February 2021
HI all,, I have my breakdown cover through my car insurance and thankfully have never had to use it until this week when I drove into a deep pothole. The tire must have deflated because the sound of the bang was typically wheel rim to ground. I thought i'd change the wheel to my temp,spare but the alloy would not come off the hub, As usual in Glasgow East its always blowing a gale with torrential rain and I was soaked through and freezing cold so I rang the breakdown number and explained the situation only to be told that because I'd mentioned the word "Pothole" I wasn't covered and was put through to the claims department who after 15 mins wait said that because there could be body damage my only way was for them to call a recovery team but that I would have to pay for it all. by now I wasn't in the best mood so I told them where they could shove their policy !!. My local garage have since told me that the alloy had almost welded itself to the hub. On reflection I think I should have gone for a full claim but when your cold and wet you don't think clearly, So Beware and never mention to an insurer about potholes even though roads seem to compose of holes with tar around them. all the best Bill Clark (Glasgow) Read more
Just spent a part of Saturday morning lubricating all the hinges and putting rubber protector on all the roof seals. My last soft top (CLK) got a bad dose of green algae and I'm determined to not let this one get it. I have a look around every week and any spots of the stuff are removed with a toothbrush and a dab of washing up liquid. A well known carpet and upholstery cleaner with a brush on plastic container works a treat too. Read more
Aye, true enough.
;-)
I was told by my garage that I needed a replacement gearbox so I asked them to supply one and fit it they put one in and found out the was a fault (2nd gear wasn't right so they are looking for another one my question is can they charge me labor costs for putting in the faulty one and taking it back out I don't think they can as the provided the gearbox but I just want to make sure will be grateful for any advice Read more
Well, I suppose they might, but they shouldn't, as (if their report is genuine) they can pass the buck to whoever supplied a faulty 'new' gearbox. You should credit them with testing it before handing the car back, and being honest. Maybe they aren't pushed for work, and are forestalling you coming back to bang on their desk ?
Reports that Renault are heading for a massive loss and production difficulties due to lack of chips.
But with the French government holding a 14 per cent stake reorganisation could be difficult.... Read more
Mainland France is sinking under the weight of unsold new car stock, I forget the numbers but they are scary huge. So you would think you could get a storming deal on a new car? Not a bit of it - no sign of any deals to be done at the dealers.
Except Dacia - 3 months delivery from the date of order.
Hi all,
Sorry for starting my HJ career with a question but after some advice. Bought a second hand VW Golf during lockdown and once it was delivered noticed that there was paint over rubber seals and on black plastic in the wheel arch.... Read more
If you are not happy with the finish complain to the dealer? Presumably you have some warranty, may be in the Manufacturers warranty? you do not say where or when you bought it which would be helpful. You may even be covered by the sale of good act The price you paid is irrelevant if you were not told it had been damaged before you bought it
hi guys. my 2014 astra 1.7 diesel (50k miles) has slight rough idle. between 600-1000 revs. goes up and down. i find it irritating.
is there anything i need to clean or replace? car has always been serviced so wont be oil and air filter. Read more
I'd start by looking at the air intake. Check to see of there's a build up of thick carbon deposits inside the inlet manifold, and that the EGR valve is not stuck partially open. Check to see if it's clean and can move freely from fully open to fully closed. If the inlet manifold is clogged up then the best way to resolve it is to remove it, and after first removing the worst soak it overnight in a bucket of a 50/50 mix of water and traffic film remover. A filthy job, but your engine will run a lot smoother with a clean air intake.
A year or two ago I had a conversation with a senior director within the UK motor industry and a highly qualified senior electrical engineer. We were chatting about the effect that electric vehicles will have on traditional new car dealerships/groups. Was chatting to one of them last night and he's convinced that it's going down this route.......
Both were of the firm belief that EVs would revolutionise new car sales and that we could see the demise of new car dealers as we know it within 10-20 years. The thinking was two-fold.... firstly that the younger generation don't like visiting car dealers and would rather buy/lease online, have fixed monthly payments and no contact with sales-staff. Vehicles could be viewed and test-drives taken at regional centres - kind of like how Daewoo did it back in the 90s. The Daewoo model wasn't too popular then, but they felt that buyers in 2021> would rather this model. Site staff would be there to demonstrate features and facilitate test-drives, but sales would primarily be online. The second factor was that EVs can be manufactured to be very simple and very reliable for the mainstream public, thus negating the need for 'technicians' and dealer servicing. The motor is extremely simple and reliable; regen braking means much extended service intervals on pads/discs; many electrical components can be plug-n-play modules, and components like tyres and shocks could be dealt with by Kwik-Fit or mobile operators. Most maintenance could be done quickly and simply via a mobile door-to-door operator and any more major work required could be performed at a regional centre... but the engineering of the vehicle could be such that any required 'major' maintenance is almost negligible.
Much like the mobile phone industry, manufacturers would bring everything in-house, under their control, and cut ties with re-sellers like Arno1d C1ark. A single uniform means of selling and maintaining. Hourly waged 'Product Advisors' (almost like shop assistants) instead of commissioned sales-staff. Workshop staff who are trained in lower-level maintenance (like Kwik-Fit staff) instead of more qualified mechanics/technicians. Maintenance can be simplified to plug & play components in many instances.
Interested to know what others think? Personally I reckon the traditional new-car motor trade has had its day and change is long overdue. Of course buyers spending more money on a 'premium' or 'enthusiast' purchase is a different ball game, but for mass-market A to B fodder, I think this is the future. Read more
In future I want to browse online, choose something that meets my budget and that I like the look of, and have it delivered to my door. No middle-man dealer, no haggling, no paint protection, upholstery protection, extended warranty, tyre insurance & so on. For servicing and repairs I want a mobile tech to come to my house and sort it on my driveway. You can keep your Teslas etc. I'm happy with the Nokia 3310 of EVs... basic, does a job, goes on forever....
Just did a quote from a broker online - all great then I realise right at the end of the mind numbing process that I have to pay £1500 extra for cash & can't avail of the service package etc. Surely this is illegal? Whats more they want £35 or so to provide a quote after the online visible one. Is there a comparison site out there? I just fancied a last petrol head gasp before e-hell arrives Read more
That's the way to do it, cash earns no interest now so the finance interest (unless they offered zero %) is saved, happy days.
Hi, My daughter would like to downsize from a big seven seater automatic, to a more conventional size / economical car, has anyone any experience of which automatic car priced upto £6000 car could accommodate one isofix swivel baby seat, one other stage two child seat, and one booster seat /base....in the back... she does approx 15000 miles a year, and needs an automatic Thanks Read more
To get enough width across the back seat, she'll still need a decent size car - check out the 5-seat versions of the Hyundai Santa Fe
Surely the 5 seat Santa Fe is simply a large 7 seater car with 2 seats removed....
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