September 2021
I have a strange problem with a Crossland which I bought 6 months ago it is a one year old car. On two occasions, I believed I had pushed the gear into first but it shot back. I was totally confused and didn't know how this has happened as I was sure I didn't lift the ring on the gear stick to engage reverse which is left to first.
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Down at the Kia dealer, taking the Sportage in for a safety recall, and was offered £200 less than I paid for it as a PX aginst a new stonic,2 .
Slightly smaller than the Sportage, which has done sterling service.... Read more
Hi, can’t get the castrol oil at any of the kent euro car parts but did find shell helix ultra 0w20 for £11.27 which is fully synthetic, my stonic is on 17 “ alloys and the spare wheel well is where the hybrid batteries live so it just comes with the Kia sealant and compressor, l have also bought a holts tyre sealant for a fiver from Tesco which was on offer! My onboard mpg reckoned after my first long run it was averaging 58 mpg! I did leave it in eco with out thought and varied my speed around 58to 65 on the motorway avg as obviously running in,by the way 2 weeks in and my sat nav has told me it has an update available! Which the dealership has agreed to do foc.
I bought an ex-demonstrator Xceed plug in hydbrid about 4 weeks ago and I thought I'd let you know my thoughts on it.
I managed to get a First Edition model which has every conceivable option on it.To name a few it has a power tailgate,electric memory seats,sunroof,heated seats in the front and rear,heated steering wheel,cooled seats,digital dash board and every safety item such as blind spot monitoring,lane keep assist,collision avoidance etc.... Read more
As an update on my original post,I have been away for a few days and got to test the car out on motorways and A roads. The lane keep assist and adaptive cruise control worked perfectly on the motorway,keeping the correct distance from the car in front and virtually driving itself with lane keep assist.I set off on my journey with a full charge(32 miles) and left the car in automatic mode to juggle the battery and engine as it saw fit.During my various journey's and the motorway back again the car returned 63.4mpg overall. The app that comes with the car proved to be a godsend.I could search for my destination in the hotel room and once found,send it to the car.When I then got in the car the destination was already on the screen and asking if I wanted to start navigation.Very handy and saved alot of time messing around with the touch screen.The car has a raised suspension height and so even on 18" wheels,it coped very well and was very supple. I did find that SPORT mode was hugely addictive on the twisty roads and sharpened up the response very well(at the detriment of the fuel consumption).
Overall I am still very impressed by my Kia Xceed and I think ORB is pleased with his new Kia.The quality and value for money has come in leaps and bounds and they are highly recommended.
Looking at a 2013 Petrol 1.6 Zetec Ford Focus.
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“ Unfortunately my budget cannot stretch any further. I have seen about 10 cars and this is the best of a bunch.”
I’d hold off and buy something older with less miles. Forget image and reg plate, buy something less likely to go badly wrong. The 1600 petrol Focus is a good engine but at 150,000 miles it’ll be worn out.
While our old Corsa is being repaired, we've just had a week with a newish Fiesta Ecoboost mild hybrid: the full-house 155bhp ST Line version.
Pros: it really does go, all that power & torque in a 1200kg car means it's amusingly rapid. Hybrid system is very mild, you notice the regenerative braking much more than any assistance from the starter / generator (apart from the below). Tidy handling, the steering is really direct with very little understeer. It also corners nice and flat. All the toys you could wish for: climate, big touchscreen for media, etc. Roomy for its class.... Read more
The vast majority of potential 'buyers' will never own the car and as such, the RRP is utterly irrelevant. The only thing that matters is the monthly payment.
And there's the rub. For such a pricey hybrid the monthly PCP payment will be around £250, which translates to an annual depreciation, or cost of keepership, of around £3000 which, unlike the purchase and ownership of a new car, will never diminish as the years roll by. ...
Hi folks, looking for a bit of advice with regards to charging my Mazda 6 battery. With working from home now almost entirely full time, my annual mileage has plummeted to such that I am only half way through my third tank of fuel this year. Naturally this has not been entirely optimal with keeping the battery in tip top shape.
