May 2023
I recently bought a 2014 Ford Galaxy 2.2tdci and soon realised the clutch was sticking/jerking up. Took it to my long time mechanic and it needed (I think) a new slave cylinder. This was done and clutch feels good now. But two issues - one I can't always start the car first time I have to press the clutch a couple of times for the button to work, which my mechanic did note when I picked up. But also the car feels slower and I can't feel the turbo the same. I can hear it turning quite loudly but the car is slow and slow up to speed. Though it's a big car I was surprised it had some acceleration when I bought it compared to my previous car, a 2 litre petrol Mondeo Estate with no turbo. However it now feels like that car did to drive, especially getting up to speed on dual carriageways etc.
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I'm sorry if I've missed something recent on this topic here on the forum.
My annual search for car insurance has just started again and the landscape looks rather different this year. Last year I paid £336. This year the quotes I'm gathering are in the region of £440 - 460, for the same car, which is now worth rather less. The compulsory excess now seems universal across my quotes at £350; on last year's policy it was £100.... Read more
Well maybe-but if cheaper comprehensive prices can be achieved by nudging up the excess-then maybe it’s worth risking that route?
Sometimes. It often depends upon what the existing voluntary excess is and whether the policy default excess is zero or [whatever]. I found a few years ago when I was still with esure (had been for about 12 years at the time) that both my compulsary and voluntary excesses were zero, but then they jacked the price up by about 10% (I was in my early - mid 40s then).
I checked what difference it would make to all my quotes, including theirs, by changing my voluntary excess to £100, and that took 10% off across most of them. I've left it as such ever since, and found going to £200 made a far smaller difference, so thought better of it....
My car was rear ended on Saturday (by a work colleague, but that's another story...).
She googled 'Admiral claims' to get the telephone number and reported the accident. I subsequently received a telephone call offering repairs and replacement car etc. All fine, I thought. ... Read more
GF got scammed a 40US fee for a Turkish entry visa (which should be free) via a similar sounding interception.
I did warn her, having encountered and bypassed the dodgy (but not illegal) site when I got mine, but she doesn’t listen to me, since I’m a foreigner, and, despite rumors on here, a man.
As well as the rip off there was concern about the credit card being compromised, but that seems to have been OK.
Slightly surprised to see AI being suggested as a solution. I would have thought it was much more likely to be part of the problem, but I suppose the Internyet could become a Black/White AI battleground.
It’s a jungle out there / here
Got done for inadvertently entering the ulez on a wet and windy night at 11.15pm. Going west down the M3 should have got me home for around midnight but as luck would have it the M3 is shut. Detour gets me home at 12.45 am. Straight away I set an account to pay the charge but still get a penalty notice for £90. You are supposed to set up the account on the same day it turns out. I appeal this to be told I had to set up another acc to let them take money from me...this was news. I haven't been to London by car for many years, furthermore I won't go again. Read more
How supercar owners dodge the Ulez charge despite massive CO2 emissions | Daily Mail Online
ULEZ is nothing but a money grabbing exercise which is grossly unfair to the majority. All this Carbon? emissions is fine but should be phased in at a much slower rate. There are two oil fields in a state in the east middle east that have stopped flaming off the gas from its wells These 2 oil fields are apparently giving out more carbon than the whole of the UK in a year
www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWu4x8gYj3Y
OK, hardly VW Dieselgate territory... Read more
Is Andrew Australian? i always thought he was South African, wherever he hails from he's forgotten more about serious offroading than most will ever know.
Having googled, he is British but has lived in Australia for some time. He seems to be what's known as a haemorrhoid - once they come down they won't go back up again and they're a massive pain in the a***.
Hi everyone
Looking for some advice in my situation
I’ve bought a used car 14 days ago from business seller based on advert on Autotrader. Seller has status Trader not a Private. Advert was clear - “car has no faults, no problem”. Paid deposit to secure the car, arrived to check and pick up few hours later. I was offered to check a car, which I’ve made, but it was not possible to have a look underneath the car as seller do not have such facilities . I’ve checked - 4 wheels in place, engine is working, car model is a same as advertised
Based on advert, seller has offered 3 months warranty but I was advised it’s from 3rd party warranty provider. I was given a leaflet from this warranty provider and as I saw, before give me a warranty, the seller should make a pre check of the car including e.g oil check , exhaust, windows, etc. I’ve been told all is done, then they set up 3 months warranty for me. All my questions about any leaks, any issues with car were answered as “no problems at all, otherwise we wouldn’t be able to offer you this warranty”. Okay, paid the rest, picked up the car.
