Questions from August 2010
Many years ago I bought a new SAAB with a Ford V4 engine. I had once been told that when starting with a cold engine you should drive as if you were 'running in' until the engine reached the normal working...
My husband, now retired, has driven Mercedes for many years but his latest Mercedes C180 estate no longer provides a comfortable driving position for him or easy access when getting in as he needs a higher...
Three weeks ago I bought from a main Land Rover dealership, 150 miles away from where I live, a 3-year-old, 22k mile, one owner Range Rover, for a fair market price. The car had been supplied new by the...
I know this is not really your department, but being honest is. I get the feeling we are being railroaded into having lower drink drive limits. The constant reference to lower levels in Europe, although...
I have always driven petrol manual cars and am aged 71. My last three cars have been 1.6 Honda Civics and I have always been pleased with them apart from the fact that I am a little disappointed with the...
Why are hybrid cars petrol and electric? Would it not make it more economical on fuel to have diesel/electric hybrids?
I’m struggling to get any enthusiasm over my next car, can you help? My current car is a BMW 330CD M-Sport, two-door coupe, which is nearly five years old. The car has been brilliant, but it has only 2...
I am a 74-year old woman, owner of a 1998 Vauxhall Corsa manual 1.4 bought new, which has done about 40,000 miles of trouble-free motoring. I foresee the time when I will need to replace it, and would...
I own a 1997 W202 Mercedes-Benz C180 Elegance Automatic, which has covered 115,085 miles since new, and has a Full MBSH, and is shortly due in 3,000 miles to have the large ‘B’ Service carried out by Mercedes-Benz...
Having read your page today, I wonder at the intelligence of people who can drive a car for five years without noticing that it doesn't have a spare wheel. You must bite back the appropriate pithy thoughts...
My Subaru Forester boxer diesel is my 6th Subaru, all previous 5 having been highly satisfactory. This latest is quite the worst car of any I have driven. The gearchange is stiff and clunky, and you have...
In August 2007 my car was hit by a Polish registered lorry at a junction. The nearside wing mirror was taken off and some damage was done to the paintwork. We stopped and exchanged details and I provided...
I have a new model Honda Jazz 1.4EX, registered January 2009, which has done 49k miles - mainly motorway driving. At the third service I mentioned a whirring noise when idling with the clutch pedal pressed...
Whether or not Car manufacturers are supplying runflat tyres now, they are still issuing spare wheel equipment that cannot entirely fulfil its function. How are they getting away with this? I have reported...
My battery went dead as I left my lights on. I was successful in jump-starting the car but now my in-car stereo is totally dead and there's a flashing red light on the stereo, which I guess is the alarm/immobiliser....
My Peugeot 106's battery went dead so I gave it a jump start from another car and it started straight away. I put a new battery on it, but it had run out of diesel and after putting some in it now won't...
This afternoon my X-reg 1.4-litre Mazda 323 died. The engine starts but will not run, it's as if the ignition is being switched off. I'm guessing there is a very special piece of technology that keeps...
I have a 2004 Renault Espace, and a warning light with an orange outline and a horizontal orange zigzag line comes on now and again. It also seems to lose power. I took it to my local dealer and they reckon...
My R-reg Peugeot 106 diesel started playing up. On Tuesday I did about five miles in the car. I got home and switched the engine off, then realised I'd forgotten something so tried to start it back up....
I'm looking to buy a BMW 318TI 1999 automatic. Could you give me any info on these?
The intermittent front wipers on my 2007 Volkswagen Golf do not work. They are activated by a rain sensor. I have been to my local Volkswagen dealer three times and they claim that they work fine, pouring...
I own a Mercedes-Benz SL320 M-reg, built in 1994. Since I bought the car three years ago the cruise control has never worked. This didn't bother me and I hadn't any spare cash to repair it at the time....
My Skoda Superb II Elegance is a magnificent car, fully justifying its name. But tyre wear is heavier than on the Superb I by about 60 per cent. My local dealer tells me that Skoda will not supply a new...
I've got a 51-reg Vauxhall Corsa SXI. If it's parked on a hill the handbrake goes up eight clicks before it will even begin to hold the car. I know they're meant to self-adjust and only go up three clicks....
I have found the Volkswagen biodiesel statement online dated 3 March 2010. In that it states the Octavia 1 (1u) is approved on B100 RME biodiesel up to production week 26 of 2006. I am considering buying...
