12th Jan 2010, 04:37

To the above, this could be early signs of fuse box failure.

And to all others, it will not harm your vehicle in any way to remove the fuse or disconnect the wire.

Ford have know about this since shortly after launch. They are unwilling to look into it any further with the launch of the new Galaxy.

Knocking when rocking steering as told by one reviewer is usually down to worn track rod ends. These are very simple to replace yourself without shelling out dealer money; simply undo the 27mm lock nut on the track rod and remove the split pin in the 19mm nut that connects to the hub, then remove that nut and then hit the hub where the track rod goes into the hub with a hammer hard, this will pop out the rod. Remove the rod end by unscrewing, but count each full revolution of it as you remove, to replace screw replacement back on again counting the full revolutions until you have the new rod end in the same position as old one. Tighten up the 27mm lock nut and replace the 19mm castle nut, remembering to replace the split pin. For peace of mind, pop to a tyre centre and have them do a tracking check. Most will check it for free. Chances are it will be fine, if it is slightly out, they will only charge you to adjust the track.

A major concern with Galaxy with alloy wheels is the wheel nuts, especially any locking nuts seizing, and being unable to be removed. This is caused by service not removing the wheels when the should on service, and just checking your brakes with a light etc. When getting any service, ask the dealer to put copperslip on the wheel stud threads, check afterward to ensure this has been done, copperslip is extremely messy and there should be some evidence that they have done this on the nuts or surrounding area.

For all those who are paying a dealer to service your Galaxy, please take a torch after a service and shine it into the area under the left hand scuttle panel, you should see the pollen filter behind the wiper linkages etc. Check this is brand new. These are so fiddly to replace most people in dealerships simply throw them away and do not fit them.

Also if being charged for a brake fluid change, Ford recommend every two years, check the reservoir, which is located deep down the back on the engine to the side of the air box, this should be visibly new fluid, again a special tool is needed and this is very fiddly work, it is often not carried out, and is covered up by simply using an oil can to wet the bleed nipples so it looks like it has been done to anyone looking under the vehicle.

Rattles from scuttle area are almost certainly a broken trim on the scuttle panel, where someone has attempted a pollen filter change and most likely aborted it after cracking a trim or two.

Reset your own service light by pressing the brake pedal and holding down the trip computer reset button while turning the ignition on, wait for the beep to sound, you may need to repeat this a couple of times. It will reset.

If you think you are paying to much labour time, ask to see the labor times manual from Ford. This is the maximum Ford allow time wise for this procedure and should be the same as what you pay; many dealers simply make up there own labour times.

Remember for mechanics are on a time based pay. They only receive around £6-8 per hour out of that £100 per hour you pay. They get 1.9 hours to complete a full service on a Galaxy, they get this amount if they do it in 4 hours or they do it in 10 minutes. It's Fords way of encouraging mechanics to miss things out and not change things, cut any corners they can.

You can blame the mechanics, they need to make a living, if they were paid a decent amount of that £100 per hour and got extra for having no cars returned within a month, I am sure that the service and work would be of a much higher nature.

Be aware, don't get ripped off. It's your cash, make sure you get what you pay for.

Long term Ford tech that left for another trade, as so disillusioned of what is going on out there.

10th Feb 2010, 11:17

The white or gray smoke is failure of the glow plug in the aux pre-heater. This can be purchased at Hans Motors Birmingham for 25.00 plus vat, takes about an hour for a good mechanic to fit. No more smoke!

Also one of the exhaust pipes (there are two from the pre heater) for the unit goes into a hole in the back of the sill, loosen the 6mm screw which retains this pipe and turn it around to face away from the sill... there is now no fumes leaking into the car.

Also the wiper motor failure, there is a transistor buz111 inside the motor circuit board going open circuit after wipers seize, caused by poor lubrication inside spindles or frost sticking wipers to screen. The transistor can be replaced by a competent electronic engineer, this will save you the price of a new motor, £280, which will be hard to get as they are now obsolete from Bosch, so only existing stock will be available. The transistor can be purchased from Mark5 £5 each plus VAT. Also check fuses 25 and 33; the fault can also make these go open circuit. Especially 33 as this will make rear wiper and wash work, but no front wipe.

8th Mar 2010, 16:52

Hi - I purchased my Ford Galaxy in Mar 2008 and added an entry into this string in November '08, my first winter of owning the vehicle, due to the issue of white smoke and fumes coming into the cabin space.

In addition, having been in extremely good health all 43 years of my life prior, I have experienced ill health since owning the vehicle with symptoms of unpleasant (metallic taste) in my mouth, initial pains (tightness) in stomach, fatigue and weight loss (almost 2 stone). Despite exhaustive investigations by private consultants, they could find no conclusive diagnosis of my illness. I have since had an independent test carried out on the vehicle since the replacement unit of 2008/9 failed again this winter, and established it was producing high volumes of Carbon Monoxide. In that I have found numerous articles highlighting concern as to the failure of these units on 2000-2006 Galaxy TDi's, I wondered if anyone else has also experienced these unpleasant symptoms since owning one of these vehicles. Clearly there is an underlying problem with these units, and simply disconnecting them as appears to be the eventual action by dealers is not acceptable in my opinion if they they are a potential health hazard for owners.

Appreciate your thoughts/comments - Graham.