Articles by David Morley

One of the nicest things about buying a brand new car is that it should (on balance) be just about as good as it will ever be. And if there’s something amiss, then there’s the factory warranty to fall back on. But a second hand car? Not so much.Buying a used car requires a smarter, more analytical approach if you’re to avoid buying a dud. And a large part of that approach is knowing how to inspect a used car. Conducting a meaningful pre-purchase inspection sounds simple, but there’s a bit to it. There are two main ways to go about this, too.The less-hassle way is to engage the services of a company that specialises in the pre-purchase inspection, or a mechanic that you trust, to inspect the car in question and give you an idea of what’s wrong with it and how much it might cost to put right.A professional will know exactly what to look for when inspecting a car. This can cost anything up to several hundred dollars depending on where the car is, the mechanic’s hourly rate and how deep a dive you specify for the inspection.The final question of how much for a mechanic to inspect a used car should be factored into the total cost of the transaction at the outset, along with transfer and registration fees and stamp duty.The second method is to save a little money in the first instance and perform the inspection yourself. But get it wrong and those dollars you saved at first might disappear - and then some – if you miss something important. But if you know what you’re looking for, have the basics covered and can tackle the process logically and patiently, then performing your own pre-purchase inspection is definitely doable.To be honest, there’s probably a whole book to be written on this subject, but the basics of this process haven’t really changed over the decades apart from new technology requiring a few new skills.So where do you start on your pre-purchase check of any second-hand car, and what are the hard and fast rules? Just knowing what to check for is a great start. And that starts with the service books.The contents of these should tell you lots about how the car has been cared for and maintained. Missing service books (they should be in the glove box) is a warning sign as this suggests the owner doesn’t take much notice of routine maintenance. Not a good sign.You should also find receipts for any work on the car or new parts that have been fitted. Even a new set of tyres should be evident in the paperwork, so take the time to read it all rather than just flick through it in the driveway.Even before you meet the seller, you should be starting your inspection of the car. How the car looks in the driveway as you pull up to the seller’s house. Does the car sit nice and level side to side? Is it all one colour? Is it parked in a driveway or on the street? Does it look neglected in any way? Is it filthy dirty and full of junk inside? Would you be seen dead in it? All these things can tell you a lot about what you might expect as you dig deeper.And all this is dependent on rule number one of car inspections: Never look at a car in the dark, under artificial light or in the rain.Without good natural light you won’t see the minor variations in paint colour that suggest previous body repairs. Or the little scratches and dings that turn a nice car into an ordinary one. Even a wet car can hide paint or panel damage that you won’t see until it’s dried off in your driveway. If the seller has hosed the car off before you arrive, ask why.Beyond that, the body inspection needs to focus on damage, repairs and paint quality, as well as making sure there’s no rust or missing bits and pieces. Be extra wary of a car sporting fresh, shiny paint rather than the original paint it came with. That new paint could be hiding absolutely anything including poor repairs and rust that will pop out from under the paint in six months’ time to ruin your day. A low-powered magnet (like the ones real estate agents issue for your fridge) can be useful as a tool to make sure there’s no plastic filer under the paint (the magnet won’t stick to plastic as well as it clings to the metal around such a repair).Take a long, hard look down each side of the car, too. Do the panels and trim strips line up? Is the reflection in the paint uniform and not rippled (suggesting bent or badly repaired panels). And is the paint the car’s original colour? Nothing says repaired bodywork like a custom or one-off colour.Let’s move to the mechanical stuff. A look under the bonnet will tell you more than you might think. As well as checking for oil leaks, you can also pull out the dipstick and check the oil level.A car that’s low on oil is probably a neglected one, but there’s more to be learned here. How clean is the oil? It should be a nice, light brown colour. But if it’s black and thick, it either hasn’t been changed in a long time, or the inside of the engine is dirty (another sign of neglect).Of course, this only applies to petrol engined cars; diesels, even when they’re brand