Car Servicing

My wife's six-year-old Honda Jazz has a vibration at start-up from rest. We have learnt to minimise this irritating problem to some extent by not accelerating quickly from a standstill. I understand that it is the start clutch in the transmission and I've heard of various remedies and estimated cost figures. What do you suggest in terms of a remedy and what are the likely consequences if we choose to do nothing about this problem?

Have you heard of any problems with the six-speed auto gearbox fitted to the 2012 Falcon and Territory?

The auto transmission warning light in my 2003 Renault Scenic has come on a few times, and when it does I lose power in the car. Once I stopped for a few minutes the car was ok to drive again. This has happened twice and on the third occasion I heard a loud "clunk". I stopped the car and had my mechanic check it out, but he could not find any faults showing in the computer and none in the computer memory! He is at a loss as to why the light is coming on, and has suggested that I sell it. I feel very unsafe driving this car.

From the day I bought my 2012 six-speed manual Ford XR6 ute there has been a slight rattle when the car is idling in neutral. The dealer told me it was normal, but surely there has to be some sort of fix. I am so disappointed. I even asked for my money back, but was told no. I am/was a lover of Fords, but now...

My dream of one day owning a VW Golf has quickly turned in to a nightmare. My 2010 Golf TS118 developed had a shudder early in the piece, which I thought was the way I was driving the car, but in July 2012 it became apparent there were big problems brewing with lots of warning lights - catalytic converter, engine missing, more shuddering, and lack of power! ? In August, at? 21,943 km VW replaced the pistons, injectors and associated parts under warranty. I was told by the dealership that despite the engine problem Volkswagen would not replace car, just in case I was thinking on those lines. ? Last month I took the car back after I'd experienced some shuddering over the last couple of months. The engine was tested and deemed safe and I could continue to drive it, but soon after wards it lost power and was missing at high speed. By the time I got the car to the dealer the problem had disappeared. I left it there for further investigation. I intend to lodge a complaint with Volkswagen, and ??I will write a letter to the CEO of the dealership and try and do a deal with the dealership to get out of this into another that is model not having the same problems for the least possible money? ??What else do you recommend?

The battery in my 2010 Ford Mondeo Zetec goes flat at random. I replaced the original battery only to have the new one go flat. I have made sure there are no lights left on and turned off the stereo and air-conditioning. The NRMA checked the alternator and found it to be OK. Any ideas to fix this problem?

Early this year the airbag warning light came on in my wife's 2009 Holden Astra Hatchback. It would come on and remain on with the ignition. By the time my wife approached the dealer the three-year warranty period had just expired. The dealer said that it was probably just a faulty sensor, no safety concern with actual airbags, expensive to fix, and declined to remedy the problem under warranty. Firstly, are you aware of this fault being common with late-model Astras? Secondly, should Holden take responsibility for this fault?

I own a late model VW Jetta with the DSG gearbox and have experienced a couple of times when I have been waiting to turn right, and waited for a break in the traffic put my foot down only to find the car couldn't decide whether it was in first gear or neutral and started limping across the road with traffic bearing down on me on a major highway. I informed VW of the issue when filling out one of their surveys but it appears to have fallen on deaf ears. The result of this is that I can never feel confident that the car is going to do what it is supposed to do when taking off from a dead stop. Is this one of the troubles you were referring to?

German car maker Volkswagen will join a growing number of brands offering capped-price servicing on its new vehicles in a bid to reverse what the company says is a “perception” that its servicing is expensive.The move is designed to thwart the growing number of smaller workshops who’ve been embracing customers disgruntled by Volkswagen dealership service costs. They often use the same genuine parts and technical equipment but charge less than half the dealership rate.Volkswagen introduced fixed price servicing on its budget-priced small car, the Up, last October and plans to offer the same certainty to buyers of all its new cars by the end of this year, possibly starting with the new Golf Mk7 due in April.The managing director of Volkswagen Australia, Anke Koeckler, told News Limited today: “We are working on it. Somewhere in the first half of this year we are coming back to you and announcing capped price servicing. The feedback so far from dealers and customers has been very positive. I think it would help us also in the perception around the customers.”Unlike some other capped-price servicing programs which require six-monthly visits, Volkswagen only requires a visit to the dealer every 12 months or 15,000km, and the prices are locked in for six years – twice the period of the warranty. Some other brands don’t even cover the warranty period.Some fixed-price servicing deals are subsidised by car makers by setting aside part of the purchase price and reimbursing the dealer when the car is presented for service. However, Volkswagen says it does not plan to subsidise its fixed price servicing plan, matching Nissan, Ford and Kia. The downside to this is that the customer ends up paying a little more for each individual service.But if the Up experiment is a guide, Volkswagen has one of the most competitive non-subsidised service plans in the market, even though the price changes depending on the service. “My preference would be not to subsidise any capped price servicing. It would reflect the honest parts and service costs,” Koeckler said.Volkswagen Up service costs:This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling

I have noticed that when I'm driving along at 70 to 80km in my 2004 VZ Commodore and then accelerate a little the car struggles to get power. It only happens when it's warm. Any advice?