Ask a Shiter

[cobblers]

Presumably the air has been dry today and as such static charges have been able to build up without the damp air limiting them to a reasonable few thousand volts. That's how static and cars work. The seat material can make a difference too I spose but it's not really anything to do with any of the car electrics.

[steve_earwig]

Strangely, I've had various shocks off of various cars, mostly due to the weather, apart from a VW Derby I had which was telling me the voltage regulator was about to give up (or maybe it was the shocks wot done it in, who knows? Answers on a etc.)

[CreepingJesus]

About the Nikki carbs: if you're after a period 80's look, they're terrific. Otherwise tread carefully: the reason your search threw out them being brilliant/shit was the variability of them. Some were okay, many were not. Self-explanatory, really.

ISTR they were something to do with Hitachi. Am I utterly wrong on that?

[garbaldy]

What's the fastest way to get my licence "legal" again after photo expiry nonsense?

 

I might need to hire a van soon so need it sorting.

Post office that has the photo booth, fill out the form stand for photo then sign job done. Mine came back the following week.

[Craig the Princess]

 

 

From page 17 of the Red Princess epic thread

 

What is the middle switch of the bottom row? Looks like a brush cutter next to a stopwatch???

[Bobthebeard]

From page 17 of the Red Princess epic thread

 

What is the middle switch of the bottom row? Looks like a brush cutter next to a stopwatch???

That was possibly* a BL option, but more likely is that it dims the instrument illumination or summat. Possibly converts the speedometer into a breakdown timer, so you can plan in advance?

[Norbert]

What's the fastest way to get my licence "legal" again after photo expiry nonsense?

 

I might need to hire a van soon so need it sorting.

If your passport is less than 5 years old you can renew online - they use the same photo. I did this on a Friday afternoon and my new license arrived on Wednesday morning.

[Cavcraft]

Really silly question as I have one:

 

Does anyone know the loading length (I.e rear cargo area) of a year 2000 Renault Kangoo car, please?

I'm at work and struggling to get info on the net plus my car is at home.

 

Ta muchly in advance, a virtual Big Pat (Butcher) on the back if you can tell me the answer.

[garethj]

I had a Nikki carb on a VW Beetle, it's trick is that the first choke is so small that the car is even slower, so when the second one kicks in it feels like the car is much faster than it was.

 

Get the same effect by advancing the timing so you get a flat spot at below 3000rpm, then it all runs well.

 

I think fuel economy was slightly better, but there wasn't much in it.  And the Solex carb on a Beetle wasn't great anyway.

[HillmanImp]

Probably been asked before but is there anyone reasonable who does short term insurance? Maybe for a month?

 

Alternatively, who does a policy that I can cancel after a month and then not get bummed for cancelling the policy?

[cort16]

ecarinsurance do a monthly payg policy but it's pretty expensive.

 

I used it in the past if I was buying some random shed I needed to keep on the road for a month or so. Once you've got your account setup you can just login and pay the fee and add cars on.

 

http://www.ecarinsurance.co.uk/payasyougo.php

[cort16]

Has my Avantime got an EGR valve and if so where is it? I'm getting the odd weird running glitch and my first thought it is to clear out the EGR as it doesn't cost anything. There's no eml on, it run right 99.5% of the time but now and again it feels a bit lumpy.

It's a 2.0 turbo pez motor.

 

Google fu indicates it does have one but not it's location. I presume it'd somewhere on the inlet manilfold but I'm buggered if I can see it. The exhaust is at the back and I expected to see a metal pipe running round to the inlet manifold. Wrong!  I've tried googling other renault models but can't sus it.

Also check out of the lack of quality of the wiring going into the coil packs. There's no way that could go wrong.

 

 

[castros_bro]

ecarinsurance USED to do a monthly PSYG......

 

                                                                         """ Thank you for visiting our Pay as You Go website, unfortunately we no longer offer this product. """

 

 

ecarinsurance do a monthly payg policy but it's pretty expensive.

 

I used it in the past if I was buying some random shed I needed to keep on the road for a month or so. Once you've got your account setup you can just login and pay the fee and add cars on.

 

http://www.ecarinsurance.co.uk/payasyougo.php

[cort16]

That's a shame. They still do 28 day policies though. It was about 4 years ago i used them.

[HillmanImp]

Sadly I just tried and they are just using the same broker site as several others for the quote but with different colours. Its coming in at £360 for 23 days which is £140 more than it will be for the full year once my no claims is released.  Thanks anyhow. 

 

I think its going to be take out insurance and cancel it shortly into it. I just need to make sure I am not getting involved in one of these ones with dodgy small print that will want to take 6 months worth as a get out (although even in the worst case scenario that will probably not be much).  

[mat_the_cat]

Does anyone know the loading length (I.e rear cargo area) of a year 2000 Renault Kangoo car, please?

I'm at work and struggling to get info on the net plus my car is at home.

