Gerrycan

Very unlikely that anyone in this forum has done it but I cannot think they would damage the suspension. I thought run flat tyres needed special rims to operate effectively. Worse ride and much more expensive, the only reason I could think to fit them is to have the ability to avoid a civil conflict after having tyres spiked. Over the years I have had more than my share of punctures but never more than one at a time. If you are doing distances in Australia then a spare tyre (even a spacesaver) is a better option than run flats.

I see the car is a 'Greenline' which is not something sold in my country so is the car a diesel or petrol, automatic or manual? More general question but wouldn't some sort of cruise control be a standard fitting in the UK?

Just went down to the garage and checked on my ordinary a/c equipped 1.4tsi. Basically the rear central vents work when the front vents are emitting air. Don't forget that the rear vents can be turned off by the adjacent knurled dial. Sorry for stating the obvious

Yeh, it's all relative though. It got up to 24 degrees later in the day, which is pretty cool for the time of year. Today the wind has a more Northerly component bringing the heat from the interior so 35 degrees max and only dropping to 24 degrees overnight. The temperature does not worry me too much except when there is also direct sunshine, it can be rather intense. Good for the PV panels though I did more early morning walking and swimming today which has markedly reduced the calve pain. I'll see what tomorrow brings as my casual work has been cancelled due to general fear of the expanding covid infections persuading people to avoid big events. Funnily enough not just government mandated restrictions.

I applaud your determination. I would not be able to run at that time of the morning, in complete darkness in a UK winter nowadays, and not sure I would have done it in my prime either. Not keeping a close eye on your times but I'd say there is some improvement occurring that will become more apparent when conditions and light also improve.

Interesting read. I thought that upgrading the bulbs would have made a more obvious difference in the photographs. A claimed 50% lift in lumens is quite significant. My mk3 is adequate in dry conditions but I simply have to slow down in the wet when less light is reflected back ( country driving, no road lighting even on junctions). I feel that the problem is that with headlights now being so integrated into the overall vehicle design/fashion/look, there is likely to be a compromise of their optical performance. I am a cheapskate driver and all the vehicles I have owned have had halogens, but the optical performance between vehicles on the same power bulbs has varied enormously. Worst ever was the mk1 Hyundai Santa Fe, 2nd worst was the mk2 Octavia. Best was a locally produced Ford Falcon, followed closely by a mk1 Kia Carnival people mover (of all things). I look forward to your additional comments but realise that you will have the post facelift headlight arrangement which was generally considered better performing than my cars pre facelift appearance.

I am no expert on the subject but the continuous fault on the wall of the tyre looks like it has been run under inflated at some point. They do not look great, personally I would be looking at replacing within six months. The exposed old but never used spares on some AWD vehicles have some terrible cracking on them from continuous exposure to the Australian sun. I would hate to them actually used. Having said that the mini spare tyre in my 2003 Toyota Echo is original and does not seem to have aged at all when I check the pressure every couple of months. I have a bicycle with 30 year old Dunlop tyres that I ride regularly for local stuff. They still look ok but I bet replacements will not last as long.

The planned post Christmas run did not happen due to more work and then a possible Covid infection which is eventually present in most of Australia but they lost my PCR test so I will never really know if I did. Being triple vaccinated symptoms were minor, if indeed it was covid. Long story short, I ran 5km the other day after nearly four weeks and boy did it hurt. I cannot believe how much condition I have lost. Ran again today and my calves were complaining loudly at my decision. Conditions were ideal early, sunny, a cool 18 C, and little wind and enjoyable. I run about 20 seconds a kilometre slower and I wonder how long it will take to get some of that time back. I cannot even use the excuse I had put on weight. Just goes to show that even doing up to 30k steps a day at work shifting stuff doesn't keep you match fit.

My Australian spec 2014 mk3 1.4tsi estate has a nominal 150mm of ground clearance and I have done quite a few k's on various dirt roads, so I'm almost surprised that a London based standard Octavia needs more ground clearance. For example:

Adelaide Australia and I've mentioned in similar threads that my local dealer first asked whether I wanted the cam belt replaced when booking our 2014 Octavia's 7th annual service. Since our car had done less than 80k km, and I reckon I can count the number of times the engine has exceeded 4k revs in that time on my fingers, I declined the offer. Dealer just said "fair enough, you are not the first and we have not experienced subsequent issues". I presumed they followed the service requirements and checked the belt for wear. Australia is considered a dusty country, especially where I live in the oft quoted 'driest state of the driest continent'. Annual yearly or 15k km services are the only option offered by dealers and seems reasonable with our sometimes high summer temperatures. Since we may now be keeping the car longer than intended I may consider belt replacement in the next couple of years or depending on inspection advice.

