Questions from October 2011
I live in a quiet residential road. 3 weeks ago a neighbour parked a burger bar caravan in the road outside his house. It is dilapidated, unroadworthy and unsightly. He speaks little English but when asked...
We are returning to the UK after thirty years in Canada. We are both getting on in years and we like automatic transmission. We have about ten thousand pounds to spend. If possible we would like to buy...
I see that cracked 19"alloy wheels have been causing problems for BMW owners for some time. My car recently failed its first MOT due to three cracked wheels. Two were within BMW's limit and one not. No...
I was looking round a nearly-new-used-car showroom yesterday and could only find one car with a pair of tyres on the same axle that matched. These were ‘Sunny’, made in China. By “matching”, I mean that...
I am not often given justification to offer thanks for the standard of service in today's profit driven society however I wanted to record my thanks to both Honda UK and to my local dealer Cloverleaf Honda...
I have just bought a Land Rover SVX soft top from Stratstones in Stourbridge with full service history (I traded in a Lotus Elise). Taking the word of the salesman I did not check the paperwork until getting...
In your column on Saturday, October 8th you made mention of supermarket petrol. What is wrong with it? And is diesel affected as well?
We live in a small village and for the last two winters have struggled to get out. I am now thinking of replacing my BMW 1 Series, with an AWD car. I would like to purchase the X3, but the wait is close...
I drive a 2008 BMW 116ES, 1,596cc. Annual mileage: 4,000miles. Last winter I had a bad experience when I went into a very bad spin on black ice and snow. I managed not to hit anything, but I had to abandon...
I was recently on a Classic Car Tour in Italy in my 2005 Morgan Roadster. While there, the rubber hose from the fuel filler cap to the fuel tank split open and allowed petrol to cascade onto a very hot...
I bought a nearly new car from a franchised dealer about 18 months ago. This past week I have received a letter from Retaina regarding the ISR window etched number. The letter states that the number is...
We've seen a 60 plate FIAT 500 1.2s at Motorpoint for £8,600, but they have no TwinAirs yet. A new TwinAir from FIAT will cost £12,700, but is it worth waiting to see if Motorpoint will get any? We're...
We sometimes need to sell our vehicles quickly and easily and do not want the hassle of bargaining with sales or public. I know you tell your readers of the auction route but I recently relented and went...
New tyre (Falken 452 225/40/18) fitted by mobile fitter. Car driven 2.5m then stood for 20 hrs before noticing that one of the tyres was actually flat.
I inflated the tyre and realised that it had a faulty...
In short, I recently bought my son a 2004 plate Vauxhall Meriva with FSH and only 60k on clock. This was to replace his aging Peugeot which I deemed as unsafe!
All went well until today when he rang...
We currently have a Saab 95 estate which we use to travel to France each year on a family camping holiday.
Can you please recommend a more economical runner in terms of MPG and also road tax and insurance.
Needs...
I've reported a recurring problem with my Vauxhall Zafira to the dealership I bought it from over a period of 18 months.
The problem is that the car loses power and goes into "limp mode", showing a warning...
I have owned a 53 plate Toyota Yaris D4D for six years which hasn't caused me an ounce of bother. It has 92000 miles on the clock. Recently I've had an annoying issue with the engine idling. When you first...
I am retired. I have a Mk 1 Freelander 2004 td4 (automatic) for general running about and towing an 18 foot caravan (Bailey Senator) 2 or 3 times a year.
Wife about to retire; has 2003 BMW 316i compact...
Ford Focus 2002 TDCI, driving along... lost drive , pulled over, car will go into gear without touching the clutch, clutch feels like normal when pressed. Will not pull away (no drive). Although in 3rd...
I'm about to have winter tyres fitted to a new set of rims on an Audi A4 cabriolet.
The summer tyres are rated at 93 ( 215/55 on 16); there is a choice of Continental winter contact TS830 in a 93 weight...
I have a 2009 (Sept.) 3.6 TDI Phaeton which I bought as a demo in Feb 2010. It has done 20,000 miles.
A dealer has just offered to PX for a Feb 2011 (latest model) with 50 miles on for £8,500 which equates...
I am buying winter tyres on your recommendation for my Ford Kuga. I have decided to go for 235/55 R17 Dunlop Winter Sport 3D to match the circumference of the current 235/50 R18's fitted from new.
I'm...
Thinking of buying used Mazda5. Read about problems with diesel versions but also heavy tyre consumption. Need to be changed around every 10,000 miles?
Is it worth buying a used Mazda5 then? Also fuel...
