Kim Adams

Got a query?

Q Is charger safe on my car? MY BMW X3 diesel has stop/start, but I’m worried about plugging my CTEK 0.8A battery charger into it. Is it safe to use on the BMW? Jill Crowdy, E-mail

A

YOUR charger is fine to use on your BMW, but it’s a low-powered unit designed for long-term maintenance and smaller batteries like those on motorcycles. Charging a flat BMW battery would take a long time. Our test winner, the CTEK CT5 Time to Go (above), would be much faster and has a mode to suit cars with AGM (absorbent glass mat) stop/start batteries. Q Help choosing seat covers AS a driving instructor with a lot of people getting in and out of my car, I am looking to buy some durable, washable seat covers, preferably with straps or zips rather than clips to secure them. Can you help? Rita Sasava, E-mail

A

WE last looked at seat covers eight years ago, so can’t guarantee that the test’s findings are still valid. The winning Walser product was supplied by the Roof Box Company ( www.roofbox.co.uk), which has a range of designs from the brand and should be able to advise which will best suit your needs. Q Foam liners in tyres I RUN a 2013 Audi A7. When I replaced two tyres I saw the old ones had a foam liner and the replacements did not. Have you tested how much difference this makes? Laurie Stokes, E-mail

A

WE haven’t done back-to-back tests of this technology, which is designed to reduce tyre noise in the car, particularly on bigger sizes. We hope to include it in a future test, but Continental’s Contisilent impressed on the Range Rover Sport we ran on our fleet in 2016.