Adventures With My 206 And Citroen Evasion

Steering Wheel Control

2021-03-27T12:58:00.003+08:00

The steering wheel control works by sending different voltage to the radio player when you press a button on it.

This the the steering wheel adaptor that I've been using for the past few years with my pionneer head units.

It's very easy to use. Just plug in the original swc wiring and then plug in the 3.5mm jack into the player.

The new touchscreen player I bought didn't have this swc input jack. The input for the swc control was just a single wire on block 1 of the iso connector.

So to make the steering wheel control stalk work, I had to connect the scw wire to the 3.5mm adaptor jack

I did this after testing the 3.5mm adaptor jack. The bottom ring is - ve/ground. The middle ring is +12v and the top ring is the scw input

After I got the wiring sorted out, it was time to program the new player with the inputs from the swc stalk. Do this according to the player you have.

380,000kms Service

2020-07-02T16:41:00.001+08:00

This little car has been very reliable these past couple of years, hence I had nothing much to blog about. Just the normal oil and fluids change at the required time

Today its in the garage to do its 380,000kms service.

Apart from the normal oil change, I had to replace the engine cover/rocker cover gasket, front brake pads and front right abs sensor.

Oil leaking from the cracked gasket. Can't remember when I last changed it.

I was quite amazed at the condition of the camshaft and valves. No sludge build up after all these years

This shows the importance of using good quality oil and changing oil on time. I do mine every 10,000kms regardless of time. I always use semi synthetic.

300,000KMS, 7 Years On

2019-01-23T10:44:00.001+08:00

Today I hit the 300,00km mark on my 206, something I never thought possible, 7 years ago, without the AL4 gearbox breaking down.

I celebrated today by having a nice drive from Bukit Belacan to Bt. 18 Cheras, and continued to Semenyih. The car still handles well, and the auto adaptive gearbox, awesome as ever.

I can still remember, 7 yrs ago before getting this car, did my 'research' on the AL4 gearbox. Wasn't worried about the TU3 engine as my previous TU1 engine on my Tiara/AX clocked about 550,000kms before the piston rings gave way. So i was sure this engine would not give me any major headache.

My fear was with the 'notorious' AL4 gearbox. Heard and read many horror stories about this gearbox. Water getting into the gearbox, hard jerks when changing gears, expensive gear oil change, gearbox failure as early as 100,000kms. One mechanic even told me that it would be a miracle if the AL4 survived 150,000kms without needing an overhaul.

But since I love the 206 very much, ever since it appeared in 1998, i told myself i might be able to save enough in my piggy bank for a gearbox overhaul by the time I clock 150K kms. So I went ahead and got myself this 206.

So, my first headache I had with this gearbox was the solenoid valve which gave way in 2010 at about 70,000kms. Lucky It was replace under warranty. And from them until today, the gearbox has performed wonderfully well.

Other than the normal wear and tear items, this car has given me trouble free motoring.

Peugeot 206/ Naza Bestari Trip Computer

2015-12-23T10:24:00.004+08:00

One of the first mods I ever wanted to do on the car was to get the trip computer working. Finally after 6 years, it is done.

I got my cd player replaced. I bought over Bug's awesome Pioneer Head Unit. You can get details on the CD player here on His Blog . After replacing the Head Unit, i decided it was high time I get the trip computer working.

Not many of you might know that the Bestari does have the trip computer. I guess because of cost cutting measures, it was not made available as a standard feature on the car.

You'll need only two things for this mod. First being the bigger MFD display

Bestari's MFD

Secondly you will need the trip button.

You can get this button from a spoiled comm2000 or get it from me.

Replacing the MFD is straight forward, plug and play. I wont go into details on here.

Next is to fix the trip button. Use a needle or a tiny screw driver and slowly pry out the cover at the end of the wiper stalk. Its clipped into place. One the cover is taken out, this is how the stalk will look like

Then you'll need to remove this stopper.

Then just clip in the trip button and Job is done.

If by any chance your standard radio isn't working, you'll need to set the display type on the BSI using PP2000.

Pressing the trip button will cycle you thru date, distance to empty, distance traveled, average fuel consumption, instant fuel consumption, average speed.