new, will turn their fresh engine oil black in seconds. Even so, the level should be correct.While you’re in there, check for oil leaks, loose belts, depleted power-steering fluid and – provided the engine is cold – the level and colour of the coolant.There are exceptions, but if the contents of the radiator is clear, it could be tap water which is more neglect. Most coolant is either green or red and that’s what you want to see. Check the condition of the radiator hoses, too. They should not be showing cracks or have gone hard (with age).Now take a good look at the rest of the car. The tyres should have plenty of tread left and you should also try to check things like the thickness of brake pad material remaining. This can be difficult to do within the confines of a driveway, as can checking things like the condition of the exhaust system and whether the shock absorbers are leaking or not.If it’s not possible to get under the car with a torch to check this stuff, you might have to rely on the other crucial part of any inspection; the test drive.Any used car test drive checklist begins with starting the engine and having a good look and listen without actually going anywhere. Ideally, you’ll start the car with a dead cold engine, and if the seller has already started the car before you arrived, you need to ask why.If possible, organise to come back the next day and start the engine from cold. That’s because a cold start can tell you lots about the engine.Just about any car made in the last 40 years will be fitted with electronic fuel-injection which, if all is well, should allow the car to start immediately and without hesitation, and the engine should settle into a smooth idle pretty much straight away. If it doesn’t, something’s wrong.The cold start is also when you should listen for anything like loose belts or knocks and rattles from the engine and whether there’s any smoke from the tailpipe (there shouldn’t be any).If the owner agrees, you should do the driving on the test drive. An experienced owner will often be able to 'drive around' problems the car may have and you won’t spot them. So doing your own driving is key. Don’t be afraid to let the seller come with you; they may be able to add details about the car as you go.What you’re listening, looking and feeling for is anything the car does wrong. Does it pull up in a straight line when you apply the brakes? If not, why not? Is the acceleration smooth and the engine quiet under load? Does the suspension feel nice and tight or does the car rattle and clang over even small bumps?Don’t forget the detail stuff, either. Make sure all the electrical gear works properly, and don’t forget the cruise-control. The air-conditioning is worth a test, too, to make sure it blows cold and that there are no horrible smells inside the cabin when you turn the air conditioning on.Oh, and make sure there are no warning lights lit up on the dashboard. Even if the seller insists it’s nothing major, a check-engine light on the dashboard automatically means the car is unroadworthy.There are no hard and fast rules on how to test drive a car, but abusing it mechanically is not part of the process. Drive it as you would normally, but don’t forget to give it a burst – where it’s safe to do so – of full throttle to make sure it pulls cleanly and smoothly. Juddering steering or brakes mean big repair bills down the road, and if it doesn’t feel 'right' it probably isn’t.In the old days, there was a used car inspection check list of things you needed to take with you to inspect a any second hand car. Now, it’s pretty much all contained within your mobile phone.You can use the phone’s torch to check out any dark corners of the engine bay, the camera to record details for later, including the VIN and any other information including the registration number and even the licence details of the seller.But don’t ignore this stuff, as a proper pre-purchase check of the car’s legal and ownership status is a must to avoid buying a stolen car, a car that still part-owned by a finance company or even a car that has been repaired after a bad crash.Of course, we’ve kind of focused here on buying a car privately, but, really, the exact same rules apply if you’re buying a used car from a licensed used car dealer.The difference is that, depending on the car, its mileage and age, a dealer (in most parts of Australia) has to provide a warranty which takes a bit of the pressure off you. That said the question of what do you need to test drive a car at a dealership and get it right, remains the same as any other car.

You hear the term all the time, but what is a muscle car? To be honest, there’s no hard and fast definition. Just as a coupe can be either a two-door or four-door car depending on your point of view, different enthusiasts will describe the muscle car concept differently, and there’s a range of debatable points on offer.

Here’s a perennial one for the conspiracy theorists out there: Is there such a thing as a water-powered car?

