August 2025
Our daughter now has the Yaris we bought new 16 years ago. The last MOT had advisories for corrosion on the sills and subframe, imbalance of brakes and several other things. She has no off road parking and maintenance is not a word she is familiar with, hence the vehicle is pretty unloved and looks battered to say the least. The plan was to run it until such time as it became uneconomic. With the next MOT looming, I am wondering if that time is now.
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Thefts of these control units have been rising especially in London.
They are then resold on auction sites etc for a fraction of their replacement cost but still need programming at the main dealer .... Read more
I thought the fig leaf for the programming of components was to prevent the use of stolen bits, and not at all to force repairers to use the dealer.
How then, if programming is required, is there still a market for these stolen bits?...
Is this normal for this car ? While driving and easing off the accelerator the revs drop to zero and then when the accelerator is pressed again the engine restarts. Occurs in any driving mode, at any speed and switching off the stop/start feature has no effect.
I have another VW (tiguan) which stop/starts correctly at traffic lights for example - but the golf is doing this even while driving. A local garage didn't find anything on the diagnostics... Read more
My Mk1 Lada (not a hybrid) did it for a while. I quite liked it, so let it get on with it, but eventually it became a bit reluctant to restart so I had to investigate.
Seemed to be due to G-sensitivity caused by breakdown of the carbon core in the original Soviet ignition leads, causing loss of ignition on deceleration. Once at rest the ignition leads would mostly work again to restart. Acceleration didn;t seem to have much effect....
I like having a wee sift through cars for sale, looking for a “bargain” I don’t need. This morning I found this rather cheap and very practical big Skoda. These are fantastic big family cars, they cost buttons to run, they’re huge inside and they ride very well. With a range of around 200 miles and the ability to fast charge from 20-80% on around 20 mins, they’re very much capable of fulfilling the main family car duties.
I really rate these as a used buy, and prices are getting very appealing. That it only needs a service every two years and has an 8yr battery pack warranty (assuming it has been serviced) only seals the deal.
Obviously I haven’t looked at this particular car in the metal, I’m just using it as an example of how much value can be had with used EV’s now.
www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202508015052141?u...p Read more
Seriously? Have you seen the shadows, the wheels tyres (nice slicks), the lack of any photos of the vehicle?
Cinch is WBAC. Stock AI heavily edited images and they deliver the vehicle with that plate on it....
I’m considering buying a 2015 Cat D - the pre-2017 equivalent of Cat N. I’m satisfied that the car’s in good condition, it has been on the road since 2017 with full service history. This would be my first Category car. Could someone with real world recent experience tell me about insurance? I’ve had a couple of phone quotes (eg Adrian Flux) which are double what I’d expect to pay for a non-Cat. The usual price comparison sites don’t offer the chance to declare Cat status upfront, and even after inputting the registration they come back with standard offers. (I inputted a lower vehicle value reflecting the Cat D status.) I checked through the terms and conditions on Churchill and Admiral policies and there’s nothing about requiring the policy holder to declare Category status, or any suggestion that failure to disclose it would invalidate the policy. Is it safe to go ahead and buy a standard policy online? Or perhaps someone can recommend an insurer? Read more
Certainly used to be way cheaper, but latterly it became pretty much my default in the UK so its possible I could have done better on comp even then.
Latterly of course I've mostly been on the Taiwan govt mandatory insurance, which is peanuts, but i believe only covers 3rd party medical, if that. (Untested, fortunately). Concentrates the mind when anywhere near black Mercedes (traditionally run by gangsters) though if one survived for long enough skipping the country might be an option in such a case....
I'm sure we are all very familiar with the, "warning, vehicle reversing" coming from various (usually) commercial vehicles for some years now. But today was the first time I'd heard one warning of turning (right in this case).
But, and this is a serious question, it got me wondering who these messages are for?. Without really thinking about it, i'd assumed they would be for someone blind, or nearly. But how would someone who is blind know which direction the vehicle was facing?. And if they didn't know that, then how would they know if the vehicle was reversing towards them or away from them?. Same for turning, if you can't see which direction the vehicle is facing, what help is the message?. ... Read more
The lane was turn left or straight on.
