The new news 24 thread

[Yoss]

OMGSNOKAOS!

You Northerners may laugh but that's about as bad as it gets down here.

[groovylee]

15 minutes ago, Jenson Velcro said:

A good effort changing the diff and half shaft. Are you claiming a medal?

it was an interesting one where you spun to a halt. You seemed to have too much wheelspin, and may have been better off easing up to get some grip as it was pretty slippery there. Easy to say though as it all happens so quickly and the brain can be a bit fogged, having driven through the night. At least it was a dry run, although with a fixed roof over your head, and I presume a heater, you’re going to be much better placed than many if it was raining.

no medals unfortunately. yeah, on the wheelspin front, i rounded the corner and said "oh poo" or words to that effect, and instinctively donned my lead wellies. I gather a certain Mr Pearson in the red Dellow(?) pretty much trickled up. damn good driver he is  

[Jenson Velcro]

1 minute ago, groovylee said:

no medals unfortunately. yeah, on the wheelspin front, i rounded the corner and said "oh poo" or words to that effect, and instinctively donned my lead wellies. I gather a certain Mr Pearson in the red Dellow(?) pretty much trickled up. damn good driver he is  

Yes it’s always interesting watching lots of different cars at the same spot and seeing the different approaches of the drivers. Trickle or burn? That’s the question.

[reb]

After having nobody living upstairs for more than 2 out of the 5 years I've lived here, new neighbours are moving in today.

They seem nice, which is good because the last guy was an arsehole.

[Bren]

Hattons models is closing. After 77 years.

Had a shop on Smithdown Rd before moving to Widnes.

Given the eye watering prices for locos and rolling stock I am not shocked.

[quicksilver]

20 minutes ago, Bren said:

Hattons models is closing. After 77 years.

Had a shop on Smithdown Rd before moving to Widnes.

Given the eye watering prices for locos and rolling stock I am not shocked.

Hattons were always cheap for new diecast and consistently undercut everyone else so their profit margin on them must have been razor-thin. Their second-hand stuff on the other hand was often overpriced (£35 for a badly-repainted Northcord bus with some bits missing anyone?) and sometimes the same price as new. It's like they were two separate businesses who didn't talk to each other. Still a shame to see them go - if one of the biggest and most-established names can't survive it doesn't bode well for smaller model shops.

[Dyslexic Viking]

As many have probably read, I am experiencing extreme cold. The temperature rose to minus 20 this afternoon, so it was time to start the car and help dad with the van that won't start.

The Hyundai has been unused for 3 weeks in temperatures below minus 10 where several days have been minus 30 and below. So not ideal but it started surprisingly immediately, but the smell of burnt belt came quickly and it turned out that the pulley for the belt tensioner was stuck and the pulley for the water pump was not moving freely. After heating these with a hair dryer they spun freely again, so the only explanation is that they was frozen, something I have not experienced before. And the coolant was fine.

Then there was dad's Peugeot van, the engine wouldn't turn over and several hours of charging the battery didn't help. So I tried my stronger charger on both the boost function and charging and that got it to start. Which was great. I've experienced similar things before, but I can't explain it, but there's something about newer cars needing a strong charge and high voltage to start.

And if everything goes according to plan, I'll take the Hyundai for a good drive tomorrow to charge the battery and get it warmed up. 

There's always something, isn't it?

[horriblemercedes]

11 minutes ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I've experienced similar things before, but I can't explain it, but there's something about newer cars needing a strong charge and high voltage to start.

 

High resistance in the battery due to the cold?

 

I was bad at Physics at school but I remember learning about how temperature affects resistance in electrical circuits

[Dyslexic Viking]

1 minute ago, horriblemercedes said:

High resistance in the battery due to the cold?

It's possible but I don't know.

[SiC]

56 minutes ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

Then there was dad's Peugeot van, the engine wouldn't turn over and several hours of charging the battery didn't help.

Don't you have the issue where the battery electrolyte can freeze up from these mega cold weather days you get, especially when a pack is low on charger?

[Dyslexic Viking]

6 minutes ago, SiC said:

Don't you have the issue where the battery electrolyte can freeze up from these mega cold weather days you get, especially when a pack is low on charger?

Yes thats something, but I don't know enough about it to say if it was a reason for the not starting.

[Tenmil Socket]

On my way home from work earlier along the M57 at 5 PM (so dark) and I spotted a deliveroo rider going along the hard shoulder with no lights on 😩

[wuvvum]

6 hours ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I've experienced similar things before, but I can't explain it, but there's something about newer cars needing a strong charge and high voltage to start.

My Maxus van is like that (as were the two that preceded it).  If the battery voltage is even slightly too low it'll turn over all day without starting.  With the right voltage it'll fire up within a couple of seconds of cranking.

[SiC]

6 hours ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I've experienced similar things before, but I can't explain it, but there's something about newer cars needing a strong charge and high voltage to start.

Is your dad's van a diesel? Many common rail diesel ECUs need the engine turning over above a minimum RPM before it allows the injectors to fire. 

[SiC]

5 hours ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

Yes thats something, but I don't know enough about it to say if it was a reason for the not starting.

I believe there is a risk of explosion if a semi frozen battery is attempted to charge at too high a rate or used to start a vehicle.

