The new news 24 thread

[dollywobbler]

Car insurance renewed. Went classic in the end rather than trade. The main stumbling block was breakdown cover. I need European cover, and get it via my insurance (albeit at extra cost - £115 for four vehicles). Trying to get breakdown cover on its own was almost farcical. Most companies won't cover vehicles over ten years old, some 'generously' extend it to cover 15 years at extra cost. My youngest vehicle is 16 years old.

 

Utterly horrendous cost all-in, just over a grand for four old crocks with business cover. Again, very hard to find anyone who'll cover old stuff for business use. What a pain.

[Bear]

May possibly have to go cold turkey on shit cars. Landlord casually dropped in that once these houses (3 houses - well two houses and a bedroom with a kitchen attached, pointless, made out of three derelict outbuildings) are done, they're thinking about another bit of work converting part of the house (that I rent and is my home) into another cottage (thus taking away the bit of the house I rent and live in that I work in and was the sole reason for looking at this place, because working space not in actual house).

 

I've had it with this shit, frankly. Renting weird houses, yes, I have an issue. For those of the "renting is pissing money away" - the places I rent are £600K-1.4m to buy and the rent I pay on them is invariably less than the interest payments on the mortgage, so no, it's not. I completely agree that the majority of people renting 3-bed semis for £700/month due to demand and lack of ease of mortgage-getting, when mortgages on same properties are £500/month capital and interest, are getting thoroughly shafted and I'm sick of the situation in this country.

 

2009: Move in to nice, but too small, maisonette in Sheffield Road, Birmingham, behind theatre. Year of asshole theatre patrons parking and blocking driveway. They fix that, the downstairs half becomes available (I hate shared floors/walls, I can't make noise and hate other people's noise) so offer to rent all of it. They won't do it. Decide to find somewhere better...

 

Anyway. 2010 - Farm I've been in for less than a year, landlady gets into financial trouble (having also never fully cleared the place so there was a bloody VW bus in the garage I was renting) and proposes MOVING BACK IN WITH US. While we pay rent still.

 

2011 - lovely place near Kidderminster, was working towards building business, owner has muscular dystrophy and bank pulls his bridging loan. Won't renew lease. We leave. Turns out he rented to some DSS tenants afterwards in desperation and they totally trashed the place after forcing him to install new heating in place of the 40 year old oil boiler. I used to maintain the house for him...

 

2013 - Nice pub in Barwell, when renting am told "no intention of selling, you could be here for 20 years". 18 months later, no, they didn't want to sell - they wanted to move back in...

 

The farm here's been pretty good, but the outbuildings being turned into houses wrecks the isolation I wanted, the building work tolerated for the past year has meant I'm effectively chased out of my workshop due to mental issues, and having got my brain to adapt to this, the landlord's like "Oh, we're going to take part of your house away".

 

Yes. It's their house, in terms of property, but this attitude of not actually respecting that we have an agreement - I pay them money and get a home - is pissing me off. I want out and let them find a new tenant in this price range who will put up with that sort of shit.

 

So, parental assistance of pension funds, a budget that when I last bought a house would have bought a beautiful 5 bedroom place in 2/3 acre of land, but now will buy the sort of property you'd expect to be used as a set for Trainspotting, postcodes where my insurance will quadruple, and no bloody parking, let alone garages.

 

Currently a flat above a shop in Cumbria is winning. But it does mean the old cars, the tools, everything will have to go. I see a Dacia Duster in my future. And perhaps more sanity. Or less. Much less. Who can tell :/

[Lord Sterling]

Hey Richard, the owner of the land where I keep my cars has a onenof those large static caravans tucked away in the corner behind my cars. He keeps offering me the place but I like where I live. There are units and plenty of space to keep old rammle. I could pass his phone number if you are interested. Located in Bewdley near Kidderminster.

[egg]

These arrived from the USA today, much excite.

 

[bub2006]

^^^^ stick contour badges on the mondeo,confusion may ensue. Doesn't the contour have a different arse to the UK spec mondeo too?

