Ask The Guide

They could have either, but most engines today have chains following the spate of problems that occurred when most carmakers switched to belts to drive the camshafts in their engines. They went away from chains for a period because chains were more expensive than belts, and they were noisy, but belts deteriorated with time and when contaminated with oil and could fail if not replaced at regular intervals by owners who weren't aware of the need or chose to ignore it.

The problem you describe is a relatively common one with the Aisan auto Volvo uses. Volvo's fix is to reflash the TCM to alter the shift points, which seems to be what your dealer has done. Hopefully you won't have any more problems with it, but keep an eye on it.

Your need for low maintenance rules out the Europeans, Jeeps are popular but aren't as reliable as I think they should be, leaving you with the Japanese and Korean brands. The cars I would suggest you look at are the Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-5, Subaru Forester and Honda CR-V.

A Mitsubishi spokesman told us "the Pajero Sport has an audio system called Smartphone Link Display Audio (SDA) for both Android Auto (TM*1) and Apple CarPlay (TM*2). SDA allows users of either Android smartphones or iPhones to connect to the seven-inch built-in touch screen using a USB cable." From that the answer to your question would seem to be 'no'.

Your fuel consumption is way off the claimed consumption figures released by BMW. The company claims the X3 20i should get on average 7.3L/100km, 6.2L/100km on the highway, and 9.2L/100km in city driving. You have to allow for some variation on those numbers due to individual driving conditions, but to be so far out suggests there is something wrong with your car. I wouldn't expect it to reduce enough to get even close to those numbers simply by driving it. Have it checked by your BMW dealer.

The Everest has a longer list of safety features, a higher towing capacity, is more family-friendly, and drives nicer; the Prado is more refined, but feels dated, the Discovery Sport is a true off-roader with car-like road manners. The Discovery for mine. Another to try is the Toyota Fortuner.

The private price guide is $6000-$7500; the trade-in range is $4000-$5500; the dealer would offer around $4000. Yours, having such low kilometres, would be worth the top end of those price ranges.

It's possible they could be, but it's not possible to say with any certainty. Take some measurements of the Pajero seat and compare them with those in the Challenger. You could also ask a mechanic or a wrecker who specializes in Mitsubishis.

They all have child seat anchorages in the second row, but you're right that the Everest has anchorages in the second and third rows. The Everest would be the one to go for; it's got the most up-to-date cabin and would be best suited to your needs.

If you believe they have appeared while the car was garaged you have to look at the possibility of something, or someone, rubbing against the car. It could be while they're moving past it, perhaps carrying something that's rubbed up against the paint. If you cover the car while it's garaged it could be the cover rubbing on the paint, perhaps due to wind blowing through the garage.