May 2009
I have just received a penalty notice which apparently happened on the 4th Dec this is the 1 st I have heard of it, can a council issue a penalty charge this long after the offence occured? Thanks Read more
I?d appreciate some advice from the more knowledgeable legal types on here.
I am a director of a small company who manufacture specialist kit. We often do demos or installations at locations across the UK and in Europe. As the kit is quite large, we normally have to drive it there as it is a nightmare to fly it.
Recently we have started a project with partners in Munich (thanks to all who suggested routes there btw). This is a long drive, 650 miles or so from Calais, so when I went down there I made sure I was with a colleague who could share the driving.
My worry is this. We?ve recently leased a van as the new kit won?t fit in the back of a car. Despite my strong resistance, we?ve saved about £100 a month by not having aircon. I know that sounds trivial, but when I was in Munich last week it was already 27 degrees, and it?s likely to be 35+ by the time I do the trip in July. Frankly the thought of driving for 10 hours + in that heat scares me.
This time we solved the problem by driving back overnight. On the plus side the heat was no problem, and we hit no traffic and did the trip to Calais in about 10 hours of easy driving. On the minus side, we drove straight through the night after a full days work, following several long days of work, which left me feeling knackered for about a week afterwards, and although it felt okay at the time, I?m worried about corporate manslaughter.
I?ve protested strongly about the lack of aircon, but have been firmly told that it is a ?luxury we can?t afford?. I disagree, I think it?s a (health and) safety issue.
Where do I stand? More importantly, anyone got any ideas of what I can do? Read more
Gordon
Presume it is under 3500kg and does not require a Tachograph.
Have recently looked into this for my employer who has fitted trackers to around 200 vans. Policy changes as a result of KNOWING what the drivers are doing include speed limit enforcement and mandatory driving breaks / maximum hours.
Wise thing to do would be to use the rules for vehicles over 3500kg as a guide and limit driving hours. This will be more expensive.
On a personal note advice to our transport manager has been to ensure he has a record of what he wants to do, and the refusal of the company to do it, then if there is an incident he is in the clear. Suggest you do the same.
UK law has changed recently to make prosecution of companies and managers easier where the company has caused death. Not aware of any prosecutions yet.
I am thinking of bidding on an Audi A3 2.0L FSI sport (Sept 03) in a local house sale. It has done 57,000 miles and has an up to date service history. A sensor has gone on the fan, but there do not seem to be any other problems. What are the pitfalls to look out for? And what would be a reasonable price? Read more
Seems like a vehicle-related feedback question, so a free bump up the list as this was sinking out of sight in Tech Matters. DD
Despite having the handbrake on fully, my new Colt Cabrio rolled back 12 feet; I wasn't parked on a hill either.Anyone having trouble with this? Read more
Just leave it in gear.
The problem is that one day she will turn the key without taking it out of gear, or her foot will slip off the clutch. The car will bump another, or a wall, and it will be *your* fault!
Was going out for the day in the peak district and on my way to the place when my Sat Nav took my down a perfectly normal but typical rural A-road, nothing unusual there.
The road had recently been stone chipped but it had bedded in. Still, took it easy was doing half the limit, 30mph maybe 40mph with nothing around so i wasn't holding anyone up.
All of a sudden i realised i was on a different road. All kinds of horrible thoughts, worry and dissapointment came flooding in. I try to drive safely and to my best abilities and when i realised i just shot a junction at nearly 40mph i was very disappointed, maybe with myself, maybe partly with the stone chipped road.
There were no official road signs indicating a junction, no road markings, presumably covered up by the stone chip (i know they temporarily sign up to say to this effect but with the absence of official junction signs i wasn't to know the road ended), no visual indication the road was changing as there was a small crest and one could just assume the stone chip ended and the road looked like a continuation of the road i was already on. Even the Sat Nav didn't tell me anything not that i rely on that. I reliased at the last second i just shot a junction and quickly glanced left, luckily nothing was coming.
Gutted, and got my thinking that day and now i will learn from my mistakes and the next time i travel on a gravel bed road i will be aware of any other roads
I was traveling on the road marked A when i shot the junction:
maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=53.008...9
Has anyone else had these types of freak occurances when driving? Read more
Someone I know slightly, an English rock musician, for a couple of years in the seventies entered a Range Rover, its only modification a high-level exhaust pipe extension running up the rear corner of the car, in the Argungu Rally in Nigeria.
Most of the course was on unmade roads. But in the far North, competitors would sometimes see crowds of spectators in the distance, enthusiastically waving the speeding motors on. In the middle of the crowd, too late to slow down much, drivers would suddenly see that they were about to cross a main road at right angles to the track they were hammering along. The effect was like going over a giant speed bump. After being fired into the air several times like this while leading the rally, my acquaintance retired suddenly with a smashed front axle.
