January 2022
Police have withdrawn some of their high-powered BMWs as others are given speed restrictions amid safety fears following the death of an officer.
Northumbria, Hertfordshire and Cumbria are among the forces that have replaced the cars, used largely by traffic and armed response officers, amid concerns over a technical fault in certain engine types. Read more
Just after advice on the cambelt change please. £700 at main dealer. Is it worth the risk of letting a mainstream garage do it to save some money. And what should they actually change. Belt, pulleys, water pump? Thanks. Read more
and a 5yr guarantee
As I said above the work is still covered by a 5 year warranty parts and labour. But the T & C's clearly state the car has to be maintained to the manufacturers schedule during that period and proof must be provided in the event of a claim....
Hi,
Last week, a council truck reversed into the household car causing front bumper and left headlight damaged. The car is an Auris, 2007, 95k and in vgc condition cosmetically and mechanically. In this current market (Covid times and winter), having looked online, to replace the car like-for-like (Model, Engine, Year, Mileage, etc..) we are looking at £3k.
I was witness to the incident and council truck driver has accepted full liability (it's their fault). We rang our insurer and inform them of the incident. We then rang the council and informed them and in return we got an incident reference number from their side, which we gave to our insurer too. At present, this claim is currently working its way through the standard process. It will result in a non-fault claim.
This morning, our car was collected by Copart (the company our insurer uses to assess damage). We asked the driver of the process and, short story, he informed it may probably be a write-off due to its age, even though the damage is only a bumper and headlight.
Now a little panicked thinking it's a write-off, I did a little research online and the car value, via Parkers, is only £1k-ish - that's £2k short of the current market value to replace it.
I may be jumping the gun here but to prep for the car being written-off and only being offered £1k in return, I would like your advice/suggestions on how to:
A) enforce the car (front bumper and headlight) is repaired at the cost of the council.
or
B) to make sure we are offered the amount it would cost to replace it like-for-like.
This has us worried as we cannot afford to be out of pocket whatsoever. The car was parked on the road (nicely and legally) and the council truck reversed too quickly and crashed into it. Why should we be left out of pocket due to the council's fault.
We have motor legal aid on our insurance policy but we have been told that wouldn't help us should the valuation offer is greatly less that the cost to replace it.
Your advice will be much appreciated. Thanks in advance. Read more
I made it categorically clear I did NOT want it written off AT ALL as I couldn't afford another vehicle. Hats off to my repairers, they saved my car from the crusher and that scrapyard in the sky....
As is often said here, you are not obliged to have your car written off. If it's repairable to roadworthy condition, you always have that choice. But you may have to fork out.
Hi all, I have no idea why this suddenly started, but I have an issue with my rear offside door and my boot:
Rear door - Just won't unlock / open from either inside or outside. The keyfob doesn't unlock it either.... Read more
I too have a similar, but intermittent, problem with the offside rear door on my 2018 i30 estate. On my final dealer service before the 5 year warranty ended I explained the problem - surprise, surprise - "no fault found". Of course, I don't go anywhere near a main dealer now the warranty has expired
A year or so on - it still happens from time to time. A couple of lock/unlock attempts seems to fix it....
This website allows you to compare dimensions of any 2 cars side by side.
I saw a photo recently on another car forum, where there was a Kia Picanto parked in between two EV6s.
An American poster to the forum had asked "what's that car in the middle? It looks like a child's toy!"...
My daughter in laws 22 year old Yaris has developed a fault with the auto gearbox.
On one occasion the car failed to select reverse, then forward and after three attempts she switched the engine off a few times and eventually she was able to get drive.... Read more
Thanks for all your helpful advice.
The fault has not appeared again and when I checked the oil today it was clear red colour and on the full mark....
Hi all
I am about to invest in a new estate car and I've narrowed it down to ... Read more
Sorry, should read: robust torque converter or CVT boxes as used by Mazda, Honda and Toyota.
Hi,
The front assist on my Skoda is not working, had a prang a month ago & it needs to be reset or repaired.... Read more
dirty sensor or dirty windscreen camera.
The front assist on our Fabia does not rely on any windscreen cameras, its only the sensor on the grille. We got a warning once and it was leaf that had stuck to the sensor....
Hi all,
Last year I purchased a 2017 Polo 1.2 TSI, with 27,000 miles on the clock, in great condition. I didn’t buy from VW, but it did come with 4 VW services under its belt.... Read more
£433 is a lot. Brake fluid changes are cheap. Look carefully at what you get for your money. Oil and filter change then check this, check that. I just get my indie to change the oil and filter and look at all the safety aspects before the mot and put them right, usually a tyre or new pads, main dealer servicing is a rip off.
Hello all,
My wife needs a car and she cant make up her mind and hoping some people can give some advice?... Read more
Regarding the Rio, I'd have a good test drive before committing.
When the OH wanted to replace her 2012 Ceed she found that the new Rio was about the same physical size. But she said the build quality was shocking in comparison to her old car - cheaper interior and plastics and the car was woefully underpowered.
Browse
.jpg)
