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Honest John Ask Honest John » July 2012
Trending topics in July 2012
4x4s automatics buying buying a new car consumer rights diesels fuel economy insurance legal advice legal issues maintenance and servicing mpvs new cars owning reliability selling small cars technical issues used cars wheels and tyres
Questions from July 2012
Need a code for Ford 5000 RDS stereo. Model no. is M420270
I am currently trying to sell my Peugeot 307 and received the following e-mail -please can you advise if it is a scam. Good afternoon, Thanks for the response. The price of the vehicle is fine and i am...
The engine occassionally has what I can only describe as a 'hickup' at about 1500 RPM - feels slightly like a misfire on the injectors, but as it only happens at those revs - could it the fault be with...
I have owned a SEAT Altea XL from new. It was serviced and, when necessary, MOT tested by the supplying dealer (Perrys, Aylesbury) each April for four years. In April this year it was serviced and MOT...
How can you tell if the engine is a BMW or a Rover one in a Rover 75?
I bought a new 520d Touring in March this year, with an Oyster (light beige) interior trim. The dashboard is a light shade of brown. In Sunlight it reflects very badly into the screen, when it rains...
Our 12 year old Grand Espace needs replacing after 215,000 miles. We have to seat three 6' sons in the back so leg room and comfortable proper adult sized seats are essential (the fights over who has...
I would like to know if it is feasable to fit a different size tyre to my 2010 Skoda Octavia VRS (petrol) as the current tyre size (225/40 R18 92Y) is uncomfortable and noisy on roads other than motorway...
I want a cheap and nasty way to chip my Skoada Octavia, as I am lacking in power to tow my caravan over the hills in France and Europe. Not bothered is I need to splice wires and just add a resistor!
My Grand Cherokee suffered major mechanical failure last week while on motorway. oil leak in Diff lead to rear axel damage. It is a dealer bought and serviced car. It has done 30,000 miles and is a Jan...
When I start the car in the morning. There's a grinding noise from maybe the fan? I switch the car off, then start it again and the noise disappears, and doesn't occur at all on any start up for the rest...
Doing less than 6,000 miles per year I will be heeding your advice and moving back to petrol power when next changing car (also confirmed by the turbo being coked-up twice in last two years in my SAAB...
Can you please short list 3 to 5 cars that would in your opinion fit the following - new or used, 1.6 Ltr engine or less, easy to live with but interesting to drive, economical and reliable
In Jan I bought a Used Audi which I sourced through the Audi website as it claimed that all vehicles have a service history check and will have a clean completely transparent record. I have no complaints...
I was hit from behind yesterday whilst stationary on the motorway, and it looks like my car will be a write off, thing is I have around £12,000 still owing on the car but the car is only worth £3500. I...
Dealer says purchasing car now rather than waiting for plate change in September will have no effect on re-sale value - True or False?
I have a Kia Carens on an 06 plate, and very good it is. It has an intermittent and very odd starting problem, where it starts fine but will not rev. Once started if I leave it idling at say 1,000RPM...
We are looking at buying a 58-Plate Freelander 2 GS, one owner with full service history. It has 94k on the clock - is this too high? Are there any questions we should be asking the dealer? The price is...
I read your review of the Seat Leon cupra and after a test drive agreed with every word you said, has been a fantastically fun car to drive and i have been very happy it. However as a 2003 the maintenance...
I bought a 54 plate Fiat Multipla Mk 2 from a dealer in May. It has FSH yet it keeps going wrong. The dealer replaced a front strut then (very reluctantly) replaced the EGR valve after it broke down. Now...
I have short-listed two entirely different cars to buy as used, BMW 3 series compact (2001, 85000miles at £2200 ) and Nissan Almera (2004, 45000 miles at £2450). I am very confused to choose, I like BMW...
I like the Seat Ibiza. I have found a 2006 reg, 1.9TDI Sport for under £3k, but it has 106,000 miles on the clock. Is this something to worry about or is this quite a good deal? How long do SEATs normally...
I have a clio 1.2Tce, in this type of engine (with turbo and compression ratio 9.8:1) can i get better mileage and performance using RON 98?
Thinking about buying a new car but I am undecided between the Ford Mondeo 2.2 TD X Sport and a Lexus IS F Sport TDI. Which is the better car, value for money, reliability etc.?