5 hours ago, Tenmil Socket said:

On my way home from work earlier along the M57 at 5 PM (so dark) and I spotted a deliveroo rider going along the hard shoulder with no lights on 😩

Definitely one to phone 999 and report to the police when you see it happen. Dangerous both to the individual and other drivers.

[beko1987]

My mate noticed I had a brake light out as I left his Tuesday evening, and indeed he was right

Working bulb fitted from my random bulb pack in the car, which I need to bring in and check it's stock now I think about it. 

Rip cheap chinesium tat bulb

 

[barefoot]

Chap across the road has a new eco steer. He's planning to use it as a local delivery vehicle for his shop. It'll be sign written 'Johnsons rapid response ' and will have a sound system to play 'bat out of hell'.

Hes a lovely bloke.

[rattlecan]

3 minutes ago, barefoot said:

Bloke across the road has a new eco steer. He's planning to use it as a local delivery vehicle for his shop. It'll be sign written 'Johnsons rapid response ' and will have a sound system to play 'bat out of hell'.

Hes a lovely bloke.

Turns out we had it right in the 70's after all

[HMC]

Time for a curry…..

 

[barefoot]

On 04/01/2024 at 19:33, Split_Pin said:

Good your better half is home safe.

Did you find out what the problem was?

Update, the Rover was collected the following morning by my favourite mechanic who tested the car and was totally unable to get the fan to run. The relay was fucked, but as he took hold of the fan it came away in his hands. I now have a new radiator,  uprated fan and relay, supplied apparently by a Rover specialist in deepest darkest Wales. Contact details will follow. The car was tested for signs of HGF and passed with flying colours. The fair wife is happy again. 

[Split_Pin]

Good news.

HGF on a diesel 75 is unheard of so you're fine.

The guy you got your parts from will be Julian Anderson. There's a fair few bits on mine that he has made including the gold fan resistor.

[barefoot]

Mine's a 2.5 KV6!

[Six-cylinder]

2 hours ago, HMC said:

Time for a curry…..

 

Do you deliver to Buckingham!

[Zelandeth]

21 minutes ago, Six-cylinder said:

Do you deliver to Buckingham!

When you buy it, I want a shot!

[Six-cylinder]

18 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

When you buy it, I want a shot!

Mrs6C says no because of the blue interior.

You will have to make do with my "old one" when I sort the clutch out.

[auntiemaryscanary]

On 07/01/2024 at 17:17, auntiemaryscanary said:

Been busy getting the motorbike out of its cocoon.

We had the house, garage and shed rewired so wanted the bike safe from damage and theft whilst we moved out for the duration.

I've also been building the industrial racking I bought 2.5 years ago.

Will be a garage loft:

Will be a workbench and mahoousive storage at the far end:

I can lift the 1.5t rated beams and slot them in solo but not the 3t ones (ones on the floor in pic 4). Oh, one of the the blue frames fell onto my back! No damage done.

Each racking unit is 2.2m H (cut down from 4.5m) x 3m W x 900mm D. Although I'd measured and measured I was mightily relieved when they fitted in the garage.

Best off there will still be room to get a car in if it needs working on.

Minor racking update.

I'd collected a couple of thick pallets for the boarding but wasn't satisfied and couldn't be bothered arseing about with something that would never be to my requirements. Chipboard decking is available but once it gets damp/wet it's useless.

eBay had loads of ready made timber examples but most had wide gaps so I found some "closed" versions with a minimal gap leading to a run down to the beautiful West Mids.

£15 each (no vat, no receipt - £18 if wanted a bit of paper). 6 bought which covers 3 levels. Timber is 32mm thick. But my god they were filthy. Pic after they were hosed done. I was expecting more marks, stains etc. I reckon they've just been sat in an unused corner of a factory for a long time.

There's approx 11+ linear metres in each one. I can't get the timber that cheap, nevermind the faff of cutting and assembling.

Each one is 1340mm long. They would have fit in the back of the Doblo but some of them would have rested on the protrusions of the folded up rear seats. 4 Allen bolts and washers and the seats are out. I've had the f-ing thing 12 years and never had the seats out.

Yeah I know it's filthy but would ya look at that load space!

(The owner of the racking place had a modern Jag in bits. He says "I'll get this Jag back together one day". I said nowt, very unlike me )

[danthecapriman]

I was sat around at home today twiddling my thumbs and heard an almighty bang from outside in the street.

Looked out the window and couldn’t see anything so I nipped out for a look. 
A couple of doors down, in the street someone in a Prius has somehow managed to drive straight into a parked car on the side of the road! God knows how, but the Prius has hit it so hard it’s spun itself at a 45 degree angle as it came to a halt blocking the entire road! The car it hit is a brand new Mercedes SUV thing (one of them things with the green number plate!), looks like both are write off material.

Anyway, nearly 3 hours later the street is still blocked with no sign of recovery. People are having to drive down the pavement to get past, including double decker buses.

Makes you wonder what people are doing while they’re driving to manage things like that.

[HMC]

Off their tits on something possibly? 

[wuvvum]

Or adding puppy ears to their latest Instragram selfie.

[EyesWeldedShut]

I'd never dream of doing that...

Did have one dude who dropped his lighter into the passenger footwell take the wing mirror of my parked car once as he tried to retrieve it - he then properly took out half a dozen of the neighbours' cars. Wasn't even pissed. Proof that nicotine is bad for you.