Keith S, I'll back your rant up 100%, and add my own!

As someone else who has spent time working at the roadside I'll reiterate what an uncomfortable and perilous place it is.

The temporary speed limits are there for a very good reason; so that people like Keith and myself and many others can go home safely to our families at the end of a shift. That is not being over dramatic, the slipstream effect from a speeding car, or worse an HGV, is positively frightening and can really be life threatening in certain situations.

If the individual concerned feels that his/her extra couple of minutes saved is so important then I hope you won't mind me saying that I regard my life important enough to wish that he racks up the required 12 points for a ban as quickly as possible. Personally I would like to see speeding through temporary restrictions put in place for the protection of the workforce can a penalty of an immediate one month ban, that is how strongly I feel about it. After all there are plenty of signs warning of the reasons for the restriction and the fact that cameras are present, if they are not noticed then what else is that driver not noticing? If someone still speeds through then I must assume that they really do not care about my safety and any grief they could cause my wife and children, so please don't expect sympathy from this quarter.

To all those who do slow down and give road workers a wide berth, thank you, it really is appreciated.


Cockle

Got back in one day and one piece. It's lovely driving up north as there is little traffic and 530 miles was dead easy. Imagine doing Manchester to London return and then back to Milton Keynes in one day! Cruise control makes it so easy and the whole trip including about 3 and 1/2 hours in Perth was done in just under 12 hours.

Hopefully no flashes from cameras, but saw a mobile unit over the M74 going south. Cruise set on 85mph -oops - hopefully saw it in time...............

First major run in my new (to me) Subaru Forester Turbo Auto. Lovely cruiser although certainly thirsty 26mpg :-( Great ride though - nice high profile tyres makes going over speed bumps a doddle. The non-turbo version is even better at that, but the torque of the Turbo is great for overtaking lorries on two-lane stretches.
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Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?

I've held back from posting on this one as I know for a fact I will be accused of pro-Ford bias, I haven't been posting much lately but most of the older regulars may remember my previous name, and also the fact that I work for Ford, but here goes anyway! :-)

The pedals too close together? They're much better spaced than many of the other small cars that I have driven, cars like the Saxo, Punto and Clio cannot really compete, and whilst I don't remeber it being much worse, I don't recall that the Corsa was much better than the Fiesta either. I'm afraid that in a small car the pedals are bound to be closer together than in a larger car.

The bit that I really can't understand though is the comments about the car's handling, the Fiesta is one of the best standard small cars on the road, without question, I would imagine that most people who have driven them would back that up. I know I used to find that mine coped very well at high speeds on the twisty roads, in fact it put many other cars to shame.

As for the stereo, no, it isn't the sweetest sounding system in the world, but it's on a par with the competition, I reckon they've got it right with the design as well, not many customers want rows of flashing lights and countless buttons on their stereos. :-)

So there you go, accuse me of blatant pro-Ford bias if you like, but I don't believe I am, I reckon my comments are fairly accurate.

Blue

It might be for a similar reason to that given to me by the AA as to why they couldn't cover it at all - I live in NI and while both elephant and the AA sell car insurance here, there will be number of companies they broker for in GB which do not operate in Northern Ireland.
By the way, I would still ask your insurer (elephant, I take it?) to record the fact that you have informed them of the modifications and that your insurance is unaffected. I would also ask them to confirm it in writing. In fact, it might be a good idea to have a good look at the small print in your policy before contacting them, to see if it specifies anything about modifications.
It would appear from comments I've read elsewhere that it is indeed possible for an ECU upgrade to be detected, if the insurance company wants to find it. In the event of your having to make a claim, they could try to use the fact that the mod is there, yet not recorded in your policy details, as an excuse not to pay out - even though you have informed them!
That Saab must be fun, I am jealous ...
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andymc
Vroom, vroom - mmm, doughnuts ...