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Alternating current
I have been leasing company cars for five years, starting with £120 per month for a Vauxhall Corsa and now up to £300 per month for a 2019 Astra. I now want to own a car rather than lease one but can’t decide whether to buy the last car I lease or buy a used electric vehicle. I mostly do short journeys, up to 3,000 miles a year. Should I go electric? MG
Used confines you to the Mitsubishi iMiev/Citroën C Zero/Peugeot iOn, Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf, Smart ForTwo or ForFour – or horrors such as the G-Wiz. Good electric cars such as the Kia eNiro and Hyundai Kona electric are only just arriving. Teslas are expensive and relatively rare. The choice will inevitably increase, however. A self-charging hybrid doesn’t really make sense for 3,000 miles per year of short runs.
Seconds out
I have a 2018 Toyota Prius Plug-In purchased from a main dealer. It came without a second key or a spare charge lead and I’m getting nowhere with the dealer, so what can I do? WR
When you buy a used car there is no guarantee that it is complete with all extra bits such as keys and charge cables, unless the car is sold under a manufacturer used-car scheme that says it will be. You could argue that you had every right to expect a 2018 car to be complete and, if it isn’t, you might have a case under the 2008 consumer protection regulations.
Signal box
What exactly is the advantage of keyless entry? For years I’ve had cars with remote-controlled locking and unlocking. Now it seems I shall have to keep the key in a sweet tin to prevent thieves capturing the signal, carry the tin in my pocket then get the key out to unlock the car. How is that progress? RD
I agree. It’s misguided marketing at its worst. Manufacturers such as Skoda and Mercedes are now having to fit “disable” buttons to their proximity keys to switch off the signal and prevent it being boosted and relayed by thieves so the car can be driven away. Apparently, the remote controller for new BMW 7-series cannot be boosted and relayed.