June 2008
Wondered how many of us have ever seen one of these? Certainly my first, on the A77 Ayr bypass, in the layby just north of where the road crosses the River Ayr. Silver Vauxhall Astra estate, well marked, with red LED sign saying what it was. Camera on a tripod just behind the car.
Wish we could do a poll on this forum - it would give an idea of how common these are. Read more
Afternoon all
Not posted for a while, having to work for a living at the moment....
Wonder if anyone has any advice on the following.
I live on a very narrow lane and I am fortunate enough to have a garage that I have to back into and drive straight out of. In order that I can access the main road safely (there have been recent changes to this road which has limited the visibility of traffic), I have to turn my car around so I am travelling forwards to join the main road. I cannot drive straight out of the garage and onto the road because of car parking to the side of my garage. We have lived in this house for over 13 years and up until yesterday, we (and the 6 or 7 other cars parked on / in the lane) have always turned around into one of the houses' driveways which then allowed you to join the main road facing forwards.
Yesterday the guy who owns this driveway (I am assuming he actually does have the deeeds to this piece of land), fitted a set of gates which now prevent any vehicle of normal size from turning around and therefore facing the correct way to enter the main road.
As I said before recent changes in the main road have included adding a mini - roundabout from what was a T-junction, this has meant that the stop lines for this piece of road are now further back (by about 3 metres). This means that it is now impossible due to other vehicular parking) to see traffic coming off this roundabout onto the main road.
The only other turning point is 0.75 miles down the single track lane (with no passing places) and of course if you meet another vehicle you are forced to turn back and reverse into the main road again.
I did not see the neighbour last night as it was quite late when I returned from home and I will be working away tonight, but my first action will be to speak to the guy tomorrow and ask if he would be reasonable and move the gates back 3 metres to allow vehicles to turn around. This morning SWMBO had to act as a banksman so I could enter the main road safely. She will not do this in the winter..... / raining etc.... / and of course sometimes she will not be with me.
SWMBO also has decided that she will not talk to these neighbours ever again etc. etc. and she and I lost most of last night's sleep thinking / stewing about it.
I do not hold out much hope of him changing, as I am positive that he has checked the legal position and he has placed the gates there to prevent this part of his drive from being used to turn around in. This is his land so of course he can do what he likes.
My concern is that there will be an accident by trying to back out onto a main road with limited visibility, I have nearly been hit from behind when accessing the main road again due to lack of visiblity last weekend and this was driving out forwards.
My next recourse would be to contact the council and get them to turn up to inspect the situtation.
Any more thoughts from HJ land much appreciated
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I can't see where the dispute could have arisen.
The neighbour had previously turned a blind eye to people using his curtilage to turn their cars round, but then fenced in the land. So long as he's only fenced in his land, and no-one else's, no dispute has arisen. He's done nothing wrong, and unless one of the neighbours tears down the fence, then they've done nothing wrong either.
A few people recently have stopped me whilst driving along to inform me that my brake REVERSE lights are still on. This seems to be an intermittent snag and I was wondering if it could just be a sticky switch, if so does anyone know where it is and how I get to it? The car is a 1999, 1.9 TDI, 115bhp, Auto/Tiptronic Estate
{edit taken place - AGAIN!}
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Sorry for the confusion. It is definitely the REVERSE LIGHTS which are intermittently staying on. Does anyone know how tho get the switch, hopefully a bit of WD40 will do the trick?
{edited once more. However, I'm not doing each post, only the topmost one}
tinyurl.com/6c7tlp
A very lucky fellow driving on a 40mph almost straight road. Read more
".... officers closed the road for an hour". Not a bad turnaround, that. Of course, if it had been 4.22 pm.....
The recent spate of Hondaspam prompted me to read HJ's notes on the new Honda Jazz, at www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/index.htm?md=1174, where I saw some alarming words "10 cupholders for American market (illegal for driver to use them on the move in the UK)".
I don't feel short-changed by having only 2 cupholders in my man's Almera, but I am worried about the note that it's illegal to for the driver to use them on the move in the UK. Is this really true?
