Ttaskmaster

Firstly, I won't be able to afford an electric car or indeed anything 'new', even by 2035, unless Labour gain power, nationalise my industry and somehow make it profitable enough to give me a massive pay rise... I might juuuuuuust be able to get a 2018 car by then, if they haven't all been scrapped. So I'm stuck with ICE anyway and whatever tech they imagine it'd be a good idea to bolt on... assuming I choose to comply. They don't have a good track record with motorcycles, in that regard. Renewables might seem cheaper, but it's often reported that the maintenance of the various plant and the environmental impact of manufacture/installation is pretty grim. Same for EVs. The news keeps finding studies (another new one earlier this week, albeit commissioned by several car manufacturers who don't have many EVs themselves (except for BMW), so probably outright lies) on how they actually cause more pollution, up until around the 50,000 mile point, at which they equalise with ICE vehicles. That's about 5 years of average ownership, by which time many people will switch to newer cars anyway.

That's the thing, though - I don't have signal in most of the sites I drive to for work. They'd have to install a massive comms network across the whole UK, which would cost even more money and probably see even more taxation on driving. I also wouldn't trust anyone holding that data (it won't be the government, of course, as it will get contracted out) to only use it for that specific purpose, but that's another thread.

So presumably all vehicles will have to, by law, be fitted with electronics to track them, then? Given how well Track & Trace has worked, I have every faith that the British Government will invent something that integrates seamlessly with my particular vehicles and performs perfectly.... . . . . . . . . . . . . Honest, Gov!! This isn't exactly stealthy, though... and given the current 45p per mile remuneration, I think £1.50 is more like robbery than simple tax! Even if they only keep that for busy times or for entering certain places, most of us round here will be liable for that just in order to go to work. Presumably the lower costs will be for business rates? I should have voted Labour. Then my internet would be free and there'd be a British car in every garage.... though occasionally one of them would actually make it home again!

Just seen some news reports banging on about how Rishi Sunak is reviving Labour's old 2007 plans to charge EV drivers by the mile, with costs being as much as £1.50 per mile during heavy traffic times. Political suicide, or is he serious? While I'm well known as not being a fan of EVs, even I think that's a bit excessive....

See, these are a bit more like what I'd expect an EV to be - Essentially the same as a normal car, just with electric engine & drive train. Physical buttons and controls, no auto-on smart features, no iPads slapped on the dash.

There are, yes. For example, I've no idea who the chart-topping artists are, who is who on Neighbours and Eastenders, or who won X Factor and Strictly. Most of the 'I'm A Celebrity' types are complete unknowns to me, and that's where I'd have put VBH. I may have seen her mentioned here (Search returned very few results), but still wouldn't have associated the name with anyone 'big' in the motoring world... and that was my point - Surely a campaign like this would want names that everyone immediately recognises, even if they don't follow the thing for which they're famous... like Ian Botham. It may be that VBH genuinely believes in all this, in which case it's up to her what she puts her name and reputation to, though.

That must be why I've not heard of her - I last owned a TV back in 1996 and haven't really watched it since.

Me too... which is why I still use an old Logitech G19!

I'll be honest, I had to go Google to see who 'VBH' even was, though I vaguely recognised her thereafter. Certainly I've never heard her on the radio or read enough of her work to remember her, which to me suggests that she wouldn't have that much of an impact on the campaign... Ian Botham, though, is a name I recognise and I think most people would. Last I heard, he drives a Jag though, so probably not a Merc fan anyway!

I often look around at peripherals, but generally seem to find that either Logitech or Roccat make the kit that meets my needs the most. Corsair and Steelseries are pretty good too, but the config software isn't the best. Some people find it quite temperamental. Really, though, it mostly comes down to your choice of switches. Red and Black are generally the quietest, with the MX Silent versions having extra shock absorbing. But most of the noise comes from the switches bottoming out, so you just have to avoid pressing the keys all the way down. RGB just means you get to choose the colours. You don't have to set it to Unicorn Rainbow Puke mode with flashing patterns, or anything. I find green backlighting works best in daytime (especially dark, rainy days) and red at night.

I've used FLIR on vehicles before. The problem is that you're basically looking at a 2D image, in an environment where stereoscopic vision is pretty necessary. Also, unless you can get the NV to precisely overlay your forward view, it just gets in the way and hampers your vision... which happens every time you go over a bump or sway as you go round a bend. The ideal would be a head mounted 3D display with a FLIR that moves to mirror your head alignment, but since we can't all be Apache pilots, that's just never going to happen. I think a HUD providing an overlay of data is good, but using it to see where you're driving just isn't viable. You move your head around too much, usually to see round the A pillar, or into the areas not quite fully lit by your headlights, a lot of which is outside the FLIR camera frame anyway. Additionally, having to refocus on a second image of the driving view isn't very efficient and messes with your head, and could even be a factor in your reaction time to something, like a deer stepping out in front of your car. Reaction times are quite small in road driving, compared to other vehicles in other environments. Really I'd have to try it, but based on my experiences to date I'm not so convinced it has much more value than as a novelty.

Watched a guy trying to park a VW in a bay where there were two tiny wild shrubs growing at the edge of the kerb. Every time he went to move forward, the shrubs triggered all his emergency shutdowns. Took him almost 15 minutes to edge 2' forward, ha ha!!!!! This is why you don't let computers drive your car for you.

Then yes, some of us do play games...

Which games?

How far are you willing to drive? I know someone very good, but they're in Reading.

I think it depends on the car, I find Beemers very easy to drive like a c-word, especially if you're not actually paying much attention, as they're just so disconnected from the actual drive... whereas some of the Mercs and Bentleys with far more power just feel like they have nothing to prove. It's the same on my bike - I can do 0-60 in under 3 seconds, but there's just no need...

I would have said no. I would have sworn no, in fact..... But I have the exact same car and just tested this out. They do indeed come on without the key in.

Do cars no longer have cup holders, then?

Hmm, bit rusty on that exhaust bracket..... At least the lad is unhurt. Wonder how he managed to end up lke that. Re-enacting Top Gun, perhaps?

I use Fuelio on my Android phone. This allows you to set up loads of reminders under different categories for servicing, maintenance, tax, MoT, Insurance and so on, based either on mileage, specific dates or time elapsed. Obviously the primary use is tracking fuel economy and charting your costs, but you can make all the scheduling as simple or as comprehensive as you like. I found it surprisingly easy and intuitive. Just plug in all the details of each element on the maintenance schedule and save. It also does multiple vehicles and even lets you set photos as the icons, so I've got it doing my motorcycle schedules too!