Haynes Manuals

Advantages: Save you loads!
Disadvantages: Can be hard to understand.

...Do you own a boat, car, motorcycle, plane, husband, baby, bicycle, house, or commercial vehicle? Then you need a Haynes manual. Haynes manuals have been around for 30+ years, and have provided help for mechanics and car owners alike for that time, with relatively simple step-by-step instructions on what you’re trying to do. No matter what car or bike you own, Haynes are sure to stock a manual for it. The other manuals Haynes do (Boat, Plane etc.) are slightly more scarce, but you may get lucky! Unfortunately, the car I own (Daihatsu Hijet) doesn’t have a Haynes manual for it, but this is a rare exception. The newer Haynes manuals have numbers stating how hard the job you’re trying to do is. 1 is an easy job, say doing an oil change; and 5 is a hard job, say removing your big ends. To be honest, if you don...

o_morris 01.10.2003 · Read review
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Review of Haynes Workshop Manuals

HAYNES - manual of just about everything . . .

Advantages: Clear instructions on how to strip most things.
Disadvantages: Can be a little limited, vague pictures, pictograms needed.

...The HAYNES series of manual have been with us for many years now, we have all used them. At one time they covered just cars, but now their repetoire includes caravans, decorating, washing machines, computers, bikes, and even racing engines. In fact they have one now covering "MAN - All models, shapes, sizes and colours. 120,000 BC to present day" It is number 3931 if you don't believe me! The books are produced by Haynes publishing in Yeovil, Somerset, and have been around for just over forty years now. They are still in the familiar hardback versions, which have wipe clean covers. The format has always been easy to follow, and the manuals contain both a contents page, and an index. The black and white photographs make it a lot easier to find the location and position of components. Personally I think...

smudgeybabes 17.12.2006 (22.05.2007) · Read review
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Review of Haynes Workshop Manuals

Haynes Manuals - not just for Motors...

Advantages: Save a fortune on repairs/servicing.
Disadvantages: Pictures could be clearer

...father wasn't too pleased either because now my banger was stuck on bricks in his garage. He took one look at it and it was obvious to him that neither my friend nor I would have the first idea about how to put it all back together again - so the car was sold for spares for a fiver. You didn't have top pay people to take them away in those days. It was a few years later, when I was presented with another expensive repair on a Ford Escort. It needed a new clutch. It wasn't that I was heavy on my clutches, it's just that all I could afford in those days were cars with heavy mileage on them. Hire-purchase was never an option - my father didn't agree with it. The Haynes Workshop Manuals had just hit the market and I got one for the Escort before making the attempt. A work colleague had one for his Vauxhall and it had looked very good...

derek-j-a 29.05.2005 · Read review
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Review of Haynes Workshop Manuals

FIAT = Fix It Again Tomorrow?

Advantages: Fun! Cheap!
Disadvantages: Expensive to repair / unreliable

...Punto's! I have had and used three fiat punto's in the past. I am currently using a 2001 Fiat Punto 1.2 16v Sporting. I'll start with the 1997 Fiat Punto 1.1i 55 SX 45000 miles. The car was mediocre from the inside, electric windows for the SX version with a manual sunroof. No power steering, but it's cut my trips to the gym! The problems I've had with this car have been the clutch. The clutch needed replacing costing quite a bit. There was a few cases of misfiring which needed to be sorted by buying new leads and spark plugs. The second punto was a 1996 Fiat Punto 1.1i 55 S 50000 miles. No electric windows, nothing fancy here. Drive quality was not very nice, quite a bumpy ride. The problems with this were the clutch again but the main problem was when the integrated Fiat immobiliser failed. Fiat garages are not very helpful...

Ra3K 21.05.2006 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Friendly Fiat dealers for all your needs

Advantages: friendly, cheap (for a car dealers), do as they say
Disadvantages: depends on the car, sometimes they are visited quite often

...Well, I had better begin by claiming an interest here, hadn't I? I was first introduced to St Leonards Motors of Hastings by my brother, who at the time was working in their sales department. In total, my family has bought several cars from them, including: 1 Fiat Bravo 1 Fiat Punto 1 Fiat Uno 2 Fiat Tipos 1 Fiat Croma So you can see that we have bought over the entire range, both new and used. I can seriously say that, with my hand on my heart, they are a very friendly, not in the least bit pushy or overbearing, and accommodating dealership. As you drive up Harley Shute Road from the A259 and turn left at the roundabout at the top, you zip down a little hill (hills, oh how I miss hills now that I live in Lincolnshire- you see fell walkers queuing to go over a speed hump round here!) and turn right into Churchwood Drive. You...

