Datsuncog's Heaps: May 2025 - Fleet Addition, Avensising

[High Jetter]

2 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

Heh, right... this is probably going to get me roasted like with my toaster-in-the-drawer revelation last year, but...

When we designed the kitchen in this house, we put in tall units with a mix of shelves and drawers in them. The tinned food lives in one of the pull-out inner drawers, and it works well except that it's hard to tell what's what whenever you look down from above.

My solution was to keep a Sharpie close by and write the contents on the lid after doing the shopping...

Simple solution to an individual problem! Our tins are on shelves in the pantry (don'tcha know), pans and tins in deep drawers.

[Stanky]

2 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

Heh, right... this is probably going to get me roasted like with my toaster-in-the-drawer revelation last year, but...

When we designed the kitchen in this house, we put in tall units with a mix of shelves and drawers in them. The tinned food lives in one of the pull-out inner drawers, and it works well except that it's hard to tell what's what whenever you look down from above.

My solution was to keep a Sharpie close by and write the contents on the lid after doing the shopping...

Live life to the max, flip the cans the other way up and for dinner each night you have to select three, blind, then whatever you have chosen you MUST eat

Maybe it'll be meatballs, chopped tomatoes and potatoes? Maybe it'll be whiskas, custard and Chili paste? It all goes on one plate and you have to eat the lot!

[LightBulbFun]

17 minutes ago, Stanky said:

Live life to the max, flip the cans the other way up and for dinner each night you have to select three, blind, then whatever you have chosen you MUST eat

Maybe it'll be meatballs, chopped tomatoes and potatoes? Maybe it'll be whiskas, custard and Chili paste? It all goes on one plate and you have to eat the lot!

On 25/05/2023 at 15:14, LightBulbFun said:

(I feel sorry for anyone who comes across a box of these in the post apocalyptic future "Yes! some canned food! we will make it through this nuclear winter!" *is a load of canned 60W lightbulbs*)

 

[artdjones]

4 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

And, sure enough, a message came through mid-p.m. today complete with photos, to advise that the sill repair was now complete.

He'd gone for a belt-and-braces approach, with any metal that was suboptimal chopped out and replaced.

Hey, if it'll please the MOT tester, then I'm happy enough.

I headed back up to the yard just after 5, and the Corolla was waiting alongside Robert the welder's own transport:

Yup, all looks solid enough.

I've never seen anyone leave their business details affixed to a repair before, but I don't hate it. 

I guess that if you've had a vehicle welded once, chances are it'll need doing again...

He'd also gifted me quite a snazzy promotional keyring, as an additional memento. Nice.

There were no last-minute MOT slots available this evening (at least, not unless I wanted to hoof it all the way up to Derry), but I managed to swap my Mallusk appointment on 15 May for one over in Newtownards tomorrow morning, so I'm pleased enough with that.

We'll see what the morning brings!

He is good.

[Datsuncog]

Well, cometh the hour, cometh the (testing) man.

It was in and out pretty much before I'd managed to make my way over to the Waiting Shed of Shame - I'd say less than two minutes.

Well worth the £30 retest fee, you'll agree. 🤡

But hey, a pass is a pass...

And now the Corolla can get back to being a car, rather than a driveway ornament.

Still a lovely, eager little thing - I've a lot of affection for it. I really should give it a cosmetic tidy-up this summer, it certainly deserves it.

[Split_Pin]

There's something wonderfully 'old money' about that shot.

Congratulations on the pass, it's a grand wee steed that.

[hairnet]

16 hours ago, Stanky said:

Live life to the max, flip the cans the other way up and for dinner each night you have to select three, blind, then whatever you have chosen you MUST eat

Maybe it'll be meatballs, chopped tomatoes and potatoes? Maybe it'll be whiskas, custard and Chili paste? It all goes on one plate and you have to eat the lot!

yeah but because cultchie the cat food would be nae bother

(youve eaten taytos right 💩)

[Joey spud]

Instead of digging around for old lids you could of used your old brake pads as a spacer.

[beko1987]

16 hours ago, LightBulbFun said:

 

That's a grim game of eat what's in the tin roulette 😂

[crad]

presume because yours is prefacelift it isn't the mighty oil burning vvti engine? looks like a lovely motor, certainly looks better kept than mine!

[Datsuncog]

1 hour ago, crad said:

presume because yours is prefacelift it isn't the mighty oil burning vvti engine? looks like a lovely motor, certainly looks better kept than mine!

That's right, it's the glorious 4E-FE 1.3 lump that only has a titchy oil capacity of something like 2.6 litres - so not much margin for burning!

It's very much a twenty-footer - lots of giffer-dings and laquer peel, but so long as you don't look too closely it's simply lovely...

[artdjones]

4 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

That's right, it's the glorious 4E-FE 1.3 lump that only has a titchy oil capacity of something like 2.6 litres - so not much margin for burning!