After 7 days, drop the car to check to local garage and:
1. Oil leak, no idea which one, gear box or engine
2. Sub frame damaged, not even corroded, but damaged due some strike as advised by my garage
3. Middle part of exhaust system, felt off
4. Other stuff like a issue with brake piped due heavy corrosion
5. Crack on front window, I may probably do not notice it as was a heavy rain
6. Leak on rear shocks absorbers
Etc etc
I’ve contacted with seller, no answer
I’ve checked with MOT history and found same issues were advised on last MOT but as seller has not told me about them I was under impression it’s fixed
My question, could I use my consumer act right to reject to accept this car and pass it back to seller for full refund, just worried, as on paperwork I’ve sign it was a statement “I have fully inspected it and found it in satisfactory condition “
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All depends on how old and cheap the car is I guess.
Do the things raised make the car not fit for purpose or not to the standard a reasonable person would expect given age, miles and price?...
Last year travelled to Canada and had a hire car.
Although requested a car with GPS navigation.
The car used Siri for me to use Apple maps on the onboard navigation display.
This I used and setup my travel plan using WiFi at the hotel before departure. If I changed to another destination or return route to hotel etc. I had to turn on my roaming for the map to come up on the display.
Because of this I got stung for roaming charges, if I had GPS like TomTom/Garmin device then no charge.
Is there anyway of using Google maps overseas with no roaming charges on my iPhone to plan routes to destinations. Read more
A few years ago, when I went to the states and Canada (2019) my roaming covered canada only,, so bought a $29.95 cellphone with some data and minutes. did the trick for 2 weeks.
Do any members know if there are any warranty companies who will cover a Cat N Trafic 2016 80K on the clock Read more
It’s not possible to give any sort of worthwhile guarantee on a 7yr old van with 80k up, never mind a write-off. Most aftermarket warranties aren’t worth the paper they are (or aren’t) printed on. Spend as much as you can upfront on the best vehicle you can afford.
Also as a wee negative, I’d be very wary of buying a used van at all. As a general rule businesses don’t get rid of commercial vehicles just because they fancy a change, they get rid of them because they’re done, no longer economically viable. The Renault Traffic is not a particular good van either, they suffer from loads of expensive issues particularly engine and gearbox problems.
The best used vans come from large fleets who offload at set times and maintain them well. Ex BT, NHS and possibly AA and RAC. I bought an ex NHS VW Caddy SDi and it was a genuinely good wee van that served me very well. I nearly gave up with looking at used vans at the time as everything I looked at was utter trash and that was with a strong budget at the time.
Unless you absolutely must have one I’d favour a large MPV or estate car instead.
Was on the A85 earlier, this was near and not sure whether you can even see this but it looks like a pole with a solar panel and then the 30mph speed limit with the camera icon at the bottom. Is this a speed sensor or a camera - www.google.com/maps/@56.328182,-4.3262804,3a,75y,1...2
Also on the A84 and A82 route in general from Sterling to Glencoe via Tyndrum I did not see many cameras along route, apart from the SPECS cameras (I think). No Gatsos, Truvelo combis etc. ... Read more
Yeah I don't think I saw any of those and I suspect that if they did catch you they would have stopped you there and then?
As Andrew-T said, the keeper gets notified by post (within 14 days, I think). In this example it would be the car hire company (I think you said in a previous post you were hiring a car for this trip)....
Hello, I'm looking to buy a used car at around £3500, I was set on waiting for a Mazda 3 or 6 to come up, but I have realised that the boot space may be an issue as I need to be able to travel 2 medium-large dogs and 3 passengers at the same time on occasion. I really like Mazda's reliability, and I'll be disappointed if I have to go with another make, but I'm not sure if I really want to end up with an estate or other larger type of vehicle.... Mostly because of the running costs.
I'm looking at Toyotas but don't know as much about them (or the boot space). I know Honda is good for boot space and reliability but I've driven a 2002 Civic and didn't enjoy it at all so I'm not keen on going with Honda, unless other models are very different.... Read more
Look for a private buy - oldie selling up as he/she has handed back their licence.
Well, there's something up with your clutch! Flywheel possibly. I don't think you've actually lost power in the engine, it just not all getting to the wheels.