Car clocking – don’t get caught out
It’s easy to think of clocked cars as a problem of yesteryear. One that’s been tackled so you no longer need to worry about it. But sadly, nothing could be further from the truth, as one in every 20 cars subjected to an HPI check is found to have been clocked. Where there’s easy money to be made, crooks will always strike – and with clocking so easy and the rewards potentially so great, it’s no wonder clocking is still such a big issue. So big in fact, that according to the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), clocked cars cost the motor industry and consumers more than £100 million each year. According to used car valuation experts Glass’s, if you’re lucky enough to own a 12-plate BMW 530d SE Touring it’s worth little more than £15,000 with 150,000 miles on the clock. But halve this mileage and the car’s value jumps to just under £20,000. Cut the mileage to just 30,000 and the BMW is worth a whopping £23,000 – a 53 per cent (and £8000) increase over the 150,000-mile car. No wonder clocking is rife. Last year, one gang of criminals was imprisoned for clocking at least 255 cars, with four million miles being lost in the process. In 2013, a Nottingham-based dealer pocketed over £130,000 by wiping six million miles off 74 used cars that he sold online . With these scams far from unusual, you really need to have your wits about you.
The 10 strangest motoring stories of 2015
People are strange, and nowhere is this more obvious than in the wonderful world of motoring, where people do some truly bizarre things. To prove it, we’ve had a look at some of the weird and wonderful pursuits that people have got up to in 2015. Scrapheap challenge At the start of the year a man created his own Pagani Zonda – from an old Ford Granada and a load of scrap parts. Nick Truman started by buying a scrap Jaguar engine to turn into a coffee table, but somehow created a fake Italian supercar instead. By the time he’d finished Truman had spent £15,000 on the project – including four engines and two gearboxes. We don’t think Pagani has much to fear from the competition just yet… Full Story Slim gym Modern life is busy and sometimes fitting it all in just isn’t possible. So what if you could combine the time that you’re driving with your sessions at the gym? No problem, because Nissan came up with a solution – its Gym button. By pressing this all assistance systems were switched off so you’d have to put more effort into your driving – steering, braking, windows and even changing gear. By using this technology Nissan reckoned you could burn an extra 1,415 calories per week – except the whole thing was an April fool, which was rather a shame. Full Story No $%&! The land speed record for buses was raised to almost 77mph in May, by a bus powered by cow manure. Run by Reading buses and with its usual speed limiter removed, the bus was painted supposedly to look like a Friesan cow, although we’d say it’s not all that hard to spot the difference. Full Story Line ‘em up Bristol City Council started painting yellow lines all over its roads in May, supposedly to deter selfish parkers. But many of these lines were less than a metre long – not even the width (never mind the length) of a Smart car. Unsurprisingly, Bristol residents aren’t happy with the waste of their money; maybe city mayor George Ferguson should be given lines as a punishment. Full Story Wood you believe it? In August, gardener Kevin Nicks revealed that he’s been toiling away in his shed to create – the world’s fastest shed. By converting his Volkswagen Passat into a timber-clad garden building he claimed the record with a 70.8mph top speed, beating the previous figure of 58.4mph. Full Story Put that in your pipe… When an elderly man drove his car into a lake in August, he did what any self-respecting Brit would do – relaxed and enjoyed smoking his pipe. While the emergency services extricated the man from his Ford Focus in the lake in Warwickshire, he chatted calmly, wondering what all the fuss was about. Full Story Paper view Lexus revealed its ‘origami car’ in October – an IS made of precision-cut cardboard. Built by production line staff, the car featured working lights, doors and wheels, while it could even be driven thanks to the fitment of an electric motor. We suspect the car is likely to be impervious to rust but we’re not sure how well it would stand up to being left out in the rain. Full Story Brushing up A carwash manager ended up getting taken to the cleaner’s when he got caught up in one of the automatic brushes while sorting out his hose. Failing to look where he’s