[Bear]

Hey Richard, the owner of the land where I keep my cars has a onenof those large static caravans tucked away in the corner behind my cars. He keeps offering me the place but I like where I live. There are units and plenty of space to keep old rammle. I could pass his phone number if you are interested. Located in Bewdley near Kidderminster.

 

 

Nice idea - I used to live near Bewdley - but no more landlords, and if it's land for sale in Bewdley without a house, I can't afford it!

 

The place I'm looking at tomorrow has four bedrooms, nice architecture, and two shops (leased) included in the freehold. Just nowhere to keep cars - and for that area, coastal etc. then running something like an SLK would make me very sad. It would mean a break for a while until the freehold on a garage/workshop came up, then I'd get back into it

 

[Heidel_Kakao]

 

Stick your Contour I want a Mystique. I love finding out all the different names cars get sold under around the world. I had no idea America got the Mondeo.

[egg]

Mystique brochures are rarer and more expensive!

 

Yes Bub, for a 'world car' there seem to be a lot of differences!

[bub2006]

The mystique bares no resemblance I can see to the mondeo at all!

[Bear]

The mystique bares no resemblance I can see to the mondeo at all!

 

 

Doors, glass, underside, sense of grim banality.

 

Interiors on the US-spec Contour are slightly different. Also limited to 112mph. And if you cane them from Dallas to Tulsa, the check engine light comes on.

[Fat_Pirate]

That bit of plastic on the rear door looks Mondeo.  It's a bit rubbish though, if I was the sort of young, arrogant wanker that ad appears to be aimed at I'd be very disappointed.  It's no surprise Abraham R Hussenbough III and his ilk preferred the German brands.

[Mally]

75 failed MOT this morning. Bottom front wishbone and front to rear brake pipes.

Could have been a lot worse.

Brake pipe was leaking so just in time.

Done the pipes now, pick a wishbone up in the morning.

[dollywobbler]

Washed the Honda again. Silverstone Classic and Simply Japanese at Beaulieu this weekend, so I probably wasted my time.

[MarvinsMom]

the rover 75 has had the handbrake sorted, 

 

it now works!!

 

and the car is tested till next year.......

 

yeay!!!

[worldofceri]

Picked this up yesterday.

 

I need to be able to take a trailer when I take the family camping in a couple of weeks, but I didn't fancy the expense and effort of sticking a towbar on the Gooner. So I've been scouting around for something already has the towage apparatus fitted. Man maths sez if [costofnewcar = valuofgooner + costoftowbarforgooner] I can't go wrong.

 

 

This came up locally on Ebay for £400 bin; the description was short but seemed honest and although the pictures weren't amazing, it looked pretty clean. So, egged on by couple of mates and with grudging approval from Mrs_WoC. I thought 'fuck it' and hit buy it now.

 

Rather than trouble anyone for for a lift up the road to sunny Nuneaton, I decided I'd take ye olde public transport. Two buses, a train, ten quid and two hours later, I was at the vendor's house. It would take about twenty minutes by car. No photos of mass-transit vehicles, soz.

 

The seller was actually the owner's son. Usual story of the old boy giving up driving. He'd owned the car since 2003 and not even got it to click over 100k miles. I got the seller to fire it up and lift the bonnet. It started keenly and idled quietly; there seemed to be enough of the right fluids in about the right places. Had a glance around the bodywork and, I have to say, the chap might be too ill to drive or something, but he's certainly not incompetent - there's not a scratch or giffer-dent on it anywhere.

 

I declared myself satisfied and expressed regret that market forces compel me to pay but a paltry sum for it. I handed over twenty pictures of the queen (in pink) and was presented with fifteen years worth of invoices from the local Vauxhall whisperers.

 

I told the fellow to tell his dad I'd do my best to look after it, thinking he might be a bit sentimental towards his old barge, and set off home. I was home in a jiffy compared with the outbound journey. This is only the second automatic I've owned, and it compares well with my old W124 Benz. It's the 2.5 V6 and goes very well indeed, particularly when one presses the sport button on the gear lever, which is easy to do by accident; for a couple of minutes I thought the amber 'S' light on the dash was a warning light. Well, I suppose it is: 'Caution, next pez station visit may be closer than it appears!' Which reminds me; it had nearly half a tank of fuel in it. Bonus! But no forecourt photo-op, soz.