He was very funny about the spectators and their enthusiasm. Also about the three Toyotas that got trapped in a rural village and burst through its brushwood perimeter walls simultaneously in three different places and raced off into the desert in three different directions... No doubt leaving behind clouds of chicken feathers and furious local householders hurling rocks and imprecations.
Can anyone beat this? Had the car inspected by a 'specialist' up in {8< Snip - although you've not named them I'm sure their name would be easy enough to find, hence the removal as part of this forum's 'no naming/shaming' policy}. Told me the car would take 6 weeks to repair and gave me a price. Got it back (well took it back) seven and a half months later, unfinished and with a lot of the work badly done and needing redoing. Had some sbits removed from the car too while it was in there without permission too. Final bill to get it out was over £3,000 more than told too with no updates or warning that it had changed?
Just goes to show you should choose a mechanic carefully! Some cowboys out there. Read more
My daughter was the driver of the front car of a four car concertina shunt about four years ago. Her car was written off and she was offered a hire car as a condition of her insurance policy. She was advised by her solicitor to keep the hire car until the insurance claim was settled but after several months, when the claim had still not been settled, she borrowed some money to buy another car and returned the hire car. The insurance claim was eventually settled but the issue of the cost of the hire car is still ongoing. She has had to provide evidence that she could not afford to replace her car with an equivalent vehicle earlier than she did even though she returned the hire car prior to the insurance settlement. She is currently being told by her solicitor that the bill for the hire car has now reached £14,000.00, a staggering sum for a base model Golf. She is concerned that she might be liable for some or all of that amount which, of course, she would be unable to pay. Has anyone had experience of a similar situation and can anyone offer advice as to what steps we should take to speed up the process as it is causing her great concern and worry. Many thanks. RayJay Read more
One more:
www.12kbw.co.uk/docs/Complete%20Delegate%20Pack%20...f
see the section:
"Keeping up to speed with credit hire Tim Petts 28thFebruary 2007"
page 28 onwards
How long would it usually take to fit a near side front wheel bearing and front wheel ball joint ?
And how much would the two parts cost ?
{No need to SHOUT! Post amended}
Read more
For the front lower balljoint, it is far easier and quicker to change the complete suspension arm, which comes with a new balljoint pre-installed. No more than an hour's work, assuming nothing is seized or stuck, and probably £25-£30 for a good quality aftermarket arm.
Wheel bearing - maybe £20 for the part and a couple of hours work if you don't have a press. They are a very tight fit!
In a garage with the right tools and experience, I would say a couple of hours labour to do both (much of the work overlaps), and say £60 in parts. £160 or so all in at an indie.
Hi All
The missus currently has a 2001 Saxo 1.1 Desire, 41K on the clock and needs a new headgasket which will cost like £250 to get done. The mechanic we use has offered to buy her car for like £1000 and flog it on. Other than that the car is fine.
Missus does like 5000 miles a year but does need a reliable car to get to work and back and look after the kids. She though does have access to my new shape zafira when its at home as I walk to work 2 days a week.
Options we have:
1. She can have her Dads 55 Plate Citroen C3 desire for £3K. Its got 30k on the clock.
2. Buy her a new Panda Active 1.2 /1.2 from ay fiatsupersaver if I cannot get a dealer to price match them.
3. ger her saxo repaired.
I am at a bit of a quandry on best options. She dont really care as long as she has a reliable car that and does what she needs it to do.
Any advice appreciated.
Scott Read more
>>Both look a fair exchange for the wife!
Depends on the model - there are some good ones about which are longer lasting than a car, and more fun too....
Running costs can be a problem though.
Hi. I recently bought this car and it didn't over rev very much at the beginning but it gradually got a lot worse. For example, on ignition it would rev up to 3000 without touching the accelerator, and it would then over rev throughout the journey to a max of 3000. I took it back to the trader who said that he would get it fixed.
When I picked it up, it seemed fine again. However, I've started to notice that it revs up to 2000 on ignition again. I've just found out that the garage he took it to just reset the base settings rather than replace any parts.
Is this something that is normal for a Daewoo and not something to worry about? I'm worried it will get progressively worse and I'll end up having to shell out a lot of money to get it fixed. Read more
hi TG, try the deawoo forums on tinternet.. you wont get much response here as the deawoo is an unknown quantity, ive had some helpful responses on HJ as i consider it the best motoring forum available but if it aint a ford or a pug go elsewhere
Please confirm the PCn Code is 40.
dvd