That looks like fun
Did you get to hear 'Durr-ham' ?
Probably...but to be Honest my mams from Easington Lane and my Dad used to work for Durham County Council so wouldn't hit my ears as odd at all.
What's made you smile today?
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What's made you smile today?
Probably...but to be Honest my mams from Easington Lane and my Dad used to work for Durham County Council so wouldn't hit my ears as odd at all.
Can’t sleep been up watching TV since 5 am. Watching “a racing car is born” Remember watching it a few years ago, when it first aired. Bloody hell 2002. Nineteen years ago 
Where on earth did the years go.
Where on earth did the years go.
Can’t sleep been up watching TV since 5 am. Watching “a racing car is born” Remember watching it a few years ago, when it first aired. Bloody hell 2002. Nineteen years ago
When I was teaching learners, I was reminded of this daily. A 17yr old today, was born in 2004. They knew nothing of the 20th century, or the silliness around the millenium. I check thier licence, and thier date of birth feels like yesterday.
Still get this a little with assessing qualified drivers. Even a 30yr old was born in 1991, so recent.
I have been watching the Blair / Brown documentary and recalling the events like they were yesterday. But unfortunately when I work out in my head how long ago they were I keep finding myself losing a decade, like "'89, 99,2009 - oh sh*t,2019,2021!
Old age.
I do that.. and am told that being in my 50's..Im NOT old
When I first started as a driving instructor, my father, and father-in-law, both thought I had the best job in the world, with a constant stream of 17yr old girls in the car. My reply was that they were just kids, and whilst mostly nice people, were from a different era, with different outlooks and attitudes. I was more likely to fancy their mums.
Now, I'm more likely to fancy their gran!
Now, I'm more likely to fancy their gran!
Not that I'm stalking it or anything...
But notice a certain Mazda has already dropped by 20% of the asking price.
Once it drops another 500 quid it'll be at market rate
https://www.jccarcentre.co.uk/used-mazda-3-newcastle-upon-tyne-northumberland-3887701
At that money and with the quality of the advert, it'll be there February. It literally doesn't mention the front tyres have 8mm of tread on it...and the rears 6 for example. Or the tyres at all...which given at the current rates its on a 500 quid set of all season tyres on the run up to winter seems a bit remiss. No one looks for these in general as people forget they exist...and even if they were looking it's too much and they've given no reason why you'd pay more for for this particular one.
Sure they know more about sales than I do..
But notice a certain Mazda has already dropped by 20% of the asking price.
Once it drops another 500 quid it'll be at market rate
https://www.jccarcentre.co.uk/used-mazda-3-newcastle-upon-tyne-northumberland-3887701
At that money and with the quality of the advert, it'll be there February. It literally doesn't mention the front tyres have 8mm of tread on it...and the rears 6 for example. Or the tyres at all...which given at the current rates its on a 500 quid set of all season tyres on the run up to winter seems a bit remiss. No one looks for these in general as people forget they exist...and even if they were looking it's too much and they've given no reason why you'd pay more for for this particular one.
Sure they know more about sales than I do..
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I have to say, that really made me laugh, lol! [emoji23]
Back when I was in my late teens-early twenties, I worked at a local garden centre, where the average customer age was, well, old. It was rather depressing, it must be said, and on the rare occasions when someone young and female was in the store, it's needless to say that they caught the attention of me and my other young male colleagues, lol!
On the subject of things being deceptively far in the past, it must be said, my garden centre days (along with me being young,) feel like a very long time ago now. It's a tad depressing really. [emoji52]
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I have to ask, do you find yourself missing it at all?Not that I'm stalking it or anything...
But notice a certain Mazda has already dropped by 20% of the asking price.
Once it drops another 500 quid it'll be at market rate
https://www.jccarcentre.co.uk/used-mazda-3-newcastle-upon-tyne-northumberland-3887701
At that money and with the quality of the advert, it'll be there February. It literally doesn't mention the front tyres have 8mm of tread on it...and the rears 6 for example. Or the tyres at all...which given at the current rates its on a 500 quid set of all season tyres on the run up to winter seems a bit remiss. No one looks for these in general as people forget they exist...and even if they were looking it's too much and they've given no reason why you'd pay more for for this particular one.
