Small story about Peugeot service. My brother and now-sister-in-law was driving along in her Peugeot 306 diesel early one morning, when it suddenly lost lots of power and started making black smoke. She pulled over and turned the engine off and it didn't stop, this apparently being an occupational hazard for diesel engines with oil leaks. Well, a terrified minute or so later it did sputter to a halt, so they got it towed to the Peugeot dealer up the road where she'd bought it. Several times my brother explained to them that they shouldn't just turn the engine on to see what happened, as they might not be able to stop it. Then he had to go to work.

Now, even if he hadn't known from the tone of voice on the phone call he got that something was wrong -- and even if the sheepish looks on everyone's faces when he got back to the garage hadn't told him that something was wrong -- the way they were still trying to clear the whole workshop area of black, acrid smoke would probably have given it away. Some muppet had just turned the engine on to see what happened, and they hadn't been able to stop it: it had just run away until it had burned off all the lubrication oil, and then seized. They ended up having to replace the entire engine. The car was two months old.

Peter