I’ve been asked to find a car by one of my old customers. Chap has had a 2008 Vauxhall Astra 1.8 that I sold him around nine years ago and wants something a bit newer. There’s little wrong with the car he has, it’s a few minor things that it would need for a fresh Mot in a few weeks, but despite my advice to stick with what he has and that another 12/13yr old car at £3-£4k will almost certainly land him with repairs bills too, he can’t be talked out of it.
Picked out a few for the shortlist. Two Toyota Yaris 1.33’s, a Vauxhall Viva, and a couple of Vauxhall Astra J’s with the belt driven 1.6 petrol motor.
The first Yaris was about five different colours, and had more runs than an IBS sufferer after a curry. It was a mess.
Next Yaris (a 2014 five door in silver) looked good on first acquaintance, but hadn’t been serviced in 6yrs despite being advertised as having “good service history” the bonnet wouldn’t open and it was absolutely rotten underneath. It had lived all its life on the coast and was rapidly dissolving. An unwise £4495 buy, it will be lucky to pass another ticket and with the trade away relative firm to the dealer I once worked for. They offer these cars up and do nothing more than give them a valet and a lights and levels check, they don’t prep them at all. Their 3 month warranty was pretty much worthless too. Sad to see a once decent firm stoop so low.
The first Astra, a 2015 car in red with 88,000 miles up for £3495 looked ok, but the front tow hook cover had been torn off when it’s obviously been towed in after breaking down… doesn’t half put you off.
The next one was the one he bought. It’s a higher spec 63 plate 1.6 Elite in grey with 80,000 miles up which was very fresh indeed. Full history, working a/c, and a new exhaust from flexi pipe to rear box. It has a minor misfire on test drive, which will almost certainly be a coil pack on one of these. He’ll fix that, service it, put a years ticket on and do a timing belt and water pump, plus gave my old punter £495 for the Astra he’s had for 9yrs and only paid £2300 for. I’d say he got value from that. If it had any Mot left I’d flog it for him, but being a less popular 1.8 it’s not an easy sell to budget conscious buyers.
I do quite like the 1.6 Astra J petrol as a budget family hatch or estate, whether it’s a manual or automatic. They’re a bit dull, but they’re cheap, simple and pretty robust… fingers crossed.
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Surely rusting panels are down to the quality of the metal and the treatments.
My Audi 80 had a galvanised body and was in perfect condition when i parted after the diesel engine failed ....
Currently have NX hybrid, looked at UX, two current version demonstrators, same spec but the hybrid was significantly more expensive than the electric. Checked auto trader with same outcome. Also seems that insurance on electric is much higher.
Has market for electric collapsed? Read more
I’d like an ev but I’d have to get another cable down to my garage to enable me to charge at home using cheap tariffs, or rely on 3 pin plug charging, I’m due to retire next year so my mileage will be coming down ( not that I do much anyway) , I’m quite happy with my Yaris cross which I think is the best of both worlds…
I have just heard that this is restricted, with many hirers refusing it.
This is going to be awkward, since it was my plan to use car hire to supplement my bus pass as required, say when moving heavy stuff, car ownership probably no longer being a realistic UK option for me..... Read more
Not looked into it myself as I've still a wee while to go.
But, on the one hand, I believe car insurance for drivers above 70 does start to increase in price anyway, so maybe not a surprise that car hire firms add a surcharge?...
Changing cars is almost always costly, not just initially but also ongoing depreciation, which a 16yr old Yaris would no longer suffer from. I may have missed it in this long thread, but ..what is its mileage? Toyota are renowned for their powertrain reliability, so should not be causing major problems much below 150,000 miles if kept oiled and watered. The killer for most Asian cars seems to be rust, but it can't be that bad if it's only 'advisories' at this stage. If the mileage has been no more than around 5k p.a. it would make financial sense to get underneath and spend a few hundred or so (or do it yourself) to halt the existing corrosion. Brake problems on cheap mundane cars are not usually expensive to fix.