FUTURE SHOCK

Every updated, new and ‘here’s what’s coming soon’ car has one thing in common: they’re unaffordable for most of us. Have manufacturers abandoned normal folk on normal wages? All I hear from blue collar brands like Ford, Toyota and Hyundai are their new electric cars costing over $60,000. What if I want a simple, reliable, practical $20,000 car for my retirement? How can young folk afford a new car these days?

Rupert Wainwright, email

New car price hikes due to Covid disruption, distribution costs, raw material prices and mass demand haven’t reset. And look unlikely to. The days of the sub-$20,000 car have basically gone, sadly. Only Kia’s Picanto, MG3 and Suzuki’s Ignis and Baleno occupy that space. I’m afraid we’ll have to get used to this new normal. Car companies must invest in electric vehicles or risk oblivion. Challenge will be to produce desirable, affordable electric cars for the masses. The wait goes on.

LIMITED CRUISE

Re Chris Chapman’s advice not to use cruise control on hills, I pulled out my Holden VZ Commodore’s owner’s manual. It says cruise control shouldn’t be used when road conditions require varying speeds, nor in heavy traffic or winding, slippy or rough roads. I’ve always believed it shouldn’t be used when towing either.

Gary Roberts, Sunshine Coast

As with most technology, cruise control has improved markedly since the days of the VZ Commodore. That said, my 2017 VW Golf’s cruise control warnings mirror your Holden’s. It’s fine to tow using cruise, but again, it’s at its best on flat, uncongested roads. Radar cruise control - where it detects and adjusts speed to the car in front - has been game changing, and increasingly commonplace on cars.

OUT OF LINE

At my 2021 Isuzu MU-X’S 15,000km service I was told it needed two new tyres plus a wheel alignment. I believe this could have been avoided for the sake of a $70 alignment when the car was new or at its 3000km inspection.

Peter Kelly, email

Dodgy wheel alignment may not have been the cause of your early tyre wear. When fitting new tyres an alignment’s always a good idea, that’s probably why the dealer’s suggested it. It’d be unlikely for a new car’s wheels to be poorly aligned, but hitting potholes or kerbs can knock it out.

Remember the MU-X is a heavy big thing, hastening tyre wear. Wrong tyre pressures are culprits too. Either way, I’d go to a tyre shop directly for new rubber, rather than the dealer. Dealers typically use the local tyre shop and charge you a premium.

BACK TO THE 80S

Re car build quality, I’ve found 1980s Mercedes had the best. They we described as ‘bomb proof,’ were solidly built and extremely comfortable. As a long-time owner of many, I think Mercedes build too many models with too much tech these days.

James Alsford, Alfredton

We need only use our eyes. There are plenty of Mercs of this vintage still on our roads.

BACK TO FRONT

I recall reading that space saver spare wheels can only be fitted to the rear of the vehicle and speed restricted to 80km/h. Numerous times

I’ve seen these skinny wheels fitted to the front of cars. If it’s a safety issue the motoring public should be better informed.

Peter Johnson, Gold Coast

Most are limited to 80km/h – there’s a sticker on these ‘spares of shame’ to inform the maximum permitted. If your car’s front-wheel-drive, the space saver should go on the rear: up front is where steering and acceleration happens, so you want full grip. Yes, this may involve removing two wheels. For rear- and all-wheel-drive vehicles (especially where differentials are involved) check the owner’s manual as space savers may be restricted to use on only the front or rear. By the way, it’s frightening how many owners don’t know which are their car’s driven wheels.

OUT OF GAS

We’ve discovered our 2019 Honda HR-V’S spare tyre has never been checked. It was at 5psi rather than 30psi or so. Useless. I called Honda and was told we must verbally request the check at services. For four years we’ve been told ‘tyres and brakes are good,’ but what about the spare?

Beryl and John Walters, email

While I can’t defend your Honda dealer, the onus is on the owner to check tyres pressures – including the spare – every few weeks. While a full-size spare needs roughly 30psi, a space saver spare (as in your HR-V) needs about 60psi.

PEAK QUALITY

Re car build quality, I believe cars peaked in 2012/13. I’ve owned a 2012 Mazda6 and now a 2013 Honda CR-V and both epitomise the desirable pinnacle of development. Since then, everything has become too complex and ridiculously expensive – we see so many defect recalls today.

Bill Watson, email

It’s a great pub chat question. When did cars peak in terms of driving involvement, comfort and reliability, but without being overly complex? I reckon it was about the turn of the millennium. We’d (mainly) nailed rustproofing and reliability, material quality was often excellent but electronics for every damn thing hadn’t yet arrived. These were cars we home mechanics could easily work on. Replacing a headlight globe was $2 not $80, and a windscreen maybe $150 not $4000.