going, the poor fella backs into the spinning brush then gets spun around as he battles to free himself. Still, it all came out in the wash. Full Story Turning the tables Australian police were not amused when nine men navigated their way through Perth traffic on a pair of motorised picnic tables. Each of the tables was capable of carrying six people, but with no licences or insurance and with none of the men wearing protective clothing, the police didn’t see the funny side – although pretty much everybody else did. Full Story Keep on trucking With the average mobility scooter packing barely enough power to pull along its own weight, converting one into an articulated lorry may not seem like a good idea. But that’s exactly what Lincoln-based Barrie Hall did when he turned his mobility scooter into a scale replica of the Coca Cola lorry, to raise cash for charity. The stunt comes hot on the heels of a project in 2014 that saw him turn his scooter into a sleigh, complete with reindeer. Full Story Richard Dredge December 2015
How to keep your car safe in the winter
The Christmas period is a great time to visit different cities and explore the German markets. However as the festive season embarks on the ‘Good-will-to all-men’ mantra, we all still need to be aware of thieves. We’ve put together tips on how to keep your car safe this winter. Don’t leave things on show Whether you’re car is parked in a shopping centre or at home on your driveway, don’t leave expensive things on show. This includes; Handbags Wallets / purses Mobile phones Christmas presents Sat nav + mounts In-car charges and any charging wires Money Don’t leave your driving licence or registration documents in the car, this could help fraudsters sell your car.
Scotland top region for used cars on outstanding finance
HPI data reveals where consumers are most at risk from used car finance fraud in the UK www.hpicheck.com New data analysis from HPI, provider of the HPI Check®, reveals that Scotland has the greatest number of used cars for sale hitting the HPI outstanding finance register. The North West of England and Wales follow close behind. A vehicle that has outstanding finance registered against it legally belongs to the finance house, which means unwary buyers could lose the car and the money they paid for it, if the vehicle is repossessed. With as many as 1 in 4 used cars hitting the HPI finance register, private car buyers are being urged to protect themselves from the finance fraudsters. Neil Hodson, Managing Director for HPI explains: “It’s very clear from our data, that the chances of buying a car that still has finance owing against it is much more likely in some regions across the UK than others. Buyers in the regions London, East Anglia and the South West are the least likely to find themselves with a car that is legally owned by someone else.
Avoid drink driving this Christmas
If you’re old enough to drive you’ll have got used to being bombarded with anti-drink driving campaigns over the years. Every Christmas a series of adverts is aired in which you’re told that if you get caught drink driving your world will fall apart. Don’t get caught and the consequences could be much worse; there are 240 deaths each year through drink driving. Despite this high-profile campaigning, each year around 100,000 drivers lose their licence because they’ve been caught driving over the limit. The result is an instant driving ban for at least 12 months – but that’s just the start of it. So this Christmas – and indeed all year round – don’t take any chances if you’re driving, because it’s just not worth it. Many drivers are caught out the morning after. Some have been caught out by just moving their car while others have lost their licence by sleeping in their car while drunk. It’s easy to think that a few hours’ sleep will make all that alcohol in your system disappear, but whether you’re asleep or awake your body can process things only so fast. Just how quickly depends on whether you’re male or female, your weight, how much booze you’ve had, how much and what you’ve eaten – and more besides.
Used Car Scams
Buying a used car can be stressful enough, without having to worry about whether or not the vendor is trying to rip you off. Unfortunately there’s a high chance of this, as one in every three HPI checks flags up some sort of problem. It could be that the car is subject to outstanding finance, it may have been clocked or it could have been involved in an insurance claim at some point. Alternatively it could be stolen, or there’s an array of other ways you could get caught out – so here’s how to protect yourself.
