The grumpy thread

[Dyslexic Viking]

1 hour ago, jonathan_dyane said:

Or given that it apparently needs a specialist oil and  you would imagine they would have a good idea of likely oil consumption between changes  it might be a nice gesture if they supplied the car with 2 litres or so of oil for topping up purposes...

I don't think they dare since how stupid people are today, someone would probably have drunk the oil and they would have been held responsible for it.

[artdjones]

10 hours ago, cobblers said:

We bought a van off some railway maintenance company and when we took the racking out of the back we found about a dozen railway detonators slipped down behind the boards.

Knowing they would be "severe" we took one down into the bottom of an old quarry and dropped heavy lumps of steel and blocks on it from about 20 feet above in order to get it to go off. It took us about 10 minutes to get the fucker to go off.

We were all completely unprepared for the power of it, we daren't do any more, even after our ears had stopped ringing.

They're meant to be heard over the noise of a locomotive working hard.

[GrumpiusMaximus]

@cobblersYou've brought back a fond childhood memory of a school assembly when a chap from the railways came in and warned us of the dangers you could encounter if you wandered around on them.  This included the hilarious video of the chap losing his shoes after getting an electric shock - if you were born in the 80s, you'll probably remember the one.

Amongst the numerous things in the talk, he also brought in a set of detonators and warned us never to touch them or play with them.  Nice to know that he was right.  Don't play with those fuckers!

[artdjones]

1 hour ago, jonathan_dyane said:

Or given that it apparently needs a specialist oil and  you would imagine they would have a good idea of likely oil consumption between changes  it might be a nice gesture if they supplied the car with 2 litres or so of oil for topping up purposes...

From reading VAG handbooks in the past, they say that up to a litre in 1000 miles is normal. Probably to avoid warranty claims when owners get sick of paying £200 for top ups between services. 

[Spiny Norman]

Most local news pages this morning were full of stories of little wankers fighting the fire brigade and shooting fireworks at them when they tried killing out of control bonfires and the like.

The sooner a law gets passed where emergency service workers are allowed to robustly defend themselves from drunks, fuckwits and other assorted oxygen thieves while in pursuit of their duties the better.

https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/news/glasgow-news/firefighters-attacked-20-youths-fireworks-25447088

[CaptainBoom]

22 minutes ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

@cobblersYou've brought back a fond childhood memory of a school assembly when a chap from the railways came in and warned us of the dangers you could encounter if you wandered around on them.  This included the hilarious video of the chap losing his shoes after getting an electric shock - if you were born in the 80s, you'll probably remember the one.

This one perchance?

The fact that this version is introduced by Keith Chegwin is more traumatic than what happened to Robbie...

[horriblemercedes]

1 hour ago, ETCHY said:

Had fireworks going off here again tonight.
I hate the bloody things & how the hell we can call ourselves a nation of animal lovers when we do this shit & terrify the poor buggers every year I dunno.

 

I didn't know we did call ourselves a nation of animal lovers

 

I'm indifferent to them, for example 

[GrumpiusMaximus]

@CaptainBoomI think that's one of them!  I also remember this one and the headphones flying into the air...
 

Yeah, I never messed about on the railways...

[ETCHY]

37 minutes ago, horriblemercedes said:

I didn't know we did call ourselves a nation of animal lovers

 

I'm indifferent to them, for example 

We're known as a nation of animal lovers it's a fairly accepted term.

I'm happy for you to be indifferent, I'm not.

[artdjones]

49 minutes ago, CaptainBoom said:

This one perchance?

The fact that this version is introduced by Keith Chegwin is more traumatic than what happened to Robbie...

A great little film to lift the mood on a Sunday night.

[Metal Guru]

6 hours ago, jonathan_dyane said:

Or given that it apparently needs a specialist oil and  you would imagine they would have a good idea of likely oil consumption between changes  it might be a nice gesture if they supplied the car with 2 litres or so of oil for topping up purposes...

I would imagine any decent fully synthetic oil around 0/5W30/40 would be ok. Halfords own branded oil used to have various manufacturers specs quoted on the label. I couldn’t find anything with Subaru on it, but it did have  a Porsche spec quoted , so I guessed that’s good enough.

Could be a marketing ploy so you only use main dealers but the service interval is probably 18000 miles , so they don’t want you using the cheapest 20W/50 mineral oil. Most likely aimed at Americans who seem obsessed with mineral oil and consider synthetic the devil's work.

[artdjones]

Maybe VAG could design an engine that doesn't need topping up between services. Everyone else seems to be able to do that. Out of our last 10 family vehicles only one has needed a top up between changes, and that was only a litre in every 4000 miles.

[myglaren]

13 hours ago, horriblemercedes said:

I didn't know we did call ourselves a nation of animal lovers

 

I'm indifferent to them, for example 

They are nice in sandwiches.

[Metal Guru]

56 minutes ago, artdjones said:

Maybe VAG could design an engine that doesn't need topping up between services. Everyone else seems to be able to do that. Out of our last 10 family vehicles only one has needed a top up between changes, and that was only a litre in every 4000 miles.