I purchased a 300C SRT demo with low mileage from Synter Group dealership on 7 October 2010.
V5 states "new at first registration 03/03/2010", noticed heavy rust on some bolt heads, not long after delivery...
Over the last day or so, I have noticed a buzzing/crackling type sound (appears to be from the dash area) when accelerating at around 2000rpm. It seems to go away when I accelerate through it or take my...
Having recently paid a deposit on a 2005 Golf Plus, we noticed on the test drive that the ESP warning light was on, showing the skidding car on the dash. The trade seller has said that he will fix this...
Why are the intermediate gear ratios in modern cars set so high?
Many cars with 6 speed gear boxes have the same peak speed in 4th, 5th, and 6th. Why not set 3rd, and 4th a little lower to aid overtaking...
I am thinking of getting another car for the family (5 Door with decent power and boot space) but unsure which to go for Petrol or Diesel?
My work would be return journey of 16 miles a day (Non motorway)
But...
I have a budget of around 17,000 to buy a quality used car that will last a good while. I want an auto and plenty of space. I do a fair bit of mileage so economical and comfortable.
Long suffering with an Audi I've bought. The dealer has said the car is repaired and being picked up tomorrow. He wants me to go and pick it up. This is a 150 miles away 300 mile round trip.
I've checked...
I have been told that if I do several short trips in a 4x4 with a dpf i can un block it by engaging low in theauto box and then driving flat out up a steep hill for about one mile. Could this be true and...
I recently bought a 58 reg Nissan Note Tekna with 7100 miles on it. I would like to know the capacity of the fuel tank and also when the fuel indicator lamp comes on how much fuel(in litres) is left in...
Please can you tell me what is the cheapest but most reliable small automatic available at the moment - i live in Borehamwood - so any pointers on which garage would also be great.
Buying a low mileage diesel E280 Mercedes from a franchised dealer in 2010, I took out a two year warranty from Mercedes Benz UK.
I later found that there are 28 categories of items on the car excluded...
I currently have a 2004 VW Golf 2.0 GTTDi 140 with 225/45/R17 wheels, these are hopeless in the winter and especially caught out in the snow.
I have purchased a spare set of 15'' steel rims with a view...
I enquired about a car I had seen online. The dealer was some distance away and I could not visit for a test drive for 2 or 3 days and was told that a 'fully refundable' deposit would secure the car until...
I bought a 2007 VW Golf GT TSI in March11 (48k miles) from an independent dealership. I am now faced with a large repair bill (new cylinder head) after a bolt dropped out of the crankshaft in Sept 11...
My 2000 seven-seat E-class has finally reached the end of the road as the suspension needs serious work (probably as a result of speed bumps that blight our part on London). I need a replacement and have...
I know the Mitsubishi Outlander has several diesel versions. I refer to the 2.2 PSA diesel with SST automatic as in the JURO model. Is this engine belt or chain cam?
Some weeks ago you recommended a company to contact re replacement remote car keys, could you again give me that information again for a friend?
I have a Skoda Yeti 2.0 TDI 140bhp 4x4 DSG (which is a diesel automatic). It the 2010 model and is a 2011 reg. I absolutely love this car. It does everything it says it should and I get fantastic fuel...
Some time ago I saw an email about taking out legal cover independently of one’s car insurer. I cut it out and kept it but now can't find it. Can you tell me what it was?
I just read NS’s email regarding the extortionate cost VW charged for engine oil. I suffered similarly with Audi a few years ago, being charged for 18 1/2 litre bottles. This year Audi wanted to charge...
Three years ago we bought a Vauxhall Corsa Design 1400 automatic. We like the car but we are not happy with the fuel consumption. The manual says it should do 330 miles on a full tank but our car only...
Anyone in the West Midlands/ Wolverhampton area with a VW, Skoda, Audi or SEAT needing reasonably priced, friendly and helpful service should try VW Rescue at Wombourne. A family company that is always...
I own a Ford Fiesta Zetec Climate 1.2 first registered in November 2008. Last week I took it in to the dealer I bought it from for its third annual service. The service department rang me to say that all...
I have a 2005 Mondeo Titanium X 2.2 TDCi, bought two years ago to tow a caravan. This has four 255/40ZR18 low profile tyres on alloy wheels. These tyres hammer noisily over rough surfaces, tramp sideways...
Your readers might be interested in how VOSA checks up on the performance of MoT testers. They sit in a car nearby and log into the MoT testing station computer. A Vauxhall Vectra had been passed and was...
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