To date I have had to remove the battery from the car once the start stop system stops working (this apparently happens once the battery drops below 65% charge) and charging it with my CTEK CT5 battery charger. Replacement Q85 batteries are expensive and I don’t much fancy having to replace one because it got damaged by being discharged too much.... Read more
From what I hear - rather like with traditional hybrid cars, these systems hate doing short journeys from cold. They need time for the main battery to recharge and only then will they charge the secondary system.
That's why I personally think it's daft to have such systems (plug-in hybrids and EVs are obviously less affected) in small city/shopping cars - like with this situation, they just end up as dead weight and cost a small fortune to replace if required....
Hello,
I have been informed my catalytic converter is clogged up.... Read more
People with clogged 2-stroke exhausts used to sometimes use oxy-acetylene. You got it cooking on the mix then switched to just oxygen.
You got a lot of smoke, and either a clear exhaust or a little pool of slag where it used to be.
If only more would follow their example. Perhaps Toyota could launch Daihatsu as their budget brand.
www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/dacia-keep-car...s Read more
I had the pleasure of sitting in a new Sandero today. A lass at work turned up with a new 1.0 TCe Comfort and I have to say that I was impressed. The price tag at around £13k is no longer the bargain it was but it’s a much nicer wee car to sit in than the first gen. I’d still favour a used Mazda 2 for that money though, it’ll still be running sweetly when the Dacia is falling to pieces but at £10k (ish) the lower spec 1.0 TCe Essential does make a great deal of sense new. It's comfortable and a decent size, the non-turbo 1.0 below that I’d expect to struggle too much with just 67bhp.
Hi,
My daughter, who is not a confident driver, is looking for a replacement car as her current one is about to go to the scrapyard in the sky.... Read more
Hyundai i10 1.2 is good. Better performance and better kit and won't be much more insurance wise than the 1.0 ltr. Daughter has has has a Seat Mii last few years and nice to drive and an ideal first car. The Skoda citigo blue colour edition is still an eye catcher. Driven all three and more enjoyable than a fiesta 1.25. Small alloys means cheap premium brand tyres. Also parts are cheap.
Hey all! I’m calling all first generation Auris owners out there, please!!! (Past and present)
My poor old Avensis is dying and it’s time to replace him. I’m looking into either a 2006 Corolla or a 2007+ Auris. My budget is less than £2,000 thanks to Covid decimating my finances.
According to reviews, both motoring writers and users, the Auris is a potentially problematic car ... oil guzzling, parts failing catastrophes. How true is this? I’ve owned 2 Corollas in the past and they were amazing. My elderly Mum’s 2001 estate Corolla built in Japan is like new. Never a problem in 20 years of runabout motoring. So I know of the Corolla’s awesome reputation for reliability. But what of the Auris/2007 Corolla? Is it really a lemon?
I’m asking because I don’t want to spend the money and then be lumbered with expensive repair bills within months of buying it. I’ve expanded my search to Auris because there’s more of them for sale so a wider choice. Maybe Corolla owners don’t want to part with their beloved cars but Auris owners can’t wait to get rid of them? Who to believe? Did Toyota finally build a lemon? Are they a chore to drive, with zero motoring enjoyment as user reviews say they are?
So stressful!!!!!!!! (Why did my Avensis have to get sick????) Read more
If all things were equal and I found a Corolla and Auris in identical condition with similar history and mileage I’d have the Corolla all day long. It was a better built car with fewer electronics to cause grief. The paint quality was superior to the Auris which seems to suffer badly in our damp climate from lacquer peel but like the Corolla they resist rot very well. I dislike the Auris to look at also, it looks like a modern take on the Austin Allegro. But I still wouldn’t walk past a tidy Auris to buy a less cared for Corolla.
Thabk you Lee, I will take it back to them.