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• Judging a book by the cover 23 Apr 2005 (Forum)
  A 1972 Chevelle that he's owned for the past sixteen years, and in which he has just transplanted the original humble straight six with a tuned 454 that he imported from a motorsports division of GM. That's seven and a half litres of US muscle, with a holley carb the size of a three bedroomed semi, to you and I. As if this ain't enough, my smooth, gentle, laid back, unhurried, mechanically sympathetic, softly spoken friend is going drag racing with it!
• New car for mother. 3 Sep 2004 (Forum)
  We hope to spend around 5k on this car. The car will only cover at most 6k a year so fuel economy is irrelevant. Reliability is an important criterion for the new vehicle as it will be required every weekday without fail, so no Renaults. I have a little knowledge of the cars available in this price bracket, but dont know much about automatics- which cars should i look for?
• Honda CRV 23 Oct 2003 (Forum)
  Although the Volvo is very thirsty I would expect to use the Honda a lot more and so the fuel consumption is quite an important consideration. I know that some regular contributors to the Backroom have CRV's.Any advice on real-world mpg figures would be much appreciated. Is the official combined figure of 31 mpg actually obtainable.
• Automatic versus Automated Manual 16 Sep 2003 (Forum)
  Clutch, gear changes, hill starts, etc not really wanted. Something easy to drive and not too heavy on the juice, also reliability is of importance. I have heard that the non torque converter autos and CVT's don't hold on a hill. If this is the case, how is it possible to pull off on a steepish hill, in one of these cars with the handbrake etc?
• What rubber? 25 Jul 2003 (Forum)
  however after scouring the net (and reading chris longhurst's site)ive found some contestants that could be up for the job, and look F'ing mean, which is important(!!, and are 205/50r15 The chosen few are(in order of meanness): Viking Millenium www.viking.co.uk Viking Protech 500 Bridgestone potenza re720 Goodyear eagle NCT 5 Bridgestone potenza re50 The Vikings are the first choise but i cant find much info on them in relation to hard/soft compound, noise etc etc im not worried about the cost at the mo, althought bridgestone 720 are going for £62.04 each at www.topgear.co.uk.
• Failed VW TDI PD engine 23 Jul 2003 (Forum)
  And from discussions with people who I know at some VW agents it seems this is not a unique case. Has anybody else suffered the same? and have you got a better deal out of VW? Mine is an import so in theory the warranty was only a year. If I'm not unique a case it maybe something to consider before buy a second hand car with VW 115hp PD engine. Cheers
• How to insure - the proper way 7 Jun 2003 (Forum)
  As soon (or long, as the case may be :-( ) as she passes her test, I'd then register the car in her name and she'd insure it herself as the main driver in order to build her NCB. For us insurance is important and we don't want to take any chances on that score so I suppose I'm hoping that someone far wiser than me will reply to this post and tell us that what I'm suggesting is indeed the best way to proceed.
• Mercedes, what is wrong with you? 21 Feb 2003 (Forum)
  So given our new taxation laws as regards company cars, ever increasing interest in luxury diesel cars, the need for greater economy yet still the desire for powerful cars etc etc... ...Why the HELL are you not importing the goddamn E400 CDI?!!!! It's probably most businessmen/women's dream for those who can afford it, yet the most interesting variant won't even be built in right hand drive. Any ideas as to why this is or are Mercedes simply taking the ****?
• Volkswagen Golf TDI 115 PD - Juddering 2 Apr 2002 (Forum)
  Presently they are goign through a 'list' of repairs. The symptoms are that the car (which is only 19 months old and a full UK spec import) judders when you put your foot down on the accelerator. I drove all the way down to London from Manchester and could not reach a speed of over 65 mph. The power died, although it did pick up if I changed down a gear and then back up.
• Undersealing 4 Jan 2002 (Forum)
  I know that there have been quite forceful opinions on the wisdom of running an imported Japanese MPV (Toyota Masterace). However, with due consideration to it's low purchase price and it's full complement of "extras" compared to the traditional types of MPV, and acceptance that these vehicles are not for the fainthearted owner in that it is essential that the cambelt, cooling systems, electrics etc have to be checked/maintained and fully understood to obtain satisfactory and satisfying performance, I have been more than pleased with my vehicle over the last nine months.
