Hi, I just bought a Copen at the weekend. On my drive to work today, I noticed that the top of the tachometer is illuminated more than the rest of the instrument. Do I have a faulty light behind the dashboard, or is the shading deliberate? Also, does the fuel gauge have a warning light for when the tank is close to empty? Yes, I know its a <kinda> stupid question, but my commute is rather long and cross-country with not many filling stations. If there isn't a warning light, how low should I allow the fuel gauge to go before filling up? The car is absolutely brilliant and my commute is no longer a boring slog Cheers Neil
Any photos, probably at night, of the shade difference? There's no low fuel light :-( Nor do the wiper blades wipe when squirting!
Thanks! Thanks ! I'll try to photo the dash tonight. I don't want to go messing around behind the dash if there isn't a fault. I worked out this morning that the wash & wipe are separate. Not a bad thing really as some cars wipe off the liquid before its had a chance to reach all the dirt. Being cautious, I filled up when the fuel gauge was at 1/4 full. I'd done 240 miles at this point. This works out at 44mpg which isn't bad considering the mix of roads and driving styles during my commute. 169 miles / day. I did some Googling and found that the 659 cc Copen is supposed to do around 44mpg and has a range of 388 miles, so, in theory, I still had another 148 miles left in the tank. I've run cars and motorcycles dry in the past to work out the range more accurately, keeping a can of petrol to get going again, but this isn't a good idea when a vehicle has sophisticated fuel-injection. Also, there's a risk of dirt and rust being drawn towards the engine. Yup! I'm really happy with the Copen's economy. My previous commuter-car, a Panda Diesel, managed 64 mpg, but wasn't much fun to drive. Also, petrol is a little cheaper than diesel, so its swings-and-roundabouts..... but in the Copen, I don't need to slow down for the roundabouts! On the uneven badly maintained country-roads, the Copen also gives me a free Shiatsu massage.
The fuel filter should stop crud reaching the injectors. Also fuel is always taken from the bottom of the tank whether the tank is full or near empty. So I wouldn't worry about mucking your injectors up because your fuel level is low.
And to get access to the filter to replace it, as it *is* a consumable, you have to drop the fuel pan. I dread to have mine replaced.
Does the left side of the tachometer look OK? I don't know if its dim for some visual effect, or if a lamp behind the dash is blown. http://i.imgur.com/biBaevc.jpg
"HERE, HERE". I whole heartedly agree with the Rt Hon Member for Copenworld North-East. I don't know where so many people get the idea the petrol tank is an active entity where by it sucks up petrol at the top when its full and moves down as the fuel level drops. The only thing that really moves is the float to gauge how much is in there. The fuel filter, as mentioned above, is unmovingly attached to the bottom of the fuel pump assembly and therefore always takes fuel from the same location, which is somewhere close to the bottom of the fuel tank. I far as I know you don't swap the fuel filter as its a lifetime thing (potentially). I've never actually seen one in the flesh, which I can say the same for my Rt Hon friend It looks a bit like a flat semi-rigid teabag, again I refer to my Rt Hon friend..........but there I digress If it did have a problem and require swapping, it looks quite easy. May be best to drain the tank or run it down into the 'crude zone'! Bit tricky to get to with it being the little Copen. You could climb into the boot for better access, pushing the odd stray bag of sand out the way as required. Remove plush carpeting, unbolt a square metal box/cover thingy that might not have gained an official name and you will see top of the pump unit. Remove pipes/cables, unbolt and "voila", as they say in Togo. There might be a bit more to it than this short training lesson but it should be enough to get you started, This training session is brought to you by the Chernobyl Maintenance and Safety Commission. 'Let's stamp out crud pick up theory, together we can do it' Unless the crud is balsa wood and its floating on the surface!
Thanks! Thanks! I'll take a look at the weekend and try to figure out how to replace the lamp. Also, I'm wondering if a suitable LED ( + dropper resistor ) could be used in place of the dashboard light as an LED should be a "fit-and-forget" job.
I think they have a fuel warning light in the Australian cars. There is a thread with some chat about it. Cannot recall now if there is some legislation why they must have one.
I'm going to ask a somewhat related question... Does anyone else have the Check Engine Light, oil pressure light, and battery light on BEFORE turning her over? I've stuck a code reader on her, with no codes returned. The lights go off after I turn her over.
Yes, I these occur because the engine isn't running so the oil pressure is low so exhivbitis a warning light, the electrics are running off the battery and not the alternator so another warning light and I guess the CEL is because the ECU isn't getting sensor readings (for example) that are as expected like the oxygen sensor because no exhaust gases are flowing through it. Worry about them when the engine is running! Then worry even more when the engine stops running!
Great - thanks. I was messing with her the last day, and thought I made a booboo, as I never remembered seeing the MIL and other lights on, so went a bit chicken little.
It's actually good for the lights to come on before the engine starts in case we have a knackered warning light bulb and then the engine develops a fault. I think the newer MOT test enforces checking of all the warning lights. There were a few Jaguars driving around with ABS faults and the bulb from the ABS warning light disconnected or removed. It might be possible to force all the warning lights to flash using ODBII, but I've not yet looked at it.
Can't believe I missed these posts last week. Yes he does take his medication regularly but because he mixes his tablets up with his suppositories, they don't work As he said to his Doctor - "for what use these tablets are I might as well have shoved them up my a***.