Leather Steering Wrap

2015-05-05T12:01:00.001+08:00

Over the long weekend, I finally found the time to wrap my deteriorating steering wheel. Since I my sewing skill extremely poor, I wasn't too happy with the end results, but acceptable la for a guy who is holding a thread and needle for the first time in his life.

Followed the instructions given, first I lined the inner part of the steering wrap with double sided tape.

But I would advise NOT to do this. Because once you stick the cover on the steering wheel, it is impossible to adjust the position of the cover while stitching. As you will see later, because of this I was unable to wrap the sides of my steering wheel properly. What you will need to do is just stick a bit of double sided tape on the 3 'spoke'edges. Because these edges will be folded in between the steering wheel and air bag cover.

Once done with the double sided tape, position the cover on the steering wheel.

Fold in the 3 edges to make sure you've got the position 100% correct. It should look something like this

Once its position correctly, you can start sewing. There's many videos on YouTube to see how the sewing is done.

When sewing around the 3 'spokes' edges, do not pull the thread too tight as u will need to pull and insert the cover in between the air bag cover. While sewing, don't worry if its not 100%perfect or it looks like a pile of garbage on your steering wheel. Everything will eventually fall into place nicely.

Once done it will look like this. I took almost 3 hrs to complete the job.

Notice how The righ and left sides are not folded into the airbag cover? This was because I used too much double sided tape and pulled the thread too tight when sewing round the edges.

If done perfectly, it would look like this

Here are some before n after photos of my steering wheel

Badly worn off

Looks brand new

Shake, Rattle and Roll

2015-03-02T16:24:00.000+08:00

My litte 206 is now 6 years old and has covered about 265,000 km. Been noticing the car seems to be rattling a lot when driving over uneven road surface. So decided to spend last Saturday solving this.

Found that the rattle comes rear left door. Knocking on the door, I could hear something was loose inside the door. So I proceeded to remove the door panel and check

Removed the foam insulation carefully

The culprit was that top metal piece which has become loose

Used some silicone to hold it in place. I applied silicone along the whole length of this metal piece.

Since everything was opened. Cleaned and re-greased the hinges. Also cleaned up and re-greased all necessary moving parts inside the door

Door Hinge looking much better after being cleaned

After cleaning everything, refitted the door panel and the rattle is gone. The door closes with a solid thud once again.

Adventures With My 206: Improving Acceleration

2015-01-31T11:34:00.001+08:00

Adventures With My 206: Improving Acceleration: foreverdeals.ecwid.com/sharer?ownerid=1589558&productid=17336928

Timing Belt Premature Wear

2014-06-22T14:47:00.003+08:00

At 242,000kms, Just about almost 40,000kms covered after changing my timing belt, the timing belt slipped while driving.

Down into 2nd gear, 3500+rpm, going uphill, getting ready to overtake a 40ft container truck. The road clears, I floor the accelerator, engine roars 4000, 4500, 5000, just as I'm about to pull out from behind the truck, a loud grinding and the car lost power, lifted off the accelerator, floor it again, engine screamed at me "are you crazy!!?" and it died. Shifted the gear into N, and luckily I had enough speed to cruise to a stop by the road shoulder. This happened near Bukit Putus, on the 2nd highest bridge in Malaysia

Lucky I was nearby my local garage, called my mechanic to come take a look. After opening the timing belt cover, it was confirmed that the timing belt slipped. Had to tow the car to the garage.

After opening up the engine, all four of my pistons had two nicks in them from valves hitting. I had to replace all the 8 valves. Although the nicks on the piston head were quite deep, My mechanic assured me that it was re-use-able. Phew, quite a lot of money saved there. He took about 4 days to get my car ready. And in that 4days, There were another 3 cars that came in with the same issue. premature wear of the timing belt.

Piston Nicks on Piston No.1& 4. This is another car which had its timing belt slipped too. Mine were double the size of this.

I've never seen this kind of damage on a timing belt. Usually the 'teeth' wear off or the belt breaks, but never the 'teeth' coming off from the belt.
My mechanic said, these past few months he has seen many cases of premature belt failure like this. Most occurring between 60,000kms - 70,000kms. So, if you've covered 50,00kms on your current timing belt, PLEASE have your mechanic check on its condition.

