UK Car Industry in Trouble

Just last month, Tata the new owners of Jaguar and Land Rover announced that 850 workers could lose their jobs. This was following a meeting with Lord Mandelson, the Business Secretary and attended by 17 senior representatives from the troubled motor industry. The representatives wanted a rescue package.

Today, the latest figures show that sales of new cars in the UK have fallen tremendously. The annual fall was the biggest since June 1980 - that's in 28 years. Read the BBC report: 'New car sales fall by one-third'.

Euro NCAP test results

Euro NCAP recently released the results of the test on 12 of Europe’s best-selling cars. These were for cars in the following categories: Supermini, Small Family, Large Family, Small Off-Roader, Pick up and Large MPV.

Apparently this is the last time the present rating system will be used. The new rating system will be launched in February 2009.

The cars which received the top score of five stars for adult occupant protection were the Alfa Romeo Mito, Ford Fiesta, Peugeot 308CC, Volkswagen Golf VI, Renault Megane, Honda Accord, Opel Insignia and the Volvo XC60.

However, some of the cars didn't do as well for child occupant or pedestrian protection.

Go over to the Euro NCAP site for more details.

Fuel prices go lower

I am delighted. I thought I would never see the day when petrol prices would go below the 90p mark. Well, today on my way back from the University, saw that petrol is now 89.9p.

I have to thank Asda for this new development. They were the ones who started the price war by lowering the fuel prices first of all. I think I will start shopping there even though it's a bit further away.

Battery down

Last weekend we were all set to go to Bristol for a day trip - all got into the car, TomTom ready and then the car refused to start. It was really frustrating. I suspected a run down battery but wa snot sure as I could still use the locking remote.

Waited till Monday this week. Called up RAC. A guy turned up promptly in less than an hour. He confirmed that the battery was down. Used his van to recharge the battery and my car started up without any problems. His diagnosis - "change the battery". They do sell batteries but it was way too costly - around £90.

Called up my regular workshop and they said they could replace it for a new one for only £75/

I decided to check out the workshop Ace Auto Parts and Accessories on the way to my son's nursery. Was really surprised when I found out that a brand new batter would cost me only £55/ inclusive of labour. The guy was friendly and had the battery changed in a couple of minutes.

Also noticed that they do battery, brakes and exhaust checks for free. Maybe later.

Here's the address:
Ace Auto Parts and Accessories
103, Radford Road, Radford
Coventry CV6 3BQ
Tel: 024 76601006

Least expensive cars to drive

Our Volvo is really comfortable but I have come to realise why it is a "luxury" car - it guzzles fuel. Now I find myself driving the old Ford Escort most of the time as it is more economical.

Anyway, just came across this article about the "Least Expensive Cars To Drive" on the Forbes site.
The Jeep Patriot

On the list are two Toyota cars, the Prius and the Yaris. However they have included two cars that I am wouldn't put under the "economical" category, namely the Cadillac DTS and the Jeep Patriot. However according to the article, the latter has a "has a long-term cost of ownership similar to that of the Toyota Prius."

Finding a repair shop with RepairPal

If you are a conscientious car owner like me, I am sure you have at one time or the other faced the problem of finding a suitable garage to repair or service your car.

Unless money is not an issue, it can really be time consuming and stressful to find a repair shop. One site in the US that is getting a lot of attention is RepairPal. Set up by a couple of auto enthusiasts and entrepreneurs in California, to make it easier for car owners to access a comprehensive auto shop directory and more. Their encyclopaedia page is filled with a lot of useful explanations of car related terms. Found it really useful.

You can get fair auto repair estimates in a few steps by choosing your car make, model, year, the service type you are interested in (for example, Timing belt replacement) and finally providing your zip code. Customers can then rate the shops as per their experience.

Signing up allows you to access a number of features including a place to maintain your car records. The will even email you when your car service is due. Definitely a useful site for all car owners.

Changing clutch on my Ford Escort

The problem with buying a used car, especially one that's older than 5 years, is that the parts start failing one after the other.

I have had clutch problems on my old Ford Escort from day one. Of late it had been giving me a lot of problems - the clutch was so damn hard that I used to have pain in my left leg driving anywhere. It was worst whenever there were traffic jams with short 'Stops and Gos'. However, last Monday, I got stuck at an intersection as the gears refused to go into first gear. I eventually managed to get it into first hear but that was really frustrating and that was it. Finally decided to have something done.

So this Tuesaday, I took the car back to the best Ford specialist in Coventry, KNS Autoparts. Left it in the morning and the car was ready by 5pm. It cost me £164.50 (inclusive of vat). Lot cheaper than what other garages were quoting - one said £300 before VAT and another £250.

I had a tough time adjusting to the new clutch - it' so soft. The car drives like a dream now. I am definitely not selling it anytime soon.