Australians don’t tend to haggle much. We generally don’t like it, and our society is structured in such a way that it’s difficult to imagine haggling over the price of, say, your lunch, a movie ticket or a day’s parking at the airport. But there are times when haggling and negotiating can save you plenty of cash.Next time you’re buying a new fridge or other appliance, don’t be too shy to ask if that’s the best price the store can do. You might be amazed at how quickly the salesperson can knock off a few dollars. Sometimes more.And then there’s buying a car. Without a doubt, this is your greatest opportunity to shine as a negotiator. Buying a brand new car can involve negotiating, but the real haggling comes into play when you’re buying second-hand.Frankly, neither car dealers, private sellers, nor even most buyers expect to pay the full asking price on a used car. That’s just how the market has developed, but it remains that it’s a great way to save yourself a few bucks and maybe even a few thousand bucks in the right situation.Okay, we’ve decided that haggling for a used car is acceptable, but when you tackle the issue of how much can you negotiate on a used car Australia imposes some regional considerations.Toyotas in regional areas, for instance, are often snapped up within hours of being offered for sale. So you won’t gain much of a discount in that case. Which is another way of saying it all depends on the the seller and the car itself.So let’s break it down into the two main ways of buying a used car and our favourite used car price negotiation tips. Knowing how to negotiate car price discounts won’t make buying a second hand car any less painful, but it can leave more cash in your pocket.Dealers are always more expensive than private sellers. That’s for a variety of reasons including the fact that a dealer has to make his or her living from selling cars, as well as the fact that they must offer more buyer protection than a private seller.That includes things like guaranteeing the car in question is not stolen, providing a roadworthy where necessary and even offering a warranty on used passenger cars above a certain price (it varies from state to state).Here's the reality: Used-car dealers expect you to want to negotiate. Even if it doesn’t spiral downwards into some kind of Monty Python haggling farce, there’s still often a bit of fat built into the price to account for this. That means you drive away in your new used car thinking you got a deal and the dealer still feeds their family.But here’s the other reality: Used-car dealers are experts at this game. Just as the house always wins in the case of a casino, a used-car dealer will never sell you a car for less than they need to.Oh sure, they’ll try all sorts of psychological stuff on you like disappearing for a minute or two to 'check with the boss if they can go that low', or maybe make you feel guilty for squeezing them so hard, but ultimately, there’s a bottom-dollar price for that car and it’s your job to get as close to that figure as possible.Don’t be afraid to go back and forth and don’t think you’ll offend them by aiming low. Trust us, they’ve heard it all before. Anybody without a thick skin doesn’t last long selling used cars at a dealership.Knowing exactly what you’re looking at might help, too. Make sure that if you’re paying the price for the top-spec model, you’re getting that exact car. New cars are often sold with add-ons that make them appear like the more expensive model, but aren’t.Don’t get caught out by that one, as the badge on the boot lid doesn’t always tell the whole story. A mid-spec car with the sunroof option is not the same as the top-shelf model with the same sunroof as standard.Ultimately, buying a car from a licensed dealer is always going to be a case of the amateur (you) versus the professional (the dealer). So the trick becomes one of calling in your own experts.Don’t be afraid to make any sale conditional on an independent inspection either by a specialist in that make and model, usually your own mechanic or your state motoring club. If the dealer doesn’t want to play ball, there’s probably a mechanical reason for that.Don’t however, be fooled into thinking the dealer’s own mechanical inspection will be either thorough or completely accurate. We’re not saying all car dealers are dodgy (far from it) but you will still find the odd one prepared to ignore mechanical faults in order to unload the car to somebody (you, again).But always keep in mind, no matter how well you think the deal is going, a car dealer will always have more knowledge of how to extract dollars from buyers, than the average buyer will ever have knowledge of how to negotiate car price discounts.Trust us, a seasoned car dealer can smell a cashed up second-hand car buyer from around the corner.So much for second-hand car specialists, what about new car dealerships that sell their trade ins as used cars? Can you negotiate used car prices at a dealership and how much will dealers come down on a used car?The first answer is absolutely. Just like new cars, most traditional dealerships will always be open to offers on a used car taking up space on their lot. If they don’t sell it through the dealership, it’ll be wholesaled for a lot less money.As for how much they’ll negotiate, it’ll come down to the same factors that used car yards and private sellers deal with; the quality of the car, its desirability, rarity and how many kilometres it has covered.Here is perhaps the most important thing to know about buying a second-hand car from a private seller: For every licensed car dealer prepared to cut a few corners or paper over the odd fault, there are probably 10 private sellers willing to commit the