Sirbendy

and indeed I did at home during an extended power failure..heh. Only for the inverter mind, not charging. Nowadays I use a standalone inverter - the APC blew up through old age and 4 house moves. Got some odd looks off neighbours - extension run through the window from under the Astra, uplighter on, radio on, eating tea in an otherwise dark and powerless street..heh.

Surface rust is a nonissue - lets face it, unless your car lives in salt, stands for days at a time or similar, the discs will dry in use and rust will be limited. I replaced my discs a while back, not because of the surface rust, but because the contact area had worn and was noticeably thinner than the non-contact part of the disc (after 103000 miles). New shiny vented discs soon became non-shiny and surface rusted. Face, bothered. They still try to rip my face off, so it's all good..heh.

My friend had to do that...he had a Peugeot 605 3 litre SVE...Shrewsbury pug dealer = scratch head, "not seen many of these..."..french import. Nice cruiser, stupidly rapid.

V6 4Motion - camBELT or camCHAIN???? - uk-mkivs VWVortex.com - 24v "Official" DIY/FAQ...... From those, you're talking camchain... Regular oil changes to keep it clean and avoid gunk that can clog oiler jets (unlike Vx 2.2's, heh), I wouldn't worry at that mileage. Had an Astra 2.2 overtake my 1.6 yesterday...sounded godawful, very rattly..at some point soon, that 2.2 is dead from a snapped chain due to the recall not being followed..tut. Never saw the point in moving to belt from chain, TBF. Duplex timing chains FTW. If there was a chain conversion for my 1.6, I'd fit it like a shot. Always liked the Bora, and having had a temp Golf MK6 1.6FSI with the 7 speed DSG gearbox, ye gods I'd imagine that'd go. I want another DSG box one day.

Ha, GM do the same. Pain in the arse. I have a Vauxhall and a Fabia (VW/Audi in drag), so I know the pain well... I used an adapter lead, as I want to be able to put it all back.

One word - Rain-x...I got caught in one of those "are the wipers doing anything" deluges last week with the kiddies and Missus...visibility was fine, as long as you didn't get fazed by the white "mist" 6 inches above ground level caused by the rain rebounding due to the force of it. All lights on, keep gently riding the brake pedal to dry the rotors, job's a good'un..

You'll be fine. You have a few days yet. I had it, as did daughter...apart from the sheer "aargh" factor, it did naff off pretty quickly..

Not that we've found...Our Dells are coming up to the 4 year marker, 2 cleans per year on average..the only fan issue I've found is I have one with a knackered bearing, but..well, it's not dead, just a bit noisy. I actually tend to leave the systems running while I do it..probably not recommended practise, but heyho..seems to work well..

We just hit the PCs with our compressor...yet to see dust/skin/snot that can resist the force of many PSI. Keyboards get soaked in foaming cleaner first, then airblasted dry, then treated to a sprayover with sanitizer spray (lemon fresh), then airblasted again. PCs - just insert the nozzle, dial up the pressure, pull the trigger and watch the system eject clouds of dust from every possible exit. Facemask essential.

I was going to say - yes, I have.. The installer can be a tad pants mind, especially at night, where I assume the site is syncing the downloads - it failed to install for me until the next morning when it could finally re-establish a connection. For what it's worth, I've been running it for a few weeks, and I'm EXTREMELY impressed. I ran OpenELEC before this, and it wasn't anything like as fluid. We've been watching Grand Designs on it the last few evenings..flawless. Got the 4od, Iplayer, Catchup.tv and youtube plugins running, need to grab the 5od one at some point..

It was quite fun to drive in...haze at road and pavement level due to water rebound, wipers not making a dent, so switched them off (Thankyou Rain-X for doing a better job!), lights on full, aircon on to stop misting up, kids in the back quite enjoying it, and the missus with "glad it's you driving.."..several lorries hit us with sheets of water, but it's all part of the fun.

Mileage doesn't worry me. I've had everything from this 50k Astra, to the 88K on the P reg, to 350K on a Renault. All ran well, none needed anything major. Mileage is only 1 factor..Motorway hacks may cover that mileage easily, yet due to longer runs and constant speeds, still be in fine shape. A (say) Fiesta with, say, 30k on, only used for trips to the shops may be far worse. The Astra covers..max of 8000 miles a year. The Fabia will be much less, as the Astra is the main family lugger, being automatic, and me being more experienced especially when it comes to driving with the kiddies. Even so, the Fabia's 102k is worn well...body is tidy...tiny bit of rust on the tailgate in the light fitting, and the missus has added a few dings (first car, expected)...but on the whole, for a W reg..it's still spot on. Metallic silver, in need of a good polishing. Mechanically, it has a belting oil leak in the crank seal on the timing chain side (bothered, as the chain kit contains a whole new seal set and it has to be "de-sumped" to fit it anyway), a new trackrod boot is needed on one side, and it needs new tyres. Everything else checks out beautifully. Even the OBD2 readouts show clear, with 3 stored historic fault codes that I've now cleared. Emissions are very, very low...no smoke or anything either. It''s not a VAG engine - it is an old Skoda 1.3MPi, bored out to 1.4..but they're renowned for being quite hard units..heh. Seems to ring true, too!

