September 2008
Please help! My car ford mondeo won't pass the MOT, because the ABS anti braking light doesn't work. According to the mechanics, the cables were cut (I bought this car in May of this year), they said they tried reconnecting the cables, and then changing the light bulb, but it still doesn't work. Mechanic says I have to buy the ABS unit which costs £500, (almost the price of the car) and I don't have that kind of money. Does anyone have another option?? PLEASE!! Read more
Seventeen year old female empoyee went for her driving test on Tuesday and failed the eyesight test, worrying that she didn't realise her vision needed correction or that her driving instructor hadn't noticed on a mock test. Read more
The instructor should have checked her eyesight before he let her drive the car on her first lesson, and if it was borderline he should have advised her to see an optician and checked it on a regular basis during the course of lessons. I used to find that with female teenagers someone who could just about read a plate from the required distance one week might be unable to do so another time, whether that was hormonal or not I have no idea but it is something any instructor shoud be aware of as he is commiting an offence himself in allowing her to drive with defective eyesight.
i have a skoda octavia 2.0 TDi, 2 years, 50.000 Km
every 15.000 Km i lose 1 Lt oil.
My dealer says that this is ok.
Is this normal? too much oil? Read more
mine uses none every 10k miles.
Well new job in a month or two means the beloved A6 2.7 Avant will be going back (company car, no such scheme in new job) so I will need to sort out a new family car.
Has to transport a family of four with two youngish kids. Usually a few hols in the UK each year and numerous trips around the country to relatives etc, so has to be big enough to cope (decent boot space plus decent cabin size to allow for car seats, also like to avoid the need for a top box and will on occassion be used to lug DIY bits around!).
Much as I like the Audi I've no intention of paying for such "prestige" privately so am thinking 1-2 years old and something a little more reasonably priced.
Wife would love a new shape CR-V (yummy mummy snob value but she won't admit to it like that....). Whilst I don't mind it and it fits the space requirements, I'm not convinced that we need a 4x4.
Am thinking something like a 2.2 diesel S-Max. Better value second hand, huge inside (although granted don't need 7 seats, but useful on occassion).
Any views? This car will be a keeper for some time so depreciation not that high on the agenda. We could go for another estate, but I'd rather not go for something quite as long as the A6, but then it seems you need to to get decent rear cabin space.
Thanks, Nik Read more
a reasonably new Passat was probably next on the list.
How about sneaking a Subaru Legacy Tourer diesel on the list? Less money than the Passat and far less "common" to appease SWMBO. I'm completely biased as I have one. Same torque as the 170 bhp Passat TDi, smoother engine, lower VED, better mpg and with all wheel drive, Subaru quality and no VW dealers to trash the ownership experience. The Passat is a bit bigger inside, has auto available and holds value better but you don't seem worried about depreciation and anyway, both will be worth zilch if you keep a very long time.
Article today
www.pocket-lint.co.uk
"Superfuels "don't equal super savings"
Paying more at the pumps may not improve economy, tests prove
NEWS: 29 September 2007 8:00 GMT by Jonathan Goddard
Drivers who fill their cars with expensive "superfuels" and expect to see big economy gains should think again, according to a report by What Car? magazine.
Real-world tests were carried out for What Car? by the AA?s former senior research engineer, Peter de Nayer. In these tests, high-octane premium fuels including BP Ultimate, Shell V-Power, Esso Supreme and Total Excellium performed little or no better than their cheaper equivalents, in spite of costing around 7% more per litre.
?Our tests show that premium fuels are an unnecessary expense with no major fuel economy benefit?, said What Car? editor Steve Fowler.
?The verdict is still out on whether superfuels prolong engine life, as fuel manufacturers claim. Nonetheless, even using the fuel companies? own figures, you?re unlikely to travel 7% further on a tank of fuel for a 7% increase in your fuel bill.?