Squeaky Clean

The damage done

I opted to use 2nd hand valves to keep the cost down. brand new valves costs RM55 each for intake and RM65 each for exhaust.

The engine feels brand new now. So much smoother and more definitely more torque

Crickety Blower

2013-09-09T19:01:00.002+08:00

Over the past few weeks, my blower motor would sound like cricket whenever I accelerate, brake or go over a hump. Very noticeable in Fan speed of 1 and 2.

So, after much procrastination, I finally got down to checking the fan blower motor.

Accessing the blower motor is relatively easy. You'll have to remove the glove compartment first. The blower motor is situated towards the top part of the dashboard.

Un-clip the wire from the blower motor. Then get a good grip on the blower motor and turn it clockwise to unlock it from its position. Then pull it out. Please Note the position of the blower motor when you pull it out, because it has to go in the same way. Otherwise you'll find it a bit hard to place back the blower motor

Upon removing the blower motor, I found it filled with dust, just as I have suspected.

The design of the motor is such that it sucks in air. I guess this is to keep the blower motor cool? How ever this causes a lot of dust built up in the motor itself.
I took out my air-gun and cleaned the insided of the motor and also the blower. Could not believe the amount of dust. To clean the blades real good, I decided to jet it with water. Carefully covered the motor with plastic

Once everything was cleaned, fixing back was a breeze. The blower motor works fine now. No more noise and lots of money saved :-)

Door Projector Light

2013-04-08T20:40:00.001+08:00

Just completed a small project over the weekend. I fixed a pair of door welcome lights for my little lion.

Wiring was pretty much simple and straight forward. There's no way to tap power for the lights from the door switch. This is because the Door lock, central locking, and door switch is combined into a single unit and is controlled by the BSI. I try to stay away from any wiring that's connected to the BSI a.k.a Bloody Stupid Interface, fearing that the BSI would get corrupted. Hence I resorted to tapping power from the cabin/courtesy lamp.

The light blue wire is +ve and yellow/green is -ve.

Ran the wire from the cabin light to down the left A - Pillar to under the glove box. Now that that the power source is settled, next was to wire up both doors.

Start with removing the door trims. There are 3 screw to remove, the rest are just clips.

Once you've removed the door trim, next is to carefully remove the white foam sheet

When you fix this back, make sure it is fixed properly, otherwise water from outside will seep thru the gaps into the car's cabin.

With the foam sheet removed, its time to wire the power cable in. If you have the energy and like things to look proper, you may push the wire thru the rubber grommet. But this is very tedious and time consuming

I first used a thin flexible wire thru. Then tied the power cable and pulled the thin wire back out.

Once the power cable is thru, line it up securely so that it does not interfere with the power window mechanism.

An easier way to wire the power cable is just run it thru the door seal and into the door. Much more simpler this way.

For the right hand side, I just pulled the wire following the path of the wire loom.

Now with the wiring done, it was time to drill the door panel and fix the Led projector lamps.

Finally, just connect the projector lamp to the power cable, fix back everything and smile for a job well done.

You may purchase this Door Welcome Lights from my Online Store @ http://www.foreverdeals.asia/Online-Store.html?~~mode=product&~~id=17347608#!/~/product/id=17347608

Exhaust Manifold Crack

2013-02-28T12:48:00.001+08:00

After just over 2 years my exhaust manifold cracked again. That is twice in 5 years. I wonder what quality material was used for the Bestari's exhaust manifold.

Actually the reason I sent my car in was to replace the broken bolt which holds the manifold. While doing this, it was discovered that the manifold was cracked as well.

This time around, instead of changing it, I decided to weld it. Lets see how long it would last. Sorry, I don't have pictures of the repair to share. I had to leave the car at the workshop as I was busy with work, couldn't hang around while repair was being done.

Repair work took about 8 hrs. Had to leave the car at the workshop overnight. Collected the car today and it sounds fine. Repair work cost RM100 Only.

