No matter how difficult it is, it is better to do that than pay wind generators NOT to produce in some conditions. Hydrogen production is another way of stroring energy that would otherwise go to waste or generators being paid to switch off.
In 2006 I was lucky to have a test drive in a BMW Hydrogen 7 and it was no differnt behind the wheel than a petrol model. Then they ditched it
I understand that ‘Methane’ powered vehicles seem to be a good bet, being as Methane is a natural occuring gas and being produced at all the sewerage works. If that’s not ‘Sustainable’ I don’t know what is…
I think it’s when it’s burnt foxy that emits the greenhouse gases…
It is, Bob. I read about that, too. Using conventional combustion engines, the climate killer Methane is modified into green fuel consisting of methanol and ammonia. That would indeed be very helpful. Because you can’t electrify large ships or aeroplanes you need a liquid fuel with high energy density, a low carbon footprint and low costs. Oh those MIT students come up with bizarre ideas.
They should certainly explore large-scale implementation of this for commercial transportation. It makes so much more sense than mining lithium. I’m assuming that there are many obstacles to this as some high net worth individuals want to protect their fortunes.
This is exactly right; the same people who are forcing everyone to drive EVs (with their current technology) will be the same, if not only ones, driving ICE cars. They’ll be willing to pay extravagantly for parts and fuel that will be taxed beyond affordability.
@Surfermom That is not the reality of the car market here in the UK, or rather in my locality. All models of older cars are finding their way into repair workshops and most are MOT failures where the owner has been quoted silly prices to fix the faults. Our most common ‘fault’ is a failed catalytic converter, when in our workshop was found to be either a lose lead on the LAMBDA sensor or its failure. Only last week a Vauxhall Astra mane in with a failed cat only to leave us with a new sensor which only cost (trade) £16 and the total bill for the customer was around £88 to take his car back to the MOT station for a pass certificate.
The car trade is unfortunately full of rouges
Did my pre-cat Lambda a couple of weeks ago, tried to get away with fitting a four wire £20.00 generic unit, no joy, had to shell out £80.00 on an OE Bosch unit. There are a lot of poor quality items out there at the moment, I fitted new wiper blades (ex Ebay) to the Moho for it’s MOT last week, it drizzled on the way so I put the wipers on, the blades just spread the raindrops, couldn’t see a thing, so, had to go to Euro Parts today and buy these, good job I found out on the way to the MOT, not out in the wilds
I had a problem with Halfords own-brand wipers. Cheap rubbish fixings. Had to take them back. I think I ended up buying Michelin which cost twice as much but at least they work. Best to buy things to last these days.
So true. I was given a list of warnings at my MOT last year including a leaking something or other that would cost £650 plus VAT to fix, but wasn’t urgent or dangerous yet. So this year I went for the MOT and none of these so called problems came up - this is at the dealer’s own service centre. The car also had to be serviced again because theirs was shoddy. I took the car back as the engine sounded rough and they said it was a loose filter. I queried this “leak” they had mentioned the year before and they said oh that isn’t a big deal so that’s why it’s not on the list. Yet last year they were encouraging me to not leave the £650 work on it too long!
I’m still not sure which was right and which wrong, but I had another service recently at a different garage and they did “checks” with apparently no faults.
Same here. Some people might call it cartel-like structures. Before I’d pay £650 I’d take the car to another garage. Even the MOT guys have different views on what is relevant and what’s not.
Most so called faults are the personal view of the vehicle through the eyes of the examiner/mechanic AND of course how much work they have on the books.
As someone who likes to see a good honest buissness being completely fair with its customers, I’m embarrassed by how many shonky garages there are out on the high street.
@AnnieS What model. mileage and year is your Ford and can you describe its rough running and when this happens? Obviously, I really need to have it in front of me, but good descriptions often point to fault(s) that are often easy to fix.
I became involved with a VW not long ago that after all the diagnostics and opinions, I came up with the actual fault . . a very slight leak from the head gasket that allowed an occasional drip of coolant to foul that cylinder’s spark plug. It was an old car and an £8 bottle of RadWeld fixed the problem for a very happy cutomer.
I bought some Bosch wipers for my last car from Halfords, I couldn’t believe how quiet and efficient they were. Always Bosch wipers for me in the future.
When I was an apprentice mechanical engineer I did a day release course at the local college, at seventeen I think I was the only lad who had worked on virtually every machine in the factory (A family run engineering works and you had to earn your corn) unlike most of the students who had spent most of their time in a training school.
I think the principle took a shine to me and used to call me out of the class to skim cylinder heads down and make other parts for vehicles. I must have done hundreds of heads in my five years at the college…
Hi LD it’s a 2015 fiesta. Just under 19k on the clock as it’s used mostly as a shopping and social runaround. It’s a lovely all-round car and it’s such a shame they have just gone out of production. Very good value for your money. The rough running tends to be on shorter, journeys when in traffic. I would expect it to purr after two services but that’s not the case. I’d have to check the documents to see where the (apparently unimportant) leak is coming from as perhaps that’s contaminating something as was the case in your example. I tend to keep cars for many years and this version of the model is really comfortable and has an impressive interior. My last fiesta was 13 when I finally let go. But the 2015 models have a much better engine and robust frame. It’s amazing how attached we can become to our cars!
Without being able to plug my diagnostic code reader in, I can only speculate, but in general those Eco Boost Engins do tend to ‘suffer’ from only running for short journeys and lowish speeds and loads. If you have a 70mph dual carriageway not too far away from you, it wouldn’t hurt to give it a run at 70 for around 1/2hr to blow any build up away from the cylinder head valves.
Also that ‘slight’ leak could be from somewhere in the vacumn system and that would give intermittent running at anytime especially when the engine is hot.
If you have not owned it from new, a look through its MOT history on the governnment web site might also give a clue. Follow that link through to the MOT and then read the results. It’s my favourite go-to for a cars recorded history.
Check if a vehicle is taxed - GOV.UK
EDIT Also the newer irridum spark plugs give a better spark compared to the standard type and usually smoother running a lower speeds.
NGK Spark Plug - SILZNAR8C7H - fits Ford Fiesta, Focus 1.0 EcoBoost - 93593 x3 | eBay
This is the result of my MOT in 2023 - I think the issue is the third on the list
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
- Front Brake pad(s) wearing thin (1.1.13 (a) (ii))
- Nearside Front Shock absorbers has light misting of oil (5.3.2 (b))
- Offside Front Hydraulic leak, but not excessive Drive shaft seals (8.4.1 (a) (i))
No warnings this year. I’m sure I can feel a slight rumble under the wheel. I thought it might be the wheel bearings, but the steering wheel isn’t shaking enough for that.
None of those advisories would cause the engine to run rough intermittently, but a slight leak in the vacuum system could have that effect. Without the car under my right foot, that is the only possible fault I can offer. It could even be an electronic fault or a loose connection somewhere, or even an iffy fuel injector🤷♂️
Even down to a loose shoe on the foot
There is at least one coal mine in my area that uses the waste gas from the mine to produce electricity, via gas fired boilers, for the mine itself. The local seams are all underground mines.