What's made you not grumpy but not smile either today?

[The Panda Nut]

For just the 2nd time in just over 10 years I'm having to go on https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax and actually hand some money over ........
(The first time was back in February when I just put 6 months on my newly acquired 595, I wanted to move tax time 6 months away from mot and insurance time)
(My previous for the past ten (at least) was a zero rated car.

It's a peculiar feeling , for the past ten years at least I've just had to visit https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax , enter my 16 digit number and just click a couple of buttons.... and that was it ......

Now I've got to put the number and actually pay £195!!

Dagnammit

Highway ROBBERY... Stand and deliver!!!

 

[HughJarsse]

Had a nearly reverse experience when I got the Toyota...

Having always had petrol cars so paid punitive taxes for them being "dirty" since 2005 odd then the flat rate tax on the C3.

It was a lovely moment to tax the Toyota and get a fiver change from 40 quid...not paid less than in the region of £200 since about 2009.

Same here. Sadly, our 2003 punto runabout has reached the end of the road, costing more than it's worth to keep on the road. (Had over £1200 spent over last 2 years, and now looks to need more again, as gearbox has problems, as well as another oil leak. ) So have aquired a Hyundai i10, 1.2 comfort as a cheap runabout to replace it. Same engine size, very slightly smaller, but, falls into the £35 a year tax bracket (Punto was £169) Got £200 for the punto, plus 5 months road tax refund, and paid £35 for the Hyundai, which is giving me 50mpg round town even with 4 passengers, compared to the Punto's 40ish. Win win there I think.. Hyundai also has a/c which is a definate bonus at the moment!! (punto didn't )

 

[StevenRB45]

Same here. Sadly, our 2003 punto runabout has reached the end of the road, costing more than it's worth to keep on the road. (Had over £1200 spent over last 2 years, and now looks to need more again, as gearbox has problems, as well as another oil leak. ) So have aquired a Hyundai i10, 1.2 comfort as a cheap runabout to replace it. Same engine size, very slightly smaller, but, falls into the £35 a year tax bracket (Punto was £169) Got £200 for the punto, plus 5 months road tax refund, and paid £35 for the Hyundai, which is giving me 50mpg round town even with 4 passengers, compared to the Punto's 40ish. Win win there I think.. Hyundai also has a/c which is a definate bonus at the moment!! (punto didn't )

That tax system was absolute nonsense to be fair...

Having looked up the Hyundai I have no doubt my car should not occupy the same tax bracket being a 1400kg 4.6m long estate car with petrol engine.

But officially...it's more efficient .

Obviously it's not actually usually managing 45mpg on a run and somewhere between 38 to 40 round the doors.

But I will happily pay 35 quid..given we've got a more efficient car that's on flat rate tax and is 195 a year...despite being lower emissions officially.

 

[HughJarsse]

That tax system was absolute nonsense to be fair...

Having looked up the Hyundai I have no doubt my car should not occupy the same tax bracket being a 1400kg 4.6m long estate car with petrol engine.

But officially...it's more efficient .

Obviously it's not actually usually managing 45mpg on a run and somewhere between 38 to 40 round the doors.

But I will happily pay 35 quid..given we've got a more efficient car that's on flat rate tax and is 195 a year...despite being lower emissions officially.

Stupid thing is, My i10 is 209 reg, and at 119g/kg emisions is rated at £35, yet, the same model produced after 2017, despite having the same engine, and emisions, is rated at £169 due to the registration! I could have got a 2016 one, and still paid £35, yet, 1 year newer model, same car, £169. Put me off buying a newer one, even though I could have got a '17 reg for a sensible price, and mileage, but an extra £130 a year for the same thing? No way.. Happy with this little one. nippy, parks easily, and more mpg than the punto. It's just a family runabout for doing the small stuff the multi is a bit cumbersome for really, so anything cheap, reliable and easy to park/drive is suitable.

 

[StevenRB45]

Same with mine, officially rated at 113g/km (try and figure that one out given the difference in size and weight!) but if registered 5 months after on flat rate tax.

Our C3 was officially 103g/km...so naturally costs more because it was registered after march 2017.

 

[HughJarsse]

Same with mine, officially rated at 113g/km (try and figure that one out given the difference in size and weight!) but if registered 5 months after on flat rate tax.

Our C3 was officially 103g/km...so naturally costs more because it was registered after march 2017.