Breakdown :-

1. Manifold Welding - RM10

2. Labor to replace Idler Bearing - RM10

3. Removing Broken Manifold Bolt - RM50

4. Coolant - RM30 ( had to replace coolant because they removed the radiator to have more work space in the engine bay)

Hope this repair lasts. Otherwise have I'll have to hunt for an extractor :-)

Peugeot 206 Dynamic Tensioner

2013-01-20T13:06:00.000+08:00

After just over a year and of replacing the dynamic tensioner a.k.a belt tensioner, my lion is whining once again. The last time it cost me about RM400 to get this replaced. Damn expensive part which does not last long. The other part which gives way often is the Idler roller. This cost RM150 to replace.

What gives way on this tensioner is the pulley(the plastic round thing with the bearing in the middle). Sadly spare part shops do not sell this pulley. The only sell the whole tensioner.

Undeterred, I started to search for the pulley, and after months of searching I finally found it!! :-).

This is an original part replacement. Fits the dynamic belt tensioner perfectly

I also managed to find the Idler Roller.

Now you can get both of these at RM149 each on my online store at http://www.foreverdeals.asia/Online-Store.html

Peugeot 206 Power Steering Pressure Switch

2013-01-18T13:27:00.003+08:00

Into my 5th year of owning this car, the power stering pressure switch started to leak again. This would be my 3rd time changing it. The previous 2 times, this switch was replaced under warranty.

This is the place where it leaks

At first I thought it was leaking at the oil seal, but after taking out the switch, I was able to see that oil was leaking thru the switch. This problem seems to be a very comment problem with almost all Peugeot/Citroen models

Alas...nothing can be done except to replace the switch.

This is the switch I bought. Part No : 401509 / 9677899580 You may purchase it here, It is shipped worldwide.

Engine Oil and Filter, Routine Maintenance

2013-01-15T21:34:00.000+08:00

Over the years, I've been asked many times about oil changes..how often to do it? what type of engine oil to use? What should I do to keep my car in excellent condition.

Here I Share what I've been doing the past 5 years, and has so far clocked 170,000+kms.

Oil Changes are done every 10,000kms using Semi Synthetic Oil. I don't see the point of using Fully Synthetic Oil for a 1.4 8V engine. Mineral Oil would also be good enough. I usually use either TOTAL Quartz 7000 10W-40 or Petronas Syntium 800 10W-40. Lately I've been using Petronas as its much easier to get.

Always use genuine oil filter. Never compromise on that. Back in 2009 the oil filter used to cost almost RM50. Now you can get it as low as RM20 from my online store here

Once a year, regardless of mileage, change the air filter. I also open up and clean the rear drum brakes. Tighten undercarriage.

Every two years or 40,000kms, I change my brake fuild, power steering fuid and engine coolant.

For the Gearbox, I change the AL4 gearbox oil every 40,000kms or once a year.

Check all rubber bushes and mountings every 20,000kms.

Change timing belt every 80,000kms.

The rest just change parts when they are worn out.

Peugeot 206 Rear Wheel Bearing

2012-12-23T15:35:00.000+08:00

After 150,000kms, my rear wheel bearing gave way. Getting quotations from workshops and spareparts shops, it seemed like like it was going to be a expensive affire. Each bearing would costs RM160 and labor RM60 perside, which means to replace both rear wheel bearings would cost about RM440. This I felt was too expensive.

So as usual I began my bargain hunting. And finally I managed to get both Bearing changed for only RM220.00

I got my bearings from SKF. Each costs only RM80. Part No. VKBA3525. But the clip that came with this bearing could not be used. So I had to use back the old bearing clip.

To get my bearing fixed, I went to the workshop near my house. Its run by 2 brothers. Very nice chaps. They're not so experienced with french cars but are more than willing to learn and try. They've worked on my car a couple of times before and I'm very happy with their work.

I always enjoy coming here as they are friendly and nice. Always willing to listen to my suggestion on how to replace a part or repair it. They even send me back and come fetch me when the car is ready. Wished more workshops will provide this kind of service.

I replaced my wheel bearing a bit too late. This caused the left rear bearing to be jammed and it was impposible to remove the brake drum. Thank goodness they had a special tool which could solve this.

This red handle is like a dumbell. what is done is this weight is pulled along the shaft and the momentum pulls out the drum.

