Tristar 1011

Hi Graham, I'll take your word for that, as you are involved in rescue work; but I'm reading from the 3008 Hybrid4 brouchure; it says "Peugeot Connect SOS is available in 12 European countries, including GB" So although the automatic part may not be switched on, they try and establish contact by the telephone (better not crash near home then with no mobile signal!), if not they say they will call the appropiate emergency service... I do have my OS map reference on a sticker next to the telephone at home - (The Wales Air Ambulance has been called out to us...). It seems strange that they must fly and navigate by Lat & Long, but guess they have a map on their laps for visual guidance to the point of rescue... Peter

Hi Johann, I agree with you about "pseudo 4x4 technology" We do need a 4x4 and winter tyres up in the hills - hence my Yeti! The Peugeot is very strange to drive: You switch on the ignition and nothing happens - just a READY light... No hand brake, just an electric switch. Select Auto and press the accelerator; electric brake releases and the car pulls away on the electric motor (rear wheel drive). Accelerate more and the engine starts (front wheel drive). Start going down hill; engine stops, rear wheels turn and charge the battery. When you accelerate at bottom of hill engine re-starts. On a 10 mile journey into Llanidloes, the engine stops and starts maybe 10 times or more. In town you can select ZEV - Zero Emission Vehicle and whisper silently along. I can't think how it will cope on an icy road - changing from front wheel drive to rear and sometimes no wheel drive! There are two other modes: 4WD which the diesel and electric motor run continuously (your 4x4 drive) - engine charges battery. The last mode is sports mode - which sharpens up the gear change an adds the elctric motor. It is then pretty quick (163bhp front; 37bhp rear = 200bhp!)and handles well... Points to ponder: There is no clutch and no Park position! It's a 6 speed manual with automatic control. How does it keep stopping and starting the engine at speed (?). As far as I can see it reverses the polarity of the alternator and turns it into a motor; the same as the rear electric motor, turns into a generator - easy really! Will all this 'gismo' last? Finally if you forget all of the above and just drive it, it is very pleasant to drive. The tinted glass roof makes it light an airy; the leather seats are comfortable (and better quality than my Yeti). It has a large Sat Nav with TMC - (same as Columbus) plus its own telephone (just pop in your, and in our case 'car' sim card). It also has bluetooth for your own mobile. If you crash (!!) it uses its own telephone to call the emergency services, giving your location via the Sat Nav. I hope I won't need that bit of technology! I still love my Yeti - feels like a real car! However my wife likes her new car and did say thank you. Peter

Hi Johann (900000) - "No mention of a 4x4 version though." Here is a 4x4 version I have just bought for the wife... 200bhp, 70mpg (claimed - more like 45!) and only £20 road tax.

Just sat down to watch Top Gear - the bit with James May testing the Bentley Continental Speed - and he is driving passed my house in Dylife! They use this road quite often because it is fairly remote, but has a good quality road surface all the way to Machynlleth. Not sure where the rally stage is, but guess Hafren forest about 5 miles away - perhaps Graham knows?

No Graham, This was just to get upto Dylife. (Our road has had the "Heavy Snow - Road Closed" sign up for a week now!). We were supposed to go up beyond the Dam, just a bit before the turning for the sailing club - my daughter helps an old lady (Dr.) and wanted me to drive her up there, but after a short while decided it was not worth it... Thanks TP, Providing it does not get any worse we should just about cope... Peter

Same as you Graham, we have just got back from Llani'. We had 3-4" of snow, then rain, which then froze and just started to melt again this morning. There was a crust of semi- frozen snow/slush. covering the whole road. Not only did I have to clear the gate way to get out, two very large tree branches were snapped off in the strong winds (touched 40mph on my weather station). It was because they were laden with lots of snow. Going down the hill was exciting, but controllable. Coming back up was very exciting (frightening). With the 4x4 drive working and off road button pressed, it felt as though you were floating over the surface, never quite in control... With my wife shouting at me that we were all going to die - there is a 200' drop if you get it really wrong! I just wanted to keep going and not loose momentum for the last half mile up the hill (1400'). We made it with the TCS light flashing all the way up. I think the Off Road light (not the switch light) goes out above 30km/h, but I was concentrating on the outside! Observations: This was the first real test of the Yeti - with winter tyres (Goodyear Altra Grip 205/60 R16) and the 4x4. The floating experience reminded of my military days of driving Land Rovers in the African desert (sorry to bring the war up). On the shifting sands it was much better to drive in 2x4 drive than in 4x4 mode, as it was easier to control. I don't think I would have made it with the 225/50 R17 summer tyres or with out the 4x4. You can't feel it engage (I know it is always doing something), but it did give that extra 'omph' to keep us going! Oh well back home now - out with the snow shovel... Peter

Oh enough to last several winters... :sun:

Graham, Had it been a "Bing" "Bong" - then that would be the Avon Lady Peter PS The lorry is still stuck and with the high winds, the snow is drifting across the road...

