28/02/2014

Maintenance - Solidifying critical gaps


Again, this is another experience I want to share from my days with my workhorse, the KIA Spectra. because it could happen to a Peugeot 407 or to any car for that matter. As a car ages, engine heat and engine movement cracked a critical point in my air filter box making it impossible to screw tight the air filter box cover. This made excessive air to seep through and caused the car to lose precious torque. I just filled the gaping crack adjacent to the air filter box's nut with a generous amount of tissue paper because that was all I had at that point in time, used Super Glue to wet the tissue then left it to dry overnight without closing the air filter box. The next day, I gave it a try and could screw back the air filter box cover and that was a few years ago. The air box still functions well till this very day so in my humble opinion, this idea solves that problem.

15/02/2014

Quality does matter


While the problem I faced here was not with my Peugeot 407 but with my KIA Spectra, a lesson can be learnt here. Recently, my KIA Spectra did not start while parked at a shopping complex. My trusty auto-wireman found the cause and told me it was the No. 1 fuse and  told me to get a replacement from any spare-part shop. However, they did not have an original fuse so I bought a few of the OEM versions just to be handy. After a fuse replacement, yes, the car performed as usual but in less than a month, the OEM fuse broke down twice. However, it still did perform as normal after another fuse replacement. But when it broke down a third time, I suspected something was seriously wrong so went back to my auto-wireman and showed him the worn out fuse. On seeing the fuse, he then pointed out that the actual filament was intact but the OEM housing was sub-standard thus recommended I stick to the original fuse. I just did that and to my surprise, the original fuse costed me less than half the price of the OEM fuse so I suspect I was taken for a ride by the spare-part shop. Thus, if it comes to fuse replacement, stick to the original version though it may have been practical for emergency purpose, to purchase an OEM fuse just as an interim measure. Lesson learnt: Original fuse RM3, OEM fuse RM7

08/02/2014

Balik Kampung



A typical annual pilgrimage back kampung ("going back to roots village" trip) to visit my in-laws takes some 4 hours up north cruising at about 110kph (or more, where situation allows :-D ). This video clip was taken by me as my brother-in-law borrowed the Peugeot 407 because he did not have the time to send his car for servicing. You can see how wide the car is in relation to the width of the road making it a superb grande tourer.