same – or worse - deceptions.And that’s mainly because there are no meaningful legal ramifications. A licensed dealer will be at the mercy of Australian Consumer Law should they be caught pulling a swift one. But a private seller will just claim ignorance and leave you holding the oil-leaking, rusty, rattling baby and a big repair bill. And a warranty from a private seller? Don’t be silly.So you really need to be on your toes because the private seller doesn’t even need to provide a roadworthy certificate provided you’re prepared to buy the car (in some states) with its registration suspended. This is taking a big chance, indeed.Negotiating a lower price than the asking price relies largely on a battle of the wills (yours and theirs). So step one is make sure you don’t fail the attitude test. Strolling in to the seller’s front yard and picking the car to bits in front of them is a great way to have the seller on the back foot from the word go.Sure, you need to identify the flaws and problems, but pointing them out to the owner is not going to help your cause. You actually want the seller on your side (strange though that sounds) as amicable dealings often generate the best results.Meantime, you will need to use the car’s flaws as bargaining chips during the negotiation, but simply condemning the car on the spot as a means of dropping the price is grounds for being sent packing.Also, if the seller has listed the car’s price as firm or only slightly negotiable, don’t bother making an absurdly low offer or getting upset about being told no if you do.Like buying from a dealer, you need to know exactly what you’re looking at and the problem areas you need to double check. Different cars have different trouble-spots and you need to know what they are and how to check them accurately.A second-hand car will also tell you a lot about its condition by digging into its past. In fact, knowing what to ask when buying a used car is almost as important as inspecting the car itself.Does the seller know the car’s history? How long have they owned the car? How many kilometres has it done per year? What type of driving has it done? And then check the service history. If there isn’t one, it’s time to ask some more hard questions.Finally, don’t take any private seller’s word for the car not being encumbered (finance owing on it that could become your problem if they stop making the monthly repayments).Nor should you trust that the car is not stolen and is, in fact, theirs to sell. Each state and territory has websites and services you can call on to verify a car’s identity, usually simply by providing the VIN.Actually, when it comes to what to check when buying a used car Australia has the sort of complete and accurate databases to make it quick and easy. But definitely worth the bother and the (sometimes) small cost.Which is great because the other question we hear is; is there a cooling-off period when buying a used car privately? And the answer is a very short one: No. Once the money is in the seller’s hands, you’re very unlikely to seen any of it ever again, so you need to make sure the deal and the car are right for you.And one more tip for the online generation out there. Rather than spotting an online advert and sending a text message with a silly-low offer, why not pick up the phone and actually talk to the owner. It helps identify you as a serious buyer.Oh, and if you agree on a time and place to meet up and look at the car, be respectful enough to either turn up or give as much notice as you can if you can’t make it. Talk to most people who have sold a car recently, and it soon emerges that the no-shows and tyre kickers out there are the worst part of the whole experience. Don’t be that guy or gal.

It’s a question that comes up at barbecues and wherever else car enthusiasts gather: What is the best quality petrol brand in Australia?But it’s actually not the right question to be asking. And that’s because there are many micro-considerations rather than one, all-encompassing judgment on what brand is best.There’s also the fact that all fuels sold in Australia must meet some pretty unflinching (if not as tough as some other parts of the world) minimum requirements for quality and purity.All of which means when and where you buy your fuel is a lot more important than the brand on the pump at the service station (which could be misleading anyway).Speaking of fuel purity, in terms of global fuel quality rankings Australia is nowhere. Which is to say that even the best quality fuel Australia has to offer motorists is not as good as that in many other countries. Our diesel is even worse. Even the best quality diesel fuel in Australia has more impurities per litre than many other markets tolerate.Meantime, there’s an ingrained inclination in many Australians to associate name brands with higher quality products. From an early age, we learn to recognise the big brand comparisons including BP vs Shell vs Mobil vs the rest.While, in some sectors (say, clothing or furniture) there may be some validity in that view. But, to be brutally honest, it doesn’t apply to the petrol and diesel we buy every day.Ever since Bob Hawke (long before he was Prime Minister) convinced Australians to buy ACTU-backed Solo fuel in 1977, we’ve had a steady stream of independent fuel retailers come and go.Liberty was established by the same people that owned Solo back in '77, and we’ve also seen Metro, Vibe, APCO, United and Pearl Energy (mainly in regional areas) and many more come along for varying periods of time.The most recent developments have seen petrol retailing by chain stores such as 7 Eleven and even retail ‘clubs’ like Costco getting in on the fuel act.But is 7 Eleven fuel good? Is APCO