For long journeys, I fill two insulated mugs with tea, and enjoy being able to take the odd sip when I'm driving in clear conditions. I don't drink when negotiating heavy traffic or hairpin bends, and I drink one sip at a time, replacing the cup after each use. It is only in difficult driving conditions (heavy rain, poor visibility, heavy traffic, narrow roads etc) that I pull over before taking a drink.
I thought that this was OK, because I thought that the principle was to ensure that proper control of the vehicle is retained at all times. Having my left hand briefly lift a cup seems no more distracting than using a gearstick and pedal on those primitive cars which reguire the driver to change gear manually.
Section 148 of the Highway Code -- www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycod...9 -- says
Safe driving and riding needs concentration.I read this list as advisory rather than mandatory, as something which I should take care of because it might be dangerous, rather than something which is banned in any circumstances. But is my reading correct? Read more
Avoid distractions when driving or riding such as
- loud music (this may mask other sounds)
- trying to read maps
- inserting a cassette or CD or tuning a radio
- arguing with your passengers or other road users
- eating and drinking
- smoking
Young lady of my acquaintance pranged into another car coming towards her in a carpark once after being overcome by a fit of sneezes.
Can't see Mercedes being too happy - why is the father of one of their F1 Drivers, and one who is very prominent with his son at races wearing his Mclaren-Mercedes gear, driving a Porsche?
Out of fourteen consecutive subjects on the technical forum, thirteen refer to Honda Jazz/Fit.
Typical of the problems they have? Read more
>>That will teach me to read the threads first.
Me too! Doh!
My car has suffered a number of the common maladies reported on this site but I've not seen this one. The handbrake suddenly stopped engaging it just falls to a half way point which doesn't hold the car on any thing over a small slope. I know they've been recalls on Mondeo handbrakes but I checked with a local Ford dealer and there are no outstanding recalls on my car. I've got it booked in to local garage next week, but any ideas what might have broken.
Many Thanks
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i had same you will prob' find the rear caliper is not returning the shafts on the hand brake get stiff a garage will replace caliper but i nursed mine back to health
I am travelling from West Yorkshire to Poole this sunday, to arrive shortly after midday to catch a ferry. I don't expect traffic to be too much of a problem, since I'll be leaving home at 5.30am to give me time for a break or two en route and to allow for contingencies ... but I'm looking for advice on the route.
Both TomTom and Google Maps suggest M1-M69-M40-A34-M3-M27-A338, which looks in theory like it's a reasonably direct and fast route. I have checked the Highways agency website for news of roadworks, and the only thing I can find which looks potentially disruptive is the A34 Wolvercote Viaduct Replacement (near Oxford), which I am hoping won't cause me too much trouble at somewhere between 9 and 10am on a sunday morning.
Does anyone know if there are any other problems on this route which would be worth avoiding, particularly on the southern end of it?
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There are some roadworks at the start of the M27 heading westbound which will probably hold you up little bit. I drove to Poole and back from Essex last weekend and they were pretty bad on the Friday afternoon but not too bad on the return on Sunday morning.
Your suggestions & recommendation for a reliable courier who can transport my new green transport machine - a bicycle for journeys less than 4 miles - from down south to Southport lancs.
Need a tried and tested firm
URGENT
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Southport is in Merseyside, not Lancashire (much to the chagrin of many of the residents)..:-(
1974 was not a very good year in some respects.
If you go on-line to the various couriers' websites, you should be able to find out how much each would charge.
Browse
There was a DVLA ANPR van out here in the "wilds" last Wednesday Afternoon, White Transit covered in Green DVLA logo's, "shop a dodger" messages and covert phone nos. It also had what "appeared" to be four cameras mounted on each corner of the roof, two forward and two rear facing.
Method of operation seemed to be: driving slowly along every street in town, and every so often it would stop opposite a parked car, and a Green-hi-vis clad operator would jump out and stick a "ticket" on car windscreen.
Needless to say, word must have spread, because in the next half-hour, the local Rugby club car park (private ground? ) was full!! and that has never been seen before in the last 20 years!!.
Billy