May 2017
Hi there
I was just wondering if anyone had an experience selling your car to the car chain Arnold Clark? What process do you go through? Do you actually get the price they quote? What are your responsibilities afterwards? I sold a car privately years ago and shortly afterwardsr there was an issue with it and they were demanding I pay for repair. Just wanted to know that wouldn't be the case should something crop up later. Read more
An analytical friend disclosed to me ( you know--the way they do!) that the cheapest car ownership is to buy a three/four year old car car, keep it for 8 or so years then sell it for peanuts., He says he stops servicing it after 5 years of his ownerwship, years ,( apart from MOT, annual oil change and anything essential). He then buys another three year year old car etc etc . He averages 10K a year and doesn't mind buying something hi spec with a high mileage, usually an SUV or equivilant... Read more
Neglecting to change brake fluid every 3-4yrs allows moisture to build up and can damage the ABS pump, it's often overlooked but yes the most important factor of any service is the oil change. Fuel filters require changing and often there are technical bulletins from manufacturers to tell main dealer workshops to watch out for particular faults and issues.
One that springs to mind is the Renault Clio Mk II bonnet catch which is known to fail if it's not lubricated periodically allowing the bonnet to fly up at speed. There's been loads of cases of this and main dealers check and lybricate the mechanism at every service while it's not part of a normal service in general. There are loads of other examples of known weaknesses, even our Mitsubishi and Proton workshops had regular notifications to watch for issues.
When a car is in for an Mot the tester is focusing on the safety aspect of the vehicle and takes no interest in the engine and transmission outside of emissions meeting required standards but while it's in for a service the technician should be looking at it with a view to spot any developing mechanical faults. Too many put misguided confidence in a vehicle because it has a valid Mot. The engine or transmission could be on its last legs and it could pass an Mot with flying colours.
For the last few days I've noticed I'm getting an occassional lack of power when accelerating from low speeds. The car feels like it's gone into limp mode. This lasts only for about 2-3 seconds then the cars is off like a shot. No warning lights appear on the dash. Other than this the car appears to function as normal i.e. normal power, no weird noises, no smoke etc.
I'm pretty sure it's turbo related and I've scoured numerous websites but have not found any common symptoms that exactly match mine.... Read more
I found this post while looking for possible causes to an intermittent loss of power.
I'd like to try the additive solution before investing in a depressing set of expensive investigations. What's the best additive to buy for this as there are a lot of them on the market....
For years I used Copper Anti Seize on brakes then after all the bad press I purchased Aluminium Anti Seize but before I got around to using any of it on my brakes I have now purchased Ceramic Grease..
is there any reason not to use Aluminium Anti Seize? Read more
And if changing plugs, just before the old plug is 'unthreaded' and removed, blow hard down a length of narrow tubing to blow out any dislodged debris which might fall into the combustion chamber. Bet garages don't do this during a 'service'.
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Hi Guys n Girls
Newbie to the world of mini's here so go easy on me!
I am hoping that one of you nice folk will be good enough to lend 5 minutes of your time/knowledge.
I've just bought my first ''Dooper'' which I absolutely love. Unfortunately I've had the DPF fault light come on, yikes!
I've done a bit of reading on this and understand that this pug engine in the 07 Mini should activate an auto-regen. Despite that I know this engine on fords/Peugeot's requires a manual regen, so gave her a good spanking yesterday which initially seemed to clear the light (when re-started) but then today it came back on.
It doesn't help that I think there may be a slight electrical issue with the car, I've had dash lights for ''pass air bag off'' intermittently lit on start up and also external light failure warning light.
I've seen there are treatments for the DPF, however I do not want to spend money on this if its actually something faulty elsewhere causing the light to come on. If I get a diagnostics test done will it just reflect what the display is showing or will it know 100% if the DPF is knackered?
I've also been told by my local mechanic that once the DPF fault is up that the ECU will NOT perform a regen until the code is cleared, is this true?
The car seems to perform ok, although av mpg is only 45 for combined usage so a little low.
Bought this only 1 week ago from a garage 150miles away (Eastfield Motors in Peterborough funnily enlugh), with a third party warranty that does not cover the DPF, but they have said if I return to them they will ''sort it out'', presumably free of charge. My concern with this is they just clear the code and send me on my way.
I don't mind losing a further few hundred quid fixing it without the hassle of going up to them, however if I encounter a spiderweb of faults a)it will cost me more than I am willing to spend and b)the supplier will then most likely not be liable to help if I go to a local mechanic
What do you think I should do? Should I take it back to them? Get my money back? Get it diagnosed locally and if confirmed get it flushed/gutted out/remapped?
