Hairsy

I remember reading a tyre review where Tim Harvey did a back to back test round Brands Indy circuit on half a dozen new type of tyre. His personal view said that some were awful and others fantastic. A huge range of qualities. His lap times showed a 2 second gap from fastest to slowest (on a lap time of around 50 seconds I think). He was shocked by the results but agreed that it is just that his style suits some tyres better than others. So maybe the answer is - you are ALL right !

My brother has personal experience of this - the liability is exactly as reported on this thread. However, to recover funds, the credit card company has to be sued in the same way as you would the original company. The advantage is that the credit card company are still there normally even if the company aren't. It took him about 18 months and that was via the small claims court. He successfully got the money from the credit card company and, in parallel, they got the money from the ex-company's directors. One other thing I am a current sufferer from is that if you set up a regular payment on your credit card (mine is for Freeserve Broadband), you or the credit card company cannot stop them claiming. Even if you cancel the credit card, the rules mean the card company pays out and claims the money from you. Therefore, in my case, because Freeserve refuse to stop collecting for a service they are not providing, I have no choice but to pay and try to reclaim the money. My advice - NEVER set up a regular credit card payment. Always use standing order or direct debit where it the consumer who has the protection. Dave

Gurgle isn't a big deal but the rumble could be. I would recommend you insist on that one. And if you do a search on gurgle, you'll find the instructions for fixing it and can give them to the dealer ! Good luck

Gurgle isn't a big deal but the rumble could be. I would recommend you insist on that one. And if you do a search on gurgle, you'll find the instructions for fixing it and can give them to the dealer ! Good luck

I prefer Alan Partridge's philosophy from the east (Norwich). I am, therefore I barbecue.

Try the pedal on the right instead :D

Yes right ! That's exactly my point - I don't think we actually do know the facts and so while we all have opinions based on the 'information' which the press provides us with, those opinions are worthless. The one thing I wouldn't agree with in your post is that we should make the decision on war based on my opinion ! Scarey stuff ...

Unlike in the west of course. Some cracking entertainment on this thread. Almost makes Bush look like a great leader. I did say almost ! And, my opinion for what it's worth, is that none of us know the facts. Bush / Blair probably know more. Saddam probably knows more. But we don't. I don't like war full stop. Oh, and my opinion based on what I'm led to believe by the press is that we shouldn't go in there. But I don't believe that my opinion is worth diddly squat because I don't know enough.

Don't forget that the US dash doesn't have a rev counter. In it's place is a perfectly shaped quarter pounder holder.

No problem asking the silly questions ! I believe it's the latest and it was working fine last week at my previous house. That's why I was thinking the only change is the line I'm using. But I have no idea if they're clever enough to reduce linespeed for poor quality. Cheers Dave

I've just moved and am back onto a modem connection. Worse than that, I only seem able to connect at 28.8 and not 56. Is this a sign that the phone line quality is poor and the PC is able to recognise this or is there something else wrong ? The modem settings are for 56K and it worked at 56K when I last used it. I've tried two different dialup numbers with different companies and the speeds are the same. Dave P.S. The house move is also why I haven't send out the Le Mans info to all you who mailed me. Sorry and it will be soon - forms are all copied and I just need to write up notes for you.

Haven't got the energy to contribute on-topic. But, re the point made by x-b, you'd be better off with an engine seizure at 20,000 ft than 100 ft. If something goes wrong in aviation, you want it to happen high so you have more time / distance / landing options. Flying isn't dangerous. It's landing you want to avoid.

My personal view is that the theory of it is sound but I struggle to understand how any coating can stay on the metal surfaces when the metal surfaces themselves get ground away over time. I'd also have expected manufacturers to have cottoned on to the idea when for £25 they can improve performance, reliability and longevity of their engines. However, I've never heard anyone suggest that it's done any harm. I'd love to see before and after rolling road results although I'd want to see a control vehicle done at both times before so that you could gauge the effect of atmospheric conditions on the results. Dave

You'll get a huge variety of responses - all dependent on the car and the amount of TLC it's had. I had mine for 2 years, upgraded to around 430 bhp and it never missed a beat. Others have had standard ones which have broken down every 2 weeks. It's all down to the care it's had. If I was buying another (and one day I'd love to), I'd want to see service history including receipts for all it's life in the UK and, at a minimum, for the last 2 years. Have a look at the receipts and see what work is being done and the frequency. I'd always look for preventative work being done as well as repair. Dave

The theory is that if you have an area of lower pressure beneath the car then this will increase the flow of air through the rad. The air normally flows because it's at higher pressure in front of the rad than behind it (caused by the air immediately in front of the car being compressed). I know Iain Mac noticed a huge benefit in cooling when he put small ducts in his bonnet and that's the same principle. There's an area of low pressure above the surface of the bonnet and this means that the cooling effect of small ducts is far greater than people might imagine. But if you put the ducts in the wrong place (where there's an area of high pressure or turbulence) then ducts can make cooling worse. But I'd agree completely that the effect is likely to be minimal and I'm very much quoting theory rather than something I've seen work on a 300. But if someone was bored it would be good to get it measured by a Techtom or by Eric's system to see how big an effect it really gives. Dave P.S. Haven't sent Le Mans info out yet as I'm moving house. Probably will be early next week now - apologies.

It's likely to help cooling rather than hinder it. by having it there, there will be an area of low pressure built up under the car which will improve flow of air from the front through to the bottom of the car. Someone with a Techtom and way too much time on their hands could check this but rules of aerodynamics would support it !

In my experience TVRs are not unreliable. However, they do make the Z look cheap to run. You just have to get a well looked after one and that means a TVR history. For a driving experience I've never had anything better. My Z was a touch quicker (around 430 bhp) but my Chimaera was the most fun car I've ever had. Dave P.S. If you are interested, look at the Grif & Chimaera. Although the Chimaera has 2 less seats, the seats you're losing are TINY and you get a lot more boot space in the Chimaera. In fact, by Z standards it's huge !

If it helps Tim, mine's a Tecom and was the cheapest I could find at the time (got it from expansys). However, I'm yet to hear anyone having problems with one so I've got no reason to believe mine is better or worse than any other. Dave

Ben, I suspect you're very close to the problem. You need to get a tester out and check the circuits on each of the rear bulb circuits. One of them is almost certainly earthing. If it's not then you probably have two of the circuits connected. The one with the dodgy indicator would be the sensible place to start looking. Dave

What about left ? There's some great roads in Wales !

Iain, I'm sure you already know this but I'll say it anyway ! Be careful about detonation as the temperature warms up. This week it was dead cold and we had a big high pressure system over us - optimum conditions for engine performance (if not grip!) but if your fuelling was optimised this week then your mixture will be weak later in the year. But ignoring that - when are you gonna get it rolling roaded ?!? Dave

Are you getting close then ? Good news ! And if you're up for Le Mans, email me your snail address and I'll send you details.

That's only because you haven't needed a number plate for 18 months Andy !

Dave, When we next meet up, we can do an experiment to see how far apart we can put our dongles and still be able to stay in touch. I reckon mine would have the greatest range. Dave cue : a thread of dongle jokes ...

Depends what you're after but I seriously looked at a Caterham 7. I was looking at a bike engined one with 0-60 below 4 seconds. I think it was going for around £8,500.