February 2002
For those who missed yestereday's interesting article on the confusing state of the petrol industry, unleaded, low sulphur (soon no sulphur) lrp, etc etc. it's worth checking out the article - not sure if it's available on line yet. HJ also makes has his say.
For those who need leaded, like me (at least until I find a new motor) check out www.leadedpetrol.co.uk/ Read more
Reading the AA magazine this morning, I decided to try their BuyaCar site, hoping to find a used Honda Accord. Selected the manufacturers list, and attempted to scroll to Honda, only to find that 'what you see is what you get..'
The only manufacturers supported are:
BMW, Fiat, Ford, M-B, Peugeot, Renault, Rover, Vauxhall and VW. -no Honda.
(or any other make)
Seems a bit limited to me.
Can anyone recommend a good site for low mileage secondhand vehicles, from personal experience?
Many thanks,
Peter. Read more
This site has links to all the worthwhile car buying sites I know of. If anyone knows of any others which should be added, then please e-mail me and, if I agree, they will be added. The AA site does not qualify.
HJ
Sorry, MBM, this is only partly motoring related - but I would be grateful for feedback from any Backroomers who can advise on the issue.
As part of my annual review of TV/phone/Internet provision, I'm looking at the option of Broadband from Telewest cable TV. I assume it's a dedicated CAT 5 cable that connects onto a Network Interface Card, but my real concern is what speed it will really achieve.
Blueyonder (providers to Telewest) state that it will be 10 times faster than I dial up modem, but I've regularly suffered download speeds a lot less the maximum of my 56K modem, so the internet must be choked in places.
I currently rent a second phone line and pay for unlimited internet access, and the cost of Broadband is only £3 per month above this set-up. BTW, I don't play games etc. over the internet.
All contributions gratefully received.
Ian Read more
Many thanks to all who responded. Money wise, the Telewest deal for Broadband is good, and I think the concensus of opinion in the Backroom is that it should be worth switching to.
Regards to all
Ian
Well went to see the £9995 '98S Accord 2.0ES auto 38k at a local Honda main dealer on Friday.
The car had numerous scratches on the bodywork, barely legal rear tyres, the dash SRS warning light was lit, the gear lever was sticking using the sequential mode, the last service was 7k miles too late, there was an irritating rattle from the dash, it was dirty inside and out, and the expected CD-changer was absent.
Was still willing to do a deal if the price was right and problems sorted. Best price-to-change the dealer would do with my '99V Focus 2.0 Ghia 5dr 20k was £2.7k with CD-changer after fair bit of haggling. Told him I'd think it over then decided thanks but no thanks.
He phones me back yesterday offering me a great finance deal "to help me out". What's the interest rate I ask? 5% he says then gives me the monthly repayments. Tell him I'll think about it again then work out the repayment figures he's given me are more like 10%APR.
What are these guys like? Read more
Dealer was probably quoting flat rate of interest - which is approx half the apr figure!
Good Morning Britain, check your Sunday T/Graph for the latest brainchild awaiting you from your masters. Read more
Thank God I was not one of his passengers. He'd have done for BA, even (I've never been anywhere much, except Kenya and that was sore, but SWMBO has, except for the wide but largely empty gap between Nippon and the West Coast, and has reported).
So Brewpot thinks watching paint dry is more fun than driving a Veccy.
He should try getting the regulation minimum 3 insurance quotes on line.
Just spent 2 and a half hours on line to get 3 quotes each for annual travel insurance and car.
Sites crashing, several instances
please be informed this is a very secure site, so secure it don't flaming work!
Another keeps going round in circles, asking the same inane question.
Having finally succeeded to get sufficient comparisons.
Norwich Union thank you, nice quick reliable site and good prices, you will be getting my business, eyethangyew! Read more
Does anyone know why, when the AA and RAC are now both 'just another company' they still get away with pretending they're our friends?
Why are they the '4th emergency service' when I can get a pizza delivered three times quicker - and the bloke who delivers it would quite possibly make as much effort to start my car?
Why is 'Edmund King of the RAC Foundation' any more representative of our views than, say, Edmund Blackadder?
All of these people have our interests at heart to the very same extent as the policians of every persuasion - ie not at all unless it gives them unfettered access to our wallets.
Didn't someone mention the Stockholm (Copenhagen?) Agreement here recently ie 'discourage private car use by all means' - could this include 'congestion charging' ??!