I am thinking of buying a 2000 Mitsubishi Shogun on a private sale, it is in good condition with 86k and service history. The current MoT has an advisory due to all four tyres beginning to wear on the...
I was driving on the motorway at about 70mph when there was a loud clunk, the car lost power down to below 50mph and revs increased. This has happenened twice but the car is ok at low speed around town....
When driving my 206CC the radio cuts out, everything on board flashes up, it says I have no petrol, revs go down, and can't tell what speed I'm going. Doesn't do it all the time.
I currently own two cars - an 07 reg Ford S-Max Titanium and a 53-reg Citroen C3. Both have relatively low mileage but their book value will not reflect that. I am relocating to the US for work reasons...
I am planning to change my Mondeo Diesel for the Focus 1.6 petrol 180 bhp. It seems to come with large wheels. I'm no more of a fan than you of large wheels and low profile tyres. Can this car be ordered...
On starting ignition there is a whine - started very recently and has just got worse. It dies away very quickly the car drives and steers OK, but the engine is noisier than my previous 1275 Micra which...
My daughter has started work as a physiotherapist in an NHS hospital. She is provided a parking space, but part of the agreement is that she has to agree to maintain her car to a required standard including...
With all the confusion around company car tax could you clarify the tax allowance for emergency services lease cars for those of us who respond to incidents. As a fire officer I respond in a lease car...
I have a Vauxhall Vectra 2.2 petrol 02 plate, I bought the car about two weeks ago and when I bought the car the owner did point out the noise. He said he didnt know what it was. When I start the car...
I have owned a 56 plate Audi for 10 months. Unfortunately a lady crashed into the car when stationery (on the 6th June 2012) and this resulted in car requiring repairs to the front passenger side bumper...
I currently run a 2001 Volkswagen Golf 1.4 for personal and business use. I've calculated that in the past 12 months I've covered 12,000 miles but my expenses for running the car inc. petrol, tax, servicing...
My wife has a 2003 Yaris and, as a passenger the other day, I observed that the speedometer is set in an oblique tunnel and is not visible to the passenger. How does a driving examiner deal with this?
Our 2006 Audi A3 Automatic has been written off in an accident, which we feel has to be due to a fault in the Electronic Stability Control (ESP) in the car. A car with new tyres, travelling at approximately...
Has a 2007 Mercedes-Benz A-Class A150 Elegance SE automatic got a timing chain or timing belt and, if a belt, when is the recommended interval for changing?
Jaguar will never recreate an icon similar to its E Type whilst it continues to make the front inlet grilles on its latest models look as though they are made of chromium-plated chicken wire.
The strange thing is about satnavs warning of speed camera locations is that a French gendarme only has the right to investigate your GPS if you give permission, so I suggest a firm but polite Non. The...
The BPA provided information to the Ministry of Justice last year that its members actually take between 36,000 and 90,000 people to civil court each year. They did this for the 'Impact Assessment' on...
After selling my BMW 5-Series I'm thinking of returning to a Golf-sized car and was thinking about a 1.6TDI Match Mk6, however I'm wary about buying a diesel. We only did about 8000 miles per year in the...
Can you advise how the quality of a SEAT compares with the equivalent Volkswagen? Is there really a significant difference in the build and finish to justify the price premium, or is it all just marketing...
Last summer a lorry collided with me, changing lanes without looking. My car was declared a write-off and, being comprehensively insured, my insurance company paid out promptly. Since then I have been...
Perhaps a cheaper option for RM (21st April) and others regarding golfing trolleys, would be to forget the car and golf and go for a good walk?
I would suggest to RW that charges for stopping in a box junction are not just ‘a way to extort yet more money from the motorist’ but actually a national scandal in the making that will eventually lead...
For seven years I have owned a Toyota Celica and I love it. However, we have been lucky enough to have a baby girl and practically the Celica no longer works. I would like a five-door that's fun to drive...
Having been unable to drive my 2011 Nissan X-Trail for some months and the 12 month service being due, Marshalls of Bury St Edmunds collected and returned my car duly serviced and, although it had only...
I have a 2006 Renault Clio 1.5 diesel. I have been told I have "pump break-up" so metal particles are everywhere. I need two new injectors and two need overhaul, and also a new pump, pipes and the fuel...
At the moment I drive an Aygo, which suits me very well. I am 5-feet 4-inches tall and find the driving position and view of the road ideal. It is easy to park, nippy on city streets and very economical...
 

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