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As car manufacturers continue to beat a path to the Chancellor’s door I ask myself what they are going to ask for? We already know that cars in the UK are overpriced so why not cut prices in order to stimulate sales. On the other hand, as Lord Mendelson has suggested, it is the funding that needs to be looked at in order to make it possible and affordable for the public and small businesses to drive new cars and Read more »

If you like to drive a prestige car and have thought that owning is a much better option consider the Bentley GT Coupe owner whose car is now depreciating at £500 more per week more than it did 12 months ago which means, according to trade newspaper Fleet News that it has depreciated by more than £67,000 in its first year, that’s a staggering 56% off its new price of £120,000. Who said that owning a car is the best option?? By Graham Hill

On the question of fuel, if you have been convinced that bio fuel is a much better option and your car is still covered by the manufacturers warranty you should check to see if using bio fuel affects your warranty. Unlike the EU it has ruled that each country can set its own levels of biodiesel concentration and that there is no mandatory need to label fuel at the filling stations. It is well known that a concentration of over Read more »

As motorists attempt to save costs in the current recession many are reducing the number of miles they are travelling and keeping speed down. Whilst this is great in terms of costs, safety and the environment it may not be so great if you are a diesel driver. First of all you may find that covering very low mileage makes the new generation petrol engines far more fuel efficient than the equivalent Read more »

What would you really like to drive? Over the years I have helped many thousands of businesses and individuals to drive ‘better’ cars. For some a ‘better’ car has actually been the car of their dreams, for others it has meant a lot more car for their budget and for others the car they had planned on driving but for much less money. Every client has different aspirations and there are of course Read more »

Motoring organisations have warned motorists not to look to save motoring costs, in these difficult times, by not having their car serviced on time. Certainly shop around to get the best deal and don’t forget under the European rulings you no longer need to have cars serviced at main dealers to retain the warranty cover so you can use garages and fast fit service centres, charging much lower hourly rates than Read more »

When was the last time you checked your tyre pressures? Michelin has found that 60% of motorists are driving on under inflated tyres after it carried out a nationwide survey. This can seriously affect grip and therefore safety, tyre wear and fuel consumption. I know it’s cold but that 5 minutes taken to check the tyres would be time well spent. By Graham Hill

Mini takes the prize for the car that holds it’s value best according to EurotaxGlass. After 3 years travelling average mileage the Mini diesel retains 63.3% of it’s original value although this is down from its high of 71% in 2007. The worst performer was the Alfa 166 which at the end of 3 years with 37,000 miles on the clock is worth just 12% of its original cost. Amazing! By Graham Hill

After a strong NO vote for the western extension of the congestion charging in London (67%) Boris Johnson will scrap the scheme introduced by Ken Livingstone in 2007. This will halve the size of the congestion charging zone and as many have suggested with little effect on the environment. So why are other cities still hell bent on introducing the schemes elsewhere in the country when no one really wants them? This year is decision year for many proposals, I wonder if many other cities will follow the new London Mayor’s example and let the people decide or will they have their motoring costs substantially increased without any say? Time will tell but one thing is for certain something needs to be done but is the solution congestion charging? By Graham Hill

Let me give you a scenario. You buy a car for £10,000 which you finance over 3 years either by HP or a personal loan, either way you own the vehicle at the end of the 3 years after paying back the £10,000 along with the interest charges. You then sell the car for its market value. I, on the other hand, decide to buy exactly the same car for £10,000 but finance it using a Personal Contract Purchase (PCP). The man in the dealership has told me that there is a final figure allowed on the car of £4,000 which I can either pay to own it or Read more »