I spent ages looking for a car and this stretched my finances to the max, whilst I understand these mini's need regular investment and tlc I am concerned I have walked in to a bit of a money pit - I do NOT want that!
Thanks for all your help, its much appreciated!
Rory
... Read more
Dealers sell warranties to negate the risk to themselves of future comeback. They can direct you to the warranty firm to fight with them. Although on older higher mileage motors they're rarely worth the paper they're printed on they are usable products on newer cars of under say 5yrs old but largely they cover the dealer not you since consumer rights law is now so much tougher. Effectively any major fault that happens within 6mths would be covered under current rules but this is complicated by the fact that age, mileage and price are factors that would be taken into account by a court. Buying a 6mth warranty in almost any situation is an utter waste of money but it does make life easier on younger cars with decent warranties as you don't have to threaten and more often than not take legal action against the dealer which will be a stressful fight. This is why so many home traders are hiding behind the guise of a private punter to avoid these rules. But realistic expectations must be made when buying an older motor. It's always a risk and to limit that risk you should buy the least complex car possible.
My ix35 has performed well over it's 3 years of motoring. 66k plus miles and not too many issues - until now!
My biggest concern is the battery and why it has suddenly become unreliable, yet tests 'ok' at the dealship.... Read more
I'd stick a new battery in and see if the problem disappears. It's likely the weak link, I'm surprised the dealer didn't suggest it right away. It's done the guts of 70k worth of starting. Go to your nearest motor factors and fit it yourself. 15min job and it'll be half the price or less than the dealer.
Applied the map update [Europe 2017] for my 2012 Evoque using the USB stick purchased via the Land Rover web site but actually from Here Maps. The update completed without error.
Following the update completing and switching the car off, when the Satnav restarted it was no longer possible to enter destinations as the buttons for entering destinations are greyed out. I checked that the country selected was GBR and the mode was On-road and not Off-road. The map is displayed but no road names.... Read more
Hi TAZGinny,
I have had exactly the same issue. Landrover provided me with a new usb as my sat nav, whilst working, was playing up and sending me on a big detour to get to my house. They suggested the map update but never got round to actually doing it (as they were desperate to get their hire car back), so they posted me the usb. I carried out the update to their instructions and now it doesn't work at all. They have since had it back in and are telling me I need to pay almost £3,000 to swap the unit out as it no longer works. My car was under warranty when I raised the issue with them but they are refusing to budge. Can you tell me more about how you tackled the same issue using the Consumer Price Act 2015. Many thanks
My partners 207 let us down after been left at the airport for five days.
The car started fine but then she noticed that the steering was unassisted and then several warnings
Appeared including power steering , abs etc and the charging light stayed on.
We struggled to the services where the steering was powered intermittently.
The car was recovered after the team diagnosed ? A faulty alternator.
My local garage has checked the car and says there is no problem with the alternator and is baffled.
Has anyone seen this fault before? Must be quite common on the French car which I'm told are notorious for electrical problems. Read more
And people complain I'm biased when I say French electrics are rubbish.
Hi,
My 2007 Landrover Freelander will not lock my car with the key fob. The car starts and stops with no problem using the key fob. I am lead to believe that the battery in the key fob charges everytime it is inserted into the ignition when starting the car so i am thinking the key fob is charged.... Read more
A few days ago I tried to lock the doors and when I pushed the button the windows went down I don't know what caused that to happen.
Thanks everyone for the advice.
Lookjing at an orginal road test the Fiesta with this engine it was stated to be both road tax and congestion charge exempt. My unsderstanding is that the only cars that are congestion charge exemptnow are hybrids and electric cars with no all hybrids meetig the limit. Is this correct? Read more
I quite agree with your sentiments, EE. I fear that the traffic congestion on all our roads may get a lot worse as the number of pure electric cars and other totally battery dependent vehicles may well increase significantly in the next few years!
It occurs to me that congestion will get far worse for us all when droves of EV drivers smugly rock up to our major city centres (paying zero congestion charge and zero VED) only to find that the traffic is almost at a standstill because of all the other EVs just up ahead that have come to an embarrasing halt with flat batteries and await the AA/RAC/Greenflag to come and tow them away!...
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Quite simple, Barry - get a quote from Chipsaway or someone similar for repair of the bumper. If it's less than £300, get it repaired. If more, then either accept Arnold Clark's value or see if you can get more elsewhere. Or sell privately.