Questions from August 2011
After exchanging my wonderful Volvo 940 Celebration for a 2008/58 V70 diesel estate last November, I took your advice and have always run it on BP Ultimate diesel (as also my wife’s Golf), and both cars...
I recently bought a 2009 BMW X5 from an independent dealer. The car still has 16 months left of warranty. I noticed I was losing air in one of the front tyres, so went to a local garage. He diagnosed a...
We are looking for a small 'starter' car for my daughter, 18 years old, but to be used by us occasionally as well, so we want something in good nick. My wife and two daughters are smitten with the 'trendy'...
Can you please help? The MoT on one of my cars, parked off road on our driveway, runs out on the 19th October. I will be out of the country from the 13th September until the 26th October. The car will...
I currently have a 2005 Skoda Octavia Estate 2.0 Litre diesel with DSG gearbox. Car has been faultless and I have experienced none of the reported "hesitation" with the 6-speed wet DSG box. Now time to...
I am exploring the possibility of replacing my son's current VW Golf 1800 (purchased April 2001) with either a VW Polo or Skoda Fabia. My son who lives in Islington at the side of the Congestion Zone is...
My Mercedes ML320CDI has covered a relatively trouble free 165,000 miles. At its last service my local MB dealer says that there is a judder in second gear (it is the 7 speed model) that is likely to prove...
We need to replace our 16-year-old Mercedes C180. Can you suggest a replacement saloon car that would have a decent amount of legroom as my son is 6' 10” and I am 6' 6” and we would also need room in the...
I have a 2005 Jaguar S-Type 2.7 diesel. Can you tell me if it has a cambelt or chain?
According to your website, my annual road tax is £260 for my 2007 KIA Sedona 2.9 CRDi TS Auto but the DVLA charges me £445. I guess I'm not going to be lucky and the DVLA has got it wrong so I think there...
I have been given the chance to buy, from an elderly lady neighbour who is giving up driving, a Vauxhall Astra 1.6 115 Elite and I should like to know whether it would be a good buy, and, if so, what would...
The GPS units (e.g. Garmin) which are fitted in private light aircraft are required to record their journey details so that, like the Black Box in commercial aircraft, they can be interrogated after an...
I wrote to you last year about driving 100 miles a day, 30 across hills on poor roads and 70 on the motorway. I wanted some 4x4 capability, excellent fuel consumption for motorway driving (I am filling...
You recently commented on driving your Father's Auris hybrid, and I think I remember your remarking on the smoothness of the autobox. We currently run a BMW 3 Series and a V5 Golf, which is getting a little...
A dealer 25 miles from me has a 2004 Micra 1.2 SE in what looks to be good condition and at a very tempting price. We need to replace an aged Polo and have very little cash to spend, so this looks promising....
I own a 09 plate Scirocco GT TDi 140, but fancy a fun cabrio that can be used as an everyday vehicle. I've £20,000 to spend, in addition to trade-in. Any suggestions?
I recently went to a local branch of a national tyre chain to have two front tyres replaced and the front alignment checked. After a time the fitter came to me and said they could not do the work as “your...
Does this win the prize for the most optimistic claim for product failure? Last week my dealer-maintained Rover 75's original manufacturer-fitted battery failed after barely nine and a half years. Is Rover...
I have a new battery (ten months old) but am having problems turning the engine over via the starter motor. When I turn the engine over, it feels and sounds as though the battery is going flat, and it...
I appear to be receiving, daily, via email, notification of a speeding violation in New York State from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. The date of the offense was May 2011 but I was not...
Due to the impending arrival of a new car (this has arrived quicker than I expected) I need to sell my VW Polo Moda 1.2. It has 11k miles and a full service history in an excellent condition.
I owe £6700...
I have been offered a Mini Cooper 06 plate, registered in Republic of Ireland. I am in GB. What are the implications of transferring the registration of the car to the UK. Are there any charges I should...
Comfortable high ride, good fuel economy, manual or automatic (not too used to automatics but keep getting advised that the new ones are more fuel efficient?)
At the moment we seem to be looking at Scenics,...
I have a 2001 Toyota Yaris. When I bought it it only had 1 key (the previous owner lost the others). When I went to my local Toyota dealership they told me that I didn't have the master key so there was...
I have a faulty SL55 that has cost me £76k, the garage in Brentford have had it for 8 months and are not giving any repair date or replacement. I have written numerous letters and explained that we have...