At the annual family Christmas present distribution my wife passes me a small wrapped gift from her boss. Somewhat mystified, I opened it to find it was my lost Garmin Vivofit! I knew I had probably lost it between some big gymnastic mats when assisting loading them onto a few trucks after a big competition set down, and somehow it was found and returned to the office. Still tempted to upgrade after all my research and my son has given me his now unused Samsung Smar****ch with integrated GPS and heartrate monitor to try. Apparently he has found a Garmin more suited to monitoring all his athletic activities, especially as it can be linked to a more accurate chest heart rate monitor. Confession time: I have sinned by not running for two weeks due to a very heavy workload leading up to Christmas and then a bit of a reaction to my booster jab. I should be able to get something in over the next couple of days though.

The idling consumption on both my MK2 1.9pd and current mk3 1.4tsi is an indicated 0.5 l/hr. I would not imagine the 1.6d would be any worse. When the aircon is active then consumption rises to 0.8l/hr or higher in extreme heat.

There is a quite a large compendium of stories of alternate fuels used in diesel based engines over the years: Going by memory the original Otto diesel was designed to run on vegetable oils. Hence those people running on old frying chip oil. Some years back a French light aviation company were promoting a turbo-diesel based engine running on aviation jet fuel (kerosene) , claiming I think a 60% reduction in running costs. An Australian based business is looking at creating a fuel from old tyres which when mixed with regular diesel was found to reduce Nox emissions and particles by about 30% when tested by a local university. Many diesels can run on natural gas but they prefer to have a small amount of diesel injected to aid the combustion process (especially when starting). Used by static diesel generators and local buses here. There are also companies who will 'convert' your diesel to have an additional lpg injection system with the diesel which is supposed to reduce Nox and particles and produce better power and economy (above the cost of the additional lpg injections). There was even a converted turbo diesel that successfully ran pure ethanol due its naturally high octane rating, claiming to achieve remarkably good power and economy I'm sure there are others, but that is all I can remember for now, and don't hold me to the figures I have tried to recall.

It gets good driving reviews here too. Australians were brought up on and love torque converters. My problem is that they are noticeably less efficient than a DSG and manuals

Any activity you enjoy is good for you, it doesn't have to be running. My wife is nearly 60 and just doesn't have the knees for running but still enjoys a brisk 10km walk around the local lake. She walks faster than I do and I have trouble keeping up . Her physio has recommended more cycling for muscle development support for her knees which is something we used to do a lot, but we are both working a lot more lately than we really planned for or wanted at this stage in our lives. I consider I am lucky that most of my casual work involves a lot of movement and I'm not stuck behind a desk and computer like my wife is. Been there, done that!

I mentioned I had a GPS watch for about 3 years and I had similar impressive results. When looking close at the mapping of the run it even accurately showed which side of the road I ran on, even the footpath. However there is a domestic use algorithm and a commercial/military version and the difference is the former is accurate to within metres and the latter is centimetres. It is particularly obvious when looking at reported height. When I ran along the beach tideline the vertical variation could be more than 10 metres and particularly amusing when it showed up when canoeing as it was never that rough out there. Over longer distances it all averages out to very good accuracy. Same in a car, gps where speeds are inconsistent at crawl pace but far more accurate at speed Kudos to you for doing marathons, it is not something I think I could do. When I run I really perspire and over 7 km I can lose about 1kg in weight or 1litre of sweat and I'm not sure I could drink 4 litres of water during a 42 km run. When I did Olympic distance triathlons I found hydrating on a bike a lot easier. Also I've known a few former keen marathon and ultra marathon runners and I am a little perturbed at the high instances of knee and hip operations many have incurred.

And this one is really interesting regarding screen time after concussion. bit late info for you though. Concussion and screen use - Health Report - ABC Radio National

There do seem to be a few issues with Fitbits reported and it turns out they are owned by Google and I think they already have enough information about me. I did have a TomTom gps watch a few years back and that was good up to the point the buttons failed after about three years. and there were lots of similar online complaints about that unit, usually in a shorter timeframe. Three years seems to be about the operational life for these watches. My Polar heartrate monitor is about 25 years old and still going strong with button cell replacement every 2 years or so, but I'm not keen on the chest transmitter as I find them a bit restricting. Probably going for a Garmin, probably the $200 unit and hope it lasts well beyond the 1 year guarantee. Bonus is that it is made in Taiwan and not China, I try to avoid products from the latter as much as possible for a number of ethical and distrust issues. May wait until after Christmas though as I'm working everyday up to Christmas so no running and based on previous experience the price will drop. Thanks everyone for comments

Worf (haha) sized bumps or not, it can take surprisingly little impact for some concussion effects. Based on years of watching my son in his chosen physically interactive sport, self-assessment is not recommended. My go to site for new peer reviewed health advice has just published timely comments on concussion recovery: Concussion and exercise - Health Report - ABC Radio National

My Garmin Vivofit 2 that I found on the beach about 6 years ago has slipped off my own wrist (seems a certain poetic karma in this) and I am now in the market for a cheap and effective replacement. There is a Vivofit 4 that looked ideal at a mere au$79 until I found that this later version could not be linked to a heartrate monitor. I mean what the ....? Shortlist so far is: Fitbit Charge 4 at AU$179 with heat rate monitor, GPS and various other bits, including that it can monitor my menstrual cycle (apparently) Fitbit Charge 5 at $269, similar features but with colour touch screen and enhanced heart monitor to ECG status (I am getting old) Garmin Venu SQ at AU199 looks a good option too. Anybody with personal experience of any of these or other suggestions? I'm not too interested in the full smart watch thing and I don't listen to music on a run.

