Are dealer-only oils any different from those publicly available?

I just received my car back from its first dealer service and saw I had been charged £60 for 3 litres of Castrol magnatec 5w30 c2 oil. I showed how I could but the same grade myself for less than half...

Uneven Rear Brake Wear on a MINI - what to do?

My wife's MINI display console indicated worn rear brakes recently. I had a look, as did a neighbour who is a garage mechanic, and the pads looked good as new. As a result we contacted the dealer (it is...

Buying a SEAT Leon for £3500 - is this a good deal?

I have recently been offered a 2005 SEAT Leon FR 1.8T 20V with just over 60,000 miles on the clock. It is a private sale and the car seems to have been well looked after during it’s time with the current...

Rev counter problems with Citroen C3

I purchased a new Citroen C3 1.2 VTI (petrol) three months ago and have noticed that when pressing the accelerator and pushing the revs up to between 1000-2000rpm that the needle on the counter fluctuates...

Volkswagen Polo windscreen washer not covered by warranty

I own a Volkswagen Polo, which is still under warranty with the manufacturer. However, the windscreen washer doesn’t work (reservoir is full) and the dealer says the warranty won’t pay because the pump...

Deteriorating fuel consumption - what can I do?

The fuel economy with my Nissan Qashqai has worsened significantly since the car’s three year service. Car has done 19000 miles in three years and the service included fitting Platinum Spark Plugs, otherwise...

Starting problems with Vauxhall Corsa - what's the cause?

Twice in two weeks my wife's 2007 Vauxhall Corsa has refused to start. It makes a ticking noise but nothing more. The car eventually starts after a five minute delay. The battery is OK and the garage...

Run flat and ordinary tyres

With regard to a question posed by a BMW owner dated 29-7- 13, relating to a mixture of run flat tyres on the rear and ordinary tyres on the front, you advised that this would be an MOT failure, this...

Rear Window Defroster - can I repair it myself?

On my rear window defroster only two lines completely clear and one has a small circle which it clears in the centre. Is there any way that these lines can be made to fully work and clear the rear window...

Buying a Nissan Qashqai - diesel or petrol?

I'm looking at buying a Nissan Qashqai that's 1-2 years old. I'm not sure whether to go for the 1.5dci or 1.6 petrol. I do around 8-10k miles a year and have never had a problem with the diesel. However,...