Ask The Guide

THERE could be many reasons, from a simple wiring problem -- and Korean cars tend to suffer from them -- to the coolant temp sensor. It may be difficult to trace, but I would start with the coolant sensor.

WE CALLED in the might of Toyota head office, which in turn went to the company's head office in Japan, and even then we couldn't help. It seems the company no longer stocks the window, although it did offer to make one for you. Unfortunately, it couldn't tell us how long it would take or how much it would cost. I'm thinking it's not a solution so I would suggest you keep trying wreckers, particularly ones who specialise in Toyotas, or try an automotive glass specialist like Windscreens O'Brien which might be able to make one for you.

IT'S DIFFICULT to give you an accurate value because it's a classic car and values are usually determined by how badly buyers want them. US vehicles built in the 1930s are not bringing big money, but your ute appears to be in good condition so it should attract a premium. I would say it's worth $8000-$10,000.

OUR aircon expert, Mark Lynch of Carcool Airconditioning, says your problem is caused by a faulty vacuum switching module, which is a common failure for a VT. Unfortunately, Mark says you will have trouble finding a new module and that fitting a module from a VX or later model requires lots of work because its a six-switch module that requires a modified vacuum loom, whereas the original was a five-switch module that is no longer available from GM. Mark says the best option is a second-hand one.

I WOULDN'T agree with rodding out the radiator every six months or so, I would rather try to eliminate the problem. If it is casting sand then I would have thought it would have been flushed out by now. Talk to a cooling system/radiator specialist and try to have the sand flushed out. There shouldn't be any affect on the lubrication system.

HAVE you done back-to-back testing with tyres inflated with air compared to tyres that are inflated with nitrogen? That's the only way you can accurately determine the effect of the nitrogen as an inflation medium. Most tyre experts will tell you nitrogen makes no difference under normal driving conditions.

THERE was a time when a car was thought to be worn out and worthless when it had done 100,000 miles or 160,000km, but technology has come a long way since those days and cars last much longer than they once did. While the average annual mileage on this car is low, it has still accumulated more than 250,000km, and that in my mind is high mileage. Cars don't wear out with time, its a function of kilometres covered, and this particular car has covered plenty of kilometres. It might still be a good car in good condition, but it's still well on its way to the end of the road. I would consider 100,000km or so to be low mileage on this car.

CarsGuide approached Ford for its help in solving Stephen's problem, and it sent an engineer to assess the car. A new set of brake pads was fitted and the car was given back to Stephen, apparently fixed. He thought otherwise and asked us to drive the car. The noise we heard was a swishing noise rather than a squeal. There are a couple of possible causes: a warped disc, or the park brake pads rubbing against the disc while driving along. The PBR park brake has a problem which allows the pads to drop out of position and rub on the disc. This can be checked by gently applying the park brake a notch or two while driving -- enough to reposition the park brake pads. If that's the cause, the noise will stop for a short time until the pads drop out of position again. If the noise does cease when the park brake is applied, there isn't a fix. If it doesn't go away, look for a warped rotor. The best fix is to install better quality rotors from a company such as Disc Brakes Australia.

THE E36 318i is a great small car. It's stylish, comfortable, well equipped and handles well. The performance is modest rather than exhilarating, but it gives good fuel consumption. They tend to consume front caster bar bushes, rear tyres and brakes. The latter can be expensive if you use original BMW parts, but there are plenty of independent specialists who can service the 318i and plenty of non-factory parts available at a more affordable price.

EITHER car would be fine for your purpose. But remember that whatever car you choose, it's likely to have lots of kilometres on the odometer. By all means try to find a Telstar or a Camry, my preference would be for Toyota as long as it's a four-cylinder model, but if you cast your net wider you might land a mint model of some other make. The key things with a car that old is to find one that's in good condition with the lowest odometer reading possible. Hopefully, you will find a car that has been lovingly looked after by its owner, and perhaps not often driven.