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• Daihatsu Charade (2003 - 2006) - 12000 mile report 3 Nov 2013 (Forum)
  Maintainance has been limited to a Cambelt on its 5th birthday using genuine Daihatsu belt, an MOT check over and test which it passed with flying colours and tracking which cost £236 ( £135 of which was the cambelt change which seems very reasonable to me ). Ive also had to spend out £125 on the brakes as after driving through a rather deep puddle, I endured 3 months of sticking brakes, first the NSF, then OSF and then the handbrake linkage. After all this was done I still wasnt happy so in it went again and a comprehensive clean and lubrication job was done by my local dealer - this has totally solved it now and it feels like it used to. this was FOC as they didnt spot it when they checked brakes and only did the handbrake.
• Renault Megane (1999 - 2002) - 01 1.6 inlet valves bent on test drive after newca 17 Feb 2010 (Forum)
  (probably caased in my opinion by all the smoke from the burning oil) and they emptied a can of fuel system cleaner in to my tank and told me 'try that' After 5-10 miles it still tries to cut and out during braking the oil and stop light flcikers when I brake It's back with them now and I am waiting for the next update. They said that they have ordered a new idle control valve and will start inspecting in full again when new part arrives.
• Accord Diesel Tourer 14k report 27 Jun 2006 (Forum)
  The fantastic stereo tends to cover it anyway, although there is no aux input for an mp3 player, which is annoying. I believe I can have one fitted for £100 if I decide that the 6-disc changer is annoying me. Brakes are powerful, but need more of a shove than my last car, which I?m still getting used to. Saying that, when I first drove the Xsara I nearly head-butted the steering wheel first time I touched the brakes, so this isn?
• Seat Ibiza FR 1.0 (115) TSI - 3 Years and 46000 miles On 4 Nov 2023 (Forum)
  I know there have been other threads recently about this, but I’d to replace the rear brake discs and pads about a month ago. Could see the discs were heavily grooved and there was little friction material left (on the pads). Seat dealer wanted £275. Local independent took £167 for Delphi branded pads and discs.
• Mazda 2 - Used car advice, been standing 30 Sep 2022 (Forum)
  It has also recently had 2 x new rear shock absorbers, new nearside front wishbone arm, new front brake pads, brake discs are in perfectly serviceable condition and tyres are all good.   Once the car is sold it will undergo a full inspection and service and any faults found will be rectified.
• Ford Focus 2011 1.6 Petrol 150 psi Mk 3 Miles 52K - Clutch and Gearbox issue plus total Dispair 19 Jan 2017 (Forum)
  The next day driving to work there was a Red Warning Light saying LOW BRAKE FLUID so called them and spoke to technician who advised me to check fluid level and I found it was low so bought brake fluid and topped it up myself and this got rid of the Warning . I asked them why wasnt this checked in the service I had done and there response was it isn,t included in the service ( I would have thought to check and advise was though).
• KIA Carens - Second hand car issues. What are my rights? 22 Apr 2015 (Forum)
  Probably should of asked the dealer to sort them, I did tell him about them but to be honest we were just pleased that he'd done the turbo. Got the brakes fixed including the calipers. Then a few weeks ago we realised both front tyres were exceptionally bald to the point of the wires showing. 2 new tyres and the tracking fixed later and we think we're finally sorted.
• Ford Focus 2006 1.8 TDCi Ghia - Using Coolant and Engine System Fault Message 31 Mar 2015 (Forum)
     Strangely, the light continues to come on, mostly at traffic lights and goes off as soon as you slow down again and press the brake and clutch!   At idle, the car has been known to shake quite a bit.
• Steering 27 Jul 2009 (Forum)
  IF we temporarily begin to think about the 50 / 50 car and consider what happens if you add drive or brake forces, you'll see there's no black magic here either. The brake or drive forces act at approximately right angles to the sideforce, and together form a resultant force, so as the sideforces were equal front to rear, if you now clumsily add some drive force to the front wheels, the resultant force will now be larger than that of the rear axle, and you'll begin to get more slip from the front tyres - a power on understeer effect.
• Is 6 Grand+5 y/o a car tipping point? 16 Feb 2007 (Forum)
  and so start the cycle of exhausts, clutches, brake discs, batteries, shockers, bushes etc etc. As far as depreciation goes, my lovely 6 grand car after 2.5 years and then with 80k on the clock is suddenly worth 1500 as a trade in after I've spent a load of dosh getting it pukka.
