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For further buying advice visit Matthew's site: www.UsedCarExpert.co.uk

I've had a Mark V Golf R32 from new (06) and was cherishing the prospect of driving to Europe in it until I was told by VW that the xenon headlights can only be adjusted by taking it in for a £50+VAT job, each way! Some research on the web reveals this to be a common gripe for owners of xenon clad cars but how can the manufacturers get away with such a backward step in design? Is my only alternative to leave the lights as they are and risk getting caught? I can only imagine the frustration of owners who cross the channel in these cars more often than I.

Carlo Vettese, Surbiton, UK

Carlo,

Many Xenon headlights feature an internal 'shutter' that can be moved into place by a screw or lever adjustment at the back of the headlamp unit.

With the MKV Golf, the headlamp has to be removed and then there is a lever inside that adjusts the deflector. Because these are gas lamps, there are various safety issues and procedures with opening it up and so, yes, you are stuffed.

Hi Matt.

I am looking for a bigger car. At the moment I have a Porsche 911 Carrera 4S but recently became a Granddad so need something a little more practical for carrying around a little baby.

I like 4x4s but would want something with good performance. I have looked at the Range Rover Sports, Porsche Cayenne Turbo S, Audi Q7 and BMW X5. I have also owned BMW Alpinas in the past so would consider a B5 or B6. I have about £40,000 to spend and don’t driving petrol or diesel. What would you recommend?

Rory Neill, UK

Growing old disgracefully, hey Rory? Good for you.

I drove the Cayenne RS around Millbrook’s high speed bowl at 200mph and was frankly terrified. It wasn’t so much the speed as the height at which I was sitting while doing the speed. It’s an impressive bit of engineering in terms of handling but I don’t really like it.

The Audi Q7 looks great but there’s bugger all room inside.

So that gets us to the Range Rover Sport and the BMW X5. 2006-year 4.2 litre Sports start at around £28,000, while an equivalent M5 will be more like £20-22,000. So that’s the kind of depreciation you will suffer if you buy new.

You would need to like the Range Rover an awful lot to pay a premium like that. Although eight weeks ago it was up in the early £30,000s, so you could argue that you are quids in anyway. It turns out, the credit crunch isn’t all bad.

After some idiot wrote off my car, I've now got to buy a new car. Trouble is, it's so long since I bought a car, that I have no idea what's out there!

I'm looking for something fun, reliable, good looking, maybe a bit sporty (two seats are fine, though wouldn't object to more) and have a budget of up to £6,000. Help - I'm completely lost!

Alix McKenzie, Erith, UK

Something fun, reliable, good looking, maybe a bit sporty? Sounds more like a personal ad than a car request to me, Alix.

If you have a ‘GSH’ you might like an Astra convertible 2.0 16 v Turbo from 2002 and before.

If you want to attract some ‘FWBs’ you could go for one of the earliest Honda S2000s from 1999.

And if you want a deal that is ‘NSA’ then the Hyundai Coupes are attractive and have 5-year warranties. Your budget gets a 2005-year car without haggling.

*According to the world wide web, ‘GSH’ is good sense of humour in personal ad-speak. ‘FWB’ is friends with benefits and ‘NSA’ is No strings attached.

I am looking for a small 4-door car for my wife who expects to pass her test soon. It should be n-cap 4 or 5 and less than £4k. What would be my best option?

Name and address withheld

You can buy a 2002 VW Polo, or a 2001 Toyota Yaris. Then there is the Vauxhall Corsa or the Ford Fiesta, both are 4 star from 2002 and you can afford a 2004 year car. I can’t think of anything in budget that is 5 star rated – as its mainly the very new small cars that are achieving this rating.

But consider this: If you buy a bigger car, with a lesser safety rating, you may still be safer in the bigger car, if you hit a smaller car. This is called ‘compatibility’ testing and the NCap ratings do not take it into account.

My wife and I have a Honda Civic 1.7 CDTi which is just 3 years old.

Although it delivers what we wanted from it, economy and reliability I have never been particularly comfortable in it, especially on long journeys. I find it noisy and the seating position is low. Is there anything of a similar size (my wife will not drive anything bigger) which has a higher seating position and which may be a bit quieter.

I have no preferences for fuel but would prefer it to be automatic and it has to be 5 door as we have 3 grandchildren which we have to accommodate from time to time.

My budget is about £10,000.

Doug Grimshaw, Manchester, UK

Hi Doug,

I should confess that I am a Honda fan. But, their diesel engines are not as refined as others on the market.

All you need to do is to trade the Civic for an equivalent size car with a more refined diesel unit. The Vauxhall diesels are excellent, but the sports seats in the Astra can be a bit hard. The Zafira has a higher seating position though.

Peugeot’s Hdi units are very effective without being noisy, and the Peugeot ride is positively woolly, so a 307 is another idea.

But I think the answer is The Nissan Qashqai 1.5dci. It gives you a very soft ride, comfy seats, high driving position, and a remarkable combination of economy and refinement. Your budget will just about buy you a two-year-old one with warranty left.

I have the choice of an Audi S5 and a BMW 335i M Sport

Although I'm a BMW hater as I consider them bland, common etc, I can't make a decision between these two.

I've read the reviews, but would like an objective comparison of the two cars. Can you help?

