toyroom

Thank you both. I snapped a drive shaft a few years go so both rear rings are nearly new. I suspect the accumulated iron filings shown in the picture may be the fault in my case as there is no error reading and the problem is still only for less than a second in 20 miles. I will do a closer inspection ASAP. The workshop manual also recommends cleaning and removing ferrous debris (and possibly adjusting clearance) These things seem to work in a very similar way to guitar pickups with clearance settings being critical and ferrous debris being easily attracted. Thanks again for taking the time and any other suggestions would be welcome. Any suggestions on the ominous creak?

Incredibly rarely, my ABS engages inappropriately. Always at vey low speed, sometimes on slippery ground (but not always). For the last 6 weeks, this is now happening once a day. I do 15 miles a day and probably use the brakes 40 or 50 times and actually stop 10 to 15 times. The ABS engages just at the point of stopping but this is a bit unnerving if pulling up to a wall or another car as it seems to make the brakes less effective and increase the stopping distance by a matter of inches. The car is a '97 V8 with 95,000 miles and I have had it for 20 years and maintained it regardless of cost. I am also getting a suspension bush type creak from the rear of the car with any sudden vertical shock (like a speed hump for instance)> the bushes and mounts all look fine. Any suggestions welcome and thanks.

My front main seal has leaked for 7 years and the translator has never been dry in 17 years. My driveshafts used to be rusty as they were the only dry ones I had ever seen, but one of them is leaking now. I just keep an eye on the level and a small tray under the car catches the fluid.....Kind of like an SR-71 really. I would leave it alone until something fails in the gearbox (likely) and then get the seals sorted at the time. By the way, I have not checked recently, but I think the seals you need are not mentioned in the parts manual. You need B082F6379F and A082F6538S. The parts you mention in your post are the outer dust seals and will have no effect on the leak. Ah the things you get to learn when you live with the same car for nearly twenty years. A bit like the second 'O' ring on the secondary injectors. You don't get to find out about that one until you lose one and fill your cylinders with liquid gasoline.

It's messy, but I made a length of braided stainless wire by putting 4 strands in a vice and the other end in a drilling machine and twisting it until it looked like a nice thin strong rope. I then fed this around the heat shield and manifold and tied it tight using 2 pairs of very long forceps. I then plastered the wire and the heat shield with exhaust putty. It looks awful but you can only see it if you are under the car with a torch and that doesn't happen much on the way to work and is much better than the inward groan you feel when this beautiful car that everyone is staring at in slow traffic suddenly makes a noise like a tin can full of washers. It hasn't rattled since, but when it does, the putty is only $3 a tin!

I have snapped the inboard end of my left driveshaft! Just wanted to share! Done at 10mph in 1st gear. Sat on a roundabout for 2 hours. Totally embarrassing. Got ten offers of help!

I ended up speaking to Warren at Save on Tyres in Swindon. Goodyear Asymmetric 2 are not available for the front, but Asymmetric (?1) are. Goodyear Asymmetric anythings were not available anywhere else. They look almost the same so I bought six (4 front and 2 rear). I cannot speak highly enough of the service, price and efficiency experienced with this company. I suggest you all ring Save on Tyres and ask for Warren and buy your tyres off him! By the way, I tried to attach the ajheath post as it included the details of Save on Tyres but after 6 goes at fighting with the editing features, I decided life was too short!

Bet you anything this is water in spark plug well 5 (front left), I get this every year. What will be interesting is how you can't get the plug lead off spark plug 5 because of corrosion. You have to fill the plug well with easing fluid, go out for the day and when you get back, the lead pops off. You then dry the well with paper towel and finally, compressed air. I change my plugs annually for this reason.

So does this mean there is no "stand alone" dedicated scanner tool for a reasonable price?

Code likely means that boost controller not working or the red pipe is faulty, or, the fault my car had was that the wastegate capsule was busted. Get under the car just in front of the back wheel and you will see the turbo. (your posts suggest limited mechanical knowledge, so apologies if this sounds too simple). Google images will show you what the turbo looks like and there is a thing next to it the size of a tangerine with a rod sticking out of it with a little lever on the end. The rod is the size of a thin pen and if you pull it away from the tangerine sized thing (wastegate capsule) it should feel tightly sprung against being pulled. It requires quite an effort to move and should not be loose in any way. If totally stiff, or loose, or hanging off, you need new wastegate capsules. This is a regular fault and may well be present on both sides so check under the other side of the car. I would call Pete from PNM and get alloy replacements as the original parts are junk. The alloy replacements are the same price as the factory item and virtually never fail but if they do, they can be quickly and cheaply repaired unlike the factory parts which need complete replacement. Fittig wastegate capsules is another matter and requires a skilled bloke with the correct set up equipment. The red pipe connects the turbos to the boost controller (Thing the size of a square black golf ball screwed to the bulkhead in the front of the engine bay just behind the driver's head (UK, RHD) If this falls off, you would know as your car would overboost and be quite incredibly powerful compared to usual. If this is the case, STOP before you snap something very expensive in the gearbox! All this said, it is probably one or both wastegate capsules busted and will cost low hundreds to fix. Hope this helps. The OBD sockets, by the way, are located one in the boot just behind the relay box and the other in the passenger footwell. They look a lot like SCART sockets. If you go on e-bay, you can buy a workshop and parts manual on CD ROM for a few quid. Included is the DTC list (Diagnostic Trouble Codes) including P1412

My son got a yellow light on his 2004 MR2. I bought an OBD2 reader for £17 from Amazon market place. Works great on his car and both of the wife's cars (2013 SLK350 and 2011 Land Rover Freelander) but won't connect to the Lotus (early 1997 V8) I had the same problem with the last code reader I had several years ago. I take it this is an issue to do with the system being in transition to OBD2. Has anyone found a cheap reader that works with 1996 and 1997 cars? My laptop works fine with a Gendan software code reader.

OK, I'll try harder. I really did try and find these, honest! Maybe it is computer inadequacy and I would do better using a phone and a human rather than a website.

Sorry, failed! Fronts are not asymmetric 2, they are just asymmetric. Tried several times. Don't know if there will be a difference between plain asymmetric and asymmetric 2? Still considering Yokohamas which would mean 1cm wider front and rear. Does anyone think that this would be a problem. In the good old days, the factory would help on this but the Esprit knowledge base has dwindles somewhat. Too many managers and not enough engineers!

Thanks, will try

Do you mean that the tyres do or do not exist as 4 the same type with factory sizes (285/35 18 and 235/40 17)? I am in Merseyside but regularly travel south or would buy mail order if needed. If you mean by "not correct" that the original sizes are not available, what sizes are you using? I was considering Yokohamas with all 4 tyres 1cm wider.

I got my replacements from the factory but I had to wait 9 months. I used a second hand one in the meantime. The "weld" is not a weld, the round arm which has snapped is a continuous tube with the weld supporting the join. I wouldn't take the risk of a weld and it would also be unlikely to be aligned properly. Interesting that my 2 snaps were nearside and so is yours if you are in Aus.