The top-performing fuel in What Car??s tests was Sainsbury?s 97-octane fuel, which delivered 0.5mpg more than its 95-octane fuel in real terms that means just 6 miles more per tank.
?Unless the prices of these superfuels come down, there are far easier and cheaper ways of reducing your fuel consumption and your car?s emissions?, added Fowler. ?By changing your driving style, anticipating the road ahead and sticking to the speed limit, you can make fuel savings for free.? Read more
We used a small amount of petrol to get the Sunday bonfire going at the back of the garage, which tells you I'm going back a few years.
One day I decided to hang the expense and use five star.
It didn't quite explode, but it made a noticeable 'woomph!' noise and warmed my eyebrows.
Three star would just flare and not produce half as much heat.
There's clearly a lot more stored power in higher octane fuel.
Not sure what else the story proves, apart from the stupidity of playing with fire.
Latest road death statistics bring some good news
Road deaths have fallen to their lowest level since records began in 1928, according to figures published by the Department for Transport.
Last year a total of 2,946 people died - a 7% reduction on the previous year when 3,172 died.
It does look as though all those cameras are having an effect on the way people drive and the resulting accident rate.
Read more
Cause and effect not proven
Agree but it surely has to be considered as a factor in explaiing the downwards trend. There certainly seems to be less flagrant speeding than a few years back and my personal view is that cameras do affect the way people drive - they have certainly affected the way I drive.
I'm about to buy a car for wife and baby daughter and have test driven various contenders. However the one thing that keeps getting repeated by the salesperson is that any special deals and savings are only valid until 30th September, with one Nissan salesperson simply stating that if I bought next month I would 'have' to pay more.
This is all tosh and they're just meeting a sales target deadline right? Or should I get my skates on any buy before the 30th?
SM Read more
I bought my car at the end of march. The spec I wanted was 'in stock' , so they could deliver in a week and before the end of the month. Blue has posted exactly what I was told. The car was sold at a loss, but they more than recouped it though bonuses.
In our household we have 2 vehicles, a Picasso and a Berlingo. Our 17 year old has started driving lessons and our plan is to get rid of the Berlingo and buy a small car that he can learn to drive in and, when he's passed his test, have use of when I don't need it. Our requirements are - a low insurance group, the car should not feel basic(I'm used to some comfort) and we are looking to spend between £3000 & £5000.
Does anyone have any suggestions?
Thank you. Read more
You really need to do some checking on insurance costs - I think you'll find that anything over Group 3 become eye-wateringly expensive.
Also consider keeping your current fleet, and adding a group 1/2 cheap car - eg Corsa 1.2.
My 10 yr old Mazda Xedos needed oil service + MoT and the brakes pulled apart as they are ageing - pistons /calipers have stuck in past and caused issues.
Picked it up at my local independent and the bill £160 inc VAT and a fresh MoT - took 2.5 hrs due to the brakes.
Contrast that with my X-trail - 1 yr old - oil service £135 inc Vat (took 1 hour) @ Nissan dealer.
The Mazda service etc represented value - the Nissan a stamp to maintain warranty cover! Read more
Too much money and not enough cars in the world !
It has surfaced - again!
NOW EUROCRATS TELL DRIVERS TO KEEP CAR LIGHTS ON ALL DAY
tinyurl.com/4g4fao
Now Europe wants us to keep headlights on ALL day - inflating fuel costs by up to £160 a year
tinyurl.com/3qc45n
What is the point of having head light on on daytime??? Why other EU countries are supporting this? I don't think any EU country except Scandinavian areas doesn't get enough sun shine.
Why do we need to follow every EU directive? How long before they'd force us to drive on right??
{both links made clickable} Read more
Never mind the Audi drivers, the motor cycles will presumably lose (n.b. not loose) some of their stand-out when everything around them is lit up.
if they say its defernatley the abs unit so be it theres no reason why a secondhand/reconditioned unit carn't be used your best bet would be e bay or many of the specalised breakers on the web