Winter Shiters 2014/2015!

[Pillock]

I've put my scraper in the glove box, it was in the boot. I think I'm sorted.

[brickwall]

I have one of those 12v coil things for heating water to make a cuppa soup. Keeps hunger at bay if stuck in a massive jam as I have been at midnight towing folk up a hill or clearing snaw.

[Inspector Morose]

old Icelandic proverb says: Pissing in your shoes doesn't keep your feet warm for long.

 

I am wondering if pissing on the windscreen will work as anti freeze though.

If any brave soul wishes to test this out and get back to us with the scientific results then we may just have found the cheapest and quickest possible winter car prep top tip ever.

Warning. I know where your windscreen is.

[catsinthewelder]

Noticing it was frosty this morning I fired up the Cherry early and left it to tick over for 15 mins while I sat inside drinking coffee (locked with the spare key).  Felt well chuffed when I got into a nice warm car at 7.15 to leave for work.  Felt less chuffed when I got back into it at 5pm and the wipers were frozen to the screen,  even less so when one flew off a minute later.  Bought a new set on the way home.

 

It was bloody cold this morning though,  the first van we tried to wash was first held up by a frozen hosepipe then once that had thawed out we soaked the van and immediately covered all the dirt in a layer of ice.  We had to chuck loads of hot soapy water on to defrost the dirt so progress was a lot slower than normal.

[beko1987]

I had to de-ice my car again at 5.40 after arriving at the office at 9.20.

 

Anyone tried those 12v plug in ice scraper things? Any good?

 

On the plus side the ZX started as soon as the glow plug light went off so hopefully I won't have too much issue in the future...

[vulgalour]

I am concerned that the Xantia will be altogether too competent at this winter malarky without me doing a thing to it.

 

The Princess would not disappoint.  It's the only car I've experienced the unique habit of all the windows being clear until you drive for five minutes, after which they all fog up bar the rear screen and you have to open the windows to clear the windscreen and sort of balance the output of the heater with the input of the window to keep things that way.

[320touring]

I was about 15 mins late to buying andy's t5..

 

Ach well,nevermind!

[Sloth in a bowl]

Warning. I know where your windscreen is.

 

You can try it on the BX first Andy, be warned of salt corrosion on the scuttle panel though. 

[catsinthewelder]

  Bought a new set on the way home

I'm not a fan of Bosch wiper blades so asked the bloke at the factors for any other brand so he sold me two of these

 

I wasn't sure which fitting to use so looked on the back

 

[DVee8]

Lidl has some winter shite coming in

 

http://www.lidl.co.uk/en/our-offers-2491.htm?id=433#

[Micrashed]

Must get one of those 12v heated seat covers - they are brill. They dont last forever and ml last one scorched my seat, but still brill.

[Forty-two]

Ah, the smugness of knowing the Freelander has a heated front screen and knowing the frosted windscreen will be banished in just a few moments...

 

Shite, the reality of seeing that a more than a few of the elements are no longer working and the frozen screen is taking on a pattern not dis-similar to a Zebra.  One more thing added to the list of things that won't be fixed.

[garbaldy]

Lidl has some winter shite coming in

 

http://www.lidl.co.uk/en/our-offers-2491.htm?id=433#

 

haha who says golf are reliable

[PhilA]

We had a bit of frost on the ground the other day

 

 

The sun had gotten to the car and defrosted it, as you can see everything in the sunshine's melted.. that being said the heater works well and once I'd discovered that the vents have to be turned off before the air gets to the screen, it was all defogged. Apart from the rear screen, which is povo-spec and wasn't ordered with a heater.

 

Also discovered that all the air drawn in by the heater fan exits through the door handles. That can't be right, surely?

 

--Phil

[overrun]

Heated screen and heated seats FTW.

[vulgalour]

Also discovered that all the air drawn in by the heater fan exits through the door handles. That can't be right, surely?

It is French, so it could be.

[rml2345]

Heated door handles. Bet you don't get those on a Maybach...

[stuboy]

love my ford with its heated front screen

[Pillock]

I loved my heated front screen too. It was a bit of an arse the few times I had a chipped screen and it went crrraaaaccckkkk and made it a nice long split though..... And yeah, the elements just stop working one by one so actually needing a new screen every year was OK!

[steve_earwig]

Noticing it was frosty this morning I fired up the Cherry early and left it to tick over for 15 mins while I sat inside drinking coffee (locked with the spare key).  Felt well chuffed when I got into a nice warm car at 7.15 to leave for work. 