Shaun, Walbridge, Plymouth, UK

Shaun,

I can help. There is no one more objective on Audi vs BMW because they just don’t do it for me I’m afraid. Here are some of the key stats:

0-62 Audi wins by .5 of a second
MPG BMW wins by nearly 8mpg
Depreciation Audi wins at the moment, but only because its so new and in demand.
Experience Build quality is excellent in both. Equipment levels are similar. Handling is precise and balanced – although they feel different. So you need to drive them and see which you personally prefer. I hate to admit it, but I think BMW seats and instruments are a bit better. But the Audi is now more exclusive and will probably turn more heads these days.

I currently drive a Toyota Corolla Verso 7-seater 1.8 with semi-automatic transmission. It's drinking the petrol and I need a smaller but safe car, the problem is I only drive an automatic because of a former partners disability, what do you suggest?

Estelle Hunter, Prudhoe, UK

Hi Estelle,

Automatics are never as economical as a well-driven manual car because the gearbox doesn’t know what you are going to do next. Which means it cannot anticipate which gear you need to get good torque and economy.

However, there are lots of small cars on the market with automatic gearboxes. Bizarrely they are hardly ever diesel, which is a shame, because the diesel Renault Clio can easily do mpg in the high 50s. But 1.4 petrols will do around 40mpg, which is about 10 miles better than you are getting right now. 2001 – 2005 generation cars are on the market for less than £6,000 even as automatics.

There are also Volkswagen Polos and stacks of Corsa (one for any budget frankly).

I'm moving to Guernsey in September - My girlfriend has a 2006 Citroen C3 Pluriel and I have a 2002 Toyota Celica. We want to swap these for 1 car - it needs to be ok with 35mph speed limit, narrow winding roads, limited parking. I reckon that a 4 year old Chrysler Crossfire auto would fit the bill, she'd prefer a new Fiat 500 or a 2006 Mazda MX5. What do you think - any other suggestions?

Paul Smith, Swindon, UK

Paul,

I have never ever been able to think of a good reason to buy a plastic G-Wiz electric car. Until now. Thank you.

With a range of up to 48 miles per charge and a certified top speed of 50 mph, it could be re-named the Guernsey-Wiz, don’t you think?

I accept though, that as with the pretty-pretty Fiat 500, you might feel like a bit of a burke in the Guernsey-Wiz. So I guess you’ll be against it, but your Crossfire suggestion is a bit potty. They only come with 3.2 V6 engines. You’ll never get it out of 3rd gear.

A 1.8 Mazda MX-5 is the best compromise. It always feels a little under-powered on open roads in the UK. But is huge fun at low speeds on twisty roads. Plus it is stylish and unisex.

My friend has recently fallen in love with a Mk1 MX-5, as this is the first true drivers car he has owned. He is convinced however that it doesn't have enough oomph, and fitting an expensive turbo kit is the only way forward. (he has considered the insurance implications) Are there any alternative roadsters that would offer similar driving thrills to a souped up MX5, for around £7000?

Chris Langley, Northampton, UK

Chris,

As I was saying to Paul from Swindon, the MX-5 doesn’t have enough oomph. I’ve not come across anyone crackers enough to turbo one. Is your friend Jeremy Clarkson?

I don’t even know what sort of performance boost this garden-shed tuning would achieve. If he does it, please ask him to bring it into my office.

If he doesn’t it will be because he’s realised he can buy a year 1999 or 2000 2.0 and even a 3.0 BMW Z3. We’re talking 150-231 BHP, rather than the Mazda’s puny 108-138 bhp options.

And you can tell him he will look like James Bond (the older, fatter one, that is).

I am looking to spend £4000 on my first car but was wondering given the current climate i.e. high petrol prices, road tax, etc if buying a car simply for leisure would be worth it?

Name and address withheld

Buying a car is always a good idea – in any climate! And anyway, have you not been listening to our PM and his darling Chancellor? It is the ‘responsible course of action’ to borrow and spend our way out of trouble.

So, if anything you need to borrow some money and beef that budget up.

But, if I were you, I wouldn’t. I would buy a small car that has low depreciation and a reputation for reliability. Enjoy the freedom it gives you, but not put yourself under any financial pressure.

You can afford a 2002 Smart City-Coupe. They have stopped depreciating, are economical, great fun and the engineering is by Mercedes-Benz. How about that?

Hi Matt,

I'm not sure of you usually dispense advice to non-UK residents, but I'm currently in South Africa, and after losing my previous car, an Audi A3 2.0fsi in an accident last year, I've been looking to replace it, but with new car prices these days the replacement cost is too high, so I have resorted to slightly used, my question is:

VW has recently announced it's plans to stop SEAT sales in south Africa as of end of this year, but will honour all warranties and roadside support, this has resulted in all SEAT used prices plummeting. As such I have been eyeing a black SEAT Leon 2.0fsi with only 30,000km on the clock for 40 per cent less than it's original retail price, do you think it is worth it? Will future parts be a problem even though they are similar to other VW group cars? Should I rather pay more and buy a brand still being imported into RSA?

Thank you

Asmet Joosab, Durban, South Africa

Asmet,

First things first. The Seat Leon, with VWs 2.0 FSI engine, will go like stink. It is also one of the most striking and attractive designs on the market in any segment, let alone the small family car section.

40 per cent depreciation after a year is, from a buying perspective, fantastic. It takes 3 years to achieve that normally.

VW dealers should always be able to help you get parts, so I think you may as well go for it. It should give you a couple of years without problems anyway, especially as the warranty is being honoured.

Further information: www.usedcarexpert.co.uk