On start up after sitting idle for a day or so the auto gear box "clunks" into gear no matter how gently I move the gear change into drive. It is ok for the rest of the day. Car is still under warranty...
I am approaching 50k on the clock and want to sell my Rover 75 which has been a reliable old friend. The car is in good working condition and been serviced and reapaired when required. What should I do...
A very good friend has a 3 year old Honda Jazz for sale. It has only a few thosand miles on the clock and has remained virtually undriven since he had a stroke two years ago. What are the pitfalls of...
Do you subscribe to the generally accepted advice that you should not apply polish (not even wax) to a new car until it is 3 months old, to allow the paint to harden ?
My 17-yr old son (recently passed) was driving my Seat Ibiza 1.2 and was hit from behind at approx 35mph. Damage is to the rear bumper and the other driver has admitted liability.
My son has no whiplash...
I Parked on car park which serves a number of shops and is free for 2 hrs,I walked off the car park to a shop round the corner and after 30min returned and visited two of the shops on sight. On returning...
I thought I'd found the perfect van with the Nissan NV200 until I discovered it only had the 2 seats up front. Will they introduce a 3 seat version or is there something similar/can it be modified? The...
Our Audi A4 Avant 2.0TDI is unfortunately too small for us. We are considerg replacing it with a BMW 520d SE Touring.
I have seen an April 2009 model in Deep Sea Blue with Black Leather and Business...
I am thinking of buying a Toyota Verso petrol model. The 1.8 however is only available as a semi-automatic and is called a Multidrive and has CVT technology. Could you tell me what this means? Is this...
Following your email of 5 Aug I received one from Warranty Direct advising they would re-assess my claim if I sent them copies of the MoT in force at time of repair, the last service bill and the repair...
A Mazda dealer has offered me the following that I will view next week: Ex-demonstrator Mazda 5 1.6 Diesel, TS2 on 16” wheels, 3,500 miles on the clock, for £16,995. Is it worth considering, as a new...
I have recently acquired a new KIA Picanto 1 and a very accomplished little car it is too. Naturally, the engine will need to go through it's ‘break in’ (as the manual puts it). Also, I would not expect...
Your excellent column in Saturday's Telegraph exposes some serious issues, exemplified by MM of Hawick (13-08-11). Can you recommend a best procedure for dealing with an incident which requires car recovery...
Yesterday we got a letter from our car insurance company (More than - we have had our insurance with them for over 30 years), stating that "We have been contacted by a third party who has informed us that...
How do I obtain a blank 'European Accident Statement' form in English? A contact at my current motor insurer says he has never heard of it in his five years with the company. The policy booklet from my...
I have a friend who has a FIAT Multipla and asked my advice about buying something different. He has 12 grand children but doesn't want a people carrier. He's looking for a new or preferably second hand...
I have a FIAT Panda Dynamic Multijet 114g/km diesel. I wish to purchase winter tyres for it. At present the size I have is 155/80 R13 but my local tyre dealer says that he can only get winter tyres in...
I own a 6 year old Skoda Octavia 1.6FSI with 50,000 miles on the clock. Three evenings ago I locked the car, only to find later that the windows had all dropped open. I reclosed the windows and left the...
To get away from our recent horrid winters we have rented a house in the southern hemisphere from January to March 2012. My car, a 2008 Audi 2.7D auto, will be left on our drive for this period. Are there...
On 1st June this year, I purchased a brand new Audi A6 Avant S line Special Edition. 5 weeks later it was stolen from my drive following a night-time burglary while my family and I were asleep to get my...
I am a Scenic auto driver looking to exchange a 2-litre petrol for a new Scenic. My Renault dealer is strongly advocating I go for the EDC 1.5 auto diesel, for which he says there is no particulate problem...
We have an 18-month old normally aspirated Astra 1.6 petrol, which is rather slow to accelerate. Would it be worth having the engine "chipped" to improve performance and who would you recommend?
My 17-year-old son passed his test very quickly and has saved up for a car. His maximum budget is £2,500. We have scoured local papers and local dealers but are a bit nervous about taking the plunge. Some...
I recently took my Octavia 1.9TDI into my local Skoda dealership (Progress of Letchworth) for a service prior to its first MoT and asked for a couple of areas on one alloy wheel to be repainted/re-lacquered,...
I drive a 2006 BMW 320d that I have had for a year and I understand it has a diesel particulate filter. The car has covered 60,000 but I only drive about 5,000 miles a year. From reading your column I...
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