Hi John,

I bought my 1st new car this year. A $50,000+ Mitsubishi pajero. I selected a white one so if it had to be repaired there would not be any complications with the paint match etc. I had minor collision, reversed it in to a tree: about $2000 worth.

I am taking it back to an aami assessor tomorrow for the 4th time. I am asking them to replace it with a new vehicle which I told them I would do if it wasn't right on the 3rd attempt. Painting cars is a very trickey job as I have repaired a lot of cars myself over the last 40 years. With state of the art equipment they have today.There is no exuse not to doisfactory job.Regards col.

PS I love your radio shows on Radio 2UE - both the weekend motoring & general midnight to dawn show.

Sincerely,

Colin

Q&AJohn Cadogan18 November 2013aami, crash repair, panel beating, panel beater, panelbeater, spray painting Comment

Help Selling my 2010 Honda Civic Limite Edition

Hello John,

I listen to you on Radio 2UE. Is it possible to advise me on selling my Honda Civic 2010? It's a Limited Edition Vti 54,000km, one lady owner all logs done, excellent condition. No interest from Gumtree, Carsales, Carsguide. I have dropped price from $16,500 to $15,998.

Regards,

Gypsy Rose

Q&A, hondaJohn Cadogan11 November 2013honda, civic, q&a, sale, used car, private sale, redbookComment

Can I Get my New Car Serviced by an Independent Mechanic?

You can save hundreds of dollars – and in some cases thousands – if you organize your servicing outside the authorized dealer network. And your warranty absolutely will survive if you play by three simple rules.

Here’s everything you need to know to save big bucks and keep your warranty on track.

Frankly...

Which Tyres Should I Buy?

I love tyres. Obviously. Who doesn't? Here's what you need to know when you need to replace them.

Is This a Ford Design Defect or Fair Wear & Tear?

QUESTION

(Via Twitter) @cadoges: In relation to your latest Volkswagen post, Ford Australia has a similar culture of denial surrounding customer service. Ford Falcon SR '08. Driver's seat plastic trim cracked. Very common. 100mm crack after only 20,000km. Outside warranty. Paid $114 to replace. Cracked again after 2000km/9 months. They say 'wear and tear'. Contacted Ford head office. They don't want to know.They say dealer is their 'eyes'. E-mailed service manager twice. No reply.

@Martin_Sanna (over several tweets)

ANSWER

In my book (and I used to be an engineer) that's a textbook...

John Cadogan16 October 2013Comment