Questions from August 2010
I am thinking of purchasing a new motor prior to my retirement. At present I use an old Rover 416 automatic and having been looking at a Kia Cee'd and Skoda Fabia. Both would probably suit my wife and...
I have a 51 reg Saab 9-3 SE TiD with half-leather trim, I have owned it for the last seven years. I have kept it much longer than planned but it keeps going very happily. My daughter says it has an odour...
I had an unfortunate incident yesterday in my work's car park. My car wouldn't start so I had to push it back to get the start leads to the engine. When I was getting pushed back my brakes didn't work...
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've recently changed my 2001 Peugeot 306's water pump but the coolant doesn't seem to circulate. I've even removed the thermostat. One of the radiator pipes is very hot and the other is cold. I've checked...
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 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...
Any ideas on getting rid of a rotten egg smell from my Volkswagen Passat's windscreen washer system?
I have a Nissan Micra 2001 1.3 SE. The keys came with with a small pen-like thing - I dont know what this is for?
I got pulled over by police last year, and I came back on the check as licence revoked. The Kent officer then took my car and my driving licence. However, at the time I had fully comp insurance and the...
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 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 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 Ford Puma 1.7 1999 V reg has been misfiring lately. Over the last few days it cuts out when I brake and misfires at low revs. When idling I have to keep revving to stop it cutting out. The car seems...
My 2004 Ford Fiesta 04 Flame 1.4's battery has died, so I tried to jump-start the car and a red padlock light started flashing and the car wouldn't start. I've been told its something to do with the immobiliser...
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...
I have a Peugeot 207 SW with just 30,000 miles on the clock. It is still within its three-year warranty and at 29,000 miles the clutch went. Peugeot would not repair this under warranty and the new clutch...
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....
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...
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...
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...
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...
The dealer has had my car for engine repairs for a month - what can I do to speed the process along?
I bought my car from a dealership in 2009. It's an one-year-old ex-demo with low mileage. No problems with previous service history. This year in Feb it started having problems. The engine indicator lights...
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...
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,...
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.
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...
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...
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...
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?
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...
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 a 56 plate BMW 320d SE Touring, owned from new, which has done 90,000 miles commuting up and down the motorway. I am trying to work out whether I should keep the car or replace it, and if so, when....
I have an "M" reg Ford Ranger left-hand drive, manual 3-litre engine, step side, flat bed truck to sell. It has 89,000 genuine miles and I have no idea of where to start with value or where to sell.
We would like to replace our 2002 Renault Megane Fidji (1.6 petrol) with a similar car as my wife likes the height of the front seats. We would like a car with lower VED if possible. Have you any suggestions...
I have a MINI Convertible on a 54 plate with just under 33,000 miles on the clock. I have had the car about 18 months. The gearbox was replaced after a few months of my purchase, due to a manufacturer...
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