After the drum was out, replacing the bearings were a breeze as they had the brearing pressing tool. All this was done within and hour and without me burning a hole in my pocket :-)

Improving Acceleration

2012-10-19T12:28:00.000+08:00

The 8v, 1.4 engine coupled with the AL4 gearbox on the 206 makes it grossly underpowered. Nipping in and out of city traffic is almost impossible in this car. This car's pick up from standstill feels like forcing an Elephant to do a 100M sprint.

There are the commong things you can do to improve acceleration slightly, like changing the air filter, exhaust system, etc. But all this costs money. Today I'll share with you something simple to improve the car's acceleration. Best of all its free. The idea is to get the throttle body butterfly valve opened as much as possible when the accelerator is floored.

First step is to minimise any slack @ throttle cable. This is done by pulling out the retaining clip, then pulling the cable to the left as much as possible, then place the retaining clip back.

If you look at how the throttle body(TB) operates, you can see it how it stops when the accelerator pedal is floored. So the next step is to file down the stopper on the TB.

It would be good if you have an OBD2 reader attaced to the car. This is so that you can monitor the increase in the throttle position as you work on the car. Take your time and file it.

My initial Absolute Throttle Position was only 70.2%. Now it has increased to 78%. If you're wondering, I'm using this ELM327 device to connect to the car. You can buy it over the internet for less than RM100.

Now the car accelerates much better(of course with the accelerator floored) and improved top speed to, and most definately increased fuel consumption.

Leaking Heater Matrix (Specifically for Right Hand Drive Model)

2012-10-12T16:16:00.000+08:00

Front left floor mat was drenched with coolant. A sure sign that the heater matrix is leaking.

Since I was a bit short on time to go get it fixed, I decided to do a temporary fix by bypassing the heater matrix. I had some extra pvc pipes and decide to use them. Made a U-Shaped bypass for the heater matrix.

The problem with this's car airconditioning system is that it uses the heater matrix to regulate cabin temperature. It does not have a thermostat. So, for the next few weeks untill I had time to repair the heater matrix, I was experiencing Eskimo World every time I drove. Had to manually on and off the air-cond.

I went to a couple of workshops and they told me that the dashboard needs to be removed in order to repair the heater matrix. Luckily for my good friend Michelin V-k Badman's quick guide, I was able to repair the heater matrix without having to remove the dashboard.

Start by removing the glovebox and loosening up the center console.

Once the glove compartment is removed, you'll have full access to the heater matrix.

Next, is to loosen up the heater matrix. There are 2 screws and 1 nut which needs to be undone

Once this is done, then gentle remove the long part of the heater matrix. Once this is taken out then gently pull out the heater matrix from the blower. The heater matrix is held in place by 2 clips. Undo these clips and pull it out slowly.

You might have to pull a bit on that part of the dashboard for the heater matrix to slide out. Once it out, I tested for leaks by using high preassure water.

The leak was caused by these 2 o-rings. I was a bit lazy to go out and get original replacement o-rings. Dug my tool box for it and managed to get similar sized o rings. These are common o - rings which can be bought anywhere. They are slightly different than the original ones but can be used.

Once the o-rings were replaced, checked for leaks, and then proceeded to fix back everyhing. Quite an easy DIY. Took less than 2 hours to complete this job.

Cooling Down

2012-08-05T21:44:00.001+08:00

Just changed my coolant. Average running temperature has drop by about 10° Celsius.

Before the change, running temp was between 80 - 90° Celsius.


After the change, temp is now between 70 - 80° Celsius. Only passes 80° Celsius. on extremely hot days

I do my coolant change every 2 years, and I use this coolant for all my cars.

This costs RM18 per bottle/liter. The recommended mixture is 50% coolant and 50% water. The 206 needs 7 litres of fluids. I use 3 litres of coolant and the rest with filtered, de-chlorinated water.

Peugeot/Citroen requires the use of a header tank when filling up the radiator. This is to ensure the radiator/cooling system is bled of air properly. The same results can be achieved by using any plastic bottle. Just ensure the mouth of the bottle fits the expansion tank.

I searched my house and managed to find this bottle which is a perfect fit.

Cut out the bottom of the bottle in order to pour in the coolant.

