Ask The Guide

You might find that the ignition barrel has collapsed internally, jamming the whole thing up and refusing to start the car. But before you call in the locksmith, try this: The ignition barrel on this car also operates the steering lock mechanism. If the key has been removed and the steering locked at a particular angle, you can have these very symptoms next time you try to start the car.

What’s happening is that the steering lock is resting against the little mechanism that frees it when you turn the key, making the key feel like it’s jammed. The solution is to pull the steering wheel one way or the other until you feel it move a millimetre or two. At that point, you might find the key will now turn freely.

If you jump online and do a search for this very thing, you’ll find a heap of distributors and manufacturers offering just what you’re after. Tonneaus for the Cannon are available in soft and hard formats, made from fibreglass or aluminium, and even versions that offer a roller-top function. If you can’t find what you’re after online, tackle one of the many off-road and ute stores that also stock a range of stuff like this.

If you go down the hard-tonneau route, consider one with central locking that can be paired with the locks on the rest of the vehicle. That way, you’ll have one-button unlocking of the cabin and the tray. It’s a lot less messing around than having a separate set of keys to unlock the cover.

Let’s get something straight right from the off: The Holden Calais and Holden Captiva are not close family members. While the Calais was an Australian-engineered and built car, the Captiva is a rebadged Daewoo and not a very good one at that. So don’t be tricked into thinking that because they both have a Holden badge and a V6 engine, that they’re peas from a pod.

The reality is the Captiva has an absolutely dreadful reputation in the trade for poor build quality and sketchy reliability. Most mechanics wouldn’t travel 500 metres to look at one, let alone 500 kilometres. I’d take a 231,000km Calais over any Captiva, old or new, any day.

Holden actually sold a lot of Captivas back in the day, mainly on price alone. But many who bought them then stood and watched as they things fell apart and soon began to cost plenty in repair bills. Doubtless there will be some out there who own and love their Captiva, but the reality is that these cars are best left well alone.

The 2022 Kluger does have Android Auto (and Apple CarPlay) but there’s a catch. While the Kluger’s Apple CarPlay will pair with a phone via Bluetooth, the Android Auto system needs the phone to be tethered to the car via USB cable. Try it again with a cable and you should have success. But it’s far from being as convenient as a Bluetooth set-up.

It’s a tough one isn’t it? But in the first instance, the filter replacement could simply have been overlooked on the job card when the mechanic was allotted to your vehicle. That said, I certainly hope you took the vehicle back and pointed out that you’d been charged for something you didn’t get. From the dealer’s reaction at the point, you might get a reasonable idea of how seriously this was taken at management level.

As for proof of oil changes, there’s a couple of things you can do. You can ask to see the old oil before it’s poured into the recycling drum, or you could even ask for a photo to be taken of the differentials and transfer-cases with their drain plugs removed to prove that the old oil was at least removed.

In the past, some car owners have even resorted to placing secret marks on various fasteners to make sure they’ve been undone by the mechanic. The trouble with that starts when the mechanic spots the mark they weren’t supposed to see. That’s when the customer-mechanic war really escalates.

Straight back to the dealer with this one. You either have a problem with the actual stereo unit, the screen that controls it or perhaps even the body computer which has the final say over functions like this one. Either way, it’s a warranty job for sure.

The dealer may be able to reboot the system to return it to normal operation, but whatever happens make sure the dealership logs and records the problem in case it comes back in the future. Sometimes even a problem that returns after the vehicle is out of warranty, if it was first detected when the vehicle was still under that warranty, may mean the problem is what’s called a pre-existing condition and the manufacturer is still obliged to fix it.

That’s a pretty comprehensive rebuild of the fuel system, so it’s possible that something that was removed at the time has gone back on not quite the way it was. A shuddering as you slow down suggests that the idle speed is perhaps a touch low. You should be able to adjust the ide speed fairly simply, so the first thing to try is to creep it up, say, 100rpm and see if the shudder goes away.

A mechanic will be able to do this quickly and easily. If that’s not the problem, you need to go back and double check every fitting and fastener to make sure there’s no air or fuel leak that is causing the engine to develop the staggers. Were the new injector seals treated to a dollop of rubber grease before they were installed? If not, there’s a chance that fitting them may have put a small tear in the rubber seal which is now leaking.

There’s a very good chance that your problem concerns the cable or linkage that connects the gearstick in the cabin with the actual gearbox. It’s very common for one cable or linkage to operate half the gears, and a second linkage to operate the rest. If this linkage has fallen off or become detached somehow, there’s no longer a physical link between the gearstick and the transmission selectors for those gears. At which point, it’s impossible to select the affected gears.

A quick check under the gearbox will confirm whether this is the case, and fixing it should also be a simple case of reattaching the linkage or possibly replacing a broken cable.

Some markets have indeed experienced problems with the Nissan CVT transmission as fitted to many of the brand’s vehicles. It doesn’t seem as widespread in Australia, but some faults have been identified.

That main problems seem to be overheated CVTs which can cause juddering when driving and premature wear inside the transmission. According to some in the trade, the fault is caused by a problem with the way the transmission fluid is cooled, and when it gets too hot it can cause warping of the metal parts inside the unit.

Ultimately, the solution would be to fit an external oil cooler for the transmission fluid, but otherwise, a close eye on the level of transmission fluid and correct servicing is the key to making the CVT last.

A squeak when taking off from rest could be anything from a brake problem to a wheel bearing fault, a noisy engine drive-belt, bent axle, a dry suspension bush, worn universal joint or just about a hundred other things, including the driveshaft you already suspect.

Of potentially greater concern is the cut-off exhaust system or, more correctly, the previous owner. Anybody who cuts up an exhaust to make more noise is also a likely candidate to have driven the vehicle hard. It might be better to find a vehicle that hasn’t been messed with and potentially abused.

A sawn-off exhaust system shouldn’t harm the turbocharger or engine, but it can make a difference to performance due to reduced back-pressure. It also makes me wonder what else has been changed of fiddled with in the name of more power. Sometimes the performance will actually be improved, but you also open a can of legal and insurance worms by changing things like factory exhaust systems in what is a fairly agricultural way.