When I first started work (30+ years ago) I used to do that with the Ital, although I gave it a faster idle with a screwdriver wedged over the clutch pedal, under the brake and just pushing down the throttle a tad. One morning I came out to find that the screwdriver had slipped and the car was "idling" at about 7,000rpm. 'twas nice and warm that morning, let me tell you...

 

Btw urine makes a good emergency lock de-icer.

[mouseflakes]

Btw urine makes a good emergency lock de-icer.

 

Just take care not to get the dispenser stuck on the icy door.

[Mr Lobster]

Winter tyres fitted to SEAT now so bring on the snow and ice!

[Taff]

the 'Scort has an odd demist sketch going on, whereby it demists, then you set off and it mists up again, so you stop and it clears, so you set off again, etc etc

 

Opening the window clears the screen quicker but of course you need the heater cranked up full.

[Junkman]

Also discovered that all the air drawn in by the heater fan exits through the door handles. That can't be right, surely?

 

Usually French cars had/have foam rubber insulation around the door handles.

This might be missing on your car, or been omitted in US spec versions.

There should also be a clear foil behind the door cards, to keep moisture out.

[PhilA]

Usually French cars had/have foam rubber insulation around the door handles.

This might be missing on your car, or been omitted in US spec versions.

There should also be a clear foil behind the door cards, to keep moisture out.

The doors still have the moisture membrane, repaired skilfully* with gaffa tape.

However, the rubber membrane? Never saw anything inside there, not even a trace of anything trapped behind a nut so it may have been omitted.

 

My thing is I can't see where the air is actually supposed to get out. Opening a window a touch improves the airflow, so either something's jammed or the doorhandles are the ventilation exit point. Bit rubbish if it is, though it explains why the bottoms of the doors haven't rusted out..

 

--Phil

[Micrashed]

£9.99 heated seat cover purchased tonight along with a new pair of wipers for the MicraShed from Lidl, oh and some groovy LED beacon thing. Not quite sure what Im going to do with that but it looks pretty ace.

[dollywobbler]

I'm going to have to get some new wiper blades for the XM. Asked the seller to fit some new ones, so he ordered Valeos. Sadly, they're utterly crap! Absolutely rock hard, so they judder horrendously and are going to be as much use in winter as spangly pants. 

 

Also annoying is that because of the sunroof leak (still not cured) it is generally wetter on the inside of the windscreen than the outside. May have to resort to sealing the bloody thing up for the winter, though it's the seal on the glass that's leaking more than anything. Rubbish!

[r.welfare]

I am fast becoming a convert to heated seats. Unfortunately they are attached to my wife's non-shite car. This also has winter tyres fitted to 16" steel wheels; I sold the 18" alloys and summer tyres it was fitted with and banked the £200 profit. When the winter tyres are worn out, replacements will be far cheaper than the £175-a-corner Continentals the 18s were shod with. Also, the benefits of steel rims and taller sidewalls.

 

Meanwhile in shiteland, I will battle on in my Mazda which has a different make of tyre on every corner, unbelievably poor traction (I used to own a Mitsubishi Sigma estate and I thought that had a wheelspin problem...I simply cannot believe a near two ton car with 120bhp can light up the front pair of 215-section tyres so much) and non-working air conditioning.

[garbaldy]

.

Meanwhile in shiteland, I will battle on in my Mazda which has a different make of tyre on every corner, unbelievably poor traction (I used to own a Mitsubishi Sigma estate and I thought that had a wheelspin problem...I simply cannot believe a near two ton car with 120bhp can light up the front pair of 215-section tyres so much) and non-working air conditioning.

 

It must be a jap car thing as the lancer also on 215 section tyres will light up the wheels in third and fourth in the wet,

in its defence though I've had it tuned although it still would lose traction before hand when provoked.

 

[beko1987]

I'm going to have to get some new wiper blades for the XM. Asked the seller to fit some new ones, so he ordered Valeos. Sadly, they're utterly crap! Absolutely rock hard, so they judder horrendously and are going to be as much use in winter as spangly pants.

 

Also annoying is that because of the sunroof leak (still not cured) it is generally wetter on the inside of the windscreen than the outside. May have to resort to sealing the bloody thing up for the winter, though it's the seal on the glass that's leaking more than anything. Rubbish!

EBay cheap aero blades did me fine for a year, and were still fine when sold. The set I bought the meriva soon after we bought it 3 years ago are just startingnto become shit, but they are fucking massive and have a large area to work so I can forgive them!

 

Can't help with the water leak, I have one too! Only my headlining seems dry...