ON THE CHARGE

I attended Sydney’s Fully Charged Live electric car show on the weekend. To all EV doubters, it was crammed with people – 15,000 paying spectators at $60 a pop. Star, for me, was the MG4 launch. If they can price it at $40,000, as expected, a Tesla Model 3 looks very expensive. The fact Tesla didn’t bother showing up shows how little they care about Australian buyers interested in EVs. Scott Cappon, email

I believe big EV players Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Porsche didn’t have stands either. With such high attendance, it seems an opportunity missed. This left MG, LDV, BYD and Polestar to win hearts and minds with their vehicles. The MG4 has enjoyed rave reviews in Europe and it’s likely to be priced in the low $40,000s when it goes on sale here in a few months. This rear-drive 125kW/250Nm entry-level version has 350km range, and while that’s still a lot of money, it should put an EV in reach of more Australians.

LIGHT THE WAY

Do an electric car’s brake lights come on when the driver lifts off the accelerator and the regenerative braking kicks in? At what point does the driver actually need to press the brake pedal to slow or stop?

Justin Pritchard, email In short, yes, the brake lights do come on. EVs usually have selectable levels of regenerative braking, from strong to completely off. If turned off or set to very light, the brake lights won’t come on when throttling off. Some EVs will ultimately come to a complete stop when you lift off the throttle, so if you time it right you need not touch the brake pedal. Others will still require you to brake for a complete stop, and some, such as the Hyundai Kona, can brake using the left steering wheel paddle.

RISE OF THE MACHINES

I own a new Ford Ranger with intelligent adaptive cruise control. It reads speed limit signs and immediately adjusts cruise speed, so if you’re doing 100km/h and there’s a 60 sign, it begins to drop speed. Problem is I’m well over the new 60km/h limit as the cruise starts decreasing from 100km/h. I could lose my licence for being 40km/h over. Police have told me I’d get a ticket in this situation. Linda Bordwell, email

Speed-sign recognition allied with intelligent adaptive cruise control sounds great on paper, but your findings show how tech limitations could result in big fines. Misreading speed limits, or erroneously detecting slip road signs also play havoc with the tech – I’ve experienced it all. The Ford website’s small print – there’s lots of it – reminds these are supplemental driver-assist systems. They don’t replace our attention or judgment. It also says it “will not always detect the correct speed limit and may set a vehicle speed above or below the actual speed limit.” In your case, it would be more dangerous if the system suddenly jammed brakes on to drop to 60km/h. Turn off your smart cruise and lower your speed when you see the new limit in the distance.

RISING OIL PRICES

My local Renault dealer quoted $473 for a basic oil and filter service. I asked for a cost breakdown and was told Renault fixed the price. I inquired at Renault Australia and they denied that. I eventually got a breakdown from the dealer, stating they charge $180 per hour labour and the service takes 1.5 hours. They didn’t get my business. Andy McLaren, email

Most dealerships are franchises and there are good ones and bad ones. The hourly labour rate is typical, but at 1.5 hours I hope they do more than just replace the oil and filters. Renaults bought before July 2020 have three years of capped servicing; newer cars have five. Either way, the dealer’s lack of transparency didn’t inspire trust and lost them a customer.

CAMERA CRISIS

Our 23,000km 2017 Mazda3 is approximately one year out of its extended warranty. The rear camera was playing up and the dealer wanted $997 to replace it, with no help from Mazda Australia. I feel it should last longer than four years, what do you think?

Peter Sampson, email I agree. Under Australian Consumer Law most would agree the camera hadn’t met “reasonable” life expectancy. On our advice, Peter contacted Mazda customer service and the local Mazda dealership also followed up the query with head office, which agreed to fit a new camera free of charge. Well done Mazda and a great result for you.

HARD TO JUSTIFY?

Having regularly serviced my car at a Holden workshop, I was quoted $600 to fit an $18 replacement windscreen washer pump. Apparently the whole front of the car needs removing to get to the site. I now use a local mechanic and he fitted it as part of the normal service price.

P Kay, Adelaide

I don’t know about your car, but getting to the pump usually involves removing plastic cladding and sometimes the front bumper. But I can’t see it being a $600 job. Shows the importance of getting a few quotes and treasuring a good mechanic when you find one.

PLEASURE CRUISE

When driving using active cruise control, if you accelerate manually, does it harm the engine or electronics? And do the brake lights come as you slow down if the car in front’s slowed down?

Rohan De Soysa, email

Accelerating causes no harm – it simply overrides the cruise control. If the active cruise system must apply brakes to mirror the car in front, your brake lights will come on; if it just coasts with no throttle, your lights won’t illuminate.