fuel quality as good as the rest? Yes it is. And that’s the point really, because these are all fuel retailers, not refineries. As such, they buy their stock from the same refineries as every other retailer. At the moment, for example, both Costco and 7 Eleven source their fuel from Mobil, while Liberty’s fuel comes from Shell.Even without this homogenisation of supply, there are legal requirements to make sure you don’t buy bad fuel by mistake. All fuel sold in Australia must, by law, comply with quality standards and the requirement to meet the octane rating advertised.We’re not a world leader in this – some countries have much higher standards for impurities and things like sulphur content – but broadly speaking, all fuel retailers across Australia have an obligation to match or exceed these standards.And that means regardless of whether you buy your fuel from a well-known big brand, a bulk-buy retailer like Costco or an independent retailer, the fuel should be fit for purpose and will not only allow your car to run properly, but not damage its engine or fuel system in any way.While some well known brands are keen to advertise their performance boosting or dirt busting technology, the fact is all fuels contain additives of one sort or another.Perhaps there’s a particular brand and grade of fuel that is slightly better at, say, keeping fuel injectors clean, but the science is still out on this and the claims are often based on research by no-name universities, paid for by the fuel company in question. Some of these claims are very much like the make-up industry’s claims of glowing, younger looking skin. Based on what? Beware.Also, any fuel that was revealed to be creating problems in any way would not be allowed to be sold here.So why do carmakers recommend a particular fuel? Surely it must suit the car, right? Generally speaking, these commercial tie-ups are just that; commercial deals based on advertising and marketing.Yes, Porsche recommends you run its vehicles on Mobil fuel, but nothing bad will happen if you suddenly shift to BP.Slightly more credible are the claims by a carmaker that its engines have been designed to run on a particular lubricating oil. Which makes sense since oil makers will sometimes tailor an additive package to suit the way a particular engine works. But when that recommendation is carried over to the petrol or diesel from the same brand? Not so much.What should concern you regarding fuel types, however, is ensuring you get the correct octane rating in the fuel you use. This information will be either in the owner’s manual or under the fuel filler flap, but basically, in Australia, cars need either 91, 95 or 98 (the latter two being premium petrol, as it is sometimes called) octane fuel to operate properly and avoid damage.This octane rating is by far the most important petrol comparison to make when deciding which petrol is best for car (make and model) specific use.Generally speaking, higher performance engines need higher octane fuel to work properly. Without the correct octane-rating fuel, these engines are likely to become damaged as the fuel is not stable enough (too prone to detonating when it shouldn’t) for the engine to maintain complete control over the combustion process.The good news is that it doesn’t matter where you buy your fuel from in Australia, if the pump says 91, 95 or 98, then that’s what the octane rating is guaranteed to be. See the pattern emerging here?Yep, and that is that it’s far more important to buy the right grade of petrol than a particular brand. And Super-grade diesel? Pure marketing.Meantime, there’s a price to pay for higher octane fuel. The difference between 91 and 95 petrol is usually a few cents per litre, and the same again the difference between 95 and 98 petrol.So, having established all that, the question now switches from which petrol brand has the best fuel, to which petrol station has the best fuel. This is a classic case of thinking locally, because where you are is more important than what brand you’re buying.Like many things, fuel has a shelf life. The older it gets (particularly PULP) the less volatile it becomes. And volatility is a measure of how well it ignites (in this case in your engine). If you’ve ever tried to start an old lawn mower after a couple of years, you might know how poor old fuel is at burning.So, the service station you want is one that turns over the most amount of fuel in a day/week/month. That ensures the fuel hasn’t been hanging around in the underground tanks too long and started to lose its edge.Also, a new service station will always get our vote over an old station where the underground tanks could be taking in ground water and contaminating the fuel. We’re not saying all old servos suffer from this, but it’s something to think about.The other thing to watch is a service station where the tanker is still on the forecourt filling those underground tanks. This process tends to stir up any contaminants in the tank and free them to enter your car’s fuel tank. So if the tanker is still there or is just leaving, give that servo a miss.Unfortunately, if it left only five minutes ago you won’t know. That’s why some countries have legislation preventing a service station selling fuel from an underground tank within 60 minutes of it being filled. It’s something we probably should look at here.Clearly, getting the best fuel for your car is a lot more involved than simple brand loyalty.

The desire to go faster seems to be some kind of human condition.

The GTI is the Golf line-up’s fastest, most sporty variant to use front-wheel drive. It also builds on a rich tradition as the make and model that arguably invented the whole hot-hatch genre decades ago.

