Category: Blog

Sometimes car faults can be fixed. Sometimes you just book your car into the garage and, a couple of days later, it’s fit to drive. Other times you won’t be so lucky.

Problems that lead to damage or complete failure in the engine are usually the most expensive problems to fix. They’re bad news. Investing in a new engine sometimes just isn’t worth your while, and if you’re not careful you could be left severely out of pocket.

Here at WeBuyAnyDamagedCar we come across a whole host of car faults so expensive to fix that they outweigh the value of the car itself, so we’ve put together a list of some of the worst, most expensive problems to watch out for.

Fuel injector problems

The fuel injector is integral to all modern car engines. It’s designed to deliver a precise amount of fuel into the engine for the combustion process to work.

Regulating the flow of fuel and allowing for more fuel-economical driving, modern digital fuel injectors are much better than they used to be – but problems still remain, and since they’re hard to get to, you could be faced with a pretty hefty garage bill if they fail.

If the pressure becomes too low, the injectors don’t provide enough fuel to the engine to keep it running. Your car could fail to start or, more dangerously, cut out completely while you’re driving. If the fuel injectors provide the engine with too much or too little fuel, power problems and overheating issues can occur.

Fuel injector problems can be a nightmare for those with modern diesel cars, and if they seize in the cylinder head are almost impossible to remove from certain engines. This is especially true of Honda’s 2.2 CTDI engine in the CRV and Accord and in VW Passat diesel engines.

What to look out for:

• If your engine misfires this could indicate the presence of a faulty fuel injector. This happens when the injector becomes clogged over time with foreign particles that work their way into the engine.

• Lack of engine smoothness. Because the fuel flow is effected, power to the engine may come in stops and starts – even when the car is running in idle.

Gearbox problems

Transmission are complicated pieces of machinery, so there’s a surprising amount of things that could potentially go wrong. Even if you do find the root cause of the problem, since they’re so difficult to access, transmission problems are extremely expensive – you’re probably looking at paying around £1000 for a replacement.

One of the most common faults with modern automatic and semi-automatic transmissions are electrical ECU faults.

Many Audi cars fitted with automatic gearboxes are prone to these electrical issues – and motorists also complain of problems with solenoid valves, which work to regulate the transmission fluids.

Citroën vehicle models which use the Sensodrive semi-automatic gearbox often experience transmission problems, as do those Mercedes cars with the Tiptronic gearbox.

What to look out for:

• Are you struggling to change gear? When the car won’t go into gear it’s possible that there’s a problem with the clutch disc or pressure plate.

• Grinding or ‘clashing’ gears is another one to watch out for. The clutch could be poorly adjusted or there might be a problem with the shift linkage binding.

The turbocharger

Another faulty component that we often come across here at WeBuyAnyDamagedCar is the turbocharger. Designed to increase the power output of your engine, the turbocharger works to provide a more powerful fuel combustion. It does this by compressing the air that flows into the engine so that more air will fit into the cylinders.

Unfortunately, they’re also prone to failure. Since they operate at incredibly fast speeds it’s important to make sure that you have sufficient oil to ensure the correct pressure and flow rate.

The bearings inside the turbo shaft can also overheat and cause the engine oil to bypass the turbo intercooler and contaminate the entire induction system.

As for getting a replacement, you need to watch out for the hidden costs. Many Fords often suffer from turbocharger issues, as do a number of Nissan models.

What to look out for:

• Check for ‘blueing’ of the bearings or the shaft. This will normally indicates that they’ve been exposed to high operational temperatures and points to a lubrication problem.

If you’ve suffered any of these car problems, just get in touch. We’ll pay cash for your damaged or broken car and save you the cost and hassle of trying to repair it.

Contact us today for a free quotation or give us a call on 01366 387967.

Sometimes, car owners get lucky. When they crash their vehicle, they damage it so badly that it’s no longer fit for the road and sent straight to the scrap yard – they’re able to make a clean break and buy a new car.

Others, well, they aren’t so lucky. Their vehicles actually survive…

It might seem a little counter-intuitive, but being the owner of a car that’s damaged to the point of being completely written is often less troublesome than being the owner of a vehicle that’s damaged and still deemed to be roadworthy.

So what’s going on here?

Insurance Categories

When a car is involved in a crash, insurance providers look at the vehicle and assign it to a category based on its condition. These insurance ‘write off’ categories are as follows:

– Cat A or Cat B? Things are looking good, you’re in the clear. Your car is declared a write off, and following all regulation, will be crushed.

– Cat C or D? This is where things get a little more complicated. Your car is declared a write off, but the insurance company have decided that it’s still serviceable after all relevant repairs have been made.

It might not look so bad to find yourself the owner of a Cat C car – it’s just that the cost of the repairs are often greater than the cost of the vehicle itself. And to make matters worse, most insurance companies won’t fork out for the repairs.

The problem with Cat C cars

So if your BMW 5 Series has been deemed a Cat C write off, where does it leave you?

Let’s say you’re able to cover the cost and can pay for the repairs on your car, to get the vehicle legally back on the roads it’s also necessary for the vehicle to have a Vehicle Identity Check to ensure its road worthiness. The car might now be fit for the road, but you’ll have lost a lot of money trying to get it there.

Many Cat C car owners try to get round the issue of insurance and attempt to sell their damaged vehicles, but what they soon realise is that most buyers aren’t really in the market for a damaged Cat C BMW 5 or 3 Series.

Of course, if you can’t afford the cost of the repairs, you’ll be without a car, unable to afford the cost of a buying another.

What to do?

We come across Cat C cars all the time. We also come across car owners who’re unable to afford the repairs and eager to get rid of their damaged cars.

Can’t find a buyer? Can’t afford the cost of the repairs? Whatever the make and model – Chrysler, Porsche, Jaguar, BMW – here at WeBuyAnyDamagedCar we buy broken cars (including those difficult to shift Cat C and Cat D vehicles) and take the hassle out of the sale process, collecting from anywhere in mainland UK within 48 hours.

We’re able to help you put some money towards the cost of a new car. So if you’re looking to sell your Cat C or Cat D vehicle, contact us today. Get in touch for a free, no obligation quotation. We offer cash for cars, and we’ll take that financial-headache of a car off your hands.