Sure they know more about sales than I do..
We were shopping in the C3 tonight...I miss the boot space. Weeks shop for a family of 3 requires a bit of Jenga.
Otherwise I had no unfinished business with it, it was time to move on. Might see one about in a few months/years and have a reminisce although I don't when I see Swifts about.
If I was still hooning about it would probably be more of a miss but C3 is better at bumbling about with a child on board and more comfortable once you figure out how to drive it properly.
If anything quite enjoying the smaller car, it's getting 50 odd to the gallon with me driving it and I can park it blindfolded.
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That's fair enough.
I do know exactly what you mean about reminiscing though. I traded in my Daewoo Matiz nearly 11 and a half years ago, and it's now 7 and a half years since me and my parents parted with our mk2 Puntos. I still miss all 3 of those cars, and will always have a hefty soft spot for them.
As I get older I think I'm a bit less sentimental about the cars themselves.
I've got photos, I've got memories and although seeing one on the road would trigger those I'm not overly concerned about the cars themselves.
My wife's First car, a Micra we travelled round Scotland in on our first holiday together. A car which I had good memories in, I hooned the thing a long dukes pass for example (great road...terrible car for it) was scrapped a few years ago.
I see another one (amusingly 2 local museums have them as they are unremarkable but they were built in Sunderland) I don't really care cos it's not like I'm about to hop in and drive it up to Aberfoyle for round 2 and off to the Highlands and Islands.
Must fish out the photos at somepoint but in general you see another it's not yours..and the cars themselves aren't that special it's the people that were with you and what they were enabling you to do.
If a car becomes the centre of a travel story is usually because it failed...so eg..back when I had a Punto me and my ex. travelled to a hotel with the plan of dropping our stuff and going out for tea in York. Instead the car didn't start, so ended up getting trashed in the hotel on red wine and having a blazing row. It then fired up on the key the following morning when the flat bed arrived having defeated the breakdown company and myself the previous night enabling a long silent hungover drive home...Happy memories.
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I’m in Denver, getting ready for my 75th flight of the year. As I am away from home, again, I spend some time on the phone with my better half discussing mundane things. Yesterday was Christmas presents for our grand daughters. My wife asked our daughter what they would like and the youngest wants a battery ride on toy. No problem for five year old.
The thirteen year old is now into horoscopes and the like with her friends and wants crystals. Oookkkaayyy. Where this gets good, is that our son in law is this very straight laced math teacher. He has managed to convince his oldest kid that her mother is a member of witches coven. Wouldn’t surprise me in the least. Anyway, the granddaughter asked her mom if she could let her join the coven as a witches apprentice.
I’m thinking of getting her a broom for Christmas.:devil:
The thirteen year old is now into horoscopes and the like with her friends and wants crystals. Oookkkaayyy. Where this gets good, is that our son in law is this very straight laced math teacher. He has managed to convince his oldest kid that her mother is a member of witches coven. Wouldn’t surprise me in the least. Anyway, the granddaughter asked her mom if she could let her join the coven as a witches apprentice.
I’m thinking of getting her a broom for Christmas.:devil:
Lmao ?
You do tend to not get so emotionally attached to a car when all you have is fond memories of driving to tesco.
I’m sure psychologically speaking that humans attachment to cars developed from the attachment we would have to horses before that and is ultimately born out of being ‘part of the family’ the car looks after us in allowing us to do what we need/want to do and therefore we look after it.
There is a lot of money in nostalgia a lot of people spend a fortune on buying things up from their past, but the problem with nostalgia is you as a person has moved on and so the attachment is no longer there. As you describe better to remember things when something triggers that memory. Rather than spending a fortune on breakdown trucks reliving that memory
The Arteon came out not long after I got my golf and while I still had my service package on the car so while in the dealer for services I did see and sit in them a few times in the dealership. Also around circa 2011 my brother had a passat CC for a while as a company car so it was interesting to compare, for 2011 the passat was a very modern and seemingly up market car and the Arteon seem the same, it certainly competes with the likes of Mercedes’ and bmw on quality.
I always feel these types of car are aimed at the “dad market” the 40 something year old men who want to feel they still have a sporty car but need the practicality of a 4 door with a decent boot. Otherwise they’d go buy a 3 door hot hatch.
