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• Mazda - 2012 - Used Car - Consumer Rights - how long for a repair? 10 May 2016 (Forum)
  I had to 'pause' a tiny while when changing from 2nd to 3rd gear, to avoid this. I also noticed the brakes were spongy, the braking distance was double. I noticed front and rear brakes had 'hot spots'  Emailed the car dealer. They told me to bring the car, but the earliest appointment was in 10 days time.
• Volvo XC60(2015) - Another service scam? 9 Mar 2016 (Forum)
  Hi John, My Volvo XC60 has just had it,s second year service with only 9,400 miles on the clock. I have a 5 year pre-paid service plan; so was surprised to receive a phone call to say the brake fluid needed changing at a cost of £90.00 and did I wish to proceed. I reluctantly agreed to the work due to the safety implications, but was called back a few minutes later to say that the car was already on the road and was being delivered back to me.
• Nissan Note - Help needed - intermittent vehicle fault 26 Nov 2015 (Forum)
  I tried to increase the revs but the engine slowly died and the accelerator and brake became unresponsive, leaving me stranded on the dual carriageway. Again there were no engine management lights. I tried to restart the car and found that the brake had no play in it and I could not press it down, the car repeatedly failed to start.
• Ford Fiesta MKIV 1.25 Zetec S - Master cylinder replaced now erratic idling!! 14 Aug 2011 (Forum)
    Since she bought it she has had the handbrake/warning light on (even though she has only recently told me!!).  So i went to check all the fluids etc. and found there was no brake fluid!!!! on further inspection it appeared to be leaking from the reservoir so, being on a tight budget, i replaced with master cylinder from a scrapyard.  bled all the brakes and they now work fine, pedal is pretty hard but brakes come on well.
• Ford Focus II (2004 - 2007) - 06 2.0 Doubts about the service 11 Feb 2009 (Forum)
  That would put the new ones at 24mm thick! Nearly an inch in old money!! I'm going to try and make up a kind of go/no go gauge I had the brake fluid changed - because it's hygroscopic - but can't see any sign that the bleed nipples have been touched but the reservoir is covered in brake fluid and not even cleaned. Is there any other way of getting the fluid out apart from the usual method?
• I really dislike my tyres 11 Oct 2006 (Forum)
  Someone pulled out in front of me before completely out of the blue (I'd seen them but they did a ridiculous maneuvre) and I had to hit the brakes hard. The wheels locked up and the car went (this was at a relatively low speed) but I lifted off and braked again and I narrowly escaped it. This might not sound like much but that genuinely has never happened before.
• Cars you have adored despite problems 6 Dec 2005 (Forum)
  It was a milk chocolate brown colour and was quite startling to own because of its quirkiness. The radio was where the hand brake should be and the handbrake was like a spade handle that you pulled out of the dash. There were no stalks for indicators etc just 'pods' either side of the steering wheel with swiches (worked very well).
• Possible 2nd-hand car: VW with problems 21 Sep 2003 (Forum)
  Insurance for the both of us is quite reasonable. Fuel consumption doesn't matter as it'll only be doing 40 miles a week. Bad News -------- 1) Brakes seem a bit unresponsive compared to my 2002 Focus. Pads and disc's look okay so it might just be needing some new brake fluid. 2) Appears to be on the original timing belt. 3) Clutch slips like a good 'un.
• Cavalier steering vibration (again!) 27 Aug 2003 (Forum)
  So, in summary, the problem is steering vibration affected by taking the driver’s side front wheel on and off, which seems to have got worse as a result of taking it on and off a few times, and which is reduced when the nuts are tightened more than they should be. The only explanation I can think of is the brake disk (ventilated, ABS) as this is surely the only thing that wheel nut tightness would affect as it is sandwiched in between the wheel and the hub. There is no noticeable judder through the steering when the brakes are applied by the way.
• Only those with a towbar - Towing 11 Dec 2022 (Forum)
    Now the weight has increased for car drivers to over 2 tonne, even putting aside the harder aspect of reversing with trailer, now when they brake there will be over 2 Tonne pushing them forward as caravans do not have air breaks like HGV.    Questions ?   What do you guys n gals think, good or bad, I particularly want to hear from people who tow on a regular basis that do not do it as part of their job.
• Toyota RAV4 - MOT - Lockdown Rust? 19 Mar 2021 (Forum)
  Last year it went through with a couple of advisories, front discs showing signs of deterioration & rear brake pipes with signs of rust. The vehicle is regularly serviced & l hoped that it would pass, but if not no big deal, they're easily replaced. In the end it only failed on the discs, these were replaced the next day, along with pads.