Thanks Graham, I will try and copy the clip or link to send to my brother in the States. You were obviously speeding as you went past the Vicarage, it was gone in a flash! The lorry is at "3:25" and is still there! How did you know it was a Norbert Dentressangle lorry? I have sent the picture to the County Times... It maybe a while before you can use the road all the way to Machynlleth, which as you say, must be one of the prettiest routes in Wales - I never tire of it. I actually run this route every Sunday (weather permitting!!) with my German Shepherd (Shadow), either to Lake Glaslyn or about another half mile beyond your video.- It takes just a bit longer than your clip!! I don't think any vehicle could have got through that snow. I was wading almost up to my waist in places. My next door neighbour tried a couple of years ago to get through in his L200 and got stuck trying to charge through the drifts. It took his brother-in-law (opposite in the farm) several hours to dig him out with his tractor and bucket!

Time:- If the Columbus has access to a radio clock, it will change to Summertime automatically. I must admit I am still confused by the "time" & the "date" with regards to the Columbusn Sat Nav: Columbus must know the time (very, very) accurately otherwise it would not work. If it does have its own clock, then it is kept in time by the GPSs' atomic clock (which is even adjusted for Einstein's law - e=mc2). On my wife's Peugeot 807 the hours you set for which ever time zone you are in and the minutes are slaved to the GPS - When the pips go, it is always spot on. As to the date, I don't think the GPS needs it. The GPS satelltes know where they are and all your GPS Receiver does is calulates the time difference between them to calculate its own postion. So the question is - why do you have to enter the date (and you can choose the format -day/month; month/day) and then not be able to see it anywhere? At my time of life, knowing the day and date is a help to the start of the day! Does the time you set up in the MFD get up dated by the GPS? I'm guessing that it does not have access to the "radio clock". I have not had mine long enough to notice whether the clock time varies by a few seconds or not...

Hi TP, I guessed from your previous interesting inputs that you were in the aviation business. Yes joined up in 1962; we had our 50th anniversary last May in Telford. When I arrived I thought I had turned up at the wrong place - there was only a bunch of grey hair old blokes. We were know as the cannon entry; as we stole a cannon from the REME's at Chatham and a cannon from TS Arethusa and plonked them on our parade ground... Yes the snow was quite bad 3-4' in places - you would have just run into and got no further. Peter

Hi Andy, You are the first to comment that it was not a Tristar! 7 years on 707/336; 10 years on Tristars -1; -200; -500 (happy days - "No Jacket Required"; 10 years on 747 Classic -136 (Pratt & Witney); -236 (RB211-524). (The picture is a 747-136) How about you? Peter

I thought I'd start a new snow topic, as my previous one descended into 1963 nostalgia - I was there - I was an RAH Halton Apprentice and I seem to remember doing nothing but clearing snow from the roads with a shovel around Wendover for 3 or 4 weeks! Oh as per previous thread: 2 grand children, one Mother-in-law (so far...) Back to the topic: As some of you know I live on a hill between Staylittle and Machynlleth. A rumour was heard that a lorry had tried to get over the mountain road on Thursday and was stuck. So today (Monday) I went to have a look. A good opportunity to try out my winter tyres and 4x4. I got to within a couple of hundred yards of the lorry and chickened out (see picture 1). Im pleased I did; it got a whole lot worse (Although looking at Yeti_man's pictures he was a lot braver than me!). I walked upto and past the lorry and saw that a JCB was trying to reach the lorry from the opposite direction - It's 8 miles to Machynlleth and rising to close on 2000' ! I can't see them recovering the lorry for sometime.

I don't think Sue will bother to open. It's a shame really, because we don't often go ourselves and not many of the villagers do either - that tends to kill off a local pub... Years ago it was full, with dart and pool teams. Tony, the landlord being the heart and sole of the pub and the food was good. They still do food, but mainly at the weekend.

I'm not having a problem with my Pirelli P Zero Rossi tyres either - They are tucked up in the garage loft in cardboard boxes to keep warm till next spring! We are however snowed in with snow drifts of 4'-6' deep - so even with full winter tyres we won't be going anywhere soooooon! We have 3 wood burners (two are going 24/7) that's a lot of firewood! An oil fired AGA, and very expensive electric storage heaters (minimum number on!). At least it is windy and the wind turbine is helping out with up to 6kW's of free electricity...