Expert advice: Why wheel balancing is important for every car

Wheel balancing

Garages use special machines to ensure wheels are properly balanced

Wheels, a bit like tyres, aren’t something most of us spend much time worrying about. But having correctly balanced wheels can make a big difference to how comfortably your car rides and how quickly components like tyres, steering and suspension joints wear out. Here’s all you need to know about having your wheels balanced.

How do you know when your wheels are out of balance?

As your speed exceeds around 40mph, you might notice the steering wheel start to wobble in your hands. The faster you go, the greater this vibration becomes, to the point where it can be quite uncomfortable to hold the steering wheel, or – if it’s rear-wheel drive – the car feels as though it’s shuddering slightly.

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Mike Shaw 6 Comments

Quiz: Guess the Green Flag tools and beat Joe Swash’s score

Guess the Green Flag tool

Joe Swash has been on a road trip of a lifetime, touring the Scottish Highlands in a vintage Land Rover as part of Green Flag’s Scenic Route series of inspiring drives. But when a car is almost as old as its driver, things will inevitably go wrong under the bonnet.

When cars breakdown, getting to the root of the cause is half the battle to swiftly getting it back on the road. That’s why every Green Flag breakdown van carries hundreds of tools, each with a very specific purpose. It means if a driver’s motor splutters to a halt – as Joe’s Land Rover did several times – the Green Flag technician should be able to fix the problem at the roadside.

The tools vary from the simple to the highly complex, costing from pence to hundreds of pounds. And several of them came to the rescue of Joe Swash, although he wasn’t too sure what many of them were for.

Take our quick quiz and see if you can guess the Green Flag tools and identify more of them than Joe could…

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James Mills 4 Comments

Pothole plague means a 14-year wait before roads can be repaired

Potholes will take 14 years to fix, says 2016 report

In the time it takes to read this sentence, a local authority would have repaired yet another pothole in Britain’s roads. But the bad news is the pothole plague is spreading faster than they can be patched up, and budget cuts mean most local authorities only have half the money they need to tackle the country’s pitted roads.

That’s the bleak picture painted by a comprehensive survey of local authority highways departments in England and Wales. The survey, carried out by the Asphalt Industry Alliance for the past 21 years, highlights the challenging driving conditions faced by car owners. And it tells drivers what they probably already knew: there isn’t enough money in the bank to fix our broken roads.

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James Mills 1 Comment

Motor insurance: What you are and aren’t covered for

Motor insurance

You don’t want this to happen before you discover that you’re not covered

Motor insurance used to be so simple. You bought comprehensive cover and you were pretty much covered. Or so most of us thought. But as insurers have worked hard to make the cost of premiums appear more attractive, so drivers are less likely to be insured for the things that many of us take for granted. Read on to see what your insurance premium may not include, perhaps contrary to what you might think. Continue reading →

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How to buy a car off eBay and get the best results

Buy a car off eBay

It can be simple and straightforward to buy a car off eBay and you might bag a bargain. But it’s still worth being cautious

To buy a car off eBay you should approach it with the same caution as if you were buying from a private seller. However, although it’s worth being careful – and there are plenty of pitfalls for the unwary ‑ bargains do exist. You’ll find cars that have been lovingly cared for at knock-down prices. And if you’re after a classic, you’ll occasionally come across a gem of a car that’s been undervalued for a quick sale. Here’s how to come away as a satisfied rather than sorry buyer.

Why is eBay better than a regular auction?

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Scenic Route: Buying old Land Rovers – the Green Flag expert’s guide

Fans will tell you buying old Land Rovers can be a fun and rewarding experience. Old versions of the model we now know as the Defender were the original ‘go anywhere’ vehicle. Ever since its introduction in 1948, the Land Rover is one of the few cars that can truly lay claim to having a cult following. It’s no surprise then that Joe Swash picked a Land Rover for his epic road trip for Green Flag’s Scenic Route series.

Joe’s is a 1985 Land Rover 90 Soft Top, the short wheelbase version fitted with what appears to be a poorly erected tent covering the back seats and load bay. You need a sense of adventure to own and drive a car like Joe’s. It’s also ideal to have a little mechanical knowledge or, at the least, the enthusiasm to roll up your sleeves and get stuck in, learning to fix faults as they arise. And they will – as any Land Rover owner will tell you. Continue reading →

James Mills 1 Comment

DIY car cleaning that looks like it’s been done by a professional

DIY car cleaning

Cleaning your car to a professional standard is easy when you know how

The changing British seasons, with their equally changeable weather, also mark a time when drivers all over Britain go in for some DIY car cleaning.

But washing a car is not as straightforward as most of us like to imagine. At least, that’s the view of expert car cleaner, Sean Longworth-Smith of Ultimate Finish. The car care and detailing company, based at Brands Hatch in Kent, has been helping drivers primp and preen their cars for 15 years. And Sean knows what it takes to give any car the professional finish.

“You have to establish a routine – cycles – and stick to it each time you clean the car. That way you won’t miss anything and you’ll get the best finish for the bodywork,” says Sean. Here’s an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide to cleaning a car.