The missus only passed her test early this year - no experience. Went out car shopping, picked up a Skoda Fabia 1.4 Classic (no Electric windows, but PAS and aircon, trip computer) with 102k miles on it and an MOT, and got her insured on her own policy to drive it, all for less than £2000 including the purchase of the motor. Nice little runaround too - forget the Skoda badge, all the internals are marked either VW or Audi, and it feels VERY solid and well screwed together. Basic, simple, more than quick enough to break the limit, no rust. Timing chain needs a change - not worried, just rattling a bit. Needs 4 new tyres too, but I can sort that out. Loving it..heh

I'm 36, and currently thrash about in my trusty X reg 1.6 8 valver Astra MK4. Cost me £2000 3 years ago, Full Motability History, 1 owner from new, 50000 miles. It's not glamorous, it's not pristine, it's dented, it rattles a bit (although I know what that is, it's just tracking down a repair bit that's tricky), and it has 2 baby seats in it. It doesn't get the care it deserves, but it has yet to disgrace itself, and despite being a Club Spec and the "worst" 1.6 engine out there, it's comfy, it's happy to roll at 70 all day long, gets there nice and quick, and with the autobox in sports mode, it loves to rev..heh. Some people would call it naff, indeed I get several people saying "time to replace it". I don't care, TBH. It does it's job, day in, day out. Carries me and the sprogs, provides me and DD with entertainment, handles beautifully (Astras handle best when pressing on, as witnessed by 40mph Roundabouts), is extremely predictable and stable in bad weather, and has paid for itself over and over again. Flies well, too. I also own a 1.4 Auto on an M plate, that really does qualify for "naff", but it was only an emergency stopgap and now it's being broken for spares (most of the injection/cooling systems, ancillaries etc are common to MK3 and MK4). Before that I had a P reg MK3 1.6 Auto, that was a stunner but got written off. As I need autos, I'm limited to 1.4/1.61.8/2.0 in the older cars, but that's a nonissue...heh. New cars..nah, no fun. Older ones I can buy outright without worrying, and drive them without fear of dings. When this Astra dies, I think I might go Zafira MK1, 1.6 or 1.8 auto..same chassis, 90%+ common parts, cheap as chips. My brother drives an SLK - nice, but it won't drive in bad conditions..TC on, power gets killed, barely moves. TC off, goes sideways. Makes me chuckle. I had no issues at all. Looks over practicality - you can keep it.

or it kicks back and breaks your wrist/fingers/pulls out over.

I was looking at the bay of E...some old petrol flymos on there....I recall those quite well...wouldn't like to use one now!

Be very careful fiddling with the governor.... What make is the engine? Briggs and strat, Tecumseh, Honda etc? I've never got on with Tecumseh lumps..run like poo, very maintenance sensitive. Briggs..well...I've looked after a lot of those..in fact, I still am, heh. Every season a plug clean, fresh 30w oil, air filter clean in fuel and re-oil, carb cleanout with cleaner and float bowl off to airblast out, and she just runs. Runs for a minute, then stops with a sooty plug says rich mix based on the plug - either overfuelling (stuck float on the carb or gunk in the jet), or lack of air (whip off the air filter and clean/replace it). When it runs, does it smoke? does it rev up and down, or is it lumpy? Usually the engine should be pretty constant - I wind mine down to a lower idle as a rule, unless the grass is long...but it's always a pretty constant speed. To free a sticking carb, gently tap the bowl with a spanner and see if it starts again...if the carb bowl has a brass nut on the bottom, take it out after shutting off the fuel feed/clamping the hose, gently remove the bowl and wipe it out..they tend to accumulate muck which plays havoc. Blat the whole lot with WD40, or carb cleaner or similar, and make sure the float pivots smoothly. Reassemble carefully. Air filter, if a foam sponge job - wash it in petrol, squeeze and loo tissue it dry/mostly dry, and lightly oil it with some SAE 30 oil (don't use multigrade in a mower), stick it back in. Really, that's about it...air and fuel, plus spark..should work. Check the throttle linkage for kinks and obvious damage..the governor I would leave well alone. Last stop would usually be the points inside the flywheel (PITA to do, if you even have them)..old Briggs had them, as did Suffolks. They may be obsolete now. Usually points/magneto issues are a non-start/b1tch to start/major kickback job. I've had it with engines that have gone from full throttle to dead halt when they've hit a lump of concrete or a hidden immovable object - the flywheel mass keeps it spinning and shears the woodruff key, putting the thing well out in terms of timing. Always a fun moment.

