To explain for Bus:

So it's May and we've got 12 festivals line up for the year. So K takes the car into Nationwide for a complete service, explaining it's got to do about 2000 miles in the next 3 months and we're prepared to pay to ensure it all runs smoothly.

Should have guessed when she came to pick it up at the allotted time and it was still in bits, that it was gonna go pear shape. However they said it'd be ready in half an hour, so a coffee later she leaves the garage.

During the drive to Wychwood the car sounds a bit ropey. So it's taken back in for a check up and given a clean bill of health.

IOW the next weekend turns into a disaster, it's a hot weekend, the fan breaks, the engine overheats and the radiator cracks. We limp into Newport hours late and can't get on site as the Press Box has closed, we miss the first night and have to B&B it.

Car is looked at by another Nationwide garage, who patch up radiator and ensure fan works by us manually plugging and unplugging it.

When we get home car goes back to Nationwide, apologies and new radiator and they 'check nothing else is wrong'

We next use the car for Cornbury on journey home engine sounds funny and fan is making funny noises, suspension is creaky. Guilfest a week later and the journey home becomes a nightmare. It takes hours and hours to limp home, with no fan - the thing has disintergrated - we're doing 20mph and getting too tired - no garages open on A303 and engine starts miss firing and timing slowly becomes more shot away.

Car goes back into Nationwide, shattered fan is replaced, they say it's fine. Timing still shot away and it's misfiring. We consider selling it and decide to see how much we'd get part exchange.

K takes it to her 'old' garage for an estimate, they show her (we know nothing about engines) oil leak over engine, cracked Cam cover, damaged fuel line, damaged cam belt, exhaust to engine thingamy is missing, exposed bit of engine that is anything flew up inside would break it. Fan is still cracked - plastic shatters in hand! Both brakes and suspension are 'dangerous'

They recommend not using car full stop. It is due MOT next week and won't pass on anything. K and Z see a new car they fall in love with. We get hire care for weekend to get us to Reading, and use Fiat around town until finance is agreed. Fiat will be scrapped tomorrow after we gave it to garage today.

K is livid with Nationwide, got a detailed report of what's wrong with Fiat along with their report of clean bill of health! She's mad, wants compensation and has photos of damage, negligence and broken stuff. she's emailed head office using tips on wwww.howtocomplain.com.

We have new car which we'll stay on path to wilds of Dartmoor to pick up Z tonight in.