I bought my car less than six months ago and was told there was no problem with it. They even serviced it for me prior to me taking it away. I believe that the fault was already there and I have just made...
I'm looking to replace both a 54-plate 2.0-litre automatic petrol Ford Mondeo and a 2007 1.4-litre manual Fiesta with a newer Mondeo, which will cover 8000 to 10,000 miles a year. I've noticed that you...
I have a brake fluid warning light in my Peugeot 306 but the brakes feel fine. What's wrong with it?
I have a warning light on my 1996 Peugeot 306 diesel turbo. I know that the warning light indicates a low brake fluid level. When I first found the problem about a month ago, I just filled it up and then...
I read one of your letters sometime ago mentioning the latest generation of runflat tyres. Can you direct me to the latest information as I cant find it on your website? I have a BMW 530i.
Can anybody tell me what seals I need for the air conditioning system on my Focus? I took it to a local garage for a top up and was told that seals were leaking. I looked on the web and can't find any...
Having owned Peugeot diesels for the past 18 years, I am both amazed and disappointed with the noise levels of my wife's recently purchased 2010 brand new Fiesta 1.4TDCI. At tickover, and when moving through...
I am thinking of buying a 2004 Renault Megane 1.5 DCI Dynamique 100bhp, but I am being given mixed reports about this model. Can you advise me on any common problems with this car?
I am considering buying the diesel 4x4 Skoda Yeti but can't decide between the 110 and 140 versions. Other than power, is one better than the other? The price quoted on the HJ site via Autofinders is very...
I have a Renault Clio 172 which has been stood for two and a half years. Before it was parked up it had the head rebuilt and the cam belt done. it only has 42,000 miles and it's a 52 plate. What sort of...
My car misfires after fitting a crankshaft sensor. Do I need to have the computer reset?
My steering has got a bit heavy, and I can also can hear a rubbing/squeaking noise inside the car from the steering wheel/column. Now I can sometimes hear a slight click whilst turning the steering wheel.
I am thinking of changing my 2008 Skoda diesel estate (32,000 miles) for a nearly-new Mercedes-Benz C220 Blue Efficiency manual 6-speed SE Estate. Have you any views on the C220 (reliability etc)? Where...
I have a 2009 Suzuki Swift 1.5-litre which is jolty when driving slowly in traffic. Is this the drive train resistance, is it a fault with the design or is it a problem with my clutch? My dealer told me...
I purchased a vehicle from a dealer and the tax is up for renewal. I received no reminder from the DVLA of this and contacted them to find out why. It turns out that I am not the registered keeper of the...
I have just received a letter from a car parking enforcement company, telling me that a car with my plate had overstayed at a Sainsbury's car park (no fine this time). This was in Stoke-on-Trent on 19...
I currently own a Volkswagen Polo GTI. I have been having a few problems with it over the years and have decided its time to upgrade, as I do a lot of miles, and it's not the most economical of cars. I...
I purchased my Mercedes-Benz C270 estate on 1 September 2004 new from a Mercedes-Benz dealer. The instrument panel needs replacement due to an electronic fault in the panel (cause unknown!), at a cost...
I bought my Peugeot 307 HDI 2-litre diesel just over a year ago and have had nothing but problems with it since I got it. The dealer turned out to be unreliable but as my car is financed he gets away with...
I have had a T-reg Citroen Xantia 1.9TDI for a couple of years and had to change the fan heater twice because it didn't always come on. It now won't work at all and I have been told its the sensors. Have...
A puddle of water has appeared in the nearside front footwell of my 1999 Ford Focus hatchback. The rear nearside footwell is also very wet. The car has not been used in the rain, but it has rained heavily...
I have just had my Peugeot 306 GTI's head gasflowed with better cams. When I got it back I realised that on top of the valves there is a little dome recess. On one set of valves they are small and the...
I have just been locked out of my 2006 Volkswagen Touran (just out of warranty). The key fob works but the key would not fit into the ignition. The garage has said that a spring within the barrel/ignition...
I'm stranded locally in my 2007 Volvo V50 with no bite on the gears. The clutch has not gone to the floor like it does when it's dead, and the gears still can be found too. There's just no response in...
I see the prices for Saab 9-5 are the best around secondhand for a good family estate. I have £7000 and do not know which engine or year to look into. Is there anything I should watch out for?
I am a 19-year-old lad who has had a 1.0-litre 3-door T-reg Volkswagen Polo for 18 months now, and I am looking to move on to something bigger and more powerful. With insurance, tax, service costs, street...
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