Ask The Guide

There’s no reason why the Polo wouldn’t handle the country conditions well, it’s well built and strong, I don’t see why you shouldn’t buy it.

It’s recommended that you use 95-octane Premium unleaded in the RS, and that’s what I would use. You could damage the engine using 91.

It’s hard to believe there was no warning before the engine blew. The engine would not instantly overheat the moment the coolant was dumped and there would have been some signal to indicate all was not well. If Mazda are refusing to talk to you, you could take it to VCAT and make a claim.

It sounds about right to me. Replacing a clutch in a car today is not a cheap exercise.

The best option would be to contact Holden (1800 033 349) and ask them to fix it. They will most likely come to the party for at least part of the cost, which would be much cheaper than if you were to have it fixed yourself.

It is quite common for a carmaker to offer to pay for parts, i.e. the transmission, and charge the owner for the labour. While you would like to think Holden would pay for everything the car is eight years old and well beyond its warranty period. If you would like to pursue Holden for the total cost contact its customer service (18000 033 349).

I could, but you haven’t supplied the model year, which is crucial to determining the price.

They did to wear out clutches relatively quickly, and the cost to replace them was high because you had to replace the dual-mass flywheel as well as the clutch. The way around it is to fit an aftermarket heavy-duty clutch and solid flywheel.

Go to a dealer and ask them to help you, phone the relevant carmaker, or you could try a car radio specialist.

The car’s electronic brain has observed some issue with the engine. Take it to a dealer or a mechanic with diagnostic gear and they should be able to isolate the cause and fix the problem.