Ask The Guide

I’m reluctant to recommend the Touareg, or the X5 for that matter. They are good cars, but can be expensive when things go wrong, and they are more likely to go wrong than is a Prado. I would definitely go for the Prado.

It’s a security code. Go to a dealer selling the brand you have and they should be able to give it to you.

Is it getting hot when you’re driving it? A car can be hard to start, even sound like the battery is flat when you go to crank it, when it gets hot. Leaving it the extra time gives it a chance to cool down.

I am guessing it is a diesel. The diesel is known to blow at quite low kilometres and with no warning. Being just five years old, and having done so few kilometres I would approach Ford for help with the cost of repairs as a gesture of goodwill. They could argue that it is out of warranty, and that you bought it second hand, but I think you could argue that it is not reasonable to have an engine fail in these circumstances.

Normally you would expect it to be caused by being left out in the sun, but you say you haven’t. But while you say it’s been under cover all it’s life, it must have been taken out and driven at some time. Do you leave it parked in the sun for lengthy period at the shopping centre, or somewhere else you go? Check those places you park it for a hat source that might be causing it.

The Hilux is tempting because of its reputation for toughness and reliability; there are no particular years to avoid. The most important thing is to buy on condition, look for one that hasn’t been beaten up. Do that and you should be ok. You could also consider a Mazda BT-50 or a Mitsubishi Triton.

The third-generation BM-series Mazda 3 comes in two lengths, depending on the body shape. Sedans are 4580mm while the hatchback model comes in at 4460mm from nose to tail.

You don’t tell us what the car is, which makes it hard. Anyway, if you really believe it’s a lack of spark then check the ignition system, in particular the coil. If it’s an old distributor system, which it sounds like it could be, then replace the condenser.

Toyota Corollas can be fitted with a tow bar and used to pull trailers, but they are not designed to cope with much weight and should not be used for towing even medium-sized box trailers. For example, a current Corolla has a manufacturer tow capacity of just 450kg (unbraked) which includes the weight of the trailer in that figure! Toyota claims the Corolla can tow up to 1300kg if the trailer has brakes, but that again includes the weight of the trailer.

It’s difficult to say what could be causing the problem, because it would seem to be intermittent ad they are the hardest problems of all to solve. By turning it off you are in effect rebooting the computer, so it will run normally until the next time it detects the problem. To have any chance of diagnosing the problem it needs to be evident when the mechanic does his check. If it’s not there’s nothing to see. It could be a number of things; all you can do it to persist in the hope that it will show up during a diagnostic check.