The grumpy thread

[Wack]

On 5/19/2023 at 12:39 AM, Metal Guru said:

Summer approaching, so my a/c stops working. Hopefully just a refill (£60) but last time the system was leaking needing a new condenser and pipework, £350.

ATS Groupon on at the moment for gas  £45 I think 

[Metal Guru]

35 minutes ago, Wack said:

ATS Groupon on at the moment for gas  £45 I think 

Thanks for that. Trouble is with Groupon I have to pay it beforehand. If I get to ATS and they test it and say it’s leaking , I’ve wasted the £45. I’m not confident , so I’ll probably just go to ATS and get it done. If it’s ok I’ll kick myself for wasting £20.

[Jazoli]

2 minutes ago, Metal Guru said:

Thanks for that. Trouble is with Groupon I have to pay it beforehand. If I get to ATS and they test it and say it’s leaking , I’ve wasted the £45. I’m not confident , so I’ll probably just go to ATS and get it done. If it’s ok I’ll kick myself for wasting £20.

There is no charge if they cannot complete the job and you just ask for a refund from Groupon, if it won't hold a vacuum they abort the job.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

2 hours ago, Wack said:

ATS Groupon on at the moment for gas  £45 I think 

Just booked one for my daily. Thanks for the heads up!

[beko1987]

I had mine done for £25 at ats a few years ago with a similar voucher. 

Guy was ever so worried when I rocked up in probably the oldest car he's ever seen there but it was treated as an experiment and I told him so and he relaxed then. 

45 mins later it was done and it held something but it dropped and he mentioned the condenser which was cool. 

Nowadays it's still about as cold, and if its not really sunny does produce cool air. Cba to really fix it though, it's not worth it. 

Probably depends on your branch but if you treat it as a test and ask the guy any questions if needed it'll be fine. 

Had the dead zero air con meriva doe at kwikfit too under a similar voucher, although the ex was heavily pregnant with our first at the time so that also had a hand in the choice. Worked fine, fucking ice cold forever and it did just need a regas m9

[myglaren]

Bought a snazzy phone holder so I can see my phone when using it as a satnav.

Had a Covid jab appointment.  Set off an hour early for a fifteen minute drive.

By the time I got to the end of my street the phone had blanked out and was silent.

I knew where to go, approximately, it was only the last mile or so I wasn't sure of.

Got within a mile and turned the phone back on and Google maps was being an arse.

Changed to Waze and it said about six minutes.  After stopping for traffic lights, it said to turn left, then the next right.  Then the phone blanked out again.  It wasn't next right either, off into magical mystery tours land.  Tried to get the phone working but only the android logo for ages, rebooted it and tried again.  Waze unresponsive, just insisted on me registering.  Went back to Google Maps and it was close enough to find my way using ASDA as a landmark.

Went in (late, of course) and had to make a rapid exit, poison gas, aka perfume.

Stood outside coughing for ten minutes.  Nurse came out with offers of water and such.  Tried again but with an activated charcoal mask.  Registered and stood in a queue but the mask overwhelmed by perfume again.  Another session outside and the nurse took me in the back way to a pong-free room where the jab was administered.  Sat in the now pongless waiting area for fifteen minutes and a huge bang and commotion outside, most of the medical and admin staff rushed out to see what was up.  Bloke had a bit of a turn and crashed into a taxi.  He was brought in and seen to.

Went out to go home and there were three police cars, lights flashing, attending the crash.

Should have been there and back in 45 minutes.  Two hours

I don't understand what was up with Google maps and Waze, both have been OK previously with Waze generally being better.

Probably have to revert to the stone age satnav, never registered or updated.  Half the roads round her were nonexistent when it was made.

[Aston Martin]

Bastard Eurofighters always using Hull for some reason. I always think it's the end.

 

Except this mad twat flying in circles.

[Datsuncog]

No idea why Redex decided to redesign their bottle, but the neck's now too short to push past the little valve on the Corolla's filler neck - so it all just floods out and pours down the side of the car.

I had to use a lolly stick out of the bin to jam the flap open, then tip the remains down into the tank.

Last time I'm buying that, then.

[sierraman]

Watching ‘Secret World go Boy Racers’. What a set of helmets honestly, the guy that spent £30,000 on souping up his 1999ish Polo. Honestly you cannot polish a turd!

[richardmorris]

Update on stolen mini last night.

[sierraman]

It’ll take the police about a fortnight to react to that once you’ve got past all the desk ones that obfuscate matters. 

[wuvvum]

21 hours ago, Aston Martin said:

Bastard Eurofighters always using Hull for some reason. I always think it's the end.

 

Except this mad twat flying in circles.

There were a couple of those performing some (very noisy) high alpha manoeuvres over my house at the weekend.  I stopped and watched them for a while, was quite impressive to see.

[chadders]

We get F15s from Lakenheath as well, a bit further up the coast than you. I think we're on the direct route to the North Sea training area.

[Markeh]

Insurance issues.