You can either use a plastic bag or PTFE tape around the mouth of the expansion tank to make a perfect seal.

Drain out the old coolant by disconnecting the bottom radiator hose. Dun forget to open up both bleed screws.

One bleed screw is on the pipe heading into the heater matrix

The other is on the Thermostat housing

Next is to flush the engine and radiator. This step is optional, depending on the condition of your coolant/cooling system. Flush, just insert a garden hose into the top and then bottom of the radiator and bottom hose and let the water run until clean water comes out from the radiator/radiator hoses. Next fill up the expansion tank with coolant. Close the bleed screws one by one once coolant comes out without any bubbles. First the thermostat housing bleed screw followed by the heater matrix.

Fill up the header tank with water and switch on the engine. Keep the engine running until no more bubbles appear.

Once no more bubbles, the process is finished. Remove the header tank, and check the coolant level. If there is too much coolant in the expansion tank, siphon it out.

Broken Bones

2012-05-18T10:06:00.000+08:00

Such a sad day for my baby lion today. She was enjoying her daily sprint on the SILK Highway, happily negotiating a corner. Unfortunately there was a dog standing right in the middle of the right lane today. Could not avoid it. It was a direct hit, Dog vs Lion. Dog no where to be found,Lion badly injured :-(

Called the highway authority, and they were there within 20 minutes. What was better, I called Peugeot Careline for a tow truck, and the tow truck arrived within 10 minutes.

Called my buddy Ridt for help. Thanks bro for sending me home.

Damaged was quite bad. The radiator broke, the right fender was also dented. I wonder if the dog had bones of steel. There was no blood, no fur, nor any indication of the car hitting a dog. Upon impact, the seat belt pre tensioner was activated and the engine cut off. Luckily managed to coast the injured lion to the road shoulder.

Towed the car the the Peugeot Balakong Service Center, located at No. 34, Jalan CJ 1/7, Kawasan Perindustrian Cheras Jaya, 43200 Balakong, Selangor. Phone No : 03-90740213. They provide collision repair and insurance claims. I guess this is the best hospital to send the Lion to. It will take about a month for the Lion to recover. Gonna miss her very much. But I have a reason to smile. I can now use my little red rocket daily.

Oil + Heat + Rubber = Disaster

2012-05-10T14:49:00.001+08:00

Was feeling a bit bored, so I decided to go lie down under my car. Jacked up the car on stands, brought out my papan tidur and assumed my most relaxing positing under my lion.

Was looking here and looking there, checking the condition of mountings and rubber boots, then something dahsyat caught my eye.

The bottom radiator hose was drenched with engine oil. I guess every time the oil filter is changed, engine oil is inevitably spilled unto this water hose.

Oil on rubber with heat is a very bad combination. Sooner or later the hose will break. So please check the condition of your bottom radiator hose. Get it washed as soon as possible or get it replaced is the hose is already damaged. Imagine the hose breaking and your engine overheating suddenly. Worst case scenario a burnt head gasket --> overhaul time.

Peugeot Planet/ LEXIA/ DIAGBOX Diagnostic Services

2012-05-10T14:38:00.002+08:00

I got myself a PP2000/Diagbox diagnostic tool after getting fed up with local workshops which charge anywhere between RM40 - RM80 per diagnose.

If you need your car to be diagnosed( free of charge ), email me your contact at aldridge1@gmail.com and I'll get back to you. With this PP2000, I'm not able to update your ECU nor re-tune your ECU ;-). Its plainly for diagnostic & testing purposes.

1. Basic Scanning and Fault clearing

What you'll get is a diagnose and clearing of any fault. I will also explain the meaning of the fault codes, possible causes and remedies. If you're really interested, I'll also explain how PP2000 works.

2. Scanning, Fault Clearing and Actuator Tests

In addition to the above, every ecu/sensor/actuators/ will be tested and parameters measured and compared with normal/standard measurement. Example here is tests done on my 206. This test varies slightly depending on your Peugeot model and will take anywhere between 30minutes to 60 minutes. Basically I will test everything which is allowed by the Peugeot Planet software.

I'm using the current version of PP2000. Version 11A(25.01)

Sample of Scanning Screen.