It's very much a twenty-footer - lots of giffer-dings and laquer peel, but so long as you don't look too closely it's simply lovely...

The 4-E-FE is perfectly capable of burning some oil, probably because they are neglected by some owners to the extent that over a long period of time even a negligible consumption means that there's only a litre left in the sump. By that stage it will burn oil even when filled up again. But they will still soldier on for years if constantly topped up. If regularly serviced they are pretty indestructible. 

A very high quality piece of engineering.

[hairnet]

4 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

Well, cometh the hour, cometh the (testing) man.

It was in and out pretty much before I'd managed to make my way over to the Waiting Shed of Shame - I'd say less than two minutes.

Well worth the £30 retest fee, you'll agree. 🤡

But hey, a pass is a pass...

And now the Corolla can get back to being a car, rather than a driveway ornament.

Still a lovely, eager little thing - I've a lot of affection for it. I really should give it a cosmetic tidy-up this summer, it certainly deserves it.

many harry fergusons involved?

[Noel Tidybeard]

1 hour ago, Datsuncog said:

It's very much a twenty-footer - lots of giffer-dings and laquer peel, but so long as you don't look too closely it's simply lovely...

but compared to the yaris its mint 🤣

[Datsuncog]

1 hour ago, hairnet said:

many harry fergusons involved?

Yes, a fair few - but all to Robert the Welder, none to the DVA boyos!

[Dyslexic Viking]

3 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

It's very much a twenty-footer   but so long as you don't look too closely it's simply lovely...

People have said similar things about me also.

But great you got it through another mot.

[Datsuncog]

As a special gift to the Corolla for the MOT pass and its continuing dependability - having clocked up 200 miles in the past 36hrs with no hiccups - I thought I'd treat it to a little something:

Boom! A secondhand parcel shelf.

This particular item was missing whenever I bought the car back in 2022; its absence hasn't really bothered me a lot, but it'd be nice to have some level of security so I can leave bags in the boot without worrying that I'm attracting the attention of ne'er-do-wells.

Picked the shelf up last night from an eBay seller down outside Carryduff - he had it up for £50 including postage, I said I'd pick it up from his farm (because of course it was a farm) if he could do it for £35.

Seems that the seller owned an identical E110 Corolla that failed its MOT on the same kind of rear sill corrosion as mine - his ultimately went for export, but he kept the shelf back to sell separately.

Everyone's a winner.

Verdict: "they're some whip".

They are indeed.

[Datsuncog]

In the name of all that's holy.

This is no time to be getting up.

And yet... needs must.

I've a feeling this could be a looooong kind of a day.

You're more than welcome to tag along...

 

[Split_Pin]

After my last collection thread, (where I'm always accompanied by a faded celebrity*), it was suggested that next time,  I should have a travelling companion in the form of Mel Gibson. I'm not planning on another purchase for a wee while, so in order to avoid him being disappointed, I've instead sent him to meet you at the end of the first leg of the journey:

I think he just wants to sit quietly on the journey and read a book.

[Datsuncog]

That's cool - I think I've enough breakfast for both me and Mel.

Stay hydrated, kids.

[Split_Pin]

For a short moment there I though it said Carrick Gin on that bottle 😅

Onwards!

[Datsuncog]

The Tree of Tat's looking especially fine this morning.

Ideal for sheltering the mode of transport for Stage The First...

Yup, car first.

[Datsuncog]

We be motoring.

Yup, chauffeured car for this bit.

Not for very far, though.

No trains running at this time of the weekend, see.

I thought about cycling, but I probably would have had to leave another hour earlier...

MrsDC kindly offered to do the honours.

[Datsuncog]

Motorway miles.

But not many of them.

First peep of sun, too.

[Datsuncog]

Mine chariot doth depart.

MrsDC, off home for a bit more shut-eye (and to comfort the baffled cat).

Which means - that's right, we're goin' international, kids.

Kind of.

[Datsuncog]

Mel must have gone on ahead without me; presumably he's already through security and in the departure lounge.

Security staff are always great craic before 6am.

Apparently my CD wallet was a matter of great concern, and potentially a threat to national security.

They took it away and rubbed it with wipes that they then fed into a machine.

Presumably it told them that Super Furry Animals' much-maligned third studio album was criminally misunderstood and critically underrated, and therefore did not warrant being taken away and blown up.

Which was a relief.

They also looked confused at my cassette tapes.

But...

CDs and cassettes?

Could this be a clue of some sort?

Naaaah...

[Datsuncog]

Apparently, we're too early for coffee.

And magazines.

But... where oh where are we going this morning?

Amsterdam? Bologna? Gatwick?

Take yer pick...

[bunglebus]

Edinbrrr for a Volvo estate with a 6 disc CD changer under the seat

[Datsuncog]

[Datsuncog]

Finally ran into Mel; he was finishing off his third sausage soda in the Samson.

I wouldn't have put him down as a kombucha fanatic.

Hope I don't have to sit next to him on the plane.