As for tyre prices the 18” tyres on my golf are fairly reasonably priced (about £70-80 each) so you got me intrigued.
Looking on black circles website the Pirelli P-zeros seem to vary in cost massively if you want a speed rating of W (168mph) or Y (186 mph) also if they are run flats or not. The speed rating alone almost doubles the price and for a 19” tyre 245 wide is probably quite narrow/an odd size. But if you go for a W rating assuming you’ll never be passing 168mph in your family saloon, then they are a much more reasonable £125 ish
So I must have a sly look at his tyres next time I get another chance to see what his speed rating actually is. Although he won't have much option as it's illegal to run a tyre of a lower speed rating to that fitted as original equipment, I think I remember him mentioning in passing that they are run flats.
Black circles seemed to suggest both W and Y speed ratings where acceptable on the reg from the car I used which was a 320hp “R” version of the Arteon
I will never understand the mentality of spaffing a load of cash on a car that was never desirable. To relieve the experience of driving an Escort L...if you always wanted an RS turbo and couldn't afford one in the day fair enough but it's all gone a bit mental at the moment.
If I'm remembering correctly construction and use regulations are that the tyre fitted must be rated to a higher speed than the top speed of the car.
So for example oem tyres on the Mazda due to being large and reasonably low profile were only available in a Y rating. That's 168mph...it could do 117 on good day. It would be entirely legal to drop a V or H rated tyre on it. They just weren't available in that size, when I went to all seasons they were actually V rated but still entirely legal as it couldn't do 149mph.
The rain today has been incessant and at times very heavy indeed. Yesterday was, if anything, even heavier. Yesterday we spent the day looking after our wee grandson so that was an early start to get out there in time to take granddaughter to school and then back to their house to look after the wee boy. It means a drive out there just as it's dawning and the road at Seafield (near the sewage works) was flooded to a considerable depth - maybe to axle height at it's deepest point. The car coming towards me closely resembled a speed boat! I gave a few flashes on the hazards and slowed down only for the car behind to flash his lights and honk me! I went through in first gear at around 1500 to 2000 rpm and all was well although the car coming towards me slowed to a stop about two thirds of the way through so I recon he swamped it! I was glad My Cat is tucked up the back of the engine and not underfloor where it might have suffered thermal shock. "Mr Honk" behind me got through Ok but I wonder if he would have if I hadn't caused him to slow?
Our large living room window looks out the front into the street which gave a good view of today's "entertainment". Early to mid afternoon, at intervals, four cars arrived and parked in the street from which a total of 5 young women made their way into the flats opposite. Luckily, late afternoon the rain stopped and the sun briefly came out at dusk. Two taxis pulled up, double parked, outside the flats but no one immediately appeared to get into them. The drivers stood smoking and chatting. Then, suddenly, the flat's double doors were thrown open and six women appeared. Dressed up to the nines, they looked gorgeous! It was a wonderful sight watching them tottering down the path in their high heels and I was so glad for them that the rain had gone off and the sun come was out. looked like they were off to a wedding reception or just a jolly good night out on the town.
I'm now consumed with curiosity as to where they were off to in all their finery - I wouldn't be so nosy as to ask although the lady who lives in the bottom flat will almost certainly know as she knows everything about everyone in the street!
Our large living room window looks out the front into the street which gave a good view of today's "entertainment". Early to mid afternoon, at intervals, four cars arrived and parked in the street from which a total of 5 young women made their way into the flats opposite. Luckily, late afternoon the rain stopped and the sun briefly came out at dusk. Two taxis pulled up, double parked, outside the flats but no one immediately appeared to get into them. The drivers stood smoking and chatting. Then, suddenly, the flat's double doors were thrown open and six women appeared. Dressed up to the nines, they looked gorgeous! It was a wonderful sight watching them tottering down the path in their high heels and I was so glad for them that the rain had gone off and the sun come was out. looked like they were off to a wedding reception or just a jolly good night out on the town.
I'm now consumed with curiosity as to where they were off to in all their finery - I wouldn't be so nosy as to ask although the lady who lives in the bottom flat will almost certainly know as she knows everything about everyone in the street!
