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• TAXING A CAR YOU HAVE BOUGHT: How do I legally drive home a car I have bought privately? (FAQs)
  You need to both insure and tax the car, which you can do online.. This is the official version: "From 1 October 2014, when you buy a vehicle, the vehicle tax will no longer be transferred with the vehicle. You will need to get new vehicle tax before you can use the vehicle.
• CONSUMER RIGHTS: How do I reject a vehicle or get compensation for problems with a car? (FAQs)
  You have occasionally mentioned dealers attempting to get around these regulations by calling a sale that obviously is not, a "trade sale". A "trade sale" implies that the customer is a trader with some knowledge of the car trade who is buying the car to re-sell. In reality this phrase is meaningless.
• AUCTIONS: Is buying a car from an auction straightforward? (FAQs)
  "With around 13,000 vehicles registered for sale at BCA at any one time, there is always plenty of choice.  And our new website can help used car buyers do some window shopping before they even leave the house with the new Auction View function - making buying at auction easier than ever."
• SELLING A CAR: How do I accept payment safely? (FAQs)
  Sale of a Motorcycle - A man advertised his motorcycle for sale last week in ‘Biketrader' for £3800. Within one week he had received three different approaches from ‘buyers' abroad offering to purchase it by banker's draft or UK cheque for a sum significantly above the asking price on the proviso that he transferred the difference via ‘money transfer' to a ‘shipping agent'.
• NEARLY NEW CARS: Where are the best places to source a nearly new car? (FAQs)
  • Fords of Winsford, Wharton Retail Park, Weaver Valley Road, Winsford, Cheshire, tel: 0845 345 1016; website: www.fow.co.uk • Motorpoint, Chartwell Drive, West Meadows, Derby, tel: 01332 347357, website: www.motorpoint.co.uk • Car Giant (formerly Great Trade Centre), Hythe Road (off Scrubbs Lane: continuation Wood Lane); White City, London NW10 6JR, tel: 020 8969 5511; website: www.cargiant.co.uk • The Motorhouse, A5 Watling St, Cannock, Staffordshire, WS11 1SL. tel: 01543 506060, website www.themotorhouse.co.uk • Motus, Wryley Brook Retail Park, Walkmill Lane, Cannock, Staffordshire, WS11 0XA, tel: 01543 462300, website www.motus.com • Trade Sales of Slough, 336-338 Bath Road, Slough (Near Heathrow: J6 or J7 from M4); tel: 08701 222 980; website: www.trade-sales.co.uk • Direct Cars Ltd., Eckington Way, near Crystal Peaks, Sheffield S20 3FG, tel: 01142 511222 ; website: www.directcars.co.uk • Direct Vehicle Sales, 8 Westgate , Ripon, North Yorkshire, HG4 2AT Tel 01765 605041 or 07939 136990 website www.directvehiclesales.co.uk • Autoquake Internet based used car supersite www.autoquake.com NEARLY NEW AND USED CAR BUYING SUPERSITES • Motorpoint, Chartwell Drive, West Meadows, Derby; tel: 0870 1209611; website: www.motorpoint.co.uk • Trade Sales of Slough, 353-357 Bath Road, Slough, Berks SL1 6JA; tel: 0870 127 3763; website: www.trade-sales.co.uk • The Motorhouse, A5 Watling St, Cannock, Staffordshire, WS11 1SL. tel: 01543 506060, website www.themotorhouse.co.uk • Motus, Wryley Brook Retail Park, Walkmill Lane, Cannock, Staffordshire, WS11 0XA, tel: 01543 462300, website www.motus.com • Car Giant, Hythe Road (off Scrubbs Lane: continuation Wood Lane), White City, London NW10 6JR; tel: 020 8969 5511; website: www.cargiant.co.uk • Fords of Winsford, Wharton Retail Park, Weaver Valley Road, Winsford, Cheshire; tel: 0845 345 1016; website: www.fow.co.uk • Stephen Rayns Ltd., Leicester; tel: 0116 261 2200.
• NEW CARS: How can I save money when buying a new car? (FAQs)
  After European price inflation and the fall in value of Sterling against the Euro the benefits of importing have become marginal and you often get a better all-round deal buying UK supplied. Even the main UK impost supersites are now switching to broking UK supplied cars. ON-LINE IMPORT/UK BROKING SPECIALISTS WITH SUPERSITES Trade Sales of Slough , 336-338 Bath Road, Slough (Near Heathrow: J6 or J7 from M4); tel: 08701 222 980; website: www.trade-sales.co.uk Motorpoint , Chartwell Drive, West Meadows, Derby; tel: 0870 1209611; website: www.motorpoint.co.uk Motorhouse 2000, Wryly Brook Retail Park, Walkmill lane, Cannock WS11 3XE; tel: 0845 345 6777; website: www.motorhouse2000ltd.co.uk ON-LINE DISCOUNT UK SUPPLIED SPECIALISTS (Note that NONE of these are checked out.