 

So, I think I may have fallen on my feet with this one. It's low mileage, well maintained (found an invoice for the cam belt 5,000 miles ago), smooth, powerful and generally less fucked than most cars I buy. And it was cheap!

 

Anyone want to buy a Gooner?

[SiC]

Future Autoshite village bicycle material?

[worldofceri]

I plan to keep this one for a bit. Or did you mean the Laguna!?

[egg]

The guy I bought the Contour brochures from claims to have a quarter of a million sales brochures. If you want an obscure brochure from the other side of the pond, he might be your man...

 

http://paulpolitisautolit.com

[beko1987]

 

Poor Emma at work! Her last Punto shat it's auto box, her current citroen apparently did the same this morning

[SiC]

Towing it like that probably won't do much good to it either surely?

[beko1987]

Dunno, suppose if it's in neutral? Been messaging her anyway, she's at the garage now and it turns out her aux belt is not there! So I imagine it's snapped then fell off, she's not noticed any warning lights or similar, drove it until the battery died which caused the gearbag to shit itself in the way french ones do, I presume the gear shifter is electronic on those and not connected with bits of metal? I'll update if she says anything

 

I told her it could be worse, when my aux belt went it caught the cambelt. Didn't tell her that if that had happened to her it would be curtains rather than a weekend with a 13mm and 10mm socket and bits of 10mm threaded bar...

[dave21478]

If its a robotic manual "sensodrive" then it can be owed fine, its not a real auto, just a manual box with some servos knicked from a Tamiya kit to work the selector rods and clutch lever.

[beko1987]

I know it's got a badge on the boot proudly stating 'stop/start technology'. On an 06 plate it must be an early incarnation of the tech, and frankly im always amazed when she doesn't tell me it's broken!

[Guest Hooli]

I know it's got a badge on the boot proudly stating 'stop/start technology'. On an 06 plate it must be an early incarnation of the tech,

 

Hardly, my 1980s Polo Formel E had stop start built in. As quoted about halfway down http://www.polodriver.com/eco-polos/polo-formel-e-1983-1987/

[Ghosty]

The A4 can be disposed of it needs a couple of jobs doing but Old Man's come up with a realistic price in line with my expectations so I'll probably end up being charged with selling it, and ending up with the money from it.

This means more shite - however he wants me to sell the Rover but I don't want to because first car, and the mother is also reasonably attached to it. That's not happening - also he thinks two cars between the three of us is enough and it isn't.

The mother will get to work on that...

 

Wanted: pre-facelift Volvo 740 auto.

[Mally]

Fitted new bottom arm to 75.

Not the easiest job in the world. Retest Monday.

[beko1987]

Hardly, my 1980s Polo Formel E had stop start built in. As quoted about halfway down http://www.polodriver.com/eco-polos/polo-formel-e-1983-1987/

Sorry, early on a c4!

[Kiltox]

Start of another three hour coach journey

 

I love my job and my job loves me

[Asimo]

Had a brand new Contour rental for a month about 20 years ago.

It was a nice dark metallic green so I had to thrash it up and down the hills of San Francisco.

Beige interior, which I quickly soiled 'cause the cup holder didn't work on corners.

I preferred the Contour inside to a Mondeo, less oppresive somehow. And unlike all the Mondeos I rented, it wasn't Diesel.

[taxi paul]

My gay pug has been sold. Put it on gumtree . Hungarian gentleman and his wife message me and turn up half an hour later. Pug decides now would be a good time for the central locking not to work. Also not to let me open the boot. The quarter window that occasionally sticks went full on fuck you mode and refused to work. Nice Hungarian gent said he could fix all these things if the price was OK. So needless to say I got a few quid less than I wanted. But I can now insure the celica. So I drove it over to his for him ,only a 10 minute drive. When we gets there everything was working again. Hey ho.