Refine by channel:  Forum (291)    Ask HJ (244)    News (64)    Article (4)    FAQs (3)    Good Garages (1)  

Sort by: Relevance | Newest first | Oldest first

• 
  What MPV do you think I should buy? 28 Mar 2025 (Ask HJ)
  I live on the south coast and work in the water sports industry. I’m looking for a large MPV I can take the seats out of and turn into a large van when...
• 
  What are the speed limit tolerances in Spain? 29 Nov 2024 (Ask HJ)
  I try to be very careful re speed limits. I am to visit Lanzarote soon after 8 years. I read the Spanish are hot on speeding, for good reasons it must...
• VW Golf Mk4 2002 1.9 TDI - Transmission or Diff noise after hard stall 1 Jul 2023 (Forum)
    Googling it, I see that the Golf has had gearbox problems, and on Ebay, even scrap gearboxes fetch £250 or more ! and seem to be being delivered from Spain!!!!  Any advice, please again!!!  I've switched engines before, however its getting to be antisocial to do major car repairs on the street! If I get a backstreet workshop to change the gearbox how big a job is it; what should it cost?
• Worn brakes on car just bought 22 Apr 2007 (Forum)
  I pressed them to get it checked by someone of good reputation, which they did on Thursday. This mechanic, a very well thought of local man, (soon to leave Raunds to live in Spain) discovered that the front brakes were worn down so that there was hardly any pad material left and the disks had been damaged. He says that the brakes should not be worn in 30,000 miles, and they are checking the mileage with the previous owner.
• The Terry Maxwell Song 21 Jan 2002 (Forum)
  I've got pains in my arms and my dong is growing shorter, My knees have turned to water, and I think I'm going blind. I've w*nked over Italy, I've w*nked over Spain. I've w*nked in an omnibus, I've even had a w*nk in a train. I've used a badger and a melon and a cat, an inflatable Linda Lovelace, and a Davy Crockett hat. And that's why I'm a w*nker, I'm a w*nker and it does me good like it bloody well should.
• 
  In-dealer’s exposure 20 Feb 2010 (Ask HJ)
  How do you go about dealing with poor workmanship? Our 2004/54 BMW 318i went in to the BMW dealer we bought it from for what we were told to be necessary...
• Ford Fiesta Titanium X - Full payment requested weeks before collection 22 Sep 2015 (Forum)
  I have put down a deposit on a white Ford Fiesta Titanium X that is currently in Spain in the holding compound - it's NOT a factory order.  I was happy that things were muddling along until yesterday when I got an email from my local nameless dealer (suffice to say, they are large) saying that I needed to go in, finalise the finance paperwork (they've already done the proposal and that's been accepted - for a very small amount so I only went down this route to get the savings) and pay the full balance BEFORE even seeing the car.
• The death of the diesel engine? 19 Oct 2013 (Forum)
    Klaus Schmidt, director of vehicle engineering for start-up Chinese brand Qoros (and previously head of chassis development at BMW’s M division), said he, too, thought diesel engines would markedly decline in importance by the end of the decade, citing ever more stringent pollution regulations as the cause. Some 50 per cent of new cars sold in the UK are diesels, well behind the 70 per cent in Spain and France, but not far short of the EU average of 55 per cent. Europe is by far the biggest consumer of diesel-powered cars. As recently as 2010, Japan and the US had only a small, single-digit take-up for diesel cars.
• Advice for next car please... 15 May 2012 (Forum)
  I'm not sure how much difference there is between the versions but the new one seems much better space-wise and I gather is a better drive. I drove a Fiesta hire car in Spain a year back and quite liked it, aside from the odd mirrors. However, price may again be an issue and I get the impression the smaller Ford engines aren't the most efficient. I had a Colt as a courtesy car a good few years back and quite liked it but I think the design is a bit old now.
• Peugeot 206 1.4L - Clutch/Gearbox problem 13 May 2011 (Forum)
  Recently it got to the point where the noise from a worn out clutch thrust got on my nerves, so it had to be changed. I had a local mechanic in Spain (where the car is kept) change the complete clutch assembly and cable. The cable was a genuine Peugeot part (or so I'm told) but the rest of the assembly was not. My problems started when I went to collect the car, the noise had gone but I was left with a gearbox that crunched/crashed in and out of 3rd gear and I am totally unable to drop down into 2nd gear from 3rd unless going really slowly.
