...also awaiting the first "get rid of the corsa and get a decent car comment" :D
 
Generally you check a car over BEFORE buying it, and I'd normally check that it doesnt say "Corsa" on the back ;)

Anyway, cambelts get replaced on a shedule - looking at it is pointless. If you dont have a reciept for when it was last done then get it done
 
iaind said:
Generally you check a car over BEFORE buying it, and I'd normally check that it doesnt say "Corsa" on the back ;)
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I had a mate with me who's pretty good but he's just an ordinary guy like me, he looked out for the obvious stuff, we both test drove it, I took it for a spin yesterday just to get used to it and it "seems" ok.

I'm really just thinking of taking it to a garage for a check over to see if there is anything we missed.
 
look at the service history for it, it should say if the belt has been changed and at what mileage.

i wouldn't bother taking it to a garage now for a check, you'd be wasting your money.
 
Well I just got the auxillary belts changed on my micra. They looked OK from inside the engine bay - They were covered in very fine cracks along the outside, but then the belts were 10 years old.

Upon taking the belts off, they were quite badly cracked on the inside.

Basically, the only real way to check is by taking the belt off, and if you go that far it would be daft not to change the belt anyway :p.
 
Well just popped to the garage and found out it doesn't have a cambelt :confused:

They're going to give it a full service tomorrow, might cost me a little but it's peace of mind.
 
SixTwoSix said:
Well just popped to the garage and found out it doesn't have a cambelt :confused:

They're going to give it a full service tomorrow, might cost me a little but it's peace of mind.
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I am in the process of doing my 2000 micra.
I would get a standard servie but get the belts checked and get them to check the fuel filter, engine coolant, steering fluid (if you have power steering) and brake fluids.

A chain is better than a cambelt from your point of view, in the way that you don't generally change them.
 
Although on the Vauxhall lumps they tend to make some nice rattling noises around the 100k mark.

Although, I thought it was only the 1.0 3 Pot that was chain driven.
 
SixTwoSix said:
Well just popped to the garage and found out it doesn't have a cambelt :confused:

They're going to give it a full service tomorrow, might cost me a little but it's peace of mind.
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Nothing wrong with throwing an extra service at a motor if only for the peace of mind it gives.

When you get it back stop stressing about it and enjoy your first motor :cool:
 
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