Reports

How can I tell if my car can safely use e10 unleaded petrol?

I have been reading your answers to many questions about cars. I just want to ask what are thoughts about CVT vs Sports Automatic.

I have done 265,000km in my 2002 Mazda 323 SP20. Someone said if I change the injectors and fix the wheel bearings it should keep going OK. I need a reliable car as I drive from Menai to Wollongong (65km) four days and week. Rego is due in July. If I spend $20,000 to $25,000 max on a new car would you recommend a Hyundai Veloster, Hyundai i30, Volkswagen Golf or Mazda3?

Ford, Holden and Toyota blame everyone and everything (except themselves) for the demise of local car making. The Federal government blames the opposition, and vice-versa. And the Victorian and South Australian premiers blame the feds. It’s all political buck-passing. Here’s what really killed car-making Down Under:

Should BMW rotate my tyres during service?

Only elite racing drivers get to experience - routinely - three or four Gs. The rest of us can only dream … or maybe not. The video above is - quite possibly - insane. Pathalogically. Crazy. But cool. But definitely crazy. It’s one of the most profoundly comfort-zone obliterating experiences you’ll ever have.

It's very hard to know where any car is really made. It's easy to presume, and be dead wrong. In practise, the car industry does not want you to know. And yeah; it matters. We've got allegedly German cars built in South Africa, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic and Spain. So-called Japanese cars that come from 'Straya, the UK, India and Thailand.We’ve got notionally American cars coming from Mexico and Canada, and allegedly South Korean cars coming from the Czech Republic and India. There are even French cars coming from South Korea, and Italian cars from Poland. It’s a multi-cultural motoring mish-mash, and the car industry really doesn't want you to think too hard about it. Not on the cusp of writing that big, fat cheque. Especially ze Chermans.

Mercedes-Benz took a potshot at free-market competition recently, firing a gravity bomb into insurers, but what they’re really doing is trying to engineer a monopoly, so they can rip you off, with impunity, until the end of time. Mercedes-Benz even calls them "counterfeit" parts - framing the debate conveniently as if alternative suppliers of parts are in some way criminals, or perhaps black marketeers. In fact, what they are, are direct marketplace competitors.

I want to make use of the EOFY sales and want to buy a Toyota Kluger GXL. It advertises the full drive away price (12 month rego and ctp) as around $55k. How much do you think I can realistically haggle it down to?

I have had a few wheel alignments and I feel the car is still pulling to the left. Some mechanics say it's supposed to pull to the left for safety reasons-if one falls asleep at the wheel it won't veer onto on-coming traffic. Is that right? It seems to be worse on some roads more than others. It's a 2011 Hyundai i30.

You can save hundreds of dollars if you get your car serviced by an independent mechanic. And your new-car warranty absolutely will survive. Here’s everything you need to know to save the cash and keep your warranty intact.  According to the ACCC, provided you comply with three sensible conditions, your warranty will survive. Unfortunately, though, many car owners just don’t understand the rules of this game. 

To rectify this fault, I have been informed that a new module will cost in excess of $3000!!! I have also been informed that a second hand unit will not suffice, because the module is suitable for a single vehicle use only. As I understand it, if a used module is simply transferred from one car to another, the computer becomes "confused" and it will not run at all. John, may I ask if this scenario sounds reasonable to you?

We have a relatively heavy caravan and we are towing it with a Toyota HiLux. Frankly, the HiLux is not coping too well and we need to upgrade. What vehicle would you suggest? The GVM of the van is 2330kg, and we have a budget of approximately $75,000.

I was told by a friend that if you occasionally put some methylated spirits into the petrol tank (say half a cup) that it absorbs any water that may have accumulated on the bottom. Do you believe that?

Hi John, What is your opinion on hydrogen generators for cars? (The ones that are available on the internet.) I enjoy your talkback program on Brisbane Radio 4BC.

I hope you can help. The VSA indicater light on my (wide bodied) Honda Accord instrument panel is on constantly. A Honda dealer did the normal "diagnostic " check and quoted $1300 for a new yaw sensor. I rang a wrecking yard and was told they had the right model and the sensor would cost me $200 - except they couldn't find where it was.

How to find a cheap car loan for a Mazda CX-5 Akera - and how to engineer the best possible discount on the price

Australian car owners are systematically ripped off on spare parts. Here's how you can sidestep the process, and - potentially - save thousands.

French carmaker Citroen is a very small player in Australia on the Australian automotive landscape – just 1500 sales annually. That’s less than 0.2 per cent of total vehicles sold. So: who would actually want one? I taste tested the top three cars in the range to find out