April 2024
Hi All,
I'm looking for small SUV/Crossover with Automatic gearbox under £16 000, mainly city driving, short trips, up to 5000 miles a year. Would like to keep the car as long as possible (like 10 years or so). Requirements in order: 1. comfort, 2. reliability, 3.running cost, 4. car price... Read more
This weeks car review in the Sunday Times by Jeremy Clarkson gave a 4.5 star award to the Mazda 3 Saloon and not the usual selection of super cars.
Not like the usual mini SUV with some kind of preposterous and unnecessarily complicated hybrid drive system or they are fully electric which is even more stupid he argues . Mazda has no interest in any of this nonsense . They just develop and perfect the ICE. First a compression ratio of 15 .1 combining the characteristics of the diesel and petrol engine.... Read more
Mazda remained a niche brand in UK. They don't sell many cars and not many people are even aware that they exist.
Also it surprises me why they offer 6 years warranty in Ireland but only 3 years in UK....
I am looking for a reliable car and hoping to keep it for a long time. Ideally low and cheap maintenance. The car that is always mentioned for its reliability is the Yaris. I also like the new look of them.
However, now onto my concern is the battery issues which I’ve read online, it seems to be common. I drive twice a week usually. I am not sure if hybrid would be the right choice especially since I don’t drive often and I do not know if this will degrade the battery. But I like Yaris for its reliability and safety car.
Another question I have is that the majority of Yaris I have seen that are 21 plates have only done 7-12k mileage. I normally like low mileage on cars but would this be considered an issue with it being a hybrid?
I have also seen they do 10 year warranty and battery 15 year warranty. But I’m just not sure as with warranties they have such small lettering for what is under warranty. Is the warranty a more of a “gimmick”?
The yaris ticks all the boxes except the battery issue. I live in a remote area where public transport is lacking.
I am looking for automatic and open to other car suggestions if Yaris isn’t the best choice for me Read more
We took delivery of a new Yaris 2 1/2 weeks ago and at the time of order I was fully aware of the potential issue with the 12V battery. But having read the website and the on-line handbook it was clear that the solution was simple enough but you could argue that in 2024 it should not be necessary to do this.
Wife's cousin is on her 2nd Mk4 Yaris Hybrid and uses the car very day most short trips, never had an issue in 4 years....
Well the new transport has arrived. A 47,000 mile 2018 Mercedes C200 SE Executive Estate auto has now pushed old Terrance the Toyota to the back of the driveway. Initial impression are positive. It rides very well, unlike most modern cars. It managed just over 50mpg coming over from Edinburgh and it has plenty of go when required - a rare thing with me.
The seats are soft and comfortable, the gear change smooth and it feels like it’ll be a good place to sooth away longer runs in which is really what it’s for. It’s much more refined than the old Avensis and far more efficient. It’s also been very well cared for with only one minor scratch that is really hard to spot. The car is very pleasing to look at inside and out.
However I don’t think the quality behind the scenes is as good as the old Brit built Jap car. The bonnet release catch came off in my hand when I tried to get under the hood while giving it a polish and check over tonight. Quick Look online reveals that it’s a regular occurrence on these. Groping around down there trying to pop the thing back into place revealed some very poor quality plastics more akin to food packaging than a £40k car.
Hopefully I don’t have to haul myself back over to the other side of the country to have it fixed, the warranty should be honoured by our local Merc dealer. Read more
Found my code reader. Fault code P0128 refers to engine not getting up to full temp quickly enough. Cleared it and (so far) it hasn’t returned. Assuming it was a glitch caused by the car sitting for a fortnight.Sounds like a thermostat issue. It's a very common problems on MBs of a few years ago, wasn't aware it was still common but knowing MB they are probably still using the same part
If it does it again the solution will be a new thermostat....
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I had been considering downsizing to a smaller automatic car for a while. After seeing the new generation Clio at my local Renault dealer, I arranged a test drive of the E-tech version and decided to get one. My verdict, Love it. Quick off the mark, pulls away in electric mode, engine fires up seamlessly when needed, nice smooth auto box that 'creeps' at low speed just like a torque convertor transmission. There's plenty of power for overtaking tractors and horse boxes, with good fuel economy too. I am getting around 55mpg driving in a semi rural area doing mainly short journeys. Renault say that the maximum distance the car will travel in EV mode is under 2 miles. The 1.2kW traction battery is charged when decelerating or braking, there is no facility to plug into the mains. In spite of this, nearly half of the first 1000 miles has been covered in EV mode. The data log reads
Total distance 1004.6 miles... Read more
Yep - upmarket quality costs, even if it has only one engine.
Quite so. Peugeot's upmarket quality see's them a whole 2 places ahead of Renault in What Car's 2023 reliability survey (but 7 places behind Citroen.........
Hi guys
I currently have a 2000 MX5 and like every other MX5 the rust is getting to it. Its got its MOT coming up and I am not as confident that it will get through this year! If... Read more
Thanks for the suggestion.
I have no problem driving an older car. The problem is, I do such a low mileage this car would be my daily driver and I don't have a garage to store it in. ...
Just taken delivery of a new Swift and running it for a couple of weeks.
I’ve done a predominantly motorway 180 mile drive in it so far, but initial impressions are very positive.
There are two trim levels, Motion and Ultra, with Motion supplying lots of standard equipment (including heated front seats, adaptive cruise control, wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay, rear parking camera).
Ultra adds climate control (as opposed to manual A/C), electrically folding door mirrors and a heater vent for rear passenger, amongst other features.
It’s a new engine, a 1.2 three pot with mild hybrid and a five speed manual (CVT is available as an option, as is AWD). 82PS doesn’t sound overly impressive, but it seems a torquey little thing and will keep up with traffic. Motorway cruising is very quiet, thought I could do with a slightly longer seat runner on it, just to get another notch back.
A 9” touch screen sits high on the dashboard, but there are lots of physical buttons around.
64.2mpg is the combined WLTP figure, this one did 58 from a brand new engine on a 70/73mph cruise home on Thursday.
This is a huge car for Suzuki, hoping to capitalise on the disappearance from the market of a couple of B segment hatches - namely Fiesta and Ibiza.
It’s in dealers now, with preview evenings happening over the next couple of weeks.
Read more
Just collected our new Swift Ultra, saved 20% off list with Griffin discount scheme, so quite a saving. Anyway very impressed so far. Only niggle for my wife is the quite high clutch bite point compared to any of her previous cars. I also noticed it, but soon got used to it after a couple of near stalls. Hopefully she soon gets used to it. MPG so far, if computer is accurate, high 60’s.
Also should mention that car comes without spare tyre or tyre inflater kit, so get a puncture and you are helpless. I have bought a space saver and toolkit off eBay seller.
I have taken out a 2 year lease (not PCP/.finance etc) on the 3008, which made financial sense for us given our particular circumstances.
The car was not delivered on the day, and on inquiring with lease company late afternoon, they said that the dealer advised that the car developed a mechanical fault on its way. They first said it was a recall issue, and then also added that the dealer said something about MLT. They didn't know what that meant. Sounds suspiciously like a "Management Light something" to me. ... Read more
Order cancelled....
Renewal appeared in my inbox today.
... Read more
I do have a Blue Light card, ORB and did look to see if I could see any breakdown offers but failed.
However to have secured another year with AutoAid for the two of us covering both cars for £57 all in is fine by me....
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If you have got the CX30, lovely car, make sure you buy a couple of cheap Faraday pouches for the keys. This has, in my case, solves the battery drain and the inadvertent hatch opening issues.