When we were looking for a replacement for the punto, we went to see a Ford bmax, 1.5 turbo diesel, which was almost the same size physically, and were thinking of getting it, as suprisingly it was rated at 109g/kg, for a 1.5 TD, which is even less than the i10's 119g/kg for a 1.2 engine! so again, was a £35 a year jobbie and, being a 12 reg was below the 17 cut off.
(Didn't go for it, as found out when doing a full vehicle check on it, it was a cat's' writeoff!! (seller never said a word about it, just described it as 'having had a knock on front wing , which was basically 'cosmetic' (appears he'd replaced a headlight and 'patched up' the wing)) Left well alone!! Dodged a bullet there i think. The £9.99 for the check paid for itself!!

 

[The Panda Nut]

Stupid thing is, My i10 is 209 reg, and at 119g/kg emisions is rated at £35, yet, the same model produced after 2017, despite having the same engine, and emisions, is rated at £169 due to the registration! I could have got a 2016 one, and still paid £35, yet, 1 year newer model, same car, £169. Put me off buying a newer one, even though I could have got a '17 reg for a sensible price, and mileage, but an extra £130 a year for the same thing? No way.. Happy with this little one. nippy, parks easily, and more mpg than the punto. It's just a family runabout for doing the small stuff the multi is a bit cumbersome for really, so anything cheap, reliable and easy to park/drive is suitable.

Same for Panda TA. It makes me relaxed....

 

[StevenRB45]

Been waiting on some furniture for my wife's birthday.

It arrived today.

Big box arrives clearly marked box 1 of 2, I ask the driver about this he says yes he noticed but if I look at the consignment notice he only got one box.

Fair enough, I check the text messages I had x2 this morning informing me of the delivery. One from DX, this man was from DX. But there's another from DHL saying they have a delivery for me today as well.

Sure enough an hour a later an entirely different delivery man arrives with box 2 of 2.

I rendered this from B and Q so I can only think they are splitting orders so they can't be nicked off the van or to make it pointless doing so.

Oh and this...

This explains similar damage on mine it's had since before I got it... although mines nowhere near this bad it's mildly tweaked not flattened and I still have a jacking point.

Though they probably jacked mine up and thought FFS it's not a hybrid so the cat isn't worth nicking.

 

[ZaphodB]

Big box arrives clearly marked box 1 of 2, I ask the driver about this he says yes he noticed but if I look at the consignment notice he only got one box.

Fair enough, I check the text messages I had x2 this morning informing me of the delivery. One from DX, this man was from DX. But there's another from DHL saying they have a delivery for me today as well.

Sure enough an hour a later an entirely different delivery man arrives with box 2 of 2.

Just different warehouses/locations most likely.

I bought pads and discs (all round) earlier in the year online.... got a DHL notification the day before....

Waited in... received one pack of discs and two packs of pads .......

Immediately complained and panicked.... it was £200 all in... and said you've made a huge picking error... and I almost couldn't prove I hadn't received the full order.

The other pack arrived by post later that morning ....

Turns out their system can't/couldn't upload more than one tracking number to a delivery ......

They still got an earful from me

Oh and this...

That's bad

 

[StevenRB45]

It's 2 parts of the same suite of furniture though which is why it was odd you wouldn't keep them separate in general.

The sill damage is apparently quite common on the Auris, the comments suggest it's normally caused by cat theft. Not helped by them having a large flange hanging below the sill where the wing meets it that looks like a jacking point...but IS NOT the jacking point.

Will say it's not my car but it demonstrates why mine has a tweaked sill/wing as well if not anywhere near as bad.

 

[bugsymike]

It's 2 parts of the same suite of furniture though which is why it was odd you wouldn't keep them separate in general.

The sill damage is apparently quite common on the Auris, the comments suggest it's normally caused by cat theft. Not helped by them having a large flange hanging below the sill where the wing meets it that looks like a jacking point...but IS NOT the jacking point.

Will say it's not my car but it demonstrates why mine has a tweaked sill/wing as well if not anywhere near as bad.

I passed what looked like an old Toyota Prius abandoned in the middle of a busy road last night, boot and bonnet up, no one in sight and cars driving all round it.
Probably something we will see more often.

 

[PuntoHowTo]

It's 2 parts of the same suite of furniture though which is why it was odd you wouldn't keep them separate in general.

The sill damage is apparently quite common on the Auris, the comments suggest it's normally caused by cat theft. Not helped by them having a large flange hanging below the sill where the wing meets it that looks like a jacking point...but IS NOT the jacking point.

Will say it's not my car but it demonstrates why mine has a tweaked sill/wing as well if not anywhere near as bad.

Does you yours have a mani-cat then with it not being a hybrid.

One of the bonuses of many European cars is the cat being well out of the way of thieves. And if in the engine bay, it’s usually enclosed on all sides by covers and trim

 

[StevenRB45]

Does you yours have a mani-cat then with it not being a hybrid.

