Ask Honest John

Most recently answered reliability questions
I refer to the email printed 6 April from "DH" regarding his possible purchase of an Accord and was shocked to read your reply suggesting the model might be dropped. My own 1999 2.0i Accord has been by...
I am considering our next family car. We have had a 2007 Honda Accord Sport GT diesel for four years and have enjoyed the good economy, stylish looks, fully loaded bells and whistles and excellent reliability....
I test-drove a new model Audi A3 recently. I didn't think it handled better than the Focus to be honest, but what a great engine the 1.4TFSI 122 is. Very diesel-like torque, no nasty lack of pull at really...
Can you please advise me as to what small 4x4 you would recommend to buy - taking into account emissions, a good driving experience, reliability and ride quality, and a big enough engine to gave reasonable...
What other car matches the Mercedes-Benz E-class in terms of quality and reliability for less money?
I thought diesels were good for short runs. Is that not so? My daily commute is five miles each way. I ask because I am tempted by a Freelander 2. There’s one at a local reputable non-Land Rover dealer:...
I am thinking of buying a Mini Countryman SD ALL4, I'm downsizing from a Range Rover Sport. Do you know of or had you heard of any problems with this vehicle? I know it will not be as capable in the snow...
I have just ordered a Volkswagen Golf 1.4SE with the DSG gearbox. My reason is that, after test-driving most of the other manufacturers in this range, I feel this is the best car. However there are two...
I own a 2005 Nissan X-Trail 2.2 diesel Sport that was five weeks old when I bought it, now with 39,000 miles on the clock. A local garage has diagnosed a whining fault as indicative of my turbo about to...
Having just paid a deposit on a 2010 Mercedes-Benz A180 automatic, I'd appreciate knowing whether I made a good choice or not? I'd rather lose the deposit than suffer more heavily again, so please advise...