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Thinking of selling your car and taking out a lease on a new car? Well, according to Manheim, the car auction house, now is a good time for you to sell you car as used car prices have been shooting up recently. An 8 month old ex rental car with less than 8,000 miles on is now fetching £2,200 more than it was a year ago. Manheim auctions increased their average sale price by 4% in July over June whilst British Car Auctions saw a 3% increase. Year on year prices are up by Read more »

This is becoming a real technology week, we’re now onto Sat Navs that save you fuel! Yep, I kid you not. Whilst the sat nav on my last car, a BMW 7 Series, insisted on taking me round in a complete circle in the middle of London for a good ¾ hour last Christmas and after averting a traffic jam on the M25, on many occasions, insisted on re-routing me straight back into the midst of the logjam, they think they have the technology to calculate the route that saves most fuel! Bosch are currently Read more »

First Hybrid cars that mix n match petrol power with battery power and now all electric cars, heavily supported by prime minister Mandleson, that will save the planet and will be the future, must have, green accessory! Oh no it won’t! Well not if the already frugal Citroen C1, modified by the Electric Car Corporation, continues to cover just 70 miles on a full battery and at a cost of £16,850, twice the cost of the standard petrol version. No way Jose? Having said that Read more »

Just as I see many more manufacturers embrace the ESP/ESC safety systems that help you to avoid an accident a new one emerges called FlexRay which is apparently set to become the new standard in safety devices moving us closer to the time when we don’t actually have to drive cars, just programme them and they get on and do it whilst we sit back and enjoy our freshly brewed Earl Grey and munch on a few choccy Hob Nobs whilst reading my blog FAQ’s received via your communications interface. It may all seem Read more »

If you are a formula 1 fan like me you will often hear comments being made about tyre temperature and its effect on grip. Well it’s not surprising to learn that weather conditions can not only affect the handling of the car but also the fuel consumption. In wet weather grip decreases but did you know that fuel consumption increases by up to 10% in a downpour, so best you stay at home when it’s raining hard. Also grip increases in hot weather but fuel consumption drops by 1-2% for every 5 degree Centigrade increase in temperature.  By Graham Hill

A warning to business users has been issued regarding proposed changes to the way that leases are accounted for. Currently if you lease a car the cost simply appears as an expense in the profit and loss account and notes regarding commitments in the accounts notes. However, new accounting proposals will see all leased assets appear on the balance sheet as Read more »

With more cars being fitted with air conditioning it is worth remembering that it comes at a cost. When trundling along the motorway it can cost up to 10% more in fuel usage and sitting in a traffic jam this can rise to 20% so it makes sense not to drive around with the air conditioning on for the sake of it and certainly don’t, as a friend did a few days ago, Read more »

A row has broken out between the Government and the Magistrates Association over proposals by the Department for Transport to introduce fixed penalties for careless driving. The proposal will give the police new powers to impose a fixed penalty of £60 and 6 points on the licence where a driver admits to an act of careless driving. The Magistrates Association is furious as they feel it diminishes the serious nature of Read more »

Now here’s a strange fact! When it comes to new cars the most popular colour constantly flips between black and silver with, strangely enough, white coming up on the inside rails. Who ever thought that white would ever make a return as one of the most popular colours for new cars, what next – chocolate brown or possibly beige? Anyway, for years the most popular colour for used cars has apparently been blue, replaced in the first quarter of this year, according to Manheim auctions, by Read more »

I mentioned in recent items the move in the industry from 3 rentals in advance to 6 rentals when contract hiring vehicles, suggesting that this could be as a result of  lenders requiring more security by taking larger upfront payments. It has now come to light that this is more likely to be the case and 6 advanced rentals likely to become Read more »