Safety

The indicators on my 2004 Ford Falcon stopped working suddenly. I thought when that happened it just makes the same clicking sound, but really quickly. Mine doesn't do anything. A mechanic I took it to said that it's got a problem with the instrument cluster, so needs a new one. Could it possibly fix itself if I replace it? Or has it got nothing to do with the instrument cluster?

Re Goodride tyres. I fitted a set that I bought new at auction to fit my 2006 Mitsubishi 380. I was a bit concerned, too, about wet-weather driving after reading some negative reviews from Britain where they seem more widely available. We had not one issue in the wet — my wife drives the car most of the time and she would have complained if there was a problem. We got 45,000km from them over three years and, as I paid about two-thirds of retail, it was a good return. I believe Goodride tyres are used commonly on mining and industrial vehicles.

I am interested in the 2016 Mazda 6 Touring Wagon but my wife is concerned that if we were unfortunate enough to have an accident luggage could come flying forward. Does the Mazda have some sort of protective mechanism for such an eventuality?

I have a 2009 Honda Civic GLI and have a problem with the Supplementary Restraint System indicator and the Side Airbag Off indicator lighting up on my dash. I have complained to the dealership about it during the warranty stage and they said no fault codes were found and that there was nothing they could do. This is a safety issue and something has to be done. I feel unsafe driving it.

As soon as I purchased my 2014 Nissan X-Trail, diesel auto I noticed a surging/jumping type action, particularly around 80 km/h. It has now done 30,000 km and it's only getting worse. The dealership has been nothing short of hopeless. I took a short video of the issue yesterday, as they appear to think nothing is wrong. The revs go up and down even while cruise control is engaged on a straight, flat road. The revs go between 1500-3000 rpm while cruising at 100 km/h. It just keeps going up and down, then goes up and done quite quickly while a little surging/jolting can be felt in the car. The temperature remains normal throughout. Any advice would be much appreciated!

I have been looking at new cars, and so many only have space-saver spares. Speaking to one rep he said space-savers actually cost the car companies more than a full size spare. Which begs the question why not design the cars properly in the first place to have enough space to fit a full size spare? I don't mind paying extra for a full size one if they want to save cost or weight. What am I supposed to do if I have a flat in one of these cars that doesn't even have space for a full size spare? That means there is no space to safely store the flat. It's going to be a potential missile within the car and at the very least dirty up the interior of the boot space and my luggage. It just doesn't seem logical.

My wife and I bought our daughter a secondhand 2010 Kia Rio when she got her driver's licence in 2014. Last week she was T-boned on the driver's-side door by someone going through a stop sign at approximately 60 km/h. Fortunately she survived the accident with only whiplash and a few bruises and the little Kia Rio stood up to the collision with the considerably larger Honda CRV remarkably well. Thank you Kia for manufacturing an affordable compact car with excellent structural integrity. Grateful father.