May 2024
A rough character went on the rampage near my daughter's school and collided with three parked cars, one of which is our petrol Toyota Avensis estate. The rear quarter was badly dented along the light cluster.
I took it to my local body shop, which I trust, and they said it would need a replacement panel, which would cost almost £1200.... Read more
My wife’s on a hen do tonight so thought I’d catch up on some old Wheeler Dealers. Just watched five old episodes and find it quite sad that none of them are still on the road despite all that love and effort. Thoughts?
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I enjoy the program - it takes me back several decades when I fixed my own cars.
They replace obviously defective mechanical bits, and I assume if they respray the car is prepared properly....
Hello guys
Iam looking to buy a used compact suv for around £8k and cannot decide between few makes and models so please advice if you are an expert or have one of the below cars
Kia Sportage (2013-2014 to 2017)
Audi Q3 or Q4
Hyundai Tuscan or other similar car.
We need a reliable car for my Mrs . Also one with good spec. I lpersonally like Kia Sportage but I’ve seen Sportage from 2014/2015 doesn’t have leather seats but they look better than older ones who though have everything. My Mrs likes Audi Q3 s but I’ve had couple of A4s before and had loads problems ??.
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Either the Kia or Hyundai would be a reasonable bet reliability wise, though the base model 1.6 petrol is both slow and thirsty.
OBJECTION....
Hi, im looking for some advice.
My VW Polo 23 plate sprung a leak in the radiator a few days ago, quite substantially.
I phoned VW to see how soon I could take it in to be repaired and was told the earliest appointment they had was on the 17th June however if I used the VW assistant programme, I could get it in sooner which I did and it was taken in that day.
Fast forward 4 days and they tell me it was due to a manufacturing error because a bung wasn’t tightened enough on the radiator before it was released, my issue is - I’d not long filled my own car up with fuel however having had a curtesy car for 4 days, is it right that I should have to cover the cost of refuelling it if my own car had an issue through no fault of my own?
I could understand if I was the one to cause the issue however it’s only 7 months old (thankfully under warranty) and while I’m extremely grateful that I could be provided with a replacement, it’s also left me out of pocket for the fact I’ve had to now refuel a second car.
Is this something I should ask about or do I just leave it and refuel the curtesy car?
Thank you Read more
If the courtesy car was full when you got it, it's fair to return it full since your own car still has its fuel.
My colleague has recently paid £2500 to have the panoramic roof replaced on his 17 plate Audi Allroad. He waited 3 months for the parts to arrange and the dealer took 4 days to complete the repair although some minor parts are still outstanding.
But according to the Telegraph this fault affects all VAG cars . Apparently the sunroof is fitted in a cassette which is glued to the roof. The problem appears when the glue fails.... Read more
Totally agree. I had a persistent minor leak in my SLK. A few garages looked at it and couldn't sort it. But some Sikalastomer - 710 Butyl Sealant as used in caravans and motorhome windows fixed it.
Butyl sealant is good stuff because it remains pliable. I have used it for sealing rear lights against water ingress, and shed windows.
Morning All,
After some advice from you helpful people as I'm on a dreadful run of buying cars that let me down within a couple of years despite my best efforts into researching them!... Read more
‘ If you do buy a charger make sure it is compatible with whatever tariff you might be looking at. With Octopus I think it is mainly the Ohme ones.’
It’s only Intelligent Octopus Go (a tariff that watches wholesale electricity prices every 30 minutes) that requires a compatible charger. The regular Octopus Go tariff will work with any charger, as will every other supplier’s tariff.
I know folks that use a 3 pin plug to run their EV, but they’re low mileage users - at c2.2kW output, it’ll take 24 hours to fully charge a 40kW/h battery.
Be aware that LEAF does use a charging socket that isn’t now the most common (putting it mildly) on public chargers, so any search for amps will have to be filtered to look for Chademo connections. You will find them in the wild at existing sites, but I don’t see many being installed now.
My friend has had two wheels damaged by potholes and one tyre.
The tyres are 35 profile and the tyre store reported that he had seen seven similar cases recently.... Read more
Didn't say steel wheels were "exempt from cracking", but most things are relative, and I would say they are relatively exempt from cracking.
I'd think it a fair bet that an alloy wheel would have been destroyed in the incident I describe above, and if it were repairable, it would have required a bit more than a BFH and the willingness to use it....
I'm looking to sell my 12 year old Fiesta. It passed its latest MOT with advisory work detailed:
Axle swivel pins and bushes swivel pin and/or bush slightly worn both Nearside and Offside Rear; Tyre slightly damaged/cracking or perishing both Nearside and Offside Rear Inner; Central Rear (Exhaust heat shield loose).... Read more
If this car change was only about money -is not the cheapest way forward here to get the advisories done and keep the car rather than risking a poor price for the Fiesta and the financial uncertainty of whatever your next vehicle has hiding under its bonnet etc
Agree. These days decent used cars can be easily sellable, while finding a better replacement may be tricky. If this Fiesta looks worth preserving, best to do that, as you can be more certain of the way forward - unless it is going to cost a lot to do.
Ive been looking at Petrol, Full Electric and Hybrid as a potential car purchase but theres a lot of fog out there.
Petrol has merits like purchase price.... Read more
I don't see it as naive to have a different opinion, we will never know the true intent behind these decisions.
Car manufacturers sole aim is to make as much profit as possible, period. They may say that they have ditched the spare wheel and/or reduced the size of the fuel tank to save a little weight and make a (tiny) improvement to economy/emissions, but that is only because it wouldn't make for good PR to say they have done it to increase their profit margins. ...
Hi
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A Lexus is a good safe option. They don’t go wrong, they’re very well made and they’re very comfortable things to sit in. I couldn’t bring myself to spend so much on a car short of a lottery win but a Lexus would be on my shortlist if someone offered to buy me a car to last a long time. I’ve sold and owned many of its parent firms products over the years without any breakdowns or major failures. They’re good cars.
I wouldn’t touch a diesel Mazda after their recent poor record with derv powered engines. Best avoided, even if they’ve finally got it right the trade will factor in the risk based on previous products and thus depreciation will be huge.
The Genesis is a good car I imagine but as with Infinity they’re not making any real inroads into the UK market and depreciation is likely to be high and there’s always the risk they’ll pull out of what is a tiny market for them.
My vote is Lexus.
Good news: a letter from the CPS landed on the mat today; the rough character from the original post received a £300 fine and was convicted of dangerous driving (DD40) and is disqualified for 12 months, needing a retest.
We also got some damages to cover for the bumper....