Trending topics in July 2011
Questions from July 2011
During April, I paid a considerable amount of money in fixing my Honda's off-side rear wheel arch which had rusted in two areas. The rust returned in one area and was subsequently repaired again under...
I have 2004 Corsa 1.0 Life Twinport (3 cyclinders) and the engine light comes on and sometimes goes off.
The car idles very rough and does not have much power and the engine shudders.
When I ran a disgnostics...
My Ford Kuga 162ps Powershift is currently running on the factory fitted Continental ContiPremium Contact 2 235/50 R 18 tyres.
At speed on certain surfaces these tyres transmit quite a lot of noise into...
I conducted a HPI check on my car prior to selling and found out that it had been clocked.
I bought the car in March 2009 with just 16(!) miles on the clock, the documentation states this also, it was...
Ford Transit ran out of fuel wont start. Tried bleeding cylinders. Tried pumping fuel filter but no diesel coming out of nipple.
Does anyone know how to remove the oil dipstick pipe from the sump/engine block on a 2003 Corsa C 1.0 12v (Z10XE engine), as I have to remove it so that I can replace the heatshield. I've heard that the...
I have recently bought an Audi A4 Avant Quattro. Before I purchased it I was warned that some cars of this model use a lot of oil in the first 500 kilometeres or so. Audi even supply a litre of oil just...
I am limited for parking space on the drive. What is the smallest car available?
Can you still buy used 'Bubble' cars?
I bought a car from an Official Audi Dealer with a 2010 10 reg. I was told it was their own demonstrator which they registered in Apri 2010. During negotiation the car was described as a 2010 car. On taking...
I am thinking of buying a Toyota Avensis d4d tourer. I do about 12k miles a year, of which, maybe 4k on motorways. With all the problems I've read about the particulate filter on diesels, is this a wise...
I've spent years driving MPVs (very functional but...) - Xsara Picasso, Grand Scenic etc. I'd really like to drive something a bit more car-like but that's still got a decent amount of boot space (don't...
With reference to the letter about Clause 56 of the Protection of Freedoms Bill from JW of Chippeham that will give the British Parking Association powers to exploit the motorist on an unprecedented scale....
I have just spent a week touring in West Wales. My travels included all types of surfaces: motorways, lanes, mountains, villages and towns. In over 600 miles I found one pothole. In general, all types...
I read with interest comments on fuel consumption in your column. We have had a Golf Mk V Estate 2.0 TDI auto estate for over a year. It returns from about 50 to over 60 mpg, usually mid 50's. It is almost...
How meaningful are the published Official Fuel Consumption Figures? A friend of mine has a 9-month-old Vauxhall Astra. He has run three tests, over a distance of 180 miles, mainly on motorways, visiting...
I have a 2.0 litre petrol Toyota Avensis on a 54 plate. Recently the engine management light came on and I duly took it in to Toyota to investigate. They diagnosed a faulty lambda sensor and replaced it...
I'm very interested in the Peugeot 1007, but everybody and every magazine I read has no time for them. Is there something really wrong with them? Their spec seems to include almost everything you could...
Last Monday my husband washed the car and then put it into the garage. He did not use it again until Friday. When he tried to back it out of the garage it would not move because the rear left wheel was...
I am looking to change my car in the next month and am due to be driving approximately 500 miles a week on predominately A and B roads (Woodhead Pass). I would like to consider a 4WD - especially with...
Over the past 30 years I have been lucky to own 12 Mercedes. I bought my current 320CLK new in September 2002. Before it was 2 years old, the front of the car was resprayed under warranty, due to paint...
In your reply to an email from AL of Blackburn you say your feedback shows that little-used, water-cooled Porsches are more likely to show serious problems than those that are used daily. We purchased...
It seems to me that everyone involved in an insurance claim is making huge profits at our expense. My insurance company arranged for me to have a hire car from Enterprise Rent a Car whilst mine was repaired....
About a month ago I was in stationary traffic and was hit by another car. The driver admitted responsibility. I reported it to my insurance company who handed it over to their claims management team. Within...
My present car is a 07 plate Yaris SR 1.3VVT and I have covered 13,000 miles from new. As I am getting on in years I feel that a small automatic car would make driving a lot less stressful. Therefore I...
I am concerned that BMW, Audi, Mercedes and Ford appear to compete with each other to see who has the biggest and brightest daylight running lights. I find this very distracting at the moment when there...