Faults present @ Engine ECU

Fault Reading and Clearing

I'll explain the meaning of the fault code

Clearing of Fault Codes

Parameter Measurements & Actuator Tests

On my 206, here is a sample of what can be tested and measured. Other Peugeot models will vary.

Measuring Fuel Injectors Parameters

Making sure that all parameters are within range.

Actuator Test

Actuator test will be carried out on each testable component

Actuator Tests to be carried out on G/B

Fitting of Accessories

Fitted any new accessories? or changed tyre size?

Update your BSI to get accurate meter readings.

Hope to hear from you soon. A healthy Lion is a Happy Lion :-)

Servicing the Radiator Fan

2012-04-27T10:18:00.003+08:00

My radiator fan had been giving a strange kik kik kik sound whenever it switches off. Finally decided to open it up and check the condition of the fan. Btw, a check with a few spare part shop, the original fan costs about RM550+-.

Removing the fan is very easy. There are 3 bolts holding it. undo the bolts and take the fan out.


Location of 2 out of the 3 bolts holding the fan assembly. The third bolt is located on the bottom right

It was quite tricky to un-clip the fan wire. First pull out the red part a bit, the press the yellow part and the clip will pop out fully.

Undo this small nut to remove the fan blade.

This was the problem. A plastic bag had found its way into the fan motor. Removed the plastic and saw that the fan bearing was out of grease. Unfortunately its not possible to replace the bearing. Since the bearing was in ok condition. I decided to open up the fan motor and service it.

I really wonder how this happened.

After removing the plastic, saw the bearing was void of grease. This bearing is riveted onto the the motor body. No point trying to change the bearing. I don't think I'd be able to find anybody willing to change the bearing for me. The cheapest solution I found was to get a fan motor from a Proton Tiara. Price is RM80. Since this bearing still looked ok, I decided to open up the motor, clean it up, and re grease the bearing.

All opened up and ready to be cleaned. Sorry no more pictures of the cleaning process. My hands were too dirty to snap photos. I used petrol + paint brush to clean the motor. Then used compressed air to blow out dirt and to dry it. Put fresh grease on the bearing. I did the cleaning at my mechanic's place, since I don't have an air compressor at home. It is possible to replace the fan carbon. After cleaning, fixed back everything and the fan is as good as new. :-)

Fan Resistor OBD code P0485

2012-04-27T09:23:00.000+08:00

You know the TV series Ghost Whisperer? We’ll for the pass 2 days I’ve been experiencing Car Whisperer...lol.

While driving, the temp meter would suddenly max out with the stop light flashing then return back to normal. This would happen a few times a day while driving or when starting the car. Upon checking, the radiator fan only turns on high speed. It wont run on low speed. Testing the fan using PP2000 confirmed this.

A scan with PP2000, showed error Code P0485. Possible causes of this :-

1. Fan relay

2. Fan Resistor

3. Wiring harness to the fan, relay or resistor is out of order.

This error code generally happens when the BSI detects the fan is not functions as it should.

So I began check the relays first. There are 2 relays, one for high speed and one for low speed. The relays are located beside the fan, happily hiding behind the panel.

To access the relays, you'll have to remove the grill first.

Tested both relays and both were working fine.

The 2 relays. One for the high speed circuit and the other low speed.

Next to test was the fan resistor. Took it out , tested it with a multimeter and confirmed this was spoil.

The resistor's location. Replace it and the fan works fine. Bought the fan resistor for RM70.

Glove Box Light

2012-02-10T16:48:00.000+08:00

You know the saying, “The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak”. Well, after months of wanting to do it, today I finally got down to actually doing it. Fixing my glove box light.

Items that you’d need :-

1. Glove box light.

2. Switch

3. Wires.

[Update 5/10/2012]

I found the correct wiring for the glove box light. It a yellow connector located under the carpet behind the airbag/pre-tensioner ecu.

So I rewired the lighting using this connector.

Removed the glove box. I also removed to front facia to make it easier to wire – up the light. Wiring was quite simple. For the power (+ve) I tapped from the cigarette lighter. And grounded it to the metal piece which holds the dashboard.

+ve taken from the grey colored wire.


Had to cut a bit to fit my light.


