Questions from June 2011
My Hyundai Santa Fe diesel auto has 62k miles, is 4 years old and hence still has one year warranty. The car has been and still is ideal for my needs and I have no particular wish to change it. However...
I am looking to part exchange my Land Rover Freelander (2005 -05 plate diesel, 49,000 miles) for a new car with five doors, diesel engine, long warranty, cheap road fund licence and low emissions. I do...
Last week's Telegraph report on the London to Brighton Classic Car run was illustrated with a photo of a Triumph Vitesse reg. VAP 509H. I owned this car in the 70's, albeit a different colour. Is there...
I have found a used car being sold privately which I would like to buy. The seller is reluctant to accept a verified bankers draft due to the risk of it being fake or cancelled and I am equally reluctant...
The rear nearside spring on my 58-plate Mazda 3 Automatic broke during the warranty period. I understand from your column that this is not a common occurance these days due to the quality of the springs....
I am looking at a Mondeo. It's an 07-plate 2.0 diesel estate, but my garage was telling me the older models have big problems with injectors and dual mass fly wheel. My current car is a Skoda Octavia 1.9...
As a headteacher of a large inner city school in an economically disadvantaged area it is important that my car portrays a suitable image.
Whilst the children say they would like me to have a flashy...
I have a 12-year-old Mazda MX-5 Limited Edition, one of only 300 made and in excellent condition. Value? It is currently insured with NFU with Protected No-Claims - renewal just received is £516.84. I...
I am approaching middle age, so naturally want a sports car. I am keen on a Boxter S, but am concerned about living with a soft top day-in, day-out - I have no garage. My (uneducated) belief is that a...
Three days ago I suffered a blowout of my nearside rear tyre that resulted in a replacement at a cost of £96.60. This was caused by a 6-inch pothole adjacent to a drainage grid that I have photographed...
The AA and other forms of assistance are kept extraordinarily busy at Royal Ascot re-charging the flat batteries of innumerable Range Rovers: this is an annual performance that I have been witnessing for...
I keep receiving unsolicited text messages from an identified number to my mobile phone, with the following wording: "Free message. Our records indicate you may be entitled to £3,250 for the accident you...
I’ve just purchased Vauxhall Combo from North Star Garage and discovered that the vehicle has got a lock speed which means I can drive up to 70mph only. I haven't been told about lock speed and there is...
When I have sold a car recently, rather then leave it on the street with a for sale notice in the window and risk prosecution for illegal street trading, I have placed it, by arrangement with the vicar,...
I have a friend who lives near Stirling, three miles from the nearest main road. He does not receive the Telegraph and so missed out on your wisdom and replies regarding cars not meeting their advertised...
Can you suggest an estate car that would accommodate two sets of golf clubs and trolleys? We are looking to spend no more than £20,000 plus whatever we can get for our current 2001 Focus estate. Our mileage...
We already have one 2-year-old boy and my wife is pregnant. Just as we were considering trading in the trusty Astra estate for a normal people carrier (thereby also fulfilling my wife's desire to 'sit...
I purchased a demonstration model Skoda Fabia vRS, current mileage 3,500 approx, and it is using about a litre of oil per 1,000 miles. No sign of blue smoke or oil on garage floor. The dealer implies this...
I know some of what is in the Protection of Freedoms Bill because I have been talking and writing about it for some time. Thank you for sending the draft to me. It seems I was correct that it concerns...
In March I was having my car touched up and improved at the motor engineers I have used for some years, Simon Green Ltd., Leeds. Whist there a motor dealer who was obtaining a MoT for another car spoke...
I've been looking at the Vauxhall Antara and Jeep Compass amongst others and I'm struck by the similarity of the engines, even down to the emission and performance levels. Both companies advertise these...
Between 1985 and 2008 I had three petrol Honda Accords and covered over 500,000 trouble-free miles. Excellent. In 2008, aged 70, I decided to downsize to a Civic ES I-VTEC S-A 1800cc but after only three...
I’m interested in the Nissan Leaf and have been quite impressed by a test drive. The price keeps going up though, and I’m concerned I pay a fair price for it and don’t get caught paying over the odds only...
My partner and I witnessed a very disturbing situation on the M4. An idiot of a woman driving a Discovery hogged the outside lane doing about 65 to 70mph. As soon as the middle lane became empty the car...