You frequently receive correspondence from people referring to the problem of 'CLOG's (Centre Lane Owners Group). That will frequently lead to retorts about 'undertaking' and its illegality. I'm not sure...
I'm a little confused by the information out there about whether a child can sit in the front seat of a car with an airbag. My niece is four. I have twin babies who go in the back in their car seats. My...
I registered last year as an e-Pioneer with Vauxhall and paid my £150. A month or two ago I got to drive an Ampera at the Motor Expo in Canary Wharf and even had a chance to chat with Quentin Wilson who...
I hope you can give me some advice. I've never been attracted to 4x4s, but living in Scotland and having two severe winters in a row has persuaded me that when I swop my present car I should consider one....
We are being 'encouraged' to have Supagard applied to a new car to make up for the EU-prescribed softer water based paints, compared to the old harder wearing solvent based paints. In your opinion are...
A lot is being made of lithium ion battery cars and hybrids, but there seems to be a stumbling block on range and cost, and probably on environmental grounds. Lithium is one of the world’s most polluting...
Can anyone explain to me why the Insignia was awarded the 2009 "Car of the Year Award"? The more I read about faulty Vauxhall DMFs and clutches, the more I despair. A pity the senior management didn’t...
We need to sell our Peugeot CJ Cabriolet because it lacks power steering - where is best to do this?
My wife has reluctantly decided to sell her Peugeot CJ Cabriolet as she can no longer cope without powered steering. The car was first registered in 1993. It has been in our family for the last sixteen...
In June I took out a van insurance policy with e.van.co.uk . On its website it asked for details of convictions etc. I have an SP30 dated 2-12-06 and according to the DVLA website it expired after four...
I received a fixed fine parking notice (£40) for exceeding the free stay time in a retail car park in Gosport Hampshire. There was no facility to extend the time by purchasing a parking ticket and admittedly...
My niece wants to buy a car that will take at least three child seats in the rear for the school run. Can you recommend any reliable vehicles? Also, can you confirm that it is better to buy a well-used...
I had an accident in April for which I was to blame. In spite of advising the third party that I had informed my insurers and himself of the occurrence within half an hour of the accident, I received a...
Three days ago I stupidly drove my Citroen diesel ZX auto (190,000 on the clock) through a flooded road. The engine stalled and would not start. When the breakdown man arrived his first words were "if...
Once again the subject of EC fuel consumption figures features in your pages. The official figures for my Volkswagen 1.4 Fox Urban are: Combined cycle 42.2mpg, Extra Urban cycle 50.4 mpg. On two recent...
The spare wheel of my Discovery 4 was stolen recently. I'm not sure exactly when because I had not regularly checked that it was still there. The cost of a replacement wheel and tyre together with a new...
I sadly have to bid farewell to my 14-year-old Mazda MX3 due to age (suffers from wear and tear, like us) and road tax cost. I want a ‘green’ car. I have researched electric, but although I usually operate...
I have used Churchill for many years now, and my original policy had a 'courtesy car' included in the cost, but in recent years the term seemed to disappear from their paperwork. Upon enquiring, I was...
I always fit replacement Michelin Energy 195/65 R15 Tyres on my old Saab 9000 CSE and have been asked whether I require H or V rated tyres. I do understand that 'V' is geared to higher speeds and, although...
I have noticed that the fuel economy of my diesel 607 improved by about 10 per cent during the hot spell of weather. Would there be any point of using the old-fashioned idea of a radiator blind or muff...
I replaced my old Audi A3 1.6 petrol with a 2-year-old Audi A4 TDI 2.0 with the new CR engine, primarily to get a much more economical car. The figures for combined economy should be around 50mpg and motorway...
I recently rang the RAC to change my payment details on my annual breakdown cover. Having been with them for a number of years, the cost was already reduced to £53 - but they then gave me an additional...
I bought a used 2004 Ford Fusion manual from a dealer. The sale included a warranty with a company called Warranty2000. Soon after purchase, I had a gearbox problem diagnosed by my independent garage as...
Yesterday my partner and I were returning to Nottingham via Birmingham from a weekend in Hampshire. We set off from Four Marks at about 1.30 in order to avoid the worst of the traffic. On the A34 we were...
My friend has asked me for advice on part exchanging his Jaguar 2-litre X-Type on an 04 plate for an auto diesel up to £10,000. He is completely open to any suggestions, however they want reasonable economy...
We retired a couple of years ago and now it is time for my Honda Civic Aerodeck automatic, bought new in 2000, to do the same.
It will be a hard act to follow as it has been utterly reliable during its...
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