Questions from August 2010
My 2.2 Honda CR-V CDI is five and a half years old and has done 87,000 miles. It has developed an alarming judder at around 60mph which disappears at about 65mph. I thought it might be wheel balance, so...
I have a Grand Cherokee jeep in grey, which I bought new last September. Unfortunately, a man in a white van has hit my vehicle and it now needs a new wing mirror on the driver's side. I took it to my...
The electronic dashboard in my 2004 Renault Espace went faulty on a motorway, leaving the car incapable of being driven with no speedo or fuel gauge. A similar issue arose with Renault Scenics in 2008-2009....
My 1998 Renault Megane Cabriolet has had intermittent starting problems for a while now. The car seems to be fine but won't start. Battery appears fine. I thought it may be the immobiliser, as a few on...
I have been looking at your website following the breakdown of my 05-plate Vauxhall. Can you tell me how people went about getting Vauxhall to pay for the repairs? I am having no luck with them as they...
My Y-reg 1.8 Vauxhall Vectra Estate has started spasmodically flat-spotting for a few seconds at a time. It then picks up again and it may not happen again for several days or weeks. It appears to happen...
I bought a new Nissan Note 1.5 diesel in March. Soon afterwards, I moved house with work and now it only has a three-mile trip each day. At weekends I ensure it gets a round trip of at least 40 miles in...
Any ideas on getting rid of a rotten egg smell from my Volkswagen Passat's windscreen washer system?
I live in the US so I feel a bit stuck to do anything, but my mother in the UK had a 2004 Skoda she had bought new, and it had only 12,000 miles. She is 86 and does not drive much. A couple of months ago...
I have a 2000 Volvo S80, mileage 112,000. The ABS light has come on and my main dealer says the part will need replacing at an overall cost of roughly £1200. I am hoping that servicing or repair is possible...
We own a 2007 Vauxhall Astra 1.9 SRI CDTi diesel. The other day I heard a rattling noise in the car and, by the time I got home, I was struggling to get it into second and fourth gear. The garage has said...
The steering rack on my Ford S-Max recently failed and cost me £1300 to replace. The car was just out of warranty by six months and only has 26,500 miles on the clock. I bought the car when it was a year...
We tried out the Fiat 500 1.2 Lounge petrol but found it to be very sluggish, especially as we live in Devon with loads of hills. You mentioned that there could be problems with diesel models on short...
A fortnight ago, when driving my BMW up the M5, on two occasions the DTC warning light flashed and I had a momentary power loss. Both incidents were over in seconds. It didn't happen again until last night...
I have a 2002 Fiat Stilo Abarth fitted with Selespeed transmission. I have owned the car since 2003. The car has done 36,000 miles. Soon after purchasing the car I noticed that, on starting from cold,...
I have a new Smart Car which is using a lot of fuel and feels as though it is labouring when trying to keep to 30mph and 40 mph speed limits. Is the car too powerful or is there something wrong with it?...
I own a 2004 Ford C-Max TDCi with over 100,000 miles on the clock, which will need replacing fairly soon. I seem to remember you writing that if one bought a Mercedes-Benz 220 CDi, it would never require...
Some years ago I had a Volkswagen Passat. I purchased a relay that replaced the wiper relay and gave a variable rate of sweep. This worked by switching on the wipers in 'Intermittent' and when you got...
My 1998 Chrysler Grand Voyager LE automatic seems to be stuck in a low gear, and won't change up. I was advised to get a new heavy-duty battery, as the original one went flat and wouldn't hold a charge....
I've been looking at the Volkswagen Golf TDi 105PS Bluemotion, but was told today by a fellow Volkswagen fan that I need to beware of their tendency to clog up the diesel particulate filter every 6-800...
My sister has stopped driving due to arthritis, but I feel that she could drive a small automatic. I know that you rate the Hyundai i10, but it seems to have increased in price quite a lot. As I am thinking...
I just went through an amber light in a 40mph zone. I didn't see a flash but I was wondering if you could give me some advice. I'm worrying because I've got six points already.
I am planning to buy a two-year-old car to replace my 1996 diesel Ford Mondeo. I am looking at either a BMW 320 diesel or a Ford Mondeo Titanium diesel. It would seem that for the same price I will get...
I am travelling to Spain by car and I understand that it is obligatory to carry a spare wheel. I have runflat tyres and also carry a tyre inflator. Are these sufficient? My car does not have a housing...