All in Place. Time to fix back everything.

Working Perfectly!!

Living At Pajam

2011-12-27T18:36:00.000+08:00

Sorry Guys, this time, this post is not about my baby lion.

Most probably you found this page because you were looking for more information on the little town of Pajam, planning to shift here or settle down?

I’ve been living here for almost 2 years now. Overall, this is a nice quiet town to live in. But I wished there was info online or someone to speak to 3 years ago to help me decide on my house purchase here.

Here I list a few important factors you should know before deciding on your purchase.

1. The IBS system used to build the house does give excellent finishing. Nevertheless it has lots of drawbacks too. Many houses in my phase have walls which are not straight (dinding senget). In my house, a few walls are not straight. It’s quite hard to notice, but when you try to fix wall cabinets, picture frames, then you will definitely notice how crooked the walls are.

2. I have had 2 doors frames changed because they were also crooked, which cause the doors not to close properly. From what I gathered from talking to the workers, most houses have this problem because the developer rushed to build these houses. Walls which are not straight is normal. I received my house keys about 3 months ahead of schedule.

3. These walls are not flexible; hence after a month or two, it starts to crack. Although the developer repairs the crack every time a complaint is made, sadly, these repairs does not last long. And if the cracks are bad, water seeps thru whenever it rains. So for the past 2 years, I’ve been having never ending wall cracks and leaks.

This Crack appears on every single house here, its the wall where houses join each other.

This is my neighbour's house, end lot.

4. House break-ins are very rampant in Pajam. Houses which are not in a guarded and gated community has had many break-ins. Google “pecah rumah pajam” and you’ll understand.

5. If you have school going children, there are only 2 schools in Pajam, Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (T) Tun Sambanthan, and Sekolah Jenis Kebangsaan (C) Kampong Baru Pajam. I’m not sure if there are any plans to build any new schools around here. You’ll have to look at either Nilai or Mantin for alternatives.

6. There’s a rubbish dump(tempat pelupusan sampah) at Pajam town. 3 years ago when I decided to buy a house here, the developer assured me that this rubbish dump would be closed down soon. Now 3 years later and it is still there. To locate it, drive pass Pajam town, heading towards Mantin. You’ll come to College Heights. Landmark is some white colour shop houses on the left. To the right you’ll see a row of old single storey shops. The rubbish dump is located behind these shops. Almost every other night, there will be a horrible stench in the air. It is much worse when it rains. It’s so bad that when the smell comes I would have to run and close all my doors and windows. Sometimes the smell would come in the middle of the night, waking me up from my sleep. This problem is very bad and its solution does not seem near. I had no choice but to aircond the whole house so that we would be able to get a good night’s sleep without waking up in the middle of the night to this horrible smell. Part of the rubbish dump has been covered and converted to harvest biogas. I still have no idea when this rubbish dump will be closed for good, because for now there are still rubbish trucks dumping there. Google “pencemaran udara Pajam” & “bau busuk Pajam” for more info.

Mobile phone coverage is poor in this area. Forget about using mobile broadband in the house. Because of the concrete structure used to build the house, Mobile signal is very poor in at the ground floor. Around the dining area onwards, there’s no mobile coverage in the house. This forced me to get a fixed line for safety reasons. Mobile coverage at the first floor is ok.

8. KL is situated roughly 40kms away. Toll will cost you RM2.80(Pajam-Kajang), RM0.90(Bt.11 toll) and RM1(Bt.9 toll). On average, including jam, it will take 1 – ½ hours in the morning to get to KL (golden triangle area). Getting home from KL will take about 1hour or less by using Jalan Loke Yew to get back. Without Jam, it will take 30 – 45mins to get to KL, depending how fast you travel. Travelling to Putrajaya/Cyberjaya will take roughly the same time, toll free, driving thru Nilai à Dengkil à CyberjayaàPutrajaya.

9. If you wish to commute by train, either use the KTM Kommuter @ Batang Benar station or the ERL @ Salak Tinggi. The Batang Benar station is about 5minutes from Pajam and the Salak Tinggi Station is about 15 – 20 minutes away.

This is the residence community portal. http://www.pchrs.com. I Hope this information has help you with your decision. All the best