crossy67

[quote user="AnOther"] It's also a case of you get what you pay for and genuine big brand batteries will invariably out perform noname cheapies. [/quote] I have two sets of rechargeable AAA batteries for my wireless mouse (Old style one no doubt).  One set is Energizer, the other set is Asda own brand, the Energizers last about 4-7 days, the Asda ones last for up to a month.  Both have had the same life and been charged the same in the wireless receiver unit supplied with the mouse. 

Garden canes.  Intermache €1.50 per meter.  Works out cheaper to buy toms from a shop than to buy canes to support them. Any one know where else to get them cheaper?

Didn't think they were horse flies, they're not any bigger than a large house fly, from what I have seen of horse flies they look just like a house fly but bigger and these didn't have hoofs.  These looked a bit different.  A couple of the bites started itching last night.  Ruined a nice walk round the forest. Go for females eh?  Next time I'll wear more manly clothes and aftershave [:D]

Went for a walk in a forest today and ended up cutting it short.  I was getting bitten like mad by flies.  They were a little bit bigger than your standard house fly but they bit, not like a flea bite or a mozzie, you felt a sharp bit, looked down and there they were.  I swatted quite a few and don't seem to have any lumps or reaction to them.  I don't think they broke the skin but I am wondering what the heck they were.  Honestly, I ended up leaving our nice afternoons walk after about 20 minutes, I had been bitten about 20 times and just couldn't enjoy it. Any ideas what they were?

Well I have arrived back home from the UK with our shiny new toy[:D] I got given a 54 Scenic 1.5dci at cost price by a big Renault dealer I have looked after for many years.  It's not very fast but it did return 62mpg at 70mph for most of the way home, 580 miles and it is very comfy with AC.  Luxury.  It's got 65k miles and has been serviced every 6k miles instead of the recommended 18k. I would have loved a French lhd car but I would have never got that car at that price even with unlimited running round. Ps. Not a sniff of smoke either lol

I watched most of the last two races, unheard of for me for the last 5 years.  I think finally, after years of rule changing, interfering and tinkering they seem to have hit on a formula that can provide some entertainment value and not something akin to watching a bunch of strangers playing Scalextric for 2 hours. Getting much more watch able.

3 wheelers! All the inconvenience of a bike combined with all the inconvenience of a car.  Why?

We had our Autan removed from our suitcases before they were checked into the hold on a flight from Greece once.  So did every one else, I think i was part of a plan to exterminate mozzies for good.  I also had two small adjustable spanners confiscated in Liverpool at the beginning of the year, why?  Did they think I might dismantle the plain in mid air as an act of terrorism?

Our house had self levelling screed all over the ground floor.  It was stuck like poo to a bares bum and took 2 weeks of chipping off to expose the wooden floor underneath.  New joists and a few boards and it's lovely again, well apart from the miss matched boards.  There was some sort of coating on the wood that made the concrete stick but I have no idea what it was, sorry.  Maybe try PVA?

Top tip about our Marie Val.  Thanks.

Thanks for the replies folks. We called the people in the UK that deals with these things and have ordered two new full certs.  The confusing thing was the bit there they say on the web site that as of 1-4-1969 birth certificates will only be the short version, it doesn't make it clear we could still get the full one on application. Phew, not bad for our 1st encounter of French bureaucracy.

We went to register with CPAM a few weeks ago.  We left them with all the documents needed to get our carte vitale, apparently not. We received a letter off them asking us for a copy of our birth certificates showing our parents identity.  Our birth certificates don't mention parents anywhere (we weren't born, we were created).  Does any one else's birth certificates show this info?  It's a bit strange that neither of ours do.   If any one has a certificate that shows the needed info where can I get one of my own with my info on, not yours[:)]

I was driving back from an errand yesterday, the temp gauge in the car was reading 16 degrees, it was raining, or should I say it was drizzling.  It's exactly the same weather we used to have in the UK for several summers on the run.  One thing to take cumfort from though is we did have a scorching two months before and (hopefully) will have a couple more nice months before the years out.  I have been so tempted to light the log burner, brrrr.

[quote user="Russethouse"]Pop /music stars are supposed to entertain, not lose their lives !! [/quote] She didn't loose it, she threw it away.  I really didn't like the way she glamorised substance abuse, or maybe it was the media that did that?  Either way, the lessons that should be learned will undoubtedly not be. I lost an ex work mate to an overdose at a similar age (I wouldn't say we were friends exactly).  I remember thinking on the way home from his funeral "that was a hell of a price to pay for what ultimately amounts to a single stupid mistake many years ago".

All out thoughts are with you both.  I, as I am sure everyone else here will wish you both all the best.  Be strong and don't give up.

Great news, thanks for that Bubbles.  Red it is then.