One of the bonuses of many European cars is the cat being well out of the way of thieves. And if in the engine bay, it’s usually enclosed on all sides by covers and trim

My cat, which looks like it bolts onto the turbo exhaust flange behind the firewall...being a modern turbo there's no separate manifold. It's part of the block with coolant running through it. Then the turbo, then this.

Hybrid is somewhat more involved..

One costs double the price of the other.. although I was surprised the hybrid one is only 300 quid to the 150 of the 1.2 probably explains why theft is rarer these days values have cratered.

 

[StevenRB45]

Wryly looking at C3 replacements, I say wryly as it's not happening for a few years yet barring mechanical detonation.

My short list is probably 2 cars Renault 4 or the new Panda.

The thing that is amusing me at present is the fuss they seem to be making the low sill on the boot for the Renault 4.

It's only 604mm!!! Erm the Toyota is 11mm higher than that and it didn't form part of the marketing campaign. The Vauxhall Astra estate..600mm etc etc.

I suppose they should be applauded for solving problems that didn't exist before everything was an SUV...

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Wryly looking at C3 replacements, I say wryly as it's not happening for a few years yet barring mechanical detonation.

My short list is probably 2 cars Renault 4 or the new Panda.

The thing that is amusing me at present is the fuss they seem to be making the low sill on the boot for the Renault 4.

It's only 604mm!!! Erm the Toyota is 11mm higher than that and it didn't form part of the marketing campaign. The Vauxhall Astra estate..600mm etc etc.

I suppose they should be applauded for solving problems that didn't exist before everything was an SUV...

A bit like the fuss they make over the convenience of having a two position boot floor and how, in the higher position, it virtually eliminates the "step" formed by the rear opening. If you're strong enough to lift the suitcase, or whatever, from the ground into the boot then what difference does having the boot floor level with the lip make? Oh, and loosing a fair bit of boot capacity for the "convenience". Only advantage for me would be being able to hide lots of tools and "stuff" without Mrs J bending my ear about why I was wanting to take them and she could get at least one more kitchen sink in if I didn't!

Edit. It was an extra on my Scala - only the "super de lux" version gets it as standard. Needless to say I didn't go for it. Got an umbrella in the drivers door though!

 

[bugsymike]

Edit. It was an extra on my Scala - only the "super de lux" version gets it as standard. Needless to say I didn't go for it. Got an umbrella in the drivers door though!

About as near as it will get to a Bentley ever.

 

[ZaphodB]

"Guess who" said:

It looks like it's about 3.1Billion, it went up a little bit.... or a lot

 

[ZaphodB]

Got an umbrella in the drivers door though!

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

About as near as it will get to a Bentley ever.

Actually there's a bit of a story to that too - the umbrella I mean. As I've mentioned before my Scala has the "Technology" trim pack, not that I wanted it, but it was the only 110hp they had which was pre-reg. It's a version specifically aimed at the traveling sales reps, not many people have heard of it. Basically an SE trim but with a number of "desirable" extras - the Amundsen screen and computer system (couldn't give a monkeys about it) Front and rear parking sensors (those I do find very useful) and some other stuff I'm pretty indifferent to. Oh, and a fancy bit of stainless trim along the bottom of the windows and half way up the rear 3/4 which I'm strangely pleased with? Haven't seen another one with this trim so far. However, one of the things Mrs J noticed when we were looking at the brochures was that it has an umbrella in the drivers door. She thought this was wonderful. When we went in to collect the car she, of course, checked to see if the umbrella was there. Disaster! No umbrella! Oh dear, end of world nigh! The very nice salesman promised he'd get one for her and then took me aside and said, you do realise the Technology pack does not include the umbrella? However I can see it's important to your wife and I'll get one at no charge to you - and he did, although it took a few days for it to arrive. Doubt if we'll ever use it and I'll not be putting it back in the door when it's wet, but I thought it was very nice of him to do that. So far I've taken it out just to check it's Ok and put it back.

 

[The Panda Nut]

Wryly looking at C3 replacements, I say wryly as it's not happening for a few years yet barring mechanical detonation.

My short list is probably 2 cars Renault 4 or the new Panda.

The thing that is amusing me at present is the fuss they seem to be making the low sill on the boot for the Renault 4.

It's only 604mm!!! Erm the Toyota is 11mm higher than that and it didn't form part of the marketing campaign. The Vauxhall Astra estate..600mm etc etc.

I suppose they should be applauded for solving problems that didn't exist before everything was an SUV...

That 11 could be critical if loading gold bullion after a bank robbery