We have a number of used cars in our fleet that we are now selling. All our cars are in excellent saleable condition and all cars come with the following:

• Air Conditioning
• Alloy Wheels
• CD Player
• Low Tax
• Excellent MPG
• Low Emissions
• Plus Pack

If you would like to view any of these cars, then please contact Martin on 01765 609140 or 07730 000004, email: msmith@billplant.co.uk. Please quote the price and mileage of the car when contacting us.

During these tough financial times, everyone is looking to save money. Motorists are especially looking for new ways to save their wallet. Here are 1o tips to that could save you up to £500 a year:

1. Make fuel last longer - Avoid letting the engine warm up before driving – it’s a big waste of fuel. Drive gently for the first few minutes until the engine warms.Try and keep your fuel level at around halfway and clear clutter from inside your car – a heavy car will burn more fuel.
2. Cut Insurance Costs - Call as many car insurance companies as possible. Play companies off against each other when shopping around and quote prices from rival companies to drive costs down.
3. Pay Less for Tax - Buy annually rather than every six months and save up to £40.And if you drive a car which runs on alternative fuel (anything other than petrol or diesel), you’ll save at least £20 per tax band.
4. Check Your Car - Check your car’s tyre pressure is correct – the recommended pressure can found in your vehicle handbook. This can increase fuel efficiency by up to ten per cent.Open the bonnet and ensure the oil and fluid levels are topped up. Consider replacing your battery if it has been run down, or fails to start the car quickly. Remember, if a battery continually runs down, it could be worth having the car’s alternator - which charges the battery - checked.
5. Go green - Use these driving techniques to stretch your fuel even further:• Stay in the left lane on motorways where possible – doing 56mph uses 25 per cent less fuel than 70mph
   • Avoid harsh braking and accelerating – keep speed changes gradual
   • Change gear at around 2,000rpm in a diesel car or around 2,500rpm in a petrol car to put less strain on your engine and use less fuel

6.  Wash your car - Cleaning your car yourself could add hundreds of pounds to your car’s value and saves money on a garage car wash.Buy an all-in-one cleaning kit with car shampoo, polish, a sponge and a leather chamois. Use a bucket of water to rinse – this uses less water and saves money if you’re on a water metre.

7. Get the most money for your car - Set your price correctly – too low and you could lose hundreds of pounds. You’re likely to get a better deal if you clean and repair your car before selling.Place an advert for three weeks online and three weeks in the magazine to save £14.67 and advertise to the most buyers.

8.  Get your next car for less - Haggling could cut hundreds of pounds off the price of a used car.Ask how much the seller realistically expects to get for the car – as soon as they give you a price, look them in the eye, make an offer and say no more. Move to shake their hand to seal the deal.

9. Find a cheap loan - Search around for the best-priced loan before buying a car - you could save thousands of pounds in interest.
10. Save money on car parts - Save money and be kind to the environment by buying used car parts online.This can be cheaper – and greener – than buying new parts. All used parts are checked to see if they’re in good working order before they’re sold.

For more tips on saving money, please visit our page on Economic Driving, to help you get the best from your car.

Cars today are built differently then they were in our grandfather’s day.  Today they are an engineering masterpiece of at least 15,000 different parts and moving pieces.  They still use the standard combustion engine, have four rubber tires and metal bodies, but of course the design of the vehicle’s body have changed considerably.  All vehicles need energy to run and they may still use gasoline or diesel fuel, and of course oil to keep all the parts lubricated and moving smoothly.

There are cars today that run on a combination of gasoline and electricity.  These hybrid vehicles work in tandem, running on electric until the special battery winds down and then switching over to gasoline as the battery charges back up.  Hybrids are helping to keep the pollution level down, but they are still expensive to buy and the way the vehicles are made makes them heavy.  Some countries offer owners of hybrid vehicles tax breaks for purchasing them.

Another alternative power source for vehicles that is being tested is fuel cells.  These are composite membranes, wires, and a box that is combined together to hold fresh supplies of hydrogen.  It mixes with oxygen with the aid of a catalyst to make the chemical energy that drives the motor.  The only by-product of fuel cell energy is water.  While fuel cells may be the most economically sound energy for a vehicle, it is still only in prototype and testing stages.

An event much looked forward to by motoring enthusiasts’ and the public alike was cancelled due to heavy rains over the weekend. The events were the annual Coventry Festival of Motoring on Saturday and Sunday, and the Classic Car Show at Himley Hall, Dudley, on Sunday which would have been an undoubted success with more than 500 cars entered for the Coventry event alone.

Both venues were completely waterlogged before the weekend rains making it impossible to hold this part of the festival. Part of the weekend was to include a parade around Warwickshire, and was organised by the Coventry Transport Museum. For those of you who have not paid a visit to this motoring museum, it is something that is to be recommended with over 240 cars, commercial vehicles and buses as well as around 100 motor cycles, which is the largest collection of British road transport with admission being free of charge.

There are now only 25% of households without a car, according to the Department for Transport and people over the age of 70 years of age holding a full license has also increased to 52%. This rise in the elderly motoring population has led to calls from the RAC Foundation for road signs to have larger lettering and the Government is shortly to unveil proposals for how to improve the assessment of older drivers.

