Dear Baraza, I am an ardent reader of your informative column and I thank you for the great work and research. I am planning to buy my first car and I plan to use it to travel approximately 140km to Nairobi every Saturday and Monday. I am a fan of sports cars, so when I … Read more
Chevrolet Utility half-tonne pick-up What is it? This is General Motors’ smallest commercial vehicle on sale currently. It is a tiny little pick-up meant for small deliveries. When I say small, I mean cargo not exceeding two metres in length, two metres wide and 500kg mass. It is a weird-looking thing, with an unusual face, … Read more
Hi Baraza, I am in the process of importing a BMW 3 series E90 (320i). My query is: Why does it have rave reviews in Europe, yet it hardly features on our roads? Is there something about the car that I may have overlooked? Second, I am told it is a rear-wheel-drive. How does that … Read more
Dear Baraza, I am an ardent reader of your column and this time round need your advice on BMW X5 versus the 2006 Land Rover Discovery 3. I am basically looking at maintenance, fuel consumption, and occasional upcountry off-road usage. Another issue of concern to me is the passenger capacity and boot space. Also, kindly … Read more
In the recent past I have found myself in a good number of new cars, all of which beg reviews, but since there is hardly any time (or space) to do them all, they will have to share a bed or rather a space. To kick things off we have the new RAV4, the 2013 … Read more
WHEN BMW announced last month that it was recalling 30,000 of its 2007 to 2010 X5 sport utility vehicles over the mere possibility that they could lose power brake assist, few took notice of the fact that the car manufacturer was not saying that the braking system was faulty, but that it could become faulty … Read more
Hi Baraza,I recently bought a second-hand VW Touareg with a five-cylinder TDI engine from the UK. While I love the car (after replacing the shocks), I fear I may have not done my pre-purchase selection well enough as I have been informed that local agents refused to stock diesel Touaregs due to a potential mismatch … Read more
Hello Baraza, Thank you for your advice on motoring. Could you kindly take your time to help me decide on what is the best vehicle in relation to the issues I state below? 1. Infrequent travel on the rough roads of areas like Marsabit, Turkana, and the coastal region. 2. Going to work in town. … Read more
What is it? This is, or was, the third generation of BMW’s uber-successful small saloons. Built from 1998 to just around 2007, it is the prettiest of the lot (older versions are beautiful. This one is pretty. Later models are best left untalked about in terms of looks). It has also been described as a … Read more
Hi Baraza, I am a regular reader of your column and I must say I appreciate your work, even though I don’t own a car yet. However, I am looking to buy my first car, and I have in my sights a Toyota RunX/Allex, Toyota Spacio and a Peugeot 206. Please advice me on the … Read more