Motoring Newsbriefs

May 19 2009 Steve Hughes

WARRANTY REWIND AT KIAKIA Motors UK has launched its new approved used car scheme with a new name and back-dated warranties.

All used Kia cars under 18 months old and with less than 18,000 miles on the clock will have their warranty re-wound to what it was when new - be it three, five or seven years.

Kia spokesman Andrew Sellars, says: 'This is a statement from the company that we are confident in the build quality and reliability of our products and our warranties. We are also offering a 60-day exchange plan along with a multi-point check and seven-day drive-away insurance.

'Most companies offer between 14 and 30-day exchange plans but we are saying that if there is any fault we cannot rectify in 60 days, we'll change the car.'

The company has now ended its Kia Kudos programme and replaced it with the Kia Approved Used Car Programme.

Mr Sellars admits: 'With Kudos people did not really know what it meant. The new programme does exactly what it says on the tin. People understand what it is.'

PRIUS ON PARADETHE British Army has taken delivery of 50 Toyota Prius cars as part of its mission to be seen to be green.

White Fleet, the branch of Headquarters Land Forces which manages the Army's 6,600 non-deployable administrative vehicles is meeting a Government target to ensure all cars procured between 2007 and 2011 produce less than 130g/km of CO2.

Brokered by the Army through its leasing partners VT Group and Lex Vehicle Leasing, the Prius which produces 104g/km of CO2 replaces 50 Vauxhall Vectras whose CO2 figure was 154g/km.

CHECK MATEWITH lack of oil being a major cause of engine failure and a new engine costing an average of £1,4131, Halfords is offering a free oil check during National Oil Check Week from June 15-19.

Halfords already offers oil checks as part of the 'We Fit' service but during National Oil Check Week drivers will be able to get their oil checked for free as well as getting a £1 discount on one-litre packs of Mobil 1 oil, should a top-up be necessary.

Halfords pledged its support to National Oil Check Week after research revealed that 17 per cent of UK motorists never check their oil. This came on top of Halfords' research concluding that 23 per cent of drivers are neither willing nor able to check oil levels and top up their oil.

THINK BIKE TYRETHE latest tyre safety campaign to be held by safety organisation TyreSafe has achieved record interest as the organisation's website experienced its busiest month to date in April with 26,700 visits, which is a 185 percent increase on April 2008.

The Bike Tyre Safety Month campaign aimed to raise awareness of the importance of tyres in road safety.

Top tips for bike tyre safety maintenance together with key tyre safety advice were shared with bikers via a dedicated page on the TyreSafe website where visitors were also offered the opportunity to register for the organisation's newsletter and receive a free tyre valve extension.

FUTURE PERFECT?THE European Automobile Manufacturers' Association has published its plans for the future focusing on four main areas - environment, mobility, market and economy, and the regulatory framework.

'The commitment to solutions that tackle issues like climate change and road safety remains at the heart of all manufacturers' strategies,' says president and Nissan Renault boss Carlos Ghosn.

``The automotive industry forms the backbone of the manufacturing industry in Europe. The years of 2009 and 2010 will be crucial as the global economy has to overcome a damaging recession. The degree to which the automotive sector will be prepared for future growth will depend in large part on the decisions taken by legislators today.''

UPS AND DOWNSJATO Dynamics, the world's leading provider of automotive data and intelligence, has released its monthly European new car market analysis for April 2009 showing the Volkswagen Golf has re-claimed its crown as Europe's best-selling car while Volkswagen remains the best-selling brand.

Ford's new Fiesta continues to increase its sales across Europe, up 26.7% year-to-date and 59.2% for the month of April. The Fiesta has sold especially well in Germany, Britain, France, Italy and Spain, all of which have now announced scrappage schemes.

Small cars dominate the top ten and have increased sales over the same period in 2008 in an otherwise difficult market. The Volkswagen Polo and Fiat Panda are up 17.3% and 56.8% respectively in April.

This small car success is in marked contrast to the overall European new car market, which dropped by 12.5%.

SCRAP SCAMWHILST welcoming the new scrappage scheme vehcile monitoring organisation HPI is warning dealers not to fall victim to a threat involving stolen or forged V5/logbooks.

'In a bid to make the most of the scrappage scheme to swap old vehicles for cut price new ones, fraudsters will need proof of a year's ownership. This is the only prerequisite for qualifying for the discount and as of yet there is little or no means of policing this,' warns Nick Lindsay, a director at HPI.

The DVLA first announced that there were a large number of stolen V5s in circulation in 2007.

The scrappage scheme makes stolen V5s an even greater asset for fraudsters, the company warns.