The grumpy thread

[cobblers]

I'm lucky enough to only ever have had to drive in one 20mph limit and that's the one going into Matlock. If you actually slow down to 20mph there, someone will crash into you. Anyway, that's my anecdote, please subscribe for more useless motoring observations.

 

[Yoss]

16 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Soton got rid of their tory council in May and replaced it with a labour one; I'd assume this was the new lot's doing. Still a shit idea, mind.

Proposals for this seem to have started in October 2021 so the idea no doubt predates that. 

[hairnet]

ebay

needed to send something back and the people said yes we deal with that not the manufacturer (this made me happy - although i dont know if itll be fix or replace - id be happy with fix

give us item no and order no - did that

give us name addy and email - wouldnt that they would already know as they posted it the first time

so tried that and ebay said no - was on phone so thought it was that

again and no - ok fuck you wait till get home

tried here and got the red box - NEIN YOU VILL NOT SEND PERSONAL INFO VIA MESSAGE OR 8 VEEKS COOLER etc

did the space in the mail and punctuation in text etc

nope

wrote a note on phone and screeenshot and sent that as a photo

it worked

fukin palaver

[Remspoor]

19 hours ago, wuvvum said:

There's plenty of 30km/h zones in built up areas in That Europe.  No Tories though admittedly.

Zones,  not the whole city or town. And none near me.

[Remspoor]

10 hours ago, Yoss said:

I guess once we're all driving electric cars the problem of what gear to be in will be irrelevant. 

When will that be? 20 or 30 years after the last ICE was sold?

[Remspoor]

4 hours ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Soton got rid of their tory council in May and replaced it with a labour one; I'd assume this was the new lot's doing. Still a shit idea, mind.

When they implement this  later on we can all say sexual movements to the Labour party too.

Certainly a Tory idea. "Labour leader of the opposition, Cllr Satvir Kaur, criticised the lack of plan for enforcement."

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/southamptons-20mph-speed-limits-force-050000669.html

[red5]

If you want to do a comparative test get live data from ECU (EGT, EGR duty cycle, Inj duration, MAP etc). Drive at 20mph in 2nd @ X rpm . Repeat at same indicated road speed in 3rd @ Y rpm. Note readings. Get calculator. Get busy. 😁. 

Bear in mind formation of NoX is directly related to cylinder combustion temperature. Cool cylinder (water, EGR, low compression ratio) = massive reductions. 

You may find that higher engine rpm (then just off idle for example) uses relatively less fuel as it's more likely to be in the peak torque range which roughly equates to most go for fuel supplied. EGT readings are your friend here. And so on...

Then do all that again but display injector duration and rail pressure then drive in the gear/throttle position that displays the 'shortest'  and run into the back of the vehicle in front whilst watching your 'Emission-o-meter', but in an economic, low emission manner 😎

[Stanky]

Soldering. Specifically trying to solder tiny microswitches to tiny circuitboards, because the tiny microswitches came detatched. Because i dropped my keys.

I fucking hate soldering, I rarely do it so am cack handed, and I only have a shitty fucking silverline soldering iron with a too-short cable and a conical nib and its just wretched to use on anything smaller than sections of ferry hull.

I've made a total pigs ear of the job and can't face having another go. I can just about solder wires together though a combo of 97% luck and 3% having some mega old lead solder which makes up for my utter ineptitude.

So I shall be unlocking the car with the key for the foreseeable future then...

[Yoss]

1 hour ago, Remspoor said:

When will that be? 20 or 30 years after the last ICE was sold?

I'll certainly do my best to make sure that is the case. 

1 hour ago, Remspoor said:

When they implement this  later on we can all say sexual movements to the Labour party too.

Certainly a Tory idea. "Labour leader of the opposition, Cllr Satvir Kaur, criticised the lack of plan for enforcement."

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/southamptons-20mph-speed-limits-force-050000669.html

Satvir is now the leader of the council since the last local elections (which I assume were in May, three months after the date of that article) so she could now do something about the lack of enforcement but I doubt there is the budget for it. £X will have been allocated and I doubt there is any more money. I expect any money left will be spent on little round 20 signs. Someone will do well out of that. So that article does basically admit they won't try and enforce it and it will be down to the goodwill of the public. So it won't make any difference. 

I like Satvir. I've met her a few times on the doorstep canvassing before elections and she has been to visit us on our picket line. She seems a genuinely decent person. She told me she will be replacing Alan Whitehead as labour candidate for Southampton Test MP at the next election. Alan has been our MP for 25 years and will be retiring and he is why we have a tiny red dot in a sea of blue. She will definitely get my vote. But I digress... 

 

9 minutes ago, red5 said:

If you want to do a comparative test get live data from ECU (EGT, EGR duty cycle, Inj duration, MAP etc). Drive at 20mph in 2nd @ X rpm . Repeat at same indicated road speed in 3rd @ Y rpm. Note readings. Get calculator. Get busy. 😁. 

