Ask The Guide

Check the brake fluid level, it could be a warning for low fluid.

That’s a difficult call to make. The car has done quite a few kilometres and is in the twilight of its life. If it’s been properly serviced all its life to date and you continue to service it well you should be able to keep on top of any issues that crop up. But at the same you should anticipate that problems might occur more often now, and that will involve more expense. Looking forward you need to decide if you want to gamble on it giving little or no trouble, or get out of it. If you are not sure about it get out of it now.

It sounds like the Cruze automatic transmission gremlin has struck. In the past Holden has come to the party with some or the entire repair costs, but that was some time ago when the car was near new. As yours is seven years old Holden might not be as cooperative. Even so it would be worth calling Holden (1800 033 349) and lodging a claim for compensation.

The best approach is to buy a car from a well-respected brand, and stick with an Asian brand such as Toyota, Mazda, Hyundai or Kia rather than an European one. Models to consider would be a Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Hyundai i30 or Kia Cerato.

No, I don’t believe it would be some sort of trick to get more business. Have you been servicing it at a Mercedes-Benz dealership, or perhaps a regular mechanic? It could be a reset glitch after the last service.

A better option for someone with a tribe to transport would be a peoplemover, such as the Kia Carnival, Hyundai iMax, or VW Transporter. They’re made for that purpose and much more practical than an SUV.

Not if you use a mechanic who knows their way around a Range Rover. There are mechanics that specialise in them and they know them best.

I wouldn’t recommend using ULP, you’ll lose performance, economy, and possibly affect the reliability of the turbo engine.

You’ve possibly drowned something. I doubt it’s the coil, because it seems for your description that the starter is not working. Dry everything in the engine bay that could have been affected by water and see if that cures the problem. You could also try jump-starting it.

It sounds like it is going into ‘limp home’ mode, which cuts the performance of the car but still lets you drive it at a much reduced pace to get it fixed. But it appears to happen at random, which makes it hard for mechanics to trace and fix. It is most likely a problem with the electronics, so if it continues to occur I would suggest you sit down with the dealer and work out a plan of action to hopefully find the cause and fix it.