I have never eaten snails before but really want to try them so I am going to buy some from a supermarket.  Any recommendations of where to get them and what to get would be great.  Who does the best that is easily available?  I also need to know what wine would go well with them.  I want to take the snails and some bread up to a local who has been very friendly to us since we moved here.  He made me feel guilty after I stopped for a chat on my way home from a quick shopping trip, he commented on the wine I had bought.  After about an hour at home I began to wonder if he was hinting at sharing some and now I feel a bit rude and I want to make amends so I would love to just pop up the road with a little snack to share over a glass or two of wine. Any recommendations would be much appreciated, I don't even know if red or white is the done thing but the wine I had bought he seemed interested in was a red. Thanks Ian

Most modern engines are controlled by an ECU (electronic control unit, computer).  This controls the amount of fuel put in, when it's put in and on a petrol engine, when the ignition lights it up, amongst other things.  On a diesel it controls the amount of fuel and when it's injected, amongst other things. These parameters are pre-programmed into the computers memory.  When you have a remap done this information is changed.  On a diesel they tend to inject more fuel, this results in a slightly smokier engine when being driven hard but gives you a significant amount more power.  This is the bit I was always very sceptical about, and to be honest I still don't believe it or understand it.  If you put more fuel in how can it make the car more economical?  All I know is the two vehicles I have had remapped have used 20% less fuel (measured over tens of thousand miles in my old company van and my current shed) and both have been significantly faster.  My old Peugeot Expert had 15mph added to it's top speed and needed less gear changes to keep it going up hills etc.  My Corsa's remap paid for it's self within a month or two.  A friend of mine had his Golf remapped and the thing was a monster and still returned 42mpg being driven like it had been stolen. If you abuse the extra power you will loose the saving but get there quicker[6] Hope this helps

Wow.  How quick was that?  I am impressed.  Thanks all.  Like I said I am not looking this year but soon after.  I am missing my industry, 23 years and 7 of them in a good position in the independent sector in the UK takes some getting out of your system.  I'd like to go self employed but there are fare too many things to learn at the moment.

I was mooching round looking what was available in my line of work (windscreen replacement).   have found quite a lot of vacancies, which is nice to see but there are a lot of ads saying things like CDI contract required.  Any one know what a CDI contract or licence is please. Not looking for work just yet, much too much DIY to do but in a year or two, it would be nice.

80's 1.5 Austin Allegro (all agro) super (I still chuckle at the super bit), slow, thirsty and rubbish, 1.3 Mk2 Escort 2 door in lime green.  Shed really a girlfriend wrote it off by hitting a bridge in a car park. Yellow Triumph Dolomite sprint.  It was loud, bright yellow and looked the part.  In reality it was quite quick, handled badly and was unreliable. Red Mk5 Cortina 1.6.  My all time favourite car ever, it would do 97 in 3rd following a bit of tuning.   It had a huge sun roof and I literally lived in it. 1.1 Talbot Sunbeam.  Slow, too slow. I took the engine out of my Cortina and wedged it in with the Sunbeam diff.  0-100 was awesome but it wanted to kill me every time I got in it. 80-s -90's Blue Mk5 Cortina.  Not as good as my old one but it was much better on fuel. Daihatsu Charade.  3 cylinder 1 liter and 72mpg.  Met my wife in it.  Was very reliable until I selected 3rd instead of 5th.  Ooops, new valves. Fiat X19.  Great fun for a couple of months but rot got it. Ex police Vauxhall Senator 3.0.  Probably the slowest 3.0 in the world but it handled awesomely.  Really annoying though, everyone would slow to a crawl when you were behind them thinking I was the law. Peugeot 205 1.9GTi.  Loved it.  It began my love affair with 205's Went onto bikes for a few ears. 2000 on Peugeot 205 1.4 XS.  Even better than the GTi.  Gave many Golf GTi's a run for their money despite having a smaller engine.  It handled even better which made up for it. Citroen Saxo.  Geat looking car in shiny gold.  That's the best thing I can say.  Crap car. Went into vans for a few years. Toyota Celica GT4, one with 4 headlights.  One hell of a car.  4wd 350bhp with a little modifying, would do 165mph on a private track day.  Stunning looking, and 100% reliable, I would have another tomorrow if things hadn't moved on. Vauhall Corsa CDTi 1.2.  Great little car, 61mpg and fast enough for me.  I like it because it's tatty so I use it like a van. JK have you thought about getting your Touran remapped?  My Corsa has been and I now get 61mpg instead of 50mpg and it goes like stink.  Okay, if you use the extra power it's a bit thirstier but driving gently it's a huge improvement.  The next car I get will be another diesel and it will get a remap.

Thanks for the info Chancer.  So long as there is a way round I am not too bothered.[:)]

Any one? I am literally about to buy a car off Ebay and don't want to if I am going to have a load of trouble getting it registered here.

Please excuse my stupidness but what does this mean for me about to import a 2004 VW?

How would you get on with insurance if, for instance there were a heavy hail storm than smashed all your panels?