Absolutely no excuse these days for riding an unlit bike in the dark these days with the cheap, efficient and effective lights now available, and you were on a pedestrian crossing!! I was really fussy about using the best lights available when I used to commute into London. Of course 'best' in those days were Eveready Night Riders with 3 volt incandescent bulbs and rechargeable NiCad batteries. Now I use some Aldi LED lights that can blind oncoming drivers at a 100 metres but I use the low light setting on road and the high beam on the unlit pathways through the parklands. It continuously amazes me how good they are for something so small and cheap. These unexpected setbacks always seem to occur when the performance stars are aligning. You seem to have come out of it quite well, I hope there are no further repercussions from the incident.

Local (Australian) apiarists have long suspected that cheap imported Chinese honey was manufactured but it took some sophisticated scientific analysis to officially confirm it about 8 months ago. Honey is naturally produced when the forager bees return collected nectar to house bees who process it in their crop from sucrose to simpler glucose and fructose sugars. The Chines must have copied the process artificially and to be fair it fooled a lot people. Luckily Australian labelling laws mean that if the honey is labelled as produced here and from 100% Australian content then it is unlikely to be contaminated. Manuka is the New Zealand name for the Ti-tree plant common here and in New Zealand. Oils from the Ti-tree plant are used in a lot of being anti-bacterial and soothing medications, I swear by a particular Ti-tree based lotion for sunburn. The claim is that some of those medicinal qualities are transferred to the honey produced from the flowering plant. There is a lot of marketing faff and some fairly exaggerated claims for it which do not stand up real well to properly conducted independent scientific studies. A very interesting honey is produced by a particular stingless Australian honey bee ( I cannot remember the name but there are 11 variesties here). A very small bee it does not produce much honey but it is high in fructose and phenols that is being investigated because it is effective against antibiotic resistant bacteria. It was long valued for it medicinal qualities, taste and, I presume, ease of collection by aboriginals, hey a 40,000+ year old culture must count for something. Personally I agree with @Wino and I'd take the claims of Hoy and associates with a pinch of salt, or teaspoon of honey, whatever your preference. I'll remain sceptical until independently proven. I get to meet a lot of elite athletes and I'll just say that some of the (legal) supplements they consume in the search for better performance depend more on marketing and hearsay than real proven fact. Simply eating a calorie balanced diet of unprocessed and unrefined foods can give a person all the nutrition they need. We have got a beehive in the garden and enjoy eating our own honey. It seems to have slightly more subtle taste complexities than commercially produced varieties but I'm prepared to admit that most of the satisfaction is that it is home produced. I do not expect any health giving qualities from its consumption, bonus if there is.

We have the base level 1.4tsi estate mk3 released in Australia in 2014 with a low priced option addition for some necessary bits. It has a great engine, flexible, quiet, smooth, economical and more power than I am prepared to use to the full on public roads. The interior capacity is very efficient which gives it great flexibility for carrying people and/or lots other things. The car is currently quite noisy to drive because the tyres are worn with saw-toothing and nearly due for replacement, or it could be a bearing, but we will see which when the tyres are eventually replaced. It was interesting driving a hire Toyota Corolla sedan hybrid in our Northern Territories this September as it was incredibly noisy at speed (130 kph speed limit) on the very course tarmac their highways are coated with, we actually gave up trying to listen to music. It was far worse than our Octavia is on similar roads even with its worn tyres (or bearing). The Corolla experienced smooth tarmac it was quiet so it was purely road surface noise. The hybrid was surprisingly efficient, even at speed on the NT's relatively flat open roads where the EV could not contribute much, we averaged 4.25 L/100 (calculated from fuel used) over 2500km (66mpg). I would have expected to get about 50 mpg with the Octavia at similar speeds. I have looked at replacing the car but the base mk4 is sold here with the 1.4tsi and an 8 speed Aisin torque converter which does not appeal. Was very tempted with the local base Scala offering with the 1.5tsi and manual box at a competitive price, but it is smaller so I think we will just stick with our current low mileage vehicle until EV pricing becomes more attractive. There is a significant price increase moving up to the vRS (just RS here) and you do get better suspension, performance and brakes etc for the money so I guess the interior noise will be compared to far more expensive cars than what I compared with which may account for some of the dissatisfaction expressed on that aspect.

I do not understand your logic about the wheels. Bigger wheels mean lower profile tyres and less depth in the sidewalls and less comfort.

Open one set of diagonally opposite windows an equal amount and the drumming is not noticeable and it improves through ventilation (Covid tip). Don't you have cup holders in the rear dropdown central armrest?