Technology

Is it easy to take the "factory immobiliser/alarm" out of a 1993 Mitsubishi KR Verada? Auto electricians I have asked say it?s not possible to disconnect it because it is built into the computer. We have been told the factory immobiliser/alarm is a common fault for these models.

Recently the dashboard cluster in my 2005 Renault Scenic began resetting itself; the clock and the odo went back to zero, and within a few days it completely died. I had no speedo, temp or fuel gauge, very poor. My research revealed that this is a common problem in Europe and the UK and Renault is aware of this manufacturing failure. Renault first handed me a bill of $2000 for the part alone, in a car that is just over four years old and has traveled a mere 61,000 km. They then came back to me and said my contribution to a new dashboard cluster would be $520, which was better, but why should I have to pay anything if it is a manufacturing fault?

There could even eventually be a petrol-electric hybrid in every Honda model series, according to the company's Australian chief.  The existing Civic hybrid will be joined this year by the Insight hatch, with the CR-Z coupe to follow, says Satoshi Matsuzawa.He also promises the new Insight will be "affordable", unlike the expensive and unsuccessful first-generation hybrid with the same name.  The new Insight is expected to cost around $30,000, but Matsuzawa will not confirm a price.“Honda Australia will take the hybrid direction in the Australian market. Insight will be the initiation of that movement and CR-V next year," he says.Honda Motor president Takanobu Ito last week announced that a plug-in hybrid will be added to its range in Japan and the US in 2012 and Matsuzawa says it will also be “the right direction for Australia”.Honda’s plug-in hybrid will be charged from the engine as well as mains supply and will be able to drive up to 60km purely on its electrc motor.  Ito says Honda will develop “multiple hybrid systems that are appropriate for vehicles of different sizes and use”.And Matsuzawa dismisses diesel, at least in the foreseeable future.  “Diesel could be an option but so far the path is to proceed with hybrid strategy," he says.

I have had a few problems with my 2004 Toyota Kluger Grande, the one of most concern concerns the dash screen that controls the GPS, heating/cooling and stereo controls, which has packed it in. When the car is started the Toyota logo comes on, but the screen then reverts to a completely dark state as if the engine was switched off. A replacement from Toyota costs $6500; a wrecker would supply one for $2500. Have you heard of this problem before, and can you suggest some alternative(s) to having to outlay this amount of money, particularly when you can purchase a good portable GPS for around $400?

After reading about another Mitsubishi Triton owner having his GPS updated, I contacted my dealer, as it appeared I was in a similar situation with my new Triton GLX-R. Like the other owner my car appears to have been delivered with out-dated maps, but instead of updating the maps for free I have been told I can have them updated for $327.80. Can you tell me how the other guy got the map upgrade from Mitsubishi without spending the amount of money I have been quoted?

For the first time, in over 40 years on the road, my wife and I determined to get a new vehicle that would see us out to the end of our driving days. One of our requirements was for it to have a quality in-built GPS system. We decided on a Mitsubishi Triton with the lot, including the expensive MMCS, but you could imagine our dismay when we found that the MMCS couldn't guide us home. In fact it couldn't get within a mile of the place and we had to rely on our old el-cheapo Tom Tom. The MMCS uses a "whereis" system 15, but there is a system 16 out, which is available for a lot of user systems, but apparently not taken up by Mitsubishi yet. When Mitsubishi do take it up, the upgrade will be at my expense. We believe we have been sold a dud. I am very disappointed with the Triton and even more disappointed with the response from Mitsubishi.

The inbuilt GPS in my 12-month-old Toyota Presara has given me a few incorrect directions, and it doesn't name the streets, so I thought I would have the software upgraded. My dealer quoted me $600 for an upgrade, and when I complained about that saying that I could buy two new GPS for that price I was then told because I had purchased the car there that they would do it for $350 and I could keep the disk. Big deal, I said no thanks. Upgrades for well-known GPS range from $100 to $199 with a free 5-year upgrade time. The question is where can I acquire a software upgrade for the GPS in the Presara other than from Toyota?

And it seems they’ll have to do the same for the other of the first generation of mass-market electric vehicles being rolled out, the Mitsubishi iMiEV. Mitsubishi announced this month that its iMiEV plug-in electric car arriving in July will only be available on a lease basis. Now Nissan says it will do the same when its Leaf EV arrives in 2012.Nissan Australia CEO Dan Thompson says leasing a package that includes a charging system installed in the home would be "the most favourable option"."The problem is customer's range anxiety," he says, pointing out that motorists will need a dedicated charging system in their home to satisfy concerns about the limited 160km range of the vehicle. It will be important to package the whole thing with charging hardware for the home. (The lease arrangement) will most likely be offered exclusively through Nissan's finance company."The vehicle goes on sale in Japan and the US in December with US buyers able to choose between a lease package and an outright purchase."Over the next six months we will be ale to see the data about what has worked in the US," Thompson says. "This is a 100 per cent new business model for us. We won't know the answers until we see the rollout overseas."The vehicle will cost about $42,000 after the US government's $7500 cashback subsidy. Nissan chief operating officer Toshiyuki Shiga says the Japanese government is offering a cash subsidy of half the price differential over a conventionally powered car of the same size. In Japan, the Leaf price is about $48,000 and the government subsidy is $9800."After 2012 we will expand production overseas and the costs will come down," Shiga says. "Over the next six years the cost of gasoline powered cars and EV will be about the same. In the beginning it will be difficult to sell because of the cost, but when the cost comes down the government incentives will go."Thomson says Nissan Australian is about 'a year away' from settling on prices. 

The radio in my 2009 Holden Barina is affected by intermittent static interference when tuned to AM 1395. It's not specific to any particular location, therefore not a 'poor reception area' problem. Originally it only occurred on occasions, but now it occurs more frequently, and also when the brake pedal is applied!! Major interference drowns out all reception when the pedal is depressed; release the brake and the interference stops! I reported the problem to the dealer at the first service, but the radio worked OK when they tested it. Any clues?