• Mitsubishi Colt - Rear wheel locked - Mitsubishi Colt 2007 13 Nov 2018 (Forum)
  I've tried to rock the car back and forth,, forward and reverse to force it to move (which used to work before) but this time it feels really stuck.   It's an automatic car, with drum brakes. I've managed to take the wheel and it certainly looks like it could just be either rust, or the pads heated to the drum (due to my poor braking ability)   My father in law has had a go at tapping the drum with a hammer.
• Conversation with a mechanical fitter 14 May 2018 (Forum)
  I had the pleasure tofay of spending nearly an hour in the company of a hire car company mechaincal fitter/repair guy who was attending a relatives hire van His pearls of wisdom -  If your buying a car, buy Toyota or Lexus If your buying a car, dont buy a Renault  If your buying a commercial vehicle, buy a MAN TGE (far better aftersales support than VW provide with the Crafter), a Vauxhall Vivaro (easy to work on, not alot goes wrong) or Toyota Hilux (only ever need a service) If your buying a commercial vehicle dont buy any IVECO model ('Fiat rubbish') or a Ford Transit Courier with the 1.0 ecoboost engine (clutches dont last long) A few recent things he mentioned -  * currently only Landrover dealers can change the rear brakes on the discovery sport, its meant to be very complex with the electric parking brake  * there is a batch of full size 67/18 plate ford transits with the hill assist that locks fully on and needs a dealer visit to provide a permanent fix  * recently did a first year service on a ssangyong musso and found it to be as well built as the hilux  * the new cummings diesel engine in the hilux is a delight, easy to service and work around
• Underbody rustproofing or sealing 8 Feb 2018 (Forum)
  I have an 08 Avensis which I have owned for a year put 20k on so far and has been o Good car, just flown through its MOT. When I bought it I checked the MOT and all was good only brakes tyres lamps etc.  I've been looking at avensis' for someone else and it appears that a lot of them have fails or advisories for corroded brake lines, wishbones and general suspension corrosion.
• Nissan Micra 2003 - Nissan Micra problems 27 Jan 2018 (Forum)
  It passed its MOT recently with flying colours, no problems, no advisements. Yesterday, when coming back from the shops, the car suddenly jerked as if the brakes had come on and i was sure I saw some lights on the control panel flash for a second. I stopped the car for a minute but everything seemed normal and I carried on home with no other problems. Today, though, was a different story.
• Toyota Yaris - New car (not for me !) 22 Jun 2017 (Forum)
  Her son is a repair engineer for a big plant hire firm, and her nephew is an engineer at BAE, so they will do the brake pads and regular servicing for her.
• volvo s60 - Skidding Issue 28 Nov 2016 (Forum)
  I have found that lately I have been experiencing light skidding on uneven surfaces whilst driving. I have 4 good tread tyres with the correct pressure around. I am not experiencing issues when braking. I find that when I drive over a non-smooth section of road (small holes, grates, joins in tarmac etc) that the car feels like it skates/skids very slightly...it does this on dry surfaces. The car does not veer off the road and is no out of control...it is just a sensation that the car is not holding onto the surface as it should.
• Mitsubishi Outlander 2.0 Diesel 2008 08 reg - Steering Problem advise, cannot seem to resolve 11 Jun 2016 (Forum)
      So far the car has been into two garages and I have spent circa £800 on Tyres, Track rod ends, brake callipers, brake pads, drop links , a front wheel bearing and on two occasions full four wheel alignment. Both garages have no further idea on what is causing this. It has a new MOT and no broken springs or leaking shockers visible and no accident damage repairs visible.
• 1.4 - Buying a second hand Golf 8 Apr 2015 (Forum)
  He cuts his deal, buys his tax and insurance and is then on the road!  The first day he has it--he then takes it to a tyre/exhaust/brake centre and replaces all four tyres, new wipers, the main exhaust system and a new set of brake discs/shoes all round-he allows around £1500/£1800 for this. Apart from the obvious risk of driving a  a slightly older car--and his mileage is not large, my friend says he has done this three times in the last 20 years to great success, massive savings from new and piece of mind equal to that of buying a new car.
• Ford Mondeo MK4 2.0 TDCI Diesel 140ps. - Ford Mondeo auxiliary belt problem 2 Nov 2014 (Forum)
  So as far as i can see i would have no power steering and no alternator but would have powered brakes and water and oil pumps working.Is this a correct assumption? and rather than towing the car with no power brakes and no power steering (nightmare but dooable) this seems like a better idea? Any thoughts on this