• Mercedes Benz E-Class W124 (1985 - 2000) - New Motor - something for the weekend 12 Jan 2010 (Forum)
  I'd originally set out looking for a Series III Jaguar XJ6 - having spent many a childhood weekend helping my father maintain his Series II. Sadly, every example I've seen here in Spain has been pooly maintained and an obvious money pit. This weekend I picked up my (new to me) 1988 Mercedes-Benz 300E (W124). The car is immaculate inside and out and is an absolute delight to drive.
• Ford Excursion - Any advice re: buying an American SUV 2 Dec 2010 (Forum)
   We pull a twin-axle caravan MTPLM 1750Kgs around the UK but would like to travel further afield, Scandinavia and Spain being two areas of interest. Due to the Landies age we cannot arrange break-down cover overseas so have thus far been limited to holidays in the UK. Nothing wrong with that, but it would occasionally be nice to have some sunshine once in a while!
• 
  What is happening to Honda in Europe? 16 Mar 2013 (Ask HJ)
  When Honda announced 800 job losses at Swindon the company blamed declining markets in Europe for their problems. Unfortunately this appears to be a severe...
• 
  Truly shafted here from paradise 22 May 2010 (Ask HJ)
  Last week I rented a Ford Mondeo Estate car, picking it up at Luton Airport on Sun 21st and returning it to Stansted airport on Thurs 25th. We had the...
• 
  Should I get diesel, petrol or hybrid for my next car? 13 Sep 2017 (Ask HJ)
  I currently own a 2015 Renault Kadjar 1.5 diesel. We bought the car due to its ability to carry large loads, comfort on long journeys and fuel economy....
• Zeebrugge or Calais 13 Nov 2009 (Forum)
  I keep promising myself i am going to do Zeebrugge to the Champagne region i am told it only takes an hour and a half , does anyone know that to be true , anyone done that trip let me know. I am also considering the Brittany ferries route to spain going to Santander and driving to the Rioja region anyone done that. The write ups say the food on the Brittany ferries very good.
• Monday Morning Amusement 19 Feb 2002 (Forum)
  With the criteria suddenly expanded and all the desirable clubs filling up, Sierra Leone, El Salvador, and Rwanda applied to be called the Axis of Countries That Aren't the Worst But Certainly Won't Be Asked to Host the Olympics; Canada, Mexico, and Australia formed the Axis of Nations That Are Actually Quite Nice But Secretly Have Nasty Thoughts About America, while Spain, Scotland, and New Zealand established the Axis of Countries That Be Allowed to Ask Sheep to Wear Lipstick. "That's not a threat, really, just something we like to do," said Scottish Executive First Minister Jack McConnell.
• Ideas on an appropriate 4x4 6 Sep 2009 (Forum)
  The idea would be to aim for a trip in 2 years time, the likely venue would be North Africa using a ferry from Southern Spain...(after doing all the appropriate research re safety, overnight stop venues, fuel locations, etc). Some want full on camping, although some (inc me) are more keen on hotels and similar. It would not be meant as a full on, serious, expert off road trip, but would no doubt involve a fair amount of rough roads etc..hence the 4x4 option.
• Renault Scenic v Citroen C4 Grand Picasso compared 30 Aug 2009 (Forum)
  On holiday in Spain last week and luckily we had pre-hired a car. I had booked a Pug Partner on the basis that it was cheap, roomy, and a car I was genuinely interested in trying. At the airport we were upgraded to a brand new Renault Scenic 1.5DCi (400km on the clock).
• Petrol, diesel, hybrid? (No EVs please) - Advice on car for retirement 2 Aug 2022 (Forum)
  It doesn't do a huge mileage locally but I always go driving holidays so it's done Wales, the West Country, France, Germany, Spain, and many such trips up north. The down side though is that like most pre 2015 diesels it's non ULEZ compatible and with all sorts of towns and cities going that way, I will need to replace it at some point.