Nolly 17.09.2002 · Read review
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Review of Fiat

Fiat. A good deal?

Advantages: Competative prices, Service with a smile.
Disadvantages: After sales niggles.

...My old Mondeo was on her last legs. Bless her! She had been a good old bus but enough is enough. I have a fifty mile round trip everyday to work,a very modest budget,and a need for car with a reasonable amount of warranty to a allow for trouble free motoring. I couldn't afford a new family car so decided to go for a "supermini". After baulking at the price of nearly new Fiestas,Polos and even Fabias, i found myself on the forecourt of my local Fiat dealer, T.J.Vickers of Telford Shropshire. I was really in two minds about buying a Fiat. I had heard the old joke Fix It Again Tomorrow , a play on the first letter of each word, but liked the look of a six month old 1.2 ELX Punto which was on sale for £ 2,300 below its new price. A salesperson finally approached me. I relayed my concerns about Fiats reputation .He dealt with my...

moodyman9 15.08.2005 · Read review
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Review of Fiat

The Fiat Punto - An ideal First car!

Advantages: Cheap to run and Fun to Drive, Excellent Value for Money
Disadvantages: Safety, Style

...I began driving this time last year and my first car was and still is a Fiat Punto 1.2 S, T-reg 1999, 3 doors. For a student such as myself, I would say that it is an ideal first car to have and I have thoroughly enjoyed driving it. It is not lightning quick and insurance is cheap! Obviously because of the age of my car, it is not going to set the world on fire, but I have been very pleased with it so far. I paid £750 for it from an auction and two years previously it had been bought for £4,200! Luckily for me, it has so far been very reliable and I hope that it will last me until next year when I will sell it before I go to University. Ride Quality Obviously, the car's ride quality is not awesome compared to most modern cars around today. But if you can't afford to spend loads on a set of wheels, the Punto offers a very good...

sbutler1 02.11.2006 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

RTFM. Read The Fecking Manual.

Advantages: Cheap, easy to follow if you've got half a clue, saves you a fortune on labour charges.
Disadvantages: Photos in black and white, could explain things in a bit more detail.

...springs that shot out of the hub at the speed of light, then you may want to invest in some kind of owners manual to save you these wee traumas. And with every manual written being based on a complete stripdown and rebuild, you can safely assume that a Haynes workshop manual will be able to help with any problems you come across. Whatever car or motorbike (or boat for that matter) you own, chances are Haynes will have written a manual covering it. Just about every model from every major car manufacturer from the early sevenies to the present day has a manual dedicated to it with some earlier editions having recieved updates. Manuals for modern cars are always available from stock from car accessory stores, Halfords, Autosave etc, while those based on older cars can either be ordered for you from these outlets or directly from Haynes using...

rockandrollstar 01.05.2003 (12.05.2003) · Read review
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Review of Haynes Workshop Manuals

Living and driving with Fiat Punto

Advantages: Economical and spacious
Disadvantages: Heavy steering and noisy at speed

...Why, of all the cars on the market did I choose to buy a Fiat Punto? I have to admit that I only considered this car because I had been driving one on hire for a few months. When I looked at the vehicles available, Fiat seemed to offer good value. Have I come to regret this decision? I bought an ?98 registered vehicle in early 2000, and have driven about 16,000 miles since that time. So what are the pros and cons of this vehicle? This isn't the current model, but the immediately previous one wnich is very commonly available second hand. Firstly, I should say that I am married but have no children and virtually all my mileage is from my daily 50-mile round trip to work. Most of my driving is on the motorway with a few intervals of stationary urban traffic. Pros ? Decent fuel economy, not the best in class but I return about 43...

pauljm 16.03.2001 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Expensive Fiat problem!

Advantages: Economical and not too expensive. Cheap insurance and tax
Disadvantages: Read review for power steering problem!

...I bought my Fiat Punto privately about a year ago when it was 2 years old. It was a a few months after this when I was out for a drive, that the power steering warning light came on and remained on. I took it to my local Fiat dealer for a diagnostic check and it revealed that the power steering pump needed replacing, the cost for this work was to be the best part of £1000.00. Unfortunately, the car did not have a FSH when I bought it and so when I approached Fiat to request that they pay for the repair they refused. My argument was that irrespective of whether the vehicle had a full service history, the car was virtually brand new, and such a failure occured because of a manufacturing fault. I did have to rectify the problem at my own expense which has tainted my view of Fiat. However, the car itself is a very tempting option...

barley5 22.04.2006 (24.04.2006) · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2