April 2022
There is a Shell garage on the A43 just south of Kettering which for ages has priced its fuel around 10p per litre above that of the local supermarkets. Today I bought E10 there at 155.9 per litre, having seen a price of 166.9 at Morrisons and Asda, which were usually the cheapest. Are they in cahoots profiteering? Read more
I've observed how most contributors seem very happy with their cars - even if quick to point out the faults and unreliability of other makes. Over the past 50+ years I've bought British, French, Italian, German, Swedish and Japanese cars - some new or nearly new and others second hand (memorably a VW Beetle that I kept the doors shut with a piece a rope pulling the driver & passenger doors towards each other!
Most have been reliable (exceptions were Peugeot and other VWs) but I can't think of any cars that I regretted buying / owning at the time.... Read more
Mirafiori 1600. Absolute rust bucket, headlights filled with water but to start with good to drive.
Hi,
I have purchased a remanufactured alternator for my fiesta. I just got the alternator and I realised that when I turn the pully, it’s making really high pitch noise. The noise is not loud but I can tell it is definitely there. I asked my dad and he said he can’t hear but my siblings saying that they can hear it.
Is it normal to hear a whiny high pitch noise? It is coming from both directions although anti clock wise is not as loud as clock wise. All parts in the alternator looks intact and good.
I have recorded the noise and here is a link.
youtube.com/shorts/H3Z5wwYSAYo?feature=share
youtube.com/shorts/Xqr_oxvEUOw?feature=share Read more
Difficult to tell off the car . I would fit it to the engine and see what its like under load. Its probably makes a different noise in each direction ,as the cooling fan is rotating the opposite way.
...
My 3 year old 18000 mile C-HR is requiring 2 replacement tyres. The tyres presently on the wheels are Michelin Primacy 3 which I understand are "summer tyres" and not recommendede for temperatuires below 8 degrees Centigrade.
Should I replace them with Michelin Cross Climate tyres with the better temperature range? ... Read more
I'm not sure mixing and matching a set of 2 summer and 2 all season tyres is a good idea. No problem for a FWD car having the new set on the rears, but the axle with the all season tyres will inevitably grip worse in the warmer conditions and better in colder conditions (especially snow and ice), which in particular could make handling in wintry contions rather tricky.
Don't forget that generally it is not recommended that you mix and match asymmetric tyres (Primacys) with directional ones (most all-seasons, including CrossClimates) because they work in different ways and can lead to handling problems in bad weather....
I read terms and conditions of a finance agreement and it says that in an event of a loss or accident I must inform them of that. Just out of curiosity, if you’re insured and the insurance takes care of it why do I need to tell them? I thought with hp there’s less obligation Read more
Theoretical. I haven’t even yet got my vehicle and no incident took place. However with my previous HP agreement I was hit and had to claim, they didn’t care as long as the vehicle was repaired. This agreement is different. I read the full contract and wondered why it varies …
And I wondered why, as after repair if the vehicle isn’t categorised as a loss/has no cat placed on it, I thought the value remains the same upon repair. I cross my fingers to never being in an accident again though
Looking for inspiration for what car to get.
A few years ago we went down do 1 car from 2. Current car is a 15 year old Lexus RX Hybrid which I've had for 7 years. Very comfortable, very quiet, moves when you put your foot down, but leisurely to pootle in. Given its age it has reached the stage where I don't think it's worth keeping up with the maintenance, especially now some pricey chassis related items are expected in the next 12 months. ... Read more
As in an engine which just purrs and isn't struggling every time you go up a slight incline or get up to speed to join a motorway.
I like a larger-than-average engine/bhp, but 99% of the time drive for comfort rather than speed....
While everyone wore masks on public transport and in shops, I was surprised that not everyone had an FFP2 mask on.
Further surprised that not everywhere checked the covid pass.... Read more
Ordered new Mercedes’ in Nov 21 given date Feb 22 , anyway build got cancelled , so i cancelled order last week, got deposit back .Looking yesterday on Mercedes’ new builds website cars which are on there way, saw the same car coming to my local dealer
So I put a £99 deposit down on car online ,car came up sold ,deposit out off account
checked with dealer all ok then had another call saying car marked down for showroom not for sale Dealer trying to phone higher up as this has come from higher management... Read more
Buy a vehicle from a Dealer/maker that doesn't treat its customers with such contemp.
Any MB would be the last on my list (from experience)


Clayton D&R own Morrissons and also MFG hence the conflict with the number of filling stations it now controls hence the watchdog looking at its monopoly