Top 10 car accessories
We love our cars and we also love to personalise them, whether that’s to make them more distinctive, safer or more comfortable. So if you’re putting together your Christmas list, these are the top 10 car accessories that should be on it. Sat-nav When sat-navs came out they allowed to navigate from one place to another – and for that alone they’re incredibly useful. But they’ve grown up since then to the point where they now do so much more. They’ll route you round jams, find specific points of interest, allow you to have a phone conversation via bluetooth, can be voice-controlled and you can stream music or even television through them too. Prices start at just £50 for an entry-level unit and go up to £300 for something with plenty of bells and whistles. Dash cam If you’re involved in a crash that’s not your fault, having footage of what happened can save you a huge amount of hassle and grief. With the rise of no-win no-fee lawyers, you need something to protect yourself if somebody tries to take action against you when you’ve done nothing wrong. No wonder dash cams have become so popular. Prices start at £50 and run to £300 or so, the posher models featuring dual lenses plus an ability to record your time and location via GPS. Action camera You probably don’t have any great desire to capture your crawl around the M25, but if you’re undertaking a more aspirational trip an action camera could be just what you need. The best known is the GoPro and thanks to the huge range of available accessories it’s easy to recommend. But much cheaper alternatives can be picked up for well under £50 and while the image quality might not be quite the same, you can still record some spectacular footage of those mountain passes or coastal drives on your holidays.
The complete winter driving guide
As temperatures drop your car has a harder time than ever – and so do you. So give yourself a fighting chance of getting through this winter, by making sure you and your car are fully prepared. Getting your car ready for winter By preparing your car for sub-zero conditions you’ll make your life a lot easier, as you’ll be less likely to break down and you’re also less likely to be involved in a crash. So kick off with the basics: Battery: Most fast-fit outlets will check the state of your car’s battery for free. If it’s on its last legs, the first sign of a sharp frost will see it fail altogether – leaving you unable to start your car. Coolant: To stop your engine from overheating it’s filled with coolant, which is a mixture of water and anti-freeze. If there’s too much water and not enough anti-freeze it’ll turn to ice when the temperatures drop, potentially wrecking your engine. So get the anti-freeze strength checked at a friendly garage. Tyres: You need to ensure your tyres are at the correct pressures and have sufficient tread all year round, and it’s no different in winter. If your tyres are close to the legal limit of 1.6mm, invest in a new set before the bad weather catches you out. It might even be worth investing in a set of winter tyres, although this means buying a second set of wheels or faffing about having tyres fitted to your existing wheels then back again when the temperatures rise in the spring – which is why few drivers bother. Lights: With short days, rain and fog all par for the course over the next few weeks, your lights will probably be on whenever you’re driving. Make sure everybody can see you – and that you can see – by ensuring they’re all working properly. Wipers: The last thing you want when it starts snowing is for your wiper blades to fall apart because they’re perished. If this happens you won’t be able to sweep away any rain or snow, plus there’s a good chance your windscreen will be damaged. Windows: Getting a clear view through your windows is key, so make sure the heating and ventilation work properly or everything will mist up so you’re driving in a permanent fog. And don’t forget to keep your washer bottle topped up.
Buying a pre-registered car
How would you like to buy a brand new car at a hefty saving – perhaps as much as 25 per cent off? Of course you would! And there needn’t be a catch – it just depends on how much you value being able to choose the exact spec and colour of your ‘new’ car. That term ‘brand new’ is open to interpretation though, because while the cars we’re talking about have never been used and will have covered only a delivery mileage, they’ll already be registered to someone else. Specifically the dealer that’s selling the car. If this is sounding less appealing by the minute, don’t be put off by our slight lack of transparency, because these ‘pre-registered’ cars can be some of the best motoring bargains out there. You really are getting an unused car for much less than the new list price. It’s just that on paper, it’s a used car – which is why you can make a hefty saving.
How to sell your car
If there’s one thing that’s often more stressful than buying a used car, it’s selling one. All those strangers turning up at your door, the negotiating, trying to get as much money as you can. No wonder so many sellers prefer to just trade in their car instead. But with a bit of legwork you could be much better off financially if you sell your car yourself – and it needn’t be as time consuming as you might think. That’s why it’s worth putting the effort into selling your car privately. Here’s how.