• Air-con question - T Reg Peugeot 406 24 Jul 2006 (Forum)
  - I was told on collection that it had been totally out of gas, so they pressure tested it, added extra oil & die, and regassed it, and could find no leaks. (~£85 vat, 1yr warranty) * Brake discs & pads (~£175 vat) * tie-rod replacement (ends worn) (~£100) vat) Now, it came out, and went back in very quickly when copper-slip on this discs & pads made the brakes a little dodgy (and took me a couple of hours sripping down and cleaning after a 100 mile drive when the squealing started and I noticed the problem).
• Drunken Pedestrians 2 Dec 2001 (Forum)
  The two guys in it, got out (neardise onto the pathway) and then as bold as brass without even looking in either direction walked round the back of the car and across the road, right in front of me. I'd already noticed they weren't paying much attention and was waving my right plate over the brakes and when they did this I had to stand on the brakes and steer to avoid them. As a result I ended up with the car about 45 degrees ("North East") to the road and half on the oncoming lane which unfortunately had nothing in it (else that may have nearly hit them as well).
• False Activation of Safety Systems 8 Sep 2025 (Forum)
  On 3 occassions the system has tried to do something dangerous. Last week on a suburban road it cut the power/or applied the brakes from about 30mph. So stopping the car in the middle of the road. The only traffic was parked cars. I managed to get it to the side of the road and after a few on/offs it reset. The previous 2 incidents were when it tried to move me from the outside lane to the occupied middle lane of a 3 lane road.
• Volkswagen CC - Where to offload old car 29 Apr 2025 (Forum)
  It has paint bubbling/minor rust over the rear wheel arches. On the plus side it has 12 month MOT, decent brakes/tyres/springs and the engine seems fine. We buy any car offered £500 for it! Decent examples on Autotrader seem to go for around £2000. Somewhere in the middle feels good, but not sure where the best place is to sell it, I fear Autotrader buyers would be put off by the issues, a breakers would be a low offer, ebay possibly?
• Recommendations Sub £5k Reliable Car 3 May 2024 (Forum)
  I've been checking MOT history on the vehicles I've found in my price range and noticed a few Picantos/i10s with deterioted brake pipes in early years and "Engine MIL inoperative" appear a few times.  Looking for people's opinions on what to look for and if anyone has any other suggestions. Appreciate your help.
• Audi 100 1989 - Why older cars have big fuel tank than the new? 17 Nov 2023 (Forum)
  My father's Audi 100 sadly got in the accident from the back after a little lorry had brake failure smash at 20mph thankful it did not happen at 56mph. When the car was taken away to the sc***yard, I thought about the older cars how great they were, because they had very big fuel tanks the Audi 100 is 80 litres (+1 overfill) it did over 700 miles from 1.8 petrol engine injectors I think.
• Ramps or Jack/Stands for safety 29 Oct 2023 (Forum)
  and perfectly fine for those that only wish to change the oil. I've read those who may want to work on brakes should opt for a jack/stands. What are your thoughts?  Should you choose one over the other then can you recommend a particular brand/model?  I'm presuming something that can lift 2 tonnes is more than robust, but I'll like your advice, please.
• Renault Clio - Maintenance on a 6 year old car 21 Jun 2023 (Forum)
  My car is now 6,6 years old, Bought it from Renault retail group as a Pre Reg , So only paid £11,500 for it , Its a 1.5 Diesel with 41000 Miles on the clock This has to be one of the cheapest cars that i have ever owned and i am planning on keeping it for another 6 years and more if possible Since new, Its had new brake discs and pad and a new ball joint plus a set of tyre's and it gets a service every year Looking at the future, Would it be recommended to have a garage to replace all parts that maybe starting to come to the end of there life like the exhaust, Suspension parts, Timing belt  and other parts that may need replaced at some time or is it better to just wait until i get issues.
• Jeep Renegade PHEV - Test Drive 20 Mar 2023 (Forum)
    If you push quite hard, it gets annoying.  There is no 'B' mode, so the regenerative braking is limited. Other than that, it's like any other Renegade.  Quite a spacious interior and quite a comfy drive.  It wallows a bit on twisty roads, but soaks up bumps nicely and is surprisingly pleasant on the motorway.
• Hyundai Tucson - Feeling the road through pedals 16 May 2022 (Forum)
  It's a great car, but my main criticism is the feeling of road feedback it gives through the clutch and brake pedal. On rougher road surfaces, when slowing and stopping,  it's like I can feel almost every road imperfection through my feet. I even drove another Tucson as a comparison to check it wasn't just mine, and it felt the same, with the salesman confiding that he felt the same about the ride quality.