Ask Honest John

Most recently answered buying a new car questions
My 3 year old Freelander has developed an oil seal leak and the dealer wants £1200 to repair it! Would you: Have the repair, talk to Land Rover, or find a replacement before the leak gets too serious?...
I want to buy a new MINI Clubman Cooper S with leather seats and Chili pack. Paying cash. What sort of discount should I expect or negotiate for? Currently BMW does 50/50 deal - pay half now and nothing...
I was quite tempted in buying a 185 2.2 diesel engined Mazda 3 as I fancied something with a bit more power than my 1.6 crdi Hyundai i30. Do these suffer with diesel being dumped in the oil sump by incomplete...
what do you think about a Daewoo Kalos 2004, 1.2 as a first car for a 17-year-old girl? Thanks
We wish to replace our 2009 Mercedes A Class 1.8 diesel CVT with a similar, non-Mercedes CVT about the same size and power. What cars are available? We are having problems establishing which cars have...
Is there a problem with the automatic gearbox of the Ford Fusion? Ford are not making any new Fusion automatics at present. I have a Fusion diesel at present 7 years old and I am looking for a automatic...
On June 9th, 2011, I enquired about purchase of a new Jetta. A couple of weeks later I found a demo Jetta at the same dealer and took a test drive. This then became the subject of purchase and a VW finance...
After having a company car for 20 years I am now facing entering the wonderful world of car dealers and am feeling confused to say the least. I have been offered a Honda Civic 5 door ES model 1.8 petrol...
I agreed a good deal for a well - specced Volvo XC90 with a main dealer. We agreed the spec and the price by email. They took a large deposit over the phone. The next day they phoned to say that they had...
What, if anything, is the difference between a "pre-registered" car and a "nearly new" one?