How much does it cost to fix a head gasket?Well, there are a lot variables at play here, but let’s start with the fine print: You don’t actually fix a head gasket, you replace it. Once it’s broken, there’s no repairing it, you simply swap it for another one. Except it’s not that simple.Let’s look at what a head gasket does. Nearly all modern engines are made in two main parts. There’s the crankcase which contains the crankshaft, con-rods and pistons, and then there’s the cylinder head which houses the camshafts and valves. Okay, that’s a pretty simplified version, but it holds up.The thing is, those two main parts are bolted together to complete the engine and make it run. But were they join is precisely where pressurised fuel and air is being ignited to make the engine produce power.So there’s a huge explosion that has to be contained right at the point where the two engine halves meet. And containing that explosion is the job of the head gasket or, cylinder head gasket to be more precise.The head gasket is also responsible for keeping oil and coolant separate from each other as they pass from the crankcase to the cylinder head. It also has to seal each cylinder off from its neighbours. Big job, when you think about it.Think about it like the point at which your garden hose joins the tap. If this joint isn’t sealed properly, water goes everywhere except where it should. So you can see how important a functioning head gasket is to the way an engine works. Or doesn’t.Like everything in life, the head gasket in an engine can fail. Sometimes this is because of old age, but often it’s because the engine has overheated and the thin, delicate gasket material has failed. At this point, you might have oil and coolant mixing or even the cylinders filling up with coolant because the gasket is no longer doing that sealing job. And that’s when it needs to be replaced.A good mechanic will be able to perform a couple of simple tests to see if the gasket has failed, but generally if you’re losing coolant and there’s no external leak, or the car is overheating or running poorly and backfiring, then you may be looking at a blown head gasket.Because of the design of a lot of engines, this is a labour-intensive job. It can take many hours to disassemble the top section of the engine’s valve train and then remove the cylinder head just to get at the failed gasket.Then, the gasket has to be removed, the crankcase surface it sits on cleaned, the cylinder head checked for straightness (and machined if it’s not straight) and then the whole lot put back together.Even in the case of an old-school, relatively simple engine like a pushrod engine from the 1960s, this takes many hours, but in a modern car with intricate fuel-injection, double overhead camshafts and maybe even a turbocharger, it takes a lot more labour.And labour time equals money. Also, this is not exactly a cheap country to have mechanical work done. We’re not saying that mechanics don’t earn their money – because they generally do – but thanks to our generally favourable wage structure, for the average head gasket repair cost Australia is far from a cheap place to have it done.That’s another reason a blown head gasket repair cost will vary so wildly. Even so, the most basic, simplest gasket repair job is likely to cost at least $1000, because you also need to use new parts.The head gasket is one of them, obviously, but there are lots of other gasket and seals that must be removed to get to the head gasket, and none of these are generally reusable.Some engines even have one-use cylinder head bolts that need to be replaced. Just in parts alone, the average head gasket repair cost will be hundreds of dollars.One of the other major price factors is where you take the car. If you want to use a dealership for this sort of work, you’ll pay more than if you’re using an independent specialist mechanic. And a workshop that knows the make and model in question inside out is probably where you want to be for this type of repair.Another thing to consider is whether your car is an in-line engine or something with two cylinder heads like a V6, V8 or even a Subaru flat-four engine.You might find only one head gasket has failed, but it’s actually best practice to replace both gaskets at the same time. You might also find your mechanic recommends replacing the timing chain, tensioners and coolant pump at the same time as insurance against having to open the engine up again later.Don’t forget to check if there’s a newer head gasket design that is superior to the one that car originally came with. Many Subaru engines, for instance, had gasket problems, but a later gasket design fixed this. It’s a wise upgrade.The bottom line is you’ll be looking at anywhere from $1000 to, say $5000, for a head gasket replacement. And if it’s a specialist or particularly complex engine the final price might be even higher.The best advice, of course, is to avoid having to replace the head gasket in the first place. You can do that by servicing the car properly, changing the coolant as recommended and making sure you keep an eye on the temperature gauge to avoid ever overheating the engine.

At the very top of the 1.4-litre Golf line-up sits the R-Line.

It’s often said that if you’re a smart car buyer, you’ll be shopping second hand. That’s because the shine and new car smell of a brand-new car can be fleeting. Especially once you take depreciation into account.