• Sick Alfa 156 2.0 TS Man 9 Apr 2002 (Forum)
  Apologies for the long email but I refuse to sell this car as when it works it is fantastic, and having solved one fault am eager to sort the others out. The local alfa dealer have been ok (i.e. they could have told be to f*@!#$ off as it is in an import with an extended UK warranty), but they struggle to diagnose advanced faults... On another note anyone with an import in the UK, must take out an alfacare warranty, as the dealer principal mentioned they are getting return rates on alfa's of more than 25%, and with labour rates at £50 p/hour, it could get bloody expensive.
• Kia Ceed - Main dealer and full service history 9 Apr 2024 (Forum)
  An ex-lease car looking at V5. Told FSH and remaining 7 year warranty. He expressed to salesman how important FSH and warranty were. Upon handover passed 2 pieces of paper with details of 2 services and service booklet with nothing in it. Told dealer the same day, we weren’t happy but he said all was good no problem it’s all as it should be.
• Piaggio Porter 1.3 Multijet petrol engine 7 Jun 2023 (Forum)
  I have long felt that a (small) dropside pick up would be the ideal work vehicle for my needs, ideally something like a Daihatsu Hijet, Piaggio Porter or Suzuki Carry. These are very hard to come by these days though (apart from JDM import Kei trucks, which will only carry 350kg, not enough for me). So the Porter which has cropped up for sale has very much peaked my interest.  The Porters which were officially sold in the UK between (approx) 2000 and 2010 were just rebadged versions of the Daihatsu Hijet, complete with with that vehicle's (nigh on indestructible) Daihatsu/Toyota 1.3 petrol.
• Why MPVs gone out of fashion? 22 May 2021 (Forum)
  Kia Carens no longer sold (they are not selling Sedona/Carnival in UK) VW Sharan no longer sold Vauxhall Zafira no longer sold Seat Alhambra no longer sold Toyota Sienna/Estima not available in UK (unless you import 10 year old JDM cars) Honda Stepwagon not available in UK After Mazda 5, Mazda never introduced any MPV After Grandis, Mitsubishi never sold any MPV The ones which are still available VW Touran Ford SMax Ford Galaxy Citroen Grand C4 Spacetourer Off course one can buy in used market but makes me wonder what reason behind MPVs disappearing.
• Luton Airport access, drop off, parking 25 May 2019 (Forum)
  This road access building work has been going on for 15 years-when on earth is it going to end?when is a proper access railway going to be available? and even more important, when is every area of the terminal itself going to stop feeling like the inside of a prison.   I have only used Luton once this year-Stansted is not much better ,but at least it was originally built as an airport and not a 1940's airfield.
• Your advice 14 Jan 2019 (Forum)
  I can't make my mind up between the Honda Accord 2.2 (180bhp) or the Honda Civic either in the 2.2 / newer 1.6 engine. Economy and enough power are important, but only covering 20k miles per year I can't see 8-10 mpg difference making a huge cost difference over the year. Does anyone have experience with either car? An estate version of the Civic isnt absolutely essential but I feel I could use the extra space with the flat folding seats to sleep in for the odd night when I go traveling.
• Skoda Roomster - Alternatives to Roomster? 11 Apr 2018 (Forum)
  So factors include: - good rear seat room - decent boot for dog - seats fold/remove easily and fit in two mountain bikes - economy - reliability and longevity - performance not important to us Following job change, we are now only doing 8Kpa, mostly city work with (say) 8 tiprs>200 miles pa. Looked at Roomster, Meriva and CMax yesterday.  The Roomster had most room for rear seats and for dog, + folded really easily.
• 2015 Audi A3 vs 2015 Hyundai i30 - Please offer some advice 16 Nov 2017 (Forum)
  I am inclined towards buying the Audi because it is a solid manufacturer but from what I understand the cost of maintenance, servicing and parts are quite high which is an important factor for me. On the other hand I am also inclined towards buying the i30 because, with all the info I could find so far, it seems to be a decent, reliable car which should not be very expensive to run.
• Wolseleys from the 30s to the 60s. - My accidental interest in old cars 14 Jan 2017 (Forum)
   I own a few cars that date from the early 30s to the late 50s all of which are in well used but good original condition. I realise that others have a different perspective on classic car ownership and all views are important to the survival of our hobby.   
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  Car suitable for electric buggy 21 Aug 2015 (Ask HJ)
  I am looking to purchase a vehicle that is suitable for my mother's needs i.e a high seating position for easy access and a low load height and preferably...