 

If it's not too late, 1330 mm to the base of the (folded) rear seat, but the catches protrude from the base making the usable length 1240 mm if it's a boxy load. Extra 150+ mm if you remove the seats completely though.

[Wilko220]

Come on - someone must know what that bloody Princess switch is. I've been in suspense for ages.

[philibusmo]

Come on - someone must know what that bloody Princess switch is. I've been in suspense for ages.

Its the dash illumination switch. Up for no illumination, middle for almost no illumination and all the way down for BLACKPOOL ILLUMINATIONS.*

 

*This is actually still the same amount of light as you get from a tea light in a jam jar, that has been painted black and placed in another room with the door closed.

[spike60]

I realize the good folk of this parish will be biased, but what is point of hybrids? My lady has just got a Toyota Yaris Hybrid car from work, it costs £17.5k, does 50/55 mpg around the doors which will be about the same as equivalent diesel and I assume both are tax free. What has been gained with all the technology? It is no more economical or faster than my 14 year old diesel Polo. Am I missing something?

[spike60]

Americans don't like diesels.

They don't like RHD either. Toyota do a diesel Yaris, what I don't get is what advantages a hybrid has to make people pay extra for them.

[worldofceri]

I was at a family do the other week and all and sundry were cooing over Mrs_WoC's_aunt's new hybrid Yaris. “Wow, free road tax†“OMG it's so quiet†etc. I couldn't understand why everyone was pretending not to notice my pez-munching luxo-chod that was pissing oil all over the place.

[Station]

How the funk do you properly attach an a-frame to wishbones on a car?

Had a disastrous adventure a-framing the Micra from Sportyshite's abode today, and found the car had slipped forward over the frame when I braked.

 

Do you put the 'hooks' around the bottom and behind the wishbones and then wrap the (yellow) straps around the wishbone itself and then tighten them up?

Does the strap take the strain of supporting the towed car when braking? Or am I missing something?

[worldofceri]

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.buyandsell.ie/images/media/03_03_2013/2276395_09_product_detail_large.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.buyandsell.ie/motors/damaged-repairables/kerry/towing-a-frame-5&h=288&w=384&tbnid=uEuYUdkYBRT9FM:&zoom=1&docid=AqZDQnSi07jn_M&ei=eRT5U47XAoPkaJa2gbgM&tbm=isch&ved=0CD4QMygXMBc

[Station]

ARSE! Of course!!!

[HH-R]

Hybrids aren't as polluting as diseasels (talking about NOx emissions/particulates and the like rather than just CO2) and the emissions bits and bobs seem to be pretty reliable compared to a diesel with EGR/FAP/particulate filter etc. Most of the taxi drivers round here have ditched their old VAG diesels for Toyota hybrids, some even use Leafs. They have a few LPG'd SAABs kicking about too, though these seem to be on the wane.

 

Wouldn't mind a hybrid myself, they are still out of reach of the genuine cheapskate though so I'm OUT.

[Micrashed]

Dodgy website or Dodgy MOT?

 

[Richard]

I think it's been established that the DVLA MOT checker website is a bit "Apple".

[tooSavvy]

...have I heard that 'Hybrid' is a soft entry [ultimately] for FuelCell/Hydrogen.

 

Manufacturers are building a 'look' of the hybrid, out on the street, so that NoOil/FuelCell will slip into the market with customers just wanting to buy one and Fff Off home....?

 

TS

[myglaren]

Post office that has the photo booth, fill out the form stand for photo then sign job done. Mine came back the following week.

I did mine online, after prevaricating for a year

I can rarely get into post offices and didn't want another horrendous photo.

They said it had to be a new photo but I linked it to my passport and they were happy with that

My passport photo was actually lifted from my driving licence and was the same one on the expired licence

[KruJoe]

Is there any point in me appealing a Leeds City Council Penalty Charge Notice?

 

Mrs_KJ was over the moon this afternoon when I took her into Leeds to stock up on her favourite grub. We parked in the pay'n'display, and did the shopping. Predictably she filled 10 or 12 bags with her fancy Thai rice, jars, tins an' ting. I left her at the door with the bags and fetched the motor from the pay'n'display a few streets away. I stuck the hazards on and pulled up in the (empty) taxi rank and opened the door. I saw the warden trotting (not walking) up, I thought he'd have a quick word and ask us to move on, but as we slung things in the car, he was walking around it, tapping the details into his gadget and was mega defensive of what he was doing. If you know me, you'll know was polite to him.

The engine was running FFS, the doors were open, it was clear what we were up to.

Yes, I maybe shouldn't have taken the car into the taxi parking box, but it was that, or double-yellows, or 'double-park' in the road, and I dare say most of you would do the same. It seemed the safest option, was inconveniencing nobody, and there wasn't a taxi in sight (quiet Sunday afternoon).

 

We'll all agree he was flipping keen, but was he right to ticket me? If so, tell me to stop whingeing, STFU, and pay the £35/£70 charge.

(Contravention: 45 - Parked on a taxi rank)

I didn't leave it unoccupied - it was still running. Did I "park"?