I have a Citroen C4 2.0HDI (138hp) exclusive that will be three years old in September 2011 and has done 34,000 miles. I am torn between keeping the C4 for another year after taking out a warranty, or...
I have an '05 reg Skoda Octavia 1.9TDI Estate that has done just over 90,000 miles. Since buying it a couple of years ago I have had to replace the turbo, flywheel, crank sensor, a temperature sensor,...
I have for many months read your replies regarding experiences with members of the British Parking Association (BPA), and how they have used the DVLA to make money from unsuspecting motorists. I have recently...
I have a Mercedes-Benz E320 CDI estate, which I bought six months ago when it was two years old. I am very pleased with the car in every way apart from the satnav. I am used to satnavs taking peculiar...
Our car is a 7-year-old Astra Estate 1.7CDI now at 60,000 miles. I always run from 'tankful' to 'tankful', resetting the odometer to zero and checking the consumption each time. Living in a village with...
I have just sold my VW California and am looking to buy a roomy, comfortable car, but I live on an unmade road. The roads here on the Isle of Wight have got to be seen to be believed so it needs to have...
I get mobility allowance but cannot afford to fill the tank regularly and feel that a new car every three years is a waste, I have managed to reduce my miles per year to around 6K.
I am thinking along...
The front tyres on my E-Class Coupe are Dunlop SP Sport 235/40 OR 18 91Y and have done 16,687 miles.
They still have quite a lot of mileage left in them, but I am currently on the second set of rear...
Is there anything I need to know before thinking of buying a Mazda Bongo, import? Do you recommend any campervan conversion outlets?
Could you recommend a used hatchback with good boot space for lugging saddles, dogs and agility equipment etc. around?
It's for my 21 year old daughter with 3 years no claims. It's a big purchase for...
I have bought a Ford Focus 1.8 TDCI from a garage, but within a month of having the car I noticed a lack of power followed by the engine management light coming on. I have taken this back to the garage...
I've just dropped off a rental car today and slightly scratched the rear bumper on a pillar in the pitch black car park.
I was told initially that it'd cost 340euros. When I questioned this I was told...
I had a vehicle stolen in April which has subsequently been settled as non-recovered by my insurance company (esure).
By a bizarre twist of fate I received a PCN for illegal parking today (offence dated...
I have a 1 year old Kia 1.4 Ecodynamics Venga 2. It has been subject to throttle or turbo lag almost since new. The dealer has done what he can to find the fault to no avail. I have spoken to Kia who refer...
My Lexus IS220d (57-plate, 36,000 miles) has a warning light: VSC check engine, EML indicator and ABS warning. It goes into limp mode to protect the engine.
I have taken it to a Lexus dealer who has...
I had a reduced supercharger pulley fitted to my MINI two weeks ago. Three days ago while being 200 miles from home, it frayed the drive belt. Luckily (I thought) I was near the company that fitted the...
My daughter has two young girls and her and her partner need a replacement for their Zafira. They need room, economy and reliability and have a budget of about £8,000.
The standard tyres on the rear of my 3 Series Coupe will be 255/35 R18 whereas on my current car I have 255/30 R19s.
Will the overall diameter of the wheel and tyre be identical, or will the R18s be smaller?...
I recently had a grinding noise coming from my rear driver side brake.
I took it to a garage and they told me I will need a new caliper at some point. They stripped the brake, cleaned and reassembled...
Please could you comment on this statement on the IAM website as I always assumed you should put an auto into neutral at a standstill to minimise wear.
'When stationary in traffic, even for many minutes,...
In comparison to the five-year warranty on the Hyundai Santa Fe, how much is the extra two years worth on the seven-year warranty on the Kia Sorento?
Bought a brand new Jag XF in March 2010, since April 2011 the car has been back to dealer three times for an intermittent electrical fault which causes absolutely everything to stop working. The first...
I have sold my motor bike and I am not replacing it. As a matter of courtesy I informed my insurance company, Hastings Direct, so they would not issue a renewal notice. To my surprise they want a cancellation...
I filled out the real life figures for my Honda Jazz 1.2 in April /May. My figures were included and gave my true readings. However the site has taken out my readings and the Jazz 1.2 readings today are...
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