My wife and I are looking to get a 'runaround' which is suitable for transporting our new granddaughter and my wife's elderly mother. We think it needs to have five doors and we've eliminated the Yaris,...
I have a 2007 Nissan Pathfinder and the warranty expired last month. I have had it for 18 months and the clutch has gone. I asked Nissan customer services and they told me to take it to my local Nissan...
Does the latest Volkswagen 1.2 three-cylinder diesel use a timing belt or chain? I am considering a new or nearly new car, but try to avoid timing belts.
My 1999 Ford Fiesta 1.25 Zetec has started to overheat once in a while. Every now and then the temperature gauge flicks into the red. The warning light doesn't come on and, once pulled over, it'll slowly...
I was recently 'invited' by my supplying dealer to bring my 10-month-old 170 BHP Volkswagen Scirocco TDI/DSG car in for what was termed an 'Express Visual Check'. The car has done 13,300 miles and is running...
Watching a lady reverse a very large van between my car and the other petrol pump, I was distracted enough to pick up the petrol instead of diesel filler. I only put in two litres of petrol before realising...
My Citroen C6 is just over three years old, owned from new with 58,000 miles and always serviced at a Citroen dealer. I took out Citroen's extended warranty. At a recent service the Citroen dealer informed...
My brother has bought a brand new Audi TT and it is using oil - Audi say this is normal. We have a 142,000-mile Volvo V70 diesel and it never uses oil. I believe it indicates a problem with the Audi -...
I recently bought a Ford Focus Powershift diesel and the garage quoted Ford figures of 47-62mpg. It only ever reaches 40mpg. If I had been told this initially I would never have bought it. I feel I have...
I've got a Rover 416 1.6 twin cam. Recently my tappets have got noisy and I was told by the garage that it has self-adjusting tappets. What can I do about this?
Do ANPR cameras automatically pick up drivers with just provisional licence, even thought the car has an MoT, insurance and tax?
I have a 2007 Volkswagen California camper with 27,000 miles on the clock which went out of warranty on 22 July. An air conditioning hose has split which is going to cost around £700 to replace, because...
My father is interested in changing his 2002 Mercedes-Benz S320 CDI (owned since new) to a pre-reg 2010 3.0-litre TDI Phaeton with 25 miles on the clock. It has £5000 of options and is priced at less than...
A holed condenser caused gas loss in my Honda FR-V in late May. It was replaced in early June (£475) but operating pressure was too high (24 atm and rising, normal 10-14). Communications between my local...
My daughter's Hyundai i10 (purchased pre-registered new in January 2009) has, after some considerable to-ing and fro-ing, had the EMC changed. Around September 2009, it was 'juddering' and the warning...
I need a car that will take my children to school, take me to work, drive up a muddy (especially awful in winter) track to take hay to my horses, and pull a trailer with two horses in it. I don't want...
When re-registering an ex-Motability car, does the new owner have to go in person to the DVLA office or can someone other than the dealer do it for them?
I am traveling from Folkestone to Bristol on Friday morning. The route requires going on the M25 clockwise from junction 5 (M20) to junction 15 (M4). Can anyone advise me of the likely travel time this...
Six weeks ago I purchased an August 2008 BMW 520d Touring from a BMW main agent. It was supplied having being maintained from new by the same BMW dealer. When I bought the car, I noticed that the sump...
My husband has a BMW 118i which is four years old in September. He has been quoted £1500 by a local BMW agent, who has diagnosed that the clutch and "clutch wheel" have burnt out and disintegrated after...
I am struggling to find a vehicle (used or new) that meets my following simple requirements: 4x4, can fit an adult and two child seats in the back, good boot space, affordable (less than £20,000) and has...
I have just bought a used Renault Scenic Dynamique automatic 2004 which looks like a great family car. How reliable are they, are there any problems with this model? I have read reviews and they seem a...
I have seen a Maserati Quattroporte GT, registered in March 2005, with 27,000 miles on the clock, with FMSH and an asking price of £30,000. This is the Duo Select model which I have heard criticised and...
My wife purchased a new Hyundia i20 last September, and has been very pleased with it. Since February of this year the radio has been intermittently doing a 'Norman Collier' on us. The radio breaks up...
My mother's 2004 Subaru Impreza 2.0 GX was serviced on 7 May 2010 this year. On 19 July 2010 we broke down on the motorway, which resulted in a bill for £1825.34. The garage found that the head gasket...
Some time ago you advised someone to buy legal protection insurance separate from their vehicle insurance policy. You mentioned the website of a company that offered value with regard to this - who was...
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