I’ve had two Passats , a 2000 1.9TDi and a 2012 2.0TDi. Neither used any appreciable oil between services.

[cobblers]

24 minutes ago, Metal Guru said:

I’ve had two Passats , a 2000 1.9TDi and a 2012 2.0TDi. Neither used any appreciable oil between services.

Same here, I've owned loads of modern VW stuff and never had to even open the bonnet between services other than to put some screen wash in. Never known one to consume a drop of oil.

[sierraman]

15 hours ago, GrumpiusMaximus said:

@CaptainBoomI think that's one of them!  I also remember this one and the headphones flying into the air...
 

Yeah, I never messed about on the railways...

Gruesome! They could do with bringing back things like this, it terrified people but I think that what they need. 

[GrumpiusMaximus]

1 hour ago, cobblers said:

Same here, I've owned loads of modern VW stuff and never had to even open the bonnet between services other than to put some screen wash in. Never known one to consume a drop of oil.

My Golf will sometimes flash up an oil warning but that's only ever when I've exceeeded the service interval (naughty boy) and it doesn't need much to top it off.  I certainly wouldn't call it excessive by any means.  2005 1.9 PD engine.

I was going to service it yesterday but the yellow weather warning rather got in the way...

[MiniMinorMk3]

18 hours ago, Dyslexic Viking said:

I don't think they dare since how stupid people are today, someone would probably have drunk the oil and they would have been held responsible for it.

Or fried their breakfast with it.

[Zelandeth]

How fscking much?!?

Just went to get a set of replacement wiper blades for the Caddy from Motorserv.  Nearly forty bloody quid!  For a standard 18 and 21" blade...after their computer tried (again) to specify these stupid aero conversion things that don't fit because of the kink in the end of the arms.  Plus look absolutely awful on anything made before 2010.

Think I'll shop around elsewhere...

[barefoot]

I'll bet Aero wipers would look fucking Boss on my T2 - in 14in size.

[Zelandeth]

9 minutes ago, barefoot said:

I'll bet Aero wipers would look fucking Boss on my T2 - in 14in size.

Your car, your rules!

I did have them on the camper for a while, simply because *nowhere* locally had any standard wipers in anywhere close to the right size and we were about to go on holiday in it...so I prioritised being able to see on the M1 over looks!

They got binned as soon as they wore out - exactly as quickly as all wipers these days seem to.   Ones on the Caddy haven't been on there a day over six months but have utterly had it as they've just turned to plastic.

 

[Stanky]

25 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

How fscking much?!?

Just went to get a set of replacement wiper blades for the Caddy from Motorserv.  Nearly forty bloody quid!  For a standard 18 and 21" blade...after their computer tried (again) to specify these stupid aero conversion things that don't fit because of the kink in the end of the arms.  Plus look absolutely awful on anything made before 2010.

Think I'll shop around elsewhere...

Seriously go and buy some at Asda. Their wiper blades come in sizes from 12" to 30" as far as I can tell and cost between £4 and £6 each. They are easily as good as any other brand I have ever used, and better than many. 

[goosey]

Job I went to earlier.  The Customer runs material with abrasive fillers as it’s cheaper, hopefully it’s saved them enough money for a new gear pump 

 

 

 

[Zelandeth]

Yeah...to show the degree to which Motorserv are taking the piss with the £40 wiper pair...

Halfords aren't exactly the cheapest...but here's the exact same pair!

Yeah...when you're charging more than double what Halfords are after something is well amiss.  Don't think I'll be darkening their door again.  Which is a pain as they have by far the best track record of actually having day to day stuff on the shelf out of any of the factors I know of around here.

They used to be really good at that store until about a year back too.  Then they had a big staffing change and it really went down the pan.

[jakebullet]

Day 3 of cunts next door burning shit. How many days do we think before I can stick a report in to the council that fuckwit is burning trade waste?

[chaseracer]

JFDI.

[twosmoke300]

Got that house on the market yet ?

[louiepj]

Just broke one of these snap rings putting a cv joint back on a corsa.
Phone Vauxhall and they say not available separately buy a outer joint for nearly £300 and it comes with it.....
All my motor factors say no to snap ring but joint available next day for £70.
J&R driveshafts have a complete shaft for £65 next day delivered so that's an expensive snap ring failure.
And after ordering it I was chatting to them and they said they sell a box of snap rings for £30 but how often would I use them?

[warch]

Bloody lying couriers. Apparently they attempted delivery of our new vacuum cleaner. Righto, both of us were in all day and didn’t spot anyone attempting to do anything. 
 

It’s like the Wii they attempted to deliver three times last year before we cancelled our order. For reference we do live in the countryside but on a main road and every satnav I’ve ever used takes you there (no other houses to confuse the issue).

[jakebullet]

22 minutes ago, twosmoke300 said:

Got that house on the market yet ?

Maybe I need to think laterally. Wonder how big a fireball a butane refill in his burning bin would be? Hypothetically of course.