Holden SUV Range

This looks like a classic case of a body computer that is in the process of dying. Any time you see random lights coming on, or the stereo switching itself on, suspicions are always that the body computer as the culprit.

This computer controls literally hundreds of functions from the wipers, climate control, lights, entertainment system, even stuff like the rear window demister and central locking. And when the computer starts to fail many of these functions can go haywire, which is pretty much what you’re seeing.

The tail-lights staying on and the stereo witching itself on are what’s draining your battery, but the body computer is very likely the root cause and probably needs to be replaced. But before you do that, try this: Disconnect the battery overnight and then reconnect it next morning. Sometimes (but not always) this swill reset the body computer and might stop it playing tricks. The fix might be temporary, but it’s definitely worth a shot.

This sounds like a fairly simple case of the engine setting up a harmonic vibration through the car. It’s not an uncommon thing and diesels are worse than petrol engines purely because they vibrate more, particularly at idle. By revving the engine slightly, you’re changing the frequency of the engine’s vibrations and moving them out of synch with what’s called the 'natural frequency’ of the rest of the car.

Why does it manifest at the steering column? Because the column is a long, flexible (in a micro sense) shaft that is far more prone to picking up vibrations than a short, more solid part of the car. Why is it happening now all of a sudden? Probably because there’s some wear in the car somewhere. Your call to change the engine mounts was a good one as these can wear and cause this very problem. But, equally, the wear could be in the exhaust system or one of the points where it attaches to the car, a heat shield, the torque converter, or maybe even a piece of the car’s sheet metal that has come loose and is moving slightly.

The quickest fix is to bump the idle one or two hundred rpm and see if that moves the engine out of the vibration zone at idle.

You might find you have two separate problems here. The plastic clip is one thing, but there’s no way a passenger seat would be locked into place with a plastic component. It will almost certainly involve a metal ring or clasp mounted to the floor around which the locking mechanism on the seat locks.

Here’s a possibility, though: perhaps the broken piece of plastic from the broken clip has somehow managed to work its way into the seat locking mechanism and is not allowing the seat to fully clamp into position. Fold the seat up and have a good look around at the clamps or locking rings in the floor. Even if it’s not the errant piece of plastic, you might find a build up of dust or mud is not allowing the seat to find its locked position.

The other chance is that the locking mechanism has somehow closed onto itself before it has found the locking ring. If that’s the case, you may be able to take a screwdriver and pry the lock open before trying to lock the seat back into place. Be careful, however, as these locking mechanisms are often spring loaded and will crush a finger placed in the wrong spot.