More females are driving now than ever before, it was once considered that it was not necessary for a woman to drive, as the husband saw to that! Of course times have moved on since the Second World War and women now represent a major proportion of the workforce and driving a car is an essential part of life, as seen by the fact that buses were used mainly by people under 30 and over 60, with 28 per cent of the population making at least one such journey every week.

The increase in the number of households that own, or have use of a car, has given rise to concern about safety on the roads. This is reflected in the travel pattern of children with the number of 7-10 year olds accompanied to school rising to 85 per cent last year, with the once common sight of children crossing the road dropping to 13 %. Times have indeed changed.

If you are young you should always shop around for your motor insurance cover, sensible no matter what age you are. Whether you’re a student, in your first job, or starting a young family it is pretty much guaranteed that if you are in your twenties and you will find most car insurers will hike up your premium because of your age. It doesn’t matter whether you have a no claims bonus, or if you’ve been in a few accidents, the majority of insurers will make anyone in their twenties pay over the odds for their insurance. 

There are many insurers that will offer cover to the younger driver at competitive rates, but you must be prepared to accept that the premium will be higher than that paid by your parents. It clearly pays to look around for the best deal, because the insurance premium will possible be around 50% of your annual motoring costs, this compares with of around just 6% for an older an experienced driver. One way to reduce your motor insurance premium is to accept a relatively high excess in the event of an accident, but do not forget this must be paid irrespective of the circumstances of the accident. It pays to shop around either by telephone or internet, so go for it!

It is reported worldwide that some motorists are reverting to dangerous methods in order to try to save fuel. We will not repeat all of these idiotic measures as they can cost people their lives but include over inflating tyres, and rolling through stop signs, an illegal manoeuvre.

However, some sensible and legal advice includes; fastening the seat belt and adjusting your seat and mirrors before starting the engine makes sense. Always brake and accelerate smoothly, consider your parking options to avoid driving round and around the streets. Take off your roof rack when not in use, and if fitted to your car turn off the air conditioning, keep your speed at or below the speed limit.

Do not coast down hills; this is dangerous as is tailgating. Driving too slowly does not save fuel and over inflation of tyres and rolling though stop signs is just dangerous practice and illegal. Be sensible having an accident will certainly be more costly than any fuel saved and can be life threatening.

The iconic Fiat 500 supermini which was launched earlier this year has just been crowned Best City Car in the 2008 Auto Express. The success of the Fiat 500 follows on from the consecutive 4 year run of its stable mate the Fiat Panda bringing to an end what can only be described as a remarkable run.

The Fiat 500, in a similar vein to the Mini, captures the spirit of a legend without coming across as forced or tacky.  Its low prices go hand in hand with the great looking exterior and interior styling to create an irresistible package. This remarkable retro style motor car is only in the early stages of alternative production models will many more versions waiting in the wings. An ultra efficient two cylinder engine, launch an estate version to rival the Mini Clubman as well as a 500 convertible.

Currently the Fiat 500 is available with a choice of three frugal, ultra-low emissions, Euro 5-ready engines: 69 bhp 1.2-litre and 100 bhp 1.4-litre petrol, or 75 bhp 1.3-litre MultiJet turbodiesel, the new Fiat 500 can be ordered in three different trim versions Pop, Sport and Lounge.

It seems never to have stopped raining for the last month and this has brought the usual crop of troubles suffered by some of the motoring public, how to deal with a flash flood. The first thing we would suggest is not to drive your vehicle unless it is absolutely necessary. Always avoid deep water and where possible find an alternative route. 

Driving through deep water may be necessary so always choose the highest section of the road and don’t set off if a vehicle is travelling in the opposite direction. Try to be sensible and leave time and space for each other, so you don’t swamp someone else. Drive slowly through the water and always use the lowest gear possible keeping your revs high and your speed low. Under no circumstances take your foot off the accelerator, as this could allow water to travel up the exhaust pipe and when you are out of the water hazard, dry the brakes do not wait until you might need them! Remember, close your windows and please in rain condition use your headlight when it is necessary to use your wipers.

Anyone who is not familiar with the way the British and residents of her former dominions drive will be shocked to see that they drive on the left-hand side of the road.  This is extremely surprising for Americans who have never been exposed to this before.  This left-hand driving side rule of the road has been in effect for decades and seeing vehicles with the steering wheel on the right-hand side of the car will be very confusing.

Driving on the left-hand side of the road dates back to when people travelled by foot and by the horse and cart in feudal societies.  The sword hand of most men was the right hand, thereby keeping the weapon between themselves and any potential opponent or enemy that was walking towards you.  The same went for jousting knights and their lances.  No one went unarmed during those violent times.

Some of this thinking changed when Napoleon Bonaparte took over as self-proclaimed emperor in Revolutionary France.  Napoleon was left-handed so he naturally made his army march on the right, once again keeping his weaponry between him and his enemy.  Because of Napoleon, any French colonized territory – and pretty much the rest of the world – took to travelling on the right-hand side of the road, while the United Kingdom and her followers continued to travel on the left.  The United States adopted the right hand driving system in an effort to show the rest of the world that they no longer followed British tradition.