Badge of quality
Steve Cropley’s outstanding insight
into Ford (‘The next chapter’, 14
August) reveals their huge efforts to
regain the status they once enjoyed.
But no matter how good their cars
a r e , t he y h av e t o app e a l t o t he
average car buyer and that means
also giving a great buying and
servicing experience.
Somehow the plasticky blue oval on
the steering wheel of our rented Ford
E d ge i n C a n a d a e a rl ie r t h i s y e a r ju s t
didn’t have the appeal of the quality
chrome badge on our Volvo steering
wheel. The car was actually really
good and I know pennies matter, but
I just felt rather let down. A reworked
upmarket image and serious dealer
fo c u s m ay b e w h at i s r e a l l y ne e de d t o
get us all buying Fords again.
John Kent
Via email
Bearing straight
I want to take issue with the Auction
Watch information (14 August)
regarding the Porsche ‘996’ 911.
As you mention in the piece, the 996
has a reputation for issues with the
IMS bearing (catastrophic) and also
with the RMS (not catastrophic).
The early pre-facelift 3.4-litre cars
have a dual-row IMS bearing fitted
and are more robust than the single-
row bearings fitted to later facelifted
996s and first-generation 997s. As
a result, they are far less likely to
fail. So to say that replacing the IMS
bearing is particularly important for
3.4s is incorrect.
The RMS does often leak on all
996s (3.4s and 3.6s), but the engine
will not fail as a result, and fitting
a new one is often combined with
other work, such as a new clutch,
which reduces the cost.
Thomas Jacobs
Via email
Bahn storming
I’m currently having my first
experience of driving in Germany. I
wondered why there were no electric
cars knocking around, then I got on
the autobahn. We’ve done 301 miles
today in a wonderful 1.0-litre Skoda
rental car, f lat out whenever possible.
LETTER OF THE WEEK
No defence for Defender
I disagree with editor Mark Tisshaw that the
new Defender “must be judged on its toughness”.
All those who used to buy them for their
toughness have moved to crew cab pick-upt r uc k s t h at of fe r mor e r e l i a bi l it y, pr a c t ic a l it y
and value for money along with well-engineered
toughness required for working on farms and
construction sites.
To be honest, I’m not sure why Land Rover
has even bothered to test the new Defender off
road. It’s so expensive and far removed from the
original that any owner wouldn’t dare risk a scratch
to its pearlescent paintwork, let alone a f looded
interior or damaged sump.
The days of Defenders being the lifeline to communities in remote
pa r t s of t he w orld , f i g ht i n g w a r s a nd b e i n g r e pa i r e d i n sh a c k s b y
mechanics with barely any tools are long gone. Far Eastern rivals
t h at don’t ne e d me c h a n ic s h av e got t h at s e w n up.
The only parts that will need to be tough are the seats and plastics
of t he i nt e r ior t h at w i l l b e at r i sk f r om t he k id s b e i n g fe r r ie d t o a nd
from their posh schools!
John Penfound
Andover, Hampshire
The result: still over half a tank of
petrol left. I wonder how far I would
have got by battery power?Phil Thexton
Via email
The silent era
I m a g i ne i f e le c t r ic c a r s h a d b e e n t he
norm for the past 120 years as they
were in the early years of motoring.
Then someone introduces a car
with a noisy V8 engine chucking out
choking, global-warming emissions
that needs to have a little stick to
change gears because of a lack of
torque. It wouldn’t catch on, would it?
John Pendlebury
Via email
No knight vision
I s t r on g l y d i s a g r e e t h at L e w i sHamilton should be awarded a
knighthood. Quite apart from his
status as a tax exile (and his crass
remarks about his hometown of
Stevenage), he is just one cog – albeit
an exceptionally talented cog – in
a team of 1400 employees, many of
w hom a r e a l s o Br it i sh. Me r c e de s
employs some of the best engineers
and technical experts in the world –
all of whom have contributed to the
success of the team and Hamilton
- but who are largely unknown
because they are not constantly in the
s p ot l i g ht. No doub t i f Ha m i lt on w e r e
to be knighted, he would come out
with the usual platitudes such as ‘this
is for the team’, but we all know he
would see it as his.
Nigel Mansell and Damon Hill
may only have won the Formula 1
world championship once each, but
I suggest they worked far harder
for their titles, and in much more
demanding cars, than Hamilton. No
knighthoods for them – a CBE for
Mansell and an OBE for Hill. Graham
Hill, with two world championships
under his belt, only received an OBE.
We need a sense of perspective.
Simon Cobby
Via email
I s i t r e a l l y a n A M G?
I r e a l l y l i k e my Me r c e de s-A MG A 3 5.
I went for the adjustable dampers
a nd t he ae r o b o d y k it. It w i l l c r u i s e
along quite comfortably but can be
a bit noisy on the wrong road
s u r f a c e. It h a s a sm a r t , c l a s s y,
cutting-edge interior and it can
press on when required.
One issue is its AMG identity.
It feels like the equivalent of an S3
or Golf R, not a step up. To me, an
AMG is about unashamed grunt.
Its cars have not always been the
sweetest-handling but they normally
had more power than most and a
fabulous soundtrack.
WIN
Letter of the week
wins this ValetPRO
exterior protection
and maintenance kit
worth £48
62 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 28 AUGUST 2 019
9 9 6 : s o m e a r e m o r e r o b u s t t h a n o t h e r s
Hamilton: ‘just one cog’ in Mercedes F1
Greg’s AMG A35
has a scarcity of
‘unashamed grunt’
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