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James Mills 1 Comment

Five eye-wateringly expensive new car options that are no April Fools joke

Five of the most expensive car options that are no April Fools joke, including the Rolls-Royce Wraith

You may need to sit down before looking at the price of options on a Rolls-Royce Wraith (Picture © Rolls-Royce)

Anyone who has bought a new car recently can’t help but fail to have noticed the lengthy lists of optional extras that can be added to their new pride and joy – at a cost. These are so long that they make any fixtures and fittings list for a house purchase seem like a Post-it note. Yet extras are increasingly popular, as they allow drivers to give their car the personal touch, stand out of the crowd, or show-off the latest gadgets and gizmos to friends and family.

So, without further ado, here are five of the most expensive options available on new cars in the UK. And not one of them is an April Fools joke…

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Is Honda’s car key breathalyser the shape of things to come?

Honda and Hitachi's new breathalyser is the size of a smartphone and works like a modern car's smart key.

Honda and Hitachi’s new breathalyser is the size of a smartphone and works like a modern car’s smart key. (Picture © Honda)

As sure as pubs serve cold beer, drinking and driving are a dangerous mix. The most up to date government figures say 240 people were killed by drink-driving in Britain in 2014, and there were over 5,600 accidents estimated to have been caused by having one for the road. In America, over the same period, nearly 10,000 people lost their lives due to ‘alcohol-impaired driving’.

So it’s little surprise that Honda, the Japanese car maker, has asked itself what technology could do to help prevent drink-driving. The answer, it suggests, is a smart key that can detect excessive alcohol consumption and prevent a car’s engine from being started – all before a driver unlocks the car.
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Scenic Route: Joe Swash exclusive – learning to drive and my first motoring memories

The Jump and ex-Eastenders star Joe Swash is the first in a series of celebrities to take Green Flag’s Scenic Route. The series of adventures around the UK and Europe has been designed to celebrate the freedom of driving and encourage drivers to take the road less travelled. In this Joe Swash exclusive interview, the London lad talks about his life and how important motoring has been.

Why did you leave it so late to learn to drive?

“I lived in central London and public transport is amazing there. You can get round so much easier and quicker than in a car. Also I started doing Eastenders when I was 20 and we were ferried around by drivers all the time so I got lazy. Then before I knew it, I was in my 30s and still couldn’t drive. But I had my boy and I couldn’t keep on picking him up from school by cab…”

How does Joe Swash describe his driving?

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How new glare-free headlamps will prevent drivers being dazzled

Glare-free headlamps

Ford’s new Glare-Free Highbeam system costs from £900 (Picture © Ford)

Glare-free headlamps which prevent drivers being dazzled by on-coming lights could be on a car near you in the very near future. In the 70s, the Manfred Mann hit Blinded by the Light could be heard coming from cars all over Britain. More recently, the song’s chorus has been adopted as a protest against super bright car lights.

Ever since the introduction of Xenon or High Intensity Discharge (HID) lights in the early ’90s on the BMW 7 Series, and Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights in cars such as the 2006 Audi R8, the brightness and intensity of headlamps has increased. Continue reading →

James Mills 3 Comments

Scenic Route: TV star Joe Swash explores wild Scotland by Land Rover

With the Easter holiday around the corner and the summer break on the horizon, millions of us are planning to get away from it all. To fuel inspiration for great adventures in the UK and Europe, Green Flag has hit the road with an exciting new series of road trips. And some of the country’s best-known faces will be sliding into the driving seat and sharing their experiences with you.

Called Scenic Route, the journeys are easy for anyone to take. All you need is a car and a thirst for adventure. In the first Scenic Route road trip, actor and presenter Joe Swash, best known for Eastenders, I’m A Celebrity and, most recently, The Jump, reveals how the Scottish Highlands can take your breath away and get the adrenaline racing.

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How to report problems with roads, potholes, drains and street lighting

Guide to reporting road faults such as potholes and blocked drains

Driving can be challenging at the best of times. From trying traffic conditions to confusing road layouts, pedestrians to be mindful of and blind bends hiding danger, there’s a lot to take in. So we could all do without having to worry about potholes the size of Lake Windermere, blocked drains and faulty street lights.

Unfortunately, such problems are now a permanent fixture of driving today. And authorities can’t spend all day, every day scouring their road network for faults. But everyone that uses the roads can do their bit to help make them better – by reporting problems with potholes, drains, street lighting and more.

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Drivers using money saved on fuel to upgrade their cars – buy a fuel saver

Money saved on fuel

Mitsubishi Outlander is the best-selling plug-in car. Worth considering for urban drivers looking to save on fuel (Picture © Mitsubishi)

Thankful that the 2016 Budget didn’t lead to an increase fuel duty? If you’re like many drivers, you could be looking to spend the money saved on fuel to upgrade your car.