Darn Wii>HDMI didn't work. Sigh. So, I've ordered an 18.5" TFT TV/DVD combi unit, with SCART, Component, HDMI, and VGA input, from Tesco for £80. Losing .5 of an inch from my current 19" screen is a nonissue, and that'll take the Wii (either through SD SCART or HD Component cabling), The R-Pi (through HDMI) and the PC through VGA, as well as integrating a DVD player. The R-Pi is now running Raspbmc, as OpenElec has major youtube speed issues on it. It now flies, and has 4OD, 5OD, Iplayer, catchup.TV etc installed and running fine, so the PC has been relieved of that duty now. I can see TVL coming after me again because I've purchased a new TV..heh..bring it on.

My adapters arrived last night..hooked the R-Pi up to the HDMI>DVI-D adapter, powered it up, and 20 seconds later, hello OpenELEC, in glorious 1440x900. Hurray! PC still on VGA. Wii with Wii2HDMI produced no image, but I suspect that's a "hitch it back to the SDTV, select HDTV/EDTV mode and try again"ism. Now going to try a different distro..OpenELEC is good, but I can see another I wish to try..heh.

Today should be the day my adapters arrive...fingers crossed. I installed a nightly build of OpenElec on the R-Pi last night, and from what I can see on my old SDTV, it's running fine..as good almost as on my dualcore AMD. This looks promising. Then I can copy over the plugins from my main system to the R-Pi, and it may be able to take over the home entertainment role (although DVD playback isn't there, so I may need to convert them to MKV or similar. Oh well, it stops little fingers playing with the discs..) Would also like to try a second SD with Debian/Chromium installed, and see if it's any good for basic web, Google Docs, and Logmein..if so, it could replace the big PC for 90% of tasks. That'd be a power saving right there... Then in place of the big TV upstairs (assuming all works, wii included), I'm contemplating reversing the screen on my old Inspiron to point outwards, and wallmounting it, using a big USB drive to hold Tiddlers favourite videos, and giving her in effect an embedded PC display, which would take up much less space, and with a wireless mouse and KB, would double as a useable basic computer when she's older... Sad, isn't it...I know....

Possible... I've just Primed an Amazon delivery for tomorrow of an HDMI>DVI-D lead - to see if HDMI through DVI-D will work for the R-Pi. If so, great. Also ordered a Wii2HDMI, with intent to do the same. Then I can keep my 19" TFT, PC on VGA, R-Pi/Wii on DVI-D and switch as needed. Annoyingly, the Wii>Component>VGA would have worked, except for the Wii's insistence on using Sync on Green. Lovely picture, just green. Ah well, it was a few quid.

Indeed - I've been there, done that, told them to sling their bully-boy, no basis in enforceable law hook, and the last chap who asked nicely came in, looked, saw, said "Fair enough, we'll stop bugging you then", and nothing since. That included me showing him the TV, fully ready to rock without an aerial and a DVD link to a player on top, and the cut off aerial leads. Just because you own one, doesn't mean you HAVE to pay. In fact, I showed him my old B&W unit too...heh. It's amazing how much misinformation is out there over TVL, but we've plumbed the depths, had the letters, had the visits, refused entry, done the whole lot..it's good fun! What I'm doing is non-license applicable, totally. Heh. It's just the damn interconnections that are throwing me.

As some of you know, I have no TV. No license, not intending on getting one either. In it's place, I have my dualcore Athlon x2 and a 19" widescreen TFT (Hanns-G HW191D, 1xVGA and 1xDVI-D). This runs Openelec.tv off a USB drive as primary OS, for 'net TV/youtube/DVDs. Second boot drive holds Win7, for work if I need it. Also have a little NAS box running SnakeOS, hosting mediatomb for music on my LAN. Now, upstairs I have the old TV - a 21" CRT Toshiba, with S-Video/Scart - old, but working. Was about to dispose of it. I also have a Wii, and now an R-Pi. The Wii doesn't work with my screen - I bought a Wii>VGA cable, and whilst I can get an image fine, everything is green..not an unknown issue, and down to how the monitor handles the sync. The R-Pi won't work through an HDMI>VGA either. So, the old TV has won a reprieve of sorts. Except it's huge, upstairs, and won't interface with my PC, which is it's main need if it's downstairs. SO...suggestions please. The cheaper the better (Missus is on Mat Leave now for 12 months, after that it'll be 2x nursery fees!)..I need something that ideally will work as a PC monitor, will work with the R-Pi, either over HDMI or composite, and will work with a Wii... I did wonder about a video capture card in the PC, for linking composite upto and showing on the PC, but lag-wise I'm not sure that'd fly...

Hmm. Have you looked at your wiring to see if you already have the factory fit plugs? You may have..Vx are sods for fitting 1 loom to all..heh. Then a trip to the scrapper for the relevant bits, a copy of OPCOM and ebay for the keys may do it. I keep meaning to get round to fitting the total closure mod to the Astra - you can do it from the key in the drivers lock, but it won't fire from the remote control.

Is that the new one, not long built? How is he anyways?! Haven't heard from him since we met here, when he came to see the kit we were setting up for them..heh..