Bear in mind formation of NoX is directly related to cylinder combustion temperature. Cool cylinder (water, EGR, low compression ratio) = massive reductions. 

You may find that higher engine rpm (then just off idle for example) uses relatively less fuel as it's more likely to be in the peak torque range which roughly equates to most go for fuel supplied. EGT readings are your friend here. And so on...

Then do all that again but display injector duration and rail pressure then drive in the gear/throttle position that displays the 'shortest'  and run into the back of the vehicle in front whilst watching your 'Emission-o-meter', but in an economic, low emission manner 😎

Hmm... So how do I get the data out of this? I'm not quite sure where to connect the wires. 

But seriously I get your point and you may well be right. 

[wuvvum]

1 hour ago, red5 said:

You may find that higher engine rpm (then just off idle for example) uses relatively less fuel as it's more likely to be in the peak torque range which roughly equates to most go for fuel supplied. EGT readings are your friend here. And so on...

My old Cadillac STS was more fuel efficient at a steady 50 than at a steady 40.  At 40 the engine was barely above idle and wasn't running in its most efficient range.  I imagine a lot of cars will have similar traits at certain speeds.

[red5]

20 minutes ago, Yoss said:

I'll certainly do my best to make sure that is the case. 

Satvir is now the leader of the council since the last local elections (which I assume were in May, three months after the date of that article) so she could now do something about the lack of enforcement but I doubt there is the budget for it. £X will have been allocated and I doubt there is any more money. I expect any money left will be spent on little round 20 signs. Someone will do well out of that. So that article does basically admit they won't try and enforce it and it will be down to the goodwill of the public. So it won't make any difference. 

I like Satvir. I've met her a few times on the doorstep canvassing before elections and she has been to visit us on our picket line. She seems a genuinely decent person. She told me she will be replacing Alan Whitehead as labour candidate for Southampton Test MP at the next election. Alan has been our MP for 25 years and will be retiring and he is why we have a tiny red dot in a sea of blue. She will definitely get my vote. But I digress... 

 

Hmm... So how do I get the data out of this? I'm not quite sure where to connect the wires. 

But seriously I get your point and you may well be right. 

Two flow sensors. One inlet, one return.

Somewhat cruder/more fabrication required  but do-able. 😁

[Yoss]

29 minutes ago, red5 said:

Two flow sensors. One inlet, one return.

Somewhat cruder/more fabrication required  but do-able. 😁

Thanks, I'll take your word for it!

[jakebullet]

Just realised Ma's been doing her special skill of "The sideation" again while I was away at the weekend. That's her word for throwing things away that don't belong to her / she thinks are worthless / old / doesn't know purpose of, to make space for super valuable* things to be stored in the original items place.

So there's a box of old crap* relating to my (rather dead) father gone. In it's place there's a fine collection of 99% empty aerosol cans, and some VHS tapes of "Catherine Cookson's really miserable Tyneside tales". Be handy if we ever want to waterproof 1/10th of a shoe while reminding ourselves that Sean Bean should not attempt accents. 

[sheffcortinacentre]

Try living in a 20mph zone you get tailgated everywhere or cut up by the ones that can't be bothered to tailgate you.

Any obstruction is over come by the might is right philosophy ,speed bump are used as timed acceleration markers with the more bangs from your revlimiter the better.

Most of this from the yummy mummy school runners.

[Zelandeth]

Had just about finally got to sleep.  Then from roughly a foot to my right and about two feet down I hear *clunk...dugdugdugdugdugdug....* Took several seconds for my half asleep brain to figure out what he was hearing.

Yep, some idiot forgot to turn the compressor off last time he used the air line didn't he?

Thankfully it's only my bedroom that's directly above the garage so hopefully won't have bothered anyone else.  I really do need to add a really obvious power indicator that I can't miss from the garage door as this isn't the first time I've forgotten about it.

[LightBulbFun]

4 minutes ago, Zelandeth said:

Thankfully it's only my bedroom that's directly above the garage so hopefully won't have bothered anyone else.  I really do need to add a really obvious power indicator that I can't miss from the garage door as this isn't the first time I've forgotten about it.

one of these mounted to the top? can also be used as a localised warming station, cup your hands around it during these cold winter days  

[Neil clark]

15 hours ago, cobblers said:

I'm lucky enough to only ever have had to drive in one 20mph limit and that's the one going into Matlock. If you actually slow down to 20mph there, someone will crash into you. Anyway, that's my anecdote, please subscribe for more useless motoring observations.

 

Drive into matlock a fair bit and I've never noticed a 20 zone lol, I feel a speed awareness course coming......

[cort1977]

8 hours ago, sheffcortinacentre said:

Try living in a 20mph zone you get tailgated everywhere or cut up by the ones that can't be bothered to tailgate you.

Any obstruction is over come by the might is right philosophy ,speed bump are used as timed acceleration markers with the more bangs from your revlimiter the better.

Most of this from the yummy mummy school runners.

Currently in London and driving my mother's Ka about. People get really shirty if you drive at 20 in a 20 zone and make the slightest hesitation because they have changed the roundabout since 1997. 

[3VOM]

And my broadband is out. Probably 100 gallons of rainwater in a cabinet nearby

 

[Yoss]

2 hours ago, cort1977 said:

Currently in London and driving my mother's Ka about. People get really shirty if you drive at 20 in a 20 zone and make the slightest hesitation because they have changed the roundabout since 1997. 

I used to drive around West London a lot and now don't but had to go to Hendon a couple of months ago. I was refamiliarising myself with old shortcuts and trying to stick to 20 whilst also making sure I didn't accidentally stray in to the ULEZ. Great fun.

As you say nobody was really paying attention to the limit but I did see one camera, I think on Ealing Road between the M4 and Brentford McDonald’s. I've no idea if it was enforcing the 20, it may have been there already when it was a 30 limit but I did have to brake suddenly just in case. Doesn't make driving pleasant, you spend half the time looking at your speedo and half looking for cameras and don't really pay attention to what's around you. 

[dave j]

There is a 20 mph zone in Plymouth that has average speed cameras on it. It's awful to drive that road! There are 2 mini roundabouts and hills to tackle as well so I try to avoid going that way

[andyberg]

The village next to mine has a blanket 20mph limit. Every approach road entry to it has the signs up.  If you dare to do the speed limit you get tailgated and over taken. Sure enough the centre of the village has narrow roads and a tight mini roundabout, but on those roads it's impossible to get any where near 20 but to cover the entire village is just a piss take.

[Markeh]

There's a 20 stretch of road near me that's quite wide, goes to 30 towards the end. Never seen a soul doing 20 on it - including the local police. Drivers undertaking on that stretch to do even faster is not unheard of either.

[Metal Guru]

52 minutes ago, Markeh said:

There's a 20 stretch of road near me that's quite wide, goes to 30 towards the end. Never seen a soul doing 20 on it - including the local police. Drivers undertaking on that stretch to do even faster is not unheard of either.

Some councils wanted to go to 15mph but were advised that prosecutions were difficult as speedometers on most cars aren’t accurate at that speed.

[PhilA]

5 hours ago, Metal Guru said:

Some councils wanted to go to 15mph but were advised that prosecutions were difficult as speedometers on most cars aren’t accurate at that speed.

Funny, 15 is common here. You'll get stopped also for 20+ in a 15 if the cops are running a trap down a complaint street.

[sheffcortinacentre]

9 hours ago, Yoss said:

I used to drive around West London a lot and now don't but had to go to Hendon a couple of months ago. I was refamiliarising myself with old shortcuts and trying to stick to 20 whilst also making sure I didn't accidentally stray in to the ULEZ. Great fun.

As you say nobody was really paying attention to the limit but I did see one camera, I think on Ealing Road between the M4 and Brentford McDonald’s. I've no idea if it was enforcing the 20, it may have been there already when it was a 30 limit but I did have to brake suddenly just in case. Doesn't make driving pleasant, you spend half the time looking at your speedo and half looking for cameras and don't really pay attention to what's around you. 

Yes but think how safer the roads are & the bonus of someone to blame  without having to even leave the police station.

[New POD]

14 hours ago, Neil clark said:

Drive into matlock a fair bit and I've never noticed a 20 zone lol, I feel a speed awareness course coming......

I'm doing my second one* of those tomorrow. In Wolverhampton. Gone to never 62 mph in a 50.  Dual carriage way, that links the Runcorn Bridge to the M56.  

So you are on the Widnes side of the bridge and it's NSL, where there's one fixed camera and everu fucker breaks to 50. As you enter the toll part it drops to 60. After you leave the bridge it's still 60 for a while, before dropping to 50. And on that particular dry warm Saturday in November with zero traffic, I was on my way to visit my Dad in Ynys Mon. Slipped my mind that it's 50. I actually went.past the van thinking "well you can fuck off, because I'm.doing the speed limit.....Oh fuck" 

Anyway no excuses.  At least they didn't get me at 130.  

I have to remember to play the game and not argue the toss tomorrow. 

*my first one was a few years ago in a mk4 Astra, and "unfair" too. 

[Pieman]

I think I'd refuse the course and just take the points, but that's because of my nature and my refusal to sit and be talked to like a disobedient 5-year old.

[New POD]

5 hours ago, Pieman said:

I think I'd refuse the course and just take the points, but that's because of my nature and my refusal to sit and be talked to like a disobedient 5-year old.

But then I'd have 6 ☹

[horriblemercedes]

Yeah, I'd take the course and not the points. It's just pragmatic