• BROKERS: Which brokers should I consider if buying a new or used car? (FAQs)
  If so this may strictly speaking be illegal. Nevertheless some bulk dealer discounts can depend on the customer buying the car on a fiance deal which can then be canncelled after the first repayment but means the car costs more than the price you were originally quoted.
• COOLANT: How long does it last and which type should I use?  (FAQs)
  Further information, including an application guide, which details whether Comma Super Longlife Red Coolant is suitable for a motorists vehicle, is available online at www.commaoil.com Comma Super Longlife 'red' Coolant is available from Motorworld, CAAR retailers, A1 Motorstores and most good independent motor accessory retailers.
• HIRING A CAR: Where can I hire a car in the UK and abroad? (FAQs)
  A Mini Cooper costs from £325 a month, inclusive, and the top price is a Citroen C1 electric car at £500 a month. And an additional £250 a month buys you seven days of luxury motoring in the marque of your choice. 
• IMPORTING A CAR: I want to import a car to the UK - what do I need to know? (FAQs)
  First point. Unless you are buying a high ticket car, it is usually better to buy UK supplied via a broker than to attempt to import one yourself. See Week's best Deals in the News at www.honestjohn.co.uk . a. Get the relevant Government booklets and forms.
• CAR HIRE INSURANCE: What do I need to know about insuring hire cars? (FAQs)
  My auto coverage here has an endorsement, for a small annual fee, that adds rental cars to both liability coverage and damage to the car (e.g. the CDW) I have on my owned car, plus I have the credit card coverage so I would never buy CDW, unless mandated by law (you will see this in Latin America - liability also). Hireres should be more concerned about the liability aspects, check if they have an endorsement for liability they can buy on their UK auto policy and check if a credit card covers that as well.
• DIESEL v PETROL: Which is better for me?   (FAQs)
  Diesels are generally dearer to buy but in the past have held their value better. Though this may change. Over 2007/08 diesel fuel in the UK became about 10% more expensive to buy than petrol, but regained parity on 2009.
• ADBLUE: What is AdBlue and What do I need to know about it? (FAQs)
  It is contained in a separate tank with a separate external filler (Mercedes, Jaguar, Peugeot) or must be replenished by a dealer (some earlier AdBlue systems). It is on sale at fuel stations in 10 litre containers at around £16. Enough to last 6,000 miles costs between £16 and £32, depending on the size of the engine. 4.7 litre containers and 2 litre containers are also available and come with spouts for easier refilling.
• ELECTRIC CARS: Is an EV right for me? (FAQs)
  The G-Wiz is sold via GoinGreen’s website www.goingreen.co.uk , where customers in London can book test drives online. The company has a team of engineers based at its headquarters for full after sales maintenance and support and it also offers time-poor Londoners mobile servicing. GoinGreen is a founder member of the All-Electric Transport Alliance, a trade organisation formed to create awareness of the urgent need to switch to emission free motoring.
• AIR-CONDITIONING: How do I know if my air conditioning needs servicing? (FAQs)
  PART_HDR_ID=28585" target="_blank">AutoParts 2020 Cool Air Kit   (If your car has a/c using the old R12 CFC gas which is now illegal, you can buy a conversion kit to the legal R134a gas, recommended by a reader who did this years ago in a US import Honda Accord and has not had any trouble since.    Smells from air-conditioning

  MULTI CAR INSURANCE: Can I insure more than one car on the same insurance policy? (FAQs)
  The insurers Primo deals with all have purpose-built computer systems that allows them to look at the full picture. You would expect to get a better price from a cash and carry than a supermarket because you are buying in bulk. Place all your personal insurance business with a company that is able to recognise how much you are spending with them and most people will see a benefit. Call Paul Kirby or one of his colleagues free on 08000 355638 .
• WARRANTY SERVICING: What happens to my new car warranty if I have my car serviced outside the franchised dealer chain? (FAQs)
  Finally, independent servicing greatly reduces the part-exchange value of a car for the first 5 years or so. Many franchised dealers (particularly Audi) dealers will not buy in stock that has not been Audi maintained throughout its life.
• GAP INSURANCE: What is GAP insurance and do I really need it? (FAQs)
  This is a form of insurance and, as with all insurance policies, we recommend that you shop around. If you’re buying from a dealer, it’s likely that you will be offered gap insurance by a salesman. Our advice is don’t - not until you have been able compare prices. It’s almost always cheaper to get this kind of insurance through a broker or third party.
• ENGINE ECU: Where can I have the Engine Control Unit (ECU) of my car re-mapped? (FAQs)
  When you first receive your Bluefin you use it to interrogate the car's ECU for its individual code which you then send back to Superchips online or by mail so your Bluefin can be activated for your particular car and no other. Bluefin costs £445 from www.mybluefin.co.uk , tel: 01280 816781.
• WINTER TYRES: Should I use different tyres for the winter? (FAQs)
  Mandatory in some ski resorts, chains can be useful in very thick snow. Make sure you buy a type that is suitable for the bodywork of your vehicle and the size of your tyres. Choose chains that have the maximum number of links in the contact patch, with a diamond or straight pattern, having at least twelve bars for an average tyre.