Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

This section allows you to view all posts made by this member. Note that you can only see posts made in areas you currently have access to.

1

General Car Chat / End of a long love affair.

« on: 09 March 2021, 14:23:50 »

Very reluctantly, I've had to sell on my pride and joy, (Y reg. 3.2l Elite saloon in rare silver), through not being physically capable of wielding spanners and clambering over and under any more due to arthritis and spinal stenosis problems.
It only went on Saturday and I miss it already. It had been "sorned" for the last 9 months, and my younger son listed it on ebay for me with a starting price of £700, and it sold for a final bid of £1040. I was quite chuffed with that. Because of Covid 19 restrictions the purchaser couldn't arrange for it to be trailored away for 6 weeks, but it's gone now and the money's in the bank.
He apparently has 4 other Omegas, and rang today in ecstasy because it sailed through an MOT "with flying colours and is a fantastic car".
I'm now starting the grieving process and looking for something to fill the large gap on the property frontage.
Hey ho! Such is life beyond eighty.

2

General Car Chat / Re: mazda 6 stop/start battery charging

« on: 01 February 2021, 20:42:01 »

Thanks for the replies, and the useful link.
I always turn stop/start off when driving, because I find it a nuisance, so I suppose battery drain can be considered to fall in the 'normal' range.
As I expected, there doesn't seem to be one absolutely definitive answer to the question, so I'm going to chance my arm and charge it on AGM setting with the leads still connected, which is basically what Nige does, and hope that C-tek's info. is OK.
Thanks for your interest.

3

General Car Chat / mazda 6 stop/start battery charging

« on: 01 February 2021, 19:20:54 »

I have a standard C-tek MXS 5.0 battery charger which does a good job on the Omega lead acid battery. I've always been in the practice of disconnecting both pos. and neg leads and leaving the battery in the car for convenience.
I want to do the same with my Mazda stop/start battery, but wonder whether disconnecting it will require re-setting things other than possibly the radio and one touch windows. C-tek state that this charger can be used without disconnecting the battery, but the Mazda manual doesn't make things clear. I'm assuming a dedicated stop/start charger isn't really necessary.
Can anyone offer an expert opinion, please?
Cheers.

4

General Car Chat / fuel degradation

« on: 02 January 2021, 09:41:21 »

What happens to cause fuel to lose its potency with age and how long does it take on average?

5

General Discussion Area / JamesV6CDX

« on: 24 December 2020, 11:45:45 »

James,
Your inbox is full.
Bill.

6

General Discussion Area / Re: Scouse bouncers are nancy boys.....

« on: 01 December 2020, 17:27:43 »

And he still hasn't twigged that it was a girl!

7

General Car Chat / Re: space saver wheels

« on: 22 November 2019, 09:26:14 »

I would have thought that the important things are stud spacing and offset. Even tyre size isn't critical for the short time the wheel will be on the car. Surely an electric handbrake operates on the wheel drum only. (I stand to be corrected, of course).
I've just bought a space saver wheel for a Mazda 6 with electric handbrake and can't see any potential problems if I have to use it. I suppose I'd better try it out first though.

8

General Discussion Area / Re: Tanya Batteries

« on: 25 October 2019, 09:27:18 »

Tayna, I think, AA.
They're first class. I use them for cars and golf buggy batteries. Never had any problems.

9

General Discussion Area / Re: Selling a car privately

« on: 06 October 2019, 11:29:33 »

As said above, cash can be a problem these days unless you take the payer to a bank and have the money checked when paid in.
Safest way is bank transfer, ensure the money has appeared in your account, and then, if you are paranoid like me, immediately change your password.
Not everybody is that worried about doing that however. I recently sold my wife's car to the parents of a relatively close friend who were happy to do the bank transfer and then wait for me to deliver the vehicle almost one week later.
I just could have been an inveterate crook rather than the "most honest person in the whole wide world" as far as they knew. 
(That reminds me. I must get round to dropping the car off sometime). 

10

Meetings, gatherings, parties etc / Re: Next Hoofland curry

« on: 28 August 2019, 20:05:53 »

I had to cry off from the last one unfortunately but am definitely up for this subject to the date being no sooner than mid September and no later than very early November.
I would hope to get the Omega to Serek for quite a few jobs at the same time, and to stay at the hotel next to Spiceland.
Can we start talking about prospective dates, please?
Bill.

11

General Discussion Area / Re: Anyone built a timber garage before?

« on: 16 April 2019, 15:05:22 »

Don't overlook the fact that 'snob' value may affect ease of selling in the future, unless you go to pains to make it look really classy.
Is part DIY brick consruction out of the question? I built a large extension to my brick garage using a friend to do the brickwork and doing the rest myself. Took some time, mind you, but very satisfying.

12

General Car Chat / Re: Empty nest

« on: 03 April 2019, 08:01:49 »

What's so funny Beanz? 
61 years clean here!

13

General Car Chat / Volvo S40 1.8l

« on: 19 March 2019, 13:01:55 »

I've been offered an S40 on an 04 plate with genuine 38k miles for under 500 quid. It needs a minor prang sorting on the driver's door and has rust scabs above the rear screen, but I don't know anything else about it at this stage, except that the MOT history isn't bad, and the deceased driver was a "careful" driver.
Can anyone offer a knowledgable opinion about this car's pedigree, as a possible replacement for a 3.2 Omega?

14

General Car Chat / Re: Buying at car auctions - any advice?

« on: 06 February 2019, 14:31:11 »

Just fpr the hell of it - no buying intentions - I went to a car auction near Chelmsford. I simply could not see who was bidding: no nods, no winks or any gestures from anyone, seemingly, yet the price went up and up until finally someone bought the car. Frrightened the carp out of me!

Ron.

I saw a TV programme years ago where they highlighted the "off the wall" bid as a common and accepted practice at car auctions. If you don't know what you're doing steer clear.!

15

General Car Chat / Re: Crankshaft locking for pulley removal.

« on: 02 February 2019, 19:38:06 »

Am I being stupid? How on earth do you remove the shank of the bolt if you remove the head?