My mate has a new Range Rover 3.0 diesel auto on long term evaluation. We went out for the day and not once did it sound like a diesel, so well done BMW. It reminded me of the growl from the Vauxhall Senator's straight six. Given that it weighs about 2 tons, has four-wheel drive, a slush box and a diesel, it accelerated quite briskly. I don't suppose the fuel consumption is that good though. Read more
Yes, it was the new, new Range Rover. My mate will be at one of the launch presentations next week in Italy. Although it's very spacious inside, it doesn't seem too big compared the the outgoing model.
Oh, yes, please don't abbreviate Range Rover to RR; this belongs to Rolls-Royce and always has.
Not strictly motoring related but relevant to this site, - has anybody noticed that the Back Room link from the left hand red coloured task bar on the home page, takes you back to the home page. Or is there something wrong with my browser? Read more
HJ
if the Telegraph won't pay you properly (?), why not take this excellent site format to the Mail, a hugely succesful newspaper group. The Mail has never give Motoring proper coverage, but it's time they did - it's the big letdown in their otherwise spot-on and formidable newsgathering organisation.
regards
Andrew
Nearly three years ago the company I used to work for decided to give its staff company cars. As part of a recent exercise I asked the leasing company for a figure to buy the cars at the end of the lease. The results are shown below.
May '99 VW Golf TDi 110 49K miles £9275
April '99 VW Golf TDi 110 52K miles £9275
April '99 Toyota Avensis 2.0 GLS estate 55K miles £6300
April '99 Renault Laguna 1.8RT Sport estate 47K miles £5850
April '99 Honda Aerodeck 1.6ES 55K miles £5650
April '99 Passat 1.8S 51K miles £5575
Now I know that Golfs are well thought of by the trade, but it's a huge difference to the 1.8 Passat; to my mind the Passat has more presence and better comfort than the diesel Golf, and the economy isn't that far distant from the 44 MPG that the Golfs seem to do. The engine is a different story, appearing weedy and breathless for main road driving next to the Golf. It still gets my vote as bargain of the week; what do others think? Read more
Have a look at my post on "Time to emigrate" and get your hankies out ....
Jack
My letter below was published 2 weeks ago in a local paper. I fully expected the police to come back and try to rubbish my claims but they have kept quiet. Proof indeed that they are telling porkies.
I was a tad concerned because they published it under a picture of Chief Brunstrom, the Gatso king, with the heading:
" Stop exposing us to camera lies"
I thought "Ooops, he will get me for that" even though I did not write it.
Begins.....
Dear Editor,
According to the Transport Research Laboratory, North Wales Police told them that excessive speed was factor in just 8.3% of Welsh accidents, yet it seems that not a month goes by without them now telling us that speed cameras save lives and "33% of accidents are caused by excess speed".
Between 1999 and 2000, trials of speed cameras, (Gatsos) in eight areas found three of the areas with increases in fatalities of up to 18%. Why were we not told of that? The study?s claim that, ?Gatsos save lives? have been dismissed as ?naughty? by statisticians from Cardiff University. Having looked at the results they said, ?To attribute any reduction to speed cameras is not justifiable?
What do we find, one year later? Suffolk, an area which announced a crackdown on speed-limit offences in January 2001 ? just as police and politicians advocate - has seen an increase in fatalities of 73%. Lincolnshire had an increase of 19% and Essex had a 43% increase. Astonishingly, Essex police still say Gatsos are effective because there has been a reduction in people with serious injuries. Could that be because some of them are now dead?
104 Gatsos in Essex now generate over £7 million per year; £4.7 million of which will go to the Exchequer and yet prosecutions for careless or dangerous driving are lower.
The International Road Traffic Accident Database shows clearly that UK has the safest roads in the world, both by miles travelled and by head of population, yet still the UK driver is hounded. More people are killed in accidents in their own homes than on the roads, (ROSPA figures). If the reason for the Gatso blitz is to save lives, why is nothing done about home accidents? Revenue, perhaps?
I wonder if tourists are put off coming to Wales in case they get points on their license for harming no-one.
There is a huge difference between breaking a poorly set limit in safe circumstances and excessive speed for the conditions. Gatsos do not detect the latter.
Yours faithfully,
Alwyn Davies Read more
Further to this subject, you may have read recently in the national press that according to an AA report the A12 between Romford Essex and the M25 is the second most dangerous stretch of road in the UK. What was not mentioned was that this stretch of approximately 2-3 miles has at least four speed cameras and eight traffic light cameras. Is there a connection or just coincidence, ether way they don't seem to 'save lives'.
Browse
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Shell & Texaco are recommended, what about BP?