hi guys

i am attempting to wire up using the iso connectors,seem to have power to the unit but no display or none of the buttons seem to work either,bought secondhand so not sure if it worked before i had it

any pointers much appreciated Read more

Evening to every one again,

Todays question is, does anyone know where the battery compartment is located on new shape transits???

I ve looked in all the obvious places, but............

Please Help.


Marc
Read more

Just back in the office after my tour of Harley-Davidson Powertrain at Capitol Drive, Milwaukee.

What a great tour! Our guide, Bud, couldn't have been more Harley to the core, but easy going in the gentle way he passed it all on. Bald head, grey beard, pot belly, and corporate pale blue shirt married to well used jeans. Just great; anything else just wouldn't have been right! The tour itself was as slick and professional too, as the factory is spotlessly clean and well organized.

Bikers go round at no charge, too, even Rice Rocketeers like myself! ;-)

Before the tour started, I tried a load of bikes from the current range, and the one that felt 'just right' (really, instantly) was a fully dressed V-Rod. Growler'll tell me it's not a real Harley (sorry, G!), but having had a couple come past me on the freeway, I love the 'wheeeeeeeeee' turbinesque howl, too. Deep and shrill combined, totally un-Harley, totally un-V-twin, and totally unlike anything else, it's unique and fabulous in equal measure. It has a living quality beyond 'potato-potato-potato' to it that's hard to put in to words. Amazingly, there's no helmet law in Wisconsin, and although there's no way, Jose, that I would ever ride without one, the two V-Rod dudes I saw, with wrap around Oakleys on bare head, white t-shirts & blue jeans, looked spot on.

Unfortunately, the local dealers have already rented their V-Rods out for Saturday (my only remaining free day), and have no Street Rods, so it'll either be a bagger of some description, or a Sportster, that I rent if the sun comes out to play.


Some tour highlights:

Just being there. :-)

The guide's knowledge and demeanour.

The well honed manner in which each engine (350 per day) is hooked up for a hot test at the end of production, and unhooked afterwards (just seconds each time), before carrying along on the conveyor. Run for four and a half minutes, the hot test includes pressures and temperatures as you'd expect, but also an electronic stethoscope that compares the noises coming from inside with a software library of what's expected. The dire quality days of the seventies and eighties are as long gone as the ill fated marriage with AMF, who knew not a jot about bike production, it seems.

In-house attention to keeping old models on the road, with a 1916 FL kickstart lever being the oldest item still manufactured on demand at the site of the old B-29 propellor factory (that never produced a single propellor coz WWII ended) at Capitol Drive. A whole section of the factory is given over to production of components for obsolete models, with row upon row of the original machine tools, and employees with the knowledge to use them.

Professional remanufacturing programme, where a completely overhauled twin cam motor, fully powder coated, dressed and chromed, will cost you just over 2000 Bucks, compared to 4,400 new. Externally, the two were indestinguishable, and internally the only give aways are a slight overbore, re-use of the components that don't ordinarily 'wear out' where possible, and some bearing sleeves or oversized bearings. No dodgy motors here, rebuilt on a shoe string or given a quick polish.


Disappoinments?

Just one! A poor collection of Harley casual leather jackets in the shop, so I guess I'll have to wait until I visit a dealer.


So, although I won't be chopping in the Hornet for a Harley anytime soon, I'm starting to get what it's all about.
What feels out of place back home feels right in place over here.



Stay safe,
SjB Read more

My 2001 130bhp pdi Passat has developed a very rough idle when cold. I drive 1/2 mile in the morning from cold and usually have to stop for about 2 minutes at traffic lights. The idle speed varies when I'm stopped at these lights between about 400rpm and 800rpm and the engine sometimes feels as if it's going to stop. When the car's warm there's no problem and otherwise behaves normally. I'd be grateful for any comments. Read more

There have been several threads in which backromers have discussed their understandable fears of the proposed EU vehicle-tracking system, which raises obvious Big Brother concerns.

What I hadn't twigged was that this is happening already. I have just heard from someone who has a company car, which is heavily used for business: the company is fitting a tracking device to it. That may have some legitimacy during business hours, but what worries my correspondent is that the car is also used (with the company's consent) for private purposes by the employee and partner, but the the tracking system is on 24/7. It's not just live tracking, 'cos the system also produces a log. My correspondent is rightly worried about the loss of privacy for their family.

I've no idea what rights they have in that situation ... but it seems to me that this is just as big an invasion of privacy a state-run system, and possibly more so, because there are fewer statutory controls on the company's use of the data.

So if you are a company car driver, say hi to Big Brother. He's probably gonna be watching you much sooner than you thought :( Read more