Online retailer Motors.co.uk conducted research which shows that the number of buyers looking at cars costing up to £300 per month to lease has increased by 78 per cent this year. Peter Watts, director of dealer insight at Motors.co.uk said: “Over the past few months, we’ve seen fuel prices reach their lowest since 2009, with supermarkets slashing their prices to below £1 a litre. To put this into context, at its highest price point, we were paying more than £1.42 a litre in April 2012 – that’s a saving of just over £25 for a 60-litre tank each time it’s filled up.”

Philip Nothard, retail specialist at car valuation expert CAP Automotive believes buyers are still looking for fuel-saving motors. He said: “We’ve been researching this extensively among motor dealers and they confirm to us that fuel economy hasn’t slipped down the list of priorities for the typical customer.” So if you’re one of the drivers looking to upgrade but want to hedge against future fuel price rises, here are our top five motors that will save you money at the pumps… and five to avoid.

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Car repair rights let drivers choose where crashed cars are fixed

Car repair rights

Drivers have the right to choose which bodyshop repairs their car after a crash (Picture © Mazda)

The accident that revealed our car repair rights happened right outside our village school, with a crowd of parents looking on. My wife couldn’t have been more mortified: a brief lapse in concentration caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to a third party’s vehicle and our family estate car. No one was hurt but worse was to come. It incurred the wrath of the headmistress, citing the crash in the school newsletter and asking parents to walk their children to school wherever possible.

The irony is, we walk our kids to school nearly every day, come rain or shine. But one of the few times my wife needed to go on elsewhere, the accident happened. I’m glad it did. It shone a spotlight on the confusing car repair rights process that drivers face when dealing with their insurer, and highlighted the number one consumer rule of accident repairs: the policy holder has the right to choose where their car is repaired.

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James Mills 1 Comment

Car exhaust emissions: What they are and why they may cost you money

Exhaust emissions

Smoke-like steam when you start up is normal. If it continues, your car could have a problem

The moment you turn your car’s engine on, exhaust emissions start coming out of its tail pipes. They could cause your car to fail its annual MOT test if examiners judge that too many harmful gases are being emitted. They could even land you with a fine.

There’s nothing drivers of internal combustion engine cars can do about small levels of exhaust emissions. They are, after all, the result of the chemical reaction taking place when fuel is burnt by the engine. But with tougher checks for cars’ exhaust emissions, find out how to stay the right side of legal. Continue reading →

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Can you change a wheel? Majority of British drivers say they can’t

55% of British drivers say they can't change a spare wheel

55% of British drivers say they can’t change a wheel

Complaining about the state of Britain’s roads is one of the most familiar grumbles amongst motorists. Whether it’s collapsing verges that can drag cars into hedgerows, potholes that will swallow a wheel whole or drains that seem to do a better job of acting like a plug than, well, a drain, there’s no shortage of hazards that can cause damage to cars.

So the results of a survey of 1000 British drivers paint an alarming picture. Despite our cars most vulnerable parts coming under daily assault, the majority of drivers admit they don’t know how to change a wheel.

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James Mills 13 Comments

Warranty woe: How new car drivers can keep their warranty valid

Warranty woe

You don’t have to use a car maker’s garage to preserve a new car warranty. You do have to ensure an independent follows manufacturer guidelines

Do you suffer from warranty woe? It’s a condition that befalls many drivers. Your new car comes with a warranty. But you’re a bit confused and concerned by it rather than viewing it as the comforting safety blanket that the car maker intends.

The majority of new car warranties last for three years and 60,000 or 100,000 miles. Some last for five or seven years. However, they all have at least two things in common: they protect you and the car against defects relating to materials, fittings and manufacturing faults; and you can invalidate them easily if you’re not careful.

In its most basic terms a warranty is a contract between the manufacturer and vehicle owner. The car’s maker promises to take care of repairing parts stated in the contract; the owner undertakes to maintain the vehicle in the way the car maker specifies. Continue reading →

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Driving abroad: Why you need breakdown cover

Breakdown cover can save wasting holiday time (Picture © TyreSafe)

Breakdown cover can save wasting holiday time (Picture © TyreSafe)

Having your vehicle break down is never something you expect and when it does happen it’s frequently at the most inconvenient time. Green Flag’s Sam Jackson explains how having breakdown cover can transform what would have been a difficult experience into a minor adjustment to your trip, even if you’re in foreign climes.  Continue reading →

James Foxall 1 Comment

Parking perfection: how to fit parking sensors to a car

Guide to fitting parking sensors to cars and the best systems available

According to a survey, the majority of British drivers are hopeless at parking and admit that poor parking etiquette is their worst driving habit.

But in defence of drivers, is it any wonder most of us find parking brings us out in a cold sweat? Cars have grown and parking bays haven’t. The average car is now said to be two inches wider than the minimum 5ft 11ins gap they have to squeeze into.

So despite parking systems becoming increasingly common, it’s little wonder that thousands of motorists regret not choosing a used car fitted with parking sensors, or wish they’d spent that little bit extra on a new motor and added the sensors as an option.

However, help is at hand. Parisian-style bump-and-grind parking can be banished by fitting aftermarket parking sensors to a car. Here’s how to attain parking perfection.

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