Gordon the Golf went in for an overdue service and its first
MOT. The great news is that it passed, but it did need a couple
of new tyres. I went for top-of-the-line Michelins, which were
the most costly par t of the garage visit at just over £150. The
side note is that the 21 year old needed a set of wheels to
get to work and re jected out of hand my motley collection
of classics. She wanted mum’s Cayenne. The insurer offered
four days cover for £50. Cheaper than hiring a wreck.
24 APRIL 2 019 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 71
PCP mileage penalties are a
source of great confusion among
car buyers. In your case, you have
nothing to fear since by buying
it you will be saving the finance
company the trouble of disposing of a car that,
because of its higher mileage, is worth less than
the balance owing on it. They’ll be happy to take
your settlement cheque and say no more aboutit, so go ahead and accumulate those miles with a
clear conscience. JE
Looks and image are among these
cars’ biggest differentiators and
that’s something only you can
wrestle with. Regarding the driving
experience, the Abarth probably
had the edge until Mazda tweaked the MX-5’s
2.0-litre engine and put some fire in its belly. Find
a nearly new one in Sport Nav trim for around
£22,000 and it’s the one to have. JE
ANSWER
ANSWER
QUESTION
QUESTION
MILEAGE 49,881
VOLKSWAGEN GOLF
TALES FROM RUPPERT’S GARAGE
READERS’ QUESTIONSThe Ka is here mainly for the fact that you can
routinely buy a decent one for under a grand, so in
these difficult times when you need something for the
station and supermarket run and don’t want to worry
about car park dents or outrageous costs, it’s ideal.
It isn’t the most economical small car (at 42.2mpg),
but officially a non-power steering job would manage
47.9mpg, which is decent enough these days. Rust is
the killer so check for it everywhere. Original spec was
just split rear seat and radio/cassette. Too basic for
you? Then get a Collection or Luxury or choose from
the huge number of special editions.
K is for Ford Ka
I will be buying my
car at the end of its
PCP contract but
am worried I may exceed
my mileage limit and have
to pay the finance company
a mileage surcharge. What
do you advise?
Dave Cummings, ChathamI’m torn between
buying a used
Mazda MX-5 2.0
and an Abarth 124 Spider.
Which do you recommend?
Kirsty Salter, via email
BANGER
PEDIA
SEND YOUR USED CAR TALES TO [email protected] AND READERS' QUESTIONS TO [email protected]