Morning Folks.The saga with my smoky fez goes on.Got no real satisfaction relating to the smoking and lack of power from day one of owning this car.

the 3 month used car warranty (from a Ford dealer-who shall remain nameless-unless I get really !Removed! off then everybody can know their name!)expires in a fortnight I took it to another local dealership who,after charging me for the pleasure,diagnosed a possible cracked inlet manifold.I am now taking this to the dealer who sold me the car and they are going to sort.

My only concern is I got the following response from the Garage - "you do realise that this may not be covered under your warranty"

Firstly, can someone tell me how much it would cost to have the manifold replaced and if I have to pay for the work have I got any recourse to complain to Ford about it?

I have returned this car twice over the last 8 weeks to complain about the problem and I now have a nasty taste in my mouth (unless that s the soot coming through the vents!)

As this car has come through a recognised Ford dealership do I have anybody at Ford I can moan at should I get no satisfaction over this matter?

Rant over

First off NEVER be fobbed off by 'it may not be covered by the warranty'.

The fault existed when you bought the car and they HAVE to rectify it even if the warranty expires in the meantime. You are within your rights to sue them for the cost of the repair if they refuse to pay.

Black smoke can be caused by a number of things including (but not limited to) fuel/air ratio, dirty filters, faulty turbo and injector faults.

Make it clear to the dealer in writing by recorded delivery that there is a fault with the car that must be rectified at their expense with no cost to you. If they cannot do this or refuse to then you would have to seek legal advice or resort to an action through the courts.

These things are not pleasant but the dealer is not your best friend and you need to hold your nerve to stop losing out.