November 2022
I was wondering if anyone can help me with how insurance write offs are calculated?
Another driver pulled out of a junction in front of me the other day and their insurance has admitted full responsibility within a few hours.
My car is now being evaluated but I wondered how this is done. I know there is the repair to value ratio but are the costs of the legal expenses, hire car and time taken into account when the insurance decide if the car is a right off or not? Or is it based purely on the repairs to the vehicle?
Thanks! Read more
You are fortunate that 3rd-party's insurer has admitted blame. AIUI that insurer will study the used market and assess the cost of buying an identical vehicle, comparing that with their estimated repair, probably at one of their preferred repairers. If the car costs more to repair than replace, it will be written off and the insurer pays out and collects the damaged vehicle for salvage.
If you consider that a repair would be feasible, you have the option of keeping the car, and the insurer pays out its replacement value less their estimated salvage value (which they will have lost). I did that satisfactorily 6 years ago with my own car - still running.
Here a question I would like to pose to the class.... Read more
Fair to say that run of the mill cars of this era didn't suffer neglect well. If you didn't touch in stone chips, they rusted quickly.
Depends on the car. I think the thin steel of some makes was poor quality with microscopic imperfections from new which bubbled up through the very thin layer(s) of paintwork, especially on basic models. If not attended to immediately, the cancer would spread in tiny tendrils, making it impossible to remove surgically with a small sharp screwdriver. I noticed this on my TR7, but after the first few years and a rejuvenating respray when about 12yrs old, no more rust has appeared....
Looking to replace all four tyres on the 68 plate 1.0 litre Civic this month. Is it worth buying summer/winter tyres or should I stick to the summer ones? Average annual mileage, average conditions, average everything really. Read more
I've just had my MOT, two tyres are original and showing signs of cracking, the other two are far from fresh so its new boots all round this week. Car has summers at the moment, but in snow when they were almost new they weren't the best so it's back to all season tyres.
Looking at either Yokohama G61 or the Quatrac and as Vreds are £10 a corner cheaper I'll probably opt for those.
I suspect that supermarkets are more concerned about losing customers than inconveniencing the disabled, hence their reluctance to enforce the rules. Local Authorities have no such excuse.
Rather than engage in expensive and time consuming prosecutions, perhaps they should consider clamping the offenders vehicles and charging a hefty fee for their release.
I was surprised by the request for pictures on the front of Blue Badges. These always used to have a photo of the holder and I was not aware that anything had changed. Read more
Indeed, and I'd bet that many supermarket staff would prefer not to have to personally confront likely beligerant customers who could easily start a phyical altercation.
Besides people parking in disabled (or parent and child) bays who obviously shouldn't and for the former do not have a badge, it is also where people borrow blue badges off of genuinely disabled relatives - even when they are doing their shopping for them, that I object to....
I have a 2017 Tucson 1.7 DCT diesel and I use it to occasionally pull a caravan.
On a couple of occasions recently the revs have climbed rapidly, then sunk again during a gear change at low speed on sharp steep slopes. I am worried the DCT clutch is nearing its end of life.
I’ve done a bit of googling and it sounds like I’m in for a major bill. And it’s a main dealer job.
Does anyone know how much a new clutch will cost? Read more
Oil rag – thanks for finding that info – it’s what I was expecting – gulp!
Adampr – the car was registered in January 2017, so it’s almost 6 years old....
To be expected with the harder times, expect many getting rid of cars if they can live without. Read more
I think many people are just keeping what they've got, especially as new and secondhand prices are so high. This combined with the high cost of EV's and ever rising household bills means that many people cant afford another car whether new or secondhand.
Had a problem recently with my A5 having to be repaired by a local garage.
Which would be the better to use to find the reason for any problem and repair in future.... Read more
Marque specific code reader anytime.
Use and ELM and you'll most likely get "manufacturer specific code" or the wrong or missing info altogether.
Hello,
I've got an oil leak coming from underside of my VW Golf ... Read more
What engine is it?
The OP seems to have lost interest ?...
Whilst searching for a replacement for my Audi A4 PD Tdi 130 I noticed that the Octavia fitted the PD engine without a DPF right until 2008.
But power output of the Octavia is limited to 105 and the engine seems harsher and noisier than my Audi.... Read more
Given the choice again John would you still choose the Superb mk1 over the Passat or the A 4 from the same era and sharing the 1.9 PD engine ?
I liked the mkI Superb as it had great rear legroom(my son was tall - grew to 6ft 5") - way more than the B5 Passat or A4. If I could wind the clock back I'd love another 18month old mkI 1.9 pd Superb for £8k please. Saying that my neighbour has a 2002 A4 Avant running well at nearly 400k miles - looking rusty though....
Browse
Exactly this. Diesels, at that time, were producing, vehicle for vehicle, lower levels of CO2. Which is bad for the planet.
So migrate to diesel and lower carbon emissions.
Petrol, and petrol/electric hybrid technology developed to a point of approximate equivalence to diesel without all the nasty stuff that comes out of a compression ignition exhaust that causes respiratory complications to those exposed to it.
So petrol, for the moment becomes the better option. Until we go zero emissions in use.