February 2024
Hi
Always been a diesel fan but thinking next car might make the plunge and opt for an E tron. Had a Quick Look can’t believe how cheap these are £21k for a 2020 plus car with reasonable miles. However does anyone have experience/advice on these? What to look out for? I know the 3 yr warranty will be up (same on all cars) although I have read you get an 8yr or 100k battery warranty? Is this subject to Audi dealer history etc? Any advice would be welcome? Read more
A strange situation has arisen and for the first time we can recall my wife has been asked for proof of address. Historically we have used passport and driving licence but this time, for some reason, they want a utilities bill or similar. To cut a long story short, my wife doesn't have a suitable bill in her name alone. Bank statements are paperless and a printed one is not accepted as it must be original. I had a brainwave and I thought of the V5, which is a paper document and it has the full name and address. However, it seems this is not deemed suitable as the name a car is registered in is not cross checked. I that were the case then surely I could register my cars in the name of Prince William? Is this the case? Read more
Many of these institutions making these requests are not interpretting data protection rules correctly or the requirements under money laudering.
I'm regestered under MLR & Data protection....
The 2013 Hyundai i10 seems normal with no warning lights on the dashboard, despite having only a small amount of engine oil in the dipstick, empty brake fluid tanks, and empty coolant tanks. Why is that? What should I do next? Read more
So, after the last 'Service', do we know for a fact that all of the fluids you mention above were actually checked and topped up? As I suggested above, top them up again and check the levels weekly and have a good look under the bonnet for witness marks of a leak - this might be if it looks 'wet' or whitish residue left from when the fluid has evaporated.
I don't know how mechanically minded you are. Does the engine bay look clean or is it filthy so checking for leaks will be difficult. Could you wipe around some of the easy to access areas? Does the car have an undertray beneath the engine that would stop any drips onto the road/drive?
Hi.
I'm considering a Cat N car, which the seller - a dealer - claims they don't understand how warranted this category, as when they received it, it only required a polish to remove a light surface scratch on one wing. No dents, no touch-up, nothing.... Read more
A couple of years back a customer bought a jaguar. when he went to the main dealer they refused warranty as car had been flooded.
In your case if you desperately REALLY want it pay for an engineers report....
I am looking to buy a Peugeot 2008 1.6ltr Diesel and preferably the 120bhp version (with 6 speed gearbox).
I am wondering - as I can't seem to find anything on the subject - are the 100bhp and 120bhp engines the same engine but just chipped for the power differences? Obviously the extra 6th gear does not give it the extra power... but i am just curious re: engines of the same size but differing power outputs.... Read more
Didn't realise it was a Ford diesel engine.
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I posted earlier and thanks so much for your advice. So I am looking for a car up to £9k, probs a super mini. I've established Corsa 1.4 is not a bad one. Also considering Suzuki swift. Any other ideas for a good reliable little car Please? Read more
The Corsa 1.4 with just 75bhp is actually perfectly adequate on the road 95% of the time. It’s designed with low speed torque on mind and it doesn’t feel sluggish around town or in normal use out on the road. It’s certainly no rocket ship but it’s mechanically simple and generally robust. I
Sounds like it could be similar to that Suzuki Alto I had as a courtesy car. I suppose you just have to be extra careful planning overtakes on single up/down roads and pulling out from a standing start into fast flowing traffic at junctions, which is what i had to do with my 90s 1L Micra.
2017 Kia Sportage just been in for 7th service and MOT. Just prior to service notified service department of a twanging noise/clunk when steering lock applied (both ways). This was looked at in service and confirmed to be worn/failing top mount to drivers side. Recommend changing as a pair and requiring immediate attention.
Car fully serviced by Kia and still within warranty period. However, dealer says not covered under warranty as apparently this is a wear and tear issue, which begs the question, what’s the benefit of Kia’s 7 year warranty over say VW’s 3 year warranty if items like this aren’t covered.
If this was brake pads or discs, bulbs, wipers etc I could understand these are items with a limited life, but would have assumed a suspension component would be covered by the warranty.
So whilst it did pass the MOT, having a car that makes a twanging clunk to the extent that I can feel it through the steering wheel and it can be heard outside the car is not ideal.
Cost to replace not cheap at £763.90 + VAT from dealers.
What are people’s thoughts on whether this should be covered under the warranty? Mileage is just over 50k. On speaking with Kia, they claim the issue is wear and tear and therefore not covered under warranty. I should add that issue appeared suddenly, and has not come of gradually or worsened over time. Read more
As I mentioned in a previous post (now removed as part of the clean-up), no-one is right all the time and clearly the main dealer here needs to get their act together.
There is no need for some of the self-congratulation or indeed the tedious stick-poking that resulted....
Hi all
I bought a car last week that had disabled tax on it.... Read more
Today I received a text message and missed called from an insurance underwrite asking me to call them about an alleged incident I was involved in.
Having checked that they were indeed the underwriter on a now-expired policy and that the number they gave was for that firm, I gave them a ring. ... Read more
Yes, she’s right, don’t worry about it. But sometimes we can’t help but be scared or cautious because scams these days are getting more creative.
One advantage with ride sharing apps like Uber is that the price is known beforehand.
With metered taxi, there is no way to guess what the final price is going to be.... Read more
Last 5 week trip to Spain I left my car at the airport - Silver Zone, 5 minute courtesy bus to terminal. Cost I recall was about £110 - less than the price of taxis there and back.
Also had the benefit that all travel was within my control, not reliant on taxis turning up at the right time - although in fairness a failure to pick up would be somewhat unusual.
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Our son purchased a new Q4 E-Tron last May and it has covered about 4000 miles since then.
When using it in early January a message came up on the display stating that there was a fault and telling him to return it to an Audi dealership at once. When he took it in he was told that there could be a delay of up to 4 weeks before he would get it back as it was assumed that there was a fault with the battery. No offer of a replacement car was initially forthcoming so he had to force the dealership's hand before they would consider providing him with another vehicle while the fault was being rectified. The car provided was from a hire company and turned out to be a basic model 4 year old VW Golf....