What's the best family car for £3000?

I'm after a cheap family estate or hatchback to get a dog, kids and and pram into. Ideally, I'd like a diesel Ford Mondeo, but only cover 24 miles a day. What do you suggest I buy? I have £3000 to spend.

Diesel Corsa blowing blue smoke on start up

My Vauxhall Corsa 1.3 diesel has stated blowing blue smoke on start up. The exhaust usually clears after a few minutes, under acceleration, and the car drive fine. I've also had the injectors checked,...

Diesel in oil - how has this happened?

I had the ‘Engine Malfunction’ warning light on my Ford Mondeo (2008) recently. I took the car to my local dealer and they said it was down to a faulty sensor and reset it. However, the car has now died...

Why does my Ford Mondeo stall in cold weather?

I have a repetitive problem with my 2002 Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDCi - the car stalls in cold weather It only happens for the first few hundred metres and only when I stop accelerating and it drops to idle...

Why is my Vauxhall Vectra so noisy?

I recently bought a 2002 Vauxhall Vecta diesel. The car drives fine, but the engine is really noisy. Is this normal for this type of car?

Saab 9-3 turbo problems

I own a Saab 9-3 1.9 TDI (2006) and recently the engine management light came on, with lots of black smoke coming out of the exhaust. The EGR was replaced, along with the mass air flow and the ECU light...

Why does the engine fan continue to run after the car's switched off?

We have a Skoda question: from time to time the engine cooling fan our new (2014) Octavia 2.0 TDi continues to run for an interminable period after the engine has been switched off. I understand in principle...

Replacing a Alfa Romeo 159

I currently run an Alfa Romeo 159 2.4JTD , which I love, but is getting long in the tooth. Do Alfa Romeo build anything that will compare with my 159?

Can I trust the 1.8TSI Skoda engine?

I have found a very nice 2010 Skoda Octavia L&K DSG with 58,000 miles on the clock. However, the car has the problematic 1.8TSI engine. I've read the bad entries on the Octavia section and the 'oil consumption'...

Buying a used Nissan Qashqai - is the 1.6 diesel rare?

I am considering buying a two year old Nissan Qashqai (2012) from a non-franchise dealer. It is described as having the 1.6dCi engine rather than the 1.5dCi, and thus being "rare". Could the larger engine...