Best mate had her car broken into in the early hours of Friday morning. Not huge amount of damage (bent a rear door back, broke the glass) and not a lot taken (mint humbugs and a phone charger!). Insurance won't provide courtesy car or cover any transport costs until the car's been assessed in case it's a write off, which while I can understand was probably in the small print, is also a royal pain in the arse for her (car is a Pug 2008 worth approx 5k, didn't seem to be any damage to anything other than the door, while not impossible it's unlikely to be a write off, she lives a 60 mile round trip from work and there isn't a feasible way to get there via public transport). The breakdown firm she pays for through her insurance too picked the car up Friday evening. The yard they were meant to take it to was shut, so it went to a yard a little further away. The garage who are repairing the car will only collect the car if it's in the same postcode area as her home address (so in our case, any NG postcode) - the car was taken to a yard over the border under a DE postcode, so nope, no joy, breakdown people now need to go pick it up again and take it to the garage up in that there South Yorkshire. Obviously they don't find this out until late on Monday, so now we have to hope the car's collected today, maybe assessed tomorrow and a courtesy car provided maybe Thursday. A courtesy car that has to be delivered to the policyholder in person, within the NG postcode, between the hours of 8 and 5 on a weekday. Of course she works full time in a different postcode area, so that's going to complicate matters even further.

I'm sure there are perfectly valid reasons for everything I've just described and that it was all detailed in the small print that she didn't read upon taking the policy out. But as a result, I'm now stuck with her in my spare room and taking her to work and back every day until they provide transport (I'm about half as far away from her work). Granted, she's covering my petrol and helping round the house. But now I'm grumpy as I'm having to get up an hour or two earlier each day and it's disrupted a load of my plans.

Safe to say I think she'll be checking the fine print next time she renews her insurance - and probably avoiding a certain company with a nodding dog mascot...

[junkyarddog]

I'm just back from the UK,when did the roads become so shite over there?

Potholes,rough surfaces,dips,hollows bad repairs,roadworks-the M56 is a nightmare still,was stuck there last October for over 2 hours and got stuck there again last week,thankfully just an hour this time,but still a pain.

I though Irish roads were bad,but they are way better that the UKroads now!

 

 

[McRusty]

14 minutes ago, junkyarddog said:

I'm just back from the UK,when did the roads become so shite over there?

Potholes,rough surfaces,dips,hollows bad repairs,roadworks-the M56 is a nightmare still,was stuck there last October for over 2 hours and got stuck there again last week,thankfully just an hour this time,but still a pain.

I though Irish roads were bad,but they are way better that the UKroads now!

 

 

 

[horriblemercedes]

3 minutes ago, McRusty said:

 

Also absolute bollocks. That's a covering for manholes and drains as the steel is very slippery to horses' hooves.

 

Still, why not make something up to fit an agenda?

[MikeR]

F in , crap ,c#@t of a sh#&e job happened ..

That s&£#ting little screw in the middle of the plughole let go ..

Just as I tipped a bowl of water away .... Then heard everything under the sink get a bath of dirty water .....

Anyway that's under the sink cleaned and sorted ! 

Time will tell if the time hardened rubber seal is still up to the job ..

[DavieW]

People that refer to any brand of mobile phone as an iphone make me grumpy.

[High Jetter]

48 minutes ago, MikeR said:

F in , crap ,c#@t of a sh#&e job happened ..

That s&£#ting little screw in the middle of the plughole let go ..

Just as I tipped a bowl of water away .... Then heard everything under the sink get a bath of dirty water .....

Anyway that's under the sink cleaned and sorted ! 

Time will tell if the time hardened rubber seal is still up to the job ..

That tube coming in from the right on the 2nd pic - maybe from the overflow? - doesn't look terribly secure, are you certain it's OK?

[Markeh]

6 hours ago, Markeh said:

Insurance issues.

Best mate had her car broken into in the early hours of Friday morning. Not huge amount of damage (bent a rear door back, broke the glass) and not a lot taken (mint humbugs and a phone charger!). Insurance won't provide courtesy car or cover any transport costs until the car's been assessed in case it's a write off, which while I can understand was probably in the small print, is also a royal pain in the arse for her (car is a Pug 2008 worth approx 5k, didn't seem to be any damage to anything other than the door, while not impossible it's unlikely to be a write off, she lives a 60 mile round trip from work and there isn't a feasible way to get there via public transport). The breakdown firm she pays for through her insurance too picked the car up Friday evening. The yard they were meant to take it to was shut, so it went to a yard a little further away. The garage who are repairing the car will only collect the car if it's in the same postcode area as her home address (so in our case, any NG postcode) - the car was taken to a yard over the border under a DE postcode, so nope, no joy, breakdown people now need to go pick it up again and take it to the garage up in that there South Yorkshire. Obviously they don't find this out until late on Monday, so now we have to hope the car's collected today, maybe assessed tomorrow and a courtesy car provided maybe Thursday. A courtesy car that has to be delivered to the policyholder in person, within the NG postcode, between the hours of 8 and 5 on a weekday. Of course she works full time in a different postcode area, so that's going to complicate matters even further.

I'm sure there are perfectly valid reasons for everything I've just described and that it was all detailed in the small print that she didn't read upon taking the policy out. But as a result, I'm now stuck with her in my spare room and taking her to work and back every day until they provide transport (I'm about half as far away from her work). Granted, she's covering my petrol and helping round the house. But now I'm grumpy as I'm having to get up an hour or two earlier each day and it's disrupted a load of my plans.

Safe to say I think she'll be checking the fine print next time she renews her insurance - and probably avoiding a certain company with a nodding dog mascot...

To follow up on this - they've not even attempted to pick it up today. The reason the garage can't fetch it themselves is because its in a yard that can be no more than a mile into a different postcode. The breakdown company that can move it naturally won't prioritise it (think a certain coloured flag), Utter pisstake. So that's her stuck here til next week probably and my weekend plans probably cancelled. Not like I wanted to do things this weekend - oh wait - it's a Bank Holiday I'd booked off, my birthday and we also have family visiting too.

Sigh. 

[iainrcz]

I've just had to break in to my own house because dick head locked her keys in.

[MikeR]

27 minutes ago, High Jetter said:

That tube coming in from the right on the 2nd pic - maybe from the overflow? - doesn't look terribly secure, are you certain it's OK?

its been like that for 30 years or more , it used to be a corrugated plastic pipe which leaked at the joints , then one day this washing machine expired ....

[Remspoor]

1 hour ago, iainrcz said:

I've just had to break in to my own house because dick head locked her keys in.

Questions are: 1) is  who was the dickhead who installed the type of lock which allows the door to be shut then locked. Or  2) who is the dickhead who may not have installed that lock but kept using it instead of changing to one that you had to put a key in to lock the door?

The bright side  of this is you can now see just how easy it is to break into your house. Time to up the security.

[somewhatfoolish]

Shouldn't have released the car to the recovery twits, no need if the car is mobile and roadworthy; go and get it back, gaffer tape over the broken glass and she can drive it to work until the assessor decides to do their bloody job.

  

1 hour ago, Markeh said:

To follow up on this - they've not even attempted to pick it up today. The reason the garage can't fetch it themselves is because its in a yard that can be no more than a mile into a different postcode. The breakdown company that can move it naturally won't prioritise it (think a certain coloured flag), Utter pisstake. So that's her stuck here til next week probably and my weekend plans probably cancelled. Not like I wanted to do things this weekend - oh wait - it's a Bank Holiday I'd booked off, my birthday and we also have family visiting too.

Sigh. 

 

[Markeh]

6 minutes ago, somewhatfoolish said:

Shouldn't have released the car to the recovery twits, no need if the car is mobile and roadworthy; go and get it back, gaffer tape over the broken glass and she can drive it to work until the assessor decides to do their bloody job.

  

 

I've told her to do this - think she's going to try tomorrow. To be honest I told her to tell them to shove it and just buy the door I saw on Ebay in colour with a window for £150!

I've also suggested she just take the car to the bloody garage itself (cars not even at the garage it's meant to be assessed at yet!) given its an hour up the road. FWIW the garage it's going to have been helpful. It's the other links in the chain that are worse than useless.

[iainrcz]

1 hour ago, Remspoor said:

Questions are: 1) is  who was the dickhead who installed the type of lock which allows the door to be shut then locked. Or  2) who is the dickhead who may not have installed that lock but kept using it instead of changing to one that you had to put a key in to lock the door?

The bright side  of this is you can now see just how easy it is to break into your house. Time to up the security.

That's the inner door and it has another more conventional handle and lock.

It came with the Yale type lock and has a huge hole in the frame behind it, so we left it. Thing is, it's normally left in the unlocked position all day, I'm not sure why she clicked the lock back. We only lock it at night.

[wuvvum]

In today's episode of "jobs you wish you'd never started", I failed to change the rear strut on the MG this evening.  I went out all motivated to get it finished, but just as I got the top retaining nut most of the way undone, the Allen socket in the top of the strut rounded out, so now the strut just spins and I can neither get the nut off nor tighten it back up.

Because it's an MG TF and thus an absolute twat to work on anything in the engine bay, I can't get a hacksaw or a grinder in there to cut the nut (or indeed the top of the strut) off.  I might just about be able to wangle a nut splitter in there, but I need to order one as my existing one is knackered.

So that's the car immobilised, again.  Still, at least the family of smoll spiders who have taken up residence between the front wing and the wheel will be left undisturbed for a little bit longer...

[Rust Collector]

Pretty sure I drove through a speed trap on the A23 whilst travelling at around 90mph… my fault entirely but still sucks to be spending the next couple of weeks waiting for a letter.

I swear I’ve not had as many run ins with speed traps in anything as much as that bloody Honda Insight, a 1 litre engine is obviously far too powerful for me to be trusted with.

[Rust Collector]

9 hours ago, Markeh said:

I'm now stuck with her in my spare room and taking her to work and back every day until they provide transport (I'm about half as far away from her work). Granted, she's covering my petrol and helping round the house.

A girl staying round your house who does some of the chores and owes